Penn Northeast Conference UCC, 431 Delaware Ave., Palmerton, PA 18071
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Penn Northeast Conference Spring Meeting
NOTE: If attending the whole event this will qualify for Cultural Competency Training
(virtual or in person)
May 13 - 14, 2022 (Friday - Saturday)
The Chateau at Camelback
475 Camelback Rd., Tannersville, PA
Keynoter: Valarie Kaur
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Valarie Kaur is an American activist, documentary filmmaker, lawyer, educator, and faith leader. She is the founder of the Revolutionary Love Project. Kaur's debut book, See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love, was published in June 2020.
Friday, May 13, 2022, 5:00 p.m.
Valarie Kaur Zoom Presentation and Interfaith Worship including Valarie
Saturday, May 14, 2022
Morning: Interfaith Workshops
Afternoon: Business Meeting, Recognition of Pastors and Churches, Installation, Closing Worship
including Communion
Registration is available for Friday evening only or for Friday and Saturday.
OR Click Here for form to mail in registration along with your payment
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Last Call for these Up-Coming Events & Deadlines |
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UCC News Digest
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Pennsylvania Council of Churches
WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH SERVICE MARCH 27
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Easter Retreat
April 14–17, 2022
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Pennsylvania Council of Churches
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Interfaith Action Group of the Lehigh Conf. of Churches
HSS Poster Exhibition
April 10 from 2 to 6 PM
Asbury Church
1533 Springhoue Rd., Allentown
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Summary Notes of the March 14, 2022 Conference Board Meeting
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Robert K. Campbell Lecture Series
March 31 & April 1
What's Mine To Do?
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Lenten Prayer Service
Take a Prayer Break - Every Thursday at noon during Lent join colleagues from the four PA UCC conferences for a short time of prayer on zoom. Each gathering will be led by a conference staff member and will include readings, reflection, and a time for intercessory prayer. All are welcome to join. Zoom information is below and is the same for every week. We begin March 3rd and will end on April 14th.
Carrie Call is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Lenten Prayer
Time: 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 841 7677 4603 Passcode: 260414
Rev. Carrie Call, PhD, Conference Minister, Penn Central Conference
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Two-part Adult Spiritual Formation Series in May
Metropolitan Community Church of the Lehigh Valley is hosting
Part one is "Christian Teaching on Alcohol" meets on Tuesday, May 10 at 6pm ET via Zoom or
in-person at the church at 7pm.
Part two is "Christian Teaching on Gambling" meets on Tuesday, May 17 also at 6pm ET via Zoom or in-person at the Church at 7pm.
Facilitated by Rev. Goudy, the classes are free and open to the public, no registration is needed. The Zoom ID is 876 0624 8826 and the church is located at 1401 Greenview Drive in Bethlehem (18018).
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UCC Share Love for Ukranian Neighbors
Our Ukrainian neighbors need us now. Millions have been displaced, seeking shelter and basic necessities. Please take a moment now to help our partners in the region meet these needs with a gift to the UCC Ukraine Relief Fund.
The Russian military attack on Ukraine created a massive humanitarian crisis. More than 2.3 million people have fled Ukraine, with hundreds of thousands more displaced from their homes but unable to leave the country. The need for basic necessities is staggering.
You can stand with those in need. Ministering with our global partners, your love of neighbor will be made tangible through a gift that will:
- Provide welcome, shelter, and respite for refugees seeking safety
- Support Hungarian Interchurch Aid, which has provided resources to 9,000 people while shipping convoys of aid into western Ukraine - delivering more food, water, and sanitation items daily
- Join humanitarian relief partners in Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Romania, and Ukraine through the ACT Alliance
- Attend to the most vulnerable - children, the elderly, and refugees from other countries who are now twice displaced.
United in prayer, action, and giving, we stand as a people of faith in love and compassion with all affected and with our global partners who are welcoming those driven from their homes.
In faith, Kent Siladi, Director of Philanthropy
P.S. If you have already given to this relief effort, thank you!
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The members of the Scranton Area Ministerium, like people throughout the world, have watched the suffering of the Ukrainian people with horror and outrage
We feel compelled to express our common humanity with all those involved.
- We want the victims of this aggression to know we stand with them.
- We want those who are instigating the violence to know that we appeal to the moral conscience we share to seek non-violent ways of resolving conflict.
- We express our admiration and support for those throughout Europe and all over the world who have responded to the challenge of providing for the millions of refugees seeking safety and the minimum requirements of survival and dignity.
