Centenary's Weekly Newsletter Friday, March 23, 2018
A Message from Centenary
Upcoming Special Services


RESCHEDULED LENTEN WORSHIP AND SUPPER: 
Due to the snow last Wednesday, we have rescheduled our last Lenten Worship and supper for this upcoming Wednesday, March 28.  We invite you to join us at 6 p.m. for worship, dinner, and conversation as we focus on the meaning of Holy Communion. 

Holy Thursday Service- Thursday, March 29, at 7:30 p.m.
Good Friday Service- Friday, March 30, at 7:30 p.m.
Easter Sunday Services- Sunday, April 1:
  •  Sunrise Service at Chimborazo Park at 7:00 a.m.
  •  Informal Worship Service at 8:40 a.m.
  •  Easter Egg Hunt for Children/Youth at 10:00 a.m.
  •  Traditional Worship Service at 11:00 a.m.
This Weekend at Centenary

Sunday, March 25, Palm Sunday 
              8:40 a.m.                 Informal Worship
       9:00 a.m.                 Pancake Breakfast
           10:15 a.m.                 Special Service at Second                                                               Presbyterian    
           11:00 a.m.                 Traditional Worship

***There will be no Sunday school this upcoming Sunday. 
 
This week, Dr. Bates will preach 
"No Perfect Disciples. "

 
We are so grateful for the generosity through donations of both monetary gifts and service hours shown throughout the year by our Centenary family and friends.  Our Easter Offering this year will continue with last year's fund for the replacement of the tile flooring in the Fellowship Hall; with the strikingly impressive recent improvements of our church facilities, this much-used area will benefit greatly with a needed renewal.  You may use your Easter Offering envelope or write "Easter Offering" on the memo line of your check.  Thank you in advance for your continued support of the church and its mission.
A Challenge from Bishop Lewis to Read the Bible with Her in 2018
 
This week's readings:
 
March 25        Judges 19-21
March 26        Ruth 1-4
March 27        1 Samuel 1-3
March 28        1 Samuel 4-8
March 29        1 Samuel 9-12
March 30        1 Samuel 13-14
March 31        1 Samuel 15-17



Upcoming Events


Bishop's Convocation on Race and Reconciliation:   Bishop Lewis has called a Convocation on Race and Reconciliation on Saturday, April 14, 2018, at Annandale UMC. The convocation will empower participants to become lifelong, learning disciples who will be able to conduct the difficult conversations we all need to have related to issues of racial division, justice, and God's call to ministries of  reconciliation and peace.   Visit this link to sign up for this event. 

CARISTAS at Centenary:   We will be hosting CARITAS the week of Saturday, April 21- Saturday, April 28, here at Centenary. Please put that week on your calendar. We need a variety of volunteers to help support this mission. We have listed the types of volunteers that will be needed and feel free to sign up for any or all of these on the bulletin board across from the kitchen. 

  1. Dinner: We need volunteers to provide, prepare, and serve a hot dinner for our guests. Dinner needs to be ready to be served at 7:00 p.m., so your arrival time is dictated by your preparation time. The Centenary kitchen will be available. If you need help with the appliances, we will try to pair you with someone who is familiar with the kitchen. This is a great event for groups such as Sunday school classes, families and friends, civic groups, Walk-In Ministry cooking groups, or other churches.
  2. Lunch Bag Prep: We need volunteers to prepare bag lunches for our guests. The lunches consist of sandwiches, chips, fruit, a drink (boxed juice or water), and a dessert. All supplies will be at the church as we will be soliciting donations of these items from our congregation. The duties include preparing the sandwiches and packing a bagged lunch for our guests. The time of day is flexible as long as the bagged lunches are prepared and ready the night before they are distributed the next morning.  
  3. Overnight: Volunteers are needed to stay overnight in the church from 9:30 p.m. until the guests leave the next day at 7:00 a.m. CARITAS staff will be present at all times. You may sleep in a separate area of the church behind closed doors, but you are there as an additional safety factor. Duties are setting up the cold breakfast for guests in the morning, distributing the bagged lunches, and securing the church facility after the guests have left for the day.

