Saturday
October 1st
Intergenerational Family Fellowship Yip-Ashton Home 5:30 PM Sunday
October 2nd
3:00 to 6:00 pm FBC Parlour College/University Students Potluck & Games Friday
October 14th
Harvest Supper FBC Assembly Room— 5:30 pm Sunday
October 16th
St Luke Service FBC 10:30 am Friday ~ Sunday
October 21-23
A Weekend with God Tatamagouche, NB Saturday
October 29th
HRUBA Fall Meeting Faith Baptist Church Lower Sackville, NS Registration 8:30 am Saturday
November 5th Christmas Tea & Sale FBC 2:00 - 4:30 pm
Every day of your life you will find reasons to complain and every day of your life you will have reason to be thankful. These two themes, complaints and gratitude, pull at the heart of each of us. They form fundamentally different ways of viewing the world because they are rooted in fundamentally different ways of viewing yourself. Do you find it easier to complain than to give thanks? Is grumbling the ambient noise of your existence? Are you easily irritated and quickly impatient? Do mundane things get under your skin? Would the people who live nearest to you characterize you as a thankful person or a complaining person? Do you see yourself as one who has been showered with blessings? Are you humbled by the myriad things in your life that you regularly enjoy, but that you could never argue that you deserve? How often do you whisper thanks to God or communicate thanks to those around you? As I wrote above, the lifestyle of complaint and that of gratitude are both rooted in the way you view yourself. Complaint is really an identity issue. If you have placed yourself in the center of your world, if you have reduced your active field of concern down to the small confines of your wants, your needs, and your feelings, if it really is all about you, then you will live with an entitled, “I deserve_____” attitude, and because you do, you will have constant reason to complain. This is where corporate worship helps profoundly. The regular gathering of God’s people for worship serves to shift your meditation from complaint to gratitude by reminding you of who you really are and confronting you with the beautiful and faithful mercy of God toward you. As the gospel puts you in your place, it also puts praise in your mouth, and that is a very good thing. “Now thank we all our God!” -Rev. Nelson A. Metcalfe Minister of Visitation
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John 15:16
David Clarke Bryan Darrell Marsha Hurshman Arla Johnston, Paul LaFleche Joanne Stonehouse Sandy Yip David Morse, (Treasurer), Joe O’Brien (Secretary), Kathy Schwartzentruber (Vice Chair), and Jim Stanley (Chair)
First I want to refresh our memories of who make up our Deaconate—they are David Clarke, Bryan Darrell, Marsha Hurshman, Arla Johnston, Paul LaFleche, David Morse (Treasurer), Joe O’Brien (Secretary), Kathy Schwartzentruber (Vice Chair), Joanne Stonehouse, Jim Stanley (Chair) and Sandy Yip. Regrettably, Drew Bethune needed to withdraw from Deacon duties last June because of very heavy work demands. Following a quiet Summertime and with a suite of successful Joint Summer Worship Services with sister churches now behind us, your Diaconate is now “up to its ears” in Fall activities. Kathy has completed our Fall and Winter schedule of Deacon worship and on-duty responsibilities. The Diaconate received the Transition Leadership Team’s (TLT) report in mid September and, following a joint meeting, endorsed the report and its recommendations unanimously for Congregational consideration at the September 25th meeting of the Congregation. Forming and supporting a Search Committee seeking a new senior minister for First Baptist will be a top priority for your Diaconate this Fall and Winter. We are also working with the TLT to help define and guide the transition work we have left to do with Lynn over the coming months while we seek our new senior minister. We’re also dedicated to the support of our very able ministerial team and their work with us; we are reviewing, guiding and having input into our Refugee Working Group’s plan, the Hope Blooms Project , the New Sanctuary Piano Project and we are about to begin a review of our other Mission Fund Projects in preparation for recommendations for funding in the 2017 Church year. On your behalf, we will soon start planning for the upcoming 190th Anniversary of our Church. In short, it’s busy, it’s engaging, it’s demanding and it’s meaningful. We welcome inputs and questions anytime. Jim Stanley, for your Diaconate
On Thanksgiving Sunday, October 9th, we receive one of the three special offerings of the year (Easter and Christmas are the others). Each of us is challenged to express our thanksgiving for the blessings God has brought to our lives by bringing a special gift in addition to our regular offering. An envelope is enclosed for those receiving the newsletter by mail. Those of you receiving it electronically may use envelopes provided in the pews or
your own envelope marked Thanksgiving. Over the years this offering has been especially important in helping us meet the “mission” responsibilities we include in our annual budget; e.g., Acadia Divinity College, Alliance of Baptists and the Canadian Association for Baptist Freedoms. Please give as God enables you to do so.
