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712 S. Columbia Ave.
Tulsa, OK 74104
918-592-5800
email:
[email protected]
website:
Church office hours:
Mon - Th, 9 am - 3 pm
Closed on Fridays
9:30 a.m. Church School-all ages
11:00 a.m. Worship in English
11:00 a.m. Worship in Spanish
Join us for coffee, juice, cookies
and conversation in the
Fellowship Hall before
Church School
and before Worship.
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Mission Statement |
Build an inclusive
community of faith. Receive and openly share the love of God. Reach out with a
compassionate voice
for peace and justice. |
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2014 Kendall Whittier
4th of July Parade
Norman Gainey helps decorate the parade bikes
KWI Director KaraJoy McKee celebrating in style
Grand Dame Charlotte Bronston waves to the crowd along the parade route
David Moser serving up watermelon
Danielle Hovenga passing out snacks
Barb Nole and Gretchen Hannefield
help feed the hungry crowd
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Thank you to those who helped with the
KWI 4th of July event:
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Charlotte Bronston
Barb Nole
Gretchen Hannefield
Danielle Hovenga
John & Nancy Gammie
David Moser
David West
Norman Gainey
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Celtic Spirituality Small Group
Tuesday, August 5th at 6:30 pm
The Celtic Spirituality Small Group will gather at the home of Mark and Gay Miller. Our discussion will be centered around the Celtic Harvest Festival of Lughnasadh. As always, food appropriate to the season will be a part of our gathering. Bring a snack that makes you think of harvest or abundance if you'd like. Click (name) to contact Mark if you have any questions. |
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Several College Hill members took a six-session Celtic Spirituality Class this summer led by Sister Jane of the Osage Forest of Peace. Our Celtic Spirituality Small Group will be planning an upcoming Celtic service of worship, with Sister Jane's assistance. |
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The Outreach and Mission Ministry Team sells organic Equal Exchange coffee, tea, and chocolate. We have a nice selection of ground and whole bean coffee at $8 for 10 or 12 oz. packages, chocolate bars at $3 for 3½ oz., and tea for $3 per box of 20 bags.
These prices are the best in town for Equal Exchange products and reflect a profit of 50 cents to one dollar per item. All profits are placed in a special account which is used to fund mission projects.
Look for us in the Fellowship Hall before and after the worship service on the first and third
Sundays of the month!
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CHANCEL CHOIR
The Chancel Choir of College Hill Presbyterian Church
will begin its fall season Wednesday, August 13. Chancel Choir rehearses Wednesdays at 6:45 p.m. Come join in the second story choral room next to the office for singing, fellowship and lots of laughter!
If you are a singer wanting to use your talents, please see Director of Music, Kim Childs. We would love to welcome new members this upcoming fall season!
BELLISSIMO HANDBELL ENSEMBLE
The BELLissimo Handbell Ensemble of College Hill Presbyterian Church will begin rehearsals Wednesday, August 13. BELLissimo rehearses Wednesday evenings at 5:45 p.m.
If you are interested in playing in this fun ensemble, please contact Director of Music for more information.
SUMMER SOLOISTS AND ENSEMBLES
The first few Sundays in August will spotlight special soloists and ensembles during the Sunday worship.
Contact Kim Childs to learn more about joining the choir.
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Book Club
August 24th after worship
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
by Laura Hillenbrand
Laura Hillenbrand, the acclaimed author of the book Seabiscuit: An American Legend, brings to the page the amazing true story of Louie Zamperini in her latest book, Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. After having encountered snippets of stories about Louie during her research for Seabiscuit, Hillenbrand decided to track him down and was transfixed by what he had to tell her. She then spent seven years researching his life to bring his incredible tale to us. From juvenile delinquent, Olympian, WWII bombardier, and B-24 plane crash and prisoner of war survivor, Louie's story is inspiring and surprising. (Louie Zamperini passed away on July 2, 2014, at the age of 97).
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand is available at the Southroads Barnes and Nobles book store (41st & Yale), your local library, and other book sources.
