Kent

A Gathering in Worship Offered by the People of the Church of Christ, Union  Fourth Sunday after Pentecost & Father’s Day June 16, 2013 Meditation To educate yourself for the feeling of gratitude means to take nothing for granted, but to always seek out and value the kindness that stands behind the action. –Albert Schweitzer 1875-1965,… Read more.

In Sunday’s sermon, I read the comments of Waynel Mayes, a teacher at a Moore, OK, elementary school and niece of Union Church members Al and Alice White. Waynel was interviewed on CNN and wrote these comments at the request of the Governor of Oklahoma. Her words give us all a window on both the… Read more.

Congratulations! It was an award trifecta for Union Church as members Paul Smithson, Cheyenne and Richard Olson, and Sandy Bolster, swept the faculty and community service awards for 2013 at Berea College commencement, Sunday, May 5. Winning the Paul Hagar Award for Excellence in Advising was Paul Smithson, professor of Chemistry at the college, who was cited for… Read more.

Peter’s vision of all the unclean animals suddenly being placed ‘on the table’ of what God calls “clean,” opens him to visiting the gentile Cornelius. While there, the Holy Spirit falls on Cornelius and his family just as it had on the Jewish disciples, and Peter asks himself, “who am I to hinder God?” The… Read more.

In the bible readings appointed for Sunday, we read of the grief of the widows at the death of Tabitha, we also read in Revelation of the care and gratitude of the multitude who had come through “great ordeal.” In a week of much ordeal we realize how much we have to be grateful for… Read more.

In the gospel of John we remember the story of Mary pouring a whole jar of nard over Jesus’ feet, causing all manner of mixed reactions: from Judas criticizing the waste of a year’s salary on the act, to Jesus proclaiming that she was making an annointing for his burial. In our own life, how are… Read more.

Congratulations to Rev. Steve Sherman, Union Church intern 2010-2011, who preached his first Sunday as the newly called pastor of First Christian Church of Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Steve was ordained in June of 2012 and while searching and discerning has been living with his family in Florida. They are all newly moved to Tennessee and… Read more.

The 160th Annual Meeting of the congregation was kicked off with a musical St. Patrick’s day tribute of songs by Alex Dycus and accompanist Betty Hibler. Kevin Burke provided a corned beef and cabbage feast, complete with ‘taters, Irish soda bread (thanks to Peggy Coyne), and wonderful desserts provided and cleaned up by an army… Read more.