12/21/2012

THE CHRISTIAN RECORDER ONLINE ENGLISH EDITION (12/21/12)





Bishop T. Larry Kirkland - Chair, Commission on Publications
The Reverend Dr. Johnny Barbour, Jr., Publisher
The Reverend Dr. Calvin H. Sydnor III, the 20th Editor, The Christian Recorder

December:

National HIV/AIDS Awareness Month

Mark your Calendar Now!

The 50th Quadrennial Session of the General Conference will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 6 - 13, 2016.


1. TCR EDITORIAL: THE HACKERS AND SCAMMERS ARE AT IT AGAIN:

Dr. Calvin H. Sydnor III
The 20th Editor of The Christian Recorder

This is the Christmas season and we are seeing an uptick of hacked and scammed emails. Please do not be duped. Bishop William P. DeVeaux, Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie, and Bishop Sarah Frances Davis are all fine and are safe at home and have not been stranded. As a matter of fact all of our bishops, general officers, and connectional officers are at home and do not need any assistance.  If you receive emails requesting funds for one of our bishops, general officers, connectional officers or pastors, you should ignore the messages as hoax messages.

Those who have been hacked should immediately change their email passwords.

Passwords should be changed from time to time or you should carefully select passwords using upper and lower case, numbers and symbols.  Do not use “ABC’ or “123” or some easy combination of words that can be associated with you or your profession.  For instance pastors shouldn’t use “pastor” or “doctor” as a password.  Use a foreign phrase or Latin words that you can easily remember.

I will say again, when sending multiple addressed email messages use Bcc. Too many of you, including bishops and general officers are sending messages with exposed email addresses.

Bringing back the “You Ask” column in 2013

The “You Ask” column is returning to The Christian Recorder in 2013.  The popular “You Ask” column was written by the late Bishop Richard Allen Chappelle. He addressed local and connectional AME Church issues raised by readers. 

We are pleased to announce that the “You Ask” column will be penned by retired Bishop Carolyn Tyler Guidry.  She is excited to pick up the mantle left by Bishop Chappelle and is looking forward to addressing issues raised by the readers and subscribers of The Christian Recorder. Email your questions to chsydnor@bellsouth.net with the address-line: “You Ask” column.

2012 has been an exciting year for The Christian Recorder and we are looking for an even more exciting year in 2013.

Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!


We, at The Christian Recorder, wish all of our subscribers and all of you who read The Christian Recorder print edition and The Christian Recorder Online, a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year! 

The AMEC Sunday School Union will be closed December 21, 2012 thru January 2, 2013 for the Christmas Holidays.

A poem written by Rosalie Jones Moore expresses again expresses our Christmas wish for all of our subscribers and readers of The Christian Recorder Online.


His Season

It is that joyous,
Time of year,
That loved ones travel,
From far and near,

Coming together,
To bring joy and cheer,
Sharing gifts from the heart,
To loved-ones dear,

The time of year,
To celebrate the glorious life,
Of the Son of God,
Our Lord and Savior – Jesus Christ,

Take the time,
To remember the reason,
That Christ died for our sins,
So that we could celebrate –
His Season

©Copyright November 17, 2009 by Rosalie Jones Moore


2. TCR OP-ED - MOVING FROM MESS TO MINISTRY:

*Pastor Mark E. Whitlock, Jr. 

We are the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME). God called the AME Church into being in 1787 when a group of Black slaves ministered through the mess created by racism, oppression, rape, lynching and slavery. God empowered these Black uneducated men and women to move from mess to ministry by creating the first Black denomination in AMErica. The AME Church founded Wilberforce University, the first and oldest privately owned Black University in AMErica. The AME Church created the Christian Recorder, the first and oldest Black Newspaper in AMErica. The AME Church is the first Black Denomination to own land in AMErica. The AME Church has been a beacon of light for souls lost in sin, freedom for victims of oppression, a leader in civil rights, and a voice for Black folk muted by mess. The mission of the AME Church is to minister to the social, spiritual, and physical development of all people. In recent weeks, the AME Church has been in the media for more mess than ministry. It is the responsibility of the Bishop T. Larry Kirkland, Episcopal leader of the Fifth District of the AME Church to guide churches from mess to meaningful ministry.

