Union Presbyterian