News

4 PM SUNDAY, MAR 20 IN THE SANCTUARY • HOSTED BY THE HARRISBURG CHAPTER OF THE AMERICAN GUILD OF ORGANISTS

Organist Scott Montgomery is associate director of music at Central United Methodist Church in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and teaches private piano and organ lessons. He is widely known as a concert organist throughout the country and abroad. His recital will feature the works of Bach, Franck, Miller, and Price.

Notable performance venues for Scott Montgomery have included the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts (Philadelphia, PA), Pacific Lutheran University (Tacoma, WA), Ball State University (Muncie, IN), and Heinz Chapel at the University of Pittsburgh.

Additionally, organists and other interested people are invited to Lebanon Valley College’s Miller Chapel at 32 E. Sheridan Avenue for the workshop on “On-the-Spot-Hymn Playing” at 10 am Saturday, March 19.

Questions? Email Tyler Canonico or call (717) 257-1270 ext. 18.

TUESDAYS BEGINNING APR 12 AT ROYAL OAKS GOLF COURSE, LEBANON

Play begins at 10 am through the month of April. From May to September, we will begin play at 8:30 am All skill levels welcome. To sign up, please contact Ken Pearl or Jim Warnock.

4 PM SUNDAY, APR 10 IN THE SANCTUARY • AN ARTS ALIVE EVENT • FREE WILL OFFERING

The Mennonite Children’s Choir of Lancaster is a community program serving approximately 160 children and youth in kindergarten through grade 12. Representing nearly 65 congregations, 45 schools, and 15 denominations, singers develop a rich musical repertoire from around the world and across time while being equipped for a lifetime of service to the church and community. The mission of MCCL is training children and youth to glorify Jesus Christ through excellent choral singing.

THURSDAY, MAR 24 AT WILSON COLLEGE, CHAMBERBSURG • MORE

Lecture: 10:30 – 11:45 am Jesus’ Parables as Jewish Stories
Jesus told parables to fellow Jews: recovering that original setting corrects their frequent anti-Jewish interpretations, provides a grounding for better Jewish/Christian relations, and offers new insight into both ancient and present-day ethics.

Workshop: 1:30 – 3:30 pm: Understanding Jesus means Understanding Judaism
(Designed for clergy, religious educators, and interested persons)
This workshop details the popular misconceptions about Jesus’ Jewish context found in sermons and church-based educational curricula, explains their origins, and offers new and helpful ways to read the New Testament.

Amy Jill Levine (“AJ”) is Rabbi Stanley M. Kessler Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies at Hartford International University of Religion and Peace and University Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies Emerita, Mary Jane Werthan Professor of Jewish Studies Emerita, and Professor of New Testament Studies Emerita at Vanderbilt. Many of her books and videos have been used in Bible studies at Derry Church. The first Jew to teach New Testament at Rome’s Pontifical Biblical Institute, AJ describes herself as an unorthodox member of an Orthodox synagogue and a Yankee Jewish feminist who seeks to correct anti-Jewish, sexist, and other harmful interpretations of the Bible.

Derry Church has extended nursery care to children between birth and 23 months. Volunteers are needed to support this caring ministry to our youngest children: contact Heidi Keene for details.

On Tuesday, March 1 the Session approved the following guidelines based on recommendations from our COVID task force. Please know that you may continue to wear a mask whenever you’re at church.

FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH:

• Face masks optional at worship services on Sundays at 8 am and Tuesdays at 6:15 pm
• Use of face masks continues on Sundays at 10:30 am worship services
• Masks are optional at post-worship activities including fellowship and 11 Minutes Lessons
• Each group, committee, gathering or adult Sunday school class may determine their own mask policy
• Face masks are not required in the building during the week or in the office, unless requested by the person or group with whom you are meeting
• Anyone working directly with children under 5 must wear a mask.
• Use of face masks continues for all youth and children’s activities 

BEGINNING APRIL 1 (barring another significant spike in covid infections):

• Face masks optional at all church-wide worship services, events, and functions (this includes the choir)
• The west transept of the Sanctuary (closest to the lounge) is designated seating for those who prefer to continue wearing face masks
• Committees and groups can set their own mask rules 
• Anyone working directly with children under 5 must wear a mask
• Youth and children’s ministry leadership teams are empowered to make masking rules based on the activity, participants, and other situations 

We are aware that no decision made by the Session will have universal support. We hope this provides options while also addressing the varied concerns and desires of Derry members. The Session will meet again on March 16 to re-evaluate the guidelines and timetable. READ MORE about the rationale behind these decisions.

The war in Ukraine has created a humanitarian crisis for the Ukranian people. Hundreds of thousands of refugees have fled the country and many more left in the country are in need of relief aid. The Session of Derry Church has approved matching gifts up to $25,000 from the Futures Fund to provide help and support to the people of Ukraine. 

Gifts made online to Ukraine Relief, or checks made out to Derry Church and notated “Ukraine Relief” will be matched by the church up to $25,000 and split between these two relief agencies:

• CARE works around the globe to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice. CARE aims to reach four million Ukrainians with immediate aid and recovery, food, water, hygiene kits, psychosocial support, and cash assistance — prioritizing women and girls, families, and the elderly.
• Voices of Children Foundation, a charitable foundation based in Ukraine, focuses on addressing the psychological effect of armed conflict on young children. Founded in 2015 in response to conflict in Eastern Ukraine, the organization provides art therapy, mobile psychologists, and individual therapy to affected children.

Giving to these two organizations allows us to provide funding for two groups currently working on the ground in and around Ukraine but who are very different. One is a large international NGO with many resources and partners that enable them to meet a variety of needs. The other allows us to invest directly into Ukraine and its people by supporting a Ukranian organization that helps children through the trauma of war. 

