 After worship Sunday, July 30, The Building Committee will present the current proposed plans for our upcoming building remodel. Learn all about the MUCC updates, see how close we are to construction and ask questions. This will give you an opportunity to visualize the exciting transformations!
All are welcome. Beloveds, It is with a full heart that I write to share the news that I will be leaving McFarland UCC this fall to serve as the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Council of Churches. I have said to you for some time that I had no plan or intention of leaving unless God's Holy Spirit called me elsewhere. It seems - as we sing in our doxology - 'the Spirit has been moving in my heart,' preparing me for this new ministry. When I leave, I will continue and broaden the work I have undertaken among you here in McFarland. The common ministry of the Wisconsin Council of Churches focuses on church unity, peacemaking, social and economic justice for Wisconsin's most vulnerable residents, and revitalizing congregations. I want you to know that serving as your pastor these past seven years has been one of the greatest joys of my life. You have shaped me into the pastor that I am. You opened your hearts, listened to my stories and shared yours with me. There has been laughter, fingerpaint, confetti (ok, lots of confetti), general messiness, and grace for all the times of cleaning up. You allowed me, in so many holy moments, to remind you that you are a beloved child of God. The months ahead will have time for grief at leavetaking - space for holy tears if you need them - and time for celebrating what we have accomplished in ministry together. I am ready to receive whatever it is you need to express. Know that we will still be pastor and congregation together through October 15th. There will be opportunities to break bread (and run to the communion table), tell stories, sing and make noise, and bless one another. Our building project continues, as does our giving challenge! There are babies being born, new families to welcome into the faith community, and things to learn about our faith every day. After I leave, the congregation's leadership and representatives from the wider church will guide you through conversations about what's next. I believe, with all my heart, the future of McFarland UCC can be as vibrant as our years together have been. You have all the wisdom and heart of each other, and God's Spirit to lean on. Christ stands with us at every crossroads. My great hope for these final months together is that we can keep showing up for one another,passionate about our shared ministry, being the real, messy people that we are. Peace and blessings, Pastor Kerri Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the Gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us.  Text: John 10:25-37 Gospel from Broadway: RENT Speaker: Dana Crumpton, Sunday July 2, 2017 Reflections on the Good Samaritan and the song "525,600 Minutes" from the musical RENT. (for a video of Dana's presentation, CLICK HERE) 525,600 Minutes!We all have the same number of minutes in a day or in a year, I have two questions for you to consider:
How are we using those minutes? Are we using them the way Jesus wants us to live? The song Seasons of Love is perhaps one of the most well-recognized parts of the musical Rent. It is sung in gospel style and presents one of the main concepts presented in the musical. Quite simply, it asks the listener, "How do you measure a year in the life?" By listing various ways in which the value of the 525 600 minutes that make up a year could be measured ("In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee..."), it causes us to question where we find value in our own lives and in the lives of others. It then goes on to suggest that you should "...measure your life in love". This message of love and celebrating life is integral to the spiritual message that can be found in Rent. In the scripture, the lawyer asked Jesus how to measure his life to know if he was doing what was “required”. Jesus proceeds in telling about the Good Samaritan. If the song “Seasons of Love” gives an answer about how to measure your life. The answer is the essentially the same as Jesus’ answer…. Love! The one character of rent that I would like to focus on is the character of Angel, she could be described simply as a Good Samaritan or as a "messianic figure" within the story. Angel challenges societal norms, as she is a homosexual drag queen (which may be considered immoral to some) but she is one of the most selfless, compassionate characters presented. In his article, RENT: Reinterpreting the Gospel of Mark at the Close of the Millennium, George Scranton provides an interesting interpretation of Angel's role. In his interpretation, Angel is a Christ-like figure. She initially arrives on Christmas Eve to heal a wounded stranger. She forms a family of "...'outcasts,' bohemians, and 'sinners'..." The song La Vie Boheme can be viewed as the Last Supper. Whether a representation of Christ or an angel only in a figurative sense, Angel displays selflessness and supports others throughout the story. She is eager to share what little money she does have and maintains a positive outlook while facing illness. For this reason, she is representative of the spiritual and moral message present in Rent and the Good Samaritan. I want to tell you about these two men with an age difference of 30 years between them. The first man is around 50 years of age and is facing a life ending health issue. While going through treatments he finds himself looking back over his lifespan and wondering how will people remember him when he is gone. While looking at old photos of his childhood and throughout his life he starts to remember events, the good and the bad. He remembers that one tragic day when he was 3 and he lost his mother, he remembers growing up and being so angry at god for taking his mom from him. But, then he remembers the woman you took him in, his grandmother, and raised him to be the man he is today. Looking back, he realizes that this was the first time he saw Jesus and the Good Samaritan. As he is remembering these events he sees that each time there was a good Samaritan. As a teen, the man was bullied and there were people who looked the other way or didn’t want to get involved. He remembers many a night of crying himself to sleep because the bulling was so bad, in one year he switched high schools 3 times to get away from it. That's when he started to see his “Angels” or Good Samaritans all around him in total strangers and friends Especially when he came out as gay! When he was ready to talk to someone he was very scared, he was 18 getting ready to go into the Navy and he knew deep down he was gay. The first people he talked too was 2 of his good friends who were brother and sister. He didn't know how they would react when he told them, but they were very supportive which made him feel a lot better and was a load off his back. His grandmother and some family members have always been supportive of him over the years. In 1984 AIDS had already taken 4251 people in the U.S., President Ronald Reagan had not even mentioned the word AIDS in public, and there was nowhere for people to turn to for help in the southern town he grew up in! So, it was up to friends to help friends. Over the years this man has lost so many friends to AIDS and he has met many new friends that are positive and living fulfilling lives. The second man is a lot younger then the first and when their paths crossed 4 years ago in an unlikely place, a youth camp, each one had a Jesus moment. The 2 man was sharing his story of bulling to the group and the 1st man was reliving the years he went through the same thing. It wasn’t until a year later when their paths crossed again that they start talking and the first man realized that he was the second man’s Good Samaritan just by being there and listening and being a sounding board. Both men have been there for each other across the miles to give each other support. Sometimes all it takes is a quick message or phone call to be a Good Samaritan or be “Angel” for someone. In - five hundred twenty-five thousand Six hundred minutes How do you measure A year in the life! I ask you again How are we using those minutes? Are we using them the way Jesus wants us to live? |
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5710 Anthony Street, McFarland WI 53558 Can't make it to worship with us? Visit our Facebook page for prayer opportunities & links. We are proud to be an Open and Affirming Congregation of the United Church of Christ.
Whoever you are, wherever you are on life's journey, you are welcome here! 
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Office Hours: Wednesdays & Thursdays 9am - 1pm (Or by appointment) Office Phone: (608) 838-9322 Office Email: office@mcfarlanducc.org Pastor Bryan Sirchio Pastor Email: pastorb@mcfarlanducc.org Pastor's Cell: (608) 577-8716 |
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