While Bishop Kirkland is responsible for over three hundred fifty churches in the AME denomination west of the Mississippi River, Bishop Kirkland and the other AME Bishops have limited power for appointing pastors to churches as outlined in the Book of Discipline of the AME Church.  First, an AME Bishop uses Godly judgment to appoint a pastor to a church for a period of one year.  Thereafter, a Bishop has the responsibility to permit a pastor to remain at a church or reassign that pastor to another church.  AME pastors have the right to a pastoral appointment equal to their ability, training, and experience, when available, provided the pastor has not been found guilty of misconduct under Judicial Administration.  If reassigned, the new appointment, when available, must be comparable to or better than the previous appointment again, provided the pastor has not been found guilty of misconduct under Judicial Administration.  A Bishop must notify a pastor in writing at least 90 days in advance of the intent to move a pastor to another church without the pastor’s consent.  No pastor has a perpetual appointment to an AME pulpit, and every pastor takes an oath to accept the assignment given by the Bishop.

Bishop Kirkland selected new pastors in Los Angeles to First AME, Ward AME, Brookins AME, St. James, St. Mark AME, Walker Chapel, and Grant AME in Long Beach.  These churches are well pleased with their new spiritual leaders.  Some congregants gave standing ovations to their newly appointed pastors.  The business of moving ministers is always messy for the Bishop, Pastor, and Congregation, but Christians are called to move from mess to meaningful ministry.

Pastors and Lay are charged to fulfill the vision of the AME denomination.  At every level of the AME Connection and in every local church, the AME Church shall engage in carrying out the spirit of the original Free African Society, out of which the AME Church evolved:  thus is, to seek out and save the lost, and to serve the needy.  The ultimate purpose for ministry, irrespective of the denomination, is to make God’s Biblical principles known; spread Christ’s liberating gospel to hopeless, and provide continuing programs which enhance the entire social development of God’s people.

The AME Church works daily at the ministry, mission, and management of God’s precious resources.  God does not save us from mess.  We are in messy economic times, messy foreclosures, messy unemployment, messy violence in schools, and engage in messy politics both nationally and locally.   My mentor, the Rev. Cecil Murray once said, “God does not save us from Mess. God saves us in the mess.”  It’s time to move from mess to miracles. The best way to get out of mess is to work, fight, and pray to God for meaningful ministry.

*Pastor Mark E. Whitlock, Jr. is the Senior Minister of Christ Our Redeemer AME Church

3. THE SANDY HOOK TRAGEDY RAISES MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS:

*The Rev. Andra D’Etta Hoxie

Why are we focused on guns instead of mental healthcare?  Why are we, the Ecclesia (the church, the called out), not lobbying for legislation to return prayer to schools?  Why do we spend so much time making sure no one is offended by prayer in schools so that we can spend ten times the amount of hours sharing the Gospel with prisoners who may have been spared incarceration if they had been introduced to the gospel early and often?  We are attending too many funerals for our youth who are being cut down in their prime.  It is not only Sandy Hook, but violence among our youth is rampant in all our communities.  Check the murder, madness and mayhem statistics for Chicago, Washington DC, Los Angeles or any other major city on any given weekend.  And, just in case you’ve not noticed, respect for adults and authority is diminishing with each passing moment.

What are we doing?

It is sadly apparent that the child (and, yes, he was someone’s child, someone’s brother, someone’s grandchild) who committed the heinous crimes in Sandy Hook had mental challenges.  Is it possible that with proper treatment there would have been a different outcome in Newtown, CT?  We will never know.  What we do know is that we can advocate for change.

The elephant in the room begs the question, “why would a mother of a child with mental challenges introduce them to the sport of shooting?”  At some point in time, there was bound to be an issue.  It appears that at least a few persons knew the struggles of the family.  Why did no one speak up before now?  What is society’s role?  Should social workers and medical personnel monitor challenged youth who are removed from the school system to be home schooled, further decreasing their ability to learn important social and life skills?  What help is available for a parent who is willing to admit that there are challenges?  Is there silence on the part of families that are suffering because of the stigma and ostracism associated with admitting to psychological challenges?

Again, we have more questions than answers

Are we afraid to admit that there may be a similar situation lurking in our communities?  We are attempting to close the barn door after we stood by and watched the horses gallop down the road.  We tend to adopt a dissociative relationship toward gun violence until it happens in our back yard.  In other words, we embrace an ostrich approach and attempt to keep our heads buried in the sand.  Guns do not kill people; people with access to guns kill people.  A potential victim’s name is not assigned to a particular bullet; bullets wound, maim and kill whoever is in its path.  Vigils after the fact are good.  Weeping with those who weep and mourning with those who mourn show our love one for another.  But we, the church, can and must do more.

