Forum - April 22

Prince Georges County Emergency Preparedness

Date: April 22, 2007, Dodds Hall
Time: 9:45 AM
All are welcome to attend. Thanks, Doris Kobe.

CCPC Spring Clean Up Day!

Saturday, April 21st, 8 AM-1 PM

We need everyone to show up and help beautify our church and grounds. Please bring rakes, leaf blowers and wheel barrows.

For those who have signed up to work in the flower beds, we really need your help with maintenance of the flowers. If you are signed up, but can not participate, please let us know so that we may solicit other volunteers.

Thank You!

30 Hour Famine - Update!

On April 28th 2007

Our Youth Are Going To Starve Hunger

It seems that every day we read about more suffering in the world. Disasters. Tsunamis. Hurricanes. Wars. Tens of thousands dead. Hundreds of thousands homeless. Millions in mourning.

Students in our congregation are choosing to make a difference. They are getting ready to take part in World Vision's 30 Hour Famine. Because they are choosing to be a part of the solution, literally tons of food and other necessities will be provided to hungry and suffering children based on what they do.

In the coming weeks you'll hear more about the 30 Hour Famine. And here's where you come in. First, please pray for the Famine participants who will be participating in the Famine. Second, prayerfully consider how you can come alongside them and offer your financial support to help save kids' lives. In a world that loses over 29,000 children every day to hunger and disease, we all can make a difference.

So much to do. So little time. But by taking the time - just one weekend - we will be making a difference in children's lives.

 World Vision is a Christian relief and development organization dedicated to helping children and their communities worldwide reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty. We serve the world's poor- regardless of a person's religion, race, ethnicity, or gender.

For more information about World Vision's 30 Hour Famine,

call 1-800-7FAMINE (1-800-732-6463),

or visit

Get Involved! World Vision 2007 - 30 Hour Famine

CCPC Spirit and Self Discovery Group

CCPC's Spirit and Self Discovery is sponsoring a "Reiki Energy Night" this Friday, April 20th from 7-9 PM in the Sanctuary.

Reiki Healers and those who would like to experience Reiki are encouraged to attend. Jan Bridger, Sheree Ruhl & Linda Miller will be offering the gift of Reiki for all. For more information and to view the April newsletter, please feel free to visit their website at

http://mysite.verizon.net/vze3hvnp/spirit.html

Tiger Lilies

We are working our way through "American Gospel", one chapter at a time. Please join us tonight, Monday, April 16 in the Parlor at 7:30 PM for our discussion of Chapter III.

Note: Tiger Lilies does not meet in the summer (and we never meet on a Monday holiday). Our last meeting will probably be June 4 and we'll start up again September 17.

Teens! Choices Workshop

On Friday, APRIL 20, from 6:30 PM to 10:00 PM, the Bowie Crofton Pregnancy Clinic will be holding an abstinence & purity program for teens: "Choices: Difficult Decisions Teens Face"
Date: APRIL 20, 6:30 PM to 10:00 PM
Where: Woodstream Church
9800 Lottsford Rd., Bowie, MD 20721

Cost is FREE, but slots are limited. Reserve seats ASAP.
RSVP's were requested by April 13th.
For Information, Reservations and Directions call: 301-262-1330

This program focuses on the importance of purity and abstinence until marriage and also provides help for those who are sexually active and want to experience secondary virginity. It is designed for a wide variety of people: middle school, high school, and college-age. We encourage parents and youth workers to attend, too, and have special discussion groups for them.

Teens are often the first to hear of another young person's sexual activity, pregnancy, or abortion plans. Our aim is to equip young people with the tools and skills they need to talk with their peers--and also to encourage their own purity. To date, over 850 teens from over 70 different churches and 70 different schools have attended this program.

We discuss pregnancy, abortion, sexually transmitted diseases, communication skills, temptation, making a plan to stay pure, pornography, clothing & modesty issues, starting over...just to name a few topics! As serious as these topics are, we keep the time moving with skits, humor, and testimonies. We've had very positive responses. "Choices" is an abstinence until marriage program for teens, youth workers, and parents to learn how to deal with today's difficult decisions regarding sex and purity.
Sponsored by the Bowie Crofton Pregnancy Clinic.

Choices

The Bowie Senior Chorale

Under the direction of Craig Leland Sparks, is presenting music "As Debonair as Fred Astaire," a mix of old favorites.

When: Matinee Performance - Thursday, May 24th at 1 PM. Evening Performance - Thursday, May 31st at 7 PM.