We are acutely aware that many of our neighbors in Northeast Pennsylvania have personal connections with the nations involved on both sides of this conflict. As all of us wrestle with the secondary trauma of watching the atrocities unfold before our eyes, we want those who have a more intense engagement with that violence to know they are not alone.
Our spiritual traditions teach us that one of the greatest temptations when faced with overwhelming evil is to fall silent before it, seeing ourselves as helpless or inadequate to address such great injustice.
Our faith communities can, however, engage right now in specific actions to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, and this transition can be a powerful force in eliminating the financial foundations of autocratic aggression.
The direct connection between environmental justice and the maintenance of peace among nations has been clearly established, and many of our religious communities are already engaged in actions to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and promote environmental justice.
As we prayerfully search our hearts for how best to respond to the heart-wrenching violence being endured by the people of Ukraine, let us commit ourselves to do what we can to transform the social structures that make such aggression possible.
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Webinars Offered
Materiality as Resistance: Five Elements for Moral Action in the Real World – by Walter Brueggemann – led by Mandy Mastros
Thursday, April 7, 2021 – 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Thursdays – 4/7, 14, 21, 28/2022
Join Zoom Meeting
Caste – by Isabel Wilkerson - led by Gerald Simmons
(this would count as Anti-Racism Training)
Monday, May 2, 2021 – 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Mondays – May 2, 9, 16, 23, June 6, 13, 20, 2022
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Mindfulness and Meditation Gatherings by Zoom
With Rev. Kris P. Snyder (from Union, Neffs)
Thursdays 12noon to 1pm
April 21, May 6, May 26, June 9, June 23
By zoom only – use the link below.
Using practices from the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) model, Plum Village Thich Nhat Hanh tradition, Centering Prayer, and a little Qigong and movement we’ll gather for an hour of practice.
No experience necessary, lots of experience welcome too. Sign up here if you are interested and available for some or all of these dates:
Or just show up using the zoom link.
If you’re interested but these times and days don’t work, let me know and we can try to offer more.
Zoom Link:
Meeting ID: 811 8812 7483
Passcode: 348630
One tap mobile
+13017158592,,81188127483#,,,,*348630# US (Washington DC)
+13126266799,,81188127483#,,,,*348630# US (Chicago)
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Lehigh Valley Freedom School
The James Lawson Freedom School is gearing up for Summer 2022. The program will run from June 20, 2022- July 29, 2022. We are focused on fundraising, national and local training and recruitment of our Servant Leader interns. The program is building partnerships with Da Vinci Science Center and working with Wildlands Conservancy to enhance our learning enrichment through the Integrated Reading Curriculum.
We are thrilled to welcome Delia Mitchell as our Freedom School Program Assistant. Delia has served 2 years as a Site Coordinator with the James Lawson Freedom School and brings a slew of knowledge in the area of early childhood education. Delia has a background in community outreach and administration.
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Free Movie Event To Honor Mental Health Awareness Month
Please review the attached invitation to join us on Tuesday May 3rd at Liberty High School in Bethlehem from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm. As faith leaders in our Lehigh Valley, we would be honored by your attendance, and also your stakeholders. The event is open to our whole community including youth, parents, and all our neighbors across the Lehigh Valley…this is most appropriate for teens, parents of teens, and anyone working with teens. Following the film, My Ascension, there will be a youth Q & A panel guided by the film’s Director, Gary Dicharry, and Emma Benoit will be in attendance to share her positivity and hope to our community’s youth.
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Process the Pandemic for Ministry
Help for Getting Through the Covid Blahs - Start re-energizing with Faith+Lead's Processing the Pandemic of Ministry. We are all worn down after another year ravaged by the pandemic. The good news is that now - over just two hours a week for three weeks - there's an opportunity to recover, regroup, and get ready for a healthy, hopeful future.
Tuesdays, April 19, 26 & May 3
7 to 8:30 PM Central Time
You will discover:
- Opportunities to prioritize what’s been learned and to process it in a supportive environment
- A safe space for integrating what you’ve learned through the pandemic and gently moving forward in whole and healthy ways
- A sustainable game plan for achieving two goals—unique to you—in the 30 days following this course
- ... and so much more!
It's an opportunity to practice stillness, intentional reflection, and realistic goal-setting—all within a safe, supportive environment. Sign up today!
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World Water Day 2022: Access to safe clean drinking water is a human right
As we mark World Water Day today we remember that over 1 billion people in the world lack sustainable access to freshwater. We know that water is a vital ingredient for life and access to safe clean drinking water is a human right.
Global Ministries has supported the Machaze Water Wells project of the United Church of Christ in Mozambique (UCCM) since the project was created. To date, UCCM has built 11 cisterns to collect rainwater and two boreholes (wells) in different locations across the Machaze district of the Manica province. While these have provided the life-giving resource of water for many years, due to the unprecedented droughts in the past two years, many of these cisterns installed by UCCM are now dry. Therefore, UCCM is preparing to build water wells in two communities: Bassani and Chibuto. These new wells will be installed deep enough to provide water during severe droughts. Continue reading about this project.
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Event Bradbury-Sullivan Center
has coming up next week, Wednesday 03/30, 6:30pm here at the center with Anglican theologian, pastor, and LGBTQ+ human rights defender, Rev. Álvaro Duran (he/him).
Álvaro is the first and only openly LGBTQ+ religious leader in El Salvador. The Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Center, in collaboration with the Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem, welcomes Álvaro as he comes to speak about LGBTQ+ liberation and the commitment of radical inclusion and justice that communities of faith can embody. This time with Álvaro also speaks to the intersection of Latino/a/e cultural identities, spirituality, and gender and sexual diversity.
This event will be bilingual and also catered as well. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
With light, -Robin
F. Robin Gow | Cultural & Community Programs Manager, Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center, 522 West Maple Street, at Bayard Rustin Way, Allentown, PA 18101, (610) 347-9988 x112
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Trinity Retreat Center
Upcoming In-Person Retreats
See the full schedule for 2022 here.
O Barco…Outro Mar: Celebrating Latinx and Hispanic Communities - with the Rev. Dr. Mark Francisco Bozzuti-Jones -- April 26–28, 2022 | Learn more and book
This retreat offers an opportunity for people of the Latinx and Hispanic communities to come together for guided prayer, rest, reflection, walks, the sharing of stories, and contemplation using poetry and scripture.
Integrity Retreat: Freeing Jesus - with Diana Butler-Bass -- May 6–8, 2022 | Learn more and book
Using Diana Butler-Bass’s newest book, Freeing Jesus: Rediscovering Jesus as Friend, Teacher, Savior, Lord, Way, and Presence, as a starting point, this weekend retreat will show how Trinity’s core value of integrity calls us to pay attention to our life experience, as we grow in self-understanding and in our relationship with Jesus.
Wade in the Water: Celebrating Blackness - with the Rev. Dr. Mark Francisco Bozzuti-Jones
An opportunity for people from across the African diaspora to come together for prayer, rest, walks, and the sharing of stories. Join the Trinity Retreat Center staff for a time of healing and reflection, enjoying nature, gathering around the table for farm-to-table meals, and participating in the retreat house’s rhythm of prayer.
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Vital Conversations
Every one of us as pastors and church leaders longs for new ideas and innovations that will breathe an energizing spirit into our congregations. Well, did you know that there is a forum in PNEC that meets every month just for the purpose of sharing those sort of insights?
On the last Monday of each month, on Zoom at 7 PM, the Congregational Vitality Team hosts a “Vital Conversation.” Our conversations vary on the focal topic—past sessions have centered on subjects like stewardship, Christian education, and defining “vitality”—yet, every session is geared toward thinking together about a particular area of congregational life and brainstorming creative, imaginative, life-giving ways to do ministry. So, whether you’re looking for a spark of inspiration, a new idea, or simply want to talk and share with your colleagues some of the creative things you’re trying, please join us at the next Vital Conversation:
The Zoom Meeting ID is: 817 9668 4439
Passcode: 292474
Upcoming dates and topics are:
- March 28 at 7 PM - Inclusive Worship
- April 25 at 7 PM - Reaching Youth and Young Adults
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Getting Ready for Earth Sunday: Resources for Congregations
With the recently released report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the dire situation faced by our world has never been clearer. In such a moment, leadership from communities of faith is sorely needed. Thankfully, Creation Justice Ministries has created an ecumenical resource that will assist churches in answering the call placed upon us in this moment. The resource is entitled “Weathering the Storm: Faithful Climate Resilience.” It specifically helps churches respond to the question, “How can our churches be hubs of resilience, helping our neighbors weather the physical and spiritual storms of the climate crisis?” The resource can be used year-round and is also particularly useful in preparing for Earth Sunday (April 24th).
