The Blawenburg Beacon

Last week Susie and I returned from our vacation in the Great Smoky Mountains region of eastern Tennessee, our second such experience in three years. If anything, this trip was even more fun, because we knew the area, the weather was beautiful and we got to see some more of the shows for which Pigeon Forge is famous.

On successive days we attended the brand new "Tennessee Shindig" review and then the highest rated variety performance called "Country Tonite." Both shows boasted a full cast of extraordinarily talented and very attractive young people - singers, dancers, musicians, comedians, any one of whom could fit comfortably into the troupe of a Broadway musical.

While both shows were different enough so as not to seem like copies of the other, they contained some marked similarities. Chief among these was a sudden shift in the second half from lively country and rock music to a twenty minute or so segment devoted to gospel. This perhaps is the most glaring difference between eastern Tennessee and our "neck of the woods," besides the breathtaking majesty of the Great Smoky Mountains, of course. There the Christian church is supported by the general culture, where it most specifically is not here. Besides the plethora of churches, in some cases three or more on the same block, there you see billboards citing scriptural passages to promote local businesses, for example. There are no civic functions on Sundays - school teams, practices, etc. - and most native houses of commerce are closed in observance of the Sabbath.

You can imagine our delight when the cast of these two shows joined to praise the name of Jesus Christ in the singing of well known gospel tunes - and on a Tuesday and Wednesday, of all things! This was followed by the grand finale, a fifteen minute segment devoted to American patriotism, a recognition of all the veterans in attendance who were asked to stand, slide shows of familiar national landmarks and the singing of "America the Beautiful" among other familiar songs.

Both ended with Lee Greenwood's inspiring hit "Proud to Be an American," which closes with these lyrics:

            From the lakes of Minnesota, to the hills of Tennessee,
            across the plains of Texas, from sea to shining sea,

            From Detroit down to Houston and New York to LA,
            Well, there’s pride in every American heart,
            and it’s time to stand and say:

            I’m proud to be an American where at least I know I’m free.
            And I won’t forget the men who died, who gave that right to me.
            And I’d gladly stand up next to you and defend her still today.
            ‘Cause there ain’t no doubt I love this land God bless the U.S.A.

As we sang these words everybody in the audience stood up and remained standing as the cast took their bows. It was a lovely tribute to our vets and the lifestyle we often take for granted. My only issue with the song and phrase "proud to be an American" is gospel-related and not the main point of this article. Since we are called to a life of humility and we had nothing whatsoever to do with the circumstances of our birth, I believe a more appropriate sentiment is "grateful to be an American," but that of course would not fit into the meter of the song.

Another thing I thought of as we left the theaters feeling thoroughly entertained and uplifted was this question: why do we stand for Lee Greenwood's song, the Pledge to the Flag, the National Anthem, and not for the gospel of Jesus Christ? Of course, it would be inappropriate and presumptuous to expect paying customers in an entertainment venue, many of whom are not Christian, to stand for something which they don't believe.

But why don't we stand when the gospel is read in our churches? In truth, the American flag, like all flags, belongs at the foot of the cross, not to the side of it and certainly not above it. Yet we stand to pledge our allegiance to it and sing the Star Spangled Banner.

Is our citizenship more important than our spiritual faith? If we stand to honor our veterans, many of whom sacrificed their lives to guarantee our freedoms, should we not also stand for Jesus who sacrificed his life to save our souls?

During the years I attended Drew University to earn my M. Phil. in English Literature, I served our denomination as a circuit preacher. I've delivered sermons in almost seventy churches in the NJ-NY-PA area. I remember thinking how odd it was that in two of them the congregation stood for the reading of the gospel. I don't think it odd anymore. In fact, now I think it was a heartfelt thing that should be adopted as tradition in all of our churches.

Sunday School News - June 1^st was the last day of regular Sunday school for the summer. On June 8^th, the Sunday school children will sing in the worship service. Rehearsal will be at 9:30 on that day with Dr. Tel. Also during the service, both teachers and children will be recognized for their participation in our education program. Let us all come together in this kid-friendly worship service to celebrate those who teach and learn God’s word.

Below are pictures taken on May 25^th during the lesson on the Parable of the Banquet. After the lesson, Mrs. Van Nostrand and Mrs. DeLaCruz helped the children make invitations for our church “banquet,” the Church Picnic to be held on June 8^th at 11:45 a.m. The invitations were distributed during fellowship time.

