Presbytery of Geneva Resource Center
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Vol. 2, No. 1 January 1999
Happy New Year to one and all! 1999 holds much promise for me as I get ready to start my second year as your Coordinator. Granted, that anniversary isn't until March, but the new year feels like a new beginning. In Volume Two of this newsletter, I'll include more informative articles on resources that I think you should know about. Tell me what you think of the new four-page format.
More news: Our web site is now up and running! Find it at http://home.eznet.net/~resctr. This month I'll be focusing on Lent and Easter resources to help you prepare for the next church season. Also, be certain to read the article on church copyright issues. Though it's not very glamorous, every church leader needs to understand copyright. Fines for violations START at $500 and skyrocket from there. Ignorance, nor being "not of the secular world," doesn't release a church from liability.
Leslie
NEW RESOURCES
Alternatives for Worship and The Alternative Worship Primer. Is your church looking for ways to reach the unchurched? Are you looking for alternatives to the traditional "Sunday at 11:00" format? This guide contains themes for worship ranging on the "Comfort Level Index" from quite safe to quite controversial. Ideas for using music, video, drama and other non-traditional forms of worship are also provided. Read the Primer to discover if a different form of worship is a good idea for your congregation-present and potential-and then implement the ideas from the guide book. As Ms. Frizzle would say, "Take risks! Get dirty!" (with apologies to non-fans of the Magic School Bus series.)
Trek: Venture Into a World of Enough is a set of 28 cards, one for each day of a four-week journey into an exploration of abundance and sufficiency. When do we finally have enough stuff? The Trek can be taken alone, but it is preferable to take it with others. This Mennonite resource, available from Presbyterian Distribution Service, could be a perfect activity to take your (church) family through Lent.
The Inviting Word, lectionary-based curriculum, is available for perusal in the Resource Center. Themes carry through each age group from the very young to adult, and all are designed inclusively and gracefully. Artwork, prayers, images and stories are incorporated into each lesson and create a worshipful experience founded upon the Word. The teacher's manuals are easy to follow and offer ways to enhance spiritual development. Please come in to see this beautiful new addition to our Christian Education resources!
Plays of the Passion by Linn Creighton brings to life eight New Testament people whom Jesus impacted: John the Baptist, Mary Magdalene, Zacchaeus, the Woman at the Well, and others. Use these dramas with adults or older youths in Bible study or other settings. The plays are easy to stage and require minimal staging and props.
First Presbyterian Church of Ontario Center Cookbook is full of wonderful recipes from the folks up on the ridge. Want to impress everyone at the next church supper? Take one of Moderator Gail Heimberger's low- or no-fat baked goodies, or Kasha Grisley's multicultural Polish Lo Mein or Vindaloo. Many thanks to the folks at Ontario Center for this fine addition to the Resource Center's cookbook section!
The Bible Alive recreates the great events of the Old and New Testaments in a beautiful coffee table book. Staged events were lovingly photographed in the holy land, and explained in Biblical as well as modern contexts, taking advantage of research from many experts and computer technology. The result is a fascinating study tool that anyone could enjoy. Note that some pictures are rather graphic, including the events of the Passion and Stephen's stoning.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT COPYRIGHT
Have you ever sung "Happy Birthday" to someone at church? Or the Johnny Appleseed grace? Shown a Disney movie to your youth group? Oops! Unless you have an umbrella copyright license, your church is in violation of the law and could be subject to major fines. Think back to the Girl Scout fiasco a few years ago, when ASCAP came down hard and heavy on campers. The law doesn't care that a church is a not-for-profit venture when it comes to upholding the rights of citizens to earn a living.
It's actually logical; few of us, myself included, are willing to work without fair compensation. A songwriter or musician should-and does-have the right to use her or his talents to serve God and be able to pay the bills at the same time!
So What's Legal?
Open a hymnal and look at "Blessed Assurance, Jesus is Mine." In the blue Presbyterian Hymnal, look at the tiny print on the bottom: "Text: Transliteration © 1990 Westminster/John Knox Press." That means that the English words (but not the Korean) and the tune exist in the Public Domain, and you never need to ask permission to print the words in the bulletin even if you don't own a hymnal with those words. However, if you borrowed my copy of Reformed Worship #49 (1998 Christmas issue) and wanted to print "As the Deer" in your bulletin, you would need to contact CRC Publications by phone, letter or e-mail, and they will probably grant you permission to use it. If your choir wants to sing an introit out of the hymnal and reproduces the works and music, if the same number of hymnals are owned as copies made, that's legal-but you must immediately destroy those copies after the one usage.
Let's consider what could happen in your church if you chose not to follow the law. This information is from of The Church Guide to Copyright Law, by Richard Hammar, J.D., LL.M., CPA: "Copyright law involves the application of special rules that are not clearly understood by church staff members, church leaders, musicians, and even some publishers and attorneys. As a result, there is considerable confusion regarding the application of copyright law to churches. This confusion has contributed to widespread misinformation and noncompliance with the law. Such noncompliance, even if unintentional, can result in disastrous consequences." (Reprinted with permission from Church Law and Tax Report.) In other words, your church could wind up paying a substantial fee for copyright violation, something no church can afford. A case is pending in one of our churches with possible fines in the thousand dollar range.
