o
PAGE TWO
The World Day of Prayer
and fellowship hour,
prepared by the women of
Canada will be held in the
Trucksville United
Methodist Church March 3,
at 1 p.m. There will be a
‘hursery for the children.
“ Planning committee met
fin the Dallas United
@ethodist Church.
‘Attending were Elizabeth
Lease, area chairwoman;
“Liz Greenwood, Prince of
Peace Episcopal; Elda
Coolbaugh, Lehman United
Methodist; Meryl Wagner,
Huntsville Christian;
“Dorothy Pwell, Huntsville
“United Methodist; Isabel
“Kreidler, Trucksville
EUnited Methodist; Hazel
PEERY
by Joan Kingsbury
Does serving as pastor of
a church with a parish
population of ap-
proximately 900 parish
families in’ addition to
Garris, Dallas United
Methodist; Margaret
Molley, St. Theresa,
Romas Catholic, Ida Koeb,
Trinity United
Presbyterian, Helen
Searles, Shavertown
United Methodist.
Theme for the
celebration is ‘‘Community
Spirit in Modern Living.”
Women will be united in
prayer, meditation and
study until the 24 hours
ends in the islands off
Alaska.
Everyone is invited to»
attend the celebration.
Fourteen Back Mountain
Churches will be
represented. :
being principal of a
parochial school run by
that parish differ greatly
from being a Navy
chaplain?
Father William Cusick,
ss
The third and fourth
services in the Lenten
Seriés sponsored by the
Lehman, Maple Grove and
Huntsville United
Methodist Charges will be
held this week.
The third service will be
22 at Maple Grove with the
Rev. Margaret Reid,
pastor of Huntsville UM
bringing the message, this
service will be followed by
a meeting of the joint
committee.
The fourth service will be
Sunday evening Feb. 26 at
Idetown at 7:30 p.m. This
will be a service of music
and drama. All are invited
to both of these services.
new pastor of Gate of
Heaven Church, is in just
the right situation to an-
swer that question.
Father William Cusick
was born in Scranton. He
attended St. Ann’s
Monestary School,
Scranton, and graduated
from the University of
Scranton. He continued his
education at Mt. St. Mary's
Seminary in Emmitsburg,
Md. In 1955, he was or-
dained by the late Bishop
Jerome Hannon in St.
Peter’s Cathedral,
Scranton.
During his years in the
priesthood, Father Cusick
ferent areas. His first
assignment with the
Pocono Catholic Missions
‘lasted for nine years. In
1964, he was transferred to
GOH plans
St. Patrick’s
Day party
The Gate of Heaven
annual = St.
Paltrick’s Day Party will be
held in the parish
auditorium Saturday,
March 18.
will be served. For
reservations contact Mrs.
Robert Okonski.
els
Rehearsal for the Cantata
to given by the six chur-
ches on April 2 will be held
at Lehman following mor-
ning worship on Sunday
March 5. Prof. Rosendo
Santos is writing the
Cantata and will direct it.
“The Holy Sabbath’ will
be the sermon topic of
Thomas R. Williams,
Chairperson of the Work
Area on Worship, at the
Trucksville United
Methodist church on
Sunday at 10:30 a.m.
Wayne Long, lay leader
and Ruth Merrel,
Friendship Class teacher,
will assist Williams as lay
readers.
The Chancel Choir, under
the direction of Harry G.
Trebilcox, will sing the
traditional southern hymn,
“My Shepherd Will Supply
My Need.”
Church school will meet
at 9:15 a.m. Mrs. Nicholas
Mazur, Jr. is coordinator of
Bible studies.
St. Rose of Lima Church.
His appointment this time
was for two years.
In 1966, his travels really
began, for in that year, he
went on active duty as a
chaplain with the United
States Navy. He served in
such diverse places as the
Navy base in Newfoun-
dland; the Marine Corps
training center at Paris
Island, S.C.; and attended
chaplain school at
Newport, R.I. He also
spent one year in Viet Nam
on an air base near
DaNang.
