Westminster members will be asked to submit their pledges for the 2001 church year during the worship service on Sunday, November 19. Pledges can also be delivered or mailed to the church at anytime.

Pledge Sunday represents a culmination of a process that was undertaken months ago by the Stewardship/Budget/Canvass Committee, co-chaired by Nancy Burton and Lois Wilson.

(The 2001 budget was scheduled to be presented and explained at a congregational meeting on October 29, after the Messenger deadline for this issue.)

The church budget for next year represents an increase of 13.2 percent over the 2000 budget. It includes funding for a full-time Minister of Music and Arts, and expected costs for recruitment of a new senior pastor, as well as a small increase for evangelism and outreach. The mission funding remains at 16 percent of the total budget, at the urging of the Mission Committee after it was cut in a first budget draft. The budget also reflects increasing costs for church operation, including heating, lighting and maintenance costs.

Pledge cards are being mailed to all parishioners, and members of the Canvass Committee will try to call everyone between Election Day and Pledge Sunday, to listen to everyone’s views and concerns and answer any questions people may have about the budget.

Annual Union Thanksgiving Service Will be Held November 21

This year’s Union Thanksgiving Service, observed together for many years by Westminster and three other churches, will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 21, at 7 p.m., at the First Unitarian Universalist Society of Albany. The church is located at 405 Washington Ave. in Albany.

Those who attend the annual service this year are being asked to bring donations for the Equinox Thanksgiving Dinner of apples, oranges, tangerines, canned pineapple rings, and store-bought pies.

Westminster has been participating in the Thanksgiving service since 1929, the year after a fire destroyed our building, and the congregation of Temple Beth Emeth invited us to share their space, then located at the corner of Swan and Lancaster Streets.

Temple members had earlier extended a similar refuge to Albany’s First Unitarian Society when its building was damaged by fire in the late 1890's.

In 1987 Trinity Methodist Church became a part of the annual joint Thanksgiving services, in recognition of the help it had received from Beth Emeth after a fire in the 1930's.

Over the decades, the services were held first on Thanksgiving mornings, then on Thanksgiving eves, and now two days before Thanksgiving to accommodate travelers.

The four churches take turns as hosts for the service. Next year’s will be at Temple Beth Emeth, and the 2002 service will be at Westminster.

From the Church Records

Baptism: 10/22/00 Peyton Sarfeh Slater, daughter of Evan and Jennifer Slater, granddaughter of Eve and Spencer Ryan.

Directory changes:

Virginia Moore

40 Autumn Drive #266

Slingerlands, New York 12159

453-9390

Carol Johnson

16 Meisner Avenue

Staten Island, New York 10306

(718) 979-5709

Frederick Greenleaf

55 Adirondack Lane

Plattsburgh, New York 12901

Lectionary for Lord's Day

November 2000

5 31^st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Ruth 1:1-18; Ps. 146

Heb. 9:11-14; Mark 12:28-34

12 32^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17; Ps. 127

Heb. 9:24-28; Mark 12:38-44

19 33^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

I Sam. 1:4-20; I Sam. 2:1-10

Heb. 10:11-14(15-18) 19-25;

Mark 13:1-8

26 Christ the King

2 Sam. 23:1-7; Ps. 132:1-12 (13-18)

Rev. 1:4b-8; John 18:33-37

Youth Fellowship

Pageant Planned for Dec. 24

It’s not too soon to begin preparing for our annual Christmas Pageant, to be held this year on Sunday, Christmas Eve, at morning worship. Our costumes are in need of some “updating,” so anyone who could help with some easy sewing is asked to call Sue Fedak at church.

Girls “Bowl Over” Boys

The team of Cara Brown, Karen Durgee, and Sue Fedak gave the team of Ben Wilhelm, Greg Wilhelm, and Greg Dwyer a smashing defeat at a September outing. Peter Brown was the swing player, bowling for both teams, and his high scores of 163 and 168 beat everyone else. Unfortunately, all the scores, as recorded on the back of a pizza plate, will be forever lost to posterity.

We are gearing up for a return visit to Latham Bowl for “Midnight Bowling for Mission Trip Money” in November. So if a WPC teen asks you for a pledge for a nickel, dime or quarter per pin knocked down, please add your name to their list. We will each bowl two games, and then each person will be responsible for collecting their money.