What's a Church To Do?!
It's fairly easy to stay within the law if you have the mindset that it's not right to cheat others. The Presbytery can help you obtain two of the most useful licenses at reduced prices: CCLI for music and MPLC for videos, which will allow your church to sing, play, watch and so forth. Just like when you were a kid, you need to ask before you get a treat out of the cookie jar.
The Presbytery Office will soon be mailing each church a packet of information on copyright. It will include pamphlets from CCLI and MPLC, a letter from me and a small brochure published by the Presbyterian Church called Rightful Use: Church Practices and Copyright Law. Every pastor, clerk of session, secretary of the governing board, music director and CE chair should familiarize her or himself with the information in this folder, which covers copyright fundamentals, music, print and videos, and tapes and broadcasts. Did you know you are legally obligated to stop videotaping the music in your worship service-even for shut-ins-unless you have a license from CCLI or a comparable company? Additionally, the Resource Center owns several copies of The Church Guide to Copyright Law which can help answer nearly any question you may have. I encourage you to borrow it.
Upcoming Events
2/10 Conversations on Power and Boundaries
Penn Yan Presbyterian Church
For all Presbytery Pastors, a workshop presenting information on sexual misconduct and exploitation. Sponsored by the Committee on Ministry.
3/6 Leadership Training Event
Penn Yan Presbyterian Church
Workshops on all aspects of leadership for church officers, staff and volunteers. Sponsored by the Church Education Committee.
3/12-13 Let Us Listen
Grandparent Grandchild Event,
Penn Yan Presbyterian Church
An event for junior high school age children and their grandparents;
come and learn about each other. Always fun!
4/23-24 Youth Work Camp
For youth in grades 8-12
Camp Whitman
Help get the camp ready to open and explore its natural beauty at the same time.
4/30-5/1 What's A Youth To Do?
Sr. High Youth Event
Camp Whitman
Gather with youth from the Presbytery to discuss looking at making good decisions.
4/30-5/1 Whitman By The Waters
Camp Whitman
For youth in grades 5 and 6
Experience God's creation as you hike, play and pray throughout the camp.
6/4-5 Do I Know You?
Grandparent Grandchild Event,
Camp Whitman
Stay overnight with your grandchild(ren) in grades K-5 at beautiful Camp Whitman.
6/6 Camp Whitman BBQ and Open House
Camp Whitman
For everyone!
Enjoy wonderful food, fellowship and entertainment while you browse through what's available from the Resource Center!
6/8 The Churched and the Unchurched
Pastor's Event with Tex Sample
Camp Whitman
Listen to and talk with Rev. Tex Sample, considered an expert on how to reach those people mainline denominations have missed, whom Sample calls "basic to the survival and work of the church."
Please call the Presbytery Office for more details on any listed events.
RESOURCES FOR LENT AND EASTER
Lovelight by Janet Litherland is a Tenebrae service for Holy Week. Candlelight, music, color slides and narration combine to recreate the mood of an 18th century Tenebrae service. Mary, the mother of Jesus, extinguishes six candles as the story unfolds. Each action represents how darkness overcame the earth during the events of the crucifixion. Seven additional candles representing the light of Christ are then extinguished as the seven last words on the cross are spoken. Candles are re-lit as the service ends with the Lord's Prayer. Along with the two narrative voices, the choir and a musician soloist perform important roles with seven musical interludes. This is a quietly beautiful service appropriate for Good Friday or any evening of Holy week.
The Women At Calvary. Few, if any, of the men who followed Jesus were there as he carried his cross to Calvary, was nailed to it, and died in crucifixion. The men were afraid to be there. It was mostly the women who were able to be faithful to him until the moment of his death. An Unknown Woman and the three Marys tell the Good Friday story in successive monologues. Their words increase our understanding of the passion and the death of our Lord. Presentation is adaptable to any worship service.
Lenten Alphabet by Phyllis Vos Wezeman and Jude Dennis Fournier contains creative ideas from Alleluia to Old Testament Prophecies to Zion for your church family to use throughout the Lenten season. Cleverly done, this resource can be used for small children, youth groups, or for an intergenerational gathering. EMI, 1993.
Come, Watch With Me by Terry Deffenbaugh. A collection of seven programs which use the events of Christ's life from his entrance into Jerusalem to Pentecost as a springboard for personal growth. Each program is designed to fully involve the participants. The sessions are not designed to be used continuously but individually according to the needs of the particular group. Educational Ministries, 1991.
Down To Earth: Lenten Meditations On The Mind Of Christ. These meditations, one for each day of Lent, are based on Paul's Letter to the Philippians, Chapter 2, when Paul invites us to explore the mind of Christ. Written for college and university students, they are appropriate for any adults, either individually or in groups. United Ministries in Education, 1996.
Phos. Filmed on location in Greece, this story intertwines the customs and life-style of a Greek village preparing for Easter celebrations,