P A G E
October 2nd: World Communion Sunday; Parent/Child Dedication Lamentations 1:1-6; Psalm 137 2 Timothy 1:1-14; Luke 17:5-10 "Why We Need Helmets" Rev. Canon Dr. Jody Clarke Music: Daley October 9th: Thanksgiving Sunday Deuteronomy 26:1-11; Psalm 100 Philippians 4:4-9; John 6:25-35 Bread That Gives Life – Rev. Jenny Csinos Music: Bach and Faure October 16th: St. Luke Service Ecclesiastics 38:1-4, 6-10, 12-14;Luke 4:14-21 It’s All About Love – Dr. David Haase Music: St. Luke’s Choir October 23rd: Pentecost 25 Joel 2:23-32; Psalm 65 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18; Luke 18:9-14 Inside Out, Upside Down – Rev. Lynn Uzans Music: Sibelius and Tallis October 30th: All Saints, All Souls Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18; Psalm 149 Ephesians 1:11-23; Luke 6:20-31 Saluting the Saints – Rev. Nelson A. Metcalfe Music: Requiem Faure
N e x t meeting is Saturday, October 1st at 5:30pm at the Yip-Ashton home. Everyone is welcome, we'll share a meal together and faith-based discussion. Please bring a potluck dish to share. RSVP to Sandy, she can provide you with directions.
Sunday, October 2nd, 3:00 to 6:00 pm in the parlour at FBC. Bring a dish to share and a game to play. Questions—Contact Rev. Jenny Csinos or Caitlin Smithers
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Souls Harbour - It’s a home for the homeless in Halifax. Its hope for the hopeless. It’s food for the stomach and food for the soul. It’s friendship for the lonely. It’s Souls Harbour RESCUE Mission.
Souls Harbour RESCUES people from poverty, addiction, and despair by offering emergency help such as food and clothing, life -changing programs, and the Gospel Message. If you haven’t a friend in the world, you can find one at Souls Harbour where they offer welcome, hope, and dignity to each of their guests. “Because You stand up for the poor and weak, You comfort and empower them in their distress, Giving them safe harbour and cool shade when it’s hot; You shelter them from their oppressors’ blows as a strong wall holds back the driving rain.” – Isaiah 25:4 Rev Ken and Michelle Porter have spent 20 years working with hungry, homeless, abused and addicted populations in Canada’s inner cities. Most people don’t get to experience the verse in the Bible that says to sell all you have and give it to the poor. The Porters have done this, not once, but twice. In 2000, they founded Souls Harbour RESCUE Mission in Regina, Saskatchewan. It became the largest service provider for the homeless in the province, feeding over 100,000 meals each year and sleeping 90 people each night.
Mark your calendars for Friday, October 14, 2016 at 5:30 PM for the annual Harvest Supper & Silent Auction sponsored by the Community Outreach Committee. All proceeds will be donated to Souls Harbour Rescue Mission. The menu will include hors d’oeuvres, international cuisine, homemade baked beans, ham, and other goodies. As you do your fall cleaning, please put aside anything that you would like to donate to the silent auction. All donations (e.g. paintings, boat rides, dinners in your home, collectables, antiques) are welcome! Gather a few friends and plan to attend – help us support our community!
