I'M RESOLVED
by the Reverend Dr. Troy D. Perry, Founder and Moderator of the Predominantly LGBT Metropolitan Community Churches For 2005, I'm resolved to carry on the work for social justice and legal equality for my LGBT brothers and sisters -- and resolved not to be discouraged by the temporary setbacks we experienced in 2004. The journey toward LGBT equality has always been one of many steps forward -- and occasional steps backward. But the journey continues to move forward! For example, I am once again calling on LGBT people to go to courthouses and marriage bureaus on Valentine's Day, February 14, to apply for marriage licenses. There is something empowering about standing up to our government and asking for equality -- and it's also a powerful opportunity to carry our message to the larger society through the press and media. I'll be at my local courthouse on February 14 -- and I'm encouraging LGBT people in cities and towns all across the US to join me in these important public actions.
Theatre Invitation - Harrisburg, PA
I'm writing to invite you to join me in a powerful, fun experience. Theatre Harrisburg, the community theatre troupe of Harrisburg, PA, will be presenting Bat Boy: The Musical, a "wacky, whimsical, and hip" (USA Today) musical comedy, as part of its 2004-05 season. There are plenty of reasons for you to see the show-not the least of which being that I have been cast in the title role (a long story from whose details I'll spare you...). ;-)
Reading through the script the first time was a powerful experience for me-the characters, environment, and plot of the story raise powerful, universal questions of personal integrity and community acceptance that strike deep at the heart of the MCC message.
For this reason, MCC of the Spirit has joined with Theatre Harrisburg, PA to offer special Benefit Tickets to the opening-night performance of Bat Boy-Friday, February 18 at 8 PM in the Sunoco Performance Theatre at Harrisburg's Whitaker Center. Purchase your orchestra-level seat through MCC of the Spirit by Sunday, February 6, and a portion of your $25 ticket price will benefit MCC of the Spirit.
Then, if you're able, join us in the MCC of the Spirit Fellowship Hall the following Tuesday evening, February 22 at 7:30 to discuss the show-its message, its implications, its challenges-with me and other members of the cast. Please note that Bat Boy contains subject material and images that may not be appropriate for children.
If you are interested in attending the performance with us on the 18th (or any of the other performances-there are shows on Friday and Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons through February 27), or if you have any questions about the show, please call the MCC of the Spirit office or e-mail me at <revdmg@comcast.net> by Sunday, February 6. (If you'd like materials to help publicize the show within your congregations, I'll be happy to provide those too!)
Rev. David M. Glasgow
Associate Pastor & Minister of Music
Metropolitan Community Church of the Spirit
2973 Jefferson St, Harrisburg, PA 17011-2119
phone 717-236-7387; fax 717-232-1619
Same-Sex Couples Needed! National Freedom to Marry Day 2005
Check with your local MCC to see what plans are being made. What follows is from MCC of the Lehigh Valley in Allentown, PA.
Same-Sex Couples are needed for Metropolitan Community Church of the Lehigh Valley's 2005 National Freedom to Marry Day Observance. Please consider participating in these history-making events to advocate for marriage equality in Allentown, PA!
Friday, Feb 11 2005 1 p.m. Lehigh County Courthouse, 5th & Hamilton Streets
In an effort to advocate for marriage equality, same-sex couples will apply for a marriage licenses at the Courthouse. Supporters are asked to gather at the Courthouse to celebrate the value of gay and lesbian families.
Same-sex couples cannot get Social Security benefits if their spouse dies. A Same-sex spouse will pay more than twice the inheritance tax than an opposite-sex spouse would pay. These are just a few of the 1,400 federal rights and 700 state civil marriage rights that gay and lesbian families are denied. Please join in this Courthouse action to bring attention to the need for marriage equality.
Saturday, February 12 2005
5 p.m. at Metropolitan Community Church of the LV, 12th & Vultee Streets, Allentown, PA
Freedom to Marry Day Worship Service, Reception and Dance with clergy from a variety of faith traditions offering a same-sex marriage ceremony and blessing of relationships
The details for February 11 and other events and to participate, please contact MCCLV at 610-709-8800 or mcclehighvalley@yahoo.com
January 27, 2005
Prayer Requests
Judy Kiser - partner of Rev. Delores Berry, is now home recovering from a second build up of fluid in the lungs and around the heart and a third visit to the hospital. She is now home and prayerfully doing well. RevDBerry@aol.com
Rev. Gail Hicks - is home recovering from ankle surgery. They believe all went well. She will be home and completely off her ankle for 12 weeks. mawbarker@verizon.net
Rev. Becky Steen - transfer clergy, pastoral leader of Merciful Grace MCC is recovering from gastric bypass surgery. rasteen2002@yahoo.com
Region 3 - Holiday & New Year Reflections
Christmas at MCC Rehoboth was a wonderful time of giving and sharing. For the third year in a row, congregants purchased beautiful poinsettia plants in honor of loved ones to decorate our sanctuary on the Sunday before Christmas and on Christmas Eve. On Christmas Eve, following a potluck social, we gathered for worship at 8:00 p.m. at our new location in the Clubhouse of The Plantations residential community; this was a new experience for us and made us all the more anxious to build our new church, as we had to compete with a boisterous family party elsewhere on the premises. But God is good...all the time! We had a memorable worship celebration featuring carols and special music by soloist Betty Garrett, as well as a terrific and thought-provoking sermon from the Pastor regarding the imperial and postcolonial ramifications of the Nativity story for today. On Christmas Day, 22 of us gathered at Rev. Tom Bohache and Tom Simmons' home for their annual Pastor's Open House. Additionally, MCC Rehoboth continued our community outreach to those in need by adopting a family through the Sussex County AIDS Council; our congregation made it a happy holiday for a mother and her children by providing wrapped gifts of clothing and toys, money, and gift certificates. We also participated for a second time in the Lewes-Rehoboth Association of Churches Prison Ministry's cookie drive for the Sussex County Correctional Facility, baking 1340 cookies for the incarcerated, which was over 10% of the total cookies collected -- not bad for the smallest congregation in the Association! This Christmas proved to us once again that God is in the details and is the God of small things as well as tremendous miracles. By commemorating the birth of a simple baby, we again realized that God knows each of us by name and provides Christ to us in our circumstances, so that we may be Christ to the world. God bless us every one!
MCC of the Blue Ridge
After a busy and blessed Christmas season, MCC of the Blue Ridge is boldly entering 2005. At our congregational meeting Sunday, January 9, we passed a budget of $112,500 for the coming year. This passed unanimously exactly as presented by our budget committee. We elected 3 board positions, elected 2 lay delegates and received all the usual reports. This was all accomplished in just a little over one hour. This may be a MCC record! We begin this year with a current membership of 129. Our projections 15 months ago prior to buying our building had been a membership of 126. Attendance also is meeting projections. God is blessing us tremendously. 2004 had been a year of many trials but we believe our best year is yet before us.
MCC of the Spirit, Harrisburg, PA
Christmas was a beautiful celebration! We began the Sunday BEFORE Christmas when the children of the church presented the Fear Not Factor at the 10:30 worship! What a joy to see those children-about 8 or 9 children-present to the congregation why we should Fear Not! Then the evening choir (and friends) presented a Christmas cantata called Praise Noels which blended traditional Christmas carols with familiar praise music. We celebrated Christmas Eve with two services for the first time! At the 7 p.m. service we began a half hour early with 30 minutes of special music. In worship we unveiled puppets-the Rainbow Children-that have been given to the church. They told the Christmas Story. And we had a more traditional scripture, carols, and celebration at the 11 p.m. service. At midnight, we changed the altar clothes to white and sang the Christmas Day in! The Sunday after Christmas, we celebrated with Rev. Delores Berry! Tonight, January 12, we are hosting the wider G/L/B/T community as we gather for a forum on the feasibility of a Community Center. This is the first of two forums that will be held. We are looking forward to a number of events in the New Year! We have been given a grant from the Harrisburg Foundation fund for Equality for Gays and Lesbians to form support groups for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, transgendered and affirming people in York, Lewistown, and Perry Counties. We will host Jason and DeMarco in February as well as the father of one of our members who will come from Virginia to preach on February 6. The Unitarian Universalist Church of Harrisburg invited us to join them for a study on same-sex marriage. We will join them for the study and are looking for couples to participate in applying for marriage licenses on February 14. We continue to grow the prayer ministry, the childrens ministry, and have 35-40 people involved in Disciple study. God is indeed moving in 2005!
Imago Dei MCC, Glenn Mills, PA had a wonderful holiday season.
