We are so excited to be able to come together and have an Easter outdoor service in the Hope Church parking lot on Sunday, April 4 from 8:45 am – 9:30 am! The service will consist of a brass ensemble, hymns, scripture and prayer and we are thrilled to use our new outdoor sound system! […]
hosted by Hope Church, with Holland UCC, BLVD Church, First Presbyterian, First UMC, Maple Avenue Ministries, Grace Episcopal During the month of March in the season Lent, you are invited to an individual/group opportunity for challenge and growth in our shared commitment to racial justice. We will use the resources in the 21 Day Racial […]
This year’s devotional for adults is entitled Emily Dickinson and The Poetry of Lent: A Lenten Devotional. Lent is a time of reflection and insight, a change of seasons—and Emily Dickinson, one of the world’s most beloved poets, was also an avid gardener and a careful observer of the natural world. In this Lenten devotional, […]
March 24 at 6:30 p.m. Sign up (tinyurl.com/hopesedersignup) by March 14 to join this tradition via Zoom. The Jewish tradition of Seder has long been a household and family tradition. While we will miss the opportunity to gather together for Seder as we have traditionally done during Holy Week, this innovation will bring us closer […]
February 17, 6 to 7 p.m. You can stop by the Hope Church parking lot to receive the imposition of ashes. While we typically include this symbolic ritual as part of a service of worship, the pastors have participated in recent years in Ashes on the Go on the streets of Holland. On the Ashes […]
By Gordon Wiersma The wisdom found in Ecclesiastes 3 that begins with “For everything there is a season” is familiar to and meaningful for many. It poetically weaves the interplay of experiencing gain and loss, abundance and need, pain and healing, and in doing so we see our own lives. Together with the writer, we […]
Hosted by Randy Smit and Rhonda Edgington Laurie Baron and I have written together with women at the Allegan County Jail and Holland’s Harbor House, and I’m so thankful she brings those experiences into her contribution to this month’s Poetry Corner, perfect for this Season of Reconciliation. Laurie says, “Each of these poems represents an […]
By Phil Tanis, Executive Secretary for Communications & Operations, World Communion of Reformed Churches Living abroad in what has shaped up to be quite a season of discontent not only in the United States but around the world, I often consider myself to be in a privileged position here in Hannover, Germany, working for the […]
Books Pastor Jill recommended in her 2015 Sabbatical Report, “Reconciliation as a Way of Life” Transforming Church Conflict: Compassionate Leadership in Action, by Deborah Van Deusen Hunsinger and Theresa F. Latini NonViolent Communication: A Language of Life: Create Your Life, Your Relationships, and Your World in Harmony with Your Values, by Marshall B. Rosenberg Rene […]
By Pastor Jill Russell Dear Hope Church Friends, Greetings to you as we turn our attention to a new year and a new season of worship and reflection at Hope Church. I pray along with all of you that 2021 will be a very different year from the one we are completing. As we come […]