Copy
August 16, 2018
View this email in your browser
The Pastors describe what being a Federated Congregation means for us.

Federated Process Update
Coffee & FAQ's Sunday, August 19 at 9:00 am in Hart Hall
Special Meeting Sunday, August 26 at 9:00 am in Hart Hall

The Vestry and Council have called a special congregational meeting to present the final Federation Proposal and new Bylaws for approval. This proposal combines our organizations completely.
Read the FAQs here.          Read the Federated Document & Proposed Bylaws here.


Notes from the Office

Sometimes the days fly by, and we find ourselves unexpectedly further along in the calendar. For instance, it’s mid-August. That is rather shocking, at least to me. I feel like it was the beginning of June a couple of days ago, and now schools are about to open. Generally, summer should be a quiet time for a church. People go on vacation. No big decisions get made. The phone hardly rings. But not this summer. We will remember the summer of 2018 as the summer when our doors were opened wide for new partnerships, when we moved forward in our plans to codify our life together, and when we welcomed new babies and said farewell to old friends.

We have so much going on. On Wednesday, August 22, at 7:30pm, we’re having an Interfaith Peace Service with special music chosen by our own David Neff. A few days later, on Sunday, August 26. at 9:00am, we’re having a Congregational Meeting (you really want to be here) about the ways that our joining together of communities of God will be made permanent, how best to create a governing body, and what that will look like.

September brings us back together with a Blessing of Teachers and Students on September 2 at the 10:30 service (take note: 10:30 on September 2), and the choir returns on September 9. We have an evening of jazz and prayer on Wednesday, September 19 at 7:30pm – with fantastic musicians and joyous music.

While we are busy sharing our faith, we are also sharing our space. We are hosting events for The Baltimore Folk Music Society, which include English Country Dancing every Monday night (with live musicians) and Saturday night dances on the second Saturday of each month. They are a great group of folks who truly appreciate the opportunity to call Hart Hall their new home. We are also welcoming the Front Porch Church to Hart Hall. In September, they will start holding their Sunday services here at 4:00pm.

We’ve also received a grant from Augsburg Lutheran Village for our parishioners to take a Bus Trip to Strasburg, Pennsylvania, to attend a live theatrical performance in November, and we will be having a special service of remembrance with a luncheon again this year around All Saint’s Day. We’re busy. We are praying and singing and doing God’s work - all of us, together. Amen.
Carolyn Surrick, Parish Administrator
 

Prayers for Peace & Potluck

We will host the monthly Interfaith Peace Service on Wednesday, August 22 at 7:30 PM in our church. David Neff is arranging some special music of course. We'll have a potluck supper in Hart Hall right before the service at 6:30pm! Sign up for what you can bring on the poster in the foyer.
  

Pastoral Updates

Congratulations to Alex and Emily Moore, proud parents of their second daughter, Alice Jane, born last Friday. Alice is the granddaughter of Harold and Maria Hardinger. Welcome to the household of God, Alice and congrats to your big sister Riley.
 



Blessing the Children

As children and teachers all over Baltimore will return to school, the children in our parish and volunteer teachers will return to our Sunday Church school. In the past, we’ve blessed back-packs at this time of year, and we’ll happily do that, but we feel it’s more important to bless children and their teachers. So, we will have a special emphasis this week in our worship upon children and learning.

At both 8:00 and 10:30 worship services (note the time change back to 10:30) we will use the Gospel reading from Mark where, despite the efforts of disciples, Jesus welcomes and blesses children. At 10:30, after the Gospel reading, we will invite children to come forward to hear Diane Macklin re-tell the Gospel in story form. At that point the children will go to Sunday School. When they return, they will sing the first stanza of a simple song, and congregation members can welcome them by joining on the second stanza. When we invite people up for prayers for birthdays and anniversaries, we will also invite children and teachers, and our prayers will include a blessing for those teaching and learning.

             



Bathing Suit Collection

Daya and Roseda Marshall are back home from Liberia for a few weeks. Roseda will be joining us for the Forum on Faith on September 2 to give us an update of their work and ministry especially through Women Organized Resources for Liberia’s Development (W.O.R.L.D., Inc.). This organization has been active with support and empowerment of Liberians in and outside of Liberia, West Africa. WORLD’s current projects include supporting children to go to school and supporting programs that empower.

While they are here in the States, they are collecting lightly used and new swim wear for a community therapeutic youth program in Liberia at The Church of Nativity & Holy Comforter. Please bring gently used suits for boys and girls ages 10-20 to the bin in the foyer.

 

Notebooks needed!

This year at our synod youth events, one of the service projects we will work on is assembling School Kits for Lutheran World Relief. Each kit includes four 70-page spiral bound notebooks, and we always run low on this particular item. Now is the best time to buy, since they are always on sale during back to school season
 

 


               


  
 
 

Wellness at Cedarcroft Center
Summer Class Schedule

The classes next door are quickly growing! The Cedarcroft Center is Nativity & Holy Comforter's new community venture on the second floor of 6112 York Road. Check www.cedarcroftcenter.com. for more information.

Tuesday
3:30-4:30pm   Tai Chi
7:00-8:00pm   Gentle Yoga
(Hart Hall)

Wednesday
12:30-1:30pm   Gentle Yoga
7:00pm-8:45pm Synergy Dance (Hart Hall)

Thursday
9:30-10:30am   Gentle Yoga
 

Saturday
9:00-10:00am Gentle Yoga

Suggested Donations
Gentle Yoga $5      Power Yoga $10
Tai Chi $5               Synergy Dance $20
Mats are available for use. $1
Plus meet Joshua Gosnell of Anahata Massage Therapy also at 6112 York Road.






This email was sent to <<Email Address>>
why did I get this?    unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences
The Church of the Nativity and Holy Comforter · 419 Cedarcroft Rd · Baltimore, MD 21212 · USA

Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp