Category Archives: Newsletters

The Forecaster is UCC Binghamton’s monthly newsletter. It includes a reflection message from the pastor, as well as announcements, upcoming events, etc. related to the UCC Binghamton community.

Newsletters, Pentecost

June 2018 Forecaster: Divinity is Everywhere – the Holy Spirit, Pentecost and Trinity Sunday

The Rev. Dr. Arthur Suggs

“We tend not to think that way, and yet there it is: the power, presence, guidance, and love of God found physically everywhere in the cosmos, as well infusing and surrounding you.”

Pastor’s Perspective

By the time you read this, we will be at the very end of the church year. It begins with the first Sunday of Advent back in December, and concludes with two of the lesser Christian festivals, Pentecost and then Trinity Sunday, which this year coincides with Memorial Day Weekend.

The “pente” in Pentecost stands for five, in this case being fifty days after the Resurrection.

Pentecost was the time when the Holy Spirit, promised by Jesus at the Ascension, was poured out upon the people. it therefore is considered the birthday of the church.

I mentioned above that it is one of the lesser festivals. It in no way compares with Christmas or Easter. There are probably multiple reasons why, but one of them has to do with our general non-understanding or misunderstanding of the Spirit.

Throughout twenty centuries of Christian experience, only a tiny fraction of all those sermons, articles, and books have been about the Spirit. Really, only in the 20th Century did this begin to change, notably with a book on the Holy Spirit by Billy Graham (1978).

Perhaps also it is a different and difficult way of thinking to realize that divinity is literally everywhere, yet invisible.

We tend not to think that way, and yet there it is: the power, presence, guidance, and love of God found physically everywhere in the cosmos, as well infusing and surrounding you.

The Psalmist wrote, “Where can I flee from your presence?” and mentions both heaven and hell, but no, God is there as well. Jesus said at his Ascension, “Behold, I am with you always, even to those close of the age.”

The Pentecost depicted in a 14th-century Missal, National Library of Wales. PD-CC Wikimedia.

Several symbols have been used over the centuries to help us apprehend such thoughts. The Spirit has been likened to a dove (bringing peace and newness as in the story of Noah) which is why the uppermost stained glass on the rear wall is of a dove.

The color for Pentecost is red, symbolizing the flame of fire as at the day of Pentecost recounted in the Book of Acts. Clergy wear red stoles at an ordination, as a prayer that this new minister would be guided and filled by the Spirit throughout his or her ministry.

But the best symbol is our very breath. God breathed upon Adam and Eve and they became more than clay, but living beings. Jesus breathed upon his disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” Even the very word in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin for spirit also means breathe, or wind.

But thinking of the Spirit as infinitely present, yet invisible, yet also the very manifestation of God’s power and love, is just plain difficult.

We tend not to think about our breathing. It is automatic, and our mind is elsewhere. But when you do find yourself thinking about your breath, perhaps in meditation, or perhaps you’re trying to swim the length of the pool without surfacing, think also of the presence of God. Our creator, redeemer, and sustainer is inescapable, with us to the close of the age.

Blessings upon you all,

Art Suggs

The June Forecaster also includes news of the Trustees presenting an initial design to create an access ramp from the parking lot into the facility through new doors placed where the current library windows are located.

FCC also participated in this year’s Sacred Sites TourPreservation Association of the Southern Tier coordinated by the .

The June Forecaster also includes news of upcoming musical (and other) events scheduled for the coming Summer months.

(June Forecaster coming soon in PDF for download)

Newsletters

May 2018 Forecaster: Preaching and Babe Ruth

The Rev. Dr. Arthur Suggs

Pastor’s Perspective

Preaching…it can be really scary sometimes.

I remember my first time, at Faith Presbyterian Church just north of Purdue University. The pastor with a doctor of theology from the German University of Tübingen, and as well maybe 30 or so professors in the congregation, needless to say I was deeply intimidated.

I remember getting almost no sleep the night before, and I remember as well the text, Ezekiel 37, the story of the Valley of the Dry Bones. And no, the choir did not sing “Dem Bones,” which was too bad, a missed opportunity.