Where: The Bowie Senior Center
14900 Health Center Drive, Bowie, MD

No admission charge

For Additional Information, Call 301-262-1092

CCPC Youth-Retreat Fundraiser (Scrip Orders)

Remember, this is your last week to make your Scrip order just in time for Mother's day.

Don't forget to bring you payment. Orders w/ payment may be left in Ajibade's box throughout the week and order forms will be on the atrium table throughout the week as well. Thanks.

Scrip is back!!!! You ask ...what is it? Basically, these are gift cards that you can purchase to use at local area merchants - the places you normally shop or dine. It operates just like the ongoing Giant Food Card program that the Youth sponsor monthly - only this is for other merchandise, and the companies give us a percentage of the card sales to keep as a fundraiser.

While you can certainly buy the cards to use for yourself - think of it as paying in advance for your next dinner out or next trip to the department store, these cards also make great gifts. With Mother's Day, Graduations, and Weddings coming up, you might think about giving some gift cards. They also make good gifts for the neighbor who brings in your mail when you are away, mows your yard, etc. Maybe you don't see the specific company you would like to purchase a gift card from, or perhaps you would like a card in a different denomination?? Well, the "scrip" website includes additional vendors and card amounts not on our preprinted attached order listing.

To request a copy of the order form, please email the church at cpcbowie@verizon.net

Please feel free to check out their website at www.glscrip - and you can than add any additional card orders at the bottom of the form.

Timeline - because May is rapidly approaching, and in order to allow for the processing of the cards by the "Scrip" company, we will take orders from now through Sunday, April 29th. This will allow us to distribute the cards on Sunday, May 13.

You can bring completed order forms to church on Sunday, April 22, or April 29 - Youth will be in Dodds Hall to collect them.


If you have questions, please call: Ajibade Jegede at the church, 301-262-6008; or Debbie Armstrong; or Diane Dudley.

Thank you for your continued support of the CCPC Youth!!

Paper Tigers Book Review

The Paper Tigers will view a DVD of one of the shows on the recent Bill Moyers "Faith and Reason" series on PBS at its next meeting on Wed, 18 April, 8:00 - 10 AM in the Junior High room. Come join us for a light breakfast and a heavy discussion. On April 25th, we will begin our next book: Religious Literacy by Stephen Prothero.

For more information contact Jim Woods.

What Paul Meant

by Garry Wills,

Viking, 2006, 193 pages

The fundamental idea both of St. John and St. Paul is simply that the contemplation of Christ's life and death gives us the power, as nothing else has done, to overcome temptation and to lead lives of love like His. Hastings Rashdall

The second most important person in Christian history never met the first; the most famous conversion in history, as described in the Acts of the Apostles, never happened; and the apostle Paul wrote only seven of the thirteen letters attributed to him; says Garry Wills, former aspirant for the Roman Catholic priesthood, Professor Emeritus at Northwestern University, and the author of seven other books on Christian themes.

If you conclude from the above that the author is not an admirer of Paul, you would miss the point of this thoughtful little book. Wills' central thesis is that Paul did not corrupt the gentle message of Jesus, but supported and taught it with extraordinary zeal. Even such notables as Thomas Jefferson, George Bernard Shaw, and Friedrich Nietzsche insisted that Paul was a corrupter, a monstrous imposition, and an antichrist, respectively. A more commonly held belief is that while Paul was a great missionary of the Gospel of Christ, he introduced into Christian doctrine such odious ideas as anti-Semitism, homophobia, and misogyny. On the contrary, Wills points out that Paul, writing roughly two decades after Jesus' death, was closer to Jesus' true message than any other writer in the New Testament. If you want to find Jesus, Wills declares, study Paul's letters. Paul's central message, like that of Jesus, was that love is the only law.

The widespread misunderstanding of Paul comes about for two primary reasons: the first has to do with the different approaches of Luke, the author of the Book of Acts, and Paul's seven authentic letters. Luke, writing with a purpose, paints a rosy picture of the emerging groups of believers in Jesus as the promised Jewish Messiah, and therefore plays down or ignores conflicts that existed among the "Brotherhoods." Paul, on the other hand, was writing to individual or groups of Brotherhoods, later to be called Christians and, as their de facto leader, attempted to settle their quarrels-of which there were many-and to set them straight on theological matters. Because he was a preacher, a teacher, and a sort of CEO of his scattered flock, his letters often lack the unity and cohesion required of statements of doctrine. Moreover, it must be acknowledged that Paul, perhaps the world's greatest missionary, was far from the world's most diplomatic one. Wills clearly believes that Paul's own recounting of his life and work is to be trusted over the conciliatory Luke's telling of the same story in Acts. The effort to show why Paul's accounts of his activities are more reliable than those of Luke makes up a good part of Wills' book, and, at least in his assessment of the irenic nature of Acts, he is supported by the work of other Biblical historians and scholars. I personally would hate to give up that great conversion story in Acts, but it does sound a lot like a story in Ezekiel (Ezek. 1.28; 2.2-8), on which Wills thinks the "fictitious" story in Acts was based. There is little doubt that Paul had a spiritual conversion and that it changed his life completely, but Paul's own description of it is much less dramatic and most likely more trustworthy. (1 Cor. 15. 3-9)

