westwoodunited methodist church

E A S T E R 2 0 1 4

resurrections

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10497 Wilshire BoulevardLos Angeles, California 90024310 474-4511

www.westwoodumc.orgwww.TheLoftLA.org

Cover photo: Dreamstime.com

Edited & Produced by Gregory Norton

All rights reserved © 2014

A Better resurrectionThere is no other way to state it: the empty tomb is the foundation upon which

Christianity is built. The volumes of theology, the vast collections of doctrines and dogmas that have accumulated over almost two millennia all point to that baff ling/inexplicable/life changing/history altering event that the Gospel writers recorded long ago. On that first Easter morning, the women found an empty tomb. That empty tomb and its resurrection hope is what we celebrate every Easter and is what we will continue to proclaim and celebrate until the end of time. The power of the Easter message is its bold announcement that God’s love always prevails. We can never be separated from God’s love for us; it even triumphs over death.

This message of second chances never grows old. It does not matter from which walk of life we come, how cynical or optimistic we might be, how young or old, how rich or poor. Every person alive understands how profoundly different life can be when it is based in hope. This remarkable resurrection hope is not confined to some vague future event. It is here and now: little resurrections can take place in us in unexpected ways, more frequently than we might imagine.

An English poet of another era, Christina Rossetti (1830-1894), penned a work entitled “A Better Resurrection.” Our Chancel Choir has a musical setting of this poem in their repertoire. Its sentiment captures, so well, our need for resurrection – large and small:

I have no wit, no words, no tears; My heart within me like a stone Is numb’d too much for hopes or fears; Look right, look left, I dwell alone; I lift mine eyes, but dimm’d with grief No everlasting hills I see; My life is in the falling leaf: O Jesus, quicken me.

My life is like a faded leaf, My harvest dwindled to a husk: Truly my life is void and brief And tedious in the barren dusk; My life is like a frozen thing, No bud nor greenness can I see: Yet rise it shall—the sap of Spring; O Jesus, rise in me.

My life is like a broken bowl, A broken bowl that cannot hold One drop of water for my soul Or cordial in the searching cold; Cast in the fire the perish’d thing; Melt and remould it, till it be A royal cup for Him, my King: O Jesus, drink of me.

As you ref lect on the stories in this issue of our Spire Magazine, I invite you to revel in the Good News of the empty tomb and how it transforms the world – even here and now. —John Woodall, Senior Pastor

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In thIs Issue...

4 We Got It Right by Sherry Burch with Zach Burch

6 80,000 Meals: ...Now What?

8 Profile in Service: Donald & Roslyn Nelson by Bette Caldwell

9 Loft Leaders at TransFORM Event

10 One Man’s Dream Continues: by Gregory Norton

11 LIFE after Easter Save the dates!

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We Got it riGhtby Sherry Burch in conference with Zach Burch

“All ministries of Westwood UMC shall be available to all people.”

That sounds like a pretty simple statement, right? It sounds like a state-ment that doesn’t even need to be made – because it goes without saying. In this day and time, however, in our fractured denomination, this statement speaks boldly. I am incredibly proud to have been a part of bringing this resolution to pass along with the resolution that “The clergy of Westwood UMC are authorized to conduct same-gender weddings using church facilities.” The discussion we had at our Church Council retreat on March 1 was really just the culmination of conver-sations that many of us had been having individually about how we could support those individuals in our congregation who are being disenfranchised.

I firmly believe that we must stop standing by and letting others define what it means to live a Christian life, es-pecially if we completely disagree with their assessment. We see it all over the media and all over our larger church: people choosing to exclude others as “less than” based on some kind of bibli-cal interpretation. I’ve always loved the church but found myself, even as a teenager, seeking out a more inclusive church than the one I attended as a child.

