The Messenger A monthly publication from our Spirit filled church.

Community Events

#SundayFunDay

Summer Sundays

All summer we’ll be

chronologically journeying

through Saint Luke’s version of

Jesus’ ministry in the New

Testament together in an

intergenerational faith form-

ation experience called

#SundayFunDay! No need to

RSVP… simply show up with

your kids at 9am all Sundays

you’re able wearing clothes

that can get a little dirty and

be ready to learn about

awesome Bible stories in a fun,

active way! This coming

Sunday we'll have a Prodigal

Son Water Carnival. Wear

some-thing that can get a little

wet!

WELCA Annual Picnic

Tuesday, July 16th at 6:30pm

The Olochnowicz Estate

Our annual WELCA Picnic will

once again be at the

Olochnowicz Garage Mahal,

2391 West Old State Road. All

women are invited to bring a

favorite dish and join in some

wonderful fellowship. Bug

spray, drinks and dessert will be

provided. Please RSVP on the

narthex bulletin board with

what dish you're bringing or

speak with Kristen Olochnowicz

if you have any further

questions!

Hazardous Waste Collection

Saturday, July 20th

Our next collection for the

hazardous waste collection

program will be Saturday, July

20th. Call or text Jean Jones at

518.878.4412 if you would like to

get rid of old paint cans,

cleaning solutions or other

hazardous waste materials.

SiCM Summer Lunch

Monday, July 28th to Friday,

August 2nd

Hillhurst Park in Schenectady,

New York

We still need a few more

volunteers to help us feed

hungry kids and teens in our

local community through

Schenectady Community

Ministries Summer Lunch

Program!!! If you'd like to assist

simply put your name down on

the narthex bulletin board or

speak with Judy Becker.

VOLUME 92, ISSUE 7| SUMMER 2019

Messiah Lutheran Church

2850 Guilderland Avenue

Schenectady, New York 12306

www.messiahschenectady.org

Email:

office@messiahschenectady.org

Phone:

518.355.2311

Facebook:

www.facebook.com/MessiahLC

We are a Spirit filled church following Jesus Christ.

Summer 2019

Page 2

Hartwick Summer Institute of

Theology

Oneonta, NY

July 28th – August 2nd, 2019

Regardless of if you’d like to

attend for a whole week like

Rianne does every single

Summer, take a class Monday-

Thursday, or just attend a single

two-hour seminar, Hartwick

Summer Institute of Theology

may offer something that

sparks interest! There is a

booklet in the narthex under

the bulletin board along with

registration forms for anybody

interested. Noteworthy classes

offered this year are: Visiting

the Sick and Dying, How Not to

Save the Church, 5 Great Bible

Stories You’ve Probably Never

Heard, Intro. To New Testament

Greek, Once Upon a Time We

Had a Pastor, Christian

Education and Youth Ministry,

Christian Imagination in the

World of Harry Potter, and

more! For more information on

how Hartwick works, please

speak with Rianne.

Camp Calumet Sunday!!!

Sunday, August 4th beginning

at 9:00am

Thanks to our congregation

and local community's

incredible generosity we raised

over $3,700 this year to help

twelve of our awesome kiddos

have the faith formation

experience of a lifetime at

Camp Calumet Lutheran! This

is the Sunday when all our kids

come back, say a massive

thank you and report on all the

wonderful experiences they

had! The day will include an

epic game of the Calumet

classic Capture the Flag at

9:00am for all ages followed by

a festive outdoor worship

service with camp songs and

our youth giving a very special

Children's Sermon! Come on

by!

Messiah Summer Film Series:

"Won't You Be My Neighbor?"

Wednesday, August 7th at

7:00pm

Messiah will be hosting a

community screening of "Won't

You Be My Neighbor," a 2018

documentary on the life of

Presbyterian minister and

children's tv show host Mr. Fred

Rogers. Learn all about how

living a life of faith,

strengthening one's neighbor-

hood, celebrating diversity and

caring for young people were

all one and the same thing for

Mr. Rogers! If you have any

questions, please speak with

Faith Formation Chair Jean

Jones. RSVP on the Faith

Formation Board or on

Facebook!

