May 2014 1 Newsletter of the First Reformed Church inNew Brunswick

From Pastor’s Desk —by Pastor HartmutA powerful congruence happens when the message ofEaster coincides with the blooming of the trees and othersigns of the awakening nature after a long winter. It’s asintense as an Easter fire can be. On Easter Sunday thefeeling was so strong that it made us forget our relocationto fellowship hall due to the coming construction in ourchurch. The relocation had a logistic and organizationalimpact on our worship service, but not a spiritual one.The message of Easter did that, and its reflections innature in front of our doors.

But how will it continue? Only a few of us are aware thatthe Easter Season continues until the day of the Ascensionof Christ, this year on May 29. During medieval times, thechurch had numerous traditions of celebrating Easter forthis extended period of time. There were special dances,Emmaus walks and Easter dinners. Not much of this is leftin our public memory.

Yet, if the experience of the resurrection entails more thana few good feelings on Easter Sunday, than we will want tobe curious about the new life sprouting in us. We will wantto be intentional about watching what God is doing in ourmidst, and how God offers us over and over again thisnew life of the resurrection.

Inside this IssueChurch Move - Complete 2A Fresh Start for Sunday School 3Mother’s Day Breakfast 3List of Officers & Committee Chairs 3Benevolence of the Month-

Rutgers Protestant Campus Ministry 4Consistory Corner 4Our Honorees Rocked! 5TCCDC Update 6Dutch Dancers on Tour 6Music Notes 7Jesus Visited on Palm Sunday 7Lunchtime Ministry Very Successful 7Seder Meal and Tenebrae Worship

& CICLOVIA 8

Our congregation has many possibilities where we can seethis happening. Sometimes, we see God working throughexternal circumstances, through people, funds and ideasfurthering our life and ministry. But just as often, Godworks through us, the people here at church. We may findrenewed meaning in worship or Sunday School; an extralittle something to give towards the benevolences of thechurch, or even a call to join the forces of Dina’sDwelling, one of the choirs, or the adult education class“First Wednesdays”.

Whatever it may be, it will be important for us to stay alertto the signs of what God is doing among us. The messageof the empty tomb was that life is stronger than death.How will you and I appropriate this in coming weeks?

With fond wishes,Pastor Hartmut

Easter fire in Eibergen, Achterhoek, The Netherlands (Source:Wikipedia)

May 2014 2 Newsletter of the First Reformed Church inNew Brunswick

Church Move, Complete–by Pastor Hartmut

It’s kind of scary to see the empty sanctuary, isn’t it? Yetthis is part of our congregation’s preparation for thepending construction of ten apartments for victims ofdomestic violence. In the end, we will have provided spacefor this disenfranchised group in society – even thoughthis is heartily little, as statistics tell us. In recent years, anaverage of 240 women found refuge in the shelters ofWomen Aware in Middlesex County. Of these 240, anaverage of 34 women is successful in finding a permanentand affordable place to live. Our project will add 10homes to the list – truly a drop in the bucket!

Meanwhile, we want to thank the many helpers involvedwith our endless “church move” as it’s being referred toafter so many Saturdays of emptying the church building offurniture, light fixtures, ceiling tiles, loudspeakers, etc.

Lolly Schenck was a great quartermaster in assigning eachremoved piece a new location. She spent hours for thisnot only on Saturdays, but during the weeks as well. GaryBernhofer and the Property Committee helped immenselyproviding the tools and people power. Phil Coakley cameextra from NYC to take down the sound system that heand his father had installed a few years ago. Julius Feketesupervised the dismantling of the furniture in the ChurchLibrary that he had built not too long ago. RutgersUniversity Student Volunteer Council sent us manystudents, often under the well-tried leadership of MingMan Cheung, who is an international student from HongKong. Last but not least is Rutgers Protestant CampusMinistry with Taylor Barger as leader. She and her fellowstudents were most selfless in helping us out.

