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It’s always a bit of a surprise to find ourselves moving from one celebration to another and to another. Easter was a tremendous celebration. Three services, lots of folks in the Sanctuary, lots of folks on line, music, lilies - we celebrated a real Easter. I am most grateful to all those who took on extra responsibilities to share our Easter joy. Now, the next celebration is Pentecost. Fifty days after Easter (hence pente), we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit to the church. It is the Spirit who grants us the gifts for ministry and who empowers us to live as God’s people. Pentecost will be celebrated on Sunday, May 23. The next big thing after that will be gearing up for our year-long celebration of our bicentennial. First Pres was founded in 1821 as the first Protestant congregation in Evansville. Two hundred years of life, ministry, and service cannot be celebrated on one day. So, we’ll take a year to do it! Coming out of the pandemic (please, God), we also want to begin asking questions about what we do next. We’ll be soliciting the input of the congregation in various ways. We hope you will take an active role in charting the course of our next two hundred years. So, there’s a lot going on. That is as it should be. Because there’s still a lot to do. And who, better than us, to do it? See you in church! Kevin
First Reports First Presbyterian Church Evansville, Indiana
www.firstpresevansville.com
MAY- JUNE 2021
The Next Big Thing
Pentecost Worship
On Sunday, May 23, we will celebrate Pentecost. The liturgical color for the day is red, so we invite you to wear red to worship - whether in person or online! We will also celebrate the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, so we invite our online worshipers to have bread and wine or juice available to join in the celebration. There will be a few surprises along the way, so join us for Pentecost 2021!
“The air is like a butterfly With frail blue wings. The happy earth looks at the sky And sings.” - Joyce Kilmer, Spring
2 First Reports May/June 2021
Thursday Mid-Day Concerts
Celebrating Our Graduates
On Sunday, May 16, we will celebrate the accomplishments of our high school and college graduates. In this strange year of both on-line and in-person learning, we want to be sure to recognize the amazing achievements of our graduates. We do not wish to miss anyone in this celebration. Please submit your graduate’s name, school, and future plans to the church office. We would also appreciate a photo of your student. You can email the picture to [email protected]. Join us - in-person or on-line - as we celebrate our graduates!
Music Director Robert Nicholls and friends continue to provide music at mid-day on Thursdays at noon. They will share music from the various instruments in the Sanctuary. Be sure to spend some time each Thursday and allow the music to brighten and enliven your day. Join us (live or later!) by visiting the church website (firstpresevansville.com), clicking on the livestream box, and choosing “Thursday Mid-Day Concert”, or on the church’s Facebook page. You can also see all of the previous recitals on the church’s YouTube page. Be sure to invite a friend to join us!
Special Music in May 9 Worship
We welcome the Eykamp Quartet for special music in worship on Mothering Sunday, May 9. They are joined by Jia-Rong Gan (violin) Leanne Hampton (flute), and Robert Nicholls (harpsichord) performing JS Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5. The concerto is famous for its extended and virtuosic passages for the harpsichord soloist. It is thought that Bach wrote this music in celebration of and to show off a new harpsichord with two keyboards he had ordered from Berlin, delivered around 1720. In the outer movements there is a constant juxtaposition of material for the three soloists with material for the whole group, until the harpsichord has an extended cadenza. The middle, slow movement is only for the violin, flute, and harpsichord soloists, all of whom share in the exposition and presentation of the theme in a variety of keys. The third movement is an exuberant dance with a irrepressible energy that has an ABA structure. The middle section visits a variety of key areas before halting abruptly and the music starts again in the home key. This music was last played at First Pres on April 30, 2000 with Helen Skuggedal Reed playing her then-new harpsichord (now owned by First Pres) with the Evansville Baroque Soloists as part of the Sacred Arts Series. The Evansville Baroque Soloists had given their first performance here in 1994. Subsequent annual concerts had included the other five Brandenburg Concerti as well as other instrumental and vocal music from the Baroque period.
“It’s spring fever.... You don’t quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!”
