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	<title>Old First Reformed United Church of Christ</title>
	<link>http://oldfirstucc.org</link>
	<description>A Wellspring of Hope for a Diverse People</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Thu, 17 May 2012 21:01:50 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<title>Last Calls: Mission Trip Leaving for Nicaragua; Younger Youth Headed to UCC&#8217;s National Youth Event</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In the last few days, we&#8217;ve had interest and a commitment from another youth. A friend of Daniel&#8217;s from Central and a member of St. Peter&#8217;s heard about the trip and is ready to go. She can even get a ticket on the same flights as the rest of us! That means 10 of us [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/17/last-calls-mission-trip-leaving-for-nicaragua-younger-youth-headed-to-uccs-national-youth-event/</link>
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		<title>Strangers in a New Land: Old First E-pistle 05.17.12</title>
		<description><![CDATA[My great, great-grandfather, the Rev. Edward Grieb served his first church in the U.S., Ebenezer Congregational in Portland, Oregon, an immigrant church of ethnic Germans from the Volga region of Russia. Grieb was dismissed from that pastorate in 1895, after only serving two years. The more conservative members of that congregation “accused him of not [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/17/strangers-in-a-new-and-foreign-land-old-first-e-pistle-05-17-12/</link>
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		<title>Introducing Our Wellspring Volunteers to One Another Over Brunch</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The Wellspring Outreach Ministries hosted a brunch for the volunteers that attend the Cupboard and Shelter. Over thirty-five volunteers were in attendance. There were representatives from Abington Friends School, My Poor Feat, Old First, UCC at Valley Forge, St. Luke&#8217;s UCC (Ottsville), Glenside UCC, Christ Church and SREHUP. Volunteers listened to Billi explain the programs [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/16/recap-volunteer-brunch/</link>
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		<title>What the Elders Accomplished at their May Meeting</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The Elders meet the second Monday of each month. They are responsible for vision and planning, evaluation and coordination and financial stewardship. They intend to keep the congregation informed of their monthly actions via a brief article in the E-pistle&#8217;s news links, such as this. At their meeting on Monday, May 14, they: ~ gave [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/15/what-the-elders-accomplished-at-their-may-meeting/</link>
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		<title>Outdoor Service for Earth Sunday (finally!) This Week</title>
		<description><![CDATA[We planned to have worship outdoors in the front Courtyard on April 22. Our celebration of Earth Day. But the weather didn&#8217;t cooperate: it was a wash out! The next weeks either the weather was no better or were already scheduled and needed to be in the Sanctuary. But this coming Sunday, at least the [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/15/outdoor-service-for-earth-sunday-finally-this-week/</link>
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		<title>Guests Around Old First You Might Meet at the End of May</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Michael will be hosting two guests at the end of the month. The Rev. Ruth Garwood is a UCC pastor and the former head of the UCC Coalition for L, G, B, T Concerns. She&#8217;s currently serving an interim position with the UCC congregation in Chagrin Falls. She will be in Philadelphia to offer two [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/14/guests-around-old-first-you-might-meet-at-the-end-of-may/</link>
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		<title>Do You Come to Church to Be Shook up and Thrown Off Balance?</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Deuteronomy 12:4-14 and Luke 24: 13-35. The Road to Emmaus is a favorite among favorite resurrection stories. It promises, according to good Christian theology, that God in Christ finds us where we are. Knows more about our situations than we do ourselves. And finds us for a purpose&#8211; in order to reveal to us what [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/12/do-you-come-to-church-to-be-shook-up-and-thrown-off-balance/</link>
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		<title>Introducing Sandra, Soon to be Our Newest Christian</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Sandra C came to Old First as a volunteer in 2010.  She started by sorting clothes on Friday afternoons. Now she&#8217;s become a regular volunteer at the Saturday morning food and clothing cupboard. She wasn&#8217;t raised in the church, but has come to faith in her adulthood and mostly on her own. She sometimes worships with her [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/11/introducing-sandra/</link>
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		<title>Affirming Diversity with Respect and Love: Old First E-pistle, 05.11.12</title>
		<description><![CDATA[One of my colleagues at this week&#8217;s Penn SE Conference&#8217;s Clergy Convocation, asked Geoffrey Black, the UCC’s General Minister and President about the limits of diversity within our denomination. What I heard was a question all too familiar to me:  “Is the UCC REALLY diverse, if we cannot welcome people who don&#8217;t accept diversity?” I’ll [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/11/affirming-diversity/</link>
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		<title>Summer Urban Service Camps</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The shelter has closed and the Urban Service Camps will start flooding in next week! Groups to look for in the coming months: St. John&#8217;s UCC, Chambersburg, PA May 18-20, 2012 Peace Memorial UCC, Palos Park, IL  June 10-17, 2012 First Congregational Church, Grand Blanc, MI June 17-22, 2012 Congregational Church of Manhasset, Manhasset, NY [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/05/10/summer-urban-service-camps/</link>
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