Outdoor Family Movie Night

Saturday, August 17th at

7:30pm

We're bringing back a classic

this summer... an outdoor

family movie night for the

whole neighborhood showing

Star Wars Episode IV: A New

Hope! There will be snacks and

drinks provided and Pastor

Dustin will even judge a Star

Wars Costume Contest, with

prizes given out for Best

Individual Costume and Best

Group Costume! Our parish

dog Willard Excelsior Bear will

even be sporting a pretty

sweet Jedi robe so the

competition will be intense! This

event is a fundraiser for 2020

Camp Calumet Campership

Fund so a free will offering will

be taken and we'll even be

celebrating Willard E. Bear's

SIXTH birthday! Please RSVP on

the Fellowship Board or

Facebook!

Special

thanks

to all

who

got

Narcan

training

on

June

11th !

Summer 2019

Page 3

Congregation Council

Monday, August 19th at

7:00pm

What don't we have discuss?

Major topics for conversation

will include upgrading our

mechanical infrastructure,

refining our governance

structure to better support a

larger congregation and

discussing a variety of new

partnership possibilities in our

local community. Items need

to be added to the Council's

agenda beforehand, so if

you'd like anything to be

discussed, please speak with

Interim President Jackie DeTeso

or Vice President Pete Jones.

3rd Annual Barbecue and Axe

Throwing Night

Wednesday, August 21st at

6:00pm

Join us for one of

Messiah’s signature fellowship

events of the year!

The Crowthers will once again

host us for

a backyard barbecue with

hotdogs, hamburgers

provided. Bring a side dish and

a strong lumberjack spirit for

our annual axe throwing

competition!!! Despite this

event being truly brotastic, all

Mighty Men of Messiah events

are inclusive and open to

everyone! Def join us! Just sign

up on the narthex bulletin

board or on Facebook!

Messiahstock IV

Saturday, August 24th at

2:00pm to Sunday, August 25th

at 11:00am

The Olochnowicz Estate

Join us for two days of faith, fun

and fellowship as we celebrate

the summer as a Spirit filled

church! Pastor Dustin will lead

the congregation in a bunch of

family-friendly games and

other activities on Saturday

afternoon before we settle in

for a delicious potluck BBQ

dinner and a campfire skit

night. Even if you can't join us

for camping that night, come

on back for a rustic breakfast

and outdoor worship! This will

be an AWESOME time for the

whole family, especially our

young people. Fill out the

signup sheet on the Fellowship

Board or RSVP on Facebook

and if you have any questions

speak with Kristen Olochnowicz

or Pastor Dustin.

Schenectady Clergy Against

Hate Back2School

Extravaganza!!!

Sunday, August 25th from 1:00

- 3:00pm

Central Park Pavilion in

Schenectady, New York

As part of a continued effort to

build bridges with folks of

different faiths in our

community, join Pastor Dustin

and other clergy leaders for

SCAH's third annual back to

school gathering in Central

Park! We'll have all sorts of

delicious foods, fun games and

opportunities for conversation

with neighbors who we might

not otherwise meet. We'll also

once again be handing out

free school supplies for

Schenectady's awesome kids!

We're all in this together

after all, some come help build

some community! We're

especially looking for youth to

help with outreach and hand

out supplies the day of the

event so if you're interested,

please speak with Social

Action Chair Pete Jones or

Pastor Dustin. Finally, Messiah is

tasked with providing 1500

paper folders of all colors, so if

you'd like to donate folders,

please drop them off in the

narthex.

Labor Day Service of Holy

Communion

Sunday, September 1st at

10:15am

Christ is present in every time

and space we find ourselves in,

not just on Sunday and not just

at church. This Labor Day

Weekend we'll focus on one

area where we often neglect

to reflect on God's presence: in

our professional lives. Join us for

a morning of special prayers for

workers, the unemployed,

those organizing for just labor

practices and a special rite

called the Blessing of the

Hands. Be sure and stop by for

this new special Sunday at

Messiah!

Rally Sunday 2019

Sunday, September 8th at

9:00am

Join the people of Messiah for

our kickoff of the 2019-2020

program year! Registration for

Sunday School begins at

9:00am for children pre-k and

up with an awesome new

adult education course

upstairs in the Fellowship Hall.

