|  | Open Table UCC E-NewsWeek of February 27th-March 5th, 2023 |  | A Note From the Pastors
Psalm 121:1-2 (CEB) - I raise my eyes toward the mountains. Where will my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. Hi friends! Happy March, everyone! We hope this email finds you well. A couple of weeks ago, we celebrated together that Judge Renee Cohn Jubelirer issued a ruling declaring Pennsylvania’s unfair school funding system to be unconstitutional. This ruling was the result of a nearly 10-year legal battle towards ensuring a fair and equitably-funded education for all students in the Commonwealth, regardless of zip code. This ongoing lawsuit, being brought forth by specific individuals and bodies, was one part of the ongoing struggle to ensuring this reality. Countless others have been fighting for the same goal in countless ways - letter writing and phone calls to people in power, one-to-one meetings with government officials, fair funding rallies and demonstrations, non-violent protests…the list could go on. This ruling was a huge recognition that something is not right, and the situation, as is, will no long be tolerated. The ruling was a big step, but there are many still to walk. One of the most prominent players in this work is POWER Interfaith, a faith-based organizing group that has been immersed in the struggle from the beginning. On Sunday, the organization held a statewide meeting to talk about what’s next, and several Open Table folks attended. Here is the report from that meeting: "Statewide POWER, met on Sunday, February 26th to discuss the next steps in securing equitable, fair education funding in the state of Pennsylvania and keeping race as a central lens. We brainstormed our preliminary goals for 2023:
1. Increase state school budget.
2. Create structural changes to the current fair funding formula.
3. Increase our base and relationship building.
4. Do a power analysis of Harrisburg and lay out who has not been paying their fair share of taxes.
We then established three working groups: Research Team, Budget Team led by Dr. Karen Pooley, and an Education Team led by Beth Logue.
The next Statewide Education Justice Team Meeting will be March 9 at 4:30. We recognize that the court ruling stated no time-line or remedy and therefore has no sense of urgency for the legislative body. As such, POWER needs to keep pushing Fair Funding forward, raise awareness, and continue to organize.
If you are interested in being part of a team please contact one of the following individuals.
Beth Logue - elizabeth.logue44@gmail.com, 610-608-7563
Dr Karen Pooley - beckpooley@gmail.com
Nathan Sooy - nsooy@powerinterfaith.org" We are heading into our second week of Lent, working with the Worship Design Studio's theme "Lookin For Love." Last Sunday, Max shared with us from the Genesis story about God's desire to have a loving relationship with us, in all that we are and wherever we find ourselves, even when we think we need to hide ourselves. This week, we will be exploring what it means for that God, in the context of loving relationship, to be our Helper. This Helper God sees us, loves us, accompanies us, and helps us in times of trouble. One of the ways God does that is by raising up helpers to do the work. Fred Rogers, or “Mr.Rogers,” wrote, ““When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping,” and that has always stuck with me - we have the opportunity to see the real, tangible help of God in the helpers around us. People like these siblings connected to POWER are such as these - people who see suffering, who love our children, and who are determined to alleviate the weight of injustice and its consequences. The helpers around us point to this Helper God and inspire us to be helpers too.
Join us on Sunday as we continue to explore this theme of our “Helper God.” We are so grateful to be on this journey with you. May you know your belovedness, always.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Nichole | |  | Sunday Worship ServiceWe are gathering at Steel River Playhouse this Sunday, March 5th, at 10:00am for our weekly Worship Service. Our service will be livestreamed for folks who can’t join in person .
Every week, we will be partaking in Holy Communion together, so if you are joining us online, make sure to gather your elements (bread/crackers/grape juice/water, etc.) so you participate at home. | |
|  | Lent 2023
with Open Table UCCThis is our first Lenten season together as a faith community, and we are excited to engage in it with all of you this year! We will be working with Worship Design Studio’s Lenten series, “Looking for Love,” on Sunday mornings, as well as during our special services and offerings. Here is what is coming up:
*Six Sundays in Lent, beginning next Sunday, February 26-Sunday April 2nd: Sunday Worship Services at Steel River Playhouse at 10:00am.
*April 6th - Maundy Thursday Dinner Service at Steel River Playhouse at 6:30pm
*April 7th - Community Good Friday Processional through Pottstown - 10:15am (meet on the green between Emmanuel Lutheran and Zion’s UCC on High Street); Pottstown Ministerium Traditional Good Friday Service at 12:00pm, location TBD
*April 9th - Outdoor Easter Sunday celebration at 10:00am at the Riverfront Park Pavilion. |
|
|
|
|
|
| |  | Disney High School Musical at Pottstown High School -
THIS WEEKEND!The Foundation for Pottstown Education’s Celebration of the Arts Pottstown High School presents, Disney High School Musical, on March 4th. The Pottstown High School musical production, Disney High School Musical, will be presented on March 3rd, 4th, and 5th. Tickets are only $5 for students and $10 for adults in advance. Tickets purchased in cash are $6 for students and $11 for adults. Click on the button below to purchase tickets for the show. | |
|  | Lenten Daily Devotional Pastor Nichole and Pastor Zack have collaborated with some local clergy colleagues to compile a daily devotional to share with the congregations that we lead during the season of Lent. These physical devotional booklets and an accompanying candle are available to during our Sunday worship services. You can also access the Daily Devotional by clicking on the button below or going to our church website and accessing it there.
