Author: Execdir

Happy New Year folks. Things are starting out quite joyous for a couple of our Fellowship Congregations. The Third Church of Middletown CT has called The Rev. Dr. Daniel Schlorff. Daniel is a native Hooser who is delighted to have received the call to Third Congregational Church of Middletown. He will begin on March 1, 2023. (See bio below). Florence Congregational Church of Florence MA has called Rev. Dr. Marisa Egerstrom to their pulpit encouraged by her vision and passion for “out of the box” twenty-first century ministry strategies (See bio below). Many of you met her at the 2022 fall Fellowship meeting held at Third Church of Middletown. She shared some of her wisdom and theological reflections on the future of the American Protestant Church.

Several pastors and delegates of the Fellowship responded to the invitation to participate in the ordination service for the now Rev. Wendy Tarry of North Branford CT on January 7th. The service was a truly joyous and amazing experience as we celebrated with the congregation. We enjoyed a delightful reception following the service. North Branford Congregational has expressed strong interest in becoming a member of the Fellowship with hopes to be welcomed officially at the May meeting coming up on the 21st at the First Congregational Church of Waterbury. They are already provisional members of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches (the NACCC).

Last week I was wonderfully surprised to have sixteen churches login to the Executive Committee meeting held monthly on Thursday evenings. This represents half of the thirty-two member churches and is a first since moving to Zoom meetings. I was very encouraged by the energy and enthusiasm of the delegates present at the meeting, and the growing interest in the work of the Fellowship.

Most recently I had the opportunity to visit the First Congregational Church of Waterbury. You may recall, Waterbury left the UCC to join the Fellowship last May. Following the worship service, beautifully led by Rev. Dennis McGuire, I conversed with several members of the congregation who noted their growing appreciation for the Fellowship’s work and commitment to the Congregational Way. The Moderator, Gary Post noted his gratitude to the attention of the Fellowship to his church. I also met with and shared information with a member regarding the Lay Ministry Program offered through the National Association. Believing he is being called into ministry, he hopes to engage with the program that we as a Fellowship sponsor through scholarships.

Rev. Dr. Daniel Schlorff:

Daniel’s undergraduate education comes from Olivet Nazarene University, where he majored in Philosophy and Religion and minored in Greek, Vocal Performance, and Biblical Studies. Originally a minister in the Church of the Nazarene, Daniel did some soul-searching and eventually found his way to the Congregational Way. His theological education comes from the University of Chicago Divinity School through Meadville/Lombard, where he also completed an internship at Fourth Congregational Church of Chicago (which is a church associated with the NACCC). He took a few years off studying to teach at Carthage College and the University of Wisconsin—Parkside, both in Kenosha, WI. While teaching undergrads, Daniel also resumed his professional ministerial career in Children’s and Youth Ministry as well as chaplaincy, which brought him to Connecticut in 2009.

He completed a second master’s degree at Hartford Seminary in Religious Studies, bridging the major traditions of world philosophies and religions with chaplaincy. After completing a 1,600 clinical hour fellowship as a chaplain, he started down the path of being a professional healthcare chaplain. Daniel then completed the Doctor of Ministry degree in Pastoral Care and Counseling at Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, CA.

In 2015, he started a church in New Haven, pastoring it until 2021 when it was ready to minister to the community without the “training wheels” Daniel had offered it. He then ended up back in healthcare chaplaincy, taking a part-time position as Chaplain at Connecticut Valley Hospital, just on the other side of Middletown.

These days, Daniel’s ministerial affiliation is with the Alliance of Baptists, and he maintains very close ecumenical and interfaith ties with other denominations and religions. Aside from ministry, Daniel sings in Yale Repertory Chorus and Yale Camerata, plays the bass for the American Chamber Orchestra, and loves on “Browser,” his boxer.

Rev. Dr. Marisa Egerstrom: Marisa is an Episcopal priest, artist, writer, and wilderness lover. She began her ministry in 2011 in the camps of Occupy Wall Street as the founder of the Protest Chaplain movement. She spent four years at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Boston’s South End as the Christian Education coordinator. After completing divinity school at Harvard in 2016, she was ordained in 2017, and served as Priest-in-Charge in Holyoke, Massachusetts, until 2020.

Marisa’s master’s thesis proposed a theory of “moral harm diffusion” by which systematic injustices committed on behalf of a people (such as state torture or mass incarceration) injure the compassionate and relational capacities of even the most privileged citizens. She completed her Ph.D. in American Studies at Harvard in 2021, where she wrote on the history of American uses of torture in the War on Terror.  Marisa has also worked as a spiritual director for young adults and as a hospital chaplain.

