Looking Ahead at BPC ...

Youth Sunday Is Father’s Day, Sun, June 16th

Youth Sunday will be held on Father’s Day Sunday, June 16th. Come and see our youth and children lead worship on this last day of Sunday School until it resumes in September.

Fun Events & Activities for the Children
Throughout the Summer to Replace Summer Camp

The Christian Education Committee is planning a number of outings for July and August, such as: Splish Splash Water Park, Family Fun Center in Riverhead, a Beach Cookout and Miniature Gold. Families and friends are invited to all. If people are interested in any of these activities let Kathy Lowe or other members of the Christian Education Committee know as dates will be set and arrangements made. Share your favorite ideas as well! And, if you would like to be the coordinator of an event or share the planning with a friend, let Kathy know!

Feature Story of the Week ...

Pentecost Is New Creation*

According to the Day of Pentecost story in Acts 2:1-13, God gave the gift of the Holy Spirit to empower witnesses to the resurrection. Sounds from heaven, cosmic language, the rush of a mighty ruach (wind, spirit, breath) invaded the house in which the apostles gathered, and appeared to them as a burning fire. Tongues of fire touched their nerve centers. A power — the unseen power of God — moved among them and gripped them. The Holy Spirit is unseen, like the wind, which is why the Old Testament calls it ruachYHWH, “the wind, or breath, of God” (cf. John 3:8). The Spirit is the “unseenness of God” working among us.

According to Joel (2:28-29) the ruach is to open everybody to God’s future. People young and old will dream and will have visions of hope; they will be able to loose themselves from the way things are now, because God is establishing a whole new economy of creation. The Holy Spirit breaks us out of our preoccupation with ourselves and frees us to serve neighbors, loosens our grasp on possessions, and sets us to loving people. New creation is what Joel is talking about. Pentecost is new creation.

The book of Acts tells the story of the outcome of Pentecost’s new creation: people witness in word and in deed to the risen Christ. At the outset, the newborn church immediately tumbled out into the streets to witness to God’s mighty works in the languages of people all over the world. By the end of the story, a tiny, Spirit-filled community of faith that broke from its present order has spread across the continents with incredible power to bring new things into being. With the gift of the Spirit, all things are possible. ...

Therefore, on the Day of Pentecost, we celebrate God’s gift of Holy Spirit which draws us together as one people, helps us to comprehend what God is doing in the world, and empowers us to proclaim, in word and in deed, God’s plan of reconciling all people in the name of Christ (Ephesians 1:10).

Without the gift of the Spirit, Christ’s church dries up and withers away, and we are left with only our broken selves. With the gift of the Spirit, all things are possible. A spirit-filled community of faith opens eyes to needs in the world and sees its missing as God’s new people. The Day of Pentecost is the climax of the Great Fifty Days of Easter, celebrating as it does the gift of the Spirit to the body of Christ — the church.

* An excerpt from the Companion to the Book of Common Worship (Geneva Press, 2003, 117-119)

Four Ways to Stay Connected...

In the age of the Internet, BPC has four new ways for you to connect and keep current with your church family:

• Receive the weekly E-pistle! The E-pistle is a mid-week email that goes out to the congregation and friends with all the news and announcements. Make sure the Church Office has your email or write it down and place it in the offering plate!
• Become a FaceBook friend! To become a Friend, go to www.FaceBook.com and sign in, go to “Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church”, click on the word “Like,” and you are a “Friend.” Tell your friends!
• Enjoy “live” streaming at media.bridgehamptonpc.org on days when you can’t make it to worship. We’ll repeat the entire service several times immediately after it’s over; later on in the week you’ll also be able to hear archived highlights.
• Of course, the fourth way is to check out the church website: www.bridgehamptonpc.org.

Check Out the PCUSA’s Web Site!

You can find our denomination’s web site at www.pcusa.org. Spend some time exploring it! There are lots of interesting places to visit. Can you find out where you can sign up to receive the lectionary daily devotional scripture passages? What area of global mission are you interested in? Or, perhaps you want to see what the church is doing in theology and worship? You can also find places to have the latest PCUSA news briefs sent to your email. Have fun and spend some time there!

Need Offering Envelopes?

If anyone is in need of a box of church offering envelopes, place a note in the offering plate or call the Church Office: 631-537-0863.

Share Pastoral Care Needs with the Church Office

If you are aware of any pastoral concerns please call the church office so that we may notify the pastor and the deacons contact: 631-537-0863. You can reach the Church Office by email: office@bridgehamptonpc.org or Pastor Peter directly: pastorpeter@bridgehamptonpc.org.

To receive this weekly announcement by email, click here or phone the Church Office.

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