The season of Lent begins on Wednesday, a time of repentance, fasting and preparation for the coming of Easter. This 40 days of self-examination and reflection continues through Thursday, March 28.
Observance of the season begins at Oconee Street UMC with an Ash Wednesday service on Feb. 14, at 6 p.m.
The church will have special discipleship, worship and fellowship opportunities … Read the rest
Two adult Sunday school classes at OSUMC, the S.A.L.T. and Open Table groups, will join on Jan. 28 and invite others to hear members of the national Journey of Hope (JOH) speak on loss and healing and why it is important to advocate for constructive responses to violent crime, instead of the death penalty.
JOH is an organization led by … Read the rest
On #GivingTuesday 2023, you could give to many local organizations that help people today and work toward lasting change for tomorrow. We have found several local organizations that align with our vision of a more inclusive city. Here are a few of the efforts that Oconee Street UMC invests in with time and money. We invite you to learn more … Read the rest
The all-volunteer Athens Area Courtwatch Project is completing its fifth year of observing criminal proceedings in the Athens-Clarke County courts.
By the end of 2023, volunteers will have logged nearly 1,000 hours in courtrooms, observing hundreds of hearings, providing moral support to families of defendants and encouragement to defendants’ lawyers. More than 100 unique individuals have volunteered in 2023.
The … Read the rest
by John Vodicka
“First, it confirmed how inextricably interwoven the past is in the present, how heavily that past bears on the future; we cannot talk about Black lives mattering or police brutality without reckoning with the very foundation of this country. We must acknowledge the plantation, must unfold the white sheets, must recall the Black diaspora to understand what … Read the rest
Each year in every UMC, new leaders are elected from within the church to serve important roles and seasoned leaders leave their roles. This constant exchange of duties is a healthy pattern that keeps ministry rooted in the laity as a whole and not in any single person or small group.
This year, we are seeking three new Leadership Team … Read the rest
On #GivingTuesday 2022, you could give to many local organizations that help people today and work toward lasting change for tomorrow. We have found several local organizations that align with our vision of a more inclusive city. Here are a few of the efforts that Oconee Street UMC invests in with time and money. We invite you to learn more … Read the rest
Luke chapter 10 tells the story of the sisters Mary and Martha of Bethany, who provided hospitality to Jesus and the disciples. At Oconee Street UMC, we had our very own Mary and Martha who embodied that spirit of hospitality through their work at Our Daily Bread: Mary Weisenburg, who coordinated Our Daily Bread for 14 years, and Martha Collins, … Read the rest
OSUMC will practice radical hospitality and intergenerational discipleship so that lives and the community are transformed by God’s love.
-Oconee Street UMC Vision Statement
What now?
You have the vision statement in front of you, so be in prayer for how we will inhabit it and be challenged by it. Aaron Farnham challenged the church to read Luke leading up … Read the rest
Dear Church,
This past Sunday I preached on “radical hospitality.” Radical hospitality is understanding that our belonging is tied up in the belonging of others; it is recognizing the call to give up our power or ownership in spaces we inhabit; it is welcome informed by the pursuit of justice. There are many ways that churches can practice radical hospitality, … Read the rest