For two years, he was
stationed on the aircraft
carrier ‘‘Midway’’.
Although the ‘‘Midway’s”’
home port is Alameda,
Calif., most of the time the
ship was at sea in the
western Pacific.
Prior to his present
assignment at Gate of
Heaven Church, he was
stationed at the Great
Lakes Training Station,
Ill., for four years.
According to Father
Cusick, being chaplain on
base where there are
families is similar to being
pastor of a parish.
However; his time spent on
the Midway was of cgurse
different, because only
men were on the ship.
things ran quite smoothly
while the ship was at sea,
but when weekend passes
were issued when they
reached port, sometimes
some mischief resulted.
Although Father Cusick
taught while stationed at
the Pocono Missions, and
Rose’s he has never before
been principal of a school
and admits it is a new
experience.
Father Cusick explained
that to him, the whole idea
of the priesthood is to serve
people, whether on ship, on
base, or in a parish. Since
his arrival 21, weeks ago
he had been heard to say
several times that although
maintaining the school and
church are important goals
“working out our savaltion
together is our primary
goal.”
Although Cusick
remembers traveling to
Harveys Lake as a small
boy, the Back Mountain is
really a totally new area to
him. The recent snowy
weather and bad roads
have made it difficult for
him to really get
acquainted with the area.
Since he has only been
living in the community a
short time, he said he
hasn’t had much time to
form an opinion, but what
he has seen of it he
describes as ‘‘seeming to
be an active and alive
place’.
Gate of Heaven parish
has ‘‘really impressed’
him. He remarked that the
teenagers, adults, and
older members of the
parish seem to co-operate
and work well together.
He also noted that there
seems to be a good
ecumenical feeling in the
Back Mountain and that hed
is looking forward to
meeting other area
clergymen.
Being a very busy per-
son, he really doesn’t have
much time for hobbies.
when time
allows, he enjoys hiking or
playing golf.
Father Cusick con-
cluded, “I am glad to be
here. I am looking forward
to becoming part of the
community as best I can.”
CIES
! 1S
RS
TOSSED SALA
GRILLED GR
Clam
inner
by Rev. Joseph Sammons
Christ was led by the
Holy Spirit into the barren
desert to fast for 40 days
and nights. The fast that
we observe during this
season of lent, mitigated as
it is, is a direct inheritance
from the fast of Christ
himself. The fast of Christ
is a mysterious thing and
especially, the fact that he
allowed himself to be
tempted by the devil.
There are a number of
circumstances which we do
not understand. How did
Christ survive for 40 days
without food? Certainly by
His almighty power. And
his temptation with the
devil. Did satan assume
some form, grotesque or
otherwise? We are not told.
We know it was a mortal
conflict between the all-
holy son of God and the
head of all that is evil and
corrupt. We note that the
devil did not tempt Christ
until after the period of 40
days when he must have
been ravenously hungry--
hungry and tired as well.
The devil waited until
Christ was at his lowest
ebb in human nature--as
when he tempts us when
our resistance is lowest.
The desert abounded in
stones and rocks, many of
which looked like loaves of
bread. Hence, it was
almost natural for the devil
to say to Christ: ‘If you are
the son of God, command
that these stones be turned
into bread.” Now scripture
scholars are, for the most
part, agreed that the devil
did not try to induce Christ
to commit sin. The devil
realized probably that such
a thing would be im-
possible. What the devil
really wanted to discover
was whether or not Jesus
was truly the son of God. If
Jesus did these prodigious
things suggested by satan,
than then that would be a
clear indication to satan,
that, .in truth, he, satan,
was encountering the son
of God himself, .. , .
