Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost
In preparation for worship,
we encourage you to read the Scripture passage
and reflect on what God’s word might be to you.
Scripture: James 1:1-18
Message: "Joy Matters"
JOIN us for WORSHIP in the SANCTUARY or from HOME.
on Sunday at 10:00 a.m.
and activities to nurture faith
(Note on above image: "Joy" a photo in black and white by Marcia Perry)
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Ministry News and Upcoming Events |
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A Message from the OPC Worship Team |
It has been congregational practice throughout the pandemic to prioritize your health in our opening plan and to follow CDC guidance and local data whenever possible with respect to masking, social distancing, etc. We have also been very proactive in getting vaccinated. These actions have enabled us to experience a safe and welcoming worship environment these past several months.
However, CDC recommendations and local data regarding the highly infectious Delta Variant of Covid-19 suggest that we need to return to masking and distancing practices for the foreseeable future when we gather for worship. Therefore, we are asking that all worshipers, vaccinated or not, wear a mask when attending worship services. This action will enable us to continue to care for one another and provide the loving environment that we strive for.
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Creating a Healthy Community |
In keeping with one of the goals of the Eradicating Systemic Poverty committee which is to promote sustainable food sourcing, there is an opportunity to assist in a gleaning project at the Miami Institute for Food Farm for every Friday through September from 9:00 am-11:30 am.
The produce that will be gleaned / picked / harvested will be distributed by JEE Foods among area soup kitchens and food banks.
The location is off of State Route 732 (Morning Sun Road). Continue on Morning Sun Road, going past the back entrance to Yager Stadium and crossing the bridge over Four Mile Creek. Turn right on 5721 Somerville Road and then take the first available right turn, pulling into a small gravel parking lot in front of the vegetable rinsing station. You have arrived!
Thank you again for your support.
ESP Committee
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A Service of Witness to the Resurrection |
I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord.
Those who believe in me, even though they die,
will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me
will never die.
- John 11:25-26
A Memorial Service for Marlene Vaughn will take place Saturday, August 14th at 11:00 a.m. in the Memorial Church sanctuary. Please click here for Marlene's obituary.
All are welcome to join us in-person as well as over the livestream at this link.
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Special Meeting of the Congregation to Elect the Nominating Committee |
On the third Sunday of August, the Oxford Presbyterian Church Session traditionally calls a Special Meeting of the Congregation to elect the Nominating Committee. In 2021 the Special Meeting of the Congregation will take place Sunday, August 15 and will begin after the end of the livestream worship service. The congregational meeting will be hosted in-person and on the Zoom platform.
Nominees for the 2021 Nominating Committee are: Brent Bader, Judy Fisher, Scott Parkinson, Mary Jane Roberts, Chuck Crain, Steve Flee and Ginny Layton.
Accessing the Special Meeting of the Congregation by electronic device (computer, laptop, tablet, etc.):
Accessing the Special Meeting of the Congregation by touch-tone phone (audio only):
- Dial this phone number: 1-312-626-6799
- When prompted, enter the Meeting ID: 841 9259 1865
- You should not need it, but in case there are issues, the meeting password is: 677058
- If you don’t hear anything, don’t worry; the meeting may not have officially begun yet.
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Hedwig (pictured) and September make me think of the end of summer and back to school. I’m sure many of you have great stories about your ministries and adventures to share from your summer. Photos tell a wonderful story too. If you do, please remember to get your stories for the September Connections newsletter to Bridgite by August 20. I look forward to “reading (and seeing) all about it.”
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Greetings from the Eradicating systemic Poverty (ESP) Team!
A number of our congregation have picked up a copy of the book, Always with Us? What Jesus Really Said About the Poor, and those of us who have read it or are reading it have found it to be relevant and timely in that it relates poverty to scripture and to the teachings of Jesus and relates both to issues of justice we face today.
This book will be used as the basis of our mid-September to early October book discussions occurring Sundays after worship service.
An introduction to poverty will occur on September 12, after worship. On September 18, we will begin a small group study of the book. In case you missed out on getting a copy (free!) of this book earlier in the summer and would like one, we can order more. Let Bridgite know by August 24 if you are interested so that we can have books on hand.
From the editors of Always With Us?: Jesus's words "the poor you will always have with you" (Matthew 26:11) are regularly used to suggest that ending poverty is impossible. In this book, Lis Theoharis critically examines both the biblical text and the lived reality of the poor to show how this passage is taken out of context and distorted. Poverty is not inevitable, Theoharis argues. It is a systemic sin, and all Christians have a responsibility to partner with the poor to end poverty once and for all.
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On Sunday, August 22 we join our brothers and sisters of Oxford United Methodist Church (OUMC) for worship at the Oxford Community Arts Center. Worship begins at 10:00 a.m. at the OCAC Outdoor Pavilion at the corner of Walnut and Elm Streets.
Come and celebrate our unity as the body of Christ!
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When Worship Becomes Mission |
Worship is mission. The church’s mission springs from worship. … God sends the church to share in the stewardship of creation, preserving the goodness and glory of the earth God has made. (The PC(USA) Directory for Worship)
On Sunday, August 22, we have the opportunity to turn our worship into mission for the community. Following the 10 a.m. union worship service with Oxford United Methodist Church at OCAC, we invite you to take 30 … 45 … 60 minutes to join one another as stewards of creation.
Immediately after the benediction, we will organize into small groups and then be sent out to designated areas to pick up recycling and trash. If you have gloves and trash pickers, please bring them along. We have about a dozen trash pickers for those who don’t have a set and would like to use them. Bring your wagons – let’s have fun as we care for God’s creation!
When you’re done, return to the OCAC where we will collect the recycling and trash.
Let’s make memories with sisters and brothers from OUMC as we beautify our Oxford community.
Please join us as our worship flows into a shared mission of preserving the goodness and glory of the earth God has made.
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Welcome Back Picnic - Calling all Cookie Bakers |
Can you help?
We need COOKIES for the Welcome Back Picnic after church on August 29th. There will be a sign up sheet in the narthex, this coming Sunday.
We’re asking for 2 dozen cookies from each baker.
Please sign up with your name and phone number, and bring the cookies to church with you on the 29th.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Kay Estes at kayestes49@gmail.com or 523-325-8313.
Thank you for your generosity.
Connections Committee
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Gilbert (Gil) Siegel a long-time member of the Oxford Presbyterian Church family, passed away Friday, August 6, 2021. A Celebration of Life will be held at Oxford Presbyterian Church on Saturday, September 4, 2021, at 2:30 p.m.
Please continue to keep Sue and her family in your prayers.
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What is amazing about the teachings on tithing in the Old Testament is not that God demands a tithe but that God does not demand it all back, since it all belongs to God. Behold the graciousness and generosity of God, who wants people to be able to have life, and live it to the full. Not, however, at the expense of forgetting to whom it all belongs.
- Ben Witherington III
As you worship with us in person, you will find offering plates located in the church narthex into which you may place your weekly offering.
To give via QR code, scan the code in the image below with your phone and follow the brief prompts. View a video tutorial here on giving through QR code.
To give via text message, text opc1825 and your designated amount to 73256. For example, text "opc1825 25" to 73256 for an offering of $25 and follow the prompt. View a video tutorial here on giving via text message.
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Living Into Hope
Relationships are the true proving ground for spirituality.
Ultimately, joy is not something to learn, it is something to live.
And our greatest joy is lived in deep, loving,
and generous relationships with others.
- Desmond Tutu
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Oxford Presbyterian Church | 101 N. Main Street, Oxford OH 45056
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