Worship begins at 10:15am with

a big tent revival style outdoor

worship, the return of our

awesome choir and a blessing

of kids’ backpacks for the

school year ahead. Afterwards

we'll host a delicious

Summer 2019

Page 4

community potluck with

grillables and drinks provided.

All our friends and neighbors

are invited to join us! Please

RSVP with the dish you're

bringing either on Facebook or

on the Fellowship Board in the

Narthex!

Children's Faith Formation:

Whirl!

Beginning Sunday, September

8th at 9:00am

And we're back at it! Faith

formation for pre and

elementary school aged

children during the program

year at Messiah Lutheran

Church uses the Whirl!

curriculum which explores a

theme of the day based on the

texts we hear later in worship in

a fun, age appropriate sort of

way. Children first gather in the

sanctuary for meditative

minute with Ms. Kristen (we're

taking a break from the singing

this year) before heading off

with one of four specific age

groups for a short video,

discussion and activity. If you

have any questions or would

like to register your child,

please speak with Sunday

School Superintendent Cheryl

Borski. We're also looking for

two more Sunday School

Leaders!

Youth Faith Formation: The

Breakfast Club

Beginning Sunday, September

8th at 9:00am

Our middle and high schoolers

are SO over programmed

these days, so that's why on

Sunday morning we provide a

mellow time for our young

people to simply hang out and

talk about whatever issues

they're facing in everyday life.

The Breakfast Club, comprised

of our roughly high school

aged youth and led by Ms.

Tammi will now meet separ-

ately from an as yet to be

named new group of middle

schoolers led by Ms. Betsy. If

you have any questions or

would like to register your

youth, please with Tammi or

Betsy!

Adult Education: Meeting

Jesus for the First Time

Beginning Sunday, September

8th at 9:00am

Join Dr. Merle Longwood this

fall for a series of conversations

grounded in Marcus Borg's

classic book Meeting Jesus for

the First Time. Borg, who began

life as a pious Lutheran in North

Dakota, earned his doctorate

in New Testament from Oxford

and concluded his career as a

Distinguished Professor of

Religion and Culture at Oregon

State University, explores who

the historical Jesus likely was

and how this can inform our

personal faith. Please sign up

on the narthex bulletin board

for a book copy. Books will be

purchased second hand at a

discount with the cost being

roughly $5. If you have any

questions, please speak with

Merle!

Confirmation Class:

colaborate!

Beginning Sunday, September

8th at 6:30pm

Here we go again! In addition

to our eight current

confirmation students who will

become full adult members of

our congregation this Nov-

ember we'll also be welcoming

potentially eight more young

people and their parent/guar-

dians in our next confirmation

group! We'll begin with our

outgoing confirmation students

sharing with the incoming

group about how to make the

most out of this important faith

formation experience and

developing a learning

covenant as a group. In

subsequent weeks we'll begin

studying the Old Testament

Jean Jones

showing

Hannah

and

Haileigh

how to

identify

certain

kinds of

plants and

enjoy the

presence

of God in

all of

creation!

Summer 2019

Page 5

with the support of our

outgoing students until they are

confirmed on November 17th!

If you know a middle schooler

who might appreciate learning

more about his/her/their faith,

please speak with Pastor

Dustin! Also, by the way, if

you're someone a bit older

who would like to learn more

about the Old Testament,

youth at heart are welcome to

join us as well!

Tackling the Climate Crisis in

New York State

Tuesday, September 10th at

6:00pm

The effects of climate change

have become increasingly

apparent in recent years, but

how can we address this crisis

while also protecting workers

and sustainably develop

communities? Join us for a

community forum to discuss

what's going on at the state

level in New York to answer

these difficult questions with

the Rev. Peter Cook, Executive

Director of the New York State

Council of Churches and Mark

Dunlea of New York Renews.

From the recently passed

Climate Leadership and Com-

munity Protection Act to

ongoing proposals to divest the

New York State Pension Fund

from fossil fuel companies,

there's a great deal of

confusion and disagreement in

our community about initiatives

that will likely affect every

single New Yorker in the

upcoming years. We may not

all come out of this forum

entirely agreeing on how to

move forward, but that's not

the point! Rather, as a Spirit

filled congregation, we're

seeking to provide a space for

our members, friends and

neighbors to discuss these

important issues in a faithful

way and hopefully all learn

from one another. If you have

any questions please speak

with Creation Care Chair Kären

Telfeyan or Merle Longwood.

