Faith @
Fifth and Juliana
Dear Sisters & Brothers in Christ,
If I were going to subtitle this Faith @ 5th, it might be something like,
"Coming Out of the Dark." Yes, I know it is the title of a Gloria Estefan song,
but it seems to me to fit Trinity so well right now. What prompts my direction is in part
what happened after the May 17th Vestry Meeting.
Several of us made a special trip out to Juliana Street to see the results of
the installation of a light to illuminate the front of the church building. This long
hoped for illumination has happened thanks to the Evangelism & Fellowship Committee
and the work of our own Tom Gyongyosi at Allegheny Power. Honestly the effect isn’t
perfect, but it is striking. (We have taken advantage of resources already present to us:
an existing pole, not having to run electrical drops, etc.) Trinity Church literally has
"come out of the dark." You can now see it as you approach it after dark. Our
beautiful and historic building is un-shrouded to those who walk about the downtown. We
are a presence.
I need to share with you that I believe this practical aspect of coming out of
the dark also reflects other aspects of coming out of the dark. As we look back over
not-too-distant history at Trinity there have been some dark times. To be sure the dawn
has been breaking (it always comes long before there is enough light by which to see). We
are all grateful to the "dawn traders" for their presence and ministry. I am
especially grateful to Fr. Jack Weise, our Interim-of-long-tenure, and the wardens, vestry
and other lay leaders of this parish.
If you spend much time at Trinity you can see the growing light. Ministry ideas
are on the increase. People are willing to step forward and risk letting themselves be
used by the Holy Spirit to accomplish holy things and aspire to Divine purposes. There is
energy in our youngest members — lots of energy — and they like being here. And,
I see a growing relentlessness in the Vestry: a commitment to settle for nothing less that
discovering and accomplishing that which God has purposed for us.
We cannot yet claim, as a community, the words "well done thy good
and faithful servants," but more and more The Voice is being heard in this place and
the response is, "here I am, Lord, send me." Who gets the credit? God of course.
And, you, who are willing to submit yourselves, your souls and bodies, to the
Spirit’s beckon call.
Faithfully,
Scott Hunter+
|
 HABITAT NEWS: Lunches needed !!
Lunches are needed for the women
building the Habitat for Humanity home at 17th and Covert Streets. There are usually 12 or
more on Friday and 20 or more on Saturday. Our coordinator for lunches in Joanne Tingler.
Please give her a call at 863-2797 or 485-2953 to
schedule a time to become involved in this special ministry.
The walls are up, the roof is on, the windows are in! We are so very excited about the
progress. Drive by to see us at work. Take Market Street to 17th Street. Turn onto 17th
and go 3 blocks to the corner of 17th and Covert Streets. You can't miss the big pink sign
and the huge orange trailer (thanks Craig Curry!).
HABITAT ANNUAL
DINNER: The Habitat for Humanity will be holding its annual dinner
this coming Friday May 21st at 6:00 P.M. at the Blennerhassett Hotel. Tickets are $20 per
person and are available at the Habitat office. Call 422-7907 for tickets and more
information. ALL ARE WELCOME !!
Check out the
latest pictures of the Habitat for Humanity
Women Raise the Roof project.
ICE CREAM SOCIAL !!!!!!!
This coming Sunday will be the last day of Sunday School and
Children’s Chapel for Trinity’s children, and we will be celebrating with an Ice
Cream Social at the City Park.  Many
exciting things happened during the Sunday School year. The intermediate class helped in
the construction of two new banners which were presented at the 5 p.m. service on
Christmas Eve and preschool class made bread one Sunday while learning about how Jesus fed
the masses with loaves and fishes and the bread was offered for communion. It was an
exciting and successful year. Many thanks go out to Connie Waterman for the great job she
has done for our youth this year as well as to all the Sunday School teachers for their
commitment and hard work. The Ice Cream Social will follow the 10:30 service. A
pavilion has been reserved and along with ice cream, hot dogs, chips and drinks will be
served. The pavilion number is 11, it is the pavilion closest to the playground, you
can’t miss it !!! Everyone, young and not so young, is invited to attend and help
celebrate a great year !!
