P I L G R I M C H U R C H UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST Outreach Take Part, Take Heart A Quarterly Newsletter of G3 Missions Issue No. 5, January 2012 Gather Gather food, clothing, supplies: •Interfaith Baskets •Boston Cares •PCH Shop n’ Drop •Carolina Hill •Church World Service Kits Gather as small groups: •Bible Study •Faith Studies •Taize Services Give Give dollars: •Our Church’s Wider Mission •Uganda Rural Fund •One Great Hour of Sharing •Neighbors in Need •The Christmas Fund •Uganda Orphans Fund •Blanket Sunday Give of your time: •Serve on Committees •Office Assistance Go Go into the community: •CROP Walk •Plymouth Coalition for theHomeless •Carolina Hill Work Day •Head Start •Pine Street Inn •Adult Mission Trip •Youth Mission Trip •Work Days •Pilgrim Pantry Pilgrim Pantry Top 10 List •Peanut Butter •Tuna Fish •Pasta •Pasta Sauce •Beef Stew •Fruit Juice •Canned Fruit •Canned Vegetables •Canned Chicken •Canned Soup Pilgrim Pantry Joins Outreach Each Thursday morning, shortly after nine, the line begins to form. Despite rain, snow or wind, parents with young children, retirees on fixedincomes, individuals out of work, are among those that wait for the doors to open at the Plymouth Area Coalition Food Pantry. Inside, the pantry volunteers sort through the donations from Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, BJ’s Wholesale Club, civic groups and churches. They stock shelveswith canned vegetables and fruit, tuna, soup, pasta, fresh produce and baked goods. When the doors open at 9:30, those waiting in line are able toenter the pantry and shop for their families. While the variety and supply of food available may vary week to week, this food provided by the Pantryhelps a family stretch their food budget another month. Struggling to put food on the table is a real concern for many local families, including families here in Duxbury. Local food pantries attempt to stretch limited resources to meet the demand. In recognition of this ever-present need in our local community, Pilgrim Church continues to find ways to assist in the fight against hunger and poverty, including ongoing support for the Plymouth Area Coalition. The Outreach Committee will re-launch its Pilgrim Pantry in early Spring to provide another means of assistance for families in need. Weekly donations of needed food items (our “Top 10” list above) such as peanut butter, beef stew, canned fruit, and pasta will be packaged and given to identified needy families on the last Saturday of the month, starting in early Spring. The PilgrimPantry will be housed on the main floor of the church at the base of the stairs, for easy access. Listen for an in-church announcement about a tour of the pantry storage area and ongoing communication about particular food items needed. We are seeking volunteers to help sort and organize the food and to prepare the baskets once a month. If you are interested, please contact any member of theOutreach committee (listed in this newsletter). As Outreach looks to expand the positive impact of the Pilgrim Pantry in 2012, it is important to note thatthe food collected in these baskets has made and will continue to make a difference, and we appreciate all the congregation does to support thiseffort. What’s Inside G3: Extend Giving Through PilgrimPantry Kid’s Corner Spotlight: Uganda Rural Fund From the Pastor: Hunger Calendar Quick Look Learn More About It: UCC CROP Walk 2011 Photos Board of Christian Outreach: We worship and serve God in Christian community, seeking to live as Jesus taught. P I L G R I M C H U R C H O U T R E A C H G3: E XTEND THE GIVING SPIRIT THROUGH PILGRIM PA N T RY As we conclude the Advent season, we ask ourselves, is there any more I can give? Youprepared the decorations, the holiday meals, hosted family and attended various church events. It seems there is no more “giving” left in the tank. To help you with this dilemma, the Outreach team will finalize the re-launch of the Pilgrim Pantry plan in January. Today, we collect food informally to support the Plymouth Coalition for the Homeless, the Duxbury Interfaith Council, and others who are without. The Committee is now turning itssights on a wider audience. This will requirenew thinking around food collection, storageand delivery to those who are in need. This isgood news for you! With the expansion ofPilgrim Pantry, we will need more volunteersto sustain a food pantry for our community. To make this process simple, we haveidentified 10 staples that will be requested fordonations. There will be opportunities forvolunteers to shop, organize and distributefood to individuals and local food banks. We also have plans to modify and expand current storage space for the increased need. The goalis to develop Pilgrim Church as a reliablesolution for hunger. So what can you expect in January and February? Look for a communication blitz that will outline the goal of the Pantry and the plan for food collection. Next, the plan forvolunteerism will be launched to allow you tosee where you can fit into the process. Oncewe get the Pantry stocked, we plan to preparebaskets that will need many hands to prepare. God has truly given all of us unique talents toshare. The Pilgrim Pantry will be anotherOutreach opportunity for those interested infighting hunger in our wider community. Kids’ Corner The Outreach Committee