Please RSVP either on

Facebook or on the Social

Action Board in the narthex!

SiCM Assembly

Tuesday, September 10th at

7:00pm

St George's Episcopal Church

30 North Ferry Street in

Schenectady, New York

Our resolution to move SiCM

towards an interfaith service

organization is going well!

Pastor Dustin was recently

appointed to chair the task

force working to explore what

this might look like and at

SiCM's September Assembly

the task force will give its initial

report! All in the congregation

are encouraged to attend and

join the conversation!

Coffee Club III: Dialogues on

Human Sexuality

(Usually) Thursdays September

12th through October

Gosh... we've talked about

how our faith affects our

understanding of some pretty

controversial topics at Messiah

in recent years... from race to

economics, immigration to

climate change, we've

generally been able to provide

faithful spaces on the moral

issues of the day! Outside of our

Reconciling in Christ process a

few years ago however, we've

never had frank conversations

about a big one... sex, but

we're changing that this fall!

Using a new series from the

ELCA meant to "transform

conflict into community" called

Dialogues On..., we'll tackle a

wide variety of topics from

sexism to marriage to

transgender issues. A faithful

and healthy understanding of

human sexuality affects so

much, from our own personal

lives to how we raise our

children to the standards we

have for our leaders, so please

join this important conver-

sation! All materials will be

provided for the first class but

please RSVP on the Faith

Formation Board by August

18th. A $15 contribution is

encouraged to defer book

costs, although certainly not

required!

Volunteering at the Regional

Food Bank

Saturday, September 14th at

1:00pm

965 Albany Shaker Road in

Latham, New York

We will again be sorting food at

the Regional Food Bank in

Latham on September 14, 2019

1-3 PM. We will meet at the

Regional Food Bank located

just off Route 7 on 965 Albany

Shaker Road in Latham.

(Albany Shaker Road is across

from Keeler Motors (Mc-

Donald’s on the corner). Park in

parking lot on left and walk to

the back of the building. For

more information, contact

Pete Jones at 518-867-2489

and please RSVP on the Social

Action Board in the narthex.

Summer 2019

Page 6

Senior's Sunday and Welcome

to Confirmation

Sunday, September 15th at

10:15am

Two years ago we started a

new tradition at Messiah...

blessing our incoming group of

students as they begin

confirmation class, presenting

them with their first adult Bibles

and pairing them with a church

elder to help mentor them

through the process. This time

around, and intentionally

scheduled near Grandparent's

Day, we'll be expanding this

very special Service of Holy

Communion to also recognize

the many seniors in our

congregation who continue to

mentor and guide so many of

us. We have eight new young

people preparing to begin

confirmation and so many of

our seniors to recognize, so

please join us for this very

important service!

Annual Worship Leader

Training

Sunday, September 15th at

11:30am

Immediately after worship we'll

hold our annual worship leader

training for new and returning

worship assistants! This past

winter's first communion class

participants are eligible to

become acolytes, our

incoming confirmation class

students are eligible to

become crucifers and our soon

to be confirmands are eligible

to become assisting ministers!

We're also looking for new

lectors, greeters, ushers, bread

bakers, cantors, choir

members, nursery leaders, tech

czars and altar guild members!

It's a new goal at Messiah to

have everyone who's able to

serve in some worship leader

role, so sign up on the narthex

bulletin board in order to make

sure we have enough trainers

available for everyone! If you

have any questions, please

speak with Pastor Dustin.

Worship is the work of a whole

community... be a part of it!

2021 ELCA Youth Gathering

Meetup

Sunday, September 15th at

5:00pm

The 2021 ELCA Youth

Gathering in Minneapolis is well

over a year away but us

Schenectady area Lutherans

ought to start getting to know

each other! Join the youth,

pastors and families of Good

Shepherd, Our Redeemer and

Messiah for a potluck dinner,

fun and early info about the

gathering! The gathering is

open to all youth who are

about to enter high school or

have just graduated in the

summer of 2021. Please RSVP

on Facebook and mention

what potluck dish your

household might bring in the

comments section to assist in

planning!

"Take this Bread" Monthly Book

Club

Wednesday, September 25th

at 11:00am

Join our monthly book club for

our first meeting of the 2019 -

2020 program year!