Sunday School Service Project – We did it! Several weeks ago the teachers decided to “save” the children’s Sunday school offering and contribute it to a worthy cause at the end of the year. In last month’s Beacon, that “worthy cause” came to us through the Missions article. For under $100.00, the students and teachers put together an emergency clean-up bucket for victims of flooding and tornadoes. A bucket and supplies were purchased at Home Depot and ShopRite. By June 1^st the bucket was full and ready to be sent. On June 8^th the bucket will be dedicated and sent to Church World Service to be distributed to someone in need. Please visit the website, www.churchworldservice.org to learn more about this service project.

Nursery/Childcare Information – As of June 15^th, nursery and childcare will be held in the basement of Cook Hall. Caitlyn Curtis, our regular care provider, will be there from 9:45 a.m. for the care of infants through three-year olds. Children through the current fifth grade may be dismissed to childcare after the Minute for Kids, or they may stay in worship with their parents. Parents and senior highs will be scheduled to take these children over to Cook Hall and to remain there until fellowship time. Videos and activities will be provided.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On Sunday, May 18^th, 8 young people were recognized for their completion of a two-year class called “Mysteries and Heroes of the Bible.” They were Daniella, Byron, Cara, Dylan, Alyssa, Matthew, Gabriella and Colby. Congratulations!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Thursday, July 31 - Weeden Park -- 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. - Weeden Park, Lawrenceville

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Croatia Update - Car promises more possibilities for Titus family By Nancy Titus

Praise the Lord! The Titus family has wheels again! And we hope this summer we can use them to combine one of Eric’s doctoral trips to Prague with a family vacation.

We – really you, our faithful supporters, and us together – are now the proud owners of a Škoda (the Slavic š is pronounced like our sh) Octavia Combi Tour. The word combi is usually translated van or truck but this most definitely is a small station wagon. It is nothing as spacious as our old Caravan, but it fits all five of us and has some luggage space as well. You would think that after nearly two years living here in Croatia without a car that once we got it we would be cruising all over Osijek just getting the feel of it.

Well, we are, but Croatian style. Which means slowly. We have had it in our garage nearly a month, but only yesterday did the odometer pass the 100-kilometer mark, that's 62.5 miles.

It isn't that we don't have anywhere we want to go or even that we haven't had the time – actually the kids have had two school holidays with four-day weekends since we got the car. The problem mostly has been that Eric has been sick.

As some of you know, Eric ulcerative colitis, a chronic disease of the colon. He has had it for about 25 years, and generally it is kept under control with medication. However, he had an unusal and extremely severe flare-up beginning while he was in Prague about a month ago, actually on the day the car arrived. He is much better now though still weak, and so family or work car trips have had to take a back seat to getting him well. We are glad to say he is getting stronger every day.

As is usually the case, getting a car here has helped us be more appreciative of American red-tape. The Croatian variety is much more profuse and mind-bogglingly complex. Eric spent two days standing in one line at a government office to get one piece of paper and pay a fee, only to have to return to a previous line and pay a different fee. Even the money transfer was strange. He had to withdraw the money from our account – in cash – and then walk across the street to another bank to desposit it into the account of the dealership. He spent the better part of one morning watching two different tellers count out 119 1,000-kuna bills.

Even getting the car took a while, seven weeks from the time we ordered it, which was more than a year from our first shopping trip. Dealerships here operate on banker's hours. Test drives had to be arranged by appointment and even then only on a similar model of car. None of the salespeople were particularly anxious to have us buy a car. It was a surreal experience for an American!

We decided on a Škoda, in part because it was the least expensive car we looked at but also because we knew something of the car maker. Škoda is based in the Czech Republic and is that country’s top exporter, producing 620,000 cars in 2007. It has been part of the VW Group since 1990 and has been in operation for more than 100 years, beginning as bicycle-maker in 1895. It has been making cars since 1905, and its modern track record is quite good.

Now, we move from the hurdle of buying the car to the hurdles involved in operating one. The biggest is still the cost. While you in the States may experience $4 a gallon gasoline this summer, we here in Croatia today are paying 9 kuna per liter, which translates to about $8.50 a gallon. I am still in shock over the bill for the first fill-up: more than $100! And this is really quite a small car. That alone is a good reason we learned to live without a car before getting one.

The next step is getting adjusted to driving again. For one thing, I have to learn to drive a standard. Eric has lots of experience there, but it is still disconcerting to be driving these streets, which are not quite wide enough for traffic. It's common to see one whole line of cars parked in the street, making a two-way more like a one-way.

