• THIS WEEK IN PNEC                May 25, 2023

PNEC Vision Statement:

"United in Faith...Committed to Love...Created to Serve"

Penn Northeast Conference UCC, 431 Delaware Ave., Palmerton, PA 18071

www.pnec.org  610-826-3113

Conference Minister, Rev. Dr. Bonnie Bates   bonnieb@pnec.org       

Barbara Jennings   barbaraj@pnec.org

Patty Rehrig   pattyr@pnec.org

  SEND ARTICLES TO BE INCLUDED TO  pattyr@pnec.org

The Penn Northeast Conference Office will be closed on Monday, May 29, 2023 in observance of Memorial Day.


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Bonnie's Letter

Bonnie is on vacation...tune in next week!!

Keystone Study Group – Communications Summary of 2023-05-12 Meeting

The sixth meeting of the Keystone Study Group* took place Friday, May 12, 2023. This group continues to explore the possibility of mutual or consolidated ministry among the four conferences toward the question, “could we become ONE Keystone Conference?” Last month, we answered the question of WHY pursue this possibility and embraced the truth in affirmation, “Together we are stronger! The Keystone Conference” and the Spirit is still speaking!


We believe a unified Keystone Conference will better serve, support, challenge and unite our diverse faith communities and ministry settings. Our study group focused on the many areas of opportunity to create a more robust and effective connection between the Conference functions/roles and the needs  of  ministry settings. WHAT is needed, desired, dreamt of  for a more vibrant and vital ministry? The WHAT and the larger HOW will be our ongoing tasks in coming months.


Learning from the experience of other conferences, we take seriously the task of exploring options and questions around collaboration, accountability, effectiveness and meaningful connections. We looked at continuing with the “status quo,” and encouraging mutuality and sharing of opportunities for collaboration. We discussed merging the 4 conferences to 2. We shared options for church consultation models to deploy support with various expertise for needs, as well as more effectively utilizing part-time persons/clergy in staffing resources. We recognized that a systematic analysis of local congregations and their voices is needed to support strategic missional priority. The Conference serves to empower the work of ministry in many unique and mission critical areas. In all these considerations, we returned again to the power and energy of who we are and could be together. Our consensus remains, “Together we are stronger! The Keystone Conference.”


We now come to the WHAT… In what ways would God work with and through us to create that which strengthens our undeveloped or underutilized potential? What strengths do we possess that will get us to our future? We believe a Keystone Conference can inspire all settings of the Church to thrive in diversity and unity. We are exploring the necessary and desired functions of a Keystone Conference and what outcomes we believe you, our shared community, would want to achieve together. We began discussing functions and outcomes around Mission/Social Justice, Oversight/Authorization, Faith Formation for ALL ages, and Generosity. In the coming months, we will discuss Search and Call, Leadership Training, Technology/Digital Ministry, Communication, Ecumenism, Church Futures, Our Shared Voice and Ministry, Spiritual Revival, Crisis/Conflict Response and Transformation, as we identify  functions and outcomes.


Our partnered work is greater than our individual efforts. We continue to embrace the possibility of our WHY, as we move forward with WHAT we believe God is calling us ALL to become, and being open to HOW the Holy Spirit will create innovation through our shared vision to give voice, strength and greater life to the Body of Christ.


Our ministry study continues in the hope and assurance that… “Together We Are Stronger! – The Keystone Conference.”

Sharing our progress in grace and hope,

KSG Communications Team

 

Steve Davis                       St. John’s UCC, Fullerton (PNEC)

Sterling Fritz                     Redeemer’s UCC, Littlestown (PCC)

Robin Hightower             Peace In Zion UCC, Zieglerville (PSEC)

Deb Long                           First Trinity UCC, Youngwood (PWC)


*A study and discernment group of the 4 PA area UCC Conferences – Penn West, Penn Central, Penn NE, and Pennsylvania SE

Introducing Journeying toward Racial Justice with Ibram X. Kendi

by Bonnie Bates

 (If you are interested in reading this book and joining conversations with other members of PNEC, please let us know. This book study and conversation will count as the required

Anti-Racism Training for Authorized Ministers.)


The United Church of Christ has a long history of addressing and advocating for an end to racist policies and practices, including systemic and institutional racism within the Christian church. In 2003 General Synod 24 adopted a resolution calling for the UCC to be an antiracist church stating that “racism is rooted in a belief of the superiority of whiteness and bestows benefits, unearned rights, rewards, opportunities, advantages, access, and privilege on Europeans and European descendants.”

 

Through the Join the Movement toward Racial Justice initiative we are making explicit and concrete our antiracist commitments so that the UCC might live more fully into the historic efforts we’ve made to becoming an antiracist denomination. We are building on the revolutionary work of our freedom-making ancestors as we cultivate intersectional movements with healing and repair at the center and align ourselves with the movement of the Spirit toward justice.

 

Every setting of the UCC, from local churches to global partners has a role to play in expanding our practices of antiracism and strengthening our capacities as partners and participants in the burgeoning racial justice movements of our time.