1999 GEM Convention
On Thursday, April 29, 1999 Sandi and I traveled to Denver, Colorado to
attend the 1999 GEM Network Educational Institute. What is GEM you say. GEM stands for
Global Episcopal Mission Network. GEM is an association of dioceses which seek to fulfill
their responsibilities as the Church's basic unit of mission of:
 | Increasing the awareness, understanding, and participation of their congregations in
global mission through prayer, education, financial support and publication of
opportunities. |
| Supporting one another in the receiving and sending of missionaries. |
GEM works in collaboration with the Anglican and Global Relations Cluster and the
Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society of the Episcopal Church, voluntary missionary
societies, and ecumenical partners. I volunteered to represent our diocese at the three
institutes which included presentations on Empowering Global Mission: Into the Next
Millennium by the The Most Reverend W. Khotso Makhulu, the Arch Bishop of South Africa;
Panel discussions on How will we Empower Mission and How do we Empower
Mission. We held breakout sessions to discuss the stories of global mission within our
dioceses, our dreams, and how we make those dreams a reality. The institute concluded with
a presentation from the diocese of Honduras on the impact of Hurricane Mitch. It was a
powerful presentation on the ECUSA's role in rebuilding, restoring, and healing in
Honduras. There is much left to be done! Currently, the South American Missionary
Society(SAMS) and Habitat for Humanity have partnered to build new neighborhoods in
Honduras. I believe we are called to share Christ's love with that country.
I volunteered because I am deeply interested in developing short term mission trips
within our dioceses, deanery, and parish. I believe we must have outreach before we can
have inreach. I also do not think our outreach can stop at our borders. Christ's Great
Commission was to "go into all the world and preach the Gospel to all creation."
I hope to bring you more about GEM and Global Mission in future Times articles.
Faithfully, Eric Lawson
CALLING
ALL GRADUATES !!!!
 We
would like to recognize all of our High School and College graduating Seniors this Sunday
May 23, 1999 during the 10:30 service. Graduating this year from PHS will be Laurel
Hensley, Anna Zivkovich, and Lorie Burner. If we are leaving anyone out, please call the
church office as soon as possible and hope to see you Sunday!
PENTECOST
Jesus promised the Spirit to His followers as He prepared
to leave the world. The Spirit would serve as Comforter and Counselor, continuing to teach
Jesus' followers  and reminding them of
what He had said to them (John 14:25-26). Ten days after Jesus' ascension, the promised
Spirit came upon His followers during the Jewish Feast of Pentecost. The advent of the
Spirit was accompanied by a sound that was like a mighty wind. Those who witnessed this
event saw what seemed to be tongues of fire resting on the believers. Moreover, these
disciples were empowered to speak in tongues other than their native language (Acts
2:1-3). Throughout Luke's account of the early church, the Holy Spirit empowered and
guided the followers of Jesus in their mission to the world surrounding the Mediterranean
(Acts 11:12; 13:2; 15:28; 16:6-7; 20:22; 21:11).
This information is taken from the Holman Bible Dictionary,
Electronic Version
We will be celebrating Pentecost this coming Sunday May 23rd. Join us and
don’t forget to wear red which is symbolic of the Holy Spirit !!!
…..and all of them were filled with
the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:4
 Last Day of Choir !!
Sunday May 30th will be the last opportunity to hear our wonderful choir perform
until next fall !!! Come and enjoy.
Congratulations also go out to Dan Northrup, grandson of Don and Ellsmore
Northrup, who will be graduating from Parkersburg Catholic High School this month !
Please hold these people, events and circumstances in
your daily prayers. Also, we encourage you to always say a prayer for those unknown
persons who have no one to pray for them. By-the-way, please remember to renew prayer
requests weekly.
Tom Patrick, Charlotte Martin, Larry Bellew, Nellie Taylor, Terri Hindman,
Alex Northrup, Mary Carolyn & Bill Mildren, Sr., Donna Tyo, Ruth Greer, Mazie Smith,
Mary Glen Rice, Maggie Crofton, Butch Shaver, Carr Leavitt, Esber Tweel (priest) and Rocky
Rachell (priest), Gladys Fitcher, Lu Reindle, Juliette McIntire, Julia & Shirley
Davis, Bill Pollock, Mary Bee, Elsie Reed, Doris Brown, Jamie Hill, Virginia Nicely, Dick
Smith, Laurel Pleninger, Sarah Jane Wharton, Seldon Stone, Helen Waterman, and Bill
Goettel.
| Connie’s Corner THE ANT
Brenda was a young woman that wanted to learn to go rock climbing.
