Rocky Hill Reformed Church to Hold 12 Step Series

 Dec 15, 2011

Beginning in January, First Reformed Church of Rocky Hill will begin a series on the 12 steps of recovery.

On the second Sunday of every month, the worship service and the sermon will focus on one of the 12 Steps. "One of the things we are passionate about is supporting people in recovery from addictions." Said Rev. Linda Pepe, Pastor of the church. "We have a number of 12 step groups that meet at our church during the week. Bringing the 12 Steps to our Sunday worship is a natural next step for us. We want to invite people in all stages of recovery, as well as those who want to understand more about the 12 steps, to attend this series. Most, if not all of us in this day and age, can admit that we struggle with something. Whether it's overeating, over spending, over indulging in technology or other forms of entertainment- we are a culture that is saturated with excess. I am hopeful that through this series we can learn more about ourselves, each other, and the God who can bring healing."

The first Step Sunday Service will be held on January 8, 2012 at 10am. The church is located at 89 Washington St., Rocky Hill, NJ. 609-924-6450.
 

FAITH IN A COMPLEX WORLD: PUMC SERMON SERIES

 Dec 7, 2011

PRINCETON, NJ: New Year’s resolutions can be easy to make but hard to keep in a complex world, suggests Rev. Jana Purkis-Brash, senior pastor of Princeton United Methodist Church, located on the corner of Nassau & Vandeventer. With the theme of “Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White,” PUMC offers an informal worship gathering on Saturdays at 5 p.m. plus traditional worship on Sundays at 9:30 (with Sunday School for all ages) and 11 a.m. Sunday School (with children’s church). Child care is available on Sundays; fellowship and refreshments follow each service.

“For the month of January and into February we will look to the Scriptures -- and the teachings and example of Jesus -- as a model for how we live, love, and make important decisions,” says Purkis-Brash.

The five-part series, based on a book by Adam Hamilton, begins with “Where Faith and Politics Meet” on Saturday and Sunday, January 7 and 8. Subsequent titles for January are “Christ, Christians, and the Culture Wars,” “How Should We Live? The Ethics of Jesus,” “Spiritual Maturity and Seeing Gray.” On February 5 and 6, the topic is” What Would Jesus Say to America?”

On both December 25 and January 1 there will be one 10 a.m. service. PUMC is a diverse congregation whose members come from many surrounding communities, backgrounds and faith histories. For information call 609-924-2613 or visit http://www.princetonumc.org.
 

CHILD SLAVERY LECTURE ON FEBRUARY 19 at PUMC

 Feb 3, 2012

PRINCETON: Child trafficking will be the topic for a lecture-conversation on Sunday, February 19, at 4 p.m. at Princeton United Methodist Church (PUMC), located at Nassau & Vandeventer. Dr. Francesca Nuzzolese will speak and Dr. Don Brash, PUMC’s resident theologian/ adult education chairperson, will moderate a discussion of "Children at Risk: trafficking and enslavement of children today." A professor at Palmer Seminary, the seminary of Eastern University, Dr. Nuzzolese has been a missionary and pastoral counselor in the United States, Europe, and Australia, and she has just returned from studying child enslavement in south Asia.

“It is so easy to just look away from such a distressing subject, but in this new monthly series, we will try to learn more about and to come to grips with some of these troubling issues,” says Rev. Brash.

The March 18 topic in the Troubling Issues series is “Holocausts in Our Time,” to be discussed by Leonard Risch Winogora, a Princeton resident and Mercer County College professor who studies genocide in Africa in post-colonial societies. The topic for May 6 is “Is There Ever a Just War?”

The free lecture-discussions in the Troubling Issues series are also scheduled for September through May of the next academic year. They will be held in PUMC’s Sanford Davis Room, which opens onto Nassau Street. Parking is free on Sundays. ADA accessible. For information call 609-924-2613, email troublingissues@gmail.com or go to www.princetonumc.org).
 

SATURDAY WORSHIP ON NASSAU STREET

 Nov 14, 2011

PRINCETON, NJ: Music, drama, dance, and crafts highlight the Saturday Evening Worship Gatherings at the Princeton United Methodist Church (PUMC) at the corner of Nassau and Vandeventer. For the Advent season Trey Gillette, pastoral assistant, will discuss “The Journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem” on November 26 and December 17; Purkis-Brash will speak on December 3, and Anna Gillette, a Princeton Theological Seminary student, will bring the message on December 10. Scott Langdon and Andrew Hayes lead carols.