Recommended by Judy

Becker, "Take this Bread" is the

story of Sara Miles, an atheist

who wandered into a church,

received communion, and

found herself transformed–

embracing a faith she’d once

scorned. A lesbian left-wing

journalist who’d covered

revolutions around the world,

Miles didn’t discover a religion

that was about angels or good

behavior or piety; her faith

centered on real hunger, real

food, and real bodies. Before

long, she turned the bread she

ate at communion into tons of

groceries, piled on the

church’s altar to be given

away. Within a few years, she

and the people she served had

started nearly a dozen food

pantries in the poorest parts of

their city! A few copies are

available but attenders are

encouraged to order their own

books. If you have any

questions, please speak with

Faith Formation Chair Jean

Jones!

Harvest Family Retreat

Weekend

Friday, October 11th -

Monday, October 14th

Camp Calumet Lutheran

Freedom, New Hampshire

Come see what all the fuss is

about! Pastor Dustin was

recently invited to serve as

chaplain for Camp Calumet's

Harvest Weekend (which takes

place over the Columbus/

Indigenous People Day

holiday) and we'd love to invite

members of the congregation

along! The schedule isn't

entirely finalized yet, but the

weekend will include fun, fall

time activities like apple

picking, hiking, pumpkin

carving, broom ball, campfires

and a cozy Sunday morning

worship service in the Lakeside

Summer 2019

Page 7

Dining Hall on the shores of the

beautiful three-mile-long Lake

Ossipee! Depending on the

type of lodging you'd prefer

and the size of your family, cost

per person is roughly $125

which covers three nights of

heated cabin lodging, all

meals and programming.

Cheaper options including

camping are also possible and

some financial assistance may

also be available upon request

to Pastor Dustin. Come join us

for an amazing fall weekend in

New England! Please indicate

interest and type of lodging

preferred on the narthex

Fellowship Board!

Fall 2019 New Member Class

Sunday, November 10th

following worship

Have you been attending

Messiah for a while now and

beginning to think about taking

the next step in your faith

journey? Well talk with Pastor

Dustin asap because

enrollment in our Fall 2019 New

Member Class has begun! The

class takes place on Sunday,

November 10th as we use the

promises one makes in baptism

to learn about both our faith

and how Messiah works. New

member households are then

paired with a sponsor family

and we all gather together for

our New Member Dinner on

Wednesday, November 20th.

New members will then be

welcomed into our Spirit filled

community on Christ the King

Sunday, November 24th. We'd

love for you to officially be a

part of our Spirit filled

congregation grounded in

Jesus Christ!

Ministry Team Meetings

Outreach Ministry Team

Monday, August 5th at 6:00pm

Join our Outreach/ Evangelism

Team as we discuss goals for

the program year ahead and

brainstorm new ways to spread

the Good News about what

God is doing in our Spirit filled

congregation! If you have any

questions, please speak with

Chairs Tom Collins or Molly

Karrel.

Worship & Music Ministry Team

Monday, August 5th at 7:00pm

Our Worship & Music Team will

be hard at work evaluating a

summer full of wonderful

worship experiences, planning

for Rally Sunday, options for

making the flow of traffic better

in our sanctuary and how to

properly broadcast our worship

services. If you have any

questions, please speak with

Pastor Dustin.

Stewardship Ministry Team

Wednesday, August 7th at

6:00pm

Golly to we have a lot to talk

about! From planning our Fall

2019 Financial Stewardship

Campaign to developing our

new Feed the Roots Initiative to

help reach out to longtime but

less connected members, this

will be an important

conversation! If you have any

questions or would like to join

our Stewardship Team, please

speak with Chair Penny Incitti!

Property Ministry Team

Monday, August 12th at

7:00pm

We have a quite a bit to

discuss! Items on the agenda

include sealcoating the

parsonage driveway and

church parking lot, upgrading

our electrical and heating

infrastructure, installing security

cameras, either installing solar

panels or joining a solar farm,

landscaping improvements

and more! If you have any

questions, please speak with

Property Co-Chairs Rich

Stigberg or Charlie Zitzmann.

Many thanks to

all who helped

fundraise for

Calumet! We

reached our

goal for this

year!!

