1. religion and spirituality
2. christianity

“Welcome”
S UNDAY W ORSHIP C ELEBRATION
NOVEMBER 9, 2014 • 6:00 PM
TRANSGENDER AWARENESS
You’re welcome in this house
Rest inside this house
We all are flawed, no judgments made.
That’s the beauty of this place
~ GATHERING ~
PRELUDE
Improv on “Welcome”
(Tituss Burgess)
Jim Kast/Keat
ANNOUNCEMENTS/INVITATION TO ART & SOUL ++
“Welcome”
(Tituss Burgess)
Middle Church Clergy
WELCOMING NEW MEMBERS
MUSIC
“God Is in Control”
(James Hall)
Natalie Perkins
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE/LORD’S PRAYER
Ever/loving and holy God, hallowed be your name.
Your reign come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those who sin against us,
and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,
for yours is the reign, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
PASSING OF THE PEACE++ “We Shall Overcome”
(Tituss Burgess)
You’re welcome if you’re gay
You’re welcome if you’re straight
Bi, transgender, or confused –
this invitation’s for you too.
Oh, it’s safe here
Minds can renew here
Come in and you’ll find out.
No one is turned away
This rule we cannot break
And just in case you’re wondering –
We’re more alike than it may seem
Oh, it’s safe here
Minds can renew here
Come in and you’ll find out.
~ REFLECTING ~
MUSIC
(Jules Bartholomew)
J Mase III
POETRY
Galatians 3.26–29
HOMILY
“Trans*formed by God”
Chad Tanaka Pack
~ RESPONDING ~
Jim Kast/Keat
INVITATION TO JOIN THE MOVEMENT
OFFERTORY “The Storm Is Passing Over”
(Charles A. Tindley, Donald Vails)
DOXOLOGY* “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”
MUSIC
(Traditional)
Jim Kast/Keat
DEDICATION PRAYER*
“God Is in Control” reprise
BENEDICTION*
(James Hall)
Chad Tanaka Pack
ENCORE!! after
fter//worship food and conversation
Join us for ENCORE
and an opportunity to join our movement.
*Indicates please stand if you are able
AT
M IDDLE C HURCH
Check middlechurch.org for full details of all events.
NOVEMBER 10–12 – NO PROGRAMMING
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13
• CREATIVE WRITING THURSDAYS — 6:30–8:00 PM • Conference Room — A supportive,
creative, and fun place to work on an idea you’ve always wanted to write. — Arts
• MIDDLE CHURCH JERRIESE JOHNSON GOSPEL CHOIR REHEARSAL — 7:00–9:00 PM •
Community Room — Weekly rehearsal. All are welcome to join! — Arts
• PUB THEOLOGY — 7:00–8:30 PM • Jimmy’s No. 43, 43 East 7th Street – Share good drinks
and good conversation about God, life, and everything in between. For more information
or to RSVP, contact Jim Kast/Keat at jimkastkeat@middlechurch.org. — Adult Education
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 14
• CARE CORNER WITH RUCHI AMIN — on hiatus
• LEVEL GROUND FILM FESTIVAL: PARIS IS BURNING — 6:00–9:30 PM • Sanctuary – Join us
for a screening of acclaimed documentary, Paris Is Burning, followed by a dialogue
moderated by Sarah Pulliam Bailey and a performance by legendary drag queen Jeza Belle.
For more information or to RSVP online visit http://onlevelground.ticketleap.com — Arts
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 15 – NO PROGRAMMING
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 16
• BUTTERFLY MEAL PREPARATION — 9:00 AM & 10:00 AM • Social Hall — Prepare bag lunches
for distribution to the hungry in local parks. — Give Help
• CARE CORNER WITH RUCHI AMIN — 9:30 AM–4:00 PM • Room 2%10 — Support by
appointment. Contact Ruchi: 212/477/0666 ext 304 or ramin@middlechurch.org. — Get Help
• WEE CARE (INFANT–AGE 4) — 10:00 AM–2:30 PM • Wee Care Room — Childcare.
“God Made Me”
SCRIPTURE
T HIS W EEK
++ You may find a seat or an Usher will assist you.
PARTICIPATING IN THE CELEBRATION
Singers • Middle Community Chorus
Musicians
Musicians • Bernice Brooks, drums; Danny Cheng, bass; Dionne McClain/Freeney–Director
of Community Music, piano.
WORSHIP VIDEOS AND PODCASTS – Worship music and sermon videos are available on
the Middle Collegiate Church channel. Click the YouTube icon at middlechurch.org.
Subscribe to Middle Collegiate Church sermon podcasts on iTunes: http://ow.ly/i6fHu.
“God Is in Control”
God is in control.
God is in control.
What manner of man is this that winds they obey?
What manner of man is this that even the seas obey?
