March 16, 2015

Inside This Edition 

 

Symposium on Hunger Alleviation and Food Justice

 

Music Fest 2015

 

2015 Pastors' Retreat

 

Catonsville Concert @ 3: "Simple Gifts" Folk-Music Trio

 

Light Street PC Piano Concert: Tian Lu and Yury Shadin

 

Springfield Concert: Ken Kolodner (Dulcimer) and Elke Baker (Fiddle)

 

First & Franklin Concert: Theodore Hanslow & Mark Markham

 

Woods seeks a Director of Music.Organist

 

Mt. Hebron seeks a Part-Time Youth Leader

 

Woods' Mem'l PC Choir Concert

 

Support Group for Caregivers' of Spouses with Mental Illness

 

PCUSA Mission Workers Lecture on Peace in Northern Ireland

 

Biblical Storyteller Dr, racy Radosevic: "Trailing Jesus . . . Backpacks and Blisters"  And More Storytelling. . .

 

Compassion, Peace and Justice Training in Washington, DC

 

Eastern Region of the Assoc. for Presbyterian Christian Educators

 

Spring Gathering of Presbyterian Women in the Presbytery  

 

Commission & Committee Meetings
Committee and Commission meetings will be held at the Presbytery's office unless noted otherwise.) 

Commission on Thriving Congregations will meet 6:30pm Tuesday Mar. 17 in the Woodmont Room.

  

Gathering Team will meet 1:30pm on Thursday, Mar. 19.

 

Susquehanna Parrish MG will meet from 7-9pm on Thursday Mar. 19 at Franklinville PC.

 

West Side Story MG will meet Saturday, Mar. 21 at Catonsville PC following A Morning of Prayer.

 

Wild, Wild West MG will meet 10:30am on Thursday, Mar. 26 at Hancock PC in Washington County.

Shared Ministry Pledge
Submit your Session's 2015 Shared Ministry Pledge On-Line. . .




Link to fillable form can also be found at www.baltimorepresbytery.org

A MORNING OF PRAYER:

 

RECONCILED & RECONCILING

 

 

by Debbie Schmidt, 

Associate  for Spiritual Leader Development

 

Fifty years after that historic confrontation in Selma, we rejoice at what was accomplished; but at the same time, we grieve that racism and social inequality are still the experience of so many Americans. New examples of racial injustice seem to show up in the news on a daily basis. As Christians, we ask, "how long, O Lord?"

 

On Saturday, Mar. 21, the Commission on Spiritual Leader Development will host a Morning of Prayer to engage leaders of our congregations in praying about some of these issues. The event will be hosted at two sites in order to make it accessible to people in the eastern and western parts of the presbytery. Throughout the morning, the two sites will connect with each other by skype as a sign of the unity we share.

 

Catonsville Presbyterian will host the eastern event and Covenant Presbyterian in Hagerstown will host for the western part of the state. Both events will be held from 9am until noon.

 

During the morning, we will be praying in different ways, some familiar and some perhaps new to you. Our hope is that you will find new practices to incorporate into your own personal prayer. We will close each event by sharing communion together.

 

In the face of such overwhelming problems, prayer sometimes seems like an inadequate solution or even a cheap gesture. I like the words of blogger Jamie Wright who says, "When we pray for one another, we are acknowledging that we are connected, not just to God, but to each other. Your pain matters, not just to God, but to me. Your joy is delightful, not just to God, but to me. The suffering of this broken world must be addressed, not just by God, but by me." She goes on to warn that when we pray for others, we should probably be open to the possibility that God's love, justice, grace, and mercy may need to flow through us in other, more tangible, ways.

 

Are you willing to take that risk? Plan to attend one of the Mornings of Prayer as we hold a broken world before our loving God. Who knows what God might do in our world and in each of us. For questions or to RSVP, contact Debbie Schmidt.

 

Take  noteTake Note /Act Now
Take Note/Act Now

 

Presbytery  .  .  . and the  Wider Church 

 

The Commission on Reconciliation is convening a Symposium on hunger alleviation and food justice on Wednesday, Mar. 18 for representatives from Presbyterian congregations with hunger ministries, local and state non-profit organizations.  Registration is limited and participants must have direct experience.  For details, email Susan Krehbiel or call 410.433.2012, ext. 151. 

 

 

Save the date!  The 2015 Pastors' Retreat will be held at Bon Secours Retreat Center from Wednesday Apr. 22 to Thursday Apr. 23.  Our featured presenter, TE Theresa Cho (Saint John's Presbyterian Church in San Francisco) will discuss how to integrate art in worship.   

 

 

Churches

 

Catonsville Concerts at 3 presents "Simple Gifts" folk trio.  At 3pm on Sunday, Mar. 22.  The trio of folk musicians plays a variety of ethnic folk styles from lively Irish jigs to hard-driving Klezmer frailachs and haunting Gypsy melodies.  The concert is free.  For details call 410.747.6180.
 

