The Westside Story 1 The Westside Story The News of Divine Redeemer Presbyterian Church and its Community Loving, Serving, Sharing and Growing the Kingdom of God in our lives and neighborhood so that all of us may experience the transforming power of God’s love and justice. Issue 25 november/december 2014 Divine Redeemer Birthdays and Anniversaries! Below are the birthdays and anniversaries for the months of Novmber and December 2014. If your information is not here, please contact the church office. November Birthdays! December Birthdays Cont.! Novmber Anniversaries! 3 Mary Alice Rodriguez 1 Ella Alcocer 17 Abel & Reyna Araiza 4 Kieran Alcocer 1 Raquel Castillo 6 Monica Chavez 20 Jesse & Mary Lerma 3 Rosie Santos 7 Helen Rivera 26 Hiram & Helen Rivera 7 Ethel Saldana 7 Stephan Lopez December Anniversaries! 8 Emily Mendoza 8 Connie Rivera 9 John & Patricia Jimenez 9 Leticia Alcocer 8 Xavier Aguilar 12 Rick & Graciela Martinez 9 Andrea Martinez 10 Maria de la luz Morales 20 Alex & Leticia Alcocer 10 Anthony Gutierrez 12 Chris Bailey 27 Wilfredo & Maria Luisa 13 Victor Romo 12 Kristin Sanchez Santiago 18 Danniel Garcia 13 Joseph Todd 31 Elias & Chris Bailey 13 Xavier (Buddy) Vazquez 18 Emilio Maldonado 14 David Rivera 19 Alejandra Juliet 16 Sandra Rivera 20 Andrew Esparza 16 Joey Rivera 20 Mathew Leija 17 George Michael Flores 23 Adam Gutierrez 18 Nestor Maldonado 26 Alma Cornejo 20 Miguel Chavez 30 Jason Vazquez+ (in memory) 22 Anna Rose Bailey December Birthdays! 24 Bill Angell 1 Nick Lopez 26 Hilda Valdez 1 Marti Vazquez 26 Hiram Guerra 2 Deborah Chavez, 27 Lauro I. Uribe 29 Kathy Vazquez 2 Anthony Rivera 31 Isabel Orozco The Westside Story Remembering the Homebound Recordando a los que estan reclusados en casa The Homebound Visitation Team invites everyone to send a card, to visit or to call at least two homebound members of Divine Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you know of anyone that needs to be placed on the list or if you have any questions, please call Bertha Pena at 434-1800. Please keep our homebound in your prayers especially during the holidays. Below is a list of their names. Recordando a los que están reclusados en casa y no pueden salir. Se recomienda que manden una tarjeta, llamarles por teléfono, o visitarlos. Si Ud. Conoce una persona quien debe estar en esta lista o tiene preguntas, llame a Bertha Pena 4341800. Cornejo, Beatrice Garza, Leonor Guerra, Margie Whitson, Dora (Their phone numbers and addresses are listed in the Divine Redeemer Church Directory.) Just a reminder for Homebound Ministry: If you are ill, having surgery, hospitalized, or for whatever reason unable to attend church and would like to be placed on the Homebound Mailing List, you or a family member will need to call the church office and let us know. Otherwise, if there is not a phone call or note, the name of the person will not be included on the list. Thank you. 2 Greeters, Liturgist, Money Counters, Tech Support Volunteers are needed to serve: Individuals or families wanting to participate in one of these areas, for one or more Sundays in the month may contact the following individuals: Greeters-Sharon Guerrero Bilingual Service Spanish Service Liturgist-Margie Cornejo Bilingual Service Spanish Service Offering Counters-Janie Garcia Volunteers Always Needed Technology Support Janie Garcia 789.1246 Divine Redeemer Ministry Leaders Loving Team (Worship) ~ Margie Cornejo Sharing Team (Finance, Bldg & Grounds) ~ Lauro Uribe Serving Team (Mission & Service)~ Sylvia Sanchez Growing Team (Christian Ed & Evangelism)~ Carolyn Arredondo Next Scheduled Ministry Team Meeting Sunday November 30, 2014 1-3 pm Got News to share? How about family announcements, poems, short stories, ministry reports, upcoming events, tidbits, awards, or achievements? Submit your newsletter articles to Julius Lorenzi at drwestsidestory@gmail.com or drop them off at Divine Redeemer Presbyterian Church 407 N. Calaveras St. The Westside Story 3 Visioning Prayer “Lord, ENERGIZE us to reach out to our youth and elderly to better meet their needs. EMPOWER us to bridge the distances that exist between our church, the immediate neighborhood, the HNS, HOT, Peace Pals, and the Time Dollar. ENABLE us to use our personal gifts to build relationships in which your spirit becomes action.” Oración Visionaria “Señor: DANOS ENERGIA para satisfacer las necesidades de nuestros jóvenes y ancianos. DANOS PODER para cubrir la distancia que existe entre nuestra Iglesia, nuestro vecindario, el HNS y el Time Dollar. DANOS DISPOSICION para usar nuestros dones personales y construir relaciones en las cuales tu espíritu se vuelva acción”. AMEN Lectionary Readings for the Months of November - December 2014 Nov. 2, 2014 Josh. 3:7-17 Ps. 107:1-7, 33-37 1 Thess. 