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Damia Howard prays during Tuesday night's bible study service at the Progressive Community Church in south Stockton.CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

December 14, 2013 12:00 AM

STOCKTON - When is a church more than a church? When it is Progressive Community Church, the large, lively, multicultural ministry that takes up 12.2 acres along South B Street.

Progressive Community is a statement.

And, in the vision of Pastor Glenn R. Shields, it is a beacon - of spiritual hope, of personal promise, of the untapped potential in south Stockton.

Pastor Glenn R. Shields moved to Stockton 15 years ago. His take on his adopted city:

"Stockton is a well-kept secret. The city has wonderful people. It has all the potential in the world to be a tremendous city. But there is a tendency to work in isolation. A spirit of collaboration is missing in the Stockton church community. We've got to do better. We have a social responsibility, and we've got to be involved in the affairs of the city."

The 40,000-square-foot multipurpose facility seats 1,200 people in its expansive main sanctuary, has a 2,500-square-foot fellowship hall and seven classrooms at 600 square feet each. The $8 million edifice also is equipped with the latest audio and video technology.

There are 14 full-time employees.

See more here:
Church aims to be a guiding light for south Stockton

Pictured is the smaller tree lot tent and the new sidewalk.

The Christmas tree lot that has been a tradition at the Cutler Ridge United Methodist Church in Cutler Bay for 23 years has returned, although construction on Old Cutler Road and a loss of church property to the county has resulted in less space for it.

Tom McClary, a member of the church familiar with its history, explained why the tree lot is important to them.

The tree lot pays us a set amount for setting up on our property, McClary said. The church uses that money to supplement our operating expenses and to support projects of the United Methodist Church in Florida and around the world. Due to the sagging economy and the loss of revenue to the tree lot from the road construction, we have had to reduce the amount that they pay us for the use of our property. I was pleased when they decided that they could still operate on the smaller piece of property by using a smaller tent.

Located at the corner of Marlin Drive and Old Cutler Road, the church used to have more useable property in the past, and the current county road improvement project has further complicated things.

The process began when we built our sanctuary in 1978, McClary said. Our original property line is defined as 35 feet from the center line of Old Cutler. In 1978, in order to get our permit, we had to cede an additional five feet to the county. The survey done in 1990 when we built our Fellowship Center shows the property line as 50 feet from the center line of Old Cutler, and there is a notation about that additional right of way to be granted. That, of course, is how the county gets more right of way without having to pay for it through imminent domain. They extort it as price for getting a building permit.

McClary said that the recent road construction project has added a curbing, 20 feet of grass area and a six-foot sidewalk that brings them right to the edge of the 50-foot right of way. That reduced the space available for the Christmas tree lot. Prior to the sidewalk, we could still make use of the edge of the right of way, provided a certain setback from Old Cutler was maintained as specified in the permit, McClary said.

Gloria Lowery, who has been bringing trees from her farm in North Carolina from the start and has many longtime followers who come every year for their trees, said she was glad to still be able to have them there at the church, even though now she must use a smaller tent. Santas Tree Farm began in 1990, Lowery said. We were open to see the effects of Andrew, and the gangs who were prevalent for a couple of years. Then we saw the area become Cutler Bay and watched as everything in the community became stable, the gangs were gone and everything is beginning to look beautiful.

Our signature quote is, Santas Tree Farmbecause Santa never cuts a tree from our forests. He grows all his trees on a farm. His farms employ many people who help with the economy.

Short URL: http://www.communitynewspapers.com/?p=76024

More:
Christmas tree lot returns to church with less space

Almost $2 million has been saved as a result of the competitive tendering process for Stage 1 of the River Recharge Scheme and the Water Treatment Plant upgrade.

Kpiti Mayor Ross Church said the savings were significant and would be warmly welcomed by ratepayers.

Eight companies submitted bids. These were reduced to a short list of three - Downers NZ Ltd, Hawkins Infrastructure Ltd and the Fletcher Construction Company trading as Brian Perry Civil.

Council today accepted a bid from Downers for $7.6 million. This comprised $2.9 million for Stage 1 of the River Recharge Scheme and $4.7 million for the Water Treatment Plan upgrade. A 15% contingency for potential variations will push the total project cost to $8.8 million.

