From the Pastor….
….hope filled joy!
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
The joy these words bring to me this year seems a little different than many previous Easters. They are words I’ve been longing to say and to hear. They are words I’ve needed to say and to hear.
I’m not sure the adjectives to use to describe how my Easter joy is different this year. The one word that is sticking in my brain is “pensive.” But that just seems ridiculous—how can those words go together? Easter. Joy. Pensive?
It’s hard not to be pensive (defined by Merriam-Webster.com as “quietly sad or thoughtful”) when the war in Gaza goes on and on as children are dying of hunger, when hard working fathers filling potholes to support their families are killed in a freak bridge collapse, when our news is filled with findings about the Lewiston shooting and possible legislation for stronger gun laws is iffy at best.
It’s hard not to be pensive in these weeks of Lent as I’ve watched many in our congregation deal with untimely illness and death of family, friends, and neighbors and as I’ve encountered my own grief in the midst of walking with them.
Yes, my Easter joy is somewhat pensive this year.
But there is more to my Easter joy—something greater. The other adjective is hopeful. And my hopeful joy far exceeds my pensive joy. My hopeful joy is greater after our Lenten emphasis on lament and as we enter this Easter season.
My hope is Resurrection hope—it is certain hope. It fills me with joy to know that the tomb is empty and death has not had the final word, that death and pain and sin will never again have the final word! Jesus Christ has conquered that pain and sin and death. Christ has risen from the Good Friday tomb into Easter glory!
The hope-filled Easter joy gives me strength and courage to power through the fear and grief that life sometimes doles out. The hope-filled Easter joy carries me through those days or weeks when sadness threatens to overcome, when God seems distant, when the world feels out of control, when the only piece of lament I can find is the complaint piece.
But the Easter message moves me to hope. God has won! God is with us and will never leave us alone—I am joyfully certain of this! The tomb was empty! God’s love is full!
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Easter Blessings,
Pastor Anderson
Monday, April 1
4:00 - 5:30 PM Council Meeting
7:00 PM - Men’s Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Tuesday, April 2
9:30 - 11:00 AM - Out of Office Hours
Dot’s, Rt 1, Lincolnville
Thursday, April 4
8:00 AM - Morning Prayer, via Zoom
3PM - Coastal Family Hospice Volunteers Grief Group for Parents, Meeting Room
Sunday, April 7
9:00 AM - Choir practice in Sanctuary/Adult education in Meeting room
10:30 AM - Worship in-person and online
Assistant: Marty Taylor
Reader: Sue Ann Moore
Usher: Carol Brazier
Monday, April 8
Field Trip to view the Solar Eclipse (see the information below)
7:00 PM - Men’s Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Tuesday, April 9
9:30 - 11:00 AM - Out of Office Hours
FlipSide Coffee, Main St, Thomaston
Thursday, April 11
8:00 AM - Morning Prayer, via Zoom
Sunday, April 14
9:00 AM - Choir practice in Sanctuary/Adult education in Meeting room
10:30 AM - Worship in-person and online
Assistant: Betty Long
Reader: Sandy Abate (remote reader)
Usher: Tina Huntley
Monday, April 15
7:00 PM - Men’s Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Tuesday, April 16
9:30 - 11:00 AM - Out of Office Hours
Seafolk Coffee, 22 Central St, Rockport
Thursday, April 18
8:00 AM - Morning Prayer, via Zoom
3PM - Coastal Family Hospice Volunteers Grief Group for Parents, Meeting Room
Sunday, April 21
9:00 AM - Choir practice in Sanctuary/Adult education in Meeting room
10:30 AM - Worship in-person and online
Assistant: Fred Walker
Reader: Kim Murphy
Usher: Jennie Dynesius
Monday, April 22
Happy Earth Day!
7:00 PM - Men’s Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Tuesday, April 23
9:30 - 11:00 AM - Out of Office Hours
Hole In the Wall Bagels, 754 Main St, Rockland
Thursday, April 25
8:00 AM - Morning Prayer, via Zoom
Sunday, April 28
9:00 AM - Choir practice in Sanctuary/Adult education in Meeting room
10:30 AM - Worship in-person and online
Assistant: Betty Long
Reader: Charlie Rowling
Usher: Bruce Cobb
Monday, April 29
7:00 PM - Men’s Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Tuesday, April 30
9:30 - 11:00 AM - Out of Office Hours
Atlantic Baking Company, Main St, Rockland
Month of April
Altar Care: Donna Perry
Flower Arranger: Donna Perry
Acolyte: Ann Walker
Note For midweek prayer via zoom - there is a separate Zoom link.
