About Rev. Dr. Hartmut Kramer-Mills
Hartmut Kramer-Mills, a native of Jena, Germany, began his theological education at Heidelberg University. After the Middle Exam in 1986 he received a scholarship from the World Alliance of Reformed Churches for McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago. He graduated from McCormick with a Master of Divinity in 1988. He graduated from Marburg University in Germany with the Ecclesiastical Exam in 1990, and received a Dr. theol. from Greifswald University, Germany, in 1997.From 1990 to 1991 he was vicar at St. Wenzel in Naumburg, Germany. He was ordained minister of word and sacrament in 1993 through the Protestant Church of the Church Province of Saxony. From 1993 to 1998 he served as assistant pastor in Stoessen, Goerschen, and Rathewitz, Germany. At the same time he was lecturer for Church History at Erfurt College in Germany.From 1999 to 2000 he served the Spotswood Reformed Church in New Jersey as interim pastor. Since 2000 he and his wife serve the First Reformed Church in New Brunswick, New Jersey, as co-pastors.Our great heritage became quite a bit more accessible to the residents of New Brunswick when on April 20 the brothers Paul and Pat from Paul’s Custom Awards and Trophies installed our outdoor sign in front of the church. The aluminum-etched sign has a sturdy steel frame and includes pictures as well as text. The text provides pivotal dates of our history, and explains our relation with the denomination, with Rutgers University and with the city of New Brunswick. It also includes detail of our church’s architectural features. Finally, the sign was the last piece of construction required under the current capital grant from the New Jersey Historic Trust. A photograph will be included in our final report to the State. Continue reading →
Every two years, our Regional Synod of the Mid-Atlantics invites its member churches to nominate special volunteers from each congregation to be honored in what is known as the Lay Recognition Dinner. The title is a bit misleading, as many of the honorees are not lay persons but ordained Elders and Deacons.
Every time the dinner turns out to be a great event. This year, over 500 of us convened at the Imperia in Somerset. We had a nice reception, met friends and colleagues from other churches and had a fine dinner. Several honorees presented their story for all to share. It allowed many of us to see their own efforts in perspective and to draw strength from this. Continue reading →
For us pastors, it is a special grace when we are allowed to accompany a family over more than one generation. Susan and I had this opportunity most recently with the Bernhofer family. Well acquainted already with the grandparents’ generation, we have always felt close to Gary and Lauren, the parents of Josh and Tom. And now the wedding of Tom and Marissa! Continue reading →
It may be true or not that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton responded to an email, “Who rules the world?” with a lapidary word: “Girls!” The fact speaks for itself. On April 14, five young women, all students at RUTGERS UNIVERSITY, spent an afternoon here at church painting the Sexton’s House. Parts of it had been primed in the fall already, but there had not been enough people power to finish those parts. So the house had looked white. Continue reading →
Why did Poulenc write a piece that sounded like he wanted to take it out on the piano? How does this fit to the sometimes even humorous streaks in his music? Did Dvořák use real folk dances from his native Bohemia when he wrote Op. 46, Book 1? And why do musicians switch sides when they play on one piano together? Continue reading →
Photos from previous Lunchtime Recital – Elaine Christy, harpist Award winning harpist Elaine Christy teaches at Princeton University and is a member of the Richardson Chamber players there. Christy presented a program of French music for solo harp from Debussy … Continue reading →
As Easter comes upon us, we have a remarkable coincidence with the dawn of a new period of ministry here at First Reformed Church. The reason is that our historic preservation project comes to an end. This means less reporting, less building issues, and less work for the Finance Committee and the Consistory. The Fundraising Committee even had its last meeting.
So, we are resurrecting from construction and paper files and bank statements. Now is the time to become creative again and to continue to nurture the exciting community that has formed around us during the years of brick-and-mortar. It is also important that we invest more efforts, prayer and thoughts in growing our church. What would our meaning be, if we did not try to reach as many of our neighbors near and far in order to offer them participation in God’s peculiar way of relating with us? Continue reading →