The hard part is that when you put your heart and soul into a sermon, which is nearly every time, you want people to like it. At the same time you don’t want to have your self-esteem dependent upon the congregation’s praise, nor do you want to be emotionally crushed when they don’t like one of them.

Babe Ruth, New York Yankees, batting in Chicago’s Comiskey Park. National Baseball Hall of Fame Library.

The one statistic that has made me feel better than any other is this: Babe Ruth hit 714 career home runs, but he also struck out 1330 times.

Yep, that makes me feel a lot better. I wish more people would try it.

I’m well aware of the statistic about the fear of public speaking. (That fear is slightly greater than the fear of death, which means there are some who would sooner die than speak publicly.). But here is the crux of it…every one of us has our unique insight into the numinous, the spiritual, divinity.

Every one of us!

For someone to think that their story isn’t as good, or my insight isn’t as worthy, as someone else’s, is nonsense.

Public domain via Prawny at Pixabay.

The fear returned when I was in seminary, with only about a dozen sermons under my belt, when the chaplain at Ft. Dix, where I was serving weekends, told me that I had great potential as a preacher, and therefore gave me the July 4 sermon for the main chapel.

That was the High Holy Day at the fort. There were about 700 enlisted men, and then dozens of officers, and sure enough, the General decided to attend.

Which to choose…preach that Sunday, or death?

It would have been a hard choice at the time.

There is a truism that says that you don’t really know something until you are able to explain it to someone else. That is the true blessing of preaching.

We all come across cool ideas or spiritual insights now and then. But they still really aren’t “ours” yet. But when we write it down, edit it, and be sure to make it shorter, and put it in such a way that the content isn’t lost, but can be understood by all, then that is a fine thing. Then it becomes ours for good. Still could be shorter though!

Margie Price, daughter of Clare & Arlene, and brother of Art, had her moment this last weekend. She had a chance to preach at Garden City Community Church in NYC, and in attendance were some of the leaders of our denomination: Freeman Palmer, Associate Conference Minister, David Gaewski, Conference Minister, and John Dorhauer, General Minister and President of the UCC (think Big Kahuna).

When asked about her Sunday morning, this is what she said…

Read Margie’s comments about her experience, and see the rest of the May 2018 Forecaster for news about Jazz Vespers and other activities and events in the First Congregational Church community.

Download the May 2018 Forecaster

Newsletters

April 2018 Forecaster: A Profound Easter Sunrise Memory

The Rev. Dr. Arthur Suggs

In this month’s Pastor’s Perspective, the Rev. Dr. Art Suggs reflects on a very profound Easter Sunrise Service he once attended.

Rev. Suggs writes,

“There is an event that took place long ago that I remember every Easter. It’s one of those stories easy to over- sentimentalize, kind of like the Reader’s Digest version of spirituality. But it really happened, and it touched my heart.

I had a classmate in seminary that I’ll call Mike. As with many of us, he was serving a small church on the side while we went to school. And that church had a tradition of having an Easter Sunrise Service held on the top of a little hill within a local cemetery. Unlike some churches I know, theirs was really held at sunrise.

Actually they were even more particular than that. They timed the service such that it began in the dark, and then right at the conclusion of the sermon, they would sing that old favorite by Charles Wesley, Christ the Lord is Risen Today. That moment was timed to coincide with the exact minute of sunrise, which someone looked up every year.

Even though I wasn’t a part of that church, I attended that service because I wanted to support Mike.

What had happened was this…”

Read the full story of this profound Easter Sunrise service — along with updates on the recent Lenten Music & Meditation Services, Jazz Vespers, and other UCC-FCC events, here:

Download the April 2018 Forecaster

Lent and Easter, Newsletters

March 2018 Forecaster: Tiffany Mosaics and Remembering the Forgotten

The Rev. Dr. Arthur Suggs

In this month’s Pastor’s Perspective, the Rev. Dr. Art Suggs reflects on a recent visit to the Tiffany Mosaics Exhibit at the Corning Museum of Glass.

Rev. Suggs writes,

“The Tiffany Studios had produced three different versions of The Last Supper (1897-1902), and the way they depicted the scene was somewhere between Leonardo da Vinci’s famous fresco and the painting of the same scene by Bartolomeo Carducci (1605).”