The church must begin somewhere – the point of effective, effectual change.  Prayer changes things.  While others are focused on gun laws the church’s focus must remain on God.  We are to pray without ceasing.

Additionally, the church must advocate for expanded support and medical treatment for those who suffer with mental health issues.  Preachers should educate congregants about this illness and help people overcome the fear of being stigmatized and/or ostracized if they admit to these particular challenges.  Many tragedies can be averted if someone would just speak up.  It would be even more impressive and effective if the church had a march on our legislators to advocate for returning prayer to schools.  Atheists and the “separation of church and state crowd” do not want children to pray or hear the moral law in school.  These same persons will invoke God’s law and ask for continuous prayer when things go horribly wrong.  We can’t have it both ways.  I am willing to independently surmise that during that rampage, someone in that school forgot about the separation of church and state and called on the name of Jesus.
Let’s keep it simple.

We must not wait until we are saying more prayers, attending more funerals for our children and visiting more of our youth in jail.  Prayer changes things.  It will not cost Congress a dime and returning prayer to schools will not affect the national deficit one iota.  Actually, they may need less social programs if they would allow prayer to do its work.

We have met and we have wept and worshipped; let us now be about our Father’s business and begin the work that is necessary to effect change.  Just as someone advocated for the removal of prayer from schools, the church can and must advocate for the return of prayer to schools.  WE ARE NOT POWERLESS.  Let the church say, “Amen!”
Romans 12:15b … mourn with those who mourn

*The Rev. Andra D’Etta Hoxie is the pastor of Faith A.M.E. Mission at Woodbridge, VA.

4. CHRISTMAS CAROLING REVIVED:

House to house caroling is a dying art in many parts of the world, but not at Grant Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church where it is alive and well. Saturday, December 15, 2012, 39 individuals ranging in age 2 to 82 braved the weather and visited 10 homes and a nursing home singing Christmas carols and leaving behind a little Joy. With the crime rate at an all-time high and violence filling so many neighborhoods, many are apprehensive to tread. These brave soldiers were organized by the Y.P.D. President, Shakeelah Hardaway, along with the Y.P.D Director, Gail McClenton and her awesome helpers and supporters. This event was sponsored by the Christian Education Department and supported by the Evangelism Committee and the Mattie B. Williams Women's Missionary Society.

The brave soldiers began their mission in front of the church singing "Silent Night" and closing with "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." Following prayer, the carolers loaded in vans, SUVs’ and individual cars and caravanned to home of the oldest member, Mrs. Lillian B. Murray who is 94 years old, with the final stop being that of the pastor's home, the Rev. Penny Pitchford.

We are happy and proud to report that the outing brought back the real meaning of Christmas, bringing glad tidings, peace and joy to all that were visited. It gave the carolers great joy and peace. We must say the carolers had some excitement alone the way by singing the pants of aged senior citizen who was so happy forgot his weight loss and raised his hands in praise and the rest is history. The trip ended at a fast food restaurant with food and a visit from an African American Santa from the hood. (Is there a better way we can include this experience without taking the chance of offending someone?) It is our sincere prayer this will become an annual event for Grant Chapel located at 2800 N. Tremont in Kansas City, Kansas where our services begin at 9:30 a.m. with Sunday School and the worship experience begins promptly at 11:00 a.m. Our motto is, "The friendly little church on the hill where all are welcome and invited to attend. Our faithful pastor is the Rev. Penny Pitchford.

Submitted by Sister Gail McClenton

5. WOMEN'S MISSIONARY SUNDAY AT TRINITY AME CHURCH:

Trinity AME Church, 1420 South Darla Avenue, Gonzales, Louisiana will observe Women’s Missionary Society Services at 8:00 a.m. on Sunday, December 30, 2012.  The Reverend Monick Williams of St. James AME Church in Lake Providence, Louisiana will be the worship leader.  The Reverend Robyn C. Butler, a member of Days Chapel AME Church in Clinton, Louisiana will deliver the message.

The International Women’s Missionary Society of the AME Church is comprised of more than 800,000 members.  Missionaries at the local level are committed to witness, advocate, educate, and to support membership and stewardship in their local communities.  The Reverend Orin J. Blouin is the Pastor of Trinity AME Church, a new work in Gonzales. 