Croatia Update

Early Independence Day kicks off summer break

School just got out, and we’ve already celebrated the Fourth of July. Yep, things work a little differently here in Croatia.

The kids got out of school June 20, and the next day we went to a U.S. Independence Day picnic put together by the American Chamber of Commerce in Croatia. Our first big outing in the car was a welcome relief from all the pressure of school work we have all been doing. The picnic was held on a ranch outside of Zagreb, our capital city, about a three-hour drive from our house. Entertainment included a horse show and fireworks, but mostly we were just thrilled to get to do something fun together as a family.

The great rush of excitement, joy, and relief that the end of the school year brings is multiplied in our household though in a strict sense school is not really out at all for any of us.

The daily routine of regular school – and the weekly shuffle and stress of changing shifts from morning to afternoon – is gone for a while. However school will continue at home, though on a less pressured schedule. The kids and I will have Croatian language lessons. Because of the kids’ great progress in Croatian and their growing friendships with local children, they will not have daily Croatian lessons but they still need to work on their language skills while they have less pressure from other school subjects. That means they will continue to meet regularly with their Croatian tutor. Their other curriculum is based on the amount they were able to do last year as well as what we expect they can do in the coming year. The girls will also have English and American history while Samuel will do math.

A look at the last two weeks of Valerie’s school year gives a good indication of why the home school material necessarily has to take a back seat to other school matters during the regular school year. During the last two weeks of school, Valerie had several days working as many hours as she possibly could with her tutor, even taking time from the other two children as she struggled to complete mega math assignments and prepare for a big nature exam.

In the midst of that, she also had a part in the big class program, which fourth graders do for parents as they say goodbye to their teachers who have been with them since the first grade. In Croatian primary school, the same group of children stays together as a class from first through eighth grade, and they have the same teacher from first through fourth. Fifth grade is a big transition in which they switch from the one teacher they have known so long to about 10 subject-based teachers. At the end-of-the-year program, Valerie was given a couple of sentences to say in Croatian – even as her classmates in one of those presentations gave their lines in English. Despite the pressure and the number of parents watching, Valerie did very well. Her teacher and a couple of mothers even told me how great she did on her Croatian pronunciation. So, bravo, Valerie!

Penny also ended her school year on a nice note, as she came home with a “5,” or an “A,” on a Croatian language test and a note that her exam was the best in the class!

Samuel, who switched to complete home schooling in March, also has done well in his program though he will continue into the summer as he needs to catch up on some subjects. His challenge is that we are trying to get him back even with his peers in the States since he had to re-take the fifth grade when he came here due to the language issue. We want him to be ready for ninth grade by the end of the next school year, which basically means we have a year and a half to cover two and half years of material.

Eric also had reason to celebrate the day the kids ended their regular school year as that day he also finished his last paper for his second year of doctoral work. He, too, has summer school, though, as he must prepare for an Old Testament comprehensive, which he will take in Prague in July, a nice excuse for another family trip!

As for me, I will study Croatian and work with the kids’ summer school as well as prepare for English classes at the seminary next year.

Eric and Nancy Titus are RCA missionaries in Osijek, Croatia, where they work at the Evangelical Theological Seminary and with the Reformed Christian Church in Croatia. They have three children: Samuel, Valerie and Penny.

Sunday school teachers and superintendent needed! Several members of our Sunday school staff have decided to relinquish their responsibilities this coming fall after many faithful years of service. Would you be willing to teach or at least assist in a classroom once a week? We definitely need you!

How about some of you men? For years our entire SS staff has consisted of women (I remember most of my SS teachers growing up were men). The actual classroom teaching time usually lasts between 30-40 minutes, and you'll have a helper. We use a prepared curriculum, and we supply any materials that may be suggested for crafts. Depending on your uptake, you should probably factor in 1-2 hours preparation time for your lesson.

Our Sunday school is growing again. Many of our experienced teachers are staying with us next year, so you'll have plenty of support. Most importantly, you'll be working on the front lines to advance the kingdom of God. Please see Barb Pavlicek, Pastor Rich or any of our current Sunday school teachers to find out more.

(My apologies if I missed someone – please let me know and I will include them in the next Beacon)

The Outreach is a publication of the

Blawenburg Reformed Church

424 Route 518; P.O. Box 266

Blawenburg, NJ 08504

e-mail address: brc2001@msn.com

Website: blawenburgchurch.org

Phone: (609) 466-3108, Fax: (609) 466-8237

Rev. Richard Van Doren, Minister