continues to work together with the children of Pilgrim Church once a month in the Vestry during Church School. Our focus has been on encouraging them to give of their time and money to different Outreach projects. The children have been bringing in financial contributions that go toward gas, solar lamps, books, and textbooks for a school in Uganda. One ofthe children of our church, Katelyn Hardwick, came up with a wonderful idea to get books onto the shelves of the school in Uganda. She collected one book from each child at Pilgrim Church and these will be sent to the school to help them fill the shelves of their needy library. A brand new Outreach Program that we introduced the children to is our recently developed Pilgrim Church Food Pantry. The children are encouraged to bring in nonperishable food items each week to be placed in our Pilgrim Church Pantry for needy families to use. Some of the items being accepted at this time are: canned soups, canned vegetables, canned meats (tuna, chicken), peanut butter, and pasta. As a committee, we hope that this will help the children of our church understand that not only are there families around the world in need of our assistance, but there are even people in our town andsurrounding areas that need our help. We hope that you continue to encourage your children to give of their time, talents and money to help those in need. Mission Spotlight: Uganda Rural Fund Each edition, we’d like to introduce you to one of the important organizations the Board supports. The Uganda Rural Fund has set a new goal for this year. Hope Academy, a school for orphans started by URF in 2008 with 8 students, has grown to an enrollment of 165. These students, many of whom walk hours to and from Hope, and in some cases restrict eating to every other day in order to be able to contribute to their own school fees, must learn and study for National Exams (passing which is necessary before they can go onto advanced grades and the possibility of escaping frompoverty) without benefit of text books, and any kind of light by which to study their work at night. URF is setting out to raise the money to provide text books and solar lamps to each student. Dan Hall and Chris Blake, of Pilgrim Church, have recentlyreturned from Uganda, and are working to raise the necessary money through Pilgrim and other churches and organizations in the Duxbury area. The above photo shows the Solar lamp, which gives three hours of light for studying at night. Jesus said to them, ‘They need not go away; you give them something to eat.’ They replied, ‘We have nothing here but five loaves and twofish.’ And he said, ‘Bring them here to me.’ !! Matthew 14 We all know well the story of the miraculousfeeding of the 5,000. It was so central to Jesus that it is one of the few stories about Jesus shared by all four gospel writers. Matthew tells it twice. Why would this act of feeding the hungry be so important to the Good News? Certainly it reflects a very present and real human need. It speaks to both a spiritual and physical need for nourishment. It speaks of God’s compassion for the hungry. Of greatest significance, though, is the sense this story gives of God, the source of provision. God provides…food for the body and for the soul aswell. Which seems pretty obvious, when you think aboutit. So the question is not just, ‘why’ tell this story over and over again; but ‘what’ does it invite us to do in response to hearing it? The Psalmist says asmuch: Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to humankind. For he satisfies the thirsty, and the hungry he fills with good things. In our world, hunger is not simply a problem of providing sufficient calories for the day. Having enough food is not enough. It must be good food; food that nourishes and sustains rather than food that merely fills. We know how the story ends: all ate and were filled…and there were leftovers besides. It is not too much to say that the words ‘all ate’ and ‘were filled’ reflects God’s desire and God’s resolve to provide nourishment for all, in a physical, material sense. And it is equally certain that the gospel invites the church to make that resolve manifest in our communities. That is what makes the new Pilgrim Pantry such a wonderful opportunity for ministry. It allows us to be agents of God’s faithful resolve to provide good things for the people of our communities. And, Ihope that feeds each of us as well. Peace to you all, Todd United Church of Christ P I L G R I M C H U R C H O U T R E A C H Calendar Quick Look Don’t miss out on our upcoming Outreach Activities Jan. 27: Serve Feb. 24: Serve March 23: Serve in Boston. For more Ongoing Monthly: Dinner at Pine Dinner at Pine Dinner at Pine information and to PCH Shop n’ DropStreet Inn Street Inn Street Inn sign up, please call Shop for the Great opportunity Please contact We would love to him at Plymouth Coalition for Confirmand Doug Backlund to have you join in! 781-934-0764. for the Homeless. Outreach join in on this Contact Doug Dates and times hours...we would wonderful Backlund, Early Spring: Re-are flexible. love to have you opportunity in the 781-934-0764 Launch of Pilgrim Contact Chris Gill join in! Contact Boston area, Pantryat 934-9412. Doug Backlund, 781-934-0764. April 15: Fair TradeOnce stocked, we 781-934-0764 in Vestrywill open the Ongoing Monthly: March 11: Fair Coffees, teas, Pilgrim Pantry to Shop for HeadFeb. 