May 2014 3 Newsletter of the First Reformed Church inNew Brunswick

A Fresh Start for Sunday School—by Pastor HartmutThe first Sunday in April marked the beginning of our newSunday School. On the previous Saturday, Lolly hadlovingly prepared the nursery for this. Her efforts wererewarded by a rather attentive little crowd: Joe Ruiz,Madeline Nonestied and Andy Epstein formed the firstclass.

The teaching team consists of Heather, Lolly, and Fawnwith Lauren as advisor and me in the background. Thesessions are not long, just about 30 minutes. They includea story and a snack part. We hope that the childrenbecome familiar in this way with the church’s worship life.Sunday morning worship also entails a spoken part and theLord’s Supper.

As I sat in with the first session, I was amazed how fewprompts the children required to be quiet. Lolly’s skillfulpresentation of the story fascinated them in such a waythat they began participating all by themselves. What agreat way of spreading the gospel!

The next sessions will take place at 10:00 AM on Sunday,May 4 with Heather teaching, and Sunday, June 1 withFawn teaching. Parents are welcome to sit in and observe.Always remember, Sunday School is no less importantthan regularschool duringthe week

Back By Popular Demand – Mother’s DayBreakfast–by Gary Bernhofer

Some traditions are just too good to discontinue. Lastyear, we stopped the Mother’s Day Breakfast, but we justhave to have it this year. So, on Sunday, May 11th, theProperty Committee will be offering a breakfast in honor ofthe mothers of our congregation. The menu will includecoffee, juice, a choice of European pancakes/French toast,bacon and fruit.

The cost will be $6 for adults and $3 for kids. We will beserving breakfast before the service, from 9:15 am to10:15 am. Proceeds will go towards maintenance of ourfacilities. Bring Mom and the family along for this specialevent.

May 2014 4 Newsletter of the First Reformed Church inNew Brunswick

Benevolence of the Month — Rutgers Protestant CampusMinistry News

A New Mission & Vision!At this year’s annual Board Retreat,the board members of RutgersProtestant Campus Ministries spent time redefining theorganization’s mission and vision statements.

Vision:To create a radically welcoming presence for RutgersUniversity students who are seeking to grow into a life ofChristian faith.

Mission:To provide a radically loving andwelcoming community of Christian faithfor Rutgers University students throughworship, study, conversation, serviceand fellowship.

RPCM is an INCLUSIVE communityIf you are Asian, Hispanic, Black, orWhite…If you are male or female...If you are transgender, queer orintersex…If you’ve never stepped foot in a church;or if you are Buddhist, Catholic,Protestant, or agnostic…If you are single, married, divorced,separated, or partnered…If you are straight, gay, lesbian, orbisexual…If you are a Republican, Democrat,Independent, Socialist, or not registeredto vote…If you live in a dorm, commute, or livewith your parents….If you hang on the Busch, Livingston,Douglas, Cook or College Ave campusIf you are fully-abled, disabled, or aperson of differing abilities…

YOU ARE ALWAYS WELCOME HERE!

Consistory Corner—by Fawn Stephens

Consistory met for the months of March and April andcontinue to corroborate for the mission and purpose ofFirst Reformed Church. With the construction of Dina'sDwellings soon approaching, Consistory has starteddiscussing new topics that are arising, such as packing anddistribution of church pews and doors. With the tentativegroundbreaking scheduled for June 2014, Consistorylooks forward to this new partnership and workingtogether with all involved parties to make this aharmonious process for a beautiful cause.

May 2014 5 Newsletter of the First Reformed Church inNew Brunswick

Our Honorees Rocked!—by Pastor Hartmut

As always, First Reformed Church was fully within thecurrent trend when it named three honorees and broughta total of 11 people to this year’s Regional Synod LayRecognition Dinner. Other congregations did the same,and so the event turned out to be the largest ever. TheSynod may have to find a new venue in two years! It wassure wonderful to see so many Reformed people at once.And as always, it proved to be a great occasion to greatold friends whom one does not get to see very oftensimply because they belong to another Classis. We had agreat program, a great meal and great conversation allaround. Please enjoy the bios of our honorees as theyappeared in the Dinner Brochure:

