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This is the draft of the social media policies that the church Council is considering for Memorial UCC. Please send comments to the church Council or to Pastor Phil or to Rebecca Malke. Social media, ranging from web sites to Facebook, from text messaging to Instagram and Twitter, is a common part of everyday life for many people and can be a useful part of the life of the congregation. Still, it must be used with care and sensitivity, reflecting the values of Memorial UCC and protecting children, members, friends and our staff. In using social media, staff members and volunteer leaders ...
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How do we live under real or metaphorical exile? Do we adapt or do we resist? How do we hang on to what are our essential beliefs when those beliefs are not shared by those in power or those who live around us? Today's texts: Jeremiah 29: 1, 4-7 and 2 Timothy 2: 8-15 It was not a happy time for the Israelites living in exile that Jeremiah was addressing in that first scripture reading today. They had been taken from their homes, from their religious institutions, from their livelihoods, from any sense of normalcy to a strange land. Some of you may recall the first words of Psalm 1...
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Office Manager Memorial United Church of Christ The office manager at Memorial United Church of Christ is the welcoming face and voice of the congregation for members, guests and the community at large. This person is responsible for providing a wide range of administrative services to the congregation and is a vital communication hub for Memorial. This position requires someone who has demonstrated excellence in interpersonal communications and can exercise discretion, initiative, judgment, time-management and organization and who has strong technical skills. The ability to keep confidenc...
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What, then, is our vision of the Gospel? What’s the vision that we want to pass on to the children in our midst? And how do we do that? Today's Texts: Habbukuk 1:1-4, 2: 1-4 and 2 Timothy 1:1-14 When we have a baptism like we do today, it’s most often because parents are passing on their beliefs to their children and want to formalize that they are bringing them into the wider Christian community. Sometimes, of course, people make that decision themselves as adults, maybe even with no family connection. But the words from the letter to Timothy that we heard today – a letter writte...
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“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone....”  1 Timothy 2.1 Today's texts: Luke 16.1-13 and 1 Timothy 2.1-7 By the Rev. J. Manny Santiago Parables, generally speaking, are not my thing. The imagery utilized on Jesus’ parables is often quite far from our daily lives. For instance, Jesus uses a lot of shepherds in his parable. But, unless you have lived in New Zealand or Ireland, it is very likely that you don’t know many shepherds. I much more prefer the easy passages of Scripture, like the book of Revelation...
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How we deal with fear has deep spiritual implications. As with so many things Jesus said, he asks us to go against our instincts when it comes to fear. Today's texts - 1 Timothy 1: 12-17 and Luke 15: 1-10 I would imagine that just about everyone here over the age of 20 or so can remember right where they were on this morning 15 years ago. The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and all the horror that accompanied them were among those moments in our lives that seared themselves into our consciousness. I was in a hotel meeting room in Pittsburgh with a group of journ...
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