12: Fair Trade Trade is Back cocoa, and our identified, local Start in VestryAvailable in the chocolate bars will families. Shop for muchCoffees, teas, vestry following be for sale in the needed goods forcocoa, and morning service. vestry following theOngoing Weekly:local families in chocolate bars will Please support our service. Pilgrim Pantryneed. Contact be for sale in the ongoing Bring a can or two Kathy Leaf atvestry following thecommitment to the April 27: Serve of our “Top 10” k.leaf4@gmail.comservice. Principles of Equal Dinner at Pine items to church for more Exchange. Street Inn with you and information. Please join Doug deposit in the Backlund as he baskets located in serves the hungry the Narthex. Board of Christian Outreach Rod Clark — Chair Chris Blake — Secretary Bud Dunbar — Treasurer Chris Gill Kathy LeafSue DraperAmy HolbrookDawn Backlund Judy GibbsTodd Vetter Pilgrim Church of Duxbury www.pilgrimchurchofduxbury.org 404 Washington Street P.O. Box 186 Duxbury, MA 02331tel: 781-934-6591 fax: 781-934-8758 pilgrim@pilgrimchurchofduxbury.org hours: M: 9-1/ Tu-F: 8:30-4 Learn More About It: United Church of Christ A long-standing relationship with Pilgrim Church Did you know that the motto of the United Church of Christ (UCC) is “That they may all be one” (John 17:21), which reflects the spirit of unity and points toward the effort to heal the divisions in the body of Christ? The unity we seek is neither an uncritical acceptance of any point of view, nor rigid formulation of doctrine and thus, our denomination finds itself in the throes of a dichotomy that challenges every Christian to the core of our faith. Our church in Duxbury has responded (long ago) by entering into a covenant relationship with the rest of the UCC. Structurally, “each congregation or local church is free to act in accordance with the collective decision of its members, guided by the working of the Spirit in the light of the scriptures. But, it also is called to live in a covenantal relationship with other congregations for the sharing of insights and for cooperative action under the authority of Christ. Likewise, associations of churches, conferences, the General Synod and the church wide ‘covenanted ministries’ of the United Church of Christ are free to act in their particular spheres of responsibility. Yet all are constrained by love to live in a covenantal relationship with one another and with the local churches in order to make manifest the unity of the body of Christ and thus to carry out God's mission in the world more effectively.” (UCC website) Over the years, for some of us, that relationship with the UCC may have atrophied, become something we don’t spend a lot of time thinking about, the status quo for many of us. “Blobbity blah, ebitty beep…and every year we give them some money.” In this issue of the Outreach Newsletter, we thought it might be worthwhile to remind ourselves of what we do to honor that relationship, and why we do it. The role of the Outreach Committee is to marshal the resources of our congregation: to create a vessel, like a water pitcher, through which the love of Christ can pour into people in need. But, we are part of a much larger organization that has many more resources to marshal. And, here is the point: the greater UCC alreadyhas many missions that provide accessible, worthy and efficient vessels through which God can use our time and money to touch someone. From a purely pragmatic perspective, alone our church can do only so much, but united with the 5,287 churches and 1.0 million members, together we can “practice extravagant welcome and minister to change lives.” In 2010, 386 churches (with 73,000 members) that belong to the Massachusetts Conference of the UCC contributed a total of $1.8 million to the Massachusetts Conference. In turn, 39 conferences across the country contributed a total of $7.9 million in Basic Support. So, here is a brief summary of Pilgrim’s Outreach money goes. Last year, the Outreach Committee contributed $62,530 to causes outside our church. 30% of that, or $17,067, went to local missions including the Duxbury Interfaith Council, the Council on Aging, South Shore Women’s Center, Pastor’s Discretionary Fund, Head Start, Pilgrim Pantry, and Plymouth Coalition for the United Church of Christ P I L G R I M C H U R C H O U T R E A C H Homeless. 70%, or $45,462, of it went to what is called “Our Church’s Wider Mission,” or OCWM. OCWM is another word for Basic Support of the Massachusetts Conference of the UCC. The Massachusetts Conference contributed $1.0 million of the total $7.8 million basic support for the national UCC, so among the 39 conferences thatcomprise the UCC, Massachusetts contributes over an 1/8th. The total mission giving of the Massachusetts conference was $3.8 MM funded by Basic Support as supplemented by six other sources of funds . A good deal of the mission resources of the UCC come from sources above and beyond the Basic Support. • $1.832 MM Basic Support (Our Church’s Wider Mission) • $1.032 MM Fellowship Dues • $0.020 MM Annual Appeal • $0.159 MM One Great Hour of Sharing • $0.094 MM Neighbors in Need • $0.090 MM Christmas Fund, and • $0.099 MM Other • $3.357 MM Total mission giving through the Massachusetts conference of the UCC Of the $1.8 MM in Basic Support, $1.0 MM