A decade later, they once again responded to the call. The Porters sold all their possessions, packed a few mementos into the back of their Matrix, and drove 4000 km across Canada and arrived as strangers in their new home of Halifax. Nine months later, Souls Harbour RESCUE Mission was born. The Porters also worked for free - full time - for the first 2 years to give the Mission a head start in becoming established. The Porters have 25 years of experience in the field of addictions recovery. They have assisted over 100 men, women and families off our Canadian streets and into a new life. Up to 100 hot, nutritious lunches are served every weekday at Souls Harbour Rescue Mission. The Drop-In Centre has become a place of community where the guests include men and women facing hunger, homelessness, poverty, abuse, and addiction. Local families and seniors from neighbouring affordable housing blocks are also served and are offered free food, clothing, toiletries, and household items. An afternoon at Drop-In means free local calls, the daily papers, magazines, a Christian lending library, as well as computers and free income tax returns (offered also in Spanish). There is always a friendly face and someone to talk to. This is a safe place to take those first steps to health and healing. All are welcome. Four times a year up to 400 men, women, and families from our community are served a 3-course meal. $3.11 is the average cost of serving a meal at a soup kitchen in Canada. Food donations reduce our costs during times like Christmas. It’s not just meals that make a difference. It’s people. One of these events can take 100 volunteers to pull everything together. NO MATTER WHAT YOUR RELIGIOUS BELIEFS OR AFFILIATIONS, IT’S BEEN STUDIED AND SAID THAT THOSE WHO ARE LINKED TO A CHURCH COMMUNITY HAVE MUCH GREATER SUCCESS AT STAYING SOBER, CONQUERING ADDICTION INCLUDING ALCOHOLISM AND DRUG ABUSE, AND BECOMING GOOD NEIGH BOURS. GOOD NEWS CHAPEL IS A STREET LEVEL “CHAPEL -CHURCH” THAT REACHES OUT TO THE COMMUNITY WITH THE GOOD NEWS. REV KEN PORTER LEADS OUR CHAPEL ALONG WITH A CORE GROUP OF FAMILIES.
Souls Harbour is a place to meet and feel comfortable, no matter your style of worship or place in your spiritual journey. From the very poor, to the very rich, no matter your social status or nationality, all are welcome.
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Congregational Life Baptism June 5, 2016 Also accepted into membership Aaron Min-Yi Yip Ashton Sophie Min-Hui Yip Ashton Thomas Min-Jie Yip Ashton Births Dexter Wayne David Mills – June 25, 2016 Parents: Joseph Mills and Jennifer Dexter Grandparents: David and Marlene Dexter Adelaide Lola Rose Mathis – July 6, 2016 Parents: Eric and Andrea Mathis
In keeping with our longstanding tradition of18 years, First Baptist Church will welcome the Dalhousie Medical School and Chorale to our Sunday Morning Worship Service on October 16, 2016. Together we will celebrate the very real connection between the physical and spiritual powers of healing. Guest speaker is Dr. David Haase, MBBS, FRCPC, Professor, Division of General Internal Medicine, Dalhousie University.
Deaths Janet Servant - June 15, 2016 Barbara Mitchell - June 29, 2016 Marjorie Fountain - July 9, 2016 Donald Myer - July 12, 2016 Phyllis Pinfield -August 8, 2016 Marriages Marc and Ashley (Gould) Lacroix July 2, 2016 Emmanuel and Meghan (Naugle) Simmonds July 23, 2016
Special Music by the Dalhousie Medical School Chorale. Plan to attend and as well, invite your friends and those you know in the health care professions to join you.