Christ, for his part, when
the devil ordered him to
turn the stones into bread,
refused to do so. It would
be an act of distrust of
Christ for his Father. Did
not his Father send him on
a mission to save the
world? Was not the desert
and its circumstances part
of that mission? Every
facet, every part of his
public life was willed by
God his Father--so that if
Jesus would have yielded
to his pangs of hunger he
would have doubted the
power of his Father to take
care of him in his direst
need. As it was, Jesus had
absolute trust in his father
who would provide for his
only-begotten son even
among the barren stones of
the desert.
And again, Christ was
appointed messiah whose
mission was to bring
salvation to the world. To
achieve this end, he would
form a band of disciples
about him. Wouldn’t he be
starting a very bad
precedent if he began his
mission in this world by
doing spectacular things
like turning stones into
bread? Wouldn’t his
disciples ‘be expecting the
like whenever the need
disciples to give them-
selves completely to his
service for what he was in
himself, not for any
material gain or worldly
show.
And so, Christ said in
reply to satan: ‘Man does
not live by bread alone but
by every utterance that
comes from the mouth of
God.” That is, to say, to
satisfy a man’s hunger is
not the only thing in life. If
we satisfy a man’s hunger
we are only satisfying a
symptom, we are not
satisfying the cause. There
is more to life than bread
and material things. Surely
they are need to live. But
beyond that there is the
spiritual. Man lives by the
rejected the first temp-
tation.
During this holy season
of lent, we pause to salute
Christ our captain who
emerged victorious in this
first battle with his arch-
enemy, the devil. We ob-
serve how Christ resisted
temptation in order to give
us an example of what we
are to do when we are
tempted. Christ resisted
immediately. He did not
hesitate. And he also
prayed. He tells us to
¥
watch and pray. It is not
enough to watch, we must
also pray to strengthened
our will and character to
resist the attacks of the evil
one. Sacred scripture tells
us: “Blessed is the man
he will receive the crown of
life.”” Christ, our captain,
resisted the temptation of
the devil and received the
crown of leverlasting life.
We, too, if we resist, shall
on blessed day receive this
precious crown of
everlasting life.
daily services.
Lent.
light that is Christ.
Sunday of Lent at the Leh-
man United Methodist
Charge will deal with the
question of motivation. The
motivation of Jesus, his
enemies and ourselves will
all be discussed.
The pastor’s con-
firmation class will meet,
if possible at 2 p.m. Sun-
day.
The evening Lenten
service will be held at
Idetown.
The Lehman United
meet on Tuesday Feb. 28,
at 7:30 p.m.
The Cluster Council will
meet at Lehman on
Wednesday March Pastor
Robe-t Harris will be at-
tendi. g the District
Councid Meeting at
Wyoming Seminary on
Feb. 23 at 7 p.m.
The Lehman and
Idetown U.M.Y.F. have
Huntsville
March 5.
on Sunday
Mercy Center will
sponsor three March
evenings of renewal for
sisters:
March 2 ‘‘Religious Life:
Commitment’’ by Sr.
Carlos Maria 7:30-9 p.m.
Miller, RSM.
March 9 ‘The Desert
Experience” by the Rev.
William D.
Campbell,
Christ-My Cross’’ by Sr.
Rosemarie 7:30-9p.m.
Ippolito, S.C., and Rev.
Dominick J. Lorenzetti.
All programs will be held
in Blessed Sacrament
Chapel, Mercy Center,
Dallas.
JIMI'S
RESTAURANT
‘Dallas Shopping Center
PANCAKE HOUSE
SCRANTON
RT. 6, SCRANTON-C'DALE
400 Kidder Street, Wilkes-Barre
Routes 309 & 415, Dallas
OUR STEAKS ARE NOW
DELICIOUSLY CHAR-BROILED
utterances that come from
the mouth of God, by
scripture, by meditating on
the world of God, by things
of the spirit. And so, Jesus
LUZERNE
LUZERNE-DALLAS HWY.
MAIN HIGHWAY MOUNTAIN BLVD:
ea ote SS