The total is almost $2 million less than the original estimate of $10.3 million.

Stage 1 of the River Recharge Scheme will involve the construction of a new pipeline linking four inland bores in the Waikanae bore field; the installation of three new bore field pumps; and construction of the ground water discharge channel and stream discharge structure at the Water Treatment Plant. The inlet works to the Treatment Plant will also be modified with improved filter screens and an automated cleaning mechanism.

The major areas for upgrade or replacement at the Water Treatment Plant include new raw water and high lift pumps, chemical dosing equipment and all of the electrical and control facilities.

Mayor Church said the Plant had been operating since 1977 and was now in need of a significant upgrade to ensure it could cope with future water demands and the need for quality drinking water.

Read the original:
$2 million saving by Kapiti Council

By KAYLA STRAYER 6 News Reporter

MAYNARDVILLE (WATE) - A Union County woman is recovering after donating her kidney to a man she barely knows. The two met at their church in Maynardville.

Pastor Charles McClure says his church has a lot of praises to sing this Christmas after the generous donation.

"This is the greatest show of love that I know of," said Pastor McClure.

Lynn Shaw donated her kidney to Johnny Russell Wednesday at UT Medical Center. The two met at the Church of God in Maynardville.

Russell's kidney failed several years ago. He searched for a donor, but couldn't find a match until now.

After learning Russell needed a kidney to save his life, Shaw got tested and found out that she was a perfect match.

"She's just a special person. She's an angel sent from God is what she is," said Russell.

Shaw says she just did what she felt called to do.

"I think that's just something you do. If you have God's love inside, you want to be able to bless people if you can," said Shaw.

Read the rest here:
Union County woman donates kidney to fellow church member

By Judith Sudilovsky Catholic News Service

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (CNS) -- Helping restore the roof of the Church of the Nativity is like touching a piece of the beginning of Christian history, said an Italian restorer who is heading work on the first phase of the long-awaited repairs.

"I am not a practicing religious person, but working on this church is very emotional," said Marcello Piacenti, 53, the on-site project manager and a restorer with his family's company, Piacenti Spa, which began the work in September. "I have restored many old churches in the world, but when I arrived here I knew I had arrived to the center of everything."

More than five years in the planning and researching, the restoration of the church's wooden beams and lead roof and its 38 windows represents the beginning of an ambitious project, said engineer Imad Nasser, technical representative of the Palestinian Authority's national committee for the restoration of the Church of the Nativity. Nasser said that, two years ago, it was estimated that the repairs would cost $15 million, not including the construction management fees.

Repairs are being done in several phases, as the funds become available, he said, with essential repairs such as the roof given priority. The next stage will include the completion of protection of the stone facade of the external walls once the funds are acquired, he said, noting that more than $2.7 million is still needed for that phase.

A member of the Franciscan order noted that members of the Catholic, Orthodox and Armenian churches, all of which have a presence at the Church of the Nativity, have agreed not to speak to the press in order to avoid any conflicts over sovereignty issues.

Though much care has been taken not to disturb the visitors and the church, Christmas pilgrims this year are being met with metal scaffolding, inside and outside, and protective wooden coverings around the marble columns inside the church.

Piacenti brought special steel scaffolding from Italy to assist in the repair of the wooden beams inside the slanted ceiling.

It will take the team of 10 Italian and five Palestinian workers about a year to complete their work, estimated Piacenti, whose grandfather began the family tradition of carpentry and restoration work. Piacenti and his four siblings made the tradition international.

Experts will analyze and study repairs throughout the restoration to assure the authenticity and quality of the work, he said.

Read this article:
Restorer: Working on Church of Nativity like touching piece of history

Christ the King Church parishioners celebrated their 65th anniversary on the feast day of Christ the King on Nov. 24.

According to the church website, after World War II increasing numbers of people moved to Manville to find work in the expanding Johns-Manville plant. With the need for a second Catholic church in Manville, Bishop William Griffin established the Church of Christ the King on April 22, 1948, and appointed Father Eugene B. Kelly as the founding pastor.

The first Mass for the new parish was celebrated in Fire Company No. 3 on Louis Street and North 8th Avenue on May 23, 1948. Excavation for the new church and rectory was begun on Feb. 22, 1949, and construction was completed later that year. The newly installed bishop of Trenton, Bishop George W. Ahr, dedicated the Christ the King Church on June 25, 1950.