I’ve always felt that Westwood was a very special, very inclusive place. My family has always felt welcome here. We feel that we can question and wonder and disagree and it is okay. This is very different from my Southern Baptist upbring-ing. My husband and I were taught, in Sunday school, that questioning was a sin. I think that was one of the

An Open Letter to the Members and Friends of Westwood UMC:

On Saturday, March 1, 2014, our Church Council was together for

a morning-long retreat. In our United Methodist tradition, the

Church Council are the elected leaders of the congregation who

are responsible for establishing and implementing the vision for the

mission and ministry of the church. It was a very productive time of

visioning and planning for a vital future here at Westwood. During

the morning together, the members of the council discussed how

important it was to align our words with our actions. A long-stand-

ing value is that ours is a church which “welcomes all people.” As a

result, the Church Council unanimously adopted two resolutions:

• All ministries of Westwood UMC shall be available to

all people.

• The clergy of Westwood UMC are authorized to con-

duct same-gender weddings using church facilities.

These actions were taken deliberately after a time of heartfelt shar-

ing and discussion. Indeed, the case can be made that our congre-

gation – and our beloved United Methodist Church – have been

discussing how to be in ministry with our gay and lesbian brothers

and sisters for four decades. We believe that among our goals is to

grow as a faith community that values and welcomes every child of

God. Most of us already experience Westwood UMC as that kind of

church.Thispublicaffirmationwillhelppositionourcongr

egation

to grow and thrive in the future.

The Church is at its best when it courageously speaks out of its

deepest beliefs and convictions. We are convinced that speaking

out for justice and grace is imperative at this moment. Our de-

nomination is deeply divided on same-gender marriage, in some

quarters even at the risk of self-destruction and irrelevance. Mean-

while, science, the laws of our state, the common experience of our

members, and the outlook of the community at large have ‘moved

on.’ Here in west Los Angeles, we choose to be in ministry with any

people who seek to make following Jesus a part of their committed,

loving relationships. To do otherwise would be at odds with our

Wesleyan theology, our biblical understanding, and this congrega-

tion’s heritage of forward-looking leadership.

The Christian Church has long struggled with how faith should

inform culture and how culture can inform faith. Our history has

shown that there are times when the church has been wrong and

too slow to respond to cultural change which is aligned with our

hope as followers of Jesus. We believe this is one of those times.

As we move into this new future, we ask for your prayers and your

continued commitment to being a place where we can love and

support one another, even if we are not always in total agreement.

That is part of what it means to be the beloved community.

In Christ’s Service,

John R. Woodall, Senior Pastor

Paul Rutter, President, Church Council

Karriann Farrell-Hinds & Janet Hoskins, Lay Leaders

Ellen Evans Agee, Gary Bosworth, Sherry Burch, Betty Holden,

Sharon Joyce, Gregory Norton, Keith Price, Jo Schiff,

Chris Spearman, Robert Wessling

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most important ideas that brought me to the United Methodist Church: that we can discuss ideas and work together and that everyone has a voice. I have never thought I must be or look a certain way to be accepted or to be a good Christian. I’ve never felt judged here. I’m lucky. We don’t need to look down on people because of race, gender, sexual ori-entation, economic status, political affiliation, or educa-tion levels.

In the Lenten class that I’m tak-ing right now with Pastor John and Mary Garbesi, we’re trying to write a Rule of Life. As we read and study what helps us to have better relationships with God, we find ideas for that rule. One idea that keeps sticking with me is that of treating everyone the way one would treat Christ if he were here; to see him in every person we meet. Our Church Council’s resolutions will help us to do just that.

We know of other churches that have passed similar resolutions. Imagine if this is the beginning of a wave of con-gregations that are ready to say “Yes!” to Jesus’ teachings of love and “No!” to the exclusionary statements written in the Book of Discipline. I really believe that we must answer to God and be on the right side of history here.