Adopt a Church Friend:   Please consider being part of a new ministry to help us care for one another. Here is a possible job description:  After accompanying me on your first visit to meet a senior member (who may or may not be confined to home in varying degrees) a younger member would continue in making contact with their new "Church Friend."  I would offer a "training class" in regards to ways to develop an ongoing and mutually blessed relationship.  We could decide together the best ways to keep in touch, including determining how often to visit, the helpfulness of sending notes between visits, and other ways to be in relationship with our new "Church Friend."  The amount of time that would be required to maintain a good relationship would be determined on an individual basis. As a part of the "training class," we would discuss appropriate limits and guidelines for "Church Friends."

As this new mission continues to unfold, please open your heart to explore this new opportunity to share God's love.  I look forward to hearing from you.  Please contact me at (804) 356-6860. I look forward to our ministry together.

Sincerely,
Rev. Rita Callis     

Palm Sunday: THIS Sunday, March 25: You won't want to miss this special day with a Pancake Breakfast starting at 9 a.m. and a special Palm Sunday Celebration at 10:15 a.m. at Second Presbyterian ( 5 North 5th St, Richmond, VA 23219 ) with other Downtown Community Ministries churches.


Easter Egg Hunt:  All children and youth are invited to join us for an Easter Egg Hunt on
EASTER SUNDAY, APRIL 1, at 10 a.m.  in the upstairs Children's Sunday School rooms.  Caregivers of preschool children are encouraged to stay and help with their children on the hunt.
 

Theatre Tickets:  We have two new opportunities for free theatre tickets. The first performance is "Lucky Me," on  Sunday, April 8, at 2:30 p.m. and performed by the CAT Theatre. The play will take place at The Playhouse, located at 319 North Wilkinson Road. The second play is "Romeo & Juliet," on  Sunday, April 15, at 2:00 p.m. and performed by the Quill Theatre. The play will take place at the VMFA Leslie Cheek Theatre, located at 200 North Boulevard (the theatre is on the lower level of the museum). If you are interested in any of these performances, see the bulletin board across from the kitchen to sign up, or contact Barrett Brown at  jmibb@verizon.net.

The 2018 Spring Geranium Sale with UMUMR/Shalom Farms is here!  4 1/2" pots are $4.50 each and will come in red, salmon, coral, hot pink, and white. We will take orders for specific colors but cannot guarantee they will be the colors you ordered. All orders must be placed and money turned into Pat Shipley no later than Friday, April 6. Plants will arrive Friday, April 13. Make checks out to: UMUMR.Note: We will only be accepting checks this year, no cash or credit card/debit card. Thanks so much and happy planting!

Sunday School: There will be no Sunday School on Palm Sunday ( Sunday, March 25) and Easter Sunday ( Sunday, April 1).


Attention All Graduates:  If you or someone in your family is planning on graduating from high school or college this spring or summer, please call the church office at (804) 648-8319, or send us an email at cent.umc@verizon.net, by Sunday, May 20, with the following information so that we can announce it in the bulletin.
The individual's:
1. Name (First, Middle, and Last)
2. Affiliation (child of, grandchild of, etc.)
3. School Attended
4. Future Plans
Thanks so much and congratulations graduates!
 

Centenary Young Adults:    Watch for details on upcoming events-Bowling on  Sunday, March 25  and Pub Theology on  Sunday, April 8 !
 