Marisa’s current art and spirituality project, Tender Fire Studio, is an avenue for exploring post-petroleum methods of woodworking and larger questions of climate change, grief, and joy. Skiing in the trees and dancing to live music are two of her favorite methods of prayer.

I look forward to visiting with many of you in the coming months. It is a joy to meet so many devoted disciples of Christ and to work with you as you envision and plan your journey into this soon coming post-COVID world.

May your journey into 2023 be blessed abundantly by God’s love and embrace.

Irven

I think that the older I get time seems to speed up. Where did the summer go? Can you believe it is already November? The trees are dropping the last of the colorful leaves. I have had to scrape the frosty windshield of the car a dozen times. The daylight continues to grow shorter.

In just a few weeks, most of us will gather at a table with family and friends to celebrate harvest time although only a few of my friends and family actually plant a garden these days. As we draw near to Thanksgiving, we do want to thank our creator for the many blessings we experience every day. Gratitude is always necessary.

A few days after Thanksgiving we will begin our journey of Advent beginning Sunday the 27th. We celebrate this season of anticipation of the Hope, Love, Joy, Peace and Light that we find in Christ Jesus. This is the perfect time for us to reflect on our busy year, our accomplishments, our successes, our challenges and evaluate what we can do to improve and approach life’s challenges differently.

What might God be calling us to change in our routines and habits? Maybe God is calling us to a new task? Maybe we need to invest a little more of our energy and time in the work of the church? While I sometimes grumble about the short days, frost and limited solar warmth, I do enjoy the changing seasons and beauty that each bring. Each season offers new opportunities of discovery and growth that we can draw upon to become stronger and more vibrant in the days to come.

Both my grandmothers taught me to be thankful at all times. Thankful for the breath within my lungs, food within the refrigerator and kitchen cupboards, warm clothing, and heat within our home. In addition, we are to be thankful for creation and God’s engagement in it and our lives. We are to be patient and prepare for God’s call. Gram said that our faith is strengthened in our waiting. We must trust God to give us what we need, when we need it, and in the perfect way that will bless our lives with the fruits of the Spirit.

As you live out these last two months of 2022, be especially mindful of God’s engagement in your lives. Reflect on what you need to accomplish before the year ends and what God is calling you to do in the new one. What can you do to bless the Lord and creation?

May God bless you with an amazing abundance of love and joy… and may you bless others in your journey of life and faith.

Truly, the greatest of these is Love! We gathered for the first hybrid NA Annual Meeting that provided for the adventurous attendee who would dare travel to Wichita KS in the heat of the blazing sun and the cautious attendee making use of Zoom technology from the comfort of their own home. It was an awesome in-person gathering that featured great hospitality by both the host committee and staff of the Drury Hotel. Along with some interesting and informative workshops and short purposeful business sessions, the meeting featured three talks reflecting upon the theme from 1st Corinthians 13. Additionally, our beloved Rev. Dr. Ashley Cleere shared an insightful Congregational talk that reminded us of our heritage, but also challenged us to think big and outside the box to our future (a common theme for us visionaries).

Diana Butler Bass [Love of God] spoke to the Love of God intriguing us with notes on God’s desire to be in relationship with us. She dovetailed notes from her latest book, Freeing Jesus: Rediscovering Jesus as Friend, Teacher, Savior, Lord, Way, and Presence (Paperback – March 8, 2022). Bass, born in 1959 is an American historian of Christianity and an advocate for progressive Christianity.  She is currently an independent scholar who writes on American religion and culture, and the author of eleven books, many of which have won research or writing awards. Some of you may have read her books in seminary.

Valarie Kurr [Love of Neighbor] passionately spoke of our need to engage in the work of loving our neighbor in these trying times. Her pleas moved many to tears as she spoke of the harsh realities of our current cultural crisis in the U.S. She spoke of the need for revolutionary love. This is also very present on her website: https://valariekaur.com She shares, “This is a place for anyone who feels breathless. Your breathlessness is not a sign of your weakness; it is a sign of your bravery. It means that you are awake to what’s happening right now: The world is in transition. Out of this darkness, we have a chance to birth a new world — a healthy, multiracial, and sustainable future. But we need you to last. Your life matters. Your voice matters. You have a role to play. This is a place to nourish and equip you. Here you will find tools to practice revolutionary love — love for others, opponents, and ourselves — to transform the world around you and within you. It’s a practice that offers longevity, resilience, and joy. It begins with wonder.”