I must admit that I do have a “dog in this fight.” My son, Zach, is gay. He was baptized here at Westwood. He hunted Easter eggs in the courtyard and attended lock-ins at the church. He was

confirmed here, sang in children’s choirs and belonged to youth groups. He rebuilt homes on Sierra Service Project trips and represented our youth at the national Youth Alive in Atlanta when he was in high school, coming back shocked at how different those Methodists were. He stood in the pulpit on Youth Sunday his

senior year and gave part of the homily, again feeling comfortable enough to talk about some of the things he wasn’t sure about. He always assumed he would get married in our Sanctuary. So when he finally came to accept and understand who he truly is, a gay man, did that mean he was now to be a lower tier member of Westwood? Was he now to have access to most but not all of the ministries of the church? I asked Zach whether he even thought about what it would be like at church once he came out. He said that he didn’t really think about it at all – he has always felt so loved and cared for here. It just didn’t seem to be a problem.

I told Zach about the church trials that have been held for pastors that have

married gay couples in our denomina-tion. I was so ashamed; I couldn’t believe this was happening in my church. But I was also thrilled to let him know about the response that our Bishop Carcaño has made. The fact that she invited the Rev. Frank Schaefer* to come join us in our Annual Conference made sense to him. This is the United Methodist response that he understands.

When I walked out of the Church Council meeting on March 1, the first call that I made was to Zach. When I told him about the resolutions we passed, he was very happy. Again, he said that he really wanted to be able to get married in our Sanctuary where he spent his life growing up.

We got it right. With this resolution, we are just stating a fact that should be a statement in any house of God. “All min-istries shall be available to all people.”

Thanks be to God.

* Editor’s note: The Rev. Frank Schaefer, a clergy member of the Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference, was tried and found guilty of violating church law on November 18, 2013 after having officiated at the same-gender marriage of his son, Tim, in 2007. The conviction ultimately resulted in the removal of Rev. Schaefer’s credentials as a United Methodist clergy person.

Westwood member Sherry Burch currently serves on the Church Council as Chair of the Stewardship and Finance Committee, is a member of the Two or More... singing ensemble and the Mission Team.

One idea that keeps sticking with me

is that of treating everyone the way

one would treat Christ if he were here;

to see him in every person we meet.

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80,000 MeAls ...now what?

It started last summer when Westwood hosted its first Stop Hunger Now meal build in cooperation with our neighboring United Methodist churches in the Westside Churches Working Together mission area. That event was so successful that a second, “Westwood only,” build was held in January of this year. Over eighty thousand meals have been carefully bagged, sealed and boxed. The meal build is fun as an activity, and it has brought many members and friends together in Fellowship Hall. But now what? Where is all that food going?

Stop Hunger Now’s mission is in-spiring: To end hunger in our lifetime by providing food and life-saving aid to the world’s most vulnerable and by creating a global commitment to mobi-lize the necessary resources. Co-founded in 1998 by Ray Buchanan, a United Methodist clergyperson, the meal packaging program that has come to Westwood began in 2005. The total meals packaged is nearing 200 mil-lion, and they are strategically shipped around the world.

The infographic on the facing page tells some of the story. Hunger is an issue that faces us everywhere we turn – including here in west Los Angeles. It is exciting that our response can extend across the street, across the city and, with the partner-ship of Stop Hunger Now, across the globe.

The next Stop Hunger Now

meal packaging event will be held at Westwood Saturday, August 23, 2014

10:00 a.m. to noon including the Westside

Churches Working Together.

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GLOBALIMPACTPackaged meals

and other aid that Stop Hunger Now provides is

distributed by in-country partners that have been selected based on stringent criteria including their

ability to clear customs, transport (if necessary), securely store property

and prove accountability through regular communications and

reporting.

Inte

rnat

iona

l P

artnerships

Inte

rnat

iona

l P

artnerships

In 2012, Stop Hunger Now

shipped 101 ocean containers to its partners in

28 countries. Due to the efficient partnership-based

model, Stop Hunger Now does not have a physical

presence at the in-country level.

Stop Hunger Now meals consist

of rice, soy protein, dried vegetables, and 21 essential

vitamins and minerals, which are distributed through developmental

programs such as schools, public health programs, skills training and orphanages that provide

holistic support to break the cycle of poverty.

Feeding Programs

Feeding Programs

Meals are

designed to provide the greatest nutritional

value in the most efficient, shelf-stable package to reverse the effects of malnutrition on

children and adults. Stop Hunger Now also

provides meals in response to crisis relief.