Book Club will meet for lunch and discussion at Panera Bread (1624 E. 15th St. - just west of Utica on the south side of 15th St.) immediately following worship service (about 12:15 pm). |
I Want My Religion Back -
You Can Keep the Ugly Baggage
I don't like telling people I'm a Christian. It's not that I'm ashamed of being a Christian; I'm not - at all. It is just that the word "Christian" comes with so much ugly baggage. Telling someone I'm a Christian means I must immediately follow it up with, "but not that kind of Christian."..
Jesus wasn't a fan of ugly baggage. He confronted the Pharisees every time they tried to unload it onto him or others. If we want our religion back, we are going to have to do the same - standing up more consistently and begin challenging these power plays wrapped in religion...
And when they accuse us of being un-Christian (and they will), we must stand strong and tell them, "You no longer get to own that word. You have used it and abused it and crucified it on crosses of hate, greed, power and control. We are taking our religion back - way back. All the way back to the teachings of Jesus."
To read the entire blog, click link below:
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/thegodarticle/2014/07/i-want-my-religion-back-you-can-keep-the-ugly-baggage/
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I look forward to the day when I don't have to add the qualifier "Progressive" when I talk about our understanding of modern Christianity. Hopefully, that will be a given within the next decade or two. But until that time, I continue to use the term progressive Christianity frequently from the pulpit.
I think it's fair to say that even with our inclusive approach to ministry, College Hill is on the progressive end of the theological spectrum. But that doesn't mean that all of us have the same understanding of what that term means.
As fitting of progressive Christianity itself, there is no one definition. However, there are some basic characteristics. As expressed in our Church Brochure (that you can find on our church website under the "Who We Are" heading):
· Willingness to question tradition, including orthodox understandings of church doctrine and biblical interpretation
· Respect of intellectual integrity, including the use of the latest in biblical and scientific knowledge and understanding
· Acceptance and affirmation of human diversity - a ministry of hospitality and inclusiveness
· Strong emphasis on ministries to promote social justice, peace, and care of the environment and all of God's good creation
· Centrality of the commandment to "love one another" - a ministry of compassion
· Outreach to those for whom organized religion has proved ineffectual, irrelevant, or repressive
· A life of faith is approached as a journey, not a destination
I think congregations like College Hill can be even more effective in exploring and sharing our unique perspective of Christianity. Many in the congregation find it fruitful to attend our church school classes. Discussions have been very meaningful in our Adult Church School Class. And our Children's Class uses wonderful curriculum produced by ProgressiveChristianity.org.
I am always open to conversations with anyone in the congregation who would like to visit with me personally about theological, or any other matters.
Blessings,
Rev. Todd Freeman
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Rev. Freeman and the children of the church, along with our new Children's Education worker, Jon Martinez, pose for a selfie during the July 27 worship service. |
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Happy Birthday Charlotte!
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Charlotte Slemp celebrated her Birthday with Luncheon Club in July
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No Luncheon Club in August
Luncheon Club will not meet in August. The next gathering is scheduled for Thursday, September 18 at noon in Fellowship Hall. Plan to join us then for great food, fun and fellowship! |
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Amazing Summer for Christian Education
This has been an amazing summer for Christian Education. Our adult class was treated to sessions on Moral Psychology led by Brad Brummel in June, followed by stimulating TED Talks discussions led by John Gammie and the Rev. Todd Freeman during July. Attendance has been great and we look forward to more thoughtful examination of our faith and its purpose in our lives.
The children's classes have continued also. Nancy Gammie has continued teaching the early elementary and pre-school children, and Linda Watts and Karen Kriner have shared teaching the older elementary. We have been helped by our own Allison Campbell and Jordan Burrows, each enjoying a break from their work and school responsibilities. Looking forward to an active school year, we now have Jon Martinez, an experienced and trained child-care worker, taking care of our youngest children and helping Nancy with Worship Connection.
We will celebrate the beginning of a new school year with our traditional pancake breakfast and commissioning of teachers on Rally Sunday, September 7th. |
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DF7O8 Sign Up Deadline August 10
 Dinners for 7 or 8, College Hill's answer to a supper club, is a great way to get to know people outside of church. Participants will gather in randomly-assigned groups of 7 or 8, once each in the fall, winter, and spring, for a pot-luck dinner at the host's home (or at a restaurant).