Christmas Sales Planned

As a fundraiser for the Youth Fellowship mission trip, our teens will be selling Christmas cards from UNICEF and handmade items from SERVV. UNICEF donates its profits for the care of underprivileged children throughout the world. (Westminster “trick or treated” for UNICEF for many years.)

SERVV helps crafters from poorer areas of the world get their wares into the larger marketplace so they can become more self-sufficient.

Both our youth group and these two service groups will be helped by your generous support. Please look for further details in the weekly church bulletin.

Mission Project Update

At the first youth group meeting in September, the teens were asked

where they would like to go for their mission project. Other than “far away,” there were no real destinations requested. So I explored REACH’s possibilities for 2001 and another youth organization, GROUP, for sites. I then spoke with FOCUS Pastor Deb Jameson and we decided to ask other youth advisors in the FOCUS churches if they would be interested in such a cooperative venture, and there was enthusiasm for this idea! However, we know that fundraising needs to be done and a choice of destination made. In December, our choice will be announced and we will have more details on the church groups that will join us.

We thank all who have supported us in the past with their prayers and contributions. We hope that our work on these mission projects is an extension of the generosity and love Westminster has for others.

We’re On Line!

With the advent of the new web site for Westminster, the youth have been asked to create their own page. We don’t know just what they’ll come up with yet, but please be sure to visit www.wpcalbany.org and look for it. (Any adult willing to help out with this project, please speak with me.)

Sue Fedak

The Messenger is published every month by the Westminster Presbyterian Church, 262 State Street (mailing address: 85 Chestnut Street), Albany, NY 12210. The deadline for submitting news and information is the 15^th of the month before publication. Please call Ann Treadway, Editor, if you would like to contribute to any issue or have suggestions for material to be included.

Westminster Choir to Perform Bach Cantata

The year 2000 marks the 250^th anniversary of the death of Johann Sebastian Bach, arguably the greatest composer of church music who ever lived. To signal the beginning of the season of Advent, and to commemorate the end of the current Bach anniversary year, the Westminster Choir will perform Bach’s Cantata 140 during the morning worship service on Sunday, December 3.

When he assumed the position of Cantor at the church of St. Thomas in Leipzig in 1723 (a position he held for the rest of his life), Bach had, as one of his primary responsibilities, the composition of church cantatas – extended works for soloists, instruments, and (in most cases) choirs – for every Sunday and feast day of the Christian year. In fact, over the course of several years, Bach wrote some 300 cantatas, of which about 200 survive.

Today, one of the most beloved of Bach’s cantatas is surely Cantata 140: “Wachet auf, ruft uns die stimme” (“Sleepers, Wake, for Night is Flying”). Based on Philip Nicolai’s great hymn of the same name, the cantata includes one of Bach’s most famous movements – a movement which the composer regarded highly enough to later recast as an organ solo.

Technically speaking, Cantata 140 is not really a work for Advent. It was composed for the performance on the 27^th Sunday after Trinity. However, in a year when there are 27 weeks after Trinity Sunday, the 27^th Sunday is very near Advent indeed. In fact, in modern times it has become customary to perform “Wachet auf” during Advent, not only because the text of the cantata is so appropriate to the Advent season. The words are based on Jesus’ parable of the wise and foolish virgins awaiting the arrival of the bridegroom.

The December 3 performance of Cantata 140 will feature soloists Gene Marie Callahan, soprano; William Harrison, tenor; and Myron Hermance, bass; the Westminster Choir; and an orchestra of strings, oboes, English horn, and organ. Susan Fedak will conduct. After the performance of the cantata, the sacrament of Holy Communion will be celebrated. This will be a very special worship service, and a meaningful way to begin the Advent season. Plan to attend and bring friends and family.

Al Fedak

New Fedak Work to be Premiered on November 19

On Sunday afternoon, November 19, at 4 p.m., the Burnt Hills Oratorio Society, Rand Reeves, Director, will present the premiere performance of Al Fedak’s new choral work, “The Web of Life: Litanies of the Earth.” This large-scale work consists of eight choral movements interspersed with five readings spoken by a narrator. Scored for chorus, strings, oboe, percussion, organ, and piano, the work was commissioned by the Burnt Hills Oratorio Society to celebrate the group’s 30^th anniversary year.