- Mark Twain
“For winter’s rains and ruins are over, And all the season of snows and sins; The days dividing lover and lover, The light that loses, the night that wins; And time remembered is grief forgotten, And frosts are slain and flowers begotten, And in green underwood and cover Blossom by blossom the spring begins.”
- Algernon Charles Swinburne, 1890
First Reports March/April, 2021 3
First Pres Becomes Matthew 25 Congregation
At its April meeting, the Session of First Presbyterian Church designated the congregation as a “Matthew 25” congregation. What does that mean? We are joining a growing number of congregations and mid-level judicatories in self-designating themselves as Matthew 25 churches. We aim to help multiply this loving commitment to radical and fearless discipleship by partnering with mid-councils and congregations to help them embrace one or more of these three focuses:
Building congregational vitality by challenging people and congregations to deepen their faith and get actively and joyfully engaged with their community and the world.
Dismantling structural racism by advocating and acting to break down the systems, practices, and thinking that underlie discrimination, bias, prejudice, and oppression of people of color.
Eradicating systemic poverty by working to change laws, policies, plans, and structures in our society that perpetuate economic exploitation of people who are poor. First Pres is already doing much of this work. However, by designating the congregation as a Matthew 25 congregation, we are answering the call to be far more intentional in that work. We will be interpreting this calling in worship, in special studies, and in service and action. This is an important step in the life of First Pres. Thanks be to God the Spirit is still calling us to new and more profound expressions of ministry.
“O most honored Greening Force,
You who roots in the Sun; You who lights up, in shining serenity, within a wheel that earthly excellence fails to comprehend.
You are enfolded in the weaving of divine mysteries.
You redden like the dawn and You burn: flame of the Sun.”
- Hildegard von Bingen
CAJE Nehemiah Action
The next critical step in the work of CAJE - Congregations Acting for Justice and Empowerment - is the Nehemiah Action. This virtual assembly invites all members of CAJE congregations to join together to share a year’s worth of study and findings with our elected officials. The officials then respond to our findings and requests that are presented to them in advance of the assembly. The Nehemiah Action will take place on Monday, May 10, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. It is critical to have enough “people power” present as participants in the action. You can register for the Nehemiah Action by clicking on the link that you received in the congregational email. You will not be asked to contribute money. You will not be asked to take on a cause. You will not be asked to joust at windmills. You are simply being asked to be present because your presence makes a profound statement that you are concerned about three problems in our community and want to see something done to address them. Those three concerns are: Safe neighborhoods Affordable housing Mental health Register and join us for this vitally important moment in CAJE’s year!
4 First Reports March/April, 2021
Memorial Sunday - May 30
During the pandemic, while we were sequestered away at home, members and friends of First Presbyterian Church died. In may cases, we were not able to celebrate their lives and extend our witness to the resurrection as we would have liked to do. Among those we will remember will be: June Coslett Alan Winslow Eleanor Hight Larry Arp David Sponseller Rita Roth Sue Calvert Will Hardin Dee Ogle Carolyn Daus Al Shepherd Each of these sisters and brothers added much to the life and ministry of First Presbyterian Church. Join us on Sunday, May 30, as we give thanks to God for the lives and witness of these saints of God.
Little Lambs Diaper Drive
It’s that time of year again! We join with our mission partner, Little Lambs, to conduct the annual diaper drive. Here’s how it works: play pens will be set up in the lobby to receive your donations of new disposable diapers, baby wipes, baby powder, or baby lotion. When you come to worship, simply drop your gifts in the play pen. You may also send a monetary gift to the church. Please designate it “Little Lambs.” These are some of items most in demand at Little Lambs. Let’s do our part to create a safe and caring community for infants and children.
“I gazed upon the glorious sky And the green mountains round, And thought that when I came to lie At rest within the ground, ‘Twere pleasant, that in flowery June When brooks send up a cheerful tune, And groves a joyous sound, The sexton’s hand, my grave to make, The rich, green mountain-turf should break.”