Don't feel comfortable hosting? That's fine; you can sign up to attend as a guest only! Think you can only swing being an alternate? Can do! We'll put you on a list of folks to call if someone cancels!
We would love as much participation in DF7O8 as possible, because 1) we're talking about seriously good food, folks, and 2) this is a wonderful way to grow in fellowship as a congregation outside the walls of our building. |
 College Hill Gives Back
to KWE Teachers
Kendall Whittier Elementary has 15 new teachers this upcoming school year and would like to provide them with some financial assistance to help them get their classrooms started.
KWE requested $100 gift cards to Apple Tree, Learning Shop or Mardel's, who specialize in classroom materials, or cash to go toward the purchase of the gift cards.
College Hill responded in BIG way by donating $500 from our Outreach & Mission fund!
If you or anyone you know is interested in donating, please (click to) contact Lanette Horn with KWE.
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KWI GROW Garden
is Thriving!
Kendall Whittier Inc. GROW garden is thriving thanks to your support! Also, KWI has begun to cultivate a second community garden. The Tipton Garden will be named after the generous family who donated this empty lot on 1st street between Zunis and Gillette.
On July 11th, a youth group from Parsons Nazarene Church in Kansas made a visit to Tulsa and spent 3 hours cleaning the garden area and preparing the lot for solarization. Clear plastic has been stretched across the lot to bake the bermuda grass and any bacteria in the soil.
If you would like to become more involved in gardening with KWI please click on the link below to contact KaraJoy McKee at [email protected].
Removing the grass
Solarization |
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5th Sunday Offering
August 31st
For our 5th Sunday offering,
we will be collecting donations for
Kendall Whittier school uniforms.
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August Birthdays
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1 - Esteban Valencia
1 - Laura Stanford
2 - Pat Valencia
2 - Elizabeth West
6 - Meagen Burrows
6 - Cooper Thomason
7 - Patrick Fox
10 - Kristy Wyatt
13 - Katy Walker
13 - Norman Gainey
14 - Jim Brady
15 - Judith Nole
16 - Tim Gillean
23 - Adrienne Coleman
25 - Susan West
26 - Mark Bergner
26 - Celia Ketcham
26 - Dana Livingston
27 - Betty Coleman
30 - Bruce Ketcham, Jr.
Remember the
Birthday Endowment Fund!
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Birthday Endowment Fund
2014 brings about another Birthday for each of us.
A meaningful way to celebrate this occasion is to donate an amount equal to your new age to the Endowment Fund.
This donation is also a wonderful way to honor others such as children, grandchildren and friends.
Keeping College Hill's Endowment Fund strong will allow us to have funds available for special projects.
Birthday Fund envelopes are available on the Narthex table, under the Birthday balloon. Checks can be made payable to College Hill and marked "Birthday Fund" on the memo portion of the check. |
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 OpenArms Youth Project Meal
Thursday, August 28
Outreach & Mission Ministry Team will be serving the meal at OpenArms Youth Project. Please click (on name) to contact Jeff Ream or Tim Smith-Ream for more information.
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Flower Chart 
If you would like to bring flowers to decorate the sanctuary for an upcoming worship service, please sign up on the Flower Chart on the bulletin board in Fellowship Hall. There are many open dates available. Your dedication will also be announced in the worship bulletin. Flowers can be purchased from any store or brought from home. Please bring them in two containers the morning of the service for which you have signed up. |
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1st Sunday
Food Collection  Our first Sunday food collection goes to the Kendall Whittier, Inc. Emergency Food Pantry. We will be collecting canned meats and/or entrees, which are desperately needed at this time, as well as other food items. Cash donations are also always welcome. |
Penny Fund
Thank you for your donations to the Penny Fund! You are always welcome to donate your pennies (or any loose change), in the red container on the Narthex table. This money goes toward funding many College Hill events/needs! |
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We strive to provide a quality eNewsletter publication to our readers each month. Please note that inconsistencies you may have noticed with text/paragraph spacing, wrap-around, margins, etc., are due to glitches within the computer program used to create this publication, and may vary depending on your email program. Thank you for your understanding.
~Rev. Freeman
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