Don

ated

G

oods & Products

In 2012, Stop Hunger Now sent

more than $7 million worth of donated goods

to people in need around the world via

40 shipments to 13 different countries.

Don

ated

G

oods & ProductsDonated

products include items such as medicine, medical

supplies, equipment, soap, and vitamins, that can prevent the spread

of disease and greatly improve the lives of those receiving them. Stop

Hunger Now receives these essential supplies through bulk donations of

new goods from corporations, USAID, charitable partners

and private donors.

Cash Grants

Stop Hunger Now also provides

capacity-building cash grants to help empower partners to

purchase everything from cooking pots, to roofs, to storage

for the meals. In 2012, Stop Hunger Now

provided more than $111,000 in

grant funding.

Monitoring &

Evaluation

Direct impact results for meals and

other aid are determined several ways. Reports from

in-country partners are submitted which include details on how meals

and other aid were distributed, as well as metrics such as meal recipients’

height and weight, malnutrition statistics, school curriculum

completions, etc. Partners also share anecdotal

information.

Monitoring &

EvaluationStop Hunger Now

assesses partners’ need to receive food, ensures it gets

to those who need it, and monitors and evaluates its impact.

In 2012, through a partnership with the UNC–Chapel Hill Gillings School of

Global Public Health, Stop Hunger Now created a new framework for monitoring and evaluating

the distribution of meals and other programs with in-country partners.

615 Hillsborough Street, Suite 200 Raleigh, North Carolina 27603 888.501.8440 stophungernow.org

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DonAlD AnD roslyn nelsonby Bette Caldwell

“Service beyond self ” aptly describes Don and Roslyn Nelson, who became members of Westwood United Method-ist Church in 1956, nearly sixty years ago. Each of them has served the church in many voluntary capacities.

Bruins from the startDon and “Roz,” as her friends call her, met in the registra-

tion line at UCLA one summer day preceding their freshmen year. Although arriving from different cities, (Roz from Hol-lywood and Don from San Diego) they shared a common interest: mathematics, which became their declared majors.

Following their graduations from UCLA, Don’s career choice was accounting. He joined Deloitte and Touche. Now one of the largest pro-fessional service organiza-tions in the world, Deloitte offered Don a rich and rewarding career during which he traveled around the world and built relationships with a number of companies and organizations. He remained with the company for forty years, retir-ing in 1989. He was active in professional organizations and served as President of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants in 1983.

Don assisted the firm in becoming the auditor of UCLA’s Alumni Association and sat on the UCLA Foundation Board for a few terms in the 1970’s. At that time, he became ac-quainted with Chancellor Franklin Murphy and other Univer-

sity leaders. Don was a Charter Member and Chairman of the Franklin Murphy Associates (now the Chancellor’s Associates) at UCLA

Don is also an active member of the Westwood Village Rotary Club. Through Rotary, Don attends weekly meetings at the UCLA Faculty Center. He and his fellow Rotarians sup-port local and international humanitarian projects, including building clean water pumps in developing countries, support-ing underserved families across the city of Los Angeles, build-ing homes in Mexico, and working to eradicate polio, among other ventures.

a commitment to learningRoz chose education as her career, following in the foot-

steps of her mother and grandmother. She taught math at Bancroft Junior High School in Hollywood but left

public school teaching after two years to raise their two daughters. Her love of teaching,

however, carried over to our church’s Sun-day School where she co-taught the third

grade class with Mary Frances Cox for about five years in the late 1950’s. She later served as Sunday School Superin-tendent for several years. In addition to working with the Sunday School

program, Roz chaired the Administra-tive Board during Bill Hobbs’ tenure as

Senior Pastor and also chaired the Para-ments Committee. Don and Roz believe

strongly in the Christian Education program at Westwood UMC and it was one of the reasons that

they initially were drawn to this church.Shortly after Don retired, one of their daughters and her

three daughters (ages 3, 5, and 7) moved in with Roz and Don. They stayed for fourteen years! Don and Roz cared for their granddaughters while their daughter obtained a teach-ing credential at UCLA She is now a kindergarten teacher at a local private school. Don remembers, with fondness, taking