May you know God’s love in a special way this season! | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |  | Community Connections: Conversations on Well-beingThe Pottstown Ministerium has partnered with Pottstown Hospital Tower Health and Creative Health to host "Community Connections: Conversations on Wellbeing” on Sundays, beginning on February 19th, from 3:30-4:30pm. This 6-part series will feature speakers from Pottstown Hospital and Creative Health Services and will focus on specific topics related to mental health and wellbeing. The topics by week are included below.
*February 26th: Child and Family Wellbeing
*March 5th: Teen Wellbeing
*March 12th: Adult Wellbeing
*March 19th: Suicide Prevention
*March 26th: Self-Care
Click on the image above to access the flyer, and the button below to register. By registering, you are doing so for the entire series, however, if a session does not apply to you, you do not need to attend. | |
|  | Pottstown NAACP Book Club Pottstown has a very active NAACP chapter, and they are always up to some good work in our Borough. If you are looking for a way to get involved in the work of justice on behalf of our community, you can join this group of dedicated individuals who are committed to the work of racial justice, anti-racism and reconciliatory relationships.The NAACP Book Club has now resumed! They will meet the second Monday of every month at 6 p.m. at the Pottstown Library, 500 E. High Street. From the Branch Office, "The next meeting will be Monday, March 13, at 6 p.m. at the library. Each month, those who attend vote on what book to read for the next month’s discussion. For March, the group chose “Barracoon:The Story of the Last “Black Cargo,” by Zora Neale Hurston. It’s described as the true story of one of the last-known survivors of the Atlantic slave trade – Cudjo Lewis, who was 86 years old when Hurston interviewed him in 1927.And since this book sounded so good, we went ahead and picked it for April: "Black Man in a White Coat: A Doctor’s Reflections on Race and Medicine," by Damon Tweedy, M.D.Kerry Pidcock-Lester is arranging for the library to reserve books for us. If you would like one, just tell the librarian at the desk you’d like one of Kerry’s books."If you would like to get some more information about joining the Pottstown Branch of the NAACP, please click below. Hope you can join us! | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |  | The S.T.R.I.V.E. Initiative Mentor Program Did you know that Pottstown Middle School has a mentoring program? It’s called “Created for Greatness” and they are always looking for adults who want to invest in the lives of young people to join in. According to their website, “Created for Greatness is a mentoring program where we work directly with Pottstown youth, focusing on middle school students. We work to build generations of activists who are connected to Pottstown mentors that provide guidance, support, and growth.” Friend of Open Table, Mr. David Charles, is the director of this incredible program that several of us are involved, or are beginning to get involved, with, and we want to invite you to check it out and see if God might be calling you to this very special program. If you would like some more information, see full information flyer here, visit the S.T.R.I.V.E. website here, or contact David directly at dcharles@striveinitiative.org. Click below for online application to apply. | |
|  | Steel River Playhouse Upcoming ShowsSteel River Playhouse, our gracious host for our Sunday Worship Services, has an incredible season of shows and we would like to highlight the ones coming up and encourage you to see them!
*The Laramie Project -March 10th – 12th AND March 24th – 26th
In October 1998, a 21 year-old student at the University of Wyoming was kidnapped, severely beaten, and left tied to a fence in the middle of the prairie outside Laramie, Wyoming. His bloody, bruised and battered body was not discovered until the next day, and he died several days later. His name was Matthew Shepard, the victim of this assault because he was gay. Moises Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Project made six trips to Laramie over the next year and a half in the aftermath of the beating and during the trial of the two young men accused of the killing. They conducted 200+ interviews with the people of the town. Some were directly connected to the case and others were citizens of Laramie. Kaufman and Tectonic Theater constructed a deeply moving theatrical experience from the interviews and their experiences.
*The Laramie Project – 10 Years Later March 17th – 19th AND March 31st – April 2nd
In 2008, the Tectonic team returned to Laramie. They interviewed many of the same people and several new, including Matthew’s mother and the two men convicted of killing him. This is that story. | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |  | PodcastOur Pastors have a podcast where they discuss the values of our Church community and interview difference-makers who are stirring up good things in the world. We are also now uploading our weekly sermons to the podcast as well.
“Reimagining Faith With the Pastors Jackson” can be found wherever you listen to podcasts. | |
|  | GivingIf you would like to financially support the mission and ministry of Open Table UCC, you can give online by going to opentablepottstown.com/give, or by scanning the QR code above. Your donation will be processed through Tithely and is safe and secure.
If you need to send a check, please make it out to "Open Table UCC" and send it to:
Open Table UCC
PO Box 1034
Pottstown, PA 19464 | |
|
|
|
|
|
| | | | | |
|
|
|
|
|