Mihee Kim-Kort [Love of Self] is a Princeton Theological Seminary alum, and is co-pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Annapolis, Maryland along with her spouse Andrew Kort. “During her undergraduate studies at the University of Colorado in beautiful Boulder, she joined various Christian fellowship groups and majored in Religious Studies and English Literature. It was during this time, and then in seminary that she began to experience a shift from traditional evangelicalism to a progressive, inclusive faith focused on God’s Good News in the here and now as expressed through social justice.” _{https://www.ministrymatters.com/worship/author/mihee_kim_kort} Kort reflected on this journey and reminded us attendees of the need to pay attention to ourselves in the mandate set up by Jesus: To love our neighbors as ourselves.

Sunday morning featured a short bus ride to Plymouth Congregational Church to worship with the members of both Plymouth and the other Annual Meeting host church, University Congregational Church. This service featured amazing music, singing, preaching and communion with 300 plus voices praising God.

Dear friends and colleagues,

It was pure joy to finally get to celebrate with you on May 15th at our annual meeting. Finally, we were able to gather as a Fellowship after a long two and a half years of restrictions, isolation, and unease due to the COVID pandemic. Again, this was a beautiful moment in time as we journeyed to Preston City Congregational Church to meet and greet one another in Christian love. The day was warm and cooled by a summer breeze (keeping the bugs at bay). Mindful of the possibility of post COVID fears, we met beneath a pavilion in the “Field of Dreams” behind the church where the refreshing air and ample spaciousness could alleviate concerns. Guests were welcomed to sit at tables decorated with special placemats created by the host church administrator, Sandy Dudek. The placemat featured our keynote speaker, The Rev. Dr. Ashley Cleere, the Executive Director of the National Association.

Following an informal time of gathering, we began with an enlightening and well-expressed keynote address by Dr. Cleere. She shared notes of her interactions with churches across the country as the new (less than one year) Executive Director of the NA. More importantly, she reminded us of the uniqueness of being Congregational including our kinship with the bold and daring Mayflower Pilgrims. Dr. Cleere asked the question many of us have heard, “What defines American Congregationalism?” She says we start with churches. Quoting her remarks,

From time to time, I am asked, particularly by Christians in more structured church bodies, most recently by an Episcopalian: what is the unifying thread of Congregationalism? My short reply: the autonomy of the local church. What ties us together is our acceptance of our differences, our belief that each congregation is unique. It has been said,” she remarked, “that to know one NACCC church is to know one NACCC church. We Congregationalists cherish our ability to self-govern. We also are committed to connecting with and supporting other congregations. These intertwining principles – local church autonomy and voluntary fellowship with other churches – are the core of the Congregational Way.”

Dr. Cleere’s words clearly demonstrated her understanding of our belief in the autonomy of the local church. She continued for most of 45 minutes sharing notes of her role as the Executive Director and the desired role of the NACCC in assisting the member local churches. She has shared many notes with me about her desire to really connect the NA churches across the country. She has noted that we are fortunate here in the Northeast in several ways: one, we are fairly close to one another compared to the churches in the Midwest and West; and two, we have resources to help one another.

She and I have talked extensively about the beauty of our associations, both the NACCC and FNCCC. She agrees with me that the only thing standing in the way of beautiful and amazing relationships with one another is our autonomy. Sometimes, while a great blessing compared to the governing structures of other traditions, our autonomy can keep us stranded and alone. We miss the opportunity to bless one another with nurture, love, and care.

It is my hope that we can become more engaged with one another as we journey forward post COVID. I look forward to visiting and sharing the stories of other fellow Pilgrims in the near future. I am here to assist you in your journey and help connect you to the wonder and beauty of other congregations in our Fellowship and the NA. Please do not hesitate to contact me.

Best, Irven

I was blessed to preach at Third Church Middletown on Easter. I witnessed an awesome moment when members of the church came forward to place flowers on the cross representing the beauty of the new day, the third day Jesus spoke of when he would arise. Decorating the cross – symbolizing the shift from the agonizing death of Jesus on Good Friday to his resurrection on Easter morning bringing new hope for the future. I believe that in reliving this event each Easter we are reminded not to allow the darkness and chaos of our current world events space in our hearts, but rather to celebrate new life, hope, love, and joy as we seek peace for our world in Jesus Christ.

