Sunday Morning Programs:
A variety of educational opportunities are provided for adults on Sunday mornings at 9:30am, including: multi-session programs on current issues and events, Bible study, and other topics of interest.
Current Program Offerings:
Discussions in June
Christians in the Public Square
Discussions in June
9:30am in the Library
- June 3: A Social Creed for the 21st Century…Led by Mary Mohlke.
In faith, responding to our Creator, we celebrate the full humanity of each woman, man and child, all created in the divine image as individuals of infinite worth…..
In the love incarnate in Jesus, despite the world’s suffering and exile, we honor the deep connections within our human family and seek to awaken a new spirit of community….
In hope, sustained by the Holy Spirit, we pledge to be peacemakers in the world and stewards of God’s good creation…..
Find out how the PCUSA follows through on this ecumenical agreement.
- June 10: Upcoming PCUSA General Assembly
A conversation about what will be studied and voted on at the biennial General Assembly of the PCUSA at the end of the month in Pittsburgh with Commissioner to the Assembly, Rev. Bill Hennessy. (See information about the bus trip.)
- June 17: Solitary Confinement in the U.S. Prisons…discussion facilitator, Pat Townsend
The National Religious Campaign Against Torture has raised the question whether the use of solitary confinement in prisons constitutes torture. We will examine this issue in the context of a wider look at prisons in the United States today. Jesus urged his followers to visit those in prison—what might this mean to us today?
- June 24: Dispatches to God’s Household (after the 9:30am service)
This Bible study will reflect on community as it is understood through the General Epistles—1 and 2 Peter, 1-3 John, and Jude. These authors offered followers of Jesus in first-century Asia Minor words and images of God that expressed hope and assurance in the face of adversity. Their words inspire Christians today. Study books will be available for $8.
Christians in the Public Square
In this series (which ended May 20), North Church folks told how their Christian values have led them to act on issues involving water (Katie Kreidler, Bill Townsend), food (Jane Arnold, Ginny Bradley), and women’s health (Jerry Marchand, JoAnne Alderfer, Mary Beth Karr)–concerns that are threaded through the Gospels. Each of the panels asked that we advocate on a specific piece of current legislation. They are listed below, in a form that makes it easy for you to take action by e-mail.
If you want to ask that fracking waste be treated as hazardous waste (NY Senate Bill 4616), closing the loophole in NY State legislation, write to your state senator.
If you want to support women’s right to make private health care decisions with their physicians in the Reproductive Health Act, also write your State Senator. (If you live in Niagara County, here is your State Senator.)
If you want to participate in the Bread for the World Offering of Letters on domestic hunger programs, write to the US Congress either via e-mail (preferred) or regular mail to their LOCAL office:
Write to Senator Gillibrand, thanking her for her work on domestic hunger issues on the Senate Agriculture Committee, which recently reported out a bipartisan Farm Bill.
Or write to Senator Schumer, saying that you hope he will support important provisions of the Farm Bill that protect SNAP (food stamps). The Senate bill is the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2012.
And write to your Representative. In the 26th District that is Kathy Hochul.
More information:
Experienced lobbyists tell us that 10 handwritten letters, especially those with your own brief personal story connected to a specific bill, are enough to get an issue on a representative’s plate. Form letters and petitions don’t count for much; they’re too easy, though they can’t hurt, and may give you ideas for your own letter. E-mail has come to be equal, or even preferred, again when it is a personal message, not just signing on to something.
If you missed the adult education presentations, or need more information on the legislation:
On hunger, visit the web page of Bread for the World.
On fracking waste, see a new report about inadequately regulated fracking wastes currently operating gas wells in NY State, including Erie County.
On the Reproductive Health Act, see:
- http://www.familyplanningadvocates.org/2012/03/the-reproductive-health-act/
- http://www.plannedparenthood.org/uhpp/reproductive-health-act-28845.htm
For information about fellowship at North Church, see our Fellowship page.