Summer 2019

Page 8

Faith Formation Ministry Team

Wednesday, August 14th at

7:00pm

Gosh this is an important

conversation! Our entire team

will meet briefly to discuss

overarching goals before

breaking into individual ministry

groups including Adult

Education, Nursery, Children's

Sunday School, Confirmation

Class and Breakfast Club for

High Schoolers to plan another

exciting program year! We

need all hands on deck for the

year ahead and especially

need at least two new

Children's Sunday Schooler

Leaders! If you're interested in

assisting please speak with

Jean Jones, Cheryl Borski or

Pastor Dustin.

Food Pantry Ministry Team

Wednesday, September 11th

at 7:00pm

As we continue discerning how

to move towards adding a

third food pantry session a

month at Messiah and also

expanding our leadership, we

need your help! Please join us

for this important meeting. If

you any questions or would like

to join our Food Pantry Ministry

Team, please speak with Co-

Chairs Judy Becker or Joyce

Gresham.

News You Can Use!

Pastor on Vacation!

Monday, July 15th - Saturday,

July 27th

Pastor Dustin will be out of state

and typically away from cell

phone reception for an epic

trip of bouncing around

national parks and bagging

fourteen thousand foot

summits in Colorado! In case of

pastoral emergency, please

contact our Parish Admin-

istrator Rianne Johnson and

she'll put you in touch with the

Rev. Jonathan Vanderbeck,

pastor of our neighboring Trinity

Reformed Church who would

be more than happy to speak

with you.

September 2019 Messenger

Deadlines

Please keep in mind that our

deadline for the September

2019 Messenger is Tuesday,

August 27th. A reminder email

will be sent out the week prior.

It is super important to get

articles in on time, especially as

September is when our pro-

gramming starts back up and

many time-sensitive events will

be included! If all articles are in

on time, the projected release

date is Wednesday, August

28th.

Care & Concern

We visited and administered

communion to the Ellis’s on

Thursday and sadly, Dave Ellis

passed away the following

Monday. He will be greatly

missed.

Over 55 Gang

The Over 55 Gang event, the

Lake George Cruise Luncheon,

had seven participants and we

had a great time. Hilda

Hoffstetter was planning on

attending but at last minute

became ill and was

hospitalized – she’s out now

and recuperating nicely.

Check Your Keys!

Please check your keys – if you

have key #22, please notify

Pastor Dustin, Rianne, or Bill Ellis

so we can ensure our records

are up to date. Thanks!

Box Tops for Education

Thank you to all who were kind

enough to cut out “box tops”

for education. We were able to

send $8 worth to the Navajo

Mission in Rock Point, AZ

recently. The school uses the

box top money to purchase

different items for their school.

This is an outreach to let them

know we can help even if it is in

a small way. Please take time

to cut them out, bring to

church, and they will be sent

when enough are collected to

do so. Thanks again!

Thank You’s

The Ellis family would like to

extend their thanks to

everyone who participated in

or sent condolences for our

dad, David. He really enjoyed

coming to church and being

with his church family. Thanks

also to those that visited him at

the Glendale Home. It was

greatly appreciated. He will

miss being with all of you.

Summer 2019

Page 9

Welcoming Deacon Jean Guarino

If you weren’t here on July 7th, you may not have yet met Jean! Jean is

our newest associate member and congregational deacon. A native

of Long Island (West Islip) but currently lost in the boonies of Berne,

Jean’s home congregation is Helderberg Lutheran Parish where she is

also a deacon.

So, why is Jean here? Many awesome reasons, of course! Pastor Dustin

is serving as Jean’s pastoral advisor during her candidacy process for

seminary and we are going to help give her leadership and learning

opportunities that will help enhance her skills and knowledge!

Some of Jean’s goals are to strengthen her knowledge and understanding of social issues and

difficult topics by exploring ELCA Social Statements, Social Messages, and other related social

teaching documents to organize and lead two community forums (perhaps in partnership with a

fellow Congregational Deacon) on topics covered by ELCA social teachings.

Another goal is to Discern God’s calling by learning about vocational discernment opportunities for

youth as well as adults and talk with members of the congregation about vocational discernment,

which will turn into a project of organizing a well-researched, documented, and congregation-

based program to support youth in discerning a future call to rostered ministry.

