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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>
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		<title>A Lenten Morning Prayer and Communion Service at Old First (every Sunday until Easter)</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The Worship Standing Leadership Group has developed a simple, early morning, half-hour service for the Sundays of Lent. So even if you can&#8217;t join us at 11, you could come to worship each week as a Lenten discipline. The service will happen in the front of the Sanctuary each week, beginning at 8:30 and ending [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/22/a-lenten-morning-prayer-and-communion-service-at-old-first-every-sunday-until-easter/</link>
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		<title>Weird, Surprising Experiences that Keep Us Looking Up, Sermon 02.19.12.</title>
		<description><![CDATA[2 Kings 2:1-12 and Mark 9:2-9 Extraordinary happenings &#8212; what since Dr. King’s speech the night before his assassination have become commonly known as &#8220;mountaintop experiences&#8221; &#8212; are a part of our human existence. Jesus and his disciples are on the top of a mountain when suddenly Moses and Elijah appear, and then Jesus, well, [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/22/transfiguration/</link>
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		<title>Early Churches in the Middle East: Adult Forum, Sun., Feb 26</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The ancient Church of the East once stretched from Turkey, through Persia and Afghanistan, to India and China, with branches in Yemen and South Arabia. In 1000 AD, 40% of all the Christians of the world belonged to this church. Why don’t we know about this?  Why has this been called the lost history of [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/21/early-churches-middle-east/</link>
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		<title>X-ray Vision, Old First E-pistle 02.17.12</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In confirmation class last Sunday, I posed a question for Anna, Madelyn and Warren, “If a friend suddenly discovered that you go to church, was terribly surprised, and asked why, how would you explain it?” I can’t wait for the answers they work out&#8230; This week, Transfiguration Sunday suggests an answer that would work for [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/16/x-ray-vision/</link>
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		<title>2012 Officers Elected by the Elders</title>
		<description><![CDATA[After the Annual Meeting, at the first organizing meeting last Monday, February 13, the Board of Elders elected their officers per the directions of Old First&#8217;s Constitution and By-laws: Steve Wilhite is the Moderator. Nancy Donohue is the Vice Moderator. Julius DeAngelus is the Secretary. Please keep these leaders&#8217; service, and all our Elders in [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/16/2012-officers-elected-by-the-elders/</link>
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		<title>Open Invitation to Worship SLG Meeting This Sunday Where Decision About Front Pews Is On the Agenda</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The Worship SLG decided to remove the pews to the east and west of the chancel for Advent. Seasonal worship needed the extra space, and the Worship SLG thought it would be an improvement in the front of the sanctuary. But in undertaking this change, the SLG was very clear: it was a temporary change, [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/15/front-pews/</link>
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		<title>Schedule for Wednesday Lenten Services with the UCC Congregations of the Philadelphia Association</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Instead of our own Lenten devotions this year, we are going to join other UCC congregations for a round-robin of worship in different churches with different preachers&#8230; (If you want to go, but are worried that you don&#8217;t know where these churches are, let Michael know: we&#8217;ll organize carpooling.) Ash Wednesday, Feb. 22, 7 p.m. [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/15/lenten-service-schedule/</link>
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		<title>God’s Love the Heals Because It Embraces, Sermon 02.12.12.</title>
		<description><![CDATA[2 Kings 5.1-14 and Mark 1.40-45 Isn’t it just my luck&#8230; after last Sunday’s sermon stated clearly that healing isn’t really Jesus’ main event, today, both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament readings are stories of miraculous healings. I’m sticking by what I preached. It was true to both last week’s Gospel lesson and [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/12/god%e2%80%99s-love-embraces-thereby-heal/</link>
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		<title>Doing Theology the Other Way Around: Old First E-pistle 02.12.12.</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Theology &#8212; what we believe about God &#8212; matters. &#8220;God&#8221; from our relative human perspective is who or what we are willing to acknowledge as our ultimate reality. And that admission determines what we can see about our world, our neighbors and ourselves. Theology, therefore, can be powerful&#8230; harmful&#8230; eye-opening&#8230; inarticulate&#8230; transformative&#8230; ineffectual&#8230; insightful&#8230; abusive&#8230; [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/09/doing-theology-the-other-way-around-old-first-e-pistle-02-12-12/</link>
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		<title>Looking towards Lent (which begins on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 22) as We Prepare for Easter!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Folks, Lent is the 40 days prior to Easter (not counting the Sundays, which are &#8220;little Easters&#8221; and therefore cannot be &#8220;fast days.&#8221; One tradition of Lent is that one gives something up, a bit of ascetism to provide spiritual discipline for preparing for God&#8217;s gift of resurrection at Easter. Others choose to take on [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://oldfirstucc.org/2012/02/09/looking-towards-lent-which-begins-on-ash-wednesday-feb-22-as-we-prepare-for-easter/</link>
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