The Voice of FRC-Summer 2024
The Franklin Reformed Church
973-667-7022 Church Office
From the Pastor’s Desk
And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there, God put the earth creature whom He had formed. Out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
A river flows out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it divides and becomes four branches.
The Lord God took the earth creature and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. Genesis 2. 8-10, 15
Last October in Discovering God Jainie did an amazing job of leading us in learning about gardens in the Biblical narrative. I went back and looked at her helpful handouts and insights since we have been worshiping outdoors in our Memorial Garden.
The garden of Eden was a place of “pleasure” and “delight,” which is the direct translation of the word eden, while Gan-eden is translated “heaven” or “paradise.” The four branches of the river in verse 10, remind us that four usually symbolizes geographical totality in the Bible and other ancient Near Eastern literature. The mention that the river flows outward in four directions suggests that Eden was considered the center of the universe.
All that God has created in nature discloses who God is, according to the theology of general revelation. We meet God in the natural world. Further in the book of Genesis, we find that the garden becomes a sacred place for the simple fact that God is there. This is the place where God walks in the cool of the day (Genesis 3.8) and has time with the earth creatures that He made, by this point in the narrative, man and woman.
Sitting under the spreading branches of the Japanese Maple on the east lawn, which tradition tells us was a gift from Edith V. Teets (a missionary of the Reformed Church, who served in Japan 1921-1925, and whom this congregation supported), with the breeze that seems to know it’s Sunday morning, is a peaceful place to encounter God.
I cannot help but be aware of God’s presence among us, of the breeze of the Spirit washing over us, as we worship together. And it gives us reason to worship, to acknowledge that the image of God is truly present in every living thing that we encounter, including within each one of us.
Wherever your travels might take you this summer season, take time to find God in that place. It’s not only in nature, but it could also be in the city where stubborn grasses push up through concrete sidewalks, or among the great heights of buildings that draw our eyes heavenward. It could be in the faces and names of those whom God has sent to accompany us on our personal journeys. It may be in the glorious harvest of the earth’s bounty. Here, there, everywhere, the image of God can be found.
The psalmist reminds us that the Lord looks down from heaven on humankind to see if there are any who are wise, who seek after God (Psalm 14.2).
So, in these days of summer be wise, seek after God. You might just be surprised where God can be found.
This and That
doorjam will be returning to the Ocean Grove Oceanside Pavilion on Saturday, July 6th at 4:00pm. We hope that you will consider joining us!
The sermon series this summer is “Come and Worship!” We will consider through worship what it means in the Reformed tradition to worship God in a corporate setting. According to the Belgic Confession (Article 29) The true church can be recognized if it has the following marks: The church engages in the pure preaching of the Gospel; it makes use of the pure administration of the sacraments as Christ instituted them ... in short it governs itself according to the pure Word of God.
Join us on Sunday mornings at 10am as we worship and learn together.
Communion will be celebrated next on Sunday, August 4th.
Consistory will meet next on Sunday, July 28th. Among the agenda items, we will be talking about how we would like to celebrate our 170th Anniversary in 2025. If you have any suggestions, please speak to a member of the Consistory, or join us at the meeting which will be held after Worship.
During the summer we worship at 10am in the Memorial Garden, under the Japanese maple tree on the east side of the church. Bring your favorite lawn chair; we do have folding chairs as well. We will continue this schedule through Labor Day weekend, and perhaps into September if the weather holds. On inclement weather days we will be in the Conference Room.
Discovering God has completed our season of learning about Sacred Places. We visited: gardens, the wilderness, Bethlehem, rivers and seas, wells and springs (and cisterns!), Jerusalem and the Upper Room, and mountains. We have begun discussions about the 2024 -2025 program year. Stay tuned for more information.
Pastor Jill will be Chaplain at Camp Sunrise the week of July 14th to the 19th.
Generally, Communion occurs on the first Sunday of each month, unless otherwise decided by the Consistory. If you are unable to attend services in person, the Pastor is available to bring Communion to your home. Please call the church office to make a request.
It takes a church! I am grateful to God for all those who have lent a hand, taken on a task and shown their commitment to the ministry of our congregation over the last month:
Loretta who once again spearheaded our Welcome Kit ministry
The folks who marched in the Memorial Day Parade with our Carts of Caring
Linda R. who serves as our Treasurer
Loretta, Robert and Jim T. who continue to watch over our buildings and grounds
Those who have been assisting in setting up for Summer worship
Jainie, Tricia, Diane M., Gail, Jeff, and Linda R. who were leaders in our Discovering God year of looking at Sacred Places.
The Consistory continues to work towards both the understanding and means to address our buildings issues. We are especially grateful to Gail and Herman Morchel for sharing their support and connections as we move forward.