This is our chance to love our neighbors in a real and tangible way. Please consider a donation to this cause. You are invited to share this information so friends and family can have their gifts matched, too. 

9-10 AM SUNDAYS, MAR 6-27 IN ROOM 7 AND STREAMING ON DERRYPRES.ORG, YOUTUBE AND FACEBOOK

This four-week series is presented by Lee Barrett of Lancaster Theological Seminary. The religious environment of the United States is changing rapidly and dramatically. Affiliation with religious institutions is declining, dipping below 50%. Pollsters discover that a pervasive lack of interest in religion is increasing in younger generations. In this environment of accelerating secularism and religious indifference, many of the faithful are worried about the future of the church.

To address this issue, we will first investigate some of the causes of this shift in cultural sensibilities. Then we will consider the nature and purpose of the church according to the Reformed tradition, for the church must remain faithful to its mission. Finally we will imagine ways in which this rich heritage can be enacted in our shifting cultural context so that it can grip the minds and hearts of new generations

The excitement! The fun! The epic emails written by commissioner Pete Steelman! Yes, folks: it’s almost time to make your “March Madness” bracket picks in support of Derry Church’s “Mission Madness” fundraiser that benefits student scholarships for the Sargodha School in Pakistan.

A suggested $10 donation per entry can be made on the church’s secure online giving portal. If you participated last year, you should be automatically re-enrolled in the Yahoo site where you will enter your picks. If you are new, or unsure if you played before, or have a new email address, just email Pete Steelman and he will add you to the mailing list.

You may pre-register on Yahoo now, although picks cannot be made until “Selection Sunday” in mid-March.

A trophy and engraved plaque for the overall winner will be presented next month, as well as multiple engraved medals for winners of subgroups (Best Youth, Best in Staff, Best on Session, Best in Music etc). And yes, you can also look forward to Pete’s traditional nicknames, updates, and jovial banter that recaps the action after every round of games.

Derry member Courtney McKinney-Whitaker has combined her academic training in history, literature, and children’s librarianship, and creative writing into an exciting new venture: The Hourglass House. It’s a supportive online space for families to engage with history together and find joy and meaning in that process. 

For the Hourglass House, Courtney and Pastor Stephen filmed an interview last week where they talked about what he learned when he served as a judge for the Frederick Douglass Oratorical Contest in January, and how it relates to his sabbatical project on peace and reconciliation. Read the blog post here, then sign up at the bottom of that page to stay informed when new articles are posted on the site. 

9-10 AM SUNDAY, FEB 27, ISSUES CLASS ON ZOOM LED BY ELIZABETH GAWRON • CLICK TO JOIN • SIMULCAST IN ROOM 7

The Montessori Method is (very simply) respecting the child and guiding them through their natural human development. It is incredible that all infants/children across time and cultures follow the same developmental stages. Our language, behaviors, and ideas are a result of where we were born and what family we were born into.

Join Derry member Elizabeth Gawron in her Montessori classroom as she shares how her work aligns with following the way of Jesus’ teachings, and find out what we can learn about God from the children in our own congregation

NEXT WEEK: Lee Barrett of Lancaster Theological Seminary joins us in Room 7 and streaming on YouTube, Facebook and the church website for the first class in a four-week series on “The Church of the Future: Problems, Perils, and Possibilities.”

• Reviewed and received the annual Statistical Report prepared for PCUSA.
• Approved a transfer of membership for Alan Brechbill and Carol Schneidereit to Palms Presbyterian Church, Jacksonville Beach, Florida due to their relocation.
• Approved the baptism of Aiden Paul Matthews, child of Sara and Bruce Matthews, on March 13, 2022.
• The Treasurer reported that contributions and expenses are currently in line with budget expectations.
• Tim Mosher presented an update on Covid infections in our area, which indicated a downward trend in the local test positivity and infection rates.
• After reviewing the recommendations of Derry’s Covid Task Force, the session approved the following motions:
  • Starting March 6, masks will be optional for the 8:00 am Chapel service
  • Starting March 27, masks will be optional for food gatherings in Fellowship Hall. Participants are encouraged to continue to wear masks when not eating.
    The Task Force will meet again in March and may have more recommendations at that time.
• The session approved moving forward with the proposed upgrades to Derry’s exterior signage. The approximate cost for the new signs is $36,000 with funding coming from Derry’s Capital Facilities Restricted Fund. 
• The Building & Grounds Committee submitted a Capital Procurement Requisition to obtain architectural specifications for: safety upgrades to the interior Chapel bell tower, a new stairway between the rear parking lot and the lower Mansion Road building entrance, and gutter and downspout repairs to direct roof runoff away from the building. The approximate cost for the specifications is $12,000 with funding coming from Derry’s Capital Facilities Restricted Fund. This proposal will be reviewed by Derry’s committees and voted upon at the Session’s March meeting.
• Approved the annual March Mission Madness with proceeds to go toward Presbyterian Education Board scholarships in Pakistan.
• Approved a request from Claire Folts to work with children in the church to complete a project for her Master’s Degree on Tuesdays after KIC Club. The sessions will be voluntary for children in 2nd grade and up who would be in the church building with parental permission. The project focuses on developing elementary students multi-cultural sensitivity through music education. 
• Approved a May 15, 2022 Scout fundraising luncheon to begin after the 10:30 am worship service, with eat in and carry out options utilizing the kitchen and Fellowship Hall.
• Received the following new members: Jim & Bethany Cunningham, John & Barbara Lefko, Taylor Ross, Deanna Santos, Chris & Amy Yengo.