St. Paul's United Church of Christ

Dear St. Paul’s Friends & Family,

We are on the cusp of our annual Community VBS!  So far, we have over 60 kids registered and more than 40 volunteers ready to greet them next week!  Volunteers and staff have spent approximately 70 hours transforming the Sanctuary into Snowball Mountain, craft kits are almost all assembled, snacks purchased, and lessons planned.  Most of the props, decorations, and craft materials have been generously donated by church members and friends of our church and our partner congregations.  Making VBS happen in truly a community project!  It simply would not happen without folks working together.

Our gospel lesson from Matthew chapters 9 & 10 provides for us some important reminders about the importance of community and teamwork.  Jesus went throughout the towns, cities, and countryside of Galilee preaching, teaching, and healing.  He was overwhelmed by the needs of those he met.  In his words, “the crowds were harassed and helpless…like sheep without a shepherd.”  His response was not to send some heavenly wonders to sort it all out, but to commission his disciples to go on his behalf to help their neighbors.  Instead of Jesus himself, they would be the ones teaching, healing, comforting, and even bringing life out of death.  Of course, the Holy Spirit would be upon them, but they were the ones being called to be part of Christ’s saving work.

Throughout history, Jesus has called followers to continue his life-giving work.  We too are called as members of his body, the church, to bring hope, compassion, love, and healing through our words and actions.  Whether we are helping to house a homeless person, praying for someone with health challenges, advocating for those who stand on the margins of society, or planning Community VBS, we join a long line of disciples who have answered Christ’s calling to tend his sheep.  May the Holy Spirit bless us with wisdom and strength as we live and work together.

Blessings on your journey!

Pastor Matt

Please join us for our annual Community VBS, June 15-19 from 9am-Noon! The partner churches, Somerset Church of the Brethren, the Laurel Mountain Lutherans, St. Francis in the Fields Episcopal Church, and the host church, St. Paul’s United Church of Christ are thrilled to offer this opportunity to the families of our community!

Classes are available for kids age 3 through completed Grade 6! A free lunch will also be available in Shellenberger Park for those who would like to stick around after VBS. Please visit this link if you’d like to register a child for Community VBS! https://somersetcommunityvbs.mycokesburyvbs.com/register-child

 St. Paul’s Continuing Care Community is May’s Mission Offering. 

St. Paul’s, historically related to the United Church of Christ, has been serving the needs of residents of western Pennsylvania and the surrounding states for 150 years.  Our congregation has a history of supporting the work and mission of St. Paul’s Continuing Care Community.  Through our continued support of St. Paul’s mission, we are realizing Jesus Christ’s call to love God and neighbor. 

In honor of our 225th anniversary and on behalf of the anniversary planning team, I am inviting you to share your St. Paul’s story!  Our hope is to bring together a living history of our shared stories in a video that will be shared during our celebration on Sunday, November 6th and archived for future generations.  Stories need not be lengthy or elaborate, but a genuine reflection of what the church means to you.  Please consider sharing your St. Paul’s story.  A sign-up sheet is on the table in the back of the Sanctuary for those who would like to share their St. Paul’s story.  Once you sign up, we will contact you to set up a time to record your story.

St. Paul’s vital ministries would not be possible without your support. Whether we are providing regular religious services, spiritual and emotional care to meet the needs of community members, food and housing assistance, musical opportunities for children, youth, and adults, or offering our building and congregation as a community resource, none of these ministries exist without the support of members and friends of St. Paul’s.

Please consider supporting our community work by giving in person or online.

Online monetary gifts may be given through tithe.ly.  You can make a gift by accessing our website (see the “Give” button on the homepage or the button below), www.stpaulsuccsomerset.org.  You may also download the free tithe.ly app to your smartphone or tablet and customize it to meet your needs.  Although the service is free to the church, credit card and transaction fees are assessed to each gift, so when making an online contribution through tithe.ly, please consider using the bank funds transfer feature, which has the lowest fee of one percent per transaction.  For your convenience, you may also select the reoccurring gift option if you would like to make regular gifts to the church.  If you have any questions or need assistance using this service, please do not hesitate to contact Cindy, our financial secretary.  And as always, we still accept and appreciate your mail-in contributions!

We value your support as we partner to do Christ’s life-giving work! 

Blessings,

Pastor Matt

Sunday, February 23, 2020, during & after worship

Mardi Gras in the Christian tradition is a festive time of laughter and celebration right before the contemplative six weeks of Lent.  We will be celebrating our own Mardi Gras with some special surprises during worship.  Johnstown Brass Works will be with us providing some Dixieland style music.  Our Chancel Choir and the Children and Youth Choirs are preparing a couple of selections that will get us into the spirit.  We’ll follow worship with a special potluck brunch in Fellowship Hall, complete with King’s Cake cupcakes and a few special surprises!  You won’t want to miss the fun, so be sure to bring your favorite dish to share, a friend (if you’d like), wear colorful clothing, and be prepared for some enjoyable fellowship.

Sink Your Teeth into a New Experience at the Taste of the World Ethnic Food Festival!

We invite those who love food and adventure to join us for this FREE family-friendly event. Community members from countries such as Brazil, Egypt, India, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Thailand will be present to offer samples of their traditional native foods and share interesting information about their homeland. The Somerset Exchange Students will also be preparing and serving some of their traditional foods from France, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland.

Inspired by Fred Rogers, who stated, “We want to raise our children so that they can take a sense of pleasure in both their own heritage and the diversity of others,” the Taste of the World event will provide specific opportunities for children to explore the commonalities and celebrate the differences embedded in our community’s diverse cultures. Children and youth can explore the entertainment space offering games (take a swing at our pinata or try your hand at Mexican Bingo) and crafts from the representative countries. They can also visit the story corner and explore multi-ethnic and bi-lingual books.

St. Paul’s UCC, alongside of Love for the World, a group of church & local community members, is committed to empowering our community to love and care for our neighbors both near and far. It is our hope that through offering small bites of new cultural experiences, the Taste of the World event will carry forward the mission of building strong caring relationships with all those in our community.

Taste your way around the world by reserving your FREE ticket online at www.TasteoftheWorldFoodFestival.Eventbrite.com. FREE tickets will also be available at the door.

Add Taste of the World to your calendar. You won’t want to miss it!