Lastly, Jean will strengthen her preaching skills by occasionally preaching two to four times a year at

primary Sunday worship services.

What does Jean do outside of church? Jean is married to her husband Ian, has three almost fully

grown children, and is the caregiver of Clyde the golden retriever, four cats, a handful of chickens,

and two bunnies! Some random tidbits about Jean: she works for the town of Berne as their Youth

Director, is retired from the military (Army), spent most of her life as a professional chef, and absolutely

LOVES crocheting!

Accessing Messiah’s Calendar

Due to popular demand, here is a brief tutorial on adding Messiah’s calendar to your

phone/computer. This method must be done on your computer, however, since the phone app

does not give you a way to do this.

First, go to calendar.google.com. On the left sidebar, there should be some categories: “My

Calendars” and “Other Calendars”. Click on the “+” button to the right of the “Other

Calendars” category and select “From URL.” Next, you will copy and paste the following into

the URL box:

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/officemlcschenectady%40gmail.com/public/basic

.ics

If you use another calendar program, using the above listed link should still work if you choose

to import the calendar into there. If you need assistance, Rianne is willing to help out with

advance notice either after church or during her office hours or during another time that might

possibly work.

Summer 2019

Page 10

MINISTER OF THE MONTH: TYLER JONES

Tyler Jones was born in Amsterdam, NY in December of 2003. During

the summer of 2008, Tyler moved to Schenectady to live with his

paternal grandparents, Pete and Jean Jones. On Christmas Eve of

2014, it was Tyler who expressed an interest in going to church and

the Joneses, having been to Messiah years earlier, decided that was

the place to go. They have been going ever since.

Tyler attends Schenectady High School where he is known as the

“Mayor” due to his friendly and outgoing personality. He is 15 and

has just completed 9th grade. He plays the drums and other

percussion instruments in the Schenectady High School Band.

When not in school, Tyler participates in the Special Olympics on a

swimming team (The Sharks) out of the Jewish Community Center on

Balltown Road. He has just returned from the New York Statewide Special Olympics with three

more medals to add to his collection. He also participates in Challenger Baseball in Rotterdam

Junction and his other areas of interest include camping, kayaking, down-hill and cross-country

skiing and spending time with his cousins. He likes to ride his bike around the neighborhood and

swimming in the family pool. He also willingly participates in many of the community projects that

his “Poppi” does especially Concerned for the Hungry and church. He will be confirmed this fall at

Messiah.

Thank you so much, Tyler, for being such an inspiration to many of us at Messiah and

congratulations on being our minister of the month!

MINISTRY OF THE MONTH: WORSHIP & MUSIC MINISTRY TEAM

The purpose of this ministry team is to plan and

improve upon all public worship of the

congregation.

This committee works in conjunction with the

pastor, parish administrator, parish musician/

cantor and all worship assistants. They are the

superheroes behind the scenes that recruit

worship assistants; support altar guild by

maintaining and acquiring paraments,

vestments, and vessels; choose hymns and

liturgical settings as well as plan special worship

services; provide feedback on worship; and

advise upon all congregation policies related to

sacraments, rites, and life passages.

If you’d like to join this fine group of people, please speak with Jill Becker or Pastor Dustin! We’d love

to have you!

Summer 2019

Page 11

PASTOR’S LETTER: REV. DUSTIN G. WRIGHT

After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on

ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself

intended to go. He said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the

laborers are few; therefore, ask the Lord of the harvest to send out

laborers into his harvest.

- Saint Luke 10: 1-2

Geesh… last Sunday’s appointed gospel message couldn’t more

perfectly speak to the current situation we find ourselves in!