“Then Tiffany adapted the scene even more … Preserving tradition, Judas’ head is the lowest of them all … downcast … looking depressed. But what caught my attention was that his halo was drab as opposed to golden and glowing, and it was without his name.”

The Last Supper, circa 1897-1902, Tiffany Studios, Frederick Wilson Designer.

“In other words, here is a person that can and should be forgotten. There in the museum I just stared at Judas’ visage in the mosaic, thinking about what it means to be forgotten.”

“But here’s the other arresting detail…even Judas had a halo. Yes, it was very dull and in desperate need of polishing, but he still had one.”

“It’s important to remember. During Lent we remember the story of Jesus. We all remember lost loved ones, keeping photos or objects of theirs to constantly jog our memories.”

“It is important for us to remember, for in the mind of God none are forgotten.”

Read the full Pastor’s Perspective and other announcements and upcoming-event summaries in the March 2018 Forecaster (download PDF ).

Newsletters

February 2018 Forecaster – Sermon Series Preview: Archetypal Symbols and Biblical Hotspots

The Rev. Dr. Arthur Suggs

In this edition of the Forecaster, the Rev. Dr. Art Suggs gives a heads up on two unusual sermon series on deck. He writes:

“Sermon Series!

But there are other kinds of series as well.

We looked at mystics on and off for nearly a year a while back.

I think a fascinating series could be made of the notion “God is Still Speaking.” We could look at potential answers to the question of what God has been saying lately, and where is that communication found.

I spent a year once on “Those Famous Old Testament Stories” looking at the stories of Noah, Samson, the Tower of Babel, Jonah and the Whale, and many others. Predictably the favorite one in that series was about David and Bathsheba. Another series I enjoyed immensely was one on Jesus’ Parables. There are a lot of them, and some fantastic lessons to be learned from them.

In the Mountains, 1867, by Albert Bierstadt. {{PD}} Wikimedia.

Right now I’m doing one on some of the deep archetypal concepts threading their way through the entirety of the Scriptures: trees, mountains, light, music, and water. That series will take us up to but not including Lent.

Then for Lent I’m beginning a new one, and admittedly one I’m a bit nervous about. It’s about the Bible.

And the main reason I’m nervous is that I have had a love/hate relationship with the Bible for years. (I realize that I shouldn’t admit that publicly, but I would rather be honest.) It amazes me still that something containing such beauty and profundity as the Bible could at the same time be so brutal and primitive, and lend itself so easily to being weaponized.”

Rev. Dr. Suggs sums up his message with, “Wish me luck on this, please. What I will be trying to balance is the love and the hate. I will try to be fair, and perhaps even a touch reverent, but I’m also not going to go easy on it.”

We’ll be posting the sermons from the series mentioned above over the coming weeks.Iin the meanwhile, you’ll find the Christianity 2.0 Sermon Series and others here.

Download the full edition of the February Forecaster, with additional announcements and upcoming programs and services.

 

Advent and Christmas, Newsletters

January 2018 Forecaster – Advent and Christmas Hymns, Meaning and Memories

In this edition of the UCC Binghamton Forecaster, the Rev. Dr. Arthur Suggs shares some witty and soul-stirring reflections on some of the traditional Advent and Christmas hymns, including an uncle named Harold (Hark the Herald Angels Sing), and Mary, the First Theologian (What Child is This, Who, Laid to Rest).

About In the Bleak Midwinter, Pastor Art shares this: “Christmas occurs right after the Winter Solstice. And this is not a coincidence. And this hymn serves as one of the deepest, yet most subtle, reminders of the light breaking forth when it is darkest, of warmth breaking forth when it is coldest.

The “earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone” is symbolic of when life is hard, operating at a primal, Jungian level in our souls. So also the image of a tender newborn, asleep on the hay, with a radiant Mary looking on, instills a message of love, hope, peace in our souls, softening the ice and iron.”

Read the rest of the reflections, and other notes from the church family, here:

Download the January 2018 Forecaster (PDF)

Featured Image Credit: Star of Bethlehem, 1885-1890, Edward Burne-Jones.