- William Cullen Bryant, June
From the Church Office
Starting on May 3, office hours for the church will be 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, with a lunch break of 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. If you need to drop by the building outside office hours, please be in touch with Lora in the church office (812-423-6297; [email protected]) to be sure you can get in. Thank you to all those who responded to the 1-question survey about delivering the weekly e-newsletter, Connect. We are continuing to improve the deliverability and readability of Connect, and expect to have a solution soon. As always, if you have questions, comments, or would like to be added or removed from the e-newsletter list, please be in touch with Lora in the church office (812-423-6297; [email protected]).
First Reports March/April, 2021 5
A year ago, Doylestown Presbyterian Church in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, accepted the invitation to become a Matthew 25 church. The congregation chose to concentrate on dismantling structural racism and eradicating systemic poverty. Members and friends knew they wanted to learn how to be allies with people of color who have been so adversely impacted by these issues, which are two of the three Matthew 25 focuses (the other is building congregational vitality). However, the committee leading the effort didn’t know where to start. Members determined that to be an effective Matthew 25 church, the congregation would “look at ourselves first,” said Beverly Jewusiak, moderator of the church’s Matthew 25 committee. Jewusiak said the committee first asked itself this question: “What do we know?” “We looked at a lot of demographics and information,” Jewusiak said. In doing that, they found a number of things. Among them was the discovery of a “colored” section in the church’s cemetery. “We found out that it was specifically set up that way so that African Americans could be buried there. At the time, many of the churches in our area would not allow that to happen and also would not allow marriages or baptisms [for people of color] within those congregations,” said Jewusiak. Early church membership at Doylestown Presbyterian Church included African Americans, and documentation revealed marriages, baptisms, and funerals were performed for them. The congregation also discovered that its founding pastor, the Rev. Uriah DuBois, was active in the antislavery movement. According to genealogical records, the pastor started and taught at a school for African American adults. Historical records also revealed that one woman of African descent appears on the membership rolls as far back as 1816, when the church, about an hour north of Philadelphia, was officially chartered by the Presbytery of Philadelphia. But there were more discoveries to be made that would strengthen their commitment and provide a vision for living out the call to dismantle structural racism. That was the discovery of Gladys Nickleby Nelson’s story. Nelson was the first African American registered nurse in the Doylestown school district and was instrumental in administering the polio vaccine locally and across the country. In 1954, Nelson opened and managed the very first clinic in the United States to inoculate children against the polio virus. Polio was the COVID-19 of the mid-20th century. “Because she was successful in setting up a clinic in the Doylestown community, she was asked to assist in establishing other clinics in the country,” said Nancy Nelson, Gladys’ daughter, who is a member of Doylestown Presbyterian Church. And she said, “Of course I was small at the time and didn’t really realize the whole thing until I heard the story a little bit later in life.” While Gladys died in 2003, her story, along with other church documents uncovered by the Matthew 25 committee, affirmed the congregation’s commitment to raising the voices of others. “We believe that the church founders felt called to live out true discipleship by acting boldly and compassionately, serving those who are hungry, oppressed, imprisoned, or poor,” Jewusiak said. “We aspire to follow in their footsteps and honor their legacy as we mobilize Doylestown Presbyterian’s Matthew 25 initiative.”
- Gail Strange is the director of church and mid council communications for the Presbyterian Mission Agency https://www.presbyterianmission.org/story/pt-0521-matthew25/
What One Matthew 25 Congregation is Doing - from Presbyterians Today
“This is June, the month of grass and leaves...already the aspens are trembling again, and a new summer is offered me. I feel a little fluttered in my thoughts, as if I might be too late. Each season is but an infinitesimal point. It no sooner comes than it is gone. It has no duration. It simply gives a tone and hue to my thought. Each annual phenomena is reminiscence and prompting. Our thoughts and sentiments answer to the revolution of the seasons, as two cog-wheels fit into each other. We are conversant with only one point of contact at a time, from which we receive a prompting and impulse and instantly pass to a new season or point of contact. A year is made up of a certain series and number of sensations and thoughts which have their language in nature. Now I am ice, now I am sorrel. Each experience reduces itself to a mood of the mind.”