The great One, for He created the heavens and the earth;
God can do just what He wants,
God can do just what He wants,
God can do just what He wants
God is in control.
God is in control.
• MORNING WORSHIP — 11:15 AM • Sanctuary — Middle Project Sunday “Spiritual. Ethical.
Leadership.” Jacqui Lewis and John Janka, preache
preachers • Middle Church Choir • Middle
Church Jerriese Johnson Gospel Choir. — Worship
• THE ARK — 11:30 AM–12:30 PM • 3rd Floor Studio — Grades K–6 explore the Bible through
the arts—singing, acting, dancing, drawing, or drumming. — Children and Youth Education
• JOIN THE MIDDLE MOVEMENT! — 12:30 PM • Sanctuary — Join our village of dreamers and
stand with us for racial, LGBT, and economic justice. — Community
• BUTTERFLY MEAL DISTRIBUTION — 12:30 PM • meet at Church House — Help to distribute
bag lunches for the hungry in local parks. — Give Help
• CHAT & CHEW — 12:30 PM • Social Hall — Break bread and share conversation with your
Middle Church family. — Community
• VILLAGE CHORUS FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH — 1:00–2:30 PM • Community Room —
Musical and performance workshop for ages 6–14. — Youth Education
• MIDDLE PROJECT YOUNG ADULTS LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE — 1:00–5:00 PM • 4th floor
Studio — Monthly leadership training for young adults. — Adult Education
“Doxology”
• READING THE BIBLE FROM THE MIDDLE — 1:15–2:30 PM • Sanctuary — A sermon talkback
and Bible study to explore this Sunday’s text and sermon themes. — Adult Education
Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise God, all creatures here below.
Praise God for all that love has done.
Creator, Christ, and Spirit, One.
• MOTHERS AND SPIRITUALITY — 1:15–2:30 PM • Parlor — Deepen connection and grow
spiritually by focusing on parenting and its intersection with faith. — Being Group
• ERASING RACISM — 1:15–2:30 PM • 3rd Floor Studio — A monthly group to go deeper and
get real about erasing racism, using art and literature to spark the conversation. — Adult
Education
• PRAYING DANGEROUSLY — 1:15–2:30 • 4th Floor Classroom — Join this group as they
discuss the poem Praying Dangerously and then pray for one another. — Adult Education
• MIDDLE BUSINESS NETWORK — 1:15–2:30 • Conference Room — Business professionals
meet to discuss faith, ethics, and the corporate workplace. — Being Group
• ART & SOUL REHEARSAL — 4:30–5:30 PM • Sanctuary — For more information or to RSVP,
contact Dionne McClain/Freeney at dmcclain/freeney@middlechurch.org. — Art
• THE OPENING ACT — 4:30–5:30 PM • Conference Room — Gather every week before Art &
Soul to explore themes of faith, life, spirituality, and more. — Adult Education
• ART & SOUL WORSHIP — 6:00 PM • Sanctuary — Middle Project Sunday “Beloved
Community” Christina Fleming,
Fleming, preache
preacher • Cassondra Kellam and the Middle Community
Chorus. — Worship
• ENCORE! — 7:00–7:30 PM • Social Hall — Food, conversation, and a time to join our village
of dreamers and stand with us for racial, LGBT, and economic justice. — Community
C ONNECT
What is art & soul?
Pablo Picasso once said,
“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.”
Art & Soul at Middle Church is —
A cool drink of art for your soul, and a chance to bathe in Love.
Worship at night, outside and in between the lines.
Fantastic music that makes you get off your feet or weep.
Sermons that are bold, meaningful, and make you think.
A safe space to be unsure of Spirit, but to lean into it anyway.
A powerful pause from the busy, and a way to jumpstart your heart.
Art & Soul is The Word Made Art.
Come again next week, and bring a friend.
WITH
US!
Join
ART & SOUL INSTAGRAM CHALLENGE – Capture a photo or video of
something inspired by the music, preaching, or prayers at Art & Soul. Upload it
to Instagram and tag it with #MiddleChurch.
ART & SOUL IN 140 CHARACTERS
CHARACTERS – Can you capture Art & Soul in 140
characters? Share your favorite line from a sermon, lyric from a song, or selfie
with a friend in a tweet. Don't forget to use the hashtag #MiddleChurch and
follow @MiddleChurch on Twitter.
Learn
PUB THEOLOGY — Thursday, November 13, 7:00–8:30 PM • Jimmy’s No. 43, 43
East 7th Street – Share good drinks and good conversation about God, life, and
everything in between. For more information or to RSVP, contact Jim Kast/Keat
at jimkastkeat@middlechurch.org.
THE OPENING ACT — Sundays, 4:30–5:50 PM • Conference Room — Join us for
a new education group, where we will explore creative and inspiring ideas
about spirituality, justice, theology, and more. For more information, contact
Jim Kast/Keat at jimkastkeat@middlechurch.org.