2:9-13 Matt. 23:1-12 Dec. 7, 2014 Isa. 40:1-11 Ps. 85:1-2, 8-13 2 Peter 3:8-15a Mark 1:1-8 Nov. 9, 2014 Josh 24:1-3a, 14-25 Ps. 78:1-7 Dec. 14, 2014 Isa. 61:1-4, 8-11 Ps. 126 or Luke 1:46b-55 1 Thess. 5:16-24 John 1:6-8, 19-28 1 Thess. 4:13-18 Matt. 25:1-13 Nov. 16, 2014 Judg. 4:1-17 Ps. 123 1 Thess. 5:1-11 Matt. 25:14-30 Dec. 21, 2014 2 Sam. 7:1-11, 16 Luke 1:46b-55 or Ps. 89:1-4, 19-26 Ps. 89:1-4, 19-256 Rom. 16:25-27 Luke 1:26-38 Nov. 23, 2014 Ezek. 34:11-16, 20-24 Ps. 100 Eph. 1:15-23 Matt. 25:31-46 Dec. 28, 2014 Isa. 61:10—62:3 Ps 148 Gal. 4:4-7 Luke 2:22-40 Nov. 30, 2014 Isa. 64:1-9 Ps. 80:1-7, 17-19 1 Cor. 1:3-9 Mark 13:24-37 The Westside Story 4 Words from Our Pastor By the time you are reading this I will have pledged myself to my new wife, Beth Watson, and many of you will have hopefully been able to be there to celebrate with us! I cannot express the gratitude I feel for the support of this community of faith as I have walked through all the upheaval, pain, trauma, and eventual joy and happiness of the last few years. Rarely is a pastor able to do this surrounded by such grace. Thank you for being Jesus for me, you are a treasure. Also by now, all things going forward as we are expecting, our church will be in possession of a new property, the old Davis home on Rosillo St behind the playground at the west side of the block. Our decision to purchase this property is out of the conviction that any future plans for renovation and/or expansion of our facility will benefit from having that additional space available to dream with. In the meantime, however, we need to use it and care for it. To that end a proposal is underway to create of this home a ‘Casa Bienvenida,’ which we would like to use to serve the single women and their children who have made the arduous decision and journey to come from home countries in Central America. In these homelands they are experiencing violence, abuse and intimidation from the organized criminal cartels. They have come seeking asylum as refugees from violence, only to experience the shameful response of our federal government which incarcerates them like criminals setting ridiculously high bail bonds. Together with other area Presbyterians and faith communities concerned about their well-being, we are mounting an effort to raise the bail money, which allows them to be free while their cases are being adjudicated. University Presbyterian Church put up $50,000!!! to start this bail bond fund. Once they are bailed out of Karnes City Detention, they need a place to go to obtain clothing, food, and transportation to reach their family members in the US who eagerly desire to provide permanent support for them. Essentially, we need a temporary way-station so that they can have a safe, clean, supportive environment from which to launch out to their final destination. This is what we hope our little house can provide for them. The session will be deliberating on this decision at their meeting and we should have a final decision about this opportunity by the time you read this, but I don’t want to predict what that decision will be…so stay tuned!! And if you are interested in helping us with this concept, please contact either myself or Olivia (Livie) Valdez. Finally, I want to share an emerging vision about having a ‘Family Education Night’ at Divine Redeemer. A small team of folks has begun meeting under the auspices of the Growing and Loving Ministry Teams to explore and put some shape to a once a month Christian Education evening that would include a light supper (Chalupas) some lively worship with ‘Holy Boys’ style music, and an hour of education programing for all ages. Our hope is that it can be a way for us to draw in some of the families that are part of our community ministries and enable us all to share in some meaningful fellowship, worship and study with one another. We experienced a wonderful and blessed convivencia at the HEB Retreat together, and would like to continue sharing in that kind of delightful sharing with one another! So…Divine Redeemer keeps dreaming, keeps creating…keeps Loving, Serving, Sharing and Growing the Kingdom of God in ourselves and community! Makes me proud…How about you?? Blessings, Rob The Westside Story 