On Christmas Eve we held two worship services with 78 folks coming to either or both services. Our first service involved our children through song, music, and liturgy. Our second service was our more traditional lessons and carols. We held a special dinner between worship services where folks could socialize and celebrate. Our Christmas Eve offering is going to help our local and global community. We are sending $750 to "Camp Dream Catcher", which provides summer camp to children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. We are also sending $250 to Unicef/Tsunami Relief Fund with the intention of making another offering (probably at Easter) to help the survivor's of the tsunami. We also held a special Kwanzaa service of celebration, which was followed by a potluck meal. We had posted recipes on our web page so folks could be creative with making dishes that they would not normally make at home so that our feast represented the culture which we were celebrating! Finally, our first message of the New Year was given by four members of our Disciple Bible Study. It truly was inspirational to have four people testify as to how reading the bible every day and weekly group discussion has changed their lives! We have folks looking forward to the next nine month Disciple series, which will begin next September! We ended the year strong and have started the year even strong! This will be a great year for Imago Dei MCC!
MCC of the Lehigh Valley, Allentown, PA
As always, Christmas Eve at MCCLV was full of new life, new energy and new light. Over 90 gathered for a Christmas Eve Candlelight service in the Sanctuary. A Children's Moment was provided, with the children of the congregation gathering to hear how we celebrate the gift of the baby Jesus and how each young person is a gift to the church. Candy was distributed to each child as a thank you gift and to add to the overall sugar high of the holidays. At noon on Christmas Day over 15 people gathered for a potluck meal of turkey, ham, vegetables, a gargantuan pasta salad and lots more sugar. After eating, the suggestion was made to have a race around the building to burn some calories. Most gathered volunteered to be "the Timer." And so the race was instead for second helpings on dessert. Praise God for God's abundant love poured down upon MCCLV on Christmas!
MCC New York
This Holiday season has been filled with wonderful experiences for our congregation in New York City. On Christmas Eve we celebrated our Candlelight service, followed by a hot buffet at the Social Hall. On Christmas Day we had the traditional Service of Lessons and Carols, with the Rev. Franc Perry as the homilist. The Kwanzaa celebration was a touching and challenging service, led by the Christians of African Descent ministry. The guest preacher was Gayle Davis, member of the Board of Administration. You can see pictures of this service on our website.
We had two services in celebration of the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. The first was on MLK Sunday, January 16, and our guest preacher was Rev. Candy Holmes, member of the pastoral staff at MCC Christ the Liberator, New Jersey. On January 20th, we hosted the Interfaith Martin Luther King Celebration with the Renewed Life Ministries, the Congregation Beth Simchat Torah, and Unity Fellowship of Christ Church. All the Pastors and Rabbi preached and all our choirs sang during this celebration.
In other news, on December we officially presented the Rev. Edgard Danielsen-Morales as the new Pastor for Congregational Life. On the other hand, we are very excited about the "new face" of our building. After a one year of fundraising, the installation of the big stained glass windows began during the Christmas Holiday Season. For the first time in our history, the Sanctuary is filled with natural light providing a warm and welcoming atmosphere. You can see the design of the new windows at http://www.mccny.org/windows.htm.
Finally, we are happy to mention that recently the Department of Health renewed a contract of $70,000 with our Shelter for the Youth - inaugurated in 2002. The Shelter, operated by the Church, provides a safe place for LGBTQ youths every night of the year. Additionally, we are working on a deal with St. Vincent's Hospital to provide on-site health care for the kids, which we hope will be in place by the end of the month. We are grateful to Lynda March and Beth Kling who worked this past year to double the amount of contract and grant monies we received from the city.
Website Garners Award
MCC of the Lehigh Valley, Allentown, PA receives more awards. Congratulations to Webmaster Debbie Boylan at mcclvweb@msn.com. Award Notification for Metropolitan Community Church of the Lehigh Valley was considered for a MYgayweb Award. All web sites submitted are voted by the Webmaster Development Team at MYgayweb.com AND MCC LV was chosen to receive a Silver Award. Congratulations! Your website has been awarded the Pride! Award for GLBT excellence and internet presence. The Pride! Award is the web's oldest and most prestigious award that has adorned community sites since 1995. Thank you for showing the world that "closets are meant for clothes" and for all your hard work in creating your GLBT presence on the web.