Email Pastor at office@nativityrockport.org if you would like the zoom link. Please also email Pastor if you do not have the Sunday link.
Welcome Earth Day 2024!
April 22, 1970 was the first celebrated Earth Day! That is over 50 years ago! Concern about our planet’s health and its resources have been pondered for too long. Time for action is long overdue. I recently watched my favorite movie on YouTube, The Lorax 1972. The theme of the movie shows the ravages of industry. An animated movie based on a Dr. Suess book by the same title published in 1971. The Lorax covers topics such as deforestation, greenhouse gases, plastics pollution, and corporate greed.
The 2024 Earth Day theme is ‘Planet vs. Plastics’, according to www.earthday.org. Several ideas struck home as I read the many educational links on the earth day site. First mechanical recycling of plastic alone is failing those of us who believe we are doing our part. Plastic packaging reports that of the 14% of our recycled plastics, 2% is effectively reused. The report worsens: 14% is incinerated, 40% enters our landfills, and 32% is litter on land and in our oceans.
Plastics are a strategically important material for our economy. A few uses follow:
In automotives: they reduce vehicle weights and improve efficiency.
In construction: they provide excellent insulating properties which reduce heating and cooling.
In packaging: they reduce food waste by extending shelf life and avoiding damage of fresh produce during transport and storage.
In healthcare: personal protective equipment, sterile syringes, intravenous blood bags, etc.
In renewable energy: wind turbines, solar panels, electric and hydrogen powered vehicles.
In agriculture and food: films protect crops from pests and disease, minimizing water evaporation, and improving crop yield.
In electrical and electronics: provide a protective barrier against moisture and dust. Lightweight for portability, etc.
Mechanical recycling has limitations, chemical recycling is needed to complement and manage plastics. This paradigm shift will be the gamechanger for the EU Green Deals and climate sustainability ambitions for international success. Chemical recycling is the reprocessing of plastics into raw materials which have the integrity of virgin plastics. Many projects worldwide are focused on chemical recycling of each type of plastic (too numerous to mention). American Dow has been partnering with Orrion Chemicals Orgaform a French Company since 2010 researching the recycling of foam mattresses. Coca-Cola has approached a Dutch Company to produce bottles from recycled PET. Yoplait France (General Mills) with Inraplas’ (Portugal) goal by 2025 is a food safe extrusion of plastic sheets for yogurt.
Plastics are here to stay! They are everywhere! We cannot turn back time! Moving forward we must reshape plastics into a circular system.
On the brighter side, get outside and enjoy a walk! Continue your kinship with nature, be it on your back deck, in your backyard, on the city sidewalks, on the nearest nature trail, or on a mountaintop embracing the view.
Gretchen Hanna, Creation Care Team
“Thank God they can’t cut down the clouds.” David Henry Thoreau
This recipe for Coconut Red Curry Stir-Fry with tofu comes from Denise Stadler who tells us that it is easy to prepare, tasty, and very appetizing to look at. Thank you Denise!
Marty and I love this recipe for falafel, little veggie patties made from chickpeas. Although it’s categorized as an appetizer, we stuff the falafel and tahini sauce into whole grain pitas with lettuce and tomato, and make a meal of it. Yum. https://www.hannaford.com/recipe/baked-falafel-with-tahini-sauce/12757
I hope you have found some of our vegetarian offerings interesting to read about. Maybe you’ve even tried some. I’m trying them all and finding some that we like well enough to add to our regular rotation. Copies of all the recipes are available in a binder on the table in the narthex. Each recipe is labeled with the contributor's name in case you have questions.
Thank you,
Lynne Taylor
Out of the Office in April
You are welcome to join Pastor Anderson on Tuesdays, 9:30 - 11:00 AM, for casual and spontaneous conversation. Come and go at whatever time works for you.