Lucas and Shawn (Simamba) Adekola August 13, 2016 Curtis and Jenna (Choleras) Rideout August 13, 2016
“Music is an agreeable harmony for the honor of God and the permissible delights of the soul” --- Johann Sebastian Bach
Paul asks us to consider both the spirit and the mind. As musicians, God gives us the talents to develop, use and return our musical gifts to the congregation. The challenge is to allow the stirrings of the Holy Spirit to work within us. Our choice of music, anthems and hymns should inspire, uplift, challenge, and comfort. It is up to us to give fully of our talents and develop our skills and intellects in God's service, and be open to passionate music making, in every medium. We need to be so inspired by the way we offer worship that our Congregation draws alongside and offers their own talents in God's service. The goal of music at First Baptist Church has consistently been to offer our best, our whole being to God, and this is part of the progression toward transformation.Worship is really about our own transformation, through the grace of the Holy Spirit. The matter of worship is not about absolute standards in music or liturgy as the world might see them, it is about giving our best offering, professional or amateur. If we do give ourselves up in worship and let go of our preconceived expectations, then transformation becomes possible. "The power of music is as recognizable as the power of prayer; when sincerity is expressed, a community can be transformed through the spirit and the mind." (Church Music Quarterly, Mar. 2013) Let us prayerfully ask the Holy Spirit to guide us in our Worship and Music, and to be with us in our singing and understanding. Submitted by Lynette Wahlstrom, Music Director
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Transition Leadership Team Report and Follow-up The Phase 2 Report from our Transition Leadership Team was ably presented by its Chair David Dexter at the September 25 Congregation Meeting and it was enthusiastically, unanimously and formally adopted by the Congregation. As a follow-up to accepting the Report the Congregation passed the following motion : “that the Diaconate recommend to the Congregation a Search Committee be formed immediately upon the acceptance of the report by the Congregation, to find candidates for the position of Senior Minister of First Baptist Church Halifax who meet the requirements for this position as identified in this report, and who possesses a sound theological and ecumenical background to be delineated by the Diaconate.” In passing this motion we have now entered into Phase 3 of our Transition process, the formal Search for a Senior Minister. May God be with us and continue to bless our work together. The Transition Leadership Team with our Transition Minister Rev. Lynn Uzans have done a great service in leading us to this point and they have other Transition work just ahead. Refugee Working Group Update On behalf of the First Baptist Church Halifax Refugee Working Group Jim Stanley reported that the Sweedans family ( currently in Jordan) is still enthusiastically looking forward to emigrating to Halifax in spite of ongoing delays in processing their application. The Working Group will meet Monday September 26 to review the status of the family’s application and to continue their work of preparing for the family’s arrival. Dates for that arrival are not yet firm but it likely it will be early to late Winter. The Working Group is doing all it can to help speed things up but the bureaucratic process involved are very ponderous. Hope Bloom’s Summer Refugee Translator Project Jim Stanley brought news to the Congregation about what has transpired during the Summer as our Church responded to the new Hope Bloom’s initiative which started with Jessie Jollymore’s June 12th Worship Service presentation to us. Through the Project, 20 Syrian families living in the Brunswick Street area have been included in their vegetable growing work centered in the City’s North End. The $5,000 contribution we committed to help out with has been fully subscribed and has been delivered to Hope Blooms. A visit has been arranged for 6:30PM on Monday October 3 for First Baptist people to meet Hope Blooms and Syrian families involved to see the gardens and greenhouse on Maitland Street ( just north off Cornwallis Street behind the St. Patrick’s Alexandra School) and to get to know each other. All of our First Baptist people are welcome to attend. An enthusiastic turnout would be appreciated by all involved
Dave Csinos License to Minister Jim Stanley, our Diaconate Chair, presented the outcomes of the Diaconate’s review work in responding to a request from Dave Csinos to have the Church issue him a License to Minister. This action is intended to be the first step in an ordination process in partnership with the Canadian Association for Baptist Freedoms (CABF). Jim and members of the Diaconate’s Ordination Team made the Congregation members present aware that there are sensitivities inherent in following this initiative and that the process will need to be very carefully managed by the Diaconate with CABF and others. A number of members brought forward both concerns and support for the action being proposed by the Diaconate. The following motion was presented by the Diaconate for consideration: “On behalf of the Diaconate I move that Dave Csinos be recognized as a candidate for ordination within First Baptist Church Halifax, that he be granted a Church License to Minister and that he be recommended to the Canadian Association for Baptist Freedoms ( CABF) to be granted a CABF License to Minister. “ After a full and open discussion to motion was approved by the members present with 6 abstentions.
Join the First Baptist family in celebrating with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday October 9 at 5 pm! We will be serving turkey, ham, potatoes, vegetables and pumpkin and apple pie. Dinner is open to anyone who wishes to attend. If you would like to contribute a celebratory dish from your own family you are most welcome to do so but it is not necessary. Please inform the church office (902-422-5203) or Kathy Schwartzentruber (902 -444-0883 or kmsb408@gmail.com) if you plan to attend. We would also appreciate donations of food or money to cover the costs of this meal. (A list of items exists.)
