A whale-sized WELL DONE to the children’s choir, Kevin Estes, Forbes Woods and the handful of others for the spectacular success of this year’s children’s musical!

The caliber of the singing and enthusiasm of the cast made “Oh, Jonah!” one of the best performances in recent memory. This retelling of the Jonah story brought new emphasis to the “big fish” story written to remind us of the importance of our responsibility in answering God’s call, his limitless mercy and inescapable will. Not to mention his love for all those undeserving of his grace (namely, all of us!). For those who missed it, a link to video of the performance is available for a short time at www.fpcg.org in the “Did you know?” section (lower right).

Issue 192 May 2012

câÄÑ|à cxtÜÄá [Job’s wife] means to hold God accountable. I like her. We will see, I think, that her response to evil is inadequate, and that Job's refusal to let go of God is more commendable and in the end more helpful than his wife's atheism, but it is unders tandab le , and common. And our task, I think, is not to rebuke her, but to understand her. Because we meet her at every turn. Job's wife–the helpless, the health-less, the hopeless, the crushed, the broken, the unbelieving, for whom the easy, empty consolations of religion fall flat and dull at the feet. You know the thing about Mrs. Job? God never rebukes her insolence, perhaps because God knows her pain. God lets her angry, blasphemous words stand as they are...because her anger is truer than the empty platitudes of [a] shallow religion.

The Reverend Dr. Evertsberg May 13, 2012

Find sermon MP3s, videos and

transcripts at www.fpcg.org/sermons.html

SUNDAY MORNING MUSIC… ...for a Saturday Evening

The first of what promises to be a wonderful series of concerts took place at FPCG Saturday Evening, April 28th, when conductor Kevin Estes, choir and orchestra kicked off this year’s Spring Concert Series. The concert, that centered around the sacred melodies which make up our musical liturgy, celebrated the masterworks one might hear as part of a Sunday service by giving them the prominence they deserve in a concert all their own. The evening included works by Haydn, Bach, Mo-zart and Fauré, but also a spiritual and a toe-tapping samba, all interlaced between Kevin

Estes’ knowledgeable explanations and his-tory on the meaning behind each section of the Ordinary of the Mass. It really was a treat and is available on a dual CD set to anyone who would like a copy. Simply email re-cordings@fpcg.org and request Sunday Morn-ing Music for a Saturday Evening. Also mark your calendars with these upcom-ing concert events!

Axel and Anja Strauss in Concert Saturday, May 19 (Tickets: $10 at the door)

Bluegrass Concert

Saturday, June 2 (Ticket: $15 at the door)

Polyphony Foundation Concert Thursday, June 21

OH Jonah!

FIRST PRESS

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Greenwich, CT 06830 Tel: (203) 869-8686 Fax: (203) 869-1745

www.fpcg.org

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SAVE THE DATE! Church Picnic,

June 10 It’s picnic time and those wacky guys and dolls of the Fellowship Committee are put-ting together another fun kick-off to summer at FPCG!

Scrounge through your closet and dig out your favorite baseball cap or jersey because we’re (figuratively) taking the whole family out to the ballpark for lunch! Hot dogs and hamburgers hot off the grill . . . make your own ice cream sundaes . . . live music . . . activities for the kids . . . and FUN, FUN, FUN!!!

What’s not to like? So mark your calendar, wear your favorite Major League jersey or cap and come on down to FPCG home field (Fellowship Hall) after worship on Sunday, June 10.

You don’t want to miss it!

Our own Bill Evertsberg was part of a panel for Greenwich Reads Together on Tuesday evening, May 1, at Christ Church. The subject of discussion was "Lessons from Zeitoun : Where do we go from here?" Other participants were the Rabbi Mitch Hurvitz from Temple Sholom and Dr. Kareem Adeeb, Imam for the American Institute for Islamic and Arabic Studies, Stamford. The Reverend Kate Heichler, head of the Interfaith Council of Southwestern Connecticut, moderated. At this event, prizes, donated by the Rotary, were awarded to two students who won the essay contest for their entries on "How reading Zeitoun affected their view of justice and anti-Muslim sentiment in the United Sates."

This discussion was the complement to a special Academy class held earlier in April hosted by Gail Wilson (Founder of the Greenwich Reads Together program), Linda Kennedy (children’s librarian at the Ferguson Library in Stamford and FPCG Book Club leader) and Ross Ogden (who has a long history with the Red Cross and currently sits on their Board of Advisors). At this class the book was discussed, as were experiences and memories of

what happened during and in the still-ongoing reconstruction following Hurricane Katrina. If you would like a copy of that Academy discussion on CD, please request it via email from recordings@fpcg.org.