Paul's letters, including those of doubtful authenticity, probably include only a fragment of his total writings, but there is enough to see that, at times he had the personality of a short-tempered schoolmaster, the conviction of a zealot, and frequently the soul of a poet. Most of the Paper Tigers thought highly of Wills book. Some reserved judgment on the question of how closely he reflected Jesus' total message, but there is no doubt about Paul's devotion to Jesus and especially his belief in the resurrection. If Paul were able to speak to us today, he could probably say the he had the scars and the sore feet to bear witness to his devotion to the Messiah, his message and his mission.

Jack Jones for the Paper Tigers, April 2007

CCPC Congregational Meeting

Reminder!

A brief Congregational Meeting will be held Sunday, May 6th following the 11AM worship service, for the purpose of electing a new class of Elders and Deacons.

The Church Officers Nominating committee, chaired by Elder Jim Bridger, has been busy calling members to service as church officers. Please pray for the committee and those who answer the call.

Work Camp 2007 Update

Dates - Sunday, June 17th and returning Saturday, June 23rd. Sign up sheets are available in the atrium.

Work Camp Update:

Shawn Jegede and Danielle Lynch have agreed to provide day care during work camp. If you are planning to bring young children, please contact them so they will know how many to expect. If you have not signed up for work camp, please add your name to the sign up sheet. Next month we will form committees to begin planning meals and evening activities. If there will be a large number of children attending, we will have to ask for more assistance or have volunteers help on a rotating basis.

To date: 21 have signed up to participate.

We have a very exciting program planned with several changes this year. First, we will be going to a new location. We will be going to the Pittsburgh, PA area where we will will be working with Hosanna Industries. While there, we plan to take in some cultural activities. Second, the costs will be lower this year. We only have to pay for our food for the week, which we estimate will be about $50 per person. If the actual costs run higher, Mission Committee will help out. Third, if you cannot get away for an entire week, you are welcome to come for just a few days. Just let us know which days you plan to be there so we will ensure we have enough food available. If you are arriving late, we will keep the light on for you.

Thank you. Paul Sell.

A Very Special Thank You!

Last week's caller neglected to thank Wilhelmina Burress, who organized and did the vast majority of the work on the Maundy Thursday ambiance. Thank you Wilhelmina! You are the "life" in Parish Life.

Did you see the Bowie Blade-News article on the Children of CCPC?

A feature appeared this past Thursday (April 12, Section D) of the Blade. The article highlighted the children of the church in a photo around the cross, before the annual Easter Egg hunt.

"Lenten Dinners" Thank You

Thank You to all of the individuals and groups who sponsored Lenten Dinners and the Easter Breakfast. We've received praise for the healthier menu items and the family friendly entertainment. We also received suggestions to move the starting time back to 6:30 pm next year. Additional comments and suggestions welcome. E-mail: Andrea Brassard.

Special Note of Thanks

Dee McCarty received a post card from Wesley Paulson who indicated that they used the CCPC Good Friday Vigil at Millian Church this year. This year they held the vigil in the sanctuary.

• April 16th - Hope Circle (7:30 PM)
• April 16th - Tiger Lilies (Parlor, 7:30 PM)
• April 16th - Play Rehearsal (Sanctuary- L.Miller/S.Rogel, 7-9 PM)
• April 18th - Mixed Bag Sew Guild - (Conference Room at 7 PM)
• April 21st - CCPC Spring Clean Up Day! (8 AM-1 PM)
• April 22nd - Forum-Prince Georges County Emergency Preparedness
• April 22nd - Earth Day
• April 27th - Arbor Day
• April 29th - CCPC Signs of Spring
• May 5th - CCPC's Coed Softball begins
• May 10th - Bus Trip to Sight & Sound Theatre (to see "In The Beginning")
• May 18th - Bowie Bike to Work Day
• May 20th - Music Sunday!
• May 21st - Munchin Lunchin (12 Noon)
• May 26th - City of Bowie Memorial Day Parade (11 AM)

Library News

The church library is open on Sunday mornings and during the week. You may use the self check-out system to take books home. Come and look over our collection.