In 1956, Father William J. Wrinn was appointed pastor. Father Wrinn acknowledged the need of a parochial school and initiated the plans for its construction. Christ the King Parish School was completed by the parishs third pastor, Father James E. Coley, and opened on Sept. 6, 1968, under the guidance of Sister Marie of the Bernadine Sisters of Maryview, the schools first principal. People filling the church for the anniversary celebration, which began with 10:30 Mass. The celebrant Monsignor Joseph Celano, along with former pastor Daniel Sloan and current pastor Stanislaw (Stan) Slaby, presided. Students from Christ the King School also participated by bringing up the gifts and singing special songs for occasion.

This year our parish celebrates the 65th anniversary as a thanksgiving, blessing and achievements that God bestowed upon us during these years, Father Stan said. Monsignor Celano acknowledged the imminent merger of the two parishes in the borough.

The celebration continued with a luncheon at Christ the King School. About 120 people attended.

Father Sloan was at the 50th, 55th and 60th Christ the King Church anniversaries and said, It is great to be back in this great little town and parish. It has always been a lively parish and it has done a lot of good to build up the kingdom here in the town of Manville. I hope it will continue to grow.

The rest is here:
MANVILLE: Christ the King celebrates 65th anniversary

He took the name of a humble saint and then called for a church of healing. The first non-European pope in 1,200 years is poised to transform a place that measures change by the century

To read about TIMEs choice in Spanish and Portuguese, click below. EL ELEGIDO: El Papa Francisco es la Persona del Ao 2013 de TIME A Escolha: O Papa Francisco a Personalidade do Ano eleita pela Time em 2013

On the edge of Buenos Aires is a nothing little street calledPasaje C, a shot of dried mud leading into a slum from what passes for a main road, the garbage-strewn Mariano Acosta. There is a church, the Immaculate Virgin, toward the end of the pasajeSpanish for passagewhere, on one occasion, the local priest and a number of frightened residents took refuge deep in the sanctuary when rival drug gangs opened fire. Beyond the church, Pasaje C branches into the rest of the parish: more rutted mud and cracked concrete form PasajesA to K. Brick chips from the hasty construction of squatter housing coagulate along what ought to be sidewalks. The word asesinomurdereris scrawled in spray-paint on the sooty wall of a burned-out house, which was torched just days before in retaliation for yet another shooting. Packs of dogs sprawl beneath wrecked cars. Children wander heedless of traffic, because nothing can gather speed on these jagged roads. But even Pasaje C can lead to Rome.

As Cardinal and Archbishop of Buenos Aires, a metropolis of some 13.5million souls, Jorge Mario Bergoglio made room in his schedule every year for a pastoral visit to this place of squalor and sorrow. He would walk to the subway station nearest to the Metropolitan Cathedral, whose pillars and dome fit easily into the center of Argentine power. Traveling alone, he would transfer onto a graffiti-blasted tram to Mariano Acosta, reaching where the subways do not go. He finished the journey on foot, moving heavily in his bulky black orthopedic shoes along Pasaje C. On other days, there were other journeys to barrios throughout the cityso many in need of so much, but none too poor or too filthy for a visit from this itinerant prince of the church. Reza por m, he asked almost everyone he met. Pray for me.

When, on March 13, Bergoglio inherited the throne of St.Peterkeeper of the keys to the kingdom of heavenhe made the same request of the world. Pray for me. His letter of retirement, a requirement of all bishops 75 and older, was already on file in a Vatican office, awaiting approval. Friends in Argentina had perceived him to be slowing down, like a spent force. In an instant, he was a new man, calling himself Francis after the humble saint from Assisi. As Pope, he was suddenly the sovereign of Vatican City and head of an institution so sprawlingwith about enough followers to populate Chinaso steeped in order, so snarled by bureaucracy, so vast in its charity, so weighted by its scandals, so polarizing to those who study its teachings, so mysterious to those who dont, that the gap between him and the daily miseries of the worlds poor might finally have seemed unbridgeable. Until the 266th Supreme Pontiff walked off in those clunky shoes to pay his hotel bill.