5 Growing Team The growing team consists of Carolyn Arredondo, Arleen Esparza and Hiram Rivera. Our team initiates, oversees and supports the Christian education in our church, such as the Spanish adult bible study, English adult bible study, young adult bible study, Lectio Divina, mens group bible study and the discipleship circle just to name a few. Our team is the liaisons between MEYO and Peace Pals and our church session/congregation. This includes activities such as summer mission trips, peace camp and mid winters. Outside ministries that keep us busy include supporting the DWELL program, leadership trainings and retreats. This has been one of our busy times of year in coordinating the HEB Camp retreat which is taking place this very weekend in Leaky, Texas with over 150 participants from our congregation and neighborhood families. Another outside endeavor is our seder dinners during the Lenten season. This is another opportunity for our congregation to spend time with neighborhood families. This is just a brief overview of what keeps our team busy and extra hands are always welcomed. If you feel convicted in helping with any of these endeavors, please contact anyone of us on the Growing Team. Thank you. Midwinters @ Mo-Ranch 2015 What are Midwinters: Fun. Worship. Service. Old and new. Music, small groups, and a whole lot more. A weekend retreat/conference for youth in grades 6-12 and their adult sponsors is filled with time to play, pray, and refresh. Small groups offer time to get to know other youth and explore the Scripture together. Keynotes help foster discussion and dig into the theme scripture. Music and recreation help round out the large group gatherings. Free time allows for exploring Mo-Ranch and enjoying times with friends. Conference Dates: Middle & High School Combined Jan 23-25 Cost: $145/person-Pending (Scholarships Available) MEYO and Divine Redeemer will be taking a group of youth grades 6-12. Please contact Andrew or Lauren if interested in attending with the group. 210-433-9551 The Westside Story 6 Stewardship Campaign 2014-2015 As stated in a letter circulating with the pledge cards: It is that time of year, time to say YES! to our values and our mission by filling out our pledge cards. Your pledge cards are the fuel to fund our mission. Over the past four Sundays we’ve heard from our four ministry teams how our core values are being lived through our ministries of Loving, Sharing, Serving and Growing… those four words that begin our worship every Sunday. With your monetary support and some of your time, next year’s mission goal can be met. On the front of the pledge card you can commit to your financial contribution and on the back you can commit your time and gifts by volunteering in ministry. Let’s meet or surpass our goal. Let’s keep in place all the ministries and programs that benefit our congregation, the surrounding community, and the youth. These ministries have helped us grow in our faith. They were given to us by the founders and we stand on the shoulders of those Divine Redeemer faithful who started this work almost 100 years ago. Through our pledges we are accepting the challenge to continue this legacy. It is difficult to finalize a budget if we do not know what our pledges are for next year. With faith and hope in the future we can achieve our goal. At Divine Redeemer we are all family; those of us who sit in the pews as well as liturgists, musicians, ministers, elders, staff, teachers, techies, and greeters… we are part of the whole and it takes all of us to support this family. If one of us is missing we are not whole. As we work together it is necessary that we focus on our commitment to the whole and return our pledges. At Divine Redeemer we are all family – we pray together, we love each other, and we work together for the common good. Please make every effort to complete a pledge card if you have not done so already. This will facilitate our attempt to get a card from you. Deadline to submit a pledge card is Sunday, November 9th. Submitted by Sharing Ministry Team The Westside Story 7 Greeting from MEYO! The school year has started, and MEYO has hit the ground running! We are seeing 20-25 children and teens at both Peace Pals and House of Teens each week and only expect this number to grow throughout the year. We have also continued to build connections with volunteers, having around 15 join us each week. Our back to school food drive and Lotteria Fundraiser for MEYO were very successfulThank you