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Category Archives: Congregation
A Courageous Woman
Rev. Patricia Farris joins church member Krista Strauss (left) as Krista’s mother, Bernice Tesreau (center), was recognized and honored by the Rotary Club of Santa Monica at their luncheon today.
About 2 years ago, Bernice was awakened in the middle of the night in her home by a noise to find an intruder hovering above her in bed. She fought him off by punching and kicking until he eventually gave up and ran away.
Please keep this amazing woman in your prayers. What a hero!
This post can be seen on the church Instagram.
Advice to Our Students by First UMC member Mira Pak.
1. For every hour you spend in a class, you need to plan on two-three hours of independent study time.
2. Do not schedule classes, work, and practices back-to-back. Schedule time in between so that you can process the first class before you rush off to the next.
3. Learn about the services available for students. Know where to find help when you need it – financial, psychological, social, academic.
4. Find a good, quiet place to study: use that space only for academic work – don’t use it to nap or play video games.
5. Make lots of new friends, join clubs, find small-sized study groups.
6. Do NOT neglect your church-going. Going to Sunday services can keep you grounded no matter how far away from home you feel. Most important of all: Wherever you go or don’t go, First UMC is always home for you. You are welcome here no matter what.
This article first appeared in the June/July 2011 Sentinel.
Inspired by Saints: Larry Wilson Honors Fallen FBI Agents – By Shalimar Carducci
Larry Wilson, 2016
Church member Larry Wilson worked in the Los Angeles Field Office of the FBI for 15 of his 25 years as an FBI Agent. Needless to say, he and his colleagues have had some interesting experiences and seen some things, many of which he isn’t at liberty to share.
Back in 1986, as a result of his position as a Supervisory Special Agent, he recognized that there was a morale problem with the employees of the Los Angeles Field Office. Something had to be done, but what? After some thought, he realized that no one had ever formally recognized the fallen agents, their dear friends, who were killed in the line of duty.
During this time, Larry had been a regular visitor at First UMC Santa Monica for about 4 years. He would pray for his fallen colleagues and, in 1986, prayed for an inspiration on how to honor them. His prayers were answered while attending the All Saints service held in November each year.
All Saints is a very special service when thanks is given for members of the church who have died during the past year. Larry was especially moved by the bell ringing after each name was read out loud, echoing through the sanctuary. It was then he decided a similar memorial for the fallen agents was what was needed.
He contacted FBI Headquarters, in Washington, D.C., to identify any organizational policies regarding such an event and whether there was already a program he could follow to create the Los Angeles Field Office Memorial Service. He was advised that such events were left up to the discretion of each Field Office, that they could use their own initiative to create their own program. That is just what he and the employees of the Los Angeles Field Office did.
He began an inquiry with his entire staff, encouraging ideas and input from support personnel and Special Agents, to create a memorial for the Los Angeles Office. He took their suggestions, and, building on his own knowledge of ceremonies from his time in the Marines, the planning for the inaugural FBI Memorial Service began. This was achieved without FBI Headquarters involvement, so, Larry and his office persisted and organized and sponsored the ceremony on their own. It has been held every year since then and has even been recognized by FBI Headquarters as the standard for all other Field Offices. Three different FBI Directors have participated as the keynote speakers for the event.
Many of the First UMC congregation and clergy have attended. The Rev. Patricia Farris has given the Invocation and Benediction. Church members Mary Crawford and Robert Hedges have repeatedly volunteered as the bell ringers. Thirty-two years later, Larry continues to spearhead the event, continuously performing the duties of the “Master of Ceremonies” even though he retired from the Bureau in 1995. His mission to honor fallen FBI agents and to give glory to God for their lives continues.
All are welcome to attend the 32nd Annual FBI Memorial Service. This year’s keynote speaker is actor Joe Mantegna.
32nd Annual FBI Memorial Service Tuesday, May 8, 11 a.m. Westwood Federal Building, Los Angeles, 90024
This article first appeared in the May 2018 Sentinel.
African American Spirituals by Jack Fry
Jack and Marj Fry
Did you know that there are 27 African-American spirituals in The United Methodist Hymnal, and that there are 13 in The Faith We Sing? Many African-American spirituals are familiar to us, as we have sung them in school, church and Sunday school and have listened as they were sung by famous musicians. Sometimes one inexplicably keeps repeating itself over and over in our minds as we go about our daily routines. They are melodic, rhythmic and each one tells a story, a story that we once heard in Sunday school or one that came to us from the Bible, or, in some cases, one with hidden meaning.
These spirituals go back to a rather dark time in American history, a time during which several hundred thousand human beings were captured in their native Africa, separated from their family members, crammed into the bowels of sailing ships and forced to suffer long sea voyages terminating in the United States where they were sold as slaves. They were forced to live under poor conditions, work long hours, receive no wages and were subjected to cruel treatment if they failed to please their owners or attempted to escape.
Forbidden to pursue their own religious beliefs, they were exposed to Christianity in the hopes of their owners that by following the teachings of the Bible, they would be less likely to attempt escape. Many of the slaves accepted these Christian teachings and expressed them in styles and rhythms that were familiar to them from their African heritage. Often the spirituals followed a format that reflected an African tradition of responses to a leader’s sung phrases, e.g. (TFWS: Rise Up Shepherd and Follow #2096; Over My Head #2148; Oh Freedom #2194; and several others as well as Swing Low, Sweet Chariot – UMH #703).
But African-American spirituals express more than Christian messages. Some, such as Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen (UMH #520) tell of the misery of lives torn from native homes only to be spent in slavery. Others, e.g. My Lord What a Mornin’ (UMH #719) and I’m Gonna Sing When the Spirit Says Sing (UMH #333) express joy and hope for a better life, and All Of God’s Chillun Got Shoes tells of the hope that shoes, which in many cases slaves didn’t have, would be available in Heaven (or freedom) as well as robes and harps.
In lamenting that the people of Israel were rejecting the word of God, the prophet Jeremiah referred to a resinous substance found in Gilead that was rubbed into wounds to promote healing and asked, “is there no balm in Gilead?” As the African slaves were exposed to and began to accept the teachings of Christianity, they saw Jesus as the answer to Jeremiah’s question, and they sang, There Is a Balm in Gilead.
In addition to Christian lessons, some of these songs are believed to have hidden messages. The words of Swing Low, Sweet Chariot (UMH #703) are believed to refer to escape to freedom, or if not escape, freedom from the miseries of slavery through death and Heaven. “A band of angels comin’ after me, comin’ for to carry me home” in which the word home may refer to freedom or Heaven; “If you get there before I do … tell all my friends I’m comin’ too.” Other songs that are believed to have encouraged escape attempts are Go Down Moses (UMH #448) and Steal Away to Jesus (UMH #704). Wade in the Water (TFWS #2107) was sung as a reminder that when attempting an escape, one should walk in water so that the dogs that were used to track fleeing slaves would not be able to follow the scent of the escapees.
Today as we listen to these songs or, better yet as we sing them ourselves, we can learn from the stories they tell, we can enjoy their rich melodies and rhythms, we can be thankful for the progress and understanding that has evolved, and we can anticipate enlightenment yet to come as we celebrate the music and culture of African-American History.
Jack and Marj Fry are First UMC Church members. This article first appeared in the February 2018 Sentinel.