Now, he is tackling the Sexton’s House. He started in September, but when hurricane Irene hit, many churches needed his emergency assistance – and so did our retreat center in Warwick, where Paul has his office. However, Paul keeps coming back faithfully.

This time he is painting the exterior of the Sexton’s House. Our architect, Margaret Westfield, provided the specifications as a gift to the church. Since then, Paul has been applying Victorian colors to the house!

We also want to thank Jaime Johnson, the new chair of our Invitation & Outreach Committee, because he, too, has been diligently involved with scraping and painting the house – besides his volunteering for House of Manna on many days.

Enjoy the picture of Jaime and Paul with Robert Longo, our sexton. They all are part of our family here at First Reformed Church.

Throughout the coming year, lessons will focus on stories from the New Testament. Specific lesson topics will include “compassion”, “forgiveness” and “patience”, among many other faith characteristics. The Big Lambs will have their first meeting on September 25th. For the remainder of the year, the Little Lambs will meet on the first and third Sundays, with the Big Lambs meeting on the second and fourth Sundays. The months of October, January and April incorporate five Sundays, which allows for a special activity for all children on each of the three fifth Sundays. Gary and Lauren Bernhofer, Norma Vande Bunte, Sandy Boyles and Emily Sena will return as teachers.

Of course, we missed some nature. Even the little bit that we had planned was taken away: Dark clouds prevented us from stargazing on Saturday night, and light drizzle rain made it impossible for us to celebrate worship outside. Yet, this would not have been any better had we stayed on the campground! Rather, we were very happy to worship in the bright seminar room the center had provided for us; please see the corresponding pictures.

This year’s theme centered on the astronomer and physicist Galileo Galilei. We familiarized ourselves with his biography, some of his discoveries, as well as documents pertaining to the church trial he had to face in 1633. At length, we discussed the meaning of the exoneration that was issued 359 years later. Was the Vatican on target when it called the trial’s verdict unfortunate and premature?

I was surprised how critical our Warwick travelers were. Obviously, none of us denied the truth of the Copernican world view. However, several of us felt that there was no need for the Church to apologize for the verdict of 1633. This is how they argued: Galileo had not been indicted for his discovery, but for the publication of the same as fact. By rejecting this publication, the Church took an early stance against what some have called “the wheelings and dealings of scientists”. While scientifically outdated, this stance holds ethical value today. As you can see, it was quite a discussion this year in Warwick.

Would this entice you, dear reader, to join us next year?

Taking into account that 2009 has been declared the Year of Astronomy, we decided to place our retreat under the theme, Heaven & Sky. We will try to have a hobby astronomer accompany us so that we might be introduced to the wonders of the nocturnal sky. Most of our activities will still be outdoors, including our open-air worship service on Sunday morning.

The hotel reservations have been made already, but there are still two ways for you to participate in the retreat.

For those of you who still want to camp, you are more than welcome to do so. You will just need to pay the daily fees for the use of the center, including the meal plan. These are not exorbitant prices. I have the numbers if you are interested.

Also, we invite anyone who just wants to come up for the day to consider coming. Again, the same fees and meal prices will have to be paid. I will be going up in a separate car on Saturday and coming home in the evening, so I have space for two people. Please let me know if you would like to join me.

Very early in our discussion at Claude and Cindy’s home, we realized that there is, really, no substitute for going to Warwick: it is a mainstay of our Reformed identity and a year without it would simply not be the same. We would miss the freedom of the unspoiled nature, the joy of casual fellowship, and the freedom of our annual open-air worship. We would also miss this linkage to our denomination and the people we meet in Warwick every year.

But not everybody among us is equally fond of camping, and the preparation of meals on propane stoves – if left to a small group – can also be tiresome. So there was enough need for us to change and try something new. Here is what we came up with: This year’s retreat will be one night shorter, from 10:00 a.m. Saturday, Aug 8th to Sunday, Aug 9th after morning worship. We will stay in the older East Lodge – a place not air-conditioned but quaint and comfortable, nonetheless. If someone wishes to stay in the more modern West Lodge, he or she will have to pay a higher price and stay a second night, but the choice is available. Together, we’ll take advantage of the meals prepared by the conference center, but most of our activities will still be outdoors, including our open-air worship service on Sunday morning.

Taking into account that 2009 has been declared the Year of Astronomy, we decided to place our retreat under the theme Heaven and Sky. We hope to have a hobby astronomer accompany us so that we might be introduced to the wonders of the nocturnal sky.

The cost of the retreat will be a little higher than previously. But don’t forget that we purchased our food in previous years prior to the retreat, and that the camping gear made it necessary for several of us to bring two cars. This year, we will not have this extra cost.

Here are the prices:

• (Adult) triple $ 84.00
• (Adult) double $111.00
• (Adult) single $192.00
• Youth (4-12) $61.00
• Children (3 and younger) free

We have to reserve an exact number of rooms very shortly. If you, dear reader, wish to join us for this retreat, please notify our church office (732-545-1005) as early as possible.

In addition, a good tent will help our children to overcome some of their alienation from the natural world. In it, they can actually hear the raccoons scavenging the leftovers by the fire from last night; they can marvel at a butterfly on the canvas still wet from the dew, and they can hear the magnificent concert of the birds in the wee hours of the morning.

However, it is not all nature in Warwick. We painted a fence with Rev. Paul Nolton, our Regional Synod’s Coordinator of Volunteers. We also swam in the pool, built and flew our kites, listened to Bible readings, had evening devotions and a Sunday morning open-air worship, and a Bingo game and puzzle on the meaning of the Lord’s Supper. The latter followed a suggestion by our Board of Elders who had pondered in an earlier meeting this year how to foster more understanding of the sacrament among our youngsters. Enjoy the pictures and consider whether you might want to come with us next year.