In the 1930s the congregation of Sunnyside Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania decided to embrace a feeling of ecumenism popular in the wider church of that time.  They instituted the first Communion service to be designated Worldwide Communion Sunday on the first Sunday of October.  It would be a time to remember Christians around the… Read More »

This past Sunday I used a prayer written by Thomas Merton (1915-1968), an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, and mystic. The words of this prayer always resound with me at various times in my life. It was a prayer our Conference Minister, John Deckenback, would occasionally offer before we began a particularly complicated committee meeting.… Read More »

Young Thoughts From the corner of Hillside and Crescent As Labor Day weekend draws near with all the excitement that is characteristic of Greenbelt, I have been thinking about the story of workers in our country.  Some of those reflections will be shared in the sermon on September 4. In Psalm 137:13-14 we read “for… Read More »

Young Thoughts From the Corner of Hillside and Crescent It has been quite a month!  I have had the privilege of officiating for one Renewal of Vows Ceremony and a Wedding.  I have also had to say goodbye to a lifelong friend who died, along with another high school acquaintance.  And this year is the… Read More »

One of the exercises the Council participated in during their recent Leadership Retreat was to think about where they saw Greenbelt Community Church in the biblical narrative.  They had four situations to consider:  The sending of the Twelve, the early church in the book of Acts, the story of Mary and Martha, and the story… Read More »

I first became involved in refugee resettlement during the Vietnam war.  As the war was concluding, it became obvious to my husband and I that we needed to take the necessary measures to make possible an exit for a Vietnamese family that had become part of our family by love and choice.  Working under guidance… Read More »

Happy Midweek GCC family.  This email, and others to follow once a week, is my attempt to keep in contact with you, at times inspire you, at times inform you and generally speak to you in the role of pastor integrating the day-to-day things of life to our life of faith and our witness as… Read More »

This weekend I am leading a training experience for our church Council on the subject of “Leading a Congregation in Times of Change.” The very word “change” tends to make us nervous. Change means different than it is right now, and we like things as they are. It is a very human reaction. Change is… Read More »

“Where were you when…..?”  The answer is driving up Interstate 95 after completing my food shopping task at Ft. Belvoir Commissary. Although I knew that there was a high probability the Supreme Court would rule to void Roe v. Wade, it still felt like a gut punch. Not because my personal past includes an abortion.… Read More »