The papacy is mysterious and magical: it turns a septuagenarian into a superstar while revealing almost nothing about the man himself. And it raises hopes in every corner of the worldhopes that can never be fulfilled, for they are irreconcilable. The elderly traditionalist who pines for the old Latin Mass and the devout young woman who wishes she could be a priest both have hopes. The ambitious monsignor in the Vatican Curia and the evangelizing deacon in a remote Filipino village both have hopes. No Pope can make them all happy at once.

(MORE: Behind the Pope Francis Cover)

But what makes this Pope so important is the speed with which he has captured the imaginations of millions who had given up on hoping for the church at all. People weary of the endless parsing of sexual ethics, the buck-passing infighting over lines of authority when all the while (to borrow from Milton), the hungry Sheep look up, and are not fed. In a matter of months, Francis has elevated the healing mission of the churchthe church as servant and comforter of hurting people in an often harsh worldabove the doctrinal police work so important to his recent predecessors. John Paul II and Benedict XVI were professors of theology. Francis is a former janitor, nightclub bouncer, chemical technician and literature teacher.

And behind his self-effacing facade, he is a very canny operator. He makes masterly use of 21stcentury tools to perform his 1st century office. He is photographed washing the feet of female convicts, posing for selfies with young visitors to the Vatican, embracing a man with a deformed face. He is quoted saying of women who consider abortion because of poverty or rape, Who can remain unmoved before such painful situations? Of gay people: If a homosexual person is of good will and is in search of God, I am no one to judge. To divorced and remarried Catholics who are, by rule, forbidden from taking Communion, he says that this crucial rite is not a prize for the perfect but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak.

Through these conscious and skillful evocations of moments in the ministry of Jesus, as recounted in the Gospels, this new Pope may have found a way out of the 20th century culture wars, which have left the church moribund in much of Western Europe and on the defensive from Dublin to Los Angeles. But the paradox of the papacy is that each new mans success is burdened by the astonishing successes of Popes past. The weight of history, of doctrines and dogmas woven intricately century by century, genius by genius, is both the source and the limitation of papal power. It radiates from every statue, crypt and hand-painted vellum text in Romeand in churches, libraries, hospitals, universities and museums around the globe. A Pope sets his own course only if he can conform it to paths already chosen.

More:
Pope Francis: TIME's Person of the Year

He took the name of a humble saint and then called for a church of healing. The first non-European pope in 1,200 years is poised to transform a place that measures change by the century

To read about TIMEs choice in Spanish and Portuguese, click below. EL ELEGIDO: El Papa Francisco es la Persona del Ao 2013 de TIME A Escolha: O Papa Francisco a Personalidade do Ano eleita pela Time em 2013

On the edge of Buenos Aires is a nothing little street calledPasaje C, a shot of dried mud leading into a slum from what passes for a main road, the garbage-strewn Mariano Acosta. There is a church, the Immaculate Virgin, toward the end of the pasajeSpanish for passagewhere, on one occasion, the local priest and a number of frightened residents took refuge deep in the sanctuary when rival drug gangs opened fire. Beyond the church, Pasaje C branches into the rest of the parish: more rutted mud and cracked concrete form PasajesA to K. Brick chips from the hasty construction of squatter housing coagulate along what ought to be sidewalks. The word asesinomurdereris scrawled in spray-paint on the sooty wall of a burned-out house, which was torched just days before in retaliation for yet another shooting. Packs of dogs sprawl beneath wrecked cars. Children wander heedless of traffic, because nothing can gather speed on these jagged roads. But even Pasaje C can lead to Rome.

As Cardinal and Archbishop of Buenos Aires, a metropolis of some 13.5million souls, Jorge Mario Bergoglio made room in his schedule every year for a pastoral visit to this place of squalor and sorrow. He would walk to the subway station nearest to the Metropolitan Cathedral, whose pillars and dome fit easily into the center of Argentine power. Traveling alone, he would transfer onto a graffiti-blasted tram to Mariano Acosta, reaching where the subways do not go. He finished the journey on foot, moving heavily in his bulky black orthopedic shoes along Pasaje C. On other days, there were other journeys to barrios throughout the cityso many in need of so much, but none too poor or too filthy for a visit from this itinerant prince of the church. Reza por m, he asked almost everyone he met. Pray for me.

