This week at Central . . . Memorial Services, Reducing Food Insecurity, O.N.E., Fish Fry, and Our Week Ahead

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BEAUTIFUL REMEMBRANCES OF OUR BELOVED

We grieve with the families who have lost loved ones in this season. We celebrated the lives of Pat Kimbro and Peggy Hunnicutt. Continue to hold their families in your heart.

And, please pray for our congregation as we remember:

Richard Hagenloh on March 31 for an interment service at the Santa Fe National Cemetary.

Marilyn Ortman on April 5 at 2 p.m. for a memorial service in our Sanctuary.

Rev. Dr. John Kees on April 12 at 11 a.m. for a memorial service in our Sanctuary.

LEARNING WITH OUR NEIGHBORS

MARCH 26, 3 p.m., ZOOM: The New Mexico Basic Needs Consortium is pleased to host Mariana Chilton, the author of this profound book about hunger in the US. She has been hanging out in New Mexico for a few months and learning all about your/our meaningful work. Please join us for an inspiring conversation on March 26th.

Join Zoom Meeting here:

https://unm.zoom.us/j/96889944776

Meeting ID: 968 8994 4776

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MARCH 27, 7 p.m., ZOOM: On March 9th, we launched an initiative in alignment with the New Mexico Basic Needs Consortium to reduce food insecurity by 30% by 2030 on the University of New Mexico and Central New Mexico Community College campuses.

Since then, we have had our first SNAP-A-PALOOZA event on the UNM campus, which was a huge success. So, how did we get here? Why did we choose to partner with the Basic Needs Consortium? And where do we go from here?

We look forward to seeing you in our monthly Zoom ONE meeting to hear a story that is paving the way for the future.

To register, CLICK HERE.

Please stay tuned for more information, and feel free to contact Abbey(areed@centraltolife.org) if you’d like to participate in future SNAP events.

KURT RAGER: A LEGISLATIVE BRIEFING - APRIL 10

United Women in Faith would like to invite the congregation to “A Legislative Briefing” about our 60-day session with Kurt Rager, Executive Director of Lutheran Advocacy Ministries, on Thursday, April 10th. We have a time of fellowship at 9:30, and Kurt’s presentation will begin at 10:00 a.m.

CREATION CARE TIP

The most significant consumer of water (about 40%) in your house is your toilet, Older models use about 5.5 gallons per flush.

Switch to a new toilet that uses only 1.6 gallons.

SAVE THE DATE: 2025 FENN LECTURE, APRIL 25-27

Central United Methodist Church is excited to announce that The Reverend Charles Kiser will be our featured speaker for the Annual Fenn Lecture Series. Charles co-authors the book Trauma-Informed Evangelism: Cultivating Communities of Wounded Healers. You are invited to join us from Friday through Sunday, April 25-27. On Friday evening and Saturday morning through early afternoon, Charles will guide us in developing a new vocabulary to address the pressing concerns within our ministry context. The Fenn Lecture Series also features sermons by Rev. Kiser during our two Sunday morning services on April 27 (8:30 and 11:00 a.m.). He will also speak at 12:30 p.m. at a Sunday luncheon to conclude the series and further elaborate on his message.

this week @ central

MARCH 24-30, 2025

Church Office: Mon- Thurs, 9a-4p, Fri, 9a-12noon

Monday, March 24

9a : Helping Hands [Central to Life Center]

Tuesday, March 25

10a : Coffee Fellowship [Gathering Area]

4p : Bernalillo Food Action [Conference Room]

6p : UNM Wesley Foundation [Rms. 301 & 303]

Wednesday, March 26

9:30a : WOW (Women of the Word) Study [Rm. 312]

10a : ID Clinic [Gathering Area]

11a : Wednesday Bible Study [Lomas & Washington]

3p : Special Event: Basic Needs Event [ZOOM]

6:30p : Chancel Choir Rehearsal [Sanctuary]

Thursday, March 27

6p : MassApPeal Ensemble Handbells [Rm. 311]

7p : O.N.E. (Our Neighbors' Experiences) [ZOOM]

Friday, March 28

5:30p : Central to St. John’s UMC Fish Fry [2626 Arizona NE]

Saturday, March 29

Sunday, March 30

8:30a : Chapel Worship

9:45a : Sunday School / Education Hour

11a : Sanctuary Worship

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LENT 2025 @ CENTRAL

Our Lenten Theme this year is “Nourish.” We will look closely at the Gospel stories of nourishment, satisfaction, and providence from Ash Wednesday, March 5, through Easter, April 20. Over the next 40 days, plus Sundays, we will lift up a path whereby our church can share in nourishing our community. What is God calling us to be, become, and do in this season? How do we respond to the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual needs of our community?

