Holy Trinity Lutheran Church Tidings

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1 Holy Trinity Lutheran Church Tidings February- March Service schedule 9:30 AM Communion 1 st and 3 rd Sunday of the Bible Study@9:45 Mid-Week Lenten Services Soup 6:30PM Vesper 7PM Message from your Pastor: Warm greetings to all of the members of the Holy Trinity family. I m excited about beginning this new chapter in our life together and I am very much looking forward to getting to know all of you. For those of you who don t know anything about me, let me share a few details. I m Jersey born, spent my formative years up north in Clifton and went to high school in Montclair. Following college (Moravian) and Seminary (Boston U), my wife, Kris and I lived for 30+ years in Philadelphia (as I ve already mentioned to some of you, Eagles-Giants games pose a truly existential dilemma for me), before moving to Connecticut in early I was ordained into the Moravian ministry in 1973, served Third Moravian Church in Philadelphia and then under call to specialized ministry at The Lighthouse Settlement in the Kensington neighborhood until For the next 23 years I worked in the world of business and finance and during that time I was an active lay member of a number of different churches (Methodist,

2 Lutheran, Presbyterian and UCC). I retired from the business world and returned to full-time ministry in 2006 and served Moravian congregations in New Jersey, Ohio and Indiana. Most recently, thanks to the full communion agreement between the Moravina Church and the ELCA, I served Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Toms River. Over the past five years I have served as an Intentional Interim Pastor, and that is my role here at Holy Trinity as well. What that means, from my perspective, is that in addition to my preaching and performing other typical pastoral duties, I will be focusing my attention on the process of charting a course for the future and otherwise helping the dedicated leaders of our congregation prepare, over the year ahead, for the arrival of a settled pastor. I d like to share a thought with you as we get started on this journey together. It s a notion that the late Marcus Borg wrote about in his excellent book, The Heart of Christianity, and it s called Thin Places. Thin places, a concept borrowed from Celtic Christianity, is a way of thinking about God. God, in this way of thinking, is not somewhere else, but right here. God, says Borg, is a non-material layer of reality all around us. Think of it this way there are two layers of reality: our material world and the spiritual world of God, layered one on top of the other. Thin places are places where these two layers intersect. They are places where the boundaries between the layers become so small that we actually experience God. These thin places can be anywhere; in nature, in holy places, and perhaps most often in places where people gather together to work on their faith journey. Over the course of my life I have been fortunate to experience some very thin places. Places where the presence of God was so obvious that you could feel it and almost touch it. My hope and my prayer is that as you and I work together to discern the direction of the Holy Spirit regarding the future of Holy Trinity, we will find ourselves in a truly thin place a place where we will experience God and God s love in our midst, leading us along the way. Grace and Peace to all of you. Pastor Jeff Van Orden OVERVIEW/MINUTES OF OUR ANNUAL MEETING WILL BE IN OUR FOLLOWING NEWS LETTER FOR THOSE THAT WERE UNABLE TO ATTEND THE ANNUAL CONGREGATIONAL MEETING.

3 WE HAVE OUR SUNDAY SCHOOL/CHRISTIAN EDUCATION PROGRAM UP AND RUNNING AGAIN. We are rebuilding our Sunday School and confirmand classes student by student. PRAISE BE TO GOD. Currently, Kristen Grala is teaching the older children heading into the confirmation class and Dawne Thumhart is teaching the Pre-K to 1 st grade classes. Students of any age are welcome. Currently the younger classes will meet the first and third Sunday of the month. If you can help out as a teacher/helper please, let us know so we may expand our Christian Education to every week for our children. We will be doing an audit of all the classroom s and closets to organize ALL materials the have not been utilized and place them in a central area for all those helping with our Christian Education. If you are able to help with our Christian Education Program, please reach out to Kristin Grala, Dawne Thumhart, Randy Thumhart or Pastor Jeff Van Orden. Looking to enhance your prayer life? We are planning on starting a prayer chain at HTLC. Our first step is to start a prayer list. If you would like to be placed on the list or if you know of someone who you

