or, join us online at: CLICK HERE For the Sunday, October 17th Livestream
The 10:30 service can be viewed online: HERE
A copy of October 7th Thursday Thoughts can be viewed: HERE
October 7, 2021
Dear Congregation:
“But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. (Isaiah 43: 1)
With these words from the prophet Isaiah, we hear that we belong to God, who has created us and knows are name.
One of the amazing things about living in our area is that there is always something new to discover. Last week I visited Catoctin Furnace for the first time. Visiting the Museum of the Ironworker, one can learn about the enslaved peoples who worked the furnace and built many of the buildings in the village. In the 1970’s a highway expansion project resulted in the excavation of thirty-five graves belonging to some of these enslaved people. Their names have been left out of the historic record, yet archeological work and the art and science of forensic facial reconstruction has produced two busts of two of these people.
This article from the Washington Post describes the work done to recreate the faces of the people buried in that cemetery:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2021/07/09/african-american-cemetery-catoctin-enslaved-faces/
Sharon Burnston, the archeologist who directed the exhumation, called them the invisible people. Today, those working at Catoctin Furnace are working to make those who have been forgotten visible. To remember and honor those who names we know and those whose names we do not know. In an event called, “The Return of the Names,” the known names of enslaved workers at Catoctin Furnace we read aloud to ensure that they have not been forgotten.
“Say their name,” is the rallying cry for black lives matter marches. “Say their name,” so that George and Briana and others are known as more than a statistic.
Recently, 700,000 white flags have been placed on the National Mall, each one representing an American lost to the coronavirus pandemic. Visitors were asked to write their own dedications on the flags, claiming the names of those they have loved and lost. 700,000 is more than a statistic. Each number represents a name, a person who lived and loved.
For a student, hearing their name pronounced correctly is a reaffirmation of their identity and a celebration of who they are. Mispronouncing it has the opposite effect.
Part of what I talked about in my sermon last week was how Jesus made the invisible visible. Our call is to do the same. Say their names. Let us not forget how each one of us has been created in the image of God. God knows our name. May we commit ourselves to knowing one another and calling one another by name.
Rev. Dr. Barbara Kershner Daniel, Senior Pastor
Evangelical Reformed Church, United Church of Christ
15 West Church Street, Frederick, MD 21701
301-662-2762
E-mail: bkdaniel@erucc.org
or, join us online at: https://boxcast.tv/view/sunday-October 10th-2021-698690
or, join us online at: https://boxcast.tv/view/sunday-October 3rd-2021-698690
The 10:30 service can be viewed online: HERE
A copy of September 23rd Thursday Thoughts can be viewed: HERE
Dear Congregation:
On vacation with my German friends, Ali and Christiane, we visited the Techno Museum in Winterthur, Switzerland. Truth be told, we would not have chosen this kind of museum but it as a Monday and all the other museums were closed.
The first floor of the museum contained hands on experiments with electricity and magnets, while that was fun, the second floor was of even greater interest with exhibits challenging how we see.
Several exhibits had geometric figures on discs that you could rotate. The signs on the exhibits told us that the geometric figures on the discs take on a life of their own as they spin around. Our brains attempt to process this ever-changing information and will construct figures that do not actually exist. “Whenever our sensory receptors transmit conflicting information to our brain, it faces a pro
blem of interpretation. It tries to solve this dilemma by relating what we see to what we already know. If that doesn’t really fit together, it can lead to perceptual delusions. Conflicts rise when we see something that does not correspond to our prior knowledge. Then there can be misinterpretations and we can succumb to a deception. (Swiss Science Center Technorama)
In many ways, it feels like our world is spinning more and more out of control. Bombarded by more and more images, data, pieces of information, could it be that our brains are having difficulty seeing what is actually right in front of our very lives?
The ancient practices of our faith – praying, singing, reading scripture, worship — are meant to bring our focus back to the one who unconditionally loves us. We step away from the spinning of the world, for a few moments to refocus and to remind our hearts and brains of the truth that will set out feet on solid ground, our eye son the life and teachings of Jesus.
Rev. Dr. Barbara Kershner Daniel
Senior Pastor
Evangelical Reformed United Church of Christ
bkdaniel@erucc.org
301-662-2762
or, join us online at: https://boxcast.tv/view/sunday-September 26th-2021-698690
CLICK HERE For the Sunday, September 26th Worship Bulletin
CLICK HERE for the Sunday, September 26th Children’s Bulletin
The 10:30 service can be viewed online: HERE
A copy of September 16th Thursday Thoughts can be viewed: HERE
September 16, 2021
Dear Congregation:
At the May 2021 annual meeting of the congregation, we voted to become a Creation Justice Church and the UCC has recognized our commitment to consider environmental and justice issues in all our actions and decisions. The Green Team has been working with every committee and group of the church to consider their practices and activities through the lends of creation justice.
What has that meant? Using glass cups for communion and yes, that means washing them, thereby reducing our use of plastic. Reducing waste including the elimination of disposal cups, plates and utensils. We have started to use the real plates, glasses, cups, and utensils at fellowship events again. We have teams of members who work in the community garden as part of the efforts of the Frederick Food Security Network. We spend time outside gathering for walks and other activities to acknowledge the gifts of air, water, trees, and plants.
These are just a few of the tangible efforts we have made, and are making, to recognize the gifts of creation and our responsibility in caring for the planet.
This Sunday, the Green Team has planned a variety of opportunities for us to name and embody our commitment to God’s creation. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth and all that sustains life. Creation was God’s first act of love. We love God through our acts of love and respecting, honoring, and not abusing God’s love gift of creation.
In May we adopted this language as part of our larger Creation Justice statement:
“We, the members of this congregation, realize that God has given us an amazing planet on which to live. This planet is shared by the rest of humanity and will be shared with future generations as well. As such, it is our responsibility to care for this precious gift and keep it healthy for those who will come after us. Being good stewards of our environment will be at the forefront of our thinking as we plan for, and carry out, our ministries”
May it be so.
Rev. Dr. Barbara Kershner Daniel
Senior Pastor
Evangelical Reformed United Church of Christ
bkdaniel@erucc.org
301-662-2762
or, join us online at: https://boxcast.tv/view/sunday-September 19th-2021-698690
CLICK HERE For the Sunday, September 19th Worship Bulletin
CLICK HERE for the Sunday, September 19th Children’s Bulletin
The 10:30 service can be viewed online: HERE
A copy of September 2nd Thursday Thoughts can be viewed: HERE
September 9, 2021
Dear Congregation:
As we approach the 20th anniversary of 9/11, many of us are remembering that day and where we were when we heard the news that planes had crashed into the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania. We share stories of what it felt like that day and the days since. We remember those who lost their lives and those who gave so selflessly that day and the days after.
We also remember that our lives and world changed after 9/11. We live differently. We travel differently. We recognize that so much of life since then has been shaped by fear – fear of further terrorist attacks, fear of people who come from other parts of the world and who worship differently than we do.
I pray that God will give us strength to confront fear with hope. I pray that we can sift through the barrage of voices that call us to hate and work for peace. I pray that we will build our lives on acts of kindness and mercy with one another and fill the world with such goodness that there is no room for terrorism or hatred.
Rev. Dr. Barbara Kershner Daniel
Senior Pastor
Evangelical Reformed United Church of Christ
bkdaniel@erucc.org
301-662-2762
or, join us online at: https://boxcast.tv/view/sunday-September 12h-2021-698690
CLICK HERE For the Sunday, September 12th Worship Bulletin
CLICK HERE for the Sunday, September 12th Children’s Bulletin
