C e n t r a lU n i t e d M e t h o d i s tC h u r c h V o l u m e1 2 I s s u e5

CE]VTRALCOTIRIER
"Make a differencein the world fotrChrist by reaching
out in love and serviceand by nufturing spiritualgrowth."

"Worthvis theLamb,whowasslain,
powerand...
fo receive
honorandgldryandpraise!"
5:12,NW
Revelation
May!! We arestill living in the afterglowof Easter. Well my fathertook meto the doctorwho examined
This poignant scenestill draws me back to the me and told me to stop worrying, they were only
Gardenof TearsrryhereMary hascomeearly in the fat cells that had beenbruised.I wasjust fine, he
moming uilrile othersarestill sleeping.
She comes with grave clothes in her hands and
spices for the dead, weeping in her grief, when
Christ (thoughsheas yet doesn't rec,ognirnthat it
"Woman,
is He) asksher theseprofotrndquestions.
rvhy areyou weeping....Whom Ne you seeking?"
"Woman,why areyou weeping?". . ...Thisgenuine,
probing,caring,gentlenudgefrom theRisenChrist
is a reminderof His tendercompassionfor all His
children in their Gardenof Tears.
It reminds me of a time in my life when I was a
teenagerand one day discovereda small lump on
my chestafterbeinghit thereandthenthe next day
another.It scaredme to death,especiallybecause
one of my classmatesin high schoolhadjust died
from cancer.
I thought I must have cancertoo. I didn't tell my
parentsfor severalweeks.I wasso frightened.One
day, my mother accidentallyheard me crying in
my bedroom.I didn't think shewasanyuiherenear.
She quietly cameinto my room and put her arms
"Son,
aroundme anddrew meto her andaskedme,
uihy areyou crying?"
In that moment,Iburiedmyselfin herembraceand
pouredout my fearsto her. Shetold me not to be
afraid,that shewould makea doctor'sappointment
right awayjust to be sureI was okay.And then she
"Why haveyou carriedthis aroundwith you
asked,
"I
all this time?" All I couldsaywits, wasso afraid.
And I hopedit would go away."
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said.What a relief.
But looking backon it now after all theseyears,do
you know what gaveme the greatestreliefl It was
uilrenMom quietly walked into my room when I
didn't evenknow that shewas near,and askedme
"Sod, ufty areyou weeping?
that simple question,
And, drew me to her sid6!"
It felt like a ton of bricks had beenlifted from my
shoulddrsand that whateverhappened,I knew I
was not alone.My motherwould be thereto hold
on to me! Thatmadeall the differencein the world.
I felt I douldfaceanything!Even cancer!
So, Jesusithis ResurrectedJesus,comes asking,
"Womqqffiy areyou weeping?" Therearegriefs
we cart'ydown insidethat we have beencarrying
a long,flongtime that needthe Healing Handsof
Jesusand it makesall the differencein the world
to find l{irn finding us in the Galdenof our Teats,
calling us to His embrace!That is what He did for
Mary, that is whatHe will do for all His children.
Sometimeswe do not know we areweepinginside
or repressed,
from thepainwehavelongsuppressed
"Child, onhy a^reyou weeping?"
till Jesusasks,
Thereare woundsand scarsthat have not healed,
but we have goneon with life, till we hear Jesrs
"Child, why areyou weeping?"
asking,
"'Whom are you seeking?" The world aroundus
like Mary often doesn'trealizethey are on a quest
for the placeor the i'acethat canfill the void or the
pain or the restlessness inside,looking in all the
 continued ftompg.2

wrongplacesandin all the wrong facesfor theone

that canmakethemrryhole.

The tragedyis that we keep grabbinghold of the T h eG O i n q s - O p

thingsthat don't haveit in them to makew uihole
or give us peace.In fact like thosegraveclothes af Cgntfal ; chuckwolrram
and spicesMary was holding onto that day, if we
hold onto themfor too long, they will takeour very
lives away.They aredeadthings. Our 150'hanniversary is upon us. Anybody
who would like to help makesplansfor the
But, thereHe is, standingthere,right in the midst celebration, pleasecontactmeASAP at 641-4680
of her search,right in the midst of thetomb before or charleswolfram@gmail.com.
"'Whom will
her asking are you seeking?"Augustine The Friends-Central CemeteryAssociation
"Thereis us and business mee-
said, a God-shaped vacuum in eachof holdtheirannual luncheon
thatonl_vGodcanfiII... And our heartsarerestless tingon Saturday, MaySsat 1 p.m.in AdamsHall.
till tlrey find their restin l{im!" He alonecantnake Allwho own plotsin the cemeteryarewelcom-
us whole! Mepdeis in chargeof the
ed to attend. Barbara
I hopeto seeyouthere.
reservations.
Therewas a yormg ll year ol4 5ft gradelittle girl TheDistrictConference willbeheldhereon May
named Nadia Bloom who last week went for a 8s; the cemeteryassociation will meetabouta
walk and never came back. Her family believed half-hourafterthe conference ends. Youdon't
she wanderedinto the alligator infestedswampsof haveto be a memberof the districtconference
Winter Springs,Fla. ShehasAsperger'sSyndrome. to attend.