 

To equip us on this journey toward racial justice,

we are calling on the whole church to engage in an all-church read of

Ibram X. Kendi’s book, How to Be an Antiracist.

 

Blurring the lines between memoir, history and social analysis, Kendi’s book invites readers into the moment-by-moment work of creating greater racial equity. By sharing stories of his own journey, he helps illuminate how each one of us is being presented with opportunities both large and small, both individually and systemically, to build a more just world through our policies and practices. We hope you will take this opportunity to lean into understanding and dismantling racism based on biology, ethnicity, body, culture, behavior, color, space, and class, as you equip yourselves for the intersectional struggle for racial justice that addresses overlapping networks of oppression and bigotry.

 

As Kendi says in his introduction, “This book is ultimately about the basic struggle we’re all in, the struggle to be fully human and to see that others are fully human.” As people of faith, we know that this kind of loving regard is an essential part of our discipleship. We hope you’ll join with so many others in exploring how this book and these antiracist practices can move us toward racial justice!

NEW...ONA (Open and Affirming) Community of Practice

(new COP being offered)

Facilitator: Rev. Laura Oesterle, Assistant Chaplain, Moravian College

This COP will be a half year commitment and will cost $125

If interested - please email or call Patty at the Penn Northeast Conference Office - pattyr@pnec.org;

610-826-3113

NEW...Faith Formation Community of Practice

(this is a new COP being offered)

Facilitator: Janet Newett, pastor of UCC Greenawalds, Allentown

This COP will be a half year commitment and will cost $125

If interested - Please email or call Patty at the Penn Northeast Conference Office - pattyr@pnec.org ; 610-826-3113

Generosity Updates

  • Upcoming Stewardship Webinars

Selected 4th Wednesdays

7:30pm - 8:30pm

Eastern Time Unless Noted -- Webinars Are Not Recorded


CLICK HERE FOR FULL ARTICLES

Can the Church Change?” Summit

A collaboration between the United Church of Christ and Convergence. Five days, Ten Conversations. A big question. By signing up for your FREE access, you’ll get access to two conversations daily, with leaders like Traci Blackmon, Diana Butler Bass, Brian McClaren, Miguel de la Torre and others lending their wisdom to the space. If you can’t catch the videos on the day they’re aired, but know you want to have this content for the future, think about purchasing your lifetime access - registration here. Don’t miss these galvanizing, hopeful conversations. 

PATHWAYS Theological Education, Inc. is a 501c3 program that grew from a program of the Southeast Conference UCC. It remains affiliated with the Southeast Conference. The program offers a full menu of courses for those seeking authorized ministry, for those wanting continuing education, and for those looking for a progressive theology, ethics, or practical church course. The courses are asynchronous, geographically unbound, affordable, and aligned with the UCC Marks of Faithful and Effective Authorized Ministers. Please be in touch with any questions. You may apply online at pathwaystheological.org. Click Here for full listing of classes.

LUNCH & LEARN: SECURE ACT 2.0

Rethinking Retirement Investments & Estate Planning for 2023 and Beyond

Date: Sunday, June 11th

Location: Old Zionsville UCC, 5981 Fountain Road, Zionsville,PA18092

Post Worship Lunch: 12:15pm –12:45pm

Educational Workshop: 12:45pm –1:30pm

Click Here for Detailed Flyer

Walk to Combat Family Homelessness

Join us on June 3rd

Family Promise of Lehigh Valley has been selected to be a participating organization in the Annual Highmark Walk for a Healthy Community. This year the walk will be held at DeSales University on Saturday June 3, 2023. 


Please consider joining us by doing the following:

  • Watch for and share walk information on our Family Promise Facebook Site
  • Put together a team to walk on behalf of Family Promise
  • Walk as an individual
  • 5K Walk begins at 9:00 A.M. - 1 Mile Walk begins at 9:15 A.M.
  • Purchase a Family Promise Tee-Shirt for $10.00

For more information or to sign up to walk click below or contact Family Promise at 610-351-1368 or visit our website at www.fplehighvalley.org Click Here to Register

May is Mental Health Awareness month

The UCC suggests that church celebrate and make use of resources around Mental Well being on the 3rd Sunday of the Month of May. https://www.mhn-ucc.org/mental-health-sunday/ is the link where the WISE program of the UCC offers resources for putting together a specific worship service around this topic. We, the Mental Health Ministry Team would like to invite you to engage in dialogue with your local churches around this very important topic. If you would like to reach out to us for more resources or questions about how your local church might be more involved and have more discussion around Mental Health in your church, please reach out to Rev. Emily B. Hall @ hopeuccpastor@rcn.com or Mandy Muschett @ achadeayne@gmail.com and we would be more then happy to work with you or to find somebody who would be able to work with you and your congregation around this very important topic.