Serve
THIS WEEK: TRANS*FORMED BY GOD
• Learn more about gender theory. Riki Wilchins’ book Queer Theory, Gender Theory
offers an easy/to/read overview of academic studies on sex and gender.
• Advocate for transgender rights in New York. Find out about the Gender Expression
Non/Discrimination Act and how you can get involved with the Empire State Pride
Agenda at www.prideagenda.org.
• Pray for gender justice in our world. When have you experienced discrimination or
prejudice because of your gender?
LAST WEEK: HOW TO BE HOT, HOLY, AND HUMBLE
• What would it mean to stand in the full knowledge of your sacred holiness as a beloved
child of God?
BUTTERFLY MEAL — Every Sunday • Prepare meals at 9:00 AM and 10:00 AM •
Distribute meals at 12:30 PM • 122 Second Ave. — Prepare bag lunches and/or
distribute the lunches to the hungry in local parks. More hands and feet are
needed as to help prepare and distribute 180 lunches. — Give Help
Pray
Please pray with us this week for these people and concerns:
Malala Yousafzai; Bermuda; Ukraine; Russia; Hong Kong; China; Middle East;
transgendered people around the world; Middle’s interns; Nigerian girls;
Rockaways; Staten Island; Lenape people; all who are suffering due to illness,
poverty, crime, addiction, war, low self/esteem, mental imbalance; All affected
by Ebola.
• What mask(s) are you wearing as you go about your day? Remove your mask, give it to
God, and be free.
WELCOME TO MIDDLE CHURCH. We are glad you are here today. If you are visiting for the
first time, we invite you to return often and make Middle Church a home for you, your
family, and friends. If you want to join our movement, see a clergy after worship. Complete
the pew card or sign the guest book in the narthex to receive our paper newsletter or
weekly eblast. For more information, visit middlechurch.org. Please silence your cell phone
and leave food or drink outside. Thank you for your cooperation.
By entering the Sanctuary, you grant Middle Collegiate Church unrestricted right to use and
publish, transmit, or telecast photographs or likenesses that might be taken of you this day
for use in communications related to the church. You agree that all such material will be the
sole property of Middle Collegiate Church. If you are uncomfortable in the Sanctuary, you
are welcome to worship in the Sanctuary balcony.
DEAR MIDDLE FAMILY— Every week, we do ministry because of your kindness and your
generosity. This year, our offering goal is $525,000. You were super during our Homecoming
Weekend and helped us to raise more than $50,000! Remember that there are several ways
to give— including sponsoring a brick, directing donations to one of our funds, and giving
online. We love you! —The Consistory
M I D D L E CO L L E G I A T E C H U R CH VI S I O N S T AT E M E N T
Middle Collegiate Church is a celebrating, culturally diverse, inclusive and growing
community of faith where all persons are welcomed just as they are as they come through
the door. Rooted in Christian tradition as the oldest continuous Protestant Church in North
America, Middle Church is called by God to boldly do a new thing on the earth.
As a teaching congregation that celebrates the arts, our ministries include rich and
meaningful worship, care, and education that nurture the mind, body, and spirit, social
action which embraces the global community, and participation in interfaith dialogue for
the purpose of justice and reconciliation. :: middlechurch.org
M I D D L E CO L L E G I A T E C H U R CH
Rev. Jacqueline J. Lewis, Ph.D. – SENIOR MINISTER
Rev. Adriene Thorne – MINISTER • Chad Tanaka Pack, M.Div. – MINISTER
Jim Kast/Keat, M.Div. – ASSOCIATE MINISTER
Alisa Joyce, M.Div. – ASSISTANT MINISTER
SANCTUARY
OFFICE
TELEPHONE
CARE LINE
E/MAIL
WEBSITE
112 Second Avenue (at 7th St.)
50 East 7th Street
New York, NY 10003
212/477/0666
917/439/9268
middleinfo@middlechurch.org
middlechurch.org
CONSISTORY
ELDERS
Rev. Jacqueline J. Lewis, Ph.D.
Veronica Carrera
Kent Holliday
Jeff Mummert
Shanta Thake Chair
Darren Major
James Wu
FOLLOW US!
facebook.com/MiddleCollegiateChurch
facebook.com/Rev.Jacqui.Lewis
youtube.com/MiddleNYC
vimeo.com/middlechurch
twitter.com/middlechurch
twitter.com/RevJacquiLewis
DEACONS
Malia T. Blake
Graham Bridgeman
Johanna Goepel
Erica Hunt
Jonathan Lucas
Hadaryah Morgan
Representatives to
INTERSECTIONS
Elder – Danita Branam
Deacon – Marvin Rodriguez