Dear Friends of Cayuga-Syracuse Presbytery,
Welcome to this week's edition of our e-letter, Presbytery Matters. Our goal is to highlight things going on throughout the Church: within our Presbytery, in our congregations, as well as in the Synod of the Northeast and across the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). We hope that these are things that will be helpful, informative, challenging, encouraging and supportive. In other words, we hope that these things will matter. Your input is valued, and your comments are always welcomed.
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From the Treasurer
The purpose of this note is to let you know that each church will be receiving a check for $468.68 from the Presbytery soon. The Presbytery has a Permanent Endowment Fund account at the Presbyterian Foundation with the income from the fund being used for missions within the Presbytery. The Presbytery has voted to distribute the income from the Permanent Endowment Fund Mission Initiatives account equally among member churches and worshiping communities each year. The check churches will be getting soon is the distribution of last year's earnings and is intended to be used for missions. You may notice that this check is substantially less than what was distributed last year. This is because last year's distribution was for earning accumulated in the account since its inception.
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Serving up love & fellowship! |
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United Church of Fayetteville members prepare and serve meals to folks at the Samaritan Center and at Brown Memorial United Methodist Church at different times throughout the year. Meals for Brown Memorial are prepared at UCF and then transported to the church and served on Sunday evenings. |
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Souper” Bowl Sunday was a success! |
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Collamer United Church's “Souper” Bowl Sunday was a success! The winners of the day will be those in need of food! Everything the church collected is going to St. Matthew’s food pantry in East Syracuse. |
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We want to hear about the mission stories from our Presbytery's worshiping communities. What mission work are you involved in? How are your members working in the community? What story would you like to share with others in the Presbytery?
Send any mission stories from your congregation that you would like to share to: CaySyrNews@gmail.com.
Deadline is 12 p.m. on Wednesdays for the current week's edition of
Presbytery Matters.
We want to share your stories, missions, activities and more. Also, make sure to like our Facebook page by clicking the "Facebook" icon at the top of this newsletter.
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Joys and Concerns around the Presbytery |
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In our prayers together this week:
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Please pray for the Rev. Debra Thomas after the death of her mother, Evelyn Hirst. Please keep the Hirst family in your prayers. Evelyn will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved her. Read her obituary HERE.
- Rita Hooper (First United Fulton) is happy to announce she has finally gotten rid of her arthritic encrusted and badly worn hip and replaced it with a bright shiny new one. She is hoping to once again walk some trails in the ADKs, visit with her PW Sisters and celebrate life! Please keep the prayers going so she can reach her goals.
- Please pray for Frank Campagna from the Cazenovia Church. Frank was diagnosed with cancer. Please keep him, his doctors and his family in your prayers.
- Please pray for everyone who is struggling with their mental health and mental illnesses.
- Keep all those who battling cancer in your prayers. Please ask God to be by their side and to be with their doctors and families.
In the cycle of prayer our Presbytery, please pray for these congregations, faith communities, and individuals: United Church of Fayetteville; First United Church of Fulton; God’s Vision Christian Church, Hannibal; Jamesville Community Church; First, King Ferry
If you'd like to share a particular joy or concern with the Presbytery, please contact: CaySyrNews@gmail.com. Please note, prayers will be featured for three weeks, unless a specific time frame is requested.
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Dear God, be with those
who weep,
who are angry,
who have lost hope,
who mourn out loud and in silence,
who don’t know what the future will bring.
May the prayers of your children rise to you.
May they feel your presence and comfort in the embrace of a stranger,
your love in the care of their neighbors and loved ones,
your grace in every word and every silence,
and may your Spirit mourn with them and bring healing.
We pray that you may guide us as we look for ways to share your compassion and hope with those who suffer. That we may be ambassadors of your peace, your mercy and your abundant love.
Through Jesus, who weeps with those who weep and heals every heart, amen.
-- Rev. Edwin González-Castillo, Director, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance
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Congregational Learning Day - March 4, 2023 |
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Deadline to register is approaching!
Register for this free learning opportunity today!
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Registration is now open: Register HERE
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In the absence of a Resource Presbyter, please contact the following individuals:
And, as always, questions regarding church polity, minutes, parlimentary procedure should be directed to our Stated Clerk, Rev. Ben Fitzgerald-Fye (statedclerk@cayugasyracuse.org)
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Thursday, February 16, 2023
2:00 - 3:00 PM EST
Leader - Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith Lund
Join author, advocate, and pastor Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith Lund for conversation, stories, and practical steps about how faith communities can offer support and hope to children, teens, and their families living with mental health challenges.
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Do you live-stream your service on Sundays?
droppable-1673496502490
We are compiling a list of live-stream links to feature in Presbytery Matters. This will allow others to join in on your services.
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Join in on these services virtually on Sundays:
Faith United Oswego - Live on Zoom (Meeting ID: 207 196 571)
Isaiah's Table will send a link for people to join our hybrid worship at 10 a.m. on Saturdays. Send email to isaiahtable@gmail.com by Friday evening.
Scipioville Presbyterian Church - Live on Zoom (Meeting ID: 836 3163 8403
Passcode: SPC13147)
More to come...