4 would like to be on the list (friends or extended family) please let me know. The list will be printed in the bulletin and the names will be read during the Prayers of Institution each week. To get a name on the list: me - kataocn@gmail.com or call/text me at (732) Leave a note in the offering plate (we will be getting prayer request cards for the pews) Names will remain on the list for one month (unless you let me know otherwise) If you would like to become a prayer partner, that is, praying on a regular basis for those on the list, please provide me with your contact information, preferably (phone number will do if you do not have ), and I will let you know whenever there are additions to or deletions from the list. Kathy Leifeste, Council Member ************************************************************************** MUSIC AND WORSHIP- Holy Trinity Lutheran Church Worship During Lent and Holy Week, 2016: LENT Ash Wednesday On February 10 we will begin the Lenten season with a traditional Ash Wednesday service; a solemn service of prayer, confession, Holy Communion and the (voluntary) imposition of ashes. Ash Wednesday reminds us that we are sinful by our very nature, unworthy of the free gift of salvation in Jesus Christ. It also reminds us of the circle of life beginning and ending with ashes. The service begins at 7:00 PM, in the Sanctuary.

5 Midweek Lenten Worship Our Lenten period of preparation will be greatly enhanced by the practice of gathering each Wednesday evening (Feb. 17 and 24, March 2, 9, and 16) for a period of fellowship followed by a time of prayer, worship and study. At 6:30 PM we will gather in All Saints Hall for a soup and bread supper, followed, immediately thereafter (at 7:00), by a service of prayer, praise and study. The focus of this year s series of worship/study sessions will be the miracles of Jesus in the Gospels, with an eye toward applying their message to our life together. HOLY WEEK Palm Sunday, March 20 Our celebration of the holiest week of the year begins triumphantly with Palm Sunday worship. Palms will be distributed; there will be special music, and our service will conclude with the reading of the Passion Story from Luke s Gospel and the celebration of Holy Communion. Maundy Thursday Communion at St. Peters at the Light Episcopal Church, March 24 Plan to participate with the members of St. Peters Episcopal and Zion Lutheran as we celebrate what is arguably the most powerful Service of Holy Communion in the year. You are invited to Dinner at 6:00 PM followed by Worship at 7:00. Good Friday Tenebrae Service, March 25 On this most solemn evening of the year we remember Jesus final hours with a service of reading, music and silence. The service begins, in silence, at 7:30 PM and concludes in darkness, as candles are extinguished after each reading.

6 Easter Sunrise Service at Barnegat Light, March 27 You are invited to join with our friends at Zion Lutheran and many of our other LBI neighbors for a unique worship experience at the Lighthouse at 7:00 on Easter morning. Easter Morning Worship, March 27 This is the climax the conclusion of our Holy Week and Easter events. It will be a joyous service of song, traditional music, readings and Holy Communion. Many hands make light work..if you can help fill a slot in the everyday workings of the Church Life; ushers, readers, coffee hour, office help, etc.., see the sign-up sheets in the back of the church on the BELLS table...together we can grow in Faith and Hope Birthdays and Anniversaries Section will resume again once we have been able to update our records as we go through this transition process.

7 If you have an event, something wondrous to share, milestone, etc. and wish to share it with the congregation at large, please let Dawne or Randy know. Leave a note in the office or one of us so we can SHARE YOUR WONDERFUL NEWS We would love to hear your news. If there is someone you would like kept in prayer, let us know Just a reminder, of all the various sign-up sheets located in the narthex and on the Bells table. Pitch in and share your time and talents wherever and whenever you can. We are continuing to grow stronger and continue to see more and more faces. We wish to welcome all to worship with us, old and new faces alike Our s are On that note be sure to check out the 2/3/16 edition of the Sandpaper on line to view the article about our sister church, Holy Spirit, who are celebrating their 50 th anniversary..!!! Getting in touch with the Pastor Since every pastor is different (some more different than others!) I thought it would be a good idea to let you know how it s best to reach me. Normally, I am reachable in the church office in the morning, Wednesday through Friday, 9:00 to 12:00 or so. On the days I m not there, and in the afternoon and evening, the best way to reach me is on my cell phone, either by calling or sending a text message. The number is If for some reason I don t answer, leave a message and I ll get back to you promptly. If there is an emergency, please don t hesitate to call, any time, day or night. For those of you who are used to communicating via , you can send a message to revjeffvo@yahoo.com and I will almost always reply within a day. Blessings, Pastor Jeff Van Orden

8 Holy Trinity Lutheran Church 5800 Long Beach Blvd. Brant Beach, NJ Phone: for Council