Sister Vickie R. Smith is the WMS President of the Trinity AME Church WMS. The Reverend Orin J. Blouin is the pastor.

6. THE DEATH OF NOTED AME LAYMAN, MR. JESSE HILL, JR. :

Mr. Jesse Hill, Jr., former chief executive of Atlanta Life Insurance Company, key civil rights supporter, and long-time member and officer of Big Bethel AME Church, died on Monday, December 17, 2012, in Atlanta, Georgia.

Arrangements are as follows:

Thursday, December 20, 2012, 6:00 - 7:30 p.m.--Visitation and Omega Psi Phi Omega Service, Big Bethel AME Church - 220 Auburn Avenue, Atlanta, Georgia 30303

Friday, December 21, 2012, 11:00 a.m. -- Celebration of Life Services, Big Bethel AME Church - 220 Auburn Avenue, Atlanta, Georgia. 

Jesse Hill a leader in the AME Church and in the community

The December 18, 2012 headline in Black Politics on the Web stated, "The Civil rights leader, Atlanta businessman dies" and they were writing about Jessie Hill, Jr., civil rights leader who helped start Atlanta’s first black community newspaper in 1960. He was 86.

Hill and other civil rights leaders founded the Atlanta Inquirer and he served as publisher until 1985.

Hill was born in St. Louis and served on the board of directors for a diverse set of companies and nonprofits. He worked for the Atlanta Life Insurance Company as an actuarial assistant and became the first African-American president of the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, now called the Metro Atlanta Chamber. During the civil rights movement, he helped organize demonstrations and collected bail money for arrested protesters. (AP).

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution headline stated, "Jesse Hill Jr., 86: Advised King, Carter, Atlanta mayors."  AJC Reporter Michelle E. Shaw wrote "Jesse Hill Jr., a former chief executive of Atlanta Life Insurance Co. and a key supporter of civil rights, never held a public office, but he had the ear, and phone number, of nearly every high-ranking politician in Georgia. From Jimmy Carter to city councilmen, Hill worked behind the scenes of many political campaigns." Shaw went on to write, "In a period of historic ferment over civil rights and the changing dynamics of Atlanta, Hill showed uncommon leadership. He helped finance and advised civil rights leaders, including the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.; served as confidant to the city’s first black mayor, Maynard Jackson; and tackled assignments as diverse as the launch of MARTA and the integration of the Atlanta public schools and the University of Georgia. He played an especially important role in forging understanding and alliances between local black and white leaders." Former staff writer Ernest Holsendolph contributed to the AJC article.

Read More:



7. GETTING TO ZERO: HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

By Dr. Oveta Fuller

It’s Christmas time of the year. We celebrate the arrival of Christ Jesus, Immanuel, God with us. Families and friends come together. College students are at the semester end or quarter break. It’s Christmas time.

We wish for you a wonderful holiday filled with peace, joy and abiding love. We wish closeness to those you love and those who love you. We wish that whatever you need to let love abide, that God will give you the guidance to be about it.

In the last column, we paid tribute to some pioneers in fighting against the loss of health, life and love that HIV infection and AIDS can bring.  Some mentioned were names that are known. We saluted also those millions whose names are not known, or are familiar only to family or closest friends.

In this week leading to Christmas 2012, I especially appreciate being home with immediate family. This includes two college students.

College campuses, for African American or any young adults are locations for high presence of HIV and other microbes that cause sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

Christmas 2012 is a great time to talk with those you love about Getting to Zero and how to move towards the goal of an AIDS-Free Generation. Talk with children, grandchildren, great grands, nieces, nephews, neighbors, Sunday School attendees, church friends. You get the idea.

Talk about what you have been reading in The Christian Recorder and G20 column. Talk about HIV as a virus that we can keep out of the body by using the ABCs at all times. Talk about avoiding contact with the four body fluids that can transmit HIV infection. These are blood, semen, vaginal fluid and breast milk.

Talk about AIDS as a state of low CD4 white cell count where the immune system is not working well. Discuss that due to current medical care, being HIV+ does not mean that one has to progress  to AIDS. Thanks to anti-retroviral therapy, with supervised medical care HIV/AIDS can be a chronic disease like diabetes that can be managed. AIDS does not have to be a fatal disease.

Talk about the first critical step, HIV testing, to determine if one is HIV- or HIV+. Find local testing sites.