When, on March 13, Bergoglio inherited the throne of St.Peterkeeper of the keys to the kingdom of heavenhe made the same request of the world. Pray for me. His letter of retirement, a requirement of all bishops 75 and older, was already on file in a Vatican office, awaiting approval. Friends in Argentina had perceived him to be slowing down, like a spent force. In an instant, he was a new man, calling himself Francis after the humble saint from Assisi. As Pope, he was suddenly the sovereign of Vatican City and head of an institution so sprawlingwith about enough followers to populate Chinaso steeped in order, so snarled by bureaucracy, so vast in its charity, so weighted by its scandals, so polarizing to those who study its teachings, so mysterious to those who dont, that the gap between him and the daily miseries of the worlds poor might finally have seemed unbridgeable. Until the 266th Supreme Pontiff walked off in those clunky shoes to pay his hotel bill.

The papacy is mysterious and magical: it turns a septuagenarian into a superstar while revealing almost nothing about the man himself. And it raises hopes in every corner of the worldhopes that can never be fulfilled, for they are irreconcilable. The elderly traditionalist who pines for the old Latin Mass and the devout young woman who wishes she could be a priest both have hopes. The ambitious monsignor in the Vatican Curia and the evangelizing deacon in a remote Filipino village both have hopes. No Pope can make them all happy at once.

(MORE: Behind the Pope Francis Cover)

But what makes this Pope so important is the speed with which he has captured the imaginations of millions who had given up on hoping for the church at all. People weary of the endless parsing of sexual ethics, the buck-passing infighting over lines of authority when all the while (to borrow from Milton), the hungry Sheep look up, and are not fed. In a matter of months, Francis has elevated the healing mission of the churchthe church as servant and comforter of hurting people in an often harsh worldabove the doctrinal police work so important to his recent predecessors. John Paul II and Benedict XVI were professors of theology. Francis is a former janitor, nightclub bouncer, chemical technician and literature teacher.

And behind his self-effacing facade, he is a very canny operator. He makes masterly use of 21stcentury tools to perform his 1st century office. He is photographed washing the feet of female convicts, posing for selfies with young visitors to the Vatican, embracing a man with a deformed face. He is quoted saying of women who consider abortion because of poverty or rape, Who can remain unmoved before such painful situations? Of gay people: If a homosexual person is of good will and is in search of God, I am no one to judge. To divorced and remarried Catholics who are, by rule, forbidden from taking Communion, he says that this crucial rite is not a prize for the perfect but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak.

Through these conscious and skillful evocations of moments in the ministry of Jesus, as recounted in the Gospels, this new Pope may have found a way out of the 20th century culture wars, which have left the church moribund in much of Western Europe and on the defensive from Dublin to Los Angeles. But the paradox of the papacy is that each new mans success is burdened by the astonishing successes of Popes past. The weight of history, of doctrines and dogmas woven intricately century by century, genius by genius, is both the source and the limitation of papal power. It radiates from every statue, crypt and hand-painted vellum text in Romeand in churches, libraries, hospitals, universities and museums around the globe. A Pope sets his own course only if he can conform it to paths already chosen.

See the original post:
Pope Francis, The People's Pope

Originally published December 12, 2013 at 12:02 PM | Page modified December 12, 2013 at 12:21 PM

BETHLEHEM, West Bank As visitors descend upon Bethlehem this holiday season, they will notice a different look for the Church of the Nativity. Wrapped in scaffolding, the basilica located at the site traditionally regarded as Jesus birthplace is undergoing a much-needed face-lift after 600 years.

Experts say that water is leaking from the rooftop and threatens to cause serious damage to mosaics and other priceless items.

Project manager Afif Tweme said the first stage of the project began in September and addresses the most pressing issues: the rooftop and windows.

The water also has a bad effect on the plastering surfaces, on the mosaics, on the floors, on the frescoes. It could damage any, any historical elements inside the church, said Tweme, who works for the Community Development Group, a Palestinian engineering consulting firm.

The companies carrying out the works are obliged to minimize any disruptions to visitors and make sure that pilgrims can pass freely inside the church and safely, he added.