First, this past Sunday we installed Jean Guarino, a dear friend of Rianne Johnson’s, as a

Congregational Deacon at Messiah as part of our commitment to support her candidacy for

ordained ministry. We also talked about the need to raise up ordained ministry as a profession

amongst our young people, a number of whom have indicated they would maybe like to be pastors

someday. Looking ahead to the next few months (in this record 20-page newsletter!), it’s clear to

see that the harvest is indeed plentiful! With a variety of new initiatives and events, major decisions

about building improvements and welcoming a whole host of new members ahead of us this fall,

there clearly is a lot to do! In order to support this continued growth, we’ll also be restructuring our

many event planning committees into four main umbrella ministries teams: Fellowship, Faith

Formation, Social Action and Worship & Music. Please check out the new layout of our narthex

bulletin boards emphasizing each of these four areas. Part of this work of course will be raising up

new leaders and strengthening a sense of discipleship throughout our Spirit filled congregation

In the short term though, it’s important to remember that fields ought to lay foul once in a while or

else they quit producing fruit. Similarly, I encourage to take a step back this July and prayerfully

recharge before we jump into another busy program year. At our last Calendar Meeting we

discussed instituting July is an annual “sabbath month” for the congregation, and I think that’s quite

wise! Even this August, we have a few prep meetings, but we’re mostly focusing on fun fellowship

event to help knit our rapidly growing congregation a bit closer together.

Finally, if you’re someone that’s been a longer time member of Messiah who’s taken a step back in

recent years amidst all the craziness and change, know I want to hear from you. In the coming

months we’ll be launching something called the “Feed the Roots Campaign,” where we’ll be

reaching out to these sort of households to reconnect and dream of a Spirit filled future together.

The harvest is plentiful indeed!

In Christ,

Pastor Dustin

Summer 2019

Page 12

PRESIDING BISHOP’S LETTER: BISHOP ELIZABETH EATON

When I was a girl, dinner table discussions in our family were lively. We could

state our position on an issue, but then we had to be ready to back up our

argument with facts. In that pre-Google time, the World Book Encyclopedia

was often our source. Out came the dark blue volumes. Their very weight and

color brought gravitas. One’s presentation could be critiqued, but not the

facts—they were printed in the World Book Encyclopedia after all! Those were

simpler times, or maybe I was just more naïve. Now we live in the era of

“truthiness” and “fake news” and “alternative facts.” One prominent attorney

declared in an interview: “Truth is not truth.” I was stunned when I heard that,

but even more stunned when I realized he had a point.

We have weaponized facts and forced truth into the service of spin. Often conversations are no

longer the exchange of ideas and convictions but barrages of accusations. It is not enough to let

our word be “yes, yes” or “no, no.” Now we need to shade and embellish and selectively “factify”

our position. And if that doesn’t work, then shout or use ALL CAPS. Jesus and Pilate have an

interesting exchange about truth in the Gospel of John. “[Jesus said]: ‘For this I was born, and for

this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my

voice.’ Pilate asked him, ‘What is truth?’ ” (John 18:37-38). A remarkable claim by Jesus and an

interesting reply by Pilate. I wonder, was Pilate earnestly seeking for truth or was he cynically

dismissing the existence of truth? Are we, followers of Jesus, able to listen to Jesus’ voice?

So how do we live as people of Truth in a time of spin? We need to return daily to the new creation

God made us when we were baptized. Our new life in Christ is our foundation and our horizon, our

beginning and our end. An ancient Celtic blessing puts it this way: “God to enfold me, God to

surround me, God in my speaking, God in my thinking.” In baptism God has claimed us as beloved

children joined to the death and resurrection of Christ, sealed by the Spirit and marked with the

cross of Christ forever. Baptism makes a difference and makes us different. We now belong to the

Truth. That doesn’t mean we have the Truth or even know everything about truth. The Truth doesn’t

belong to us. No, by God’s gracious act we belong to the Truth. We don’t make truth claims—Truth

claims us. How then do we live? In deep humility, profound gratitude and real joy.

Humility: It is God’s good and gracious favor to be merciful to all, even, and perhaps especially, to

those with whom we fervently disagree. This is the severe mercy of grace—no one, not even those

we determine are beyond the pale, is beyond the reach of God.

Gratitude: God claims us. We are not our own and we are not alone. Paul wrote: “For while we

were still weak … for if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of

his Son” (Romans 5:6-10). The deep human struggle for worth and meaning is over. We are the

beloved of the Most High, thanks be to God.

Joy: Dear church, we are free! Free to love, free to serve, free to listen, free to be challenged. We

can “lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely and … run with perseverance the

race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1).

Here is my prayer: There is a lot of noise in this world, gracious God, including our own that lays

claim to the truth. Bring us to a place of stillness where we can listen to you. Your truth has claimed

us and set us free. Amen.