ECOG IS REQUESTING YOUR HELP TO GET NEW SANCTUARY HYMNALS AND BIBLES

 

The Magnifiers Team, with the blessing of the Administrative Board, is looking to replace the current Sanctuary hymnals and pew Bibles with new ones.  The leadership would like to invite the entire congregation to partner together in this endeavor.  Individuals, families, classes, teams and other groups are invited to make donations to go towards the purchase of new hymnals and Bibles.  If you desire, you may make your donation in memory or in honor of friends and loved ones.  Hymnal donations have been set at $15.00 per hymnal and Bible donations have been set at $10.00 per Bible.  Specially marked envelopes with donation forms have been placed in family mailboxes, at the lower level information table and in the Living Room.  Please place your completed donation form and cash or check payable to “Enola First Church of God” in the specially marked envelope.  Return your envelope to the mailbox marked, “New Hymnals and Bibles” or to one of Amy Kreiger’s mailboxes (family or office).  You may want to consider donating a hymnal or Bible in honor of someone as an alternative gift for that person.  Feel free to peruse the frequently asked questions below. 

 

Why are we getting new Sanctuary hymnals?

Many of the existing “Worship His Majesty” hymnals are either falling apart or looking pretty “shabby.”  Also, our current hymnals are not directly synced with the Digital Hymnal.  Programming the Digital Hymnal is particularly difficult because the hymn numbers in the pew hymnals do not match those in the Digital Hymnal.  Finding the right hymn in the Digital Hymnal that correctly matches the one in the current pew hymnals is challenging and time consuming.  For the ease of programming, the new hymnals we want to purchase are synced with the Digital Hymnal.

Why are we getting new pew Bibles?

Right now, we have a “hodge podge” of King James Version and 1984 New International Bibles (some large print and some standard) in the pews.  For the sake of visitors who may not be familiar with finding Bible passages, it would be beneficial to have a standard Bible in the pews so that a speaker can say something like, “Turn to John 1:1.  It can be found on page X of the pew Bibles.”

Can you give us some details on the new hymnals?

The new hymnal is the “Celebration Hymnal.”  It is an excellent resource for traditional and blended evangelical worship services in our day and age.  In other words, it contains a variety of traditional hymns, choruses, congregational readings and medleys that fit well with our style of worship.  The hymnals will be midnight/navy blue in color; almost identical in appearance to the current ones. 

Can you give us some details on the new Bibles?

The new Bibles will be large print English Standard Version (ESV) Bibles.  The Elders have recommended this particular version.  The King James Version is becoming increasingly difficult for younger generations to understand and digest.  The 2011 New International Version has taken some liberties with gender-inclusive language that the Elders are not comfortable with (the Elders favor utilizing a Bible version that strives to translate the original text very literally regardless of whether or not it sounds gender-inclusive to the modern hearer).  We in no way are saying that we are trying to prohibit anyone from using the 2011 NIV for their own personal use.  Rather, for the purposes of the Pastor’s preaching, Calls to Worship and other uses of Scripture during public worship, the Elders have asked that we use a version that is both understandable and particularly faithful to the original text.  We believe that the ESV does both.  The Bibles will also be midnight/navy blue in color. 

Are new hymnals and Bibles even necessary with the advent of our projection screen and Bibles on personal tablets and cell phones?

We believe so since we are a congregation that blends traditional and contemporary worship elements.  Some worshipers still use the hymnals.  They are also used during funerals and special hymn sings.  They also serve as a great back up when the projection system malfunctions.  Regarding Bibles, not everyone is comfortable using tablets or cell phones (or knows how) to access Scripture passages.  

If I donate a hymnal or a Bible in honor or memory of a friend or loved one, how will it be recognized?

Decals will be placed on the inside cover of each hymnal naming the donor and the persons being honored or memorialized.

I like the idea of donating a hymnal or Bible as an alternative Christmas gift.  Will the church send a card to the person I am honoring through my donation?

No.  Unlike large Christian organizations such as the Gideons, World Vision, Samaritan’s Purse and others who issue such cards, the church does not have the staff and resources to do this.  We recommend you take a Christmas card and write a personal note saying something such as, “A hymnal [or Bible] will be placed in the Enola First Church of God Sanctuary in your honor.”  

Can I donate several Bibles and hymnals in honor or in memory of various individuals?

Yes.  See a specially marked donation form for instructions.

How many hymnals and Bibles are we talking about and when will they arrive?

The Magnifiers determined that we need 260 hymnals and 130 Bibles to replace the current ones.  They will be ordered as soon as we receive sufficient donations and supplementary funding, if necessary, from the Board.  As a wild guess, the Bibles and hymnals will probably be replaced in the summer of 2019.  Donations are being received on a first-come first-serve basis.  In other words, should we receive enough donations to purchase the necessary number of hymnals or Bibles, we will not take any further donations.  The deadline to donate is April 30, 2019.  If we do not receive enough funds for purchase, the Administrative Board will consider the matter—one option would be to abandon the project and keep the current hymnals and/or Bibles.  But we are confident that we will have an ample number of donors.

Is there any way to donate online?

Sorry, we’re not that advanced electronically speaking.  Please make cash or check donations using the specially marked donation forms and envelopes as indicated above.

Is there any pressure for me or my group to donate a Bible or a hymnal?

No.  Please do (or not do) as the Lord leads you.