The next Library Committee Meeting:
Wednesday, April 25 at 10 AM

Bike to Work Day

Friday, May 18, 2007, 6:30 - 8:30 AM

Two Bowie Pit Stops: Bowie Town Center Food Court and Old Town Bowie (specific location to be determined)

Gear up for Bike to Work Day 2007! Participate and receive a free
t-shirt! It is a free event full of fun, food and prizes. Join thousands of are commuters and show your support for bicycling, by taking part in a clean, fun and healthy way to get to work. Registration began March 1st. Visit Bike to Work Day to register, or call 202-518-0524. For more information contact Frank Stevens in the City's Planning Department at 301-809-3053 or fstevens@cityofbowie.org.

Bike To Work Day!

Women of Faith 2007

The Women of Faith Amazing Freedom 2007 tour is coming to Washington, DC, July 13 and 14. Featured speakers at the Verizon Center include: Patsy Clairmont, Nicole Johnson, Marilyn Meberg, Sandi Patty, Anita Renfroe, Luci Swindoll, Sheila Walsh, Thelma Wells and special guest Max Lucado.

A pre-conference day with Beth Moore is scheduled for 9 AM - 3 PM the Friday before the conference.

For more information, contact CCPC's 2007 group leader Peggy Oates. The deadline for registration is April 1st.

Learn more about the Conference!

Notes from the Office

RE: Tidiness of the Church office.

To All CCPC Members and frequent users of the facility:
When visiting CCPC for meetings or events, if you use the workspaces or the secretary's desk in the church office, please leave them as you found them ... tidy, neat and in order. Feel free to use any of the supplies (pens, stapler, tape dispenser, etc); We only ask that you please return these items to their original location when done.

To maximize effective business practices, whenever possible, please email request for additions or changes to the Caller for Calendar blocking and bookings, as well as any miscellaneous request to ccpcbowie@verizon.net. Sticky notes may easily be misplaced or discarded.

Please refrain from writing events onto the wall calendar.
All request for additions to the monthly calendar, should be submitted in writing. The CCPC Event Form is located on the entrance desk of the church office, or send a written request to ccpcbowie@verizon.net.
You may also fax your request to 301-262-5177.

Thanks in advance for your cooperation! Renee Georges

Love Song

Coming Soon!
"Love Song" --The Story of Jesus

Told through the beautiful songs you love from Godspell, Jesus Christ Superstar, Children of Eden and many, many more. Traditional and Contemporary, rock and gospel, young and old will raise their voices to bring you fresh insights to the most powerful story ever written.

Performances:
May 4th & 5th at 7 PM
May 6th at 2 PM
Tickets: $8 Children 10 & Under: $5

See Allison Harriman between services to purchase tickets.

Trash & Treasure Sale

Please join the Women of CCPC as we fund raise through our

Trash & Treasure Sale

Date: April 28, 2007
Time: 8:00 AM - 12:00 Noon

We will be collecting items in the 1st right-hand corner as you enter Dodds Hall from April 20th - 25th. Invite your friends and family to join us on the 28th. Please feel free to contact Cyd Radden-LeSage if you have any questions.

Earth Day!

Earth Day is April 22!

The city of Bowie provides curbside pickup for glass, plastic, aluminum and tin cans, and all sorts of paper. Recycling is one way each of us can contribute to cleaner air, water and energy conservation as well as reduced landfills. Visit the city of Bowie for more information on the program, or call Doris Kobe, member of the Bowie Recycling Task Force, if you have any questions.

City of Bowie

Youth Liturgist Sought!

CCPC Youth!!!

If you are interested in serving as a Jr. Liturgist during one of our
11 AM worship services, please contact Ajibade Jegede at
301-262-6008 (office), or email him at ccpcydir@verizon.net.

Bus Trip! To see "Jersey Boys"

The $50 balance for our trip on June 13, 2007 to NYC is due to Marge Clark by May 1, 2007. Checks should be made out to Marge and either placed in the Treasurer's box in the church office or mailed to her home.

Spring Scavenger Hunt

Mark your calendars !!

Sunday - April 29th from 3- 5 PM

Family Nature Scavenger Hunt - with prizes - campfire with hot dogs, potato chips & dessert. This is some Family Fun for OLD & YOUNG - - We will meet at Skip & Peggy Oates house - - -BRING YOUR OWN DRINKS - - The park and trail is across the street form the Oates.

Lost and Found

Looking for a lost item? If you have recently misplaced an item, please call (301-262-6008), stop by the church office or email us at ccpcbowie@verizon.net.

**** One pair of Women's eye glasses were left at the church after the 1st service on Easter Sunday.