Announcement for Sunday, December 15, 2013
Good Morning! Welcome to University
Congregational Church!
WE INVITE OUR VISITORS TODAY to join us in Fellowship Hall after the service for coffee, refreshments and conversation. Just follow the crowd down the hallway (west).
PLEASE SIGN THE FELLOWSHIP PAD when it comes down the pew. Members please sign and update any changes in your contact information. If you are a guest, please sign the pad so that we may thank you for worshipping with us.
TODAY
CHOIR MEMBER JON ROMAIN will have his pottery sale in Fellowship Hall.
THE MUSIC BOARD will meet in the choir room at 11:45.
THE OUTREACH BOARD will meet in the office meeting room at 11:45
THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES will meet in the conference room at 11:45.
KEVIN CALLOWAY, (our guest organist last Sunday) will give an Christmas Vespers Organ Recital at 2:30 this afternoon in our sanctuary. All are welcome to come!
THIS WEEK
THE CHURCH COUNCIL will meet Monday, December 13, in the conference room at 5:30.
THE ADULT EDUCATION CLASS “LIVING WITH QUESTIONS, will not meet this Monday. The next class will be Monday, January 6, at 6:30
THE MEN’S GROUP CHRISTMAS LUNCH is Thursday, December19, 11:30 at the Lakeside Club (21ST and Webb behind Walgreens). Robin McGonigle will give a short talk. Please sign up in Fellowship Hall or call the office to sign up.
YOGA CLASSES meet on Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. ($5.00) and Friday at 10:00 a.m.in Fellowship Hall.
NEXT SUNDAY
A CHRISTMAS TABLEAU will be presented by the children of UCC during the Children’s Message.
Christmas Eve Service
Please join us for this beautiful family service at 5:30 p.m. with Christmas carols, a story from the Bible, and meditations from Deitrich Bonhoeffer.
A NEWCOMERS CLASS will be offered Sunday, January 5, in the conference room after the church service for anyone interested in becoming a member of UCC or finding out more about the church. A light lunch will be served. Please let the office know if you are planning to attend 634-0430.
PLEASE NOTE THAT CHECKS must be delivered or postmarked on or by December 31st in order to claim a charitable contribution deduction in 2013. Checks that are written, mailed and postmarked in 2013 will be allowed as payment in 2013 though they are not received by the church until 2014. In addition, be sure to wait to file your tax return until after you’ve received your statement from the church so that you may insure that all your contributions are deductible. If you have any questions, please call Luanne Turkot at 634-0430 or Larry Widmer at 210-6776.
2014 COMMUNION TABLE FLOWER SCHEDULE is on the PIC board in Fellowship Hall. Sign up early to get the date you want!
2014 HOLY LAND TRIP brochures are on the Welcome Table for anyone interested or if you have friends who might be interested in the trip scheduled for next March. There is also trip insurance information, as well. Please call Robin at 634-0430 or email her at revdocmom1@gmail.com with any questions.
A BIG THANK YOU GOES OUT TO BOB SCOTT for the time and effort he put in to presenting Many Moods of Christmas for us last Sunday. A huge thank you also goes to Paul Jackson for organizing schedules of choir members and musicians, and formatting the bulletin, to Tim Duncan for engineering the CD’s so that they capture the beautiful music that filled our sanctuary, and to the choir for sharing their extraordinary talents.
KATHRYN LANGREHR would like to thank all the Deacons for the food they brought and the hard work in planning, set up and clean up for the Christmas party. To all the performers, a huge thank you for a wonderful program. To all who came out on a very cold Sunday night bringing wonderful appetizers and desserts, a big thank you. Thank you, thank you to all who stayed to clean up. The remodeled more efficient kitchen was tested worked beautifully!
WE ALL THANK you Kathryn and Deacons for a great party!
INCLEMENT WEATHER CLOSING NOTIFICATION FOR UNIVERSITY CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
In the event of inclement weather that is deemed significant enough that church services or activities should be cancelled, the following procedure will occur: The Senior Minister and the Church Moderator will make the determination to cancel the worship service and/or other activities.
The Director of Christian Life (or designee) will insure the following communications occur:
- A cancellation notification will be posted on the church sign.
- The church website will reflect the closure.
(www. ucchurch.org)
- The church Facebook page will reflect the closure.
- The following media outlets will be contacted about the closings KWCH, KSNW, KAKE, KFDI, and NPR.
OUTREACH
THE HEAD-TO-TOE HYGIENE PANTRY will be open Saturday, December 21. Thank you to all who brought crayons and coloring books and volunteered to help on what will be a very busy day.