Music and singing are essential elements of Congregational worship today. I have heard it’s often said that “music is the universal language” that unifies people of diverse backgrounds, cultures, traditions, theology and economic status. It is one way we can praise our God lifting the vibes of our hearts and our thoughts to our creator with voices collectively singing sweet melodies of love.

Third Congregational church of Middletown Connecticut is pastored by The Rev. Julie Olmsted who began serving as the Interim mid-March of this year. Rev. Julie asked me to preach Easter Sunday as she fell ill during Holy Week. I was pleased to assist and appreciated the opportunity to serve Christ on this most holy day. May you always carry the joy and hope of Easter in your hearts throughout the year.

Blessings, Irv

Dear Brothers and Sisters (Delegates and Pastors),

The Annual Spring Annual Meeting is “in person” at Preston City Congregational Church in Connecticut. This is the first in person meeting since the beginning of the pandemic. I hope you will seriously plan to attend. Sandy Dudek, the church administrator and I have been working on this “celebration” since the first of the year. I am sure that many of you have missed the wonderful gatherings of the Fellowship.

I have invited some special people to share with us including our National Association’s Executive Director, Ashley Cleere who has brought amazing new energy and vision to the NA. I have also invited representatives from the Bombyx Center for Arts and Equity nonprofit now housed at the Florence Congregational Church to share their vision presented to the church last summer. This group is bringing a unique transformation to the church and community of Florence. Sandy has arranged for a delightful chicken barbeque for our dinner. This includes salads, drinks, and a delicious dessert. If you are possibly worried about the residual effects of COVID, we are planning to meet outside in the pavilion which is a large open structure in the “Field of Dreams” at the church with lots of fresh air.

This is the official “Call to Meeting” of both the Fellowship of Northeast Congregational Christian Churches and the Ecclesiastical Society of Connecticut Congregational Christian Churches entities which are held simultaneously.

Here is the lineup of the afternoon of May 15th:

3:00pm Gathering and Missionary Tea (and coffee)

3:30pm Executive Director of NA, Rev. Dr. Ashley Cleere -words of greeting and vision

4:15pm Cofounders of Bombyx Center for Arts and Equity -sharing the ideas and vision for the Florence Congregational Church space. I have observed and participated in this transformation. It is an amazing time for the church. It is reuniting the church with the community and creating a new energy source for the membership.

5:00pm FNCCC Annual Meeting agenda (short and sweet)

5:30pm Preston City Congregational sponsored barbecue dinner

6:15-6:30pm depart for home

The May 15th meeting agenda is simple: We need to vote on the 2022-2023 budget recommended by the Executive Committee and presented by Treasurer Doug Loux and hopefully approve a couple of proposals from the committee.

If your church has a request or suggestion for this gathering, please forward notes to me prior to May 8th. I look forward to your in-person presence at this meeting on the 15th. Please do plan to come and represent your church.

Please RSVP me by May 1st with the number of people attending from your church. Please also note any allergies. As usual, your donation of $10 per person will defray the cost of the dinner. Please email me with your reservation for this grand celebration of congregational life, soon: ExecDir277@Gmail.com

Thank you

Best,

Irven, Moderator of FNCCC

Last Sunday I enjoyed a special “Palm Sunday” Service at the Union Congregational Church of Oakville Connecticut.  Rev. Carmen Cavallaro, the senior pastor delivered a timely sermon beautifully connecting us to Jesus’ trek into Jerusalem.  His words carried us to the streets of Jerusalem that were filled with thousands of people who had journeyed to the city for Passover.   I truly felt like I was in the crowded streets of the city with people and animals all around me pressing against me as we moved about.  (I have been there and know just how crowded the streets are firsthand.)

Pastor Carmen sharing his joy with my wife Brenda and his wife Diane.  Carmen is by nature a joy filled pastor with a deep devotion to his work as a servant of Christ.

The front of the sanctuary was gorgeously decorated with Palms including the fan with candles.  Each week a candle is extinguished as we Christians draw near to the cross where Jesus would give up his life for us.

A close up of the beautiful fan of palms

Pastor Carmen serves a flock of amazing people who are engaging and very interested in the lives of visitors.  Brenda and I were warmly welcomed.  Additionally, there was a very young boy in the service who made very joyful sounds of praise to the Lord.  He is truly a recognized blessing to the congregation. 

Best, Irven