Mary-Low “Lolly” SchenckLolly came to First Reformed Church in 2010 as one ofthe teachers of Pine Grove Cooperative Nursery School.Soon, she immersed herself in theological and exegeticalliterature. Increasingly, she felt God’s call to become aChristian. She began to explore and discern what thismight mean for her. Eventually, she reached the conclusionto request baptism. This we celebrated in 2012 during afestive worship service. Since then, Lolly has continuedexploring her faith through prayer, discussion andliterature. She has joined our adult education class “FirstWednesdays” and become a very committed sermonfollower. Lolly is also applying her faith in a myriad ofservices to the church and the community. She hasbecome an Elder on Consistory and serves on theProperty Committee as well as the Invitation & OutreachCommittee. She joined our Dutch Dancers. Together withother leaders from our church, she also plays a vital part inour annual hosting of the Interfaith Rotating HomelessMen’s Shelter. Lolly has blessed First Reformed Church inmany beautiful ways.

Benjamin BermanBen is the Music Director of FirstReformed Church. As such, he is astaff member, and it is somewhatunusual for him to be an honoree atthis year’s Lay Recognition dinner. However, Ben is somuch more than a staff member of our church. Last year,when his job situation could have easily led him away fromour church, he announced his desire to become an activemember. This included his request for baptism. Weeks of

learning and conversation followed, and Ben found himselfon a deep spiritual journey. We celebrated his baptism onEaster Sunday 2013 during worship with much of Ben’sfamily present from out-of-state. Ben continues tocontribute in a multitude of ways to the life at FirstReformed Church. In addition to his obligations as MusicDirector, he organizes every year a series of fundraisingand benefit concerts, leads the Interfaith RainbowChildren’s Choir, and has become a constant participant inour adult education class “First Wednesdays”. He is also amember of our Dutch Dancers and co-organizer of ourLunchtime Recital Series.

Ethel SalamoneEthel is the good spirit behind much of the organizedhospitality of First Reformed Church. Without much ado,she is always there, whether it’s the Advent breakfast, theannual Seder Dinner, Rod’s Grill Night or any othercongregational meal. Ethel’s leadership in our culinarydepartment is absolutely indispensable. And yet, if we onlyfocused on this, we would overlook much of Ethel’s lastinginfluence on First Reformed Church over several decades.She has served as Elder and Deacon, has been our longestserving representative at Elijah’s Soup Kitchen, and spentyears volunteering at Sage Library at New BrunswickTheological Seminary. Using her husband’s bequest in2004, Ethel bestowed our church with a well-furnishedlibrary and a very useful collection of books. She has alsobeen involved in our congregation’s interfaith activities andjoined 12 of us on a trip to Turkey a few years ago. We arealso grateful to Ethel for her never ceasing support of ourmusic program and other church ministries. Her wiseinsight and counsel is an inspiration to many of us.

May 2014 6 Newsletter of the First Reformed Church inNew Brunswick

Town Clock CDC – TownClock CDC—by Susan Kramer-Mills

This past month has seenmany wonderful successes forour project. On April 5, Joan, Marlana and Susanattended the Crossroads Women’s Retreat on LongBeach Island. Besides having to wear veils for a partof the day, Susan was invited to give a presentation ofDina’s Dwellings. A special collection was taken forthe project.

On May 12, Sherri and Susan attended the LentenBreakfast at the Readington Reformed Church. Someof you may remember that this is the church whichDina’s two husbands served – J. Frelinghuysen and J.R. Hardenbergh. Rev. Hardenbergh and Dina latercame to New Brunswick and served our church aspastor and the first President of Queen’s College. TheReadington Reformed Church was the home church ofLauretta Lane, who created the Dina Doll. So, inessence, our visit and presentation of Dina Van Berghwas a personal history lesson the ReadingtonReformed Church. They absolutely were thrilled withthe project and how we are incorporating Dina’s storywith it. Again, a special offering for our project wastaken. Further, we have received several NamingOpportunities through these presentations. At thispoint in time we have had three of our sevenefficiency apartments named and the one-bedroom.This is really exciting!