- Henry David Thoreau, Journal, June 6, 1857
6 First Reports May/June 2021
Sailing the Steward-ship
Christian stewardship is a series of conversions. Some are easy to attain. Others are more of a challenge. The first conversion may prove difficult. It is the conversion from understanding that we are responsible for everything we have to understanding that all that we have is a gift of God. In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses warns the people about what they might do upon arriving in the Land of Promise and settling the land.
Take care that you do not forget the LORD your God, by failing to keep his commandments, his ordinances, and his statutes, which I am commanding you today. When you have eaten your fill and have built fine houses and live in them, and when your herds and flocks have multiplied, and your silver and gold is multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied, then do not exalt yourself, forgetting the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, who led you through the great and terrible wilderness, an arid wasteland with poisonous snakes and scorpions. He made water flow for you from flint rock, and fed you in the wilderness with manna that your ancestors did not know, to humble you and to test you, and in the end to do you good. Do not say to yourself, “My power and the might of my own hand have gotten me this wealth.” But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, so that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your ancestors, as he is doing today. (Deut.8:11-18)
For some of us, this is a difficult conversion. We have been raised believing that the harder we work, the more we will have. Some of us sang the words:
Work, for the night is coming, Work through the morning hours; Work while the dew is sparkling, Work ’mid springing flow’rs. Work when the day grows brighter, Work in the glowing sun; Work, for the night is coming, When man’s work is done. (Work, for the Night is Coming, Anna L. Coghill)
Work became the purpose of life. Success was measured by what we had achieved. Failure was the result of not working hard enough. Faithful Christian stewardship begins with the first conversion: that God provides all that we have - even the ability to work. God gifts us in a variety of ways. God blesses us with many kinds of treasures. God’s generosity toward us is the source of all that we have. As we are converted to that first idea, then our response becomes clear. God’s generosity toward us can inspire us to live more generously in our lives. As God experiences joy in giving to us, we experience joy as we give to God and share with others.
“Listen, can you hear it? Spring’s sweet cantata. The strains of grass pushing through the snow. The song of buds swelling on the vine. The tender timpani of a baby robin’s heart. Spring!”
- Diane Frolov and Andrew Schneider, Northern Exposure
All are welcome to add to the beauty of our Sunday worship by providing flowers to be displayed at that day’s service. They may be fresh flowers or silk/faux arrangements, and can be ordered by the donor or the church office on the donor’s instructions. On average, donors spend about $60 on an arrangement. Flowers are usually delivered to the church on the Saturday morning prior to worship. To see a list of available dates and choose one to provide flowers for, you can follow the link “Flowers for Worship” on the church website, or call the church office. Thank you!
Sanctuary Flowers Return
First Reports March/April, 2021 7
I stared out of the kitchen window watching a late spring thunderstorm roll in and kick up the dried leaves yet to be cleaned out of my garden beds. I was enchanted with how the wind seemed to be choreographing the leaves in a frenzied, yet freeing, dance with Mother Nature. As I watched, I prayed - deeply and urgently - asking for the Holy Spirit to be in my life like the wind outside: “Rushing wind blow through this temple, blowing out the dust within, come and breathe your breath upon me.” If the words to my prayer sound familiar, it’s because they are from Keith Green’s song, “Rushing Wind.” Before I started seminary, a boyfriend dropped off a box of cassette tapes filled with Green’s music. He didn’t want them anymore, stating they were from his more “evangelical” days. Green was a contemporary Christian musician in the ‘70s whose earthly life was ended in 1982 by a plane crash. I not only embraced the box of cassette tapes, but also Green’s witness of faith and trust. So powerful was the message in “Rushing Wind” as it asked for the Spirit to not only blow the dust within, but to help me surrender and “take me where you want to go,” that I had