The Senior Fellowship Committee, headed up by our Deacons, put on a great luncheon for our most distinguished members Tuesday, May 8. In addition to the sumptuous meal and fascinating conversation, the crowd was entertained by the velvety, “Nat King Cole-esque” voice of Richard “Cookie” Thomas accompanied by the tinkling piano stylings of Joe McWilliams (pictured lower right). Both performers put on a great show and all in attendance had a wonderful time. Thank you to Erin Keys, the hard working deacon teams and the generous musical donation from Philip Wentworth.

Senior Spring LuncheonSenior Spring Luncheon

From A to Zeitoun: FPCG participates in Greenwich Reads Together

Mario the Magician made an appearance Friday, April 27...and a few disappearances too! Mario, a truly gifted entertainer, showed our Nursery School children the w o n d e r s o f m a g i c r i n g s ,

handkerchiefs, wands, coins and a variety of other things (including pulling a dove out of his hat!). But among the slight of hand and illusions, his best trick was the way he was able to make the children smile. Mario says that he is always eager to perform for the First Presbyterian Nursery School as they are his best behaved audience anywhere and of any age! And the kids (and staff) of First Presbyterian love him too. A wonderful showman!

May Members!

Pictured from L to R, front row: Carina Crain, Laird Bieger, Nicole Hadley, Phil Hadley, Amy Zoller; back row: Dr. William Evertsberg, TJ Lindsay, Josh Thomsen. Not pictured: Jimmy and Susan Barge, Courtney Bieger, Will Cook, Chris Crain, Jason and Joanna Young

FPCG has added a few new faces to our congregation recently, so be sure to seek them out and introduce yourself. Judy Kelly has already made our newest members feel welcome, now its up to all of us to make them feel like part of the family. A continued thank you to Judy Kelly, the Membership Commit-tee and everyone behind the scenes that make our membership process the success it is!

Nursery S c h o o l N e w s !

Community Total: $16,774

FPCG: $2,325

CROP WALK 2012 Thank you to all who participated in this year’s FPCG-hosted Crop Walk as both sponsors and volunteers, making it yet another great boon for those in desperate need of help, both here and around the world. All in, Greenwich/Port Chester raised $16,774.00 to benefit Church World Service ($8,387.00), Neighbor to Neighbor ($4,193.50) and Carver Center ($4,193.50). $2,325.00 of that was from FPCG.

Save A Life This Summer! On Saturday, June 30, First Presbyterian will once again host the Red Cross Inter-Faith Blood Drive in Fel-lowship Hall. Joining with our church will be members of Congregation Shir Ami, First Baptist, and First United Methodist Churches. Each of our faiths proclaims the importance of helping those in need, and a single donation of blood during the critical summer months can save or prolong up to three lives. The FPCG Mission Committee urges everyone able to give blood that day or volunteer to bring something special for the donors to eat. Call 1-800-Red-Cross or go to www.redcrossblood.org to make your appointment. Most

healthy people can give blood, but if you have an eligibility question, you can call Red Cross at 1-866-236-3276.

FPCG continues to support Hearts for Honduras in several ways—future dental trips to La Entrada are certain to resume in upcoming years, the church sponsors several students at the school and our Mission Committee continues to show solidarity with the school despite a rise in crime. Recently, H4H sent a big thank you to First Presbyterian Church of Greenwich and many others who donated to their "Buy A Book" campaign. Pictured here students show off their new textbooks. For more pictures, visit “Corazones Para Honduras—Hearts for Honduras” Hearts for Honduras on Facebook!

Armchair Theologians: Martin Luther King Jr.

Join our Armchair Theologian’s book group for the final installment of this monthly review of casual and often-times humorous looks into the lives of some of the most influential religious thinkers in history. The final meeting will be Monday, June 11 at 7:30 pm in the chapel (2nd floor), and will be discussing Martin Luther King, Jr. Facilitating the discussion will be the Reverend Donald Parker who worked with the Dr. Martin Luther King during the civil rights marches of the 1960s

COMMUNICATION! CD  recordings  of  our  10  am  service  are  available  free  of  charge.   Email  recordings@fpcg.org  or  call  (203)  869‐8686  x119  with  your  mailing address and date of the desired service today!    If you wish to receive the CDs weekly, let us know and we can add you to our regular mailing list.  

M C A G A I S

Bluegrass Concert Saturday, June 2 at 7:00 p.m. Tickets ($15) available at the door  

or call (203) 869‐8686 

First Presbyterian Church of Greenwich ♫ 1 West Putnam Avenue, Greenwich, CT 06830

Axel Strauss, violin 1998 Naumburg Violin Competition Winner  

in Concert with Anja Strauss, soprano & Kevin L. Estes, piano 

This Saturday, May 19 at 7:00 p.m. Tickets ($10) available at the door 

FPCG 

BULLET IN   BOARD