Welcome
Each week one of our pastors or staff members writes a column observing what is going on in our congregation, the Church and the world, and offering reflections on the Christian life and faith. Through this series of columns, we hope to connect your and our story to the enduring story of Christ; to offer pastoral reflections on our ongoing congregational life and mission; to report on news of the Presbyterian Church and Church universal; and to invite further reflection and deeper discipleship. We welcome your comments and suggestions. In other words, our words here are an invitation to continue the conversation.
On the bulletin board in my office I have a short poem by Wendell Berry, a farmer, environmental advocate and writer, entitled “Real Work.”
It may be that when we no longer know what to do
we have come to our real work,
and that when we no longer know which way to go
we have come to our real journey.
The mind that is not baffled is not employed.
The impeded stream is the one that sings.
The Annual Meeting of the congregation will be celebrated this Sunday after the 10:00 a.m. worship service. Why do I use the word celebrated to describe what takes place at a congregational meeting? It’s because this meeting and the distribution of the written Annual Report invite us to look back and look forward and take stock of the ministry of this vibrant congregation and the deep investment of its members.
You may have heard a click or a clack during the Sunday morning Children’s Moment. It always amazes me how the sound of wood on stone echoes in the Sanctuary and can grab the attention of almost any child.
Through my more than 36 years as Director of Music and Fine Arts at Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church, there have been a handful of musical experiences among hundreds of concerts that stand out for their timeliness and spiritual power. Our 1985 B-Minor Mass (J.S. Bach), the 1987 anti-war concert (Vaughan Williams, Ives and Copland), a concert exploring tensions between Jews and Muslims (2000), concerts with jazz great Dave Brubeck (1989 and 2003), Missa Gaia (2010, 2012, and 2018), and now, Thomas Lloyd’s Bonhoeffer, to be presented this Sunday, March 17, at 4:00 p.m.
During worship on February 24, we officially celebrated the culmination of This Time, This Place: The Campaign for Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church. The feasibility study leading up to the campaign suggested we could raise $15 million. Early leadership gifts inspired the Session to adopt a stretch goal of $17.5 million. To date, we have received gifts and pledges from 437 households, representing over 700 members, totaling $19.5 million!
In 1998, Westminster Abbey in London unveiled a new set of sculptures over its western door - 10 modern martyrs who reflect a level of discipleship and devotion to the Christian faith that put them in harm’s way and eventually led to their death. Included are Oscar Romero, Martin Luther King Jr. as well as lesser known Christian martyrs from Russia, China, Africa, Pakistan, New Guinea and Europe.
Included in this group is pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
Did you hear about the time a member of Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church, the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, and St. Luke United Methodist Church all ended up stranded on a deserted island? The Episcopalian and the Methodist lit fires, waved flags, and began to draw large signs in the sand, hoping desperately to be rescued. The BMPC member meanwhile does nothing.