P R O F I L e I n

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the youngest granddaughter to our church’s preschool for several years. Years later, all three of their granddaughters had wonderful experiences participating in the Sierra Service Project; a reason that Don and Roz continue to support that program. About that same time, Don volunteered to become the Church Treasurer, following Mac McKenzie. He held that position for fourteen years until our present Treasurer, Keith Price, volunteered. Don also served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees for three years during the 1980’s and again during the Belmont Village construction period.

Beyond the walls of the church The Nelsons have been delivering Meals on Wheels to

homebound seniors in West Los Angeles each week for nearly eleven years. This commitment was the result of a challenge that Sharon Rhodes-Wickett made in one of her sermons: “to get involved in helping other people.” While raising her fam-ily, Roz volunteered for the Junior League of Los Angeles and the Nine O’Clock Players of the Assistance League of South-ern California. Additionally, she served as Chairman of the House Board for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority. She felt a strong attachment to this sorority, having performed with her sorority sisters in the annual Spring Sing at UCLA each year and having served as the sorority’s Treasurer during her college years.

Roslyn summed up the Nelsons’ belief in a simple statement: “Our volunteer work is important to us and very rewarding.” To this, I would like to say a powerful “AMEN” and thank Don and Roslyn Nelson for sharing their gifts and talents with so many people throughout the years. We are truly blessed by such caring and dedicated people!

Bette Caldwell is Assistant Principal, Secondary Counseling Ser-vices, at San Pedro High School. She has served as Editor of The Spire and the Los Angeles District page of Circuit West, as well as Chi State News, a publication of The Delta Kappa Gamma Society International. She has been a member of Westwood UMC since 1964.

loft leADers AttenD TransFOrM event

According to leading author and Christian thinker Phyllis Tickle, “There is probably no more pressing matter facing the Church right now than the need to establish missional communities that will both live/be/carry the Word within the larger community we call ‘the culture’ and, at the same time, serve as a place of union and shared activity between established churches and emergence Christianity.” The Loft, now in its second year of exis-tence at Westwood UMC, is one of this faith community’s responses to that challenge. Having successfully launched, now it is time to envision the “next steps” in the growth of this vital ministry.

At the end of March, Bo Sanders and Chris Spearman were joined by seven other leaders from The Loft in attend-ing the annual gathering of TransFORM, an international, trans-denominational missional community formation network. In addition to gaining inspiration from speakers and learning from others working in similar settings, The Loft leaders were also seeking ways to strengthen their own community. “It was an opportunity to hear from other missional communities while intention-ally ref lecting on the work The Loft is doing and what direction we want to move in,” said Westley Garcia from The Loft delegation.

The group returned with stronger ties to one another, stronger ownership of the work that is already in place at The Loft, and with new directions for going forward. According to Westley, the conversation did not end with identifying internal challenges. “Through multiple con-versations we were able to isolate areas of need within our community and articulate ways in which to begin address-ing them.”

“It’s fascinating how connected you become with people when you share a car ride from the west side to San Diego. There’s something about being locked in a car with three other people that encourages conversation, ref lection on common experiences, and all-around fellowship.”

The Shaffer Memorial Organ was the brainchild of Charles Shaffer, who was also the principal donor who made the instrument possible. Charles dreamed of a large and musically color-ful organ that would lead worship in the beauty of Westwood’s Sanctuary. But he also dreamed of a concert organ, one that could be used to present compelling and entertaining programs from the vast rep-ertoire of music for organ. That dream led to the founding of what has become an annual tradition at Westwood: the Summer Organs Concert Series.