to each person who donated an item or participated! Please check out our Christmas Raffle Add in this newsletter. We also have had numerous events happening at programing including the SAPD volunteering at Teen Night, San Antonio Food Bank leading a project on nutrition and health, community service in the neighborhood, and beginning to plan House of Teens 4th Annual Haunted House -Come if you dare. Over Thanksgiving Break (Nov 22-25) this year House of Teens is revamping the inside of the Yellow House with St. Steven’s Presbyterian Church of Ft. Worth, if you are interested in helping contact us! We have also begun building new connections around San Antonio, including being chosen as the recipient of the 2014 Mission Presbytery portion of the Peacemaking Offering on World Communion Sunday. This community of support continues to grow and sustain MEYO as it creates an environment that encourages Personal Development, Service to the Community, Solid Character Formation, and a Dedication to Post-High School Learning. The following story is an example of this sustaining community: Angelina (not actual name) is a young woman who started at House of Teens in 7th grade. Her journey is remarkable, filled with the constant theme of triumph over struggle. During her senior year-with the help of our collaborator College Vista-Angelina was awarded numerous scholarships and accepted into a local college to pursue her dream of teaching. With the fall semester quickly approaching she went to the college to enroll only to find a nightmare of paperwork, entrance tests with fees, vaccines, appointments, and orientation to complete in only 3 days or face forfeiting her hard-earned scholarships because of missing the enrollment deadline! After running into road blocks at the college and without anyone at home to help her navigate, since she the first in her household to go to college, Angelina showed up at our Yellow House extremely discouraged, and considering waiting a semester. As we dove into the details it appeared it would be possible, extremely challenging, but possible to navigate the maze of sequential requirements in time. It was a daunting task, but she was willing to step up to the challenge, as she had done so many times in her life. The final piece of the puzzle was contacting Fredrico (not actual name), a House of Teens alumni and friend of Angelina. He was a grade ahead of her and was currently attending the same college. Fredrico said he was willing to help Angelina get things figured out. “Help Out” was an understatement! For the next two days Fredrico drove Angelina to the numerous places required, sticking around through each test and the 6 hour orientation to see her to her next step. It was a challenging and grueling process. Even as she reached the finish line and went to enroll the college told her she would need to pay on the spot to finalize the enrollment. She would have to pay out of her own pocket for now, something she could not afford until the school-issued debit card with her money arrived in the mail days later. It looked like after all of their work she would still have to forfeit her scholarships and chance at school this semester. But again, Fredrico stepped in offering to cover her balance until she received her debit card. The Westside Story 8 This is daunting road that the young men & women from this neighborhood face in order to achieve their dreams. But THIS is the community of support that MEYO creates, where youth are supported by the staff, College Vista, and most of all by their fellow peers. Not alone, but together we make this journey. We are so grateful for Divine Redeemer’s continued involvement and support. If you would like to become more involved please talk to Hope, Ignacia, Lauren, Abby, or Drew. Blessings! Greetings from our DWELLERS! Hello Divine Redeemer Church! My name is Mallory Tober. I am 23 years old and originally from Connecticut, although most recently I have lived in Baltimore and the Philippines. I am very excited to be serving my second YAV year here in San Antonio. I will be working at Guadalupe Home to assist mothers-to-be that lack a support system to help them through their pregnancy. I will also be interning at City Health. I enjoy music, especially playing violin, viola, and guitar, and also creating art. I am looking forward to getting to know you all this year. ¡Saludos a todos de la Iglesia Divino Redentor! Me llamo Mallory Tober. Tengo 23 años. Soy originalmente de Connecticut, aunque