A piano concert featuring Chinese pianist Tian Lu and Russian pianist Yury Shadrin at 4pm on Sunday, Mar. 29 will benefit Light Street Presbyterian Church.  Admission is free; although a freewill offering will be made. For details, click Light Street.


 

Springfield Presbyterian Church will host a concert featuring Ken Kolodner (hammered dulcimer among other instruments), and Elke Baker (National Scottish Fiddle Champion- fiddle & violin) at 3pm on Sunday, Apr. 12.  Ken and Elke have performed together for several years and just released a new joint CD, "Out of the Woods." Please join us for an afternoon of great music and good food served at a reception following the concert.  Click Springfield for details. 
 

Theodora Hanslowe and Mark Markham, both graduates of The Peabody Conservatory of Music, mark their return to Baltimore with a program featuring works by Handel, Strauss, Obradors, Gershwin, Porter and others. Concert will be held 8pm on Friday, Apr. 24 at First & Franklin Presbyterian Church in Baltimore. A Meet-the-Artists reception will follow the performance. Tickets are $20 for general admission and $10 for students; available in advance on the church website (Paypal) and at the door (cash).


Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church seeks a qualified Organist and Director of Music for an interim period beginning June 2015. The position requires overall responsibility for planning and execution of the traditional music program. Salaried position.  For details, click Music Interim.

 

Mt. Hebron Presbyterian Church seeks a part-time Intern Youth & Children's Leader.  This is a year-round salaried position averaging 12-15 hours per week.  A full job description is available at www.mthebronpc.org.  Contact TE Adrian Pratt  at 410.465.3993 or pastor@mthebronpc.org. 

 

Come hear the uplifted voices of Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church Choirs - children, youth and adults and a string quartet - at 7:30pm on Friday, May 1.  Admission is free and childcare is available upon request. For details call 410.647.2550.   A free-will offering will benefit Benevolent Baskets, a local women's back-to-work program, and the Music Ministry of Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church.


 

 

Other
 

Are you a Teaching Elder with a spouse who suffers from mental illness (clinical depression, bipolar disorder, etc.)? If so, you are invited to be part of a peer support group with other Teaching Elders in Baltimore Presbytery who are in the same situation. Contact Deb Milcarek for details.

 

Congregations in the presbytery, particularly those located in Western, MD, are invited to hear the Rev. Doug Baker talk about Northern Ireland and peacemaking this Monday afternoon from 2pm to 3pm.; and attend a  potluck dinner at 6pm followed by a presentation.  Doug and his wife Elaine have spent thirty years working for peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland as PCUSA Mission Workers. For details, click Peacemaking

 

Dr. Tracy Radosevic, acclaimed biblical storyteller and professor of religious education, will be the presenter for the Mar. 20 "Fridays with the Faculty" at 7pm in Laubacher Hall on the campus of the Ecumenical Institute of Theology at St. Mary's Seminary & University. "Trailing Jesus: a Journey of Incarnation through Biblical Stories, Backpacks & Blisters" will be the focus for a discussion about Dr. Radosevic's recent Holy Land travels. Though free and open to the public, pre-registration is  appreciated. 410.864.4203; ei@stmarys.edu; www.stmarys.edu/ei. 

 

AND there's still time to register for Dr. Radosevic's course, Biblical Storytelling I. Selected dates in April 2015.  More information. Or contact the office at ei@stmarys.edu, 410.864.4203.
 

Compassion, Peace and Justice Training Day in Washington, DC -- on April 17th, Presbyterians from across the country will gather in Washington before the start of Ecumenical Advocacy Days. Together, through workshops and plenaries, we will look at issues of Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation and learn how individuals and congregations can make an impact in their community and their nation.  Register Now!

 

The Eastern Region of the Association for Presbyterian Christian Educators will sponsor a continuing education event in Chambersburg, PA  April 20-22 featuring keynote speaker, Rev. Dr. Lib Caldwell discussing "Teaching the Bible to Children (and their Parents)." For details, click EAPCE.

 

The Spring Gathering of Presbyterian Women in the Presbytery of Baltimore, entitled Mosaic of Peace, will be held from 9am to 1pm on Saturday, Apr. 25 at Hunting Ridge Presbyterian Church.  The event will feature guest speaker Eva Hendrix-Shovlin, a participant of the Israel Palestine PC(USA) Mosaic of Peace Conference.  Click PWP to register.

 

 

 


taff Directory

Craig N. Palmer
Transitional General Presbyter
  Deb Milcarek

Assoc. for Reconciliation

dmilcarek@baltimorepresbytery.org 
 


Susan Krehbiel

Dir. of Congregational Advocacy

skrehbiel@baltimorepresbytery.org

  

 

William Nickels III

 Assoc. General Presbyter

bnickels@baltimorepresbytery.org

 

Debbie Ingram Schmidt

Assoc. for Spiritual Leader Development

 

Wanda Morgan

Dir. of Events/Services
  
wmorgan@baltimorepresbytery.org 

 

 

 

 


Catherine Blacka

Judy Johnson

Ministry Group Staff

jjohnson@baltimorepresbytery.org

 

 

 Deborah Greene

Dir. of Communications