went to the National UCC organization. About 70% of the money that goes to the Massachusetts Conference goes to staff costs, about 18% goes into other types of program costs, andabout 12% goes to administrative expenses. Total mission giving of the UCC nationally is over $29 MM, of which $18.5 MM goes back into supporting local churches. Total mission giving at the National Level can be summarized as follows: • $9.534 MM Program ministries • $9.081 MM Staff ministries • $1.901 MM Overseas Personnel • $0.433 MM Retired Overseas Personnel • $2.976 MM Common Services • $2.000 MM Operating & Support Ministries • $1.012 MM Facilities • $0.543 MM Governance • $1.806 MM Grants and Subsidies • $29.295 MM Total Giving By the way, Pilgrim Church pulls more than its weight – our average contribution to OCWM per member is over $100/member/year where statewide that average is more like $25/member/year. The average church in the Massachusetts conference gives $4,700. Pilgrim gives nearly 10 times that, because we are in much better financial condition than many other churches. In fact, at a simple level, a large portion of the money we give to the UCC goes to help these weaker churches. Enough about the money. It is not the currency by which churches are run. Think of the influence that the UCC has in our world and yet its total national budget is about the size of the Stop and Shop in Kingston. A compelling idea trumps money everytime. So, what do these “parent” (i.e. the MassachusettsConference) and “grand parent” (the national UCC organization) organizations accomplish? The Massachusetts Conference supports a number of types of ministries, which are organized into the following categories (each linked to their website with more information): •Disaster Response •Environmental Ministries •Gambling •Hispanic Ministries •Homelessness •Innocence Commission •Interfaith Action & Ecumenism •Jubilee (Economic) Justice •Justice & Witness Ministries of the UCC •LGBT Concerns •Mission Partnership with Chile •Our Church's Wider Mission •Race & Justice •Restorative Justice The Massachusetts conference supports the wider work of the body of Christ in Massachusetts, through Fellowship Dues and Our Church’s Wider Mission Basic Support by: •equipping ministers through the Pastoral Excellence programs and Clergy Communities of Practice •providing pastoral search and placement services •providing Sunday School resources •equipping churches through the training of Evangelism and Mission coaches and Vital Congregational Life cluster groups •providing youth programs such as confirmation retreats, summer camps and mission trip opportunities •strengthening the local church in its work of faith formation by providing programs for church members and leaders. The National UCC organization is organized into four groups of ministries: •Justice and Witness Ministries •Local Church Ministries •Wider Church Ministries •Office of General Ministries, Pension Boards, and Executive Council These ministries support the wider work of the body of Christ nationally and globally, through Our Church’s Wider Mission Basic Support and OCWM Special Offerings. One Great Hour of Sharing supports partners in more than 70 countries with ministries that fund development projects, feed the victims of famine, provide services for displaced people, and respond to natural disasters. These ministries are the responsibility of Wider Church Ministries, Global Sharing of Resources. Received annually on the fourth Sunday in Lent. Strengthen the Church - Supports church growth and leadership development in the conferences andthrough the national offices of Local Church Ministries. Received annually on Pentecost Sunday. Neighbors in Need - Supports ministries of justice and compassion throughout the United States and Puerto Rico, including ministry carried out by the Council for American Indian Ministries (CAIM) and by the national offices of Justice and Witness Ministries. Received annually on WorldCommunion Sunday, the first Sunday of October. The Christmas Fund: Remembering Those Who Serve Our Church Provides financial aid to retired and active ministers and their surviving spouses and children who face overwhelming financial demands, a ministry carried out by the Pension Boards. Received annually on the Sunday before Christmas. In addition to our Outreach budget, Pilgrim collected $380 for Neighbors in Need, $2,228 for the Christmas Fund, and $892 for One Great Hour of Sharing. We also collected $9,122 for Disaster Relief in Haiti. The key word in all of this is “touch.” It is one thing to send a check to a well-run charity to feed the hungry. It is another to hand a man a sandwich and let him know that you personally care that he is hungry, that it grieves you to see him suffer. His hunger is Christ’s hunger. It brings him to Christ. It brings you to Christ. Once you “touch” a need like hunger, your life is changed. In this sense, the Outreach Committee is responsible for facilitating opportunities for our members to serve others, to “reach out and touch someone.” We welcome the opportunity to get you more information about some of these ministries, if you think you would like to get involved. United Church of Christ P I L G R I M C H U R C H O U T R E A C H United Church of Christ 5 CROP Walk October 2011 Over 100 Walkers Participated We Walk Because They Walk