December 14, 2022
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Join us this Sunday for the 11:00 AM Lessons and Carols Worship Service featuring special anthems from the Adult Choir, instrumentalists, scripture lessons, and Christmas carols sung by the congregation.
  We have switched from Zoom to livestreaming our worship services on our YouTube channel.  The link to this week’s worship service is https://youtu.be/28VY_ZBcN7A.  If you have not yet subscribed to the McGregor Presbyterian YouTube channel, go to YouTube.com, search McGregor Presbyterian, and then click subscribe.  If you need assistance with this, please contact Jason Adams at irmojason@gmail.com , Bill Ackerman, or Pastor Robyn and we will be glad to help!  
 
  This Sunday, December 18 is the Fourth Sunday of Advent, which means the fourth and final Advent Station will be in place in the Advent Prayer Station.  Stop in Classroom B (across the hall from the nursery in Glenn Hall) and take the time to be still and reflect on how Advent is speaking to you by exploring the gifts of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love.  Please enter the room quietly, so not to disturb others who may already be in there.  Instructions and guidance are provided for each station.   
 
  Bring your family and invite your friends and neighbors to join us on the labyrinth this Sunday, December 18 at 4:00 PM for a Christmas Carol Sing.  We will sing some of our favorite Christmas Carols and then enjoy some light refreshments and fellowship.  If the weather is rainy or too cold, we’ll meet inside.

Our annual Lessons and Carols service will be this Sunday, December 18.  We’ve enjoyed preparing some of our favorite anthems that we weren’t able to sing during the pandemic.  We’re looking forward to blending our voices with instrumentalists, scripture lessons, and congregational carol singing for a joyful celebration.   We hope you’ll join us!   
  On Thursday, December 8, the Choir Chimes Quartet presented a program of Christmas Carols at the Columbia Presbyterian Community, followed by a carol sing-along with residents.  We enjoyed sharing the Christmas spirit through our music.  Many thanks to Elaine Abercrombie, Louise Carter, Michele Culbreath, and Debbie Griffis for their hard work on this program. 
 
  McGregor will observe the Christmas Joy Offering this Sunday, December 18.  This offering provides assistance to current and retired church workers and their families in their time of need, and develops our future leaders at Presbyterian-related schools and colleges equipping communities of color.
 
  The resource for December is the movie, Till. This is a biographical film about Mamie Till Mobley, the mother of Emmett Till.  When Emmett Till was only 14, he was lynched in 1955 in Mississippi by a mob of white men; his murderers were quickly acquitted of the crime by an all-white jury.  In many ways, Till’s murder catapulted the brutality of the Jim Crow-era South into the public spotlight.  Mamie Till Mobley became an activist after her son’s death.  The movie follows her experience after her son’s death from a grieving mother into a civil rights warrior.  In March 2022, the Emmett Till Antilynching Act finally became federal law, aimed at designating lynching as a hate crime.  Efforts to pass a federal antilynching law started in 1900.  The movie is playing in local theaters, and it will be available for purchase or rent on several streaming platforms soon.

The McGregor Book Club met today for a Christmas Luncheon and to discuss their favorite book.  The Book Club meets monthly.  If you are interested in participating in the Book Club, contact Jane Tyer at jrtyer@sc.rr.com.  Many thanks to the Book Club for inviting the church staff to join them for lunch – it was delicious!  Thank you!
 
  All 2022 contributions to McGregor Presbyterian Church must be received on or postmarked by December 31, 2022.  [Don’t forget you can also donate online through our website, www.mcgpres.org or through your bank/credit union with bill pay – online donations for 2022 still must be dated on or before December 31, 2022.]  All contributions received or postmarked on or after January 1, 2023 will be credited to 2023.  We are so thankful for your faithful and generous support of McGregor Church’s ministry and mission.
 
  Our McGregor Holiday Mailbox is in the narthex (near the ladies’ restroom) so you may send Christmas cards to your McGregor family and friends - without paying any postage!  Simply place your addressed cards in the alphabetized file folders in the box.  Then check to see if there are any cards for you.  The Holiday Mailbox will be available for use through Sunday, January 8.
 
  The church office will be closed December 26-30 and January 2.  Rev. Robyn Garrison and Michele Glasscock will be on vacation.  Happy Holidays!
 
  During the month of December, we are collecting cans of chicken noodle soup, microwave pasta bowls, and small individual boxes of breakfast cereal.  Please drop off your donations in the church lobby.

Sunday, December 18 – The Fourth Sunday of Advent
               9:30 AM Sunday School, Combined Adult Advent Study
               11:00 AM Worship Service – Adult Choir Lessons and Carols
               4:00 PM – Community Christmas Carol Sing on the Labyrinth, followed by light refreshments.  Combined Youth Group will meet following the Carol Sing.
 
Saturday, December 24 – Christmas Eve
               6:00 PM Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion Worship Service
(Contact Jane Tyer at 803/261-6351 or jrtyer@sc.rr.com to make nursery reservations for Christmas Eve.  The reservation deadline is this Sunday, December 18.) 
 
Sunday, December 25 – Christmas Day - Merry Christmas!
               No Sunday School or Nursery
              11:00 AM Christmas Day Worship Service (casual dress)
Monday-Friday, December 26-30
               Church office will be closed.
 
Sunday, January 1 – New Year’s Day – Happy New Year!
               No Sunday School or Nursery
               11:00 AM Worship Service
Monday, January 2
               Church Office will be closed.
 
  A new member class will be offered in January for those interested in learning more about the Presbyterian Church (USA) and McGregor, specifically.  Please let Pastor Robyn know if you are interested in joining here at McGregor or if you'd just like to participate in the class!  More details (times and dates) will be shared after the first of the year.