The next installment of Creation Justice Webinars will be presented on April 13, 2022 at 1:00 PM ET. It will feature, Avery Davis Lamb, Co-Executive Director of Creation Justice Ministries, who will introduce the resource and talk about specific ways churches can deliver a powerful message and experience on Earth Sunday.
Even if you cannot make the webinar at its scheduled time, still sign-up, and you will be sent the link to the recording. You can download the resource at https://www.creationjustice.org/.
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The Pennsylvania Council of Churches Campground Ministry
is seeking chaplains for this summer. To learn more:
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UCC Digital Programming
Wednesdays with the World
Thursdays for the Soul
Thursday, March 31, 3:30pm ET -
Creation Justice
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Co-Sponsors Needed for
Refugee Families
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Clergy Convocation 2022
May 3-5, 2022
Double Tree by Hilton, 2400 Willow Street Pike, Lancaster, PA 17602
Qualifies for 10 Contact Hours
PSEC website
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Moravian and Mercersburg Traditions: Can These Two Walk Together?
co-sponsored by the Mercersburg Society, Lancaster Theological Seminary and Moravian University
May 23 & 24, 2022
on the campus of Lancaster Theological Seminary, 555 West James St., Lancaster
REGISTRATION DEADLINE -- May 15
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Lombard Mennonite Peace Center
May 9-13; June 13-17; Aug. 1-5; Nov. 14-18
Mediation Skills Training Institute for Church Leaders
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April 7 & September 21
Journey Toward Healing
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May 19 - Leadership & Anxiety in the Church
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March 29 - Facilitating Healthy Pastor-Congregation Relations
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April 2 - Healthy Congregations
May 7 - Conflict Transformation Skills for Churches
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Pennsylvania Academy of Ministry UPCOMING Classes
The Future of Multivocational Ministries -- April 27 to May 17
Instructor Darryl W. Stephens. A Financial Basics class for lay and clergy leaders.
Personal and Spiritual Development -- May 24 to June 28
Instructor Carrie Call. Tuesdays, 7–8:30pm. A Ministerial Institute class on spiritual disciplines, congregational systems, and vocational discernment.
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DISASTER MINISTRIES UCC
The Church of the Brethren Disaster Services (a VOAD partner with the UCC) will present an in-person Children’s Disaster Services Volunteer Workshop on May 13 - 14, 2022. The event will begin on Friday at 4:30 PM ET and conclude at 5:30 PM on Saturday. The event will be held at the Lititz Church of the Brethren, 300 Orange St., Lititz, PA 17543. The CDS Volunteer Workshop is a comprehensive 25 - hour workshop that uses applied, experiential activities to help the participants integrate their learning. The workshop will train you to understand and respond to children who have experienced a disaster. Participants will experience a simulated shelter, sleeping on cots and eating simple meals. Once the training is completed, participants have the opportunity to become a certified Children’s Disaster Services volunteer. Learn more on the attached flyer. Register.
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April 5, 2022 (Tuesday), 11:00 am – 12:00 pm ET: What Emergency Managers Want Faith Leaders To Know. Being prepared to respond to a disaster or other significant event in your communities is paramount to best taking care of your people and property. This session will provide you with some key take-aways and resources to help you achieve a better preparedness posture. Presenter: Miriam Gelo, Voluntary Agency Liaison, FEMA Headquarters, Washington D.C.
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DHS Center for Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships - Webinars & Resources
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One Great Hours of Sharing - Sunday, March 27, 2022, the fourth Sunday of Lent, is the recommended date for the offering "One Great Hour of Sharing." Resources to help promote the offering have been mailed to the churches.
The theme for the 2022 One Great Hour of Sharing (OGHS) offering is “Love Remains,” based on 1 Corinthians 13:13, "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." These words were written to a church in turmoil to remind them what love looks like in community.
What does love look like today? Through our collective generosity, the United Church of Christ has worked with both domestic and international partners to provide food, water, medicines, education, disaster recovery resources and opportunities for sustainable development, bringing hope to places of despair. Gifts to OGHS allow us to put love into action to make a difference in the lives of individuals and communities in crisis in this country and around the world.
If you would like more information on how OGHS supports our disaster ministries, contact our Conference Disaster Coordinator, Karl Jones, 570-617-4018 or kjones275@comcast.net.
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