The church is one of Christianitys most visited and sacred shrines. Standing above the grotto where, according to tradition, Jesus was born, the church attracted more than 2 million visitors last year. But the building, with remnants up to 1,500 years old, has been neglected for decades.

Both the World Monuments Fund, a U.S.-based nonprofit group dedicated to protecting historic sites, and the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO have placed the church on their lists of endangered sites. And a high-tech survey by a consortium of Italian experts in 2011 called for urgent repairs.

The city of Bethlehem is situated in a part of the West Bank where the Palestinians have self-rule. The Western-backed Palestinian Authority has taken the lead and is financing a great portion of the works, said Ziad al-Bandak, an adviser on Christian affairs to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

He said the government has provided $1 million, while an additional $800,000 is coming from the private sector. The rest is coming from European countries such as France, Hungary, Russia and Greece, contributing to the roughly $3 million in total needed for the first phase, al-Bandak said.

Here is the original post:
Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem undergoes face-lift

Rio Terrace Community Moravian Church-Occult workshopEdmonton, AB T5R2Z9 Ph. 780 487-0211:For years North Americans have been fascinated with the subject of angels. We shall see it has also become a subject teeming with deception and one more way Satan uses to turn people's eyes away from Jesus Christ. (see article and news letter)

Rev. Dr. Douglass P. Norwood, Jr. February 1, 2003:I left the Northern Provincial synod in June 2002 feeling like my mother or some other close relative had just died. I couldn't hold back the tears. I could not participate in the synod communion, but stood outside with about 30 other people instead. My grief was not based solely on one issue, although one issue, of course, has attracted the most attention.(see article)

Olivet Moravian decision about the World Council of Churches Feb 26, 2005 After much study, discussion and prayerful consideration over the past two years, our joint boards voted unanimously not to support the WCC (see letter sent to PEC)

Rev.Truman Dunn Moses Lecture review fall 2001: Rev. Dunn writes of his personal belief, I do not believe that Jesus is the only way to find salvation....Nor do I believe that Moravians or Christians have a lock on religious truth. He wonders why we insist that Christianity is somehow superior to all other pathways to God. Rev. Dunn calls for a reformation through death of the Moravian Church as we Know it, allowing the old ways of exclusive truths to die. He says the first truth that must go is the narrow and arrogant claim that Jesus is the only way to salvation. (see article)

Rev.Truman Dunn rejoins the fold writing:The Moses Lectures reflected a very personal perspective about my convictions and my hopes for the Moravian Church. However, my life and faith as a Christian is not lived in isolation. I am a part of a larger faith community, the Moravian Church. And, I seek to stand within that larger tradition of the Moravian Church while still maintaining the integrity of my own personal belief and experience of the presence of God.......I have found that I indeed affirm the Ground of the Unity as the belief of our church, even as I seek to be a part of our continual search for sound doctrine. (see letter)

Resolution 54 Southern Synod 2002: Careful study of this account, along with the versions of the resolution as it evolved, will reveal the transformation of a Document intended to reaffirm the authority of Scripture and its message of Salvation through Christ alone. It is apparent that leaders of our denomination were influential, to a large degree, in redirecting the Resolution. The final fatal blow came from an amendment on the floor by Bishop Graham Rights that removed all remaining statements that called for reaffirmation of our doctrinal statements of belief. Resolution 54 went from calling for affirming our faith to a call for preserving relationships. In light of the fact that a minister used his position to teach that Christ is not the only way to salvation, this effort by our leaders might be seen as self serving, keeping leadership intact at the expense of our mission to witness the message of Scripture (see article)

Oscar Tesh Walnut Cove, NC What are we passing on to those who follow us: "The Faith of our Fathers" or a watered-down ineffective substitute? I am a 5th generation Moravian who wants a denomination that is unbending in the non-negotiable truths of the Bible. We must be true to GOD and that means making hard decisions. (see article)

The Moravian Forum is not maintained or supported by the Moravian Church of North America. This web site is maintained by members of the Moravian Church to document and discuss issues of Faith and Order in our Moravian denomination.

We have preserved and made available newspaper articles in our Moravian's in the News section that demonstrates why evangelicals are taking issue with PEC President Bob Sawyer media statements and actions of church leaders.

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Moravian Forum - The Moravian Church