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The Manor is an affordable senior living community located at 49 West Genesee St. in the village of Skaneateles. It is intended for well seniors and includes all meals prepared by our staff. All suites include a private bath. Internet access and cable TV are included in the price. The Manor is located within the heart of the Village and is a short walking distance to lake-side parks. It is located on bus route serving the central New York and Syracuse vicinity. Local transportation services are available.
The Manor is a non-profit mission of the First Presbyterian Church of Skaneateles and is operated by an independent board of directors. It is maintained through the volunteer efforts and monetary donations of the church and community members who take a personal interest in The Manor and its residents, visiting and hosting regular social gatherings and holiday events.
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Sarah Buckshot, Communications Coordinator, can be reached by emailing caysyrnews@gmail.com. Sarah will be on maternity leave beginning on Tuesday, February 14th for two to three weeks. She'll be checking emails. Contact Ben Fitzgerald-Fye if your matter is urgent.
Please Note: Our new address change -- PO Box 438, Syracuse, NY 13214 -- also applies to mail sent to the Bookkeeper.
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Solo Pastor at Pebble Hill Presbyterian Church in DeWitt
Pebble Hill Presbyterian Church is currently seeking a sole pastor who is spiritually grounded, intellectually curious, compassionate, and forward-thinking. PHPC has a history of community engagement and a commitment to social justice. Our congregation thrives on preaching that enriches and propels us to expand our thinking and motivates action. We are nourished through inspiring music and the loving nature of our faith community. We seek someone who is flexible, has a sense of humor, and flourishes in contexts where collaboration in leadership is the norm.
Position tasks include worship leadership & preaching, pastoral care, oversight of Christian education, moderating the Session, representing the congregation to outside groups that use our facility, assisting committees with guidance and insights as needed, participating and motivating members to become more active in social justice and mission projects.
PHPC was formed in 1956 in a suburb of Syracuse, NY. The church is located less than five miles from Syracuse University and Upstate Medical University, along with other institutions of higher education, multiple hospitals, and successful manufacturing facilities. The church is also situated within a very strong K-12 school system. We enjoy the benefits of a city with close proximity to the Finger Lakes, a pleasant drive to the Adirondacks, and a multitude of hiking and biking options in the immediate area, including those associated with the Erie Canal corridor. Onondaga County is on the cusp of major growth due to its selection as the site for an investment of $100 billion over ten years by Micron computer chip company. Finally, Syracuse was recently identified by FEMA as the safest city in the U.S. from natural disasters.
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Are you hiring?
If your church is hiring in 2022 or still looking to fill a position from 2021, please send a new or updated announcement and job description to Communication Coordinator Sarah Buckshot at caysyrnews@gmail.com
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Annual Meeting - Saturday, May 6, 2023. Time and Location TBA
Stated Meeting - Tuesday, July 11, 2023 at 7 p.m. Time and Location TBA
Stated Meeting - Saturday, September 16, 2023. Time and Location TBA
Stated Meeting -Tuesday, November 14, 2023 at 7 p.m. on Zoom.
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Around the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) |
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PC(USA) pastors and other leaders offer a public apology that was centuries in the making
During a service in Lansing, Michigan, an evangelist who picked cotton as a child explains what the apology means to her
By Mike Ferguson
Presbyterian News Service
LOUISVILLE — Late last month dozens of white clergy from churches and mid councils, elected officials and other leaders in Lansing, Michigan, gathered at the Reachout Christian Center Church to apologize to the African American community for slavery and its aftermath. Among the participants was the Rev. Jermaine Ross-Allam, director of the PC(USA)’s Center for the Repair of Historic Harms.
Ross-Allam said that the service included a litany of repentance read by the white people who were present. For him, a powerful response to the apology came from Evangelist Annie C. Foreman of Reachout Christian Center Church, who spoke of having to pick cotton beginning at age 3. A few years later, she recalled looking heavenward and telling the Almighty, “Lord, there’s got to be a better life. I cannot live like this the rest of my life.” Sharecropping “was all my parents knew, and that’s what they did,” she said. “We didn’t go to school every day. When we went to school was when it rained.”
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Third Act’s Day of Action on March 21 seeks limits to bankrolling fossil fuel expansion
Third Act Faith, an interfaith working group of clergy and laity, is helping with the day’s events
By Dr. Dan Terpstra
Special to Presbyterian News Service
LOUISVILLE — Third Act, whose members are age 60+, is organizing a Day of Action that will give people, regardless of age, an opportunity on March 21 to pressure the “Big Four” banks (Bank of America, Chase, Citibank, and Wells Fargo) to stop bankrolling the expansion of the fossil fuel industry.
Third Act is not doing this alone. According to a Third Act news release, to date, 29 other organizations have signed on as partners for the Day of Action, including GreenFaith, the Sierra Club and the Hip Hop Caucus.
Among those working on behalf of the 3.21.23 campaign are the members of Third Act Faith, an interfaith working group of laity and clergy from across the nation and denominations who bring a faith-based perspective and presence to Third Act’s work. To that end, they are at work on creating a liturgy specifically for the Day of Action, under the leadership of the Rev. Jerry Cappel, an Episcopal priest and director of the Center for Deep Green Faith, and Rev. Dr. Jane Ellen Nickell, Chaplain Emerita of Allegheny College. They also are encouraging its members and their faith communities to be involved, where possible, in local 3.21.23 actions.
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P.O. Box 438, Syracuse 13214
(315) 632-5698
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"I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them
bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:5
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