The theme of “The Web of Life: Litanies for the Earth” can be broadly described as Creation Spirituality. Its message is fivefold: gratitude to God for the beauty and wisdom of creation, reverence for all life, acknowledgment of our abuse of creation and of each other, acknowledgment of our mortality, and a vision of hope for the future. Since nearly every religion includes an element of Creation Spirituality, a broad range of texts from a wide variety of religious traditions forms the basis of the work. These texts include Native American prayers, passages from Hebrew scripture, Christian liturgies, ancient Sanskrit, African tribal poetry, American hymnody, and many more.

Westminster musicians participating in the performance will include soprano Gene Marie Callahan and mezzo-soprano Susan Hermance Fedak, two of the work’s four soloists. In addition, Westminster members Doris Creegan, Susan Filipp, and Deirdre McShane will sing in the chorus.

The performance will take place at St. Clement’s Church on Lake Avenue in Saratoga Springs. Advance sale tickets are available at $12 ($10 for seniors), and will cost two dollars more at the door. But purchased in groups of five, the tickets cost only $8 each. If you are interested in attending this concert, tickets may be obtained from Al Fedak or from any of the chorus members.

Two Named to Head Organ Fund Raising

The co-chairs of fund raising for the organ fund will be Rich Miller and Gail Reynolds, two dedicated and active members of the Westminster family.

Eve Ryan, who headed the Organ Committee that spent months working on a plan to have the Skinner pipe organ refurbished and reinstalled in our sanctuary, recruited them to lead the fund raising effort.

Information on how to donate cash or stocks to the organ fund will be available soon.

The first of our weekly Taize services on Sunday, Oct. 15, at 5 o’clock, got us off to a great start. It was truly a spiritual experience, a way to be touched by God in the midst of a prayerful community of believers. The music was well presented and the congregation caught on quickly. About fifty people, mostly new to us, joined in song to open themselves to the heart of God.

The sanctuary was beautifully illuminated by a candle arrangement designed by Sue Fedak, who also served as cantor. She was joined by Al Fedak at the piano, Irena Tervo on flute, Peter Fedak on guitar, and Deirdre McShane on bass. I served as lector.

The prayer service was followed by a light supper of home-made soup and bread which was delicious and a treat for those like me whose lifestyle doesn’t lend itself to much home cooking. Volunteers from the church produced and served the meal in a gracious and efficient fashion. The soup was made by Carol Bromley and Doris Creegan. Doris and Marianne Rings served as kitchen help. The bread was baked by Eve Ryan and Deirdre McShane. Eve and Nancy Burton served as ushers.

Not only did we enjoy a good meal together, but also table fellowship with new people generating interesting conversations, at least at my table, about life experiences and faith. One of my tablemates suggested that attending these Taize services on a regular basis could change your life.

The following is a quote from Brother Roger of Taize: “Prayer is a serene force at work within human beings, stirring them up, changing their hearts, never allowing them to to close their eyes in the face of evil, of wars, of all that threatens the innocent of this world. From it we draw the energy to wage other struggles, to transform the human condition and to make the earth a place fit to live in.”

We need volunteers on a weekly basis to continue putting on this church program. Please contact the Fedaks if you are able to help in any way.

Also, promotional materials are available for you to put up at your worksite or in your neighborhood. Please invite new people to come, as we are offering a high quality experience, something we can be proud to share with the community.

The Rev. Sandra Hanna

Taize Worship Help Needed!

Ushers, bread and soup donators, kitchen helpers......we need you for our Sunday evening services. Please contact Al Fedak at church if you can help.

Scheduling Request

The Session has requested that any church boards and committees that need to meet after Sunday worship services try to schedule those meetings for the first Sunday of the month.

On the other Sundays, the Christian Ed Committee traditionally sponsors “second hour” programs of interest to parishioners, and they would like as many people as possible to be able to attend those programs.

Focus on FOCUS

This year FOCUS will be giving special holiday food baskets to families with children who are food pantry clients. We will not be doing “Stars & Bells” or toy programs. The holiday baskets (probably about 150 of them) will cost us about $15 each and donations would be greatly appreciated. Just send a check to Irving Smith, First Presbyterian Church, 362 State St., Albany 12210. Checks may be made out to FOCUS. Be sure to indicate “Holiday Basket” and what church you represent. It would be helpful if checks were received by December 1.

Many Use Pantry

The food pantry is as busy as ever. We are serving an average of 250 families per month, or about 700 people. Shampoo, toothpaste and deodorant are always in demand, in addition to the different monthly requests. Collection boxes are located in the Chestnut Street hallway and just inside the East door in the narthex.