April 2 - Dot’s, Rt 1, Lincolnville
April 9 - FlipSide Coffee, Main St, Thomaston
April 16 - Seafolk Coffee, 22 Central St, Rockport
April 23 - Hole In the Wall Bagels, 754 Main St, Rockland
April 30 - Atlantic Baking Company, Main St, Rockland
Eclipse Field Trip to the “Path of Totality”
Monday April 8 we’ll meet at church at 9:00 AM.
Sign up at church or by calling/emailing the office by April 7.
Bring: Your own lunch, snacks, and beverages (water); eclipse glasses (we have a few extras); chair; umbrella for rain or sun; blanket; games or cards.
Totality will be at about 3:31 PM for about 1 ½ minutes. It will probably take a long time to get home due to traffic. But it should be a fun adventure. (Next chance in the U.S. will be in 2044)
HF/TS Update
HARVEST FESTIVAL/TAG SALE 2024 IS VERY CLOSE!!!!!!
Here we are preparing for another HF/TS in support of the Knox County Homeless Coalition!! AND IT IS ONLY APRIL!!!!
Yes, early preparation makes work light!!!!!
The basement is officially open to receive donations April 1 (no fooling)!!!!
So, “what to donate”?
Slow down - take a deep breath, relax. Think about what you have.
Do you have items that you designate as :
- Don’t fit your decor, don’t care for the color, haven’t used in a long, long time, forgot to donate last year, OR just plain “Who would want this”?
- We also need unusual items in all categories of the event: Tag Sale, Silent Auction, Ladies' Boutique, Crafts
- Decide which items are worthy of donating to the HF/TS, and call Phil Pratt (phone below) to arrange any help you need getting the item(s) into the church basement.
What should be donated/what should not
Some suggestions to help you make the “decision” easier:
- Items can be “gently” used.
- Items should be clean, (might not in the original box), no holes, chips, scratches, or defects rendering the item unusable.
- Please be aware that we cannot accept toys with small parts, cribs, strollers, or any types of electronics.
Not sure if an item you have can be accepted at the HF/TS, contact Karin (phone below) for direction.
PLEASE DON’T FORGET TO CONSIDER VOLUNTEERING TO HELP WITH SETUP, TEAR DOWN, AND ACTIVITIES ON THE DAY OF THE EVENT!!!
Phil or Karin 207-832-4335.
Happy Birthday in April
3 - Bruce McCullough
6 - Bruce Meyer
10 - Judy Pelletier
14 - Martha Meyer
16 - Kyle Waters, Shelly Cramp
27 - Tina Huntley
Editor's note: Did we miss your birthday? Please email your birthday date to kmusicorama@gmail.com so that we can add you to our monthly salutation.
Announcements & Timely Reminders
- The Pastor’s Discretionary Fund: Please remember that an extra $5 or $10 each month may make a huge difference to a family in need! Please indicate any additional donations as "Pastor's Discretionary" when you mail in your monthly offering.
- Don't forget: One simple way to help care for creation is to download the weekly bulletin onto your smart phone or tablet and then bring that device to worship or use it when you zoom at home saving paper and resources. Need help figuring that out? Call Pastor for Android help or Denise Stadler for Apple help.
- Your aluminum pop tabs can help keep families with sick children close to each other and the care and resources they need. Look for the paper bag on the Social Ministry bulletin board in the Narthex. Place your tabs in the bag and take your container home and fill it again! The tabs are donated to the Ronald McDonald House.
A Note from your editor, Kim Murphy
Reminder - send articles and photos by the 20th of each month.
Email kmusicorama@gmail.com
Photos this month: Pastor Wendy Anderson, Ann Walker, Paul Rhoda, Kim Murphy, Coffeeshop Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash, Bible Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash, Balloon Photo by Gaelle Marcel on Unsplash, Eclipse Photo by Jongsun Lee on UnsplashInternet resources, "Earth Day Everyday" Photo by Amy Shamblen on Unsplash,
Nativity Lutheran Church
Sunday Worship (Sept -May) 10:30 AM
Summer Sunday Worship (June - August) 9:30 AM
Email: office@nativityrockport.org
Website: www.nativityrockport.org
Location: 179 Old County Rd, Rockport, ME, United States
Phone: 207-594-4665