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Weekend With God Oct 21-23, 2016
Schedule: Friday (Arrive anytime after 4:00pm) 5:30pm—Supper 8:30pm—Bonfire Gathering With Devotion Saturday 8:00am—Breakfast 9:30am—Morning Devotional and breathing exercises with guest leader 10:30am—Morning Snack 12:30pm—Lunch 1:30pm—Drumming Circle with Laurie Dobbs 3:00pm—Afternoon Snack 5:30pm—Supper 8:30pm—Faith and Film, Movie and Discussion Sunday 8:00am—Breakfast 9:30am—Worship Service 10:30am—Morning Snack 12:30pm—Lunch
Unwind, relax and spend quite time reflecting with God. This weekend offers opportunities for quiet reflection and group discussion. Feel free to join in workshops of meditative breathing or a drumming circle. Different prayer stations of journaling, lighting candles, Scripture meditation or prayer through art will be available throughout the weekend.
Tatamagouche offers: outdoor labyrinth nearby trails canoes fire pit
Visit www.tatacentre.ca for details on the facility (259 Loop Route 6, RR#3, Tatamagouche, NS) Application on next page
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Registration Form for October 21-23 Name: _______________________________________________________________ All those under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Accommodations: All rooms have access to a private washroom. Single Accommodation _____
Shared Accommodation _____
My roommate will be ______________________ or _____ please match me Meal Plan: Meals and snacks will be provided for all participants. Given the retreat time frame, Friday supper through Sunday lunch will be provided with two snacks on Saturday, and one on Sunday. _______ No dietary Restrictions _______ Other, please specify: __________________________________________________ Travel: ______ I am happy to car pool and can drive (#)____ others ______ I will require a ride ______ I will find my own way Total cost of the “Weekend with God” is $269 for single accommodation or $215 for shared accommodation. Payment can be made to First Baptist Church Halifax “Weekend with God.” All costs are due on October 21, commitments to attend must be made by October 9th (The facility needs to make the appropriate arrangements). Please give registration forms and payment to Jenny. For further questions about the weekend, please speak to Rev. Jenny Csinos (902-422-5203 or jennycsinos@fbchalifax.ca) To Print Form—click here
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Over the summer 26 pairings of partners joined the "summer connections" program. They were provided with weekly questions to touch base, challenge faith and get to know each other better with. Here's what some of them had to say:
"I very much enjoyed the questions and I felt like I could open up to my partner and share my honest answers with them." Amelia Crowell.
"This was a lovely experience. I had to opportunity to get to know an amazing Christian woman from our church. Our discussion of the questions put a more spiritual slant on everyday events." Sharon Taylor
"The summer connection program was great. Not only did I stay connected even when I couldn't make it to church each week but I was able to meet a new person. The questions were good for self-reflection as well as getting to know my new friend. I would do it again for sure." - Darcy Gillis
I thought it was a great experience. I had a hard time answering some of the questions but that wasn't because they were difficult but because I had never thought of them before. - Jean Ferguson
I thought it was a great idea to get to know a person I didn't know anything about in the congregation just a little bit. - Christine Fall Moore
Because I am a fairly new attendee at FBC, I welcomed the offer to be part of the Summer Connections as a way to get to know at least one person better in the congregation. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that even though my Summer Connection partner and I could not get together over coffee/tea as much as we liked, we kept in contact via email and thus we got to know each other a little better. I value our budding friendship and look forward to continued connecting. - Monika Bigelow
As a “displaced FBC Halifax member” living in Victoria, BC, the Summer Connections was an amazing opportunity to feel “connected” to the church and at the same time I was able to get to know a fellow church member in a deeper and more personal way. I am so thankful for this opportunity and want to thank my partner (he knows who he is) for such wonderful conversations and spiritual companionship over the summer. I look forward to an ongoing connection with my partner." - Ian Easter
1300 Oxford Street Halifax, NS B3H 3Y8 Phone: 902-422-5203 Email: office@fbchalifax.ca Facebook.com/FirstBaptistHalifax
. . .was founded in 1827 as the Granville Street Baptist Church (renamed First Baptist Church in 1886) and is a member of the Halifax Region United Baptist Association as well as the Canadian Association for Baptist Freedoms (formerly the Atlantic Baptist Fellowship). We are intentionally ecumenical and inclusive in our services (Sundays at 10:30 a.m.) and programs. We are an affirming church. Photo by Warren Hoeg - June 2016
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