In the last two Payne Seminary classes, the opportunity for on-site rapid HIV testing has been made available on campus by personnel from the Greene County Health Department.  M Div graduate students in the class take advantage of this opportunity to complete HIV testing to learn their infection status.

After the test, it is interesting to hear thoughts and considerations that went through the minds of these clergy while contemplating HIV voluntary counseling and testing (VCT).

Many of the Payne Seminary M Div candidates talk by phone with families to tell them they are about to get an HIV test, or that they just completed VCT. It is a great conversation starter. Don’t be surprised if your young adults engage easily in the conversation and tell you that “they got tested at…” or they “already include it in the physical at….”

If the Payne class experiences are an indication, HIV testing is becoming more routine among young adults. It is the more mature persons that lag behind with perceptions held over from the last century.

During this Christmas, have a conversation about HIV/AIDS, STDs, love, lust, emotions and being young. Most of us have been through the young adult transition years whether in college, or not. You know, “been there, done that.” It is by the grace of God that we made it through this life phase.

Your young adult will appreciate that you care enough to talk with them, not at them, on such a relevant contemporary issue.  Remember, you don’t have to tell all.  Just engage and listen, without judging.

Such conversation might open new avenues for communication.  During the holidays, take time together perhaps to watch and talk about a different kind of movie.  Try “Endgame” or “Half the Sky” as two highly recommended documentaries that are available on line.

Maybe the family or a few people can come together to go for an HIV test. Yes, even if you have been married for 65 years, initiate the event and go anyway. It sets an example of taking proactive care of your health. It will deal a mighty blow to HIV/AIDS stigma.

For this Christmas holiday season, remember those who may not have family members near, who may have pressing financial or other needs, and those for whom this season is especially difficult. Holidays can be difficult because of many possible reasons.  

Show the love of God and the joy in Jesus by giving joy and love to someone unexpectedly.

In this season, Christians celebrate abundant life and eternal life. In a collective effort to “Get to Zero”, we remember loved ones seemingly gone too soon.

We remember and are thankful for Dr. Jacqueline Hampton of Nashville, Tennessee for whom ending HIV/AIDS was a life passion and tireless effort. I recall one of the Project SAVED (CDC funded project at Meharry Medical School) training sessions where Dr. Hampton said it all. She said, “I don’t want even one more life, with all its possibilities, to be snuffed out by this virus and disease that we can stop.”

We wish you a Merry Christmas. We wish for you the abundant blessings of our God for wellness in mind, body and spirit in the coming year.

8. MEDITATION – BASED ON ROMANS 8:29-39 - WE CAN’T MAKE SENSE OUT OF WHAT MAKES NO SENSE:

*The Rev. Dr. Joseph A. Darby

Thirty-five years as a pastor have taught me a few things about ministering to those struggling with the loss of loved ones - to encourage them not to be consumed by trying to make sense out of what makes no sense; to let them know that it's good, helpful and proper to mourn - in spite of well-meaning people who tell them to "be strong"; and to gently guide them in the direction of personal and spiritual growth in the wake of their loss rather than urging them to "recover" what used to be “normal.”

 I thought of those things in the wake of America’s most recent tragedy - the senseless slaughter of six brave educators and twenty innocent children by a tragically deranged young man at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.  The "why" question will never be answered in that tragic event, and simply attributing what happened to "God's Will" isn't a great idea, because frail human beings can't always claim to comprehend God's will in horrific events.

What may be best in the wake of the Newtown, Connecticut tragedy is not a "recovery" effort, because recovery means returning to business as usual - we’ve done that far too often after similar events. What may be best is for us to "grow from" what happened and do things to minimize the chances of such all too frequent acts being repeated in our nation. 

That means not talking about or speculating on "God's will," but pressing our elected officials to enact controls on weapons designed not to hunt animals but to kill people and on high capacity ammunition clips designed not for self-defense but for wholesale slaughter.  That also means that people of faith should lead those with troubled minds and spirits to the sources of help that they need to cope with life’s pressures and let them know that God brings spiritual and emotional healing.

The best tributes to those slain at the Sandy Hook Elementary School and to our loved ones who leave this world may not be cards, flowers and vigils, but our commitment to offer caring hope to our neighbors and to change our communities, states and nation for the better. 

Doing so won't bring those who leave this world back, but it may help others to find the Christ who said, "I am come that you might have life and have it more abundantly.”  It will also help each of us to grow in faith, grace and purpose, for we'll be doing the will of the Savior who said, "Whatever you do for the least of these, you do for me."

