On April 9 & 10, 2011 Faith Congregational United Church of Christ, Hartford, Connecticut traveled to Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ, Washington, DC to continue planning for a progressive, constructive and collaborative mission with Haiti. In this video you will hear from members of Plymouth and Faith; Ms. Fravia Marquez Silva, 2nd. Secretary, Political Affairs, Venezuelan Embassy; and Mr. Saleem Khalid, Communications Director, Islamic Relief, USA. Each have aid interests in Haiti. The churches are planning a discerning mission for September or October 2011.

 

This teaching is based on Exodus 17.1-7.  Under Moses the people are moved from enslavement to freedom and they start to complain about everything.  It is obvious from the text that the people had become conditioned to their oppression and freedom is truly a wilderness experience.

 

The Commandments are all over the biblical record and particularly in the Old Testament, but the real intentions of these commandments is that human beings may learn to live in just relations with one another. The scriptures teaches us to memorize the commandments; teach them and learn them; internalize them; and then to put what we have internalized into action. But the intentions of the commandments are all about living justly in community and in the world.

Paul challenges the church in Corinth over its increasing divisions.  When I look at our nation today I see many divisions and these divisions are reasons that issues and problems cannot be solved.  We have red and blue states, Republicans and Democrats, progressives, liberals and conservatives and these distinctions simply keep us from addressing the issues at hand.

 

 

 On October 23rd and 24th members of Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ traveled to Hartford, Connecticut to fellowship with Faith Congregational United Church of Christ.  During that weekend members of the two congregations engaged in discussions to start a joint mission in Haiti with the Haitian people.  This video captures part of those discussions.  Helping to lead the discussion is Ezili Danto of the Haitian Lawyers Leadership Network. 

 

 Be A Blessing!  We each have within us the ability to be a blessing to someone else.  This video expounds on the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37 and references Deuteronomy 30:9-14).  We may not be rich or have an abundance of material resources, but the most important things are within us and we need to share that with the world.  Be A Blessing!

 

 

  Easter demonstrates to us that the ordinary is not ordinary nor the obvious obvious!  As we focus upon texts that speak to the Resurrection of Jesus we discover that they are not only text pertaining to the miracle of the resurrection but speaks to the immense possibilities that are opened to us in our own lives.  We often however accept the constrains and dictates that have been handed us in life rather than push through to those places that are not obvious.

 

 

Lent is a time where we prepare ourselves to meet the awesome event of the Resurrection. It is a period of six weeks or approximately 40 days where we are invited to the experience of Jesus being tempted in the wilderness. As we explore two scriptures, Isaiah 40:28-31 and II Corinthians 12:9-10, we are reminded of where our strength comes from. During this Lenten season I am inviting people to engage in study. If you are near Plymouth you are invited here every Thursday evening during Lent for reflection and teaching. Also, you are invited to our "On the Way to Resurrection Revival" with the Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. as our revivalist for March 10th, 11th and 12th, 2010.  

  We hope you will enjoy!
Blessings!