LaMoine River District

Newsletter

August 2016




From Time to Time
We each have a repertoire of certain mental images of ultimate angst. Mark Twain would say of something he intensely disliked, It was almost as bad as being damned to John Bunyan's heaven. Twain often poked fun at overly pious individuals he encountered. Twain had Huckleberry Finn say to the Widow Douglas, who had been warning him all about the bad place and how easy it was to get there, that he wished he was there. The Widow Douglas became very upset. Huck explained, I didn't mean anything by it. All I wanted was a change, I warn't particular. One cannot help but wonder how it is we end up portraying the life God desires for his children in such a way that it is not only often unappealing, but also sometimes quite appalling. We sometimes develop our religious beliefs in such a way that others cannot help scoffing at them. Is it really that baffling that Twain, along with a good many others, have poked fun at some religious ideas, beliefs and doctrines? Part of the problem is that too often we confuse the literary form by which a particular idea is conveyed with the message. A child, for example, asks its mother whether heaven is up there somewhere. The child has obviously been taught by someone who has not either bothered to explain or simply did not know that the writers of scripture wrote from a prescientific world. The earth for them was flat. The heavens above us are described as the abode of God. The writers of scripture also conveyed truth by means of parables, poetry and anthropomorphic language. We have to help our children understand there is a difference between trusting that God watches over us and accepting any simplistic notion of the clouds being the home of God. We must distinguish between the message and the form by which it is conveyed, if we wish to avoid being entangled in logical absurdities. There are a good many literary forms to be found in the scriptures: parable, instructional narrative, saga, similitude, historical narrative, court narrative, apocalypse, fable, and others. We might imagine the difficulties that would arise should someone read either Jonathan Swift's Modest Proposal as a straight forward solution to the over populated Ireland rather than as satire or H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds as a news release rather than a science fiction. We have to distinguish between the message and the form by which it is conveyed unless we wish to risk having people dismiss what we attempt to communicate because of either an inadequate or antiquated form.
Rev. C. Douglas Rorex

District Calendar
August
Aug 8          Clergy consultations begin
Aug 28        District Clergy Family Picnic 4:30-6:30 at Jacksonville Centenary UMC
Aug 29        Congregational Development Team meeting at District Office 10a.m.- 12p.m.
September
Sept 6-8      Rev. Rorex at cabinet
Sept 10       Charge Conferences begin Schedule is posted on district website
Sept 10       District UMW at Quincy Vermont St. 9:00a.m.
Sept 11       Bishop Beard Installation Service at Springfield First 3:00p.m.
October
Oct 10         District Office closed
Oct 11-13    Rev. Rorex at cabinet
Oct 18         District UMW at Pleasant Grove UMC 9:00a.m.
Oct 27-Nov 5  Rev. Rorex out of office
November
Nov 6          District Leadership Workshops at Pittsfield UMC (more info to follow)
Nov 8-10     Rev. Rorex at Cabinet
Nov 24-28   District Office closed
December
Dec 2               District Clergy Family Christmas Party 5:30-8:30 at Pittsfield UMC
Dec 6-8           Rev. Rorex at Cabinet
Dec 22-Jan 3   District office closed

*****
Job Posting: Part-time Administrative Assistant
The Illinois Great Rivers Conference (IGRC) of The United Methodist Church has an opening for a part-time Administrative Assistant at the Sangamon River District office in Springfield.  For more information about the ministry of the Sangamon River District, visit http://www.igrc.org/sangamonriver
The successful candidate must be proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook 365.  Experience with Access and Publisher is advantageous. Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, are necessary. Must be able to organize, prioritize, and work with minimal supervision.  Knowledge of the United Methodist Church is helpful, but not required.
The complete job description and application form are at: http://www.igrc.org/classifiedsdetail/5389546
This is a year-round, part-time position (28 hours per week). Work schedule is 8:00 am -3:30 pm Monday-Thursday. Starting wage is $13.50 per hour.  Benefits include pension and paid time off. EOE
Estimated starting date is October 1, 2016.
Please send signed application form and three professional references to:
Human Resource Administrator, United Methodist Center,
PO Box 19207, Springfield, IL 62794-9207
fax: 217-529-4107
Application must be received by August 29, 2016.
Qualified candidates will be contacted for an interview.
The Illinois Great Rivers Conference is an Equal Opportunity Employer.