FOOD BANK It is holiday time and the need is even greater. Most needed items are canned meats, tuna, spam, chicken, and ham, macaroni and cheese, canned soup, spaghetti sauce. A full list is on the collection basket in Fellowship Hall.
INTER-FAITH MINISTRIES Operation Holiday is conducting its 50th year of helping needy families in the Wichita area. They are in need of non-perishable food (cereal, canned vegetables, peanut butter
pasta, etc.). We have 16 of the 20 volunteers UCC has committed to provide for the Operation Holiday’s distribution center this Friday, December 20th from 8:30-12:30. It is the opening day and it will be busy. Sign up on the PIC board and see Kim Carraway for more info.
WE THANK all those below who contributed poinsettias to our beautiful Christmas floral display in the sanctuary.
*Larry and Sue Anderson
*William and Beverly Berl
*Ann Brady for DeWayne Brady
*Mert and Connie Buckley in honor of our parents
*Linda Burnside
*Nancy Cochener in loving memory of Bruce and in loving memory of Nancy and Bruce’s parents
*Jay and Phyllis Decker
*Jan Deering in memory of Bert Deering
*Tim and Anne Duncan celebrating our children and grandchildren
*Justus Fugate in memory of Connie Claire Arnold
*Anita Jones in memory of Randy and Larry
*Kathryn Langrehr in honor of my grandchildren
*Mike and Leigh Aaron Leary in memory of family
*Trudy Matthews in memory of her mom and dad
*Anna and Belden Mills in loving memory of their parents
*George and Maxine Morrison
*Gary and Karen Nye in memory of Margene Nye
*Ginger Phillips in memory of Devan Krausch
*Carol Pinsker in memory of Jack Turner
*James and Beverly Rhatigan
*Janice Riordan
*Wayne and Norma Roberts in memory of our parents
*Charles and Gloria Russell in memory Gloria’s sister, Bernadine
*Bob and Patsy Scott
*Fred and Virginia Soper
*Sabrina Standifer in memory of Louise Landers and Judy Andrews
*Burt and Sharon Tims in celebration of their grandchildren
CONTEMPORARY WORD
Notes on Saint Nicholas
He is the most popular saint in the calendar year, yet we know little about him as compared to St. Francis or St. Christopher.
St Nicholas:
Early 4th century bishop of Myra, in Lycia , Asia Minor
Childhood-
Nicholas’s father was a wealthy merchant
parents died when Nicholas was a teenager;
Nicholas lived with an uncle who was a priest.
Nicholas refused on fast days to take the natural nourishment allowed children
Early Adulthood-
Youngest bishop in the history of the church
persecuted and imprisoned during the reign of Roman emperor Diocletain
was released from prison when Constantine established Christianity as official
After Death-
Justinian, the last major emperor in the East, built a church in honor of
Nicholas in Constantinople
700 years after his death, Nicholas’s remains were moved to Bari, Italy
Venice, Italy also claims to have enshrined the remains of St. Nicholas
more than 400 churches dedicated to Nicholas in England
St. Nicholas Feast Day is Dec. 6—this is celebrated all over the world
Nicholas is patron saint to:
maidenhood (because of providing dowry to 3 maidens)
children (because Nicholas helped and protected children otherwise
neglected)
sailors (because they helped spread the stories of Nicholas as they traveled)
patron saint of giving
Other legendary gift-giving figures of History:
Befana of the Roman Empire
Berchta and Knecht Ruprecht of Germany
Variations on Saint Nicholas from other countries:
Sankt Nikolaus-Germany
Sanct Herr Nicholaas or Sinter Klaas-Holland
Pere Noel-France
Julenisse-Scandinavia
Father Christmas-England
Kriss Kringle evolved from the word Christkindl which means “Christ child”
1st Anthem “El Rorro” (Mexican Carol )
O sleep my lovely Jesu, O sweetest Jesu, A la rururu, my lovely Jesu,
O slumber sweetly, my little Jesu.
The elephant and even the mosquito are guarding him in silence, make no noise, now, sleep.
O night of happiness, night of rejoicing with blessed Mary, Maid of God’s own choosing, sleep
Celestial choruses with sweetest accent are singing joyful tidings of this infant.
2nd Anthem “Tomorrow Shall be my Dancing Day”
Tomorrow shall be my dancing day, I would my true love did so chance to see the legend of my play
to call my true love to my dance.
Sing O my love , O my love , my love , my love. This have I done for my true love.
Thus was I born of a virgin pure, of her I took fleshly substance, thus was I knit to man’s nature,
to call my true love to my dance.
In a manger laid and wrapp’d I was, so very poor this was my chance, He twixt an ox and a silly poor ass,
to call my true love to my dance, this have I done for my true love.
