Central News

October 2023 Vol. 32, No. 2

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From Rebecca

Dear friends, One of the many gifts that Centralites share is sending your senior minister book ideas, poetry, newspaper and magazine articles and essays, clippings, and cartoons that you have found meaningful. (Just so you know, I keep most of these, which makes clearing out my desk drawers ever harder!). Not only do I appreciate these gifts in and of themselves, but they are also valuable as I learn new insights and perspectives that are important to you!… [Read More]

Central News

September 2023 | Vol. 32, No. 1

Join us Gathering Sunday, September 10, at 10:30 am!

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From Rebecca

Dear friends, a few years ago some of my colleagues and I met with Professor Stanley Hauerwas, great theologian, fantastic raconteur, and son of a bricklayer. The August 14 issue of The New Yorker quoted him in a short essay about Leah Hunt-Hendrix, grand-daughter of H.L. Hunt, Dallas oilman estimated in 1967 to be the wealthiest person in America. Leah studied with Stanley at Duke University, and during a conversation, when he realized her family background, he told her, “My daddy must have laid bricks for your granddaddy.”… [Read More]

Central News

Aug 2023 Vol. 31, No. 11

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From Rebecca

Dear Centralites and friends, I hope your summertime has been filled with love and grace abounding. As I have been weeding and tending cows, I’ve been listening to podcasts of the presidential candidates … as many as I can find!

While there are many with mixed feelings about Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., most of us can relate to his feelings of loss, when we share that question of why do bad things happen to good people if there is a God who cares about each and every one of us.… [Read More]

Central News

June / July 2023   Vol. 31, No. 10

Summer Worship Begins June 18 at 10 am!

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From Rebecca

Dear Friends, “If the world has not approached its end, it has reached a major watershed in history, equal in importance to the turn from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. It will demand from us a spiritual blaze: we shall have to rise to a new height of vision, to a new level of life where our physical nature will not be cursed as in the Middle Ages, but even more importantly, our spiritual being will not be trampled upon as in the Modern Era.”… [Read More]

Central News

May 2023 Vol. 31, No. 9

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From Rebecca

Dear Friends, May mornings … what a wonder these are … the stars retire and the sky lightens. The peepers and the birds are already up. The sun is still not really warm, but it rises before us. A new day dawns. And we begin again.

That sense of anticipation and wonder is what small children and animals show us so easily. But somehow, we lose this as we start to take things for granted.… [Read More]

Central News

April 2023 Vol. 31, No. 8

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Holy Week Begins April 2.  Come Worship with Us!

From Rebecca

Dear Friends, Easter Arrives! And here is an Easter perspective for us all.

God, thanks for all “hellos.”
The hello of morning sunshine through a window.
The hello of a friend’s recognizing eyes.
The hello of a child’s tentative smile that almost says we might be friends.

And, God, thanks for all “good-byes.” Really a shortened “God be with you.”
The good-bye of crimson autumn leaves.… [Read More]

Central News

March 2023  |  Vol. 31, No. 7

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From Rebecca

Dear Friends, I’m writing this as Lent is about to begin – and thinking about two phrases: “net dropping” and “cross carrying.”

We all can imagine those fishermen out there doing their jobs, meeting Jesus, and being so drawn by Him and His call that they instantly drop their nets (the sole source of their livelihoods) on which they have so fully depended and choose to follow Him (Mark 1:16-20).… [Read More]

Central News

February 2023 Vol. 31, No. 6

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From Rebecca

So I was pondering how to write this note to you, dear friends and members of Central, as we look towards Lent, beginning with Ash Wednesday on Feb. 22, and I came across this quote from a fellow pastor.

“Jesus was a small fish in a tiny pond, what with his dozen followers and modest crowds. If there was an ancient world equivalent of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people, Jesus wouldn’t have even been considered for the list.… [Read More]

Central News

January 2023 Vol. 31, No. 5

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From Rebecca

Dear Friends, how about this story for a new year’s challenge?

Famed orchestra conductor, Arturo Toscanini, was leading a rehearsal. During the rehearsal, it was obvious that the orchestra was bored and not putting forth much effort. After struggling with them for some time, Toscanini laid down his baton and leaned over the rostrum. “Gentlemen,” he said, “God has told me how He wants this symphony played and you … you hinder God!”… [Read More]

Central News

December 2022 Vol. 31, No. 4

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From Rebecca

The path to heaven doesn’t lie down in flat miles.
It’s in the imagination with which you perceive this world,
and the gestures with which you honor it.

So writes poet Mary Oliver.

Advent’s theme, of course, is all about waiting with patience and, certainly, with imagination. Just imagine if we could see “the other” without our usual frames. Imagine if we could put ourselves in the shoes, or rather sandals, of a frightened and pregnant peasant girl.… [Read More]