If you are in the Charleston, South Carolina area, join us on the Fourth Sunday in December for Church School at 9:45 a.m. and for Worship at 8 and 11 a.m.  The Combined Choir, Mime Ministry and Young Adult Choir will offer praise. 


Join us at 5 p.m. on this Sunday as well, when our Worship and Drama Ministries will celebrate the blessings of the season with a presentation of “The Shepherds,” a short state play by Andre A.A. Lederer.

Sunday’s Scripture Lessons are:

Isaiah 9:2-7
Hebrews 1:1-9
Matthew 1:18-24

Sunday’s Sermons are:

8 a.m. - “Can You Trust in God’s Judgment?”
11 a.m. – “Can You Follow God’s Plan?”

*The Rev. Dr. Joseph A. Darby is the pastor of Morris Brown AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina

9. CLERGY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT NOTICE:

We regret to inform you of the death of Mrs. Wilhelmina McNeil, the Sister of Presiding Elder Larry S. Hinton. The Rev. Larry Hinton is the Presiding Elder of the Northern District of the North Carolina Conference.

Funeral Arrangements are:

Friday, December 21, 2012
The wake at 10:30 a.m.
Service at 11:00 a.m.
Calvary Baptist Church
3911 Garrison Blvd.
Baltimore, MD

The family will receive friends and visitors Thursday, December 20th from 5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
March Funeral Home
4300 Wabash Avenue
Baltimore, MD 21215
410-542-2400

Arrangements by:

March Funeral Home
4300 Wabash Avenue
Baltimore, MD 21215

Condolences may be sent to:

Presiding Elder Larry S. Hinton
P.O. Box 335
Clayton, NC 27528


Telephone: 919-359-0575; 919-359-8381; or 757-761-3368

10. CLERGY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT NOTICE:

This missive comes to inform you of the passing of a faithful servant of God, the Reverend Beulah Lewis, a retired minister in the Oklahoma State Annual Conference where she served with all humility for many years. Her last appointment prior to her retirement was Mt. Olive AME Church in Perry, Oklahoma.

A Celebration of Life for the Reverend Lewis will be held on Saturday, December 22, 2012, 1:00 p.m. at the First Christian Church, 701 Holly Street, Perry, OK.

Services have been entrusted to:

Pollard Funeral Home
2626 North Post Road
Oklahoma City, OK 73141
405-769-6719

Messages of condolence may be shared with the family via the Funeral Home.

11. CLERGY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT NOTICE:

We regret to share news of the passing of Mrs. Thelma D. Cheatham, the mother of Sister Brenda Jones and mother-in-Law of the Rev. Gregory D. Jones. Pastor and Sister Jones serve the congregation of Union Community AMEC in Jacksonville, Florida. Sister Cheatham, a resident of Jacksonville, Florida, passed away December 14, 2012. She was a member of St. Paul AME Church, where the Rev. Dr. Marvin C. Zanders, II serves as the pastor.

Funeral Services will be held Friday, December 21, 2012 at 11:00 a.m. at St. Paul AMEC - Jacksonville with visitation of friends at the mortuary (James Graham Mortuary, Inc. - 3631 Moncrief Road - Jacksonville) on Thursday, December 20, 2012 from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. and in the church from 9:30 a.m. until the hour of service. Interment in Restlawn Memorial Park Cemetery - Jacksonville, Florida. Arrangements by: JAMES GRAHAM MORTUARY, INC. 3631 Moncrief Road - Jacksonville, Florida. Please lift them up in prayers.

Contact information for the Rev. Gregory D. Jones: revgdjonesamec@yahoo.com 


12. CLERGY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT NOTICES AND CONGRATULATORY ANNOUNCEMENTS PROVIDED BY:

Ora L. Easley, Administrator
AMEC Clergy Family Information Center
Phone: (615) 837-9736 (H)
Phone: (615) 833-6936 (O)
Cell: (615) 403-7751




13.  CONDOLENCES TO THE BEREAVED FROM THE CHRISTIAN RECORDER:

The Chair of the Commission on Publications, the Right Reverend Richard Franklin Norris; the Publisher, the Reverend Dr. Johnny Barbour and the Editor of The Christian Recorder, the Reverend Dr. Calvin H. Sydnor III offer our condolences and prayers to those who have lost loved ones. We pray that the peace of Christ will be with you during this time of your bereavement.


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