Finally, for Mother’s Day we areoffering to put your mother’sname on the plaque of our“FRIENDS” efficiency apartmentfor a $100 or more donation, andwe will send your mother acertificate, which will inform her ofyour gift. For more details, pleasecheck out our website: townclockcdc.org. There is aPaypal donation button located on the website.

Dutch Dancers on Tour—by Pastor Hartmut

It was a special occasion when Josh’s girlfriend ThakshilaUpasena invited our Dutch Dancers to be part of aninternational festival at Burlington County College whereshe works. Thakshila was one of the organizers of theaffair.

And so we went, Lolly, Lauren, Susan Miller from aHighland Park synagogue, and Susan and I. We offeredtwo humble dances plus a short presentation of ourtraditional outfits and the various regions in TheNetherlands they represent. We had a lot of fun, saw otherdancers from Ghana, Liberia and countries in Asia. Wealso had a lot ofinternational foodfor dinner.

Thank you,Thakshila, for yourhospitality and forincluding us in yourprogram!

May 2014 7 Newsletter of the First Reformed Church inNew Brunswick

Music Notes—by Benjamin T. Berman

Please mark your calendars for First Reformed Church'sconcert at Crossroads Theater in New Brunswick. We willfeature La Fiocco, the period instrument ensemble ofBucks County, and the Yue Yue Ensemble. The concert willbe on June 21 at 7:00pm. We will also feature poetryreadings of poets from New Jersey, read by our very ownJohn Keller. This is to celebrate the 350th anniversary ofNew Jersey.

Please support First Reformed Church by coming to thisconcert. Ask me if you have any questions or if you wouldlike to purchase a ticket. If you want to volunteer to helpus out, please speak to me or send me an email. Thankyou for your support.

Lunchtime Ministry Very Successful—by Pastor Hartmut

The accompanying pictures reflect very well the atmosphere during thevarious lunchtime recitals during this season of spring. Years ago now, ourpreparation team refocused its goals. We resolved to target not just white-collard office workers but groups that could not normally affordthis type of cultural experience.

We identified residents of local nursing homes and childrenfrom the schools of New Brunswick. Since many of the childrenhave an immigration background, we wanted the recitals tobecome part of their integration into the life in this community.What we did not plan and yet enjoy very much is theintergenerational component of many of the recitals, whenchildren and senior citizens begin to interact.

It’s been a great season for the series this spring, and we want to thank especiallyJanet Waanders, who organized and coordinated everything in her well-tried ways.

Another thank-you goes to our funders: Due to a grant from the Middlesex CountyBoard of Chosen Freeholders, the Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission,and the NJ State Council on the Arts, we are able to offer each concert and thefollowing meal without charge.

Jesus Visited on Palm Sunday–by Susan Kramer-Mills

Can you guess who this is? Why, yes, it is Jesus akaEugene! If you missed church on Palm Sunday, youmissed quite a portrayal of his entry into Jerusalem.Thanks, Eugene, for being such a fun sport!

First Reformed Church9 Bayard Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08901phone: 732-545-1005; fax: 732-545-1139email: Secretary@FirstReformedChurch.netweb site: www.FirstReformedChurch.net

Seder Meal and Tenebrae Worship—by Susan Kramer-Mills

There was so much delicious food at our SederMeal Potluck that we could have fed many morepeople. The tables groaned with all that folks hadbrought to share. We sang. We remembered. Werejoiced and cried with the anticipation of whatwas to come about.

Then we gracefully moved to worship. The choirsang as an Anthem - O vos omnes by CarlosCorrea (1680-c.1747)

O you all who walk by on the road, behold and see: if there be any sorrow like my sorrow.(Lamentations 1:12, Vulgate)

This marking the final moments of our Lord andSavior is always a precious event, because itprepares our hearts for the coming joy of hisresurrection. Thanks to all who participated.