it sung during my ordination service. Even at the start of my call to ministry, I knew I never wanted to be trapped in the parish doldrums: those windless waters of maintaining the status quo and pleasing those in the pews rather than pleasing God. Windless waters might sound safe, but let’s recall the fear that sailors of old felt when they were in a doldrum. They knew if the wind didn’t start blowing and set them sailing soon, death would be certain. As I watched the leaves dance outside my window, I realized I was in need of my own rush of fresh wind. I was tired, which wasn’t unusual as a year of ministering in a pandemic has had all of us stretching to new heights and plummeting to new lows. But what I didn’t expect was how the incessant barrage of challenges and changes had kicked up the dust of memories about why I answered the call to ministry. I wasn’t alone. A long overdue phone call with a friend revealed that she, too, was questioning if she is living her call authentically. We joked about when we get to the pearly gates if God will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant” or ask us, “What happened?” Soon after that phone call, I began noticing my Facebook feed had at least one announcement per day of a minister leaving their current call for another church, nonparish ministry, or to start their own worshiping community. My tax preparer, whose client roster includes clergy from all different denominations, confirmed my growing suspicion: The Holy Spirit wind is blowing, leading many to reconnect with what called them originally to ministry. I began wondering if the pandemic has been a time of deep soul-searching and, ultimately, personal growth. And, if so, how many congregations and pastors, grappling with so many challenges and tough decisions, have grown together? How many more have grown apart? The pandemic is not just a health crisis. It is a political crisis, raising issues beyond when and how to worship in person again. It has asked the body of Christ to reclaim its prophetic voice. It has revealed that mission is more than just dropping a can of soup in the church’s food pantry basket. It has shown us the inequalities within our own communities: those without internet access for their children to learn, those without proper health care, and those attacked and killed because of skin color or gender identity. The pandemic has also revealed the tension between those in the church who want to sail and those who prefer the doldrums. Some people have caught a vision of the “new” thing God is doing. Others have simply chosen to ride out the new thing and are reverting back to what is familiar. I have seen this in my own church as the familiar elements of worship are creeping quickly back into our Sunday services. More music and singing are edging out that beautiful quiet time the pandemic has gifted to us. I do think it is harder now to lead a congregation than it was at the start of the pandemic, because now the struggle of committing to living into the new ways God has shown us begins. And it is a struggle because we are entering this phase still worn-out from the pandemic itself. The Holy Spirit wind is blowing and picking up velocity. There is nothing to fear, though. The wind might be frenzied, but it is freeing! And the dance the Spirit wind is choreographing in life is indeed enchanting.
- Donna Frischknecht Jackson is editor of Presbyterians Today. https://www.presbyterianmission.org/story/pt-0521-editor/
The Power of Spirit Wind - from Presbyterians Today
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EVANSVILLE IN PERMIT NO. 909
First Presbyterian Church 609 South East Second Street Evansville, IN 47713-1107
May and June Birthdays
MAY Tamara Labhart 1 Becky Sparks-Thissen 2 Dan Wagemann 3 Calvin Josenhans 3 Scott Wylie 5 Robert Nicholls 5 Travis Dickison 6 Alice McKinney 7 Helen Sponseller 9 Cameron Cross 11 Debbie Meyer 12 Erin Carver 15 Landon Whitler 16 Kate McKinney 19
Ashley McReynolds 21 Dorothy Becker 22 Melissa Whitler 22 Eli Underwood 22 Ryan Bassemier 24 Avery McDaniel 24 Wally Paynter 26 Cindy Shelton 26 Winston Murphy 26 Sarah Groves 27 Matt Qualls 28 Julie Langerak 30 Karla Uhde 31 Carolyn Jones 31
JUNE Don Qualls 2 Dick Bernhardt 5 Katelin Hills 5 Joy Pullen 7 Terri Dunsterville 9 Cathy Edrington 10 Andrew Korb 10 Sophia Henson 13 Max Haynie 14 Alex Ward 14 Douglas Kirk 15 Marla Kercher 16 Lynne Thissen 16 Jane Stalions 17
Nan Hardin 18 Katie Parker 18 Jacqueline Pennington 19 Wes Blalock 20 Tyler John 20 Lucas John 20 Tom Kohlmeyer 22 Bill Brubeck 23 Tom Boyle 24 Cydney Wathen 24 Paul Blaylock 25 Maxwell Carver 26 Sue Korb 26 Tracy Shaw 30 Georgia Shaw-Pullen 30