For 5 days,rescuerswent into the swampslooking Covenant Housewill honorPastorDaveand Bill

Southrey, the CEOof the AtlanticCity Rescue
for her.They saidthat someof themtook signsthat
Mission,at their AnnualSignature Event.The
they had madewith them to put on the tees jwt in
event,wt*fh consistsof a cocktail reception,
caseNadia would later wanderby wherethey had place
showanbdessert,will take at the Borgata
beenand in hopesshewas strll alive. The signssard May6tr. Davehas
"Nadi4 we arelookingfor you. on Thursday,
in Atlaniic.City
somethinglike this, to CovenantHousefor years,
beenco'nnected
Here is somefreshwaterto dnnk till we find you." hewasworkingfortheSocialSecurity
backwhen
hopingshewouldkeepherselfhydrated. Administration.
She wandereddrrough that frightening and lonely
place for 5 days.Yesterdaya man from her church
joined the teamof rescuerslooking for her, calling Soecialdates
hernamelike all theothers,till he foundherandshe
hearda voice sheknew,calling her namethrough . ChristianFarnilyWeek,N{ay3-9,2010
the lost wanderingsof her life andherpain. . NationalDay ofiPraver,IVIay6,2010
.lVlother'sDay,May 9,2014
And he broughther out! To the care of the ones . Ascension of theLord,lUay 13,2010
rryhocould makeher whole. That's rryhatJesuscan . ArmedForcesDag I\,Iay15,2010
do for us! That'swhatJesuswantsto do for us! Do . Pentecost,May 23,2010
vou want to be found? . VictoriaDay (Canada),May 24,2010
4 . MernoriaiDay,May 31, 2010
Pastor K on
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Thoughts Day
on Memorial
"Thereneverwas a goodwar or a badpeace."
Benjamin Franklin
Oursis a world of nucleargiantsand ethicalin-
fants We know more about war than we know
about peace, more about killing than we know
aboutliving. We havegraspedthe mysteryof the
atom and rejectedthe Sermonon the Mount."
-GeneralOrnar Bradley
Seventhingsyou'llneverregret
l. Feeling reverencefor your Maker.
2. Show-ingkindnessto an agedperson-
-i. Destro.ringa letter- or not sendingan e-mail
written in anger.
4. Offering iur apolog."-that savesa frientlship.
5. Stoppinggossipthat could wreck a reputation.
6. Taking time to showloveclonesmnsideration.
7. Acceptingthejudgmentof God on any question.
"My Mother's
Garden"
A mother is a gardener,
Planting the seeds
Of faith, truth and love
That developinto the fairest iloners
Of character,virtue and happiness
In the lives of her children.
-J.HaroldGwynne
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Historyof Mother'sDay
Earliest
The earliesthistory of Mother's Day datesback to the
ancientannualspring festival the Greeksdedicatedto
maternalgoddesses. The Greeksused the occasionto
honor Rhea,wife of Cronus and the mother of many
deities of Greek mythology.
Ancient Romans, too, celebrated a spring festival,
called Hilaria dedicatedto pybele, a mother goddess.
It mat be noted that ceremoniesin honour of Cybele
begansome250 yearsbeforeChrist was born.
Early Christians celebrateda Mother's Day of sorts
duringtfrefestivalon thefourth Sundayof Lent in honor
of the Virgin Mary, the Mother of Christ. In England
theholiday wasexpandedto includeall mothen. It was
thencalled MotheringSunday.
I
The more recenthistory of Mother's Day datesback
to l6(X)s ih England. Here a M.o-thp..dng..S.u.udaywas
celebrare4annuallyon the fourth Sundayof Lrnt (the
40 day p€riod leading up to Easter) to honor mothers.
After a,prayerservice in church to honor Virgin Mary,
childrerfhought gitis and flowen to pay tributeto their
own mcithers.
Custom of celebrating Mothering Sunday died out
almost completelyby ttre l9th cenrury However,the
day came to be celebratedagain after World War I[,
when American servicemenbrought the custom and
commercialenterprisesusgdit as an occasionfor sales.
The idea of ofiicial celebratiern of l{other's day in LiS
in 1872.An
rvasfint suggestedb-'"J-ulia..lV-ar..d..Hp..w.e
activist, writer and poet Julia shot to fame with her
famousCivil War song,
"BattleHymn of the Republic".
Julia Ward Howe suggestedthat.Tune2nd be aunualll'
celebratedas Mother's Day and should be dedicated
to peace.Julia tirelesslycharnpionedthe causeof the
ofEcialcelebrationof Mother's Day and thedeclaration
of the oflicial holidat' on the day. I-ler idea spreadbut
was later replacedby the Mother's Day holiday now
celebratedin May.
Anna Jarvis is recognizedas the Founderof Mother's
continuedon pg. 5
continuerJ
frorr pg.4
Day in US. ThoughS,nna.Jaffis.nevermarriedandnever
had kids. she is also known as the Mother of Mothers
Day, an apt title for the lady who workedhard to bestow
honoron all mother's.
From Marylin Watters upon
Anna Jarvisgot the inspirationof celebratingMother's
her mother, Qertrude's recent passing-
Day from her own mother Mrs. Anna Marie Reeves
Jarvis in her childhood An activist and social worker.
Mrs. Jarvis used to express her desire that someday
My Mom was a strong hard working woman who
someonemust honor all mothers,living and dead,and never knew the meaningof rest. She sometimes
pay tributeto the contributionsmadeby them. workded 7 days a week and did house work at
night. Shehad agood senseof humorandloved to
"A
A loving daughter,Anna never forgot her mother's laugh..Shealways said good laugh was worth
word and when her mother died in 1905,she resolved more than medicine." She worked to age 65,and
to fullill her motlrer'sdesireof lravinga nrcther'sday.A then sheturned her life to her homeand working
growing negligent attitude of adult Americanstowards "f'he
r.vithus in the Linen La$"'Antique bussiness.
their mothersand a desire to honor her motherssoared Sheadoptedmany of my friends and loved them as
her ambitions. her own.
To begin with, Ann4 sent Qg$Uiliqnq in the church
IVfyrncitheralwaysloved thg lord and our church
service in Grafton, West Virginia to honor her mother.
(hrnations w'ereher motber'sfavorite flower andAnna family. Beingraisedin theMethodistChurch,Mom
felt that they symbolizeda mother's pure love- Later always loved working in'the church..Asa
young
Anna alongwith her supporterswrote lettersto peoplein women she played the organ in severalMethodist
positionsof-lnwer lobbyingtirr the of-ficialdeclaratioo Churchesin Camdenand sang in many churches
of Mother's Day holiday. The hard work paid off. By there. As a small child of 5 or 6 she went with
191I , Mother'sDay wascelebratedin almosteverystate her aunt to the deaconesshome, known now as
in the Union and on May 8, l9l4 PresidentWoodrow the CamdenNeighborhoodCenter,to help where
Wilsonsigneda JointResolutiondesignatingthesecond she could .After I was bom, she startedto teach
SundaySbtrootand do the CradleRoll. Later ott,
she becameSuday School Superintendent,sang
in rnany choirs, was Presidentof the Methodist
Women.pt$ enjoyedbeing on the administrative
board a4d co-chairingthe worhip committee,for
"Greeters."
ten years{calledthe