en los últimos años, he vivido en Baltimore y en las Filipinas. Estaré con mujeres embarazadas, dándoles ayuda/ayudándoles/para ayudarles antes y después del nacimiento del niño. Voy a trabajar también con City Health. Me gusta tocar el violín, la viola, y la guitarra; y crear obras de arte. ¡Mucho gusto! My name is Victoria Hollingsworth, but I prefer being called Tori. I grew up in Atlanta, and when I was sixteen my parents and I moved closer to the rest of our family, including my sister, and started a new journey in Quincy, Florida. I felt homesick for Atlanta and decided to move back for college at the University of West Georgia where I earned a bachelor’s degree in history. I didn't know what God was calling me to do after school, so when I went to an informational meeting for YAV I felt a strong pull towards doing a year of service. God has led me to San Antonio, and I'm excited to see what this year brings. Hi, I'm Abby Evans. I grew up all over Florida while moving around with my two pastor parents and my twin brothers. All three of the kids are musically talented, and one of my favorite things in all the world is to sing and play with my brothers. With a degree in Elementary Education, I plan to become a teacher one day, but for now, I am very excited to be working with the children and youth in the MEYO programs. My name is Caroline Tonarely. I’m from San Diego and I graduated from the University of Arizona, where I studied Spanish, Communication, and Sociology. Here in San Antonio, I work at San Anto Cultural Arts, which I enjoy because the organization is so dedicated to the community. I like to read in order to learn new things about people and society, and I want to continue practicing Spanish a lot more so that I can keep improving. Me llamo Caroline Tonarely. Soy de San Diego y me gradué de la Universidad de Arizona, donde estudié el español, la comunicación, y la sociología. Aquí en San Antonio, trabajo con San Anto Artes Culturales, donde disfruto de un ambiente en el que la gente es muy dedicada al bienestar de la comunidad. Me gusta leer para aprender nuevas cosas sobre la gente y la sociedad, y quiero practicar el español mucho más para que pueda seguir mejorando. The Westside Story Faith Guides O send out your light and your truth; let them lead me. - Psalm 43:3 A Presbyterian tradition for more than seventy years, the Christmas Joy Offering is one of the four special offerings designated by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to provide congregations direct ways of supporting specific causes that help those in need. You are encouraged to support the Christmas Joy Offering through gifts to your congregation's offering. A special collection will be taken on December 24, 2014. Remember family and friends during the upcoming holidays. Reach a hand out to those in 9 Daylight Savings Time ends. Don’t forget to change your clocks on November 2, 2014, 2PM Let us honor our veterans who died serving for our country. Remember to thank those who fought for our freedom. May God Bless them and our Country Veteran’s Day November 11, 2014 need. Wreaths across America San Antonio~ Invite all your friends and family to come join us at the ceremony on 13 Dec 2014 @ 11:00 am....as soon as the Completely cover the Ft Sam National Cemetery with Christmas wreaths.......there are 130,000 headstones at Ft Sam. We laid 16,070 wreaths last year......it was AMAZING and a beautiful sight to see. The wreaths are $15 each. Place your orders and make your donations to: Wreaths Across America PO Box 460043 San Antonio, TX. 78246 CHURCH OFFICE WILL BE CLOSED FOR THE THANKSGIVING HOLIDAYS NOVEMBER 26-28, 2014 CHURCH OFFICE WILL BE CLOSED FOR THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS DECEMBER 24, 2014-JANUARY 1, 2015 EXCEPT FOR ESSENTIALS. Divine Redeemer has a website… check it out at divineredeemersa.org If you have any information that you would like to post on the website please email a copy to the church office at drchurchsa@sbcglobal.net Include any graphics on your announcements, special fonts, layout, etc. Pictures can also be sent. The Website will not be current unless you submit the information. This is our website so we welcome everyone's participation! The Westside Story 10 Divine Redeemer Calendar of Events for Nov / Dec 2014 November 2 Joint Service/ Dia de los Muertos w/ lunch @ 10:30 am 4 Election Day December 7 Communion Sunday Homebound Serenata No meeting 7 DR Women’s Lectio- 6:30 pm Hostess: Gracie Martinez