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Coming Soon to a Pew Near You!

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Yes, folks, they’re here—the new hymnals have arrived from the publisher! Bookplates are being prepared and pasted in, and the brick-red hymnals will replace the blue ones in the pew racks on October 6. What might you notice about the hymnal beside the change in color? Well, first off, you might observe that it is just brimming with hymns, psalms, and spiritual songs — 853 of them — drawn from Protestant hymnody and sacred singing traditions around the world. From Hymn #1 (Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty!) to Hymn #853 (Siyahamba—We Are Marching in the Light of God), the hymnal contains a wealth of musical inspiration and spiritual resource for singing congregations like ours.
What else? You might notice a new organization. Unlike prior versions of the Presbyterian hymnal, which generally followed the order of the liturgical year, this hymnal follows the outline of salvation history, beginning with hymns celebrating “God’s Mighty Acts” and ending with hymns devoted to “Our Response to God.” This approach reflects the Swiss theologian Karl Barth’s understanding that grace always demands an answer of gratitude. Mediating these two sections, the center portion of the hymnal focuses on those occasions when God’s grace and our gratitude meet, in “The Church at Worship.” (I’m borrowing rather heavily here from “The Theology of Glory to God,”
 an article by Mary Louise Bringle that appeared in The Presbyterian Leader in 2013.)
You might also notice that many of the hymns are not set out in four-part harmony but rather appear as a single melody line with guitar chords written above. Fear not, harmony singers among you! Of the hymns carried over from the blue hymnal, the ones appearing as a single melody line are hymns that were written to be sung in unison anyway. The only change is that the keyboard accompaniment of the blue hymnal has been swapped out for guitar chords in the new one. Plenty of four-part harmony hymns have been carried over, and plenty of the new hymns are written that way.
What else might you notice? Myriad other things! Soon you will be able to pull a new hymnal out of the pew rack and see for yourself. And we hope you will be inspired to sing, sing, sing to the glory of God!
Blessings,
Nadine Roddy, Music Committee Chair
Megan Sharp, Director of Fine Arts

Join a Habi-Tour on Sept. 28

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As a group of Westminster folks met with, fed, and played with the children of Habitat families over the last year, we realized we wanted to know more about Habitat’s work in Charlottesville.  So, on Saturday, September 28, we are going on a Habi-tour.  We’ll meet at the church parking lot at 10 a.m., pile into a Habitat van to tour and hear about Habitat’s history and work.  The last stop is Southwood where we will get to see the space with all it’s maps and charts in which residents are designing their new neighborhood.  We’ll be back at the church by noon. To join this group, contact Carolyn Brown or Lucy Burnette.

Climate Strike on Sept. 20 in C’ville

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Please join local students (Charlottesville Area and UVA) for the Climate Strike being held this Friday, Sept. 20, at noon at the Free Speech Wall on the Downtown Mall. In addition, a march down Main Street to the Mall is planned by UVA students (under the auspices of the Virginia Student Environmental Coalition) starting at 10:30 at the Rotunda. University professors and student protesters will speak on the climate crisis before the march proceeds. In the words of the event organizers “For over a year, millions of students across the globe have been ‘striking’ by leaving their classrooms every Friday to call attention to how the climate crisis is devastating homes, land, and communities…Young people refuse to sit by as our future is destroyed around us. Ahead of the UN Global Climate Summit on Sept. 20th, young people and adults will be striking with a shared platform of demands in the U.S. to call attention to the issue and to build momentum for these demands to be met.”
Included in these demands are actions to protect and restore biodiversity, to promote environmental justice for marginalized communities, to respect indigenous lands and sovereignty, to implement sustainable agriculture, and to promote a “Green New Deal” for U.S. citizens. The event is explicitly geared towards bringing together the different generations of environmental activists and concerned citizens to demand strong action addressing climate change, and is sponsored by a wide range of environmental and religious organizations. Local efforts are being led by the Virginia Student Environmental Coalition and 12-year-old climate activist Gundrun Campbell.

Music at Westminster

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Choirs at Westminster are underway! Come, find a place of welcome in the choir. There are choirs for everyone from age five and up. If you are an instrumentalist, be sure to contact Megan Sharp, Director of Fine Arts, to find out ways to share your talents in worship.

Adult Choir: Rehearses on Thursdays from 7:00-9:00 pm. This choir is open to all adults, including university students.

Singers: Rehearses on Sundays after 11:00 am worship from 12:15-1:15 pm. This choir is open to all youth 5th grade and up, and adults who enjoy singing with youth.

Choristers: Rehearses on Thursdays from 4:00-5:00 pm with hang out time from 3:30-4:00. This choir is open to children grades k-4.

Minstrels: Volunteer to sing with church school classes, either weekly or in rotation with others.

For more information see the church website , email ">Megan Sharp,  or call 434 963-4690.

 

 

Mission Endowment Proposals Due Oct. 8

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Westminster Presbyterian Church invites proposals to be supported from its Mission Endowment Fund for Fall 2019.  Proposals are due to be received by the Church office by noon on Tuesday, October 8, 2019. Funding for 2019 is anticipated to be $12,000, to support one or more startup activities or new innovative projects that fulfill our mission to build a more just and peaceful world.  Selected proposals may be eligible for several years of funding as long as suitable progress toward the goals is evident, funds are available, and given recommendations and approvals.

The committee seeks proposals that are transformative for the people served, and invite engagement from members of our worshipping community as well.  We hope our support will be more than monetary, and that projects such as these can become yeast for a mission-driven congregation.

Westminster Presbyterian is a congregation formed in 1938 to minster to the University of Virginia community.  We think of ourselves as a socially progressive Christian community, currently comprised of about 600 members.  We are active locally and internationally in many causes through congregational financial support and volunteerism, but feel a call to serve even more through expanded engagement of our members.

Proposals should describe the project objectives, should include a budget, identify assessment methods and a commitment to report by the next fall.  Proposals should not exceed three pages in length, and should be addressed to

Mission Endowment Committee
Westminster Presbyterian Church
400 Rugby Road
Charlottesville, VA  22903

Funding decisions are anticipated by December 2019 for the Mission Endowment Fund.

Disbursements are subject to Session approval.

“So faith, hope, and love abide, these three;
but the greatest of these is love.”
−1 Corinthians 13:13

Our Mission

Sustained by grace, we are called to serve Christ, share God’s love, and work for justice in a complex world.

Our Values

With faith, hope, and love as bedrock Christian values, we also cherish the following:
  • Thinking and Learning
  • Inclusiveness
  • Fellowship
  • Stewardship
  • Courage

 

Westminster follows the Presbyterian Book of Confession and is a confessional church. You can view/read the Book of Confession at the PC(USA) website by clicking on the following link: http://www.pcusa.org/book-confessions.

Contact

Westminster Presbyterian Church
400 Rugby Road
Charlottesville, Virginia 22903-2474
(434) 293-3133 | Email

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