Charles envisioned these concerts as opportunities for showcasing the talents of local organists on three summer Sun-day afternoons at at time of year when the Los Angeles classical music scene is a bit less competitive for the attention of concertgoers. This year’s artists are not only among the city’s most skilled

organists, but each has other areas of musical

accomplishment as well. Westwood’s new staff organist,

Jaebon Hwang, will begin this year’s series

on Sunday, July 13. Before joining the Westwood staff last February, Jaebon served as Organ Scholar and Assistant Organist at First Congregational Church of Los Angeles, which is the home of the largest church pipe organ in the world. She earned a Bachelor of Music in com-position from Korea National University of Arts, and a Master of Arts in Scoring for Film & Multimedia from New York University and has a long list of credits and awards as a film composer. On July 27,

the series continues with John West. John is Organist/Music Di-rector at Hollywood United Methodist Church and is an active performer throughout the southland and beyond. He holds music degrees from Williamette University, in Oregon, and the New England Con-servatory. His musical interests extend beyond the world of the organ to Hol-lywood’s recording studios where he has sung on a number of soundtracks as well as appearing onscreen in many major releases. The series closes on August 10 with a program by Robert Hovencamp. Cur-rently the Organist-Choirmaster of St. Edmund’s Epis-copal Church in San Marino, Robert holds a bachelor’s degree from the Cincinnati Conservatory. An accomplished singer, he continued his postgraduate studies at Northwestern University in the vocal studio of Hermanus Baer, and the Lyric Opera Center for American Artists in Chicago. He was an international finalist in the Luciano Pavarotti Competition.

Although Charles Shaffer has passed on, his dreams continue

to be realized – both in the existence of the grand Shaffer Organ

and in the presenta-tion of these annual

organ concerts. Admission is free – plan to attend and invite your friends!

SUMMER ORGAN

CONCERT SERIES

Free, sixty-minute concerts

Performed on the landmarkShaffer Memorial Organ

Sunday, July 13, 2014 ~ 3 p.m.JAEBON HWANG

Organist, Westwood United Methodist Church

Sunday, July 27, 2014 ~ 3 p.m.JOHN WEST

Organist / Music Director Hollywood United Methodist Church

Sunday, August 10, 2014 ~ 3 p.m.ROBERT HOVENCAMPOrganist–Choirmaster,

St. Edmund’s Episcopal Church in San Marino

one MAn’s DreAM continues2014 Summer Organ Concerts Announcedby Gregory Norton

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L i f EaFTER EaSTER

W.O.W. (Wonders

of Westwood) luncheon

Monday, April 28

12:00 p.m.Fellowship Hall

Be a part of the fun! Delicious food, games,

and visitingwith old friends. Cost is $5/person.

RSVP by Sunday, April 27.

Follow Up Series

hoW the BiBle cAMe to BeIn Fellowship hall following 10:00 worship Led by Dr. Jerry Larsen A THREE-SESSION CELEBRATION OF GOD’S UNFOLDING MESSAGE OF HOPE AND JUSTICE AND HOW IT CAME TO BE WRITTEN AND PASSED ON TO HUMANITY TODAY.April 27 • A Time Line of the Hebrew Bible

Who wrote it? Why? Who edited it? When was it completed?

May 4 • A Timeline of the New TestamentWho wrote it? Why? Who edited it? When was it completed?

May 11 • Can we believe the Bible?

KAyAK trip to sAntA cruz islAnDSaturday, May 10Come out and play on a one-day adventure off the California Coast. Voted best ‘Bucket List’ Adventure by the Santa Barbara News Press, we’ll explore sea caves, frolic with the sea lions, and just hang out and have fun! All you need is a swim suit, sunscreen, and water shoes to join in. The trip requires moderate physical effort. The cost is approximately $160 (depending on numbers) and includes kayak rental, transportation and lunch. Space is limited andona“firstcome,firstserved”basis.If you would like to go, a commitment is needed no later than Thursday, May 1st.ContactChrisinthechurchofficeifyouhaveany questions.

happy easter

Westwood United Methodist Church10497 Wilshire Boulevard • Los Angeles, CA 90024

NON PROFIT ORGU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDLOS ANGELES, CAPERMIT No. 38190