Veterans Day 12 Prayer Shawl w/ potluck 6 pm- Hostess: Margaret Rivera 17 DR Women’s Luncheon 12:30 pm 7 Carol Sing-a-long 6 pm 10 Prayer Shawl w/ potluck 6 pm- Hostess: Margaret Rivera 12 Tamalada/ Posada 12 DR’s 99th Anniversary 14 Session Meeting 1pm (Budget Approval) 14 DR Men’s group @ 6 pm Host: Cervando Martinez 21 Discipleship Reflection Circle DR Men’s gathering 11 16 7 Communion Sunday Sharing Ministry Mtg 6:30 pm 19 Community Thanksgiving Dinner 23 Discipleship Reflection Circle 1pm 23 New Elder Training 26-28 Church Office Closed-Thanksgiving Holidays 30 Ministry Team Meeting- 1-3 pm 30 1st Sunday of Advent- Begin Lectionary Year B 24-Jan 1 Church office closed except for Essentials 28 Congregational Meeting (Pastor’s Terms of Call) *** Calendar of events are subject to change, contact Program leaders or church office. Monday Spanish Bible Study w/ Potluck 10:00 am, Fellowship Hall --Westside Bible Study Wednesday at Bertha Pena’s house 12 Noon The Westside Story 11 “A Soldiers Prayer Book” It was quiet that day, the guns and the mortars, and land mines for some reason hadn’t been heard. The young soldier knew it was Sunday, the holiest day of the week. As he was sitting there, he got out an old deck of cards and laid them out across his bunk. Just then an army sergeant came in and said, “Why aren’t you with the rest of the platoon?” The soldier replied “I thought I would stay behind and spend some time with the Lord.” The sergeant said, “Looks to me like you’re going to play cards.” The soldier said, “No, sir. You see, since we are not allowed to have Bibles or other spiritual books in this country, I’ve decided to talk to the Lord by studying this deck of cards.” The sergeant asked in disbelief, “How will you do that?” “You see the Ace, sergeant? It reminds me that there is only one God. The Two represents the two parts of the Bible, Old and New Testaments. The Three represents the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost. The Four stands for the Four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The Five is for the five virgins there were ten but only five of them were glorified. The Six is for the six days it took God to create the Heavens and Earth. The Seven is for the day God rested after making His Creation. The Eight is for the family of Noah and his wife, their three sons and their wives- the eight people God spared from the flood that destroyed the Earth. The Nine is for the lepers that Jesus cleansed of leprosy, He cleansed then, but nine never thanked Him. The Ten represents the Ten Commandments that God handed down to Moses on tables made of stone. The Jack is a reminder of Satan, one of God’s first angels, but he got kicked out of heaven for his sly and wicked ways and is now the joker of eternal hell. The Queen stands for the Virgin Mary. The King stands for Jesus, for he is the King of all kings. When I count the dots on all the cards, I come up with 365 total, one for every day of the year. There are a total of 52 cards in a deck; each is a week- 52 weeks in a year. The four suits represent the four seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. Each suit has thirteen cards- thee are exactly thirteen weeks in a quarter. So when I want to talk to God and thank Him, I just pull out this old deck of cards and they remind me of all that I have to be thankful for.” The sergeant just stood there. After a minute, with tears in his eyes and pain I his heart, he said, “Soldier, can I borrow that deck of cards?” Prayer for the Military Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them. Bless them and their families. I ask this in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Amen The Westside Story 12 Got Prayers? Do you have a family member or friend who needs prayers of healing? Do you have a family member or friend who asks for prayers of thanksgiving? Is your neighbor, co-worker, or best friend hurting and needs the assurance of God’s grace? Then we can pray for them! Every month on the 1st Sunday of each month we publish a prayer list in our church bulletin. We can also circulate prayers via email so the church family can be in ongoing prayer for you or your loved one. Please email your requests to matabrenda96@gmail.com anytime (or leave a message at 210-639-2998). We are happy to include your petitions and praises! Divine Redeemer Presbyterian Church 407 N. Calaveras St. San Antonio, Texas 78207-2807 www.divineredeemersa.org The Westside Story The News of Divine Redeemer