I am always surprised and delighted by the generosity of our members. Recently St. Timothy had two opportunities to help meet the needs of the wider human family. Our Fun and Fellowship Club recently made two charitable donations: $500 to the ELCA North Carolina Synod for relief to victims of the recent Gatlinburg area wildfires; and $500 to the ELCA Southeastern Synod for relief to victims of Hurricane Matthew. The monies donated represent the proceeds from FFC activities over the past several years.

Some members of St. Timothy generously contributed to ease the plight of Syrian refugees living in Passaic County over the Christmas holiday. We donated more than $4,500 to Global Emergency Response and Assistance, an agency that helps refugees make the transition from the terror of war to life in America. It’s appropriate that we acted during the Christmas season, a time when Christians remember that the Holy Family themselves were refugees fleeing from a tyrannical regime (Matthew 2:13-22). We were first alerted to this mission opportunity by Passaic County Freeholder, John Bartlett, through our involvement with Family Promise of Passaic County. His assistant, Sikander Kahn, is the founder of GERA and organized the appeal. Before working for Freeholder Bartlett, he had been a contractor for U.S. Special Forces in Afganistan. Mr. Kahn said in a recent interview, “The refugees that we have here in the United States, especially here in Paterson, those are the individuals that spoke against the terrorist organizations. These individuals are very well educated, they’re very humble and they want to get involved here in the U.S.”

Hospitality has always been a hallmark of our faith. St. Timothy’s contributions will assist 15 families make the transition to life in our beloved country and will reveal to them the meaning of Jesus’ words in John 13:35, “By this everyone will know you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” Freeholder John Bartlett communicated his appreciation for our congregation’s generosity: Pastor, I can’t tell you how deeply moved we are by the generosity of the St. Timothy’s community! I look forward to meeting you and your entourage on 12/29, and we will work hard to create opportunities for on-going participation by your community in the work we’re doing with refugees. Merry Christmas and God bless!”

Where Luther Walked

As I’ve mentioned before, 2017 is the 500th anniversary of Luther’s posting of the 95 Theses, the event that most historians regard as the birth of the Protestant Reformation. It’s been my privilege to pay two visits to Germany in recent years and tour many of the Luther sites. I’d love to share the “Lutherland” experience with the people of St. Timothy, and I think that 2018 might be a great year to do so. If you’d like to visit the places where Reformation history was made, i.e., Wittenberg, Eisleben, Eisenach, Leipzig, Worms, Wartburg Castle, etc., please sign up on the sheet on the Happenings bulletin board. I’m not yet sure of dates, prices, or any other details, but I’d like to know how much interest there is before doing a lot of research. I’m thinking approximately a 10 day trip. Signing up is only an indication of interest; there is no obligation at this stage.

In Jesus’ name,

Pastor Robert M. Mountenay