Breakfast is Served!

The breakfast program resumed on November 1. If you have never seen the early morning action at Westminster, stop in any Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday between 6:45 and 9 a.m. You’ll see the best breakfast in town being served (for the money, anyway), but we don’t guarantee that you won’t be put to work. We need volunteers – especially substitutes and people willing to do food pickups once a month from the Regional Food Bank in Latham. Please call Deb Jameson if you can help.

Mary Jean Tedrow

‘...Into all the world’... WPC Goes to the Worldwide Web

Last summer, Westminster quietly joined the Internet community by launching a web site at http:\www.wpcalbany.org. It is the product of ideas and efforts of about a dozen people who meet each month to work on the site. It is a simple presence and is primarily established to introduce people who are looking for a great Albany church to Westminster. It contains a picture of our chancel, information about our worship services, our staff, a calendar of events, and links to other sites.

The web site also has a secure part; it can only be accessed by user-id and password. This part is slated to contain information on committees and boards, and prayer and concern information. It currently has only the church directory in it.

Anyone on the web site committee will be happy to provide the password to any church member who wants to access this private section of the web site. The information there is only for us, and no one outside Westminster will be able to see it.

The web site is a great way for us to reach out to people and organizations all over the world. Our web site is registered with search engines and can be reached through the Presbyterian Church of USA’s site. This will be important to us as we begin to search for a new pastor. Interested pastors can access our web site to get an additional picture of who we are. Churches with web sites are generally thought to be more progressive and attractive to pastors.

We are planning to add additional pages to the web site to describe the restoration of the Skinner organ, mission, kids’ activities, Christian humor, and the music and arts

program. We will also describe some of the small group efforts that are blossoming in the church.

If you would like to contribute to the web site, you don’t need any special knowledge or information. We are happy to take handwritten or typed copy as well as photographs that can be scanned. We also accept electronic documents from Word or WordPerfect. Ann Treadway is our editor and reviews and edits all the content on the site. Her e-mail address is aot@empireone.net.

In a related effort, with special thanks to Bob Frye, we have been installing Ethernet cabling between the offices in the church so that staff can use a common printer, have high speed access to the Internet, and share files with other computers on our network. We hope soon to have a public workstation available for members who don’t have access at home and want to set up e-mail or use the Internet. We are looking for a donation of a computer and printer for our members’ use in a public area of the church.

The web site is currently being temporarily hosted free of charge by Progressive Strategies, Inc. as a service to Westminster.

Peter McKee peter@mckee.net

Committee Names Board Candidates For New Terms

This year’s nominating committee prepared a slate of officers for consideration by the congregation that includes, for the Session, Julie Mader, Thomas Older, and Carolyn Smith (current members), and Richard Miller and Susan Filipp.

Nominated for the Board of Trustees are Nancy Burton, Peter Seagle, and William Mayer (current), and Robert Duffy, Alexander Filipp, and Peter Leue.

Those who agreed to serve on the Board of Deacons are Kelly Crisfield and Kay George (current), and Luise Ahlers, Sally Buell, Doris Creegan, and Pamela Marvin.

Nominees as Stewards are Cynthia Dwyer, Gregory Dwyer, Margaret Mayer, Kate Pruzek, and Peter Wrede (current), and Isabel Duffy, Eric Schell, and Sarah Williams.

To serve a one-year term on next year’s nominating committee are Norman Andrews, Eve Ryan, and George Wilhelm (current members), and Claudia Hartmark and Rosemarie Kinum.

Robert Frye, George Wilhelm, and David McClumpha agreed to membership on next year’s stewardship/budget/canvass committee.

The slate of nominees was scheduled to be voted upon at the congregational meeting on October 29, after this issue of the Messenger had gone to press.

November 2000

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

7-9 am FOCUS

Breakfast

7-9 am FOCUS

Breakfast

6 pm Dinner

7:30 pm Choir

5 9:15 am Bible Study

10:15 am Worship

11:30 am Second Hour

11:30 am Personnel Committee

5:00 pm Taize Service

7:30 pm Bells

7-9 am FOCUS

Breakfast

10 am Staff

Men’s Group

7:30 pm Session

7-9 am FOCUS

Breakfast

7-9 am FOCUS

Breakfast

7:30 pm Choir

Office

Closed

9 am Trustee

Work Day

12 9:15 am Bible Study

10:15 am Worship

11:30 am Second Hour

11:30 am Stewards