The contemporary-oriented services at 5 p.m. on Saturdays offer different activities each week and are followed by fellowship and refreshments. They are held in the room adjoining the sanctuary, which has a door opening onto Nassau Street. Parking is free at the Princeton University lot off of Williams Street. “The Saturday Evening Worship Gatherings appeal to youth, young adults, and all seeking a relevant worship experience – as well as those who those who want to sleep in on Sunday mornings,” says Rev. Jana Purkis-Brash, senior pastor.

PUMC holds traditional Sunday services at 9:30 and 11 a.m., with Sunday
School for all ages at 9:30 and child care available all morning. PUMC is a diverse
congregation whose members come from many surrounding communities, backgrounds
and faiths. For information call 609-924-2613 or www.princetonumc.org.
 

Faith Lutheran Church - Hillsborough, NJ- Dec 2011

 Nov 16, 2011

Faith Lutheran Church, located at 381 South Branch Road in Hillsborough at the intersection of South Branch Road and Beekman Lane, has been a growing part of the community for over 45 years. Throughout the years, Faith's membership and outreach to the community have grown considerably. Faith now has over 700 members and membership continues to increase each year.

The life of the congregation is centered in worship as Holy Communion is celebrated each Sunday at 8:30 and 11:00 AM. Sunday School, including an adult forum, is held at 9:45 AM from September through May. Additional holiday services, healing services, a blessing of pets and more expand the worship experience.

Faith has a multitude of successful activities and programs for the congregation and the general community. The members of Faith enjoy outings, congregational picnics, and participation in the South Somerset Church softball league.

Faith has expanded its programs to include a multitude of new and exciting initiatives for children of all ages. The youth groups, "Teens and Tweens", enjoy regular meetings, participation in worship, outings, service projects and retreats. More than 20 members will attend this summer's National Youth Gathering of the ELCA in New Orleans.

Our adult groups include the "Men of Faith," the "Silver Foxes," a senior men's group, and "Red, Hot and Gold," our group for 50+ adults.

It is our mission at Faith Lutheran Church to Celebrate God's love and to accept each other as Christ accepts us, and to serve with His spirit in our community. The members of Faith put their time and talents to work when it comes to helping the community. Faith is a participant in the Samaritan Homeless Interim Program (SHIP). Four Seasons Child Care Center offers pre-school instruction and child care. Food collection for the Hillsborough Food Bank is an ongoing project. Faith makes a strong effort to make holidays special for those in need; delivering Thanksgiving fruit baskets each year to the Senior Nutrition Center, sponsoring a "Gift Tree" for the Hillsborough Resource Center for Women and prison ministries, participating in the annual CROP Walk for Somerset County, supporting CWS Blanket Sunday and, through the Sunday School, "God's Global Barnyard", a ministry of the ELCA. This year members responded to flood victims in our area, providing cleanup response to the county. A Disaster Response Team also travelled to Massachusetts to help disaster victims there.

Faith Lutheran Church is active and growing, continually adding new programs and activities throughout the year. The church has activities for everyone. New members and visitors are always welcome. For more information on Faith Lutheran, please call the church office at (908) 369-3201 or check us out on the web at www.faithlutherannj.org.
 

The Rocky Hill Reformed Church

By Rev. Linda Pepe  Oct 20, 2011

The season of thanks is upon us. I know what you’re thinking. We should be thankful every day! We live in a country, as a good friend often reminds me, where we share in an “embarrassment of blessings.” That’s true enough. We are the richest country in the world, and we live in one of the wealthiest counties in that country.

Yet the sad truth is that we are so busy trying to amass even more, (for ourselves, for our family, for our employers) or at the very least, to keep what we already have, it’s difficult to remember to stop and say “thank you” to the one who gives us breath.

Thankfully, the legacy of Thanksgiving greets us anew each year, and calls us to do just that. In theory, Thanksgiving is supposed to help us to remember and acknowledge that everything we have comes from our Creator; and although we have individual things we can (and should) be thankful for, the emphasis on this particular day, is giving thanks as a community.