At 100-lOlyearsof age,Mom still enoyedChurch,

',^/henshecould get up in time to attend.She loved
to cometo the BoutiqueSalesandsit andgreetthe
folks coming in. Shewas so proudof our church
and liked to tell aboutthe goodwork we did.

Yes,my motherhasbeena wonderful,loving, fun

"Some pmple
filled Mom! dont havelove filling
their home.I, on the otherhand,neverknew a time
when there wasn't. Saying she wrll be missedis
certainlvan understatement.

A publicationof: Central United Methodist Church,5 W. Marvin Ave., Linwood, NJ 08221, ffi-9274882: Editor: BarbaraE. Van
Sant,609-289-6242,bevansant@earthlinknet; Copy Rlitor: Lynne Quicksall,609 Al74l5; Senior Pastor: RonaldWatts,609-927-
3-5-55.
revwattscumcGiverizon.net: Assistantllastor: I)ave Delaney.(#)-652-20.!.l),pastrrrdavecumc@veriz-on.net: <lllice c-mail: cerr-
tralumcnj(@verizon.net. Visit our web site, www.centralumcnj.org.
The Courier is published monthly to keep memben and friends informed of programsof the church and to report news about Central's
parple To submitnc,w:;.clearll,11d1sor type the infonnation iind lmve it in tht: l'.lev,slettermailbor in thechurchoffice or, prt:ferablv,
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 "We believe iir CoA and in
eachodrer."Thepeopleof The
UnitedMbthodistChurch."

United CentralMethodistChurch

Central's Coffee Hour Scheduler 2010

Coffeehous areon eachSundaybetweenthe 9:30a tt:dO'liU services.Thecongregation
is askedto helpdesignatedgroupssupplyrefreshmentspyfollowingthe alphabetlcallist.
l.^

Month Congregation Committee Month Congregation Committee

January A&B StaffParish JutY L,M,N Tbustees

February c Youth August Ail Music

March D&E Finance September O,BQ,R Hospitality

April F&G 0utreach October S,T,U Worship

May H November XYZ'S UMW

June I,Jr&K Lay Ministry December Alr Church

Council

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