Here is the Sunday worship series for you to pray, discern, and study with one another:

March 9, 2025

Scripture: Luke 4:1-13

Sermon Title: Full-Filled

Theme: Well, Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit and he is faced with the emptiness. So, if you are full, we must face the world's emptiness. All things held in balance.

March 16, 2025

Scripture: Luke 13:31-35

Sermon Title: A Vision for a Well-Nourished World

Theme: Embracing emptiness enables us to hold the lament of a world of lack. What is Christ’s vision beyond the lament?

March 23, 2025

Scripture: Luke 13:1-9

Sermon Title: Rub a Little Dirt on It

Theme: When you first do not succeed, try and try again. What may not be working may need to be let go — and that is okay. Hungry in the US have been hungry generationally — it is time to cut that out.

March 30, 2025

Scripture: Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Sermon Title: Toward True Reparation

Theme: The parable of the losts invites us to think and feel differently about scarcity. What happens when our sights are set on where God is guiding us?

April 6, 2025

Scripture: John 12:1-8

Sermon Title: Dining with Life

Theme: There is no sense in Mary’s generosity. It flips the world’s value system — when facing the world’s problems, we may need to adjust our values to Mary’s . . .

April 13, 2025 (Palm/Passion Sunday)

Scripture: Luke 19:28-40

Sermon Title: Nourishing Community

Theme: A parade toward Passover — liberation deserves a celebration, do you think?!

April 20, 2025 (Easter)

Scripture: Luke 24:1-12

Sermon Title: This is the Story

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RESOURCES

Berry, Thomas. The Great Work: Our Way into the Future and The Sacred Universe: Earth, Spirituality, and Religion in the Twenty-First Century; Chilton, Mariana. The Painful Truth about Hunger in America: Why We Must Unlearn Everything We Think We Know--and Start Again (Food, Health, and the Environment); Compton, John. The End of Empathy: Why White Protestants Stopped Loving Their Neighbors; Epperly, Bruce G. Walking with Francis of Assisi: From Privilege to Activism; MacAskill, William. What We Owe the Future (United Women of Faith book); Riches, Graham. Food Bank Nations (Routledge Studies in Food, Society and the Environment); Rieger, Joerg, and Rowe, Terra Schwerin. Liberating People, Planet, and Religion: Intersections of Ecology, Economics, and Christianity; and, Winne, Mark. Closing the Food Gap: Resetting the Table in the Land of Plenty.

LENT 2025 - "NOURISH"

Dr. Andy Stoker announced at the 8:30 and 11:00 Sunday worship services on Sunday, March 9, a new partnership, focus, and vision to alleviate food insecurity in our neighborhood. Abbey Reed, our Director of Neighboring, has partnered us with the Basic Needs Consortium of New Mexico to discern with them (and many others) a way forward. (The images of the slides are below.)

With our providential position in our neighborhood, we believe God has uniquely called us to care for our neighbors at colleges and universities. Central is nestled in the most opportune neighborhood of Albuquerque to remain "central to life" in our beautiful city.

We are dedicating ourselves this Lenten season to discover pathways of holistic nourishment for our community in these ways:

Prayers :: We will be the spiritual refuge and safe space for CNM and UNM students, staff, and faculty.

Presence :: We will create a healthy community culture through trauma-informed care, attentive listening, and grace-filled compassion. (Presence)

Gifts :: We will offer our building as a gathering space for students to learn and grow. (Gifts)

Service :: We will serve those connected to the Universities with bridge-forming partnerships to equip them for job-readiness, housing knowledge, and relationship care. (Service)

Witness :: We will reduce food insecurity by 30% by 2030 on the University of New Mexico and Central New Mexico Community College campuses. (Witness)

Over the Lenten season, we will focus on the physical needs of our community and seek ways that our congregation can engage more fully with those around us, and even those within our church. See you Sundays!

201 University Blvd NE

Albuquerque, NM 87106

www.centraltolife.org

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