As a reminder: except for Elders meetings, all church gatherings are open to every member of the Congregation, including Consistory meetings. If you are interested in attending any gathering that is announced, contact the church office for more information. Consistory minutes and financial reports are always available upon request.
We continue to collect items for the NFSB Food Pantry and the Care Closet (personal care items, paper supplies and cleaning supplies). There is a basket in the entry way of the Cone Building (which is usually open) for your donations. During the summer remember the school aged children who cannot count on school lunches. Nut butter, jelly, juice boxes, granola bars and other “healthy snack” items are welcome. Remember in your abundance those who have need.
Tuesday Morning Bible Study: We are on hiatus for the summer. We will resume our study of the Gospel of Matthew on September 10th. Bible study is held via ZOOM. If you are interested in joining us, please send an email to frcnutley@optimum.net with Bible Study in the subject line, and you will be added to the invitation list.
The 2024 Flower Chart is posted. The flowers may be given for special occasions, birthdays, anniversaries, in memory of a loved one, etc. The cost for each Sunday is $30. Jeff Grieco handles the orders. While blessing us with beauty on Sunday mornings, the flowers are given to a member or friend of the church after each worship service. They go with our prayers for those who receive them.
The residents and staff of Marion House regularly express their thanks for the Purple Dragon Farm Share that the congregation supports each month. Thank you to those who have already signed up this year. The sign-up sheet for 2024 is posted in the Cone Building and on the frcnutley.org web site. Or you may call the Church Office.
The RCA General Synod made decisions in 2022 regarding the annual assessments. Each congregation is being assessed according to a percentage of their annual income, as opposed to the number of members that we record with the denomination. The Classis of Passaic Valley and the Regional Synod of the Mid-Atlantics have made a decision to do the same. For 2024 our total assessment is $2,901. We recorded 23 members, so if it were a “per-member” accounting it would be $123.00 per member.
From the Historian
100 years ago, on Sunday, July 6th, Rev. Harold W. Schenck returned to Franklin Reformed Church after a year's Sabbatical which he spent traveling. He ended the year in Jerusalem before coming home, and his report from The Holy Land was printed in the June 22nd bulletin. During the month of June guest Pastors occupied the pulpit. The Acting Pastor, Rev. Calvin C. Meury, completed his service on June 1st, and on Wednesday May 21st a social hour was held in his honor. Rev. Meury began his service on June 20, 1923, and during his time at our church he met the lady who became his wife. Rev. Meury married Lillian Hendrickson on February 23, 1925. She died in 1983, and he died on January 18, 1985, at age 86.
Rev. Schenck continued at Franklin Reformed until November 15, 1927. On Wednesday June 15, 1927, after the Mid-Week Devotional Service a reception was held in his honor to celebrate his upcoming wedding on July 6th. He was married at the Wilson Memorial Church of Watchung, NJ. where he began preaching during the summer of 1914. In the June 26, 1927, bulletin he included an invitation to "the official family of the church," Consistory members and their wives, and wrote "a most cordial invitation is extended to all our members to journey to the hills of Watchung to witness the solemnizing of the marriage.” Rev. Schenck was born in 1892 and died in 1960. Mrs. Elsie Schenck was born in 1896 and died in 1980.
In 1924 upon his return there were about 300 families on his calling list. He was planning on visiting 20 families a week. He asked for cooperation in the bulletin and outlined what his schedule was and if he was needed to contact him and not take it for granted that, "the Pastor will hear about it somehow." He did not want second-hand information. Monday was his day of rest and relaxation. Tuesday was a day for supplementary and graduate work in New York. Wednesday-Sunday, Pastoral and pulpit work at the church as well as sermon preparation and quiet study.
From the Hart
“Ask and it shall be given to you, seek and you shall find.” I confess that I did a fair amount of asking and seeking this week. Sometimes coming up with a topic to write about is so easy I often say, “it wrote itself.” Then there are the months when I dread the moment I have to sit down and be clever or funny, or at least not boring. This has been such a month. I had absolutely nothing. Total space cadet! But I asked for help and sought some guidance. And then, as I was reading through Jeff’s piece above, I found the words that unlocked my brain. Of Rev. Meury he wrote, “and during his time at our church he met the lady who became his wife.” Boy did that sound familiar! You mean we weren’t the first? I wonder if John knew about this, or did he think he was the only pastor who found a wife at FRC? Either way, I’m still glad they both did, and I hope that Rev. and Mrs. Meury were as happy as we were.
And now, we’re off for a month. Have a happy and safe summer, and then come back and tell us all about your adventures.
See you in September!
Lin
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