Church-wide Stations of the Cross: Good Friday, March 30, at 9:30 a.m.: Beginning at Third Street Bethel A.M.E. Church, 614 North 3rd Street in Richmond The Stations of the Cross is a retelling of events at the end of Jesus' life. On Good Friday, a group of people from various Richmond congregations will gather in the morning to walk the downtown streets stopping at churches and City Hall. At each stop, or station, the group will pause to hear a part of the story and to pray. As we walk from one station to another, we can talk with our neighbors who journey with us. It is a time of reflection, fellowship, and celebration as followers of Jesus Christ. We hope you will consider journeying with us on the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. Wear comfortable shoes and clothes for the walk. Vans will be available for those who are unable to walk to the nine stations, and there will be a police escort.  The walk should conclude around 11:00 a.m.

Route:
Begin at Third Street Bethel AME Church (Third and Leigh)
Go up Third Street to Grace Street
Turn left on E. Grace Street
Stop at Centenary United Methodist Church
Turn right on 5th Street
Stop at Second Presbyterian Church
Turn left on Main Street
Turn left on 7th Street
Turn right on Grace Street
Stop at St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church
Stop at St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Turn Left on 9th Street
Stop at City Hall
Turn left on Clay Street
Go through the Richmond Coliseum
Go to Adams and Clay streets
Stop at Hood Temple AME Zion Church
Turn right on Adams Street
Turn right on Leigh Street
Stop at Sharon Baptist Church
Turn left on 2nd Street
Turn right on Jackson Street
End at Third Street Bethel AME Church
 

Praise Chorus: The Praise Chorus will be practicing THIS Sunday, March 25 , at 8 a.m. and singing "Shout to the Lord," page 2074 in the Faith We Sing book, on Easter Sunday, April 1.
 
Unite to End Racism: Join Others in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, April 4You are invited to join others from the Richmond area in an effort to end racism.  On April 3-5, 2018 the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA and their partners will gather in Washington, D.C. for a historic event to launch its Truth and Racial Justice Initiative. As we mark 50 years since the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968, we will commit to do our part to eradicate the entrenched racism that grips the United States and paralyzes our ability to see every human being as equal.  If you are interested in learning more about this opportunity, please contact Rev. Pat Shipley at  plsrevdoc@aol.com . Here is the schedule for the Wednesday event:
Wednesday, April 4: ACT to End Racism Rally on the National Mall
  • 7-8 a.m.: Silent Prayer Walk to the National Mall
  • 8-9 a.m.: Interfaith Service
  • 9 a.m.-3 p.m.: Rally and Call to Commitment


Please Remember in Prayer
 
Jennifer (friend of Nancy Grand with lung problems)
Lou Rosypal (Westport rehab following broken hip)
Ron Davis (friend of Vic & Nancy Grand)
Jo Judd (a long-time childhood friend of Sharon Steele's, recovering from a massive brain injury from fall off a ladder in Boulder, CO)
Sharon & Richard Steele, and Matthew & Todd (as they travel to California for Richard's bother's funeral; they leave today and will return Monday)
Sonia Smith
John Lampe (recovering from surgery)
R.B. & Connie Bennington
Merle Brown (recovering from broken hip)
Mitzi Golod & Libby Rhame (in the recent loss of Libby's son & Mitzi's brother)
Goldie & Chas Craig (Chas will have bilateral laser surgery for kidney stones on 4/12/18 at Retreat Hospital) 


Celebrating Birthdays in March

Ann Davis
Polly Chamberlain
Stanley Childress
 Jane Chasse
Christopher Weaver
John Vetrovec
Carrie McNeil
Madison Lee
Amy Bates
Lucille Hunt
Jim Wickham
Virginia Davis
Conna Davis
Phil Crick
Julie Lee
George Little
Barbara Pierson
Judah Murphy
 Jean J. Wright
Sarah Wright
Audrey Kane
Charles Craig


 Photo of the Week!
Don't forget to join us this upcoming Sunday, March 25 (Palm Sunday) at 9 a.m. for a pancake breakfast with your Centenary Family! 





Centenary United Methodist Church | (804) 648-8319 | www.centumc.org 
Visit Us: 411 E. Grace St., Richmond, VA 23219
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