Although she was scared to death she went with a group and they faced this tremendous
cliff of rock. Practically perpendicular. In spite of her fear, she put on the gear and
she took a hold of the rope and she started up the face of that rock. Well, she got to a
ledge where she could take a breather. As she was hanging on there, whoever was holding
the rope up at the top of the cliff made a mistake and snapped the rope against Brenda's
eye and knocked out her contact lens. You know how tiny contact lenses are and how almost
impossible to find. Well, here she is on a rock ledge, with who knows how many hundreds of
feet behind and hundreds of feet above her. Of course, she looked and looked and looked,
hoping that she would be able to find that contact lens. Here she was, very far from home.
Her sight was now blurry. She was very upset by the fact that she wouldn't be anywhere
near a place where she could get a new contact lens. And she prayed that the Lord would
help her to find it. Well, her last hope was that perhaps when she got to the top of the
cliff, one of the girls that was up there on the top might be able to find her contact
lens in the corner of her eye. When she got to the top, a friend examined her eye. There
was no contact lens to be found. She sat down with the rest of the party, waiting for the
rest of them to come up the face of the cliff. She looked out across range after range of
mountains, thinking of that Bible verse that says, "The eyes of the Lord run to and
fro throughout the whole earth." She thought, "Lord, You can see all these
mountains. You know every single stone and leaf that's on those mountains and You know
exactly where my contact lens is." Finally, the time came when it was time to go
down. They walked down the trail to the bottom. Just as they got there, there was a new
party of rock climbers coming along. As one of them started up the face of the cliff, she
shouted out, "Hey, you guys! Anybody lose a contact lens?" Well, that would be
startling enough, wouldn't it? She had found the contact lens! But you know why she saw
it? An ant was carrying that contact lens so that it was moving slowly across the face of
the rock. What does that tell you about the God of the universe? Is He in charge of the
tiniest things? Do ants matter to Him? Of course they do. He made them. He designed them.
Brenda told me that her father is a cartoonist. When she told him this incredible story,
he drew a picture of that ant lugging that contact lens (as you see in the comics with a
balloon with words in it over his head) with the words: "Lord, I don't know why You
want me to carry this thing. I can't eat it and it's awfully heavy. But if this is what
You want me to do, I'll carry it for You." If God is in charge of the ants, don't you
think He cares about you and me? I guess Solomon was right. One could learn a valuable
lesson from that ant-- trust in God. We could probably all say a little more often,
"God, I don't know why you want me to carry this load. I see no good in it and it's
awfully heavy. Still, if you want me to, I'll carry it for You."
A true story sent by Josh and Karen Zarandona
Peace+ Connie
|
Parkersburg Area Christian Radio
Station
TUNE IN TODAY!
Click to visit website
Ministers for Sunday, May 23rd
Chalice Bearers: Kim Couch, Paul Miller, Laverne
Marshall, OJ, Carol Olson
Lectors: Reed Belasco, Anna Zivkovich, Carol Olson
Ushers: Ed Johnson, Forbes Heihle,
Coffee Hour Hosts: Ice Cream Social at City Park, join us!
Proper for Pentecost
Acts 2:(1-11), Psalm 104:25-32, 1 Corinthians 12:4-13, John
20:19-23
Altar Guild for the week of May 17-23
Helen Roberts, Lynette Neilson, Emily Dowling, Charlotte and Bill Bee, Cara Bowen, and
Charlotte Muse |
Food Closet Items of the Month
| Baked Beans |
| Canned Meat |
| 1lb Boxes of sugar |
Please place in basket at the back of the church
Adult Forum:
Father Hunter is planning to continue the Adult Forum through the
summer with the study of the books of Luke and Acts. The time will remain at 9:15 am on
Sunday mornings. Childcare is available starting at 9:00 am.
The Worship Committee will meet Saturday May 22nd at 10 AM. |
 .Relay for Life:
Several Trinitarians participated in this past
weekend’s American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life at City Park. Charlotte
Dauphin participated as a member of the PHS Student Council relay team. Also Andy and Max
Lawson participated in the Kids Walk on Saturday morning
The Parish office will be closed Monday May 31st for Memorial
Day Holiday. Also the office will close at noon on Friday starting June 7th and all
Fridays through August. |
Peterkin Men and Women’s
Retreats: Sign-up sheets for both the
Men’s and Women’s Weekend Retreats are on the Bulletin Boards. The Women’s
Retreat is the weekend of Sept. 17-19. The Men’s Retreat is to be Sept. 24-26th.
Sign-up as soon as possible to reserve your space. It has been reported that the Trinity
men outnumbered the Trinity women at retreats last year by a 3:2 ratio ! Ladies we have
been challenged to get our attendance numbers up, so sign-up soon!!! |
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