Before the world was flat; before we withdrew into our own private worlds of technology (albeit ‘social networking’); being “in community” was a valuable, if not vital way of life. People needed each other in order to survive. Especially in an agrarian culture, community was essential for bringing in crops, completing large projects, even surviving the weather.
In less rural areas, (at least where I grew up) it was the community who would be there in crisis. If your house fell down, it was the community who helped to rebuild it. If your child was sick, it was the community who cared for your family. As one grew older, there was no worry or thoughts of being a burden; the community took care of its elderly.

But as our independence advanced, our inter-dependence declined. As we became more dependent on technology, we became less dependant on one another, and less reliant on the concept of community.
Our contact with each other is generally activity based. We strike up friendships based on common interests (or children’s interests) and say hi to one another on the soccer field, or the grocery story, or at church; but truth be told, we don’t know much about each other. In fact we are often wary of one another; and we model that behavior for our children.

Yet in doing so, we deny our children the rich gift of community that many of us grew up with.

And since we spend so little time being together, and celebrating our need for each other (yes, there is joy in needing one another) it is only natural that we have trouble thinking of ways (or even remembering) to give thanks as a community, for community.
Yet if we neglect this primary piece of our heritage; if we leave out the community aspect of Thanksgiving, then we fear losing what keeps us together, even in our families.

We need to teach our children and remind ourselves of the gift of living with and depending on others. We can teach them about their neighbors, once we learn their names ourselves. We can teach them how to share themselves with others and how to accept and respect the generosity of those willing to reach out to them. For it is only when we are able to genuinely cherish one another that thanks and giving come together in peace.
 

Local Alcoholics Anonymous Meetings

 Oct 3, 2008

(Subject to change)
www.nnjaa.org
www.24-club.org
SUNDAY
8:30am, 24 Club (located behind Vespias/Goodyear at the Princeton North Shopping Center, Rts 518 and 206), 5:30pm, 24 Club
7:30pm, Rocky Hill Reformed Church, Rt 518
MONDAY
7:15am, 24 Club, Rocky Hill
12noon, 24 Club
5:30pm, 24 Club
7pm, 24 Club
8pm, Hillsborough Presbyterian Church, Rt 206 and Homestead Rd
TUESDAY
7:15am, 24 Club
12noon, RH Reformed Church
5pm, 24 Club
7pm, Double Trouble, 24 Club

7:30 BYO Big Book, Harlingen Ref. Church
WEDNESDAY
7:15am, 24 Club
12:15pm, 24 Club
5:30pm, 24 Club
7:30pm, RH Reformed Church
8 pm, Mens Meeting, 24 Club
8pm, Hillsborough Presb. Church
8 pm, Men’s Meeting, 24 Club
THURSDAY
7:15am, 24 Club
12:15 pm, 24 Club
5:30pm, 24 Club
7 pm, Women’s Meeting,
24 Club
7:30pm Carrier Clinic, Main
Building, Garden Cafe
FRIDAY
7:15am, 24 Club
12:15pm, 24 Club
3pm, Carrier Clinic Outpatient Building
5:30pm, 24 Club
8pm, Hopewell United. Meth. Church.
SATURDAY
7:15am, 24 Club
5:30pm, 24 Club

Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who share their common experience and help each other to recover from alcoholism.

SOMETHING NEW on NASSAU: SATURDAY WORSHIP

 Sep 2, 2011

PRINCETON, NJ: The community at Princeton United Methodist Church has launched a new Saturday evening worship gathering with the hope that the time and type of service will meet the needs of a new generation of worship-goers. The Saturday Evening Worship Gatherings are at 5 p.m. at the church, located at Nassau & Vandeventer in Princeton.

“Just as Sunday morning is not always a viable option, the traditional style of worship doesn’t work for everyone,” says Rev. Jana Purkis-Brash, senior pastor. The Gatherings will be in the room adjoining the sanctuary, which has a door opening onto Nassau Street. “If you hear music as you wander down Nassau, come in and join us. We will praise and experience God through contemporary music, and hearing and responding to the message.”

Parking is free on weekends at the Princeton University lot off of Williams Street, behind Thomas Sweet. Everyone is welcome to attend; following the service, there will be a time for refreshments and fellowship.

Two traditional Sunday services, at 9:30 and 11 a.m., resume September 18, and Sunday School for all ages is at 9:30. Child care is available all morning. PUMC is a diverse congregation whose members come from many surrounding communities, backgrounds

and faiths. For information call 609-924-2613 or www.princetonumc.org.