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Sponsorships available for the 25th Anniversary CPE Event at Phoebe

Dear Friends of Phoebe, The Clinical Pastoral Education program at Phoebe Ministries is designed to offer clergy, seminary students, and qualified community members of all faiths the opportunity to practice ministry to senior adults in a variety of settings under supervision. 


On June 15, Phoebe will celebrate the 25th Anniversary of our CPE program with current students, alumni, staff, generous donors and members of the community. Click Here for Flyer. The event will take place at the Lehigh Country Club, at 2319 S Cedar Crest Blvd, Allentown, PA 18103. 


If your church, business or organization would like to be a sponsor for the event, see attaching form which explains the various levels that you can sponsor at.  https://phoebe.org/cpe-25-years-sponsorship-form/ 

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PENNSYLVANIA ACADEMY OF MINISTRY at Lancaster Theological Seminary

summer online classes

BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION 1

May 23–June 27, Tuesdays from 7-8:30pm on ZOOM

Details here..

BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION 2

July 11–Aug 15, Tuesdays from 7-8:30pm on ZOOM

Details here.

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UCC News Digest

Click Here to Read

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Freedom School Scholar Enrollment is Open!

Dates- June 20, 2023- July 29, 2023

Time- 8am-1pm Daily 

Locations:

  • Muhlenberg College- Multicultural Life 2400 Chew St. Allentown
  • Easton Area Community Center- 901 Washington St. Easton
  • RCDC- 144 N. Ninth St, Allentown
  • Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley- 333 Union St. Allentown

Katarah A. Jordan M.Ed. Director, James Lawson Freedom School

484.274.0472; freedomschooldirector@rcdclv.org 

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Upcoming Webinars and Events from the UCC


The “Can the Church Change?” Summit - a collaboration between the United Church of Christ and Convergence. Five days, Ten Conversations. A big question.


By signing up for your FREE access, you’ll get access to two conversations daily, with leaders like Traci Blackmon, Diana Butler Bass, Brian McClaren, Miguel de la Torre and others lending their wisdom to the space. If you can’t catch the videos on the day they’re aired, but know you want to have this content for the future, think about purchasing your lifetime access - registration here. Don’t miss these galvanizing, hopeful conversations. 

Thursday, May 25, 3:30pm ET -

Security and Faith: Threats and Responses from UCC Local Churches

Playspace With The President

Wednesday, May 31, 1:00pm ET -

What has been your most important COVID shift?

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ONA Coalition Pride Sunday

Pride Sunday is the last Sunday of June - June 25th this year. Worship resources from previous years can be found on this page as well. Please tag the Coalition or email us your photos, we'd love to see - and share - some worship spaces decked out in rainbow!


Keep an eye on the UCC Worship Ways page as they'll be sharing Pride Month liturgies there soon - including some written by members of the ONA Coalition Leadership Team! Stay tuned for more information on our Pride Month webinars.

Registration will be announced soon!

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Boundary Training Offered

  • Thursday, Sept. 14 in Schuylkill Haven

Attached is a flyer. This training is appropriate for new clergy or those who are due for boundary training and would like to complete it with one basic class as a refresher. Register here: https://basicbound0114.eventbrite.com/.

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Disaster Ministries


Summer is an excellent reminder that there is more to life than work. Too often, especially to those of us in this business of helping others, we forget that there is a life outside of answering emails, thumbs upping Microsoft Teams chats, and taking phone calls after hours. We might sit in our desk chairs, aimlessly staring out the window at the blooming trees and freshly cut lawns, but our daydream is disrupted by a beep, bing, or ring. Like a reflex, we jump to our phones or computers to see what all the fuss is about.


But summer brings with it its own unique set of ways to distract ourselves. Cookouts with friends and family allow us catch up or just pass the time. Swimming at the lake or pool gives us an opportunity to cool off and relax. Firework shows around the 4th of July gives us a chance to gaze wondrously at the colors and shapes throughout the night sky with our families.


More than an event, these activities are a moment. A moment in our hectic lives to focus on something, anything else other than work. It’s a time to leave the phone in the car, the computer powered down, and, dare we say it, keep our Friday afternoon calendars just a bit more open.


Yes, of course, we’re going to ask that you share this toolkit with your stakeholders. We want to share these safety tips on grilling, fireworks, and swimming safety. It’s our job to throw a bit of cold water on some of the things that make summer fun. But, when you’re dealing with things like fire and water, you can never be too safe.


At the same time, we’d urge you to do the following this summer:

  • Take a couple long weekends
  • Leave the top off the car or jeep
  • Take the dog on a long hike
  • Swim in a creek
  • Smoke a brisket
  • Camp with friends
  • Go to a place with bad phone reception
  • “Forget” to bring your computer with you on vacation
  • Do a cannonball off the high dive
  • Sit outside and stare at nothing in particular
  • Sit in the air conditioning and pretend its October


As always, we ask that you share this toolkit with as many stakeholders as you can. The more people you share this with, the more we can get this important information out there. And at the very least, we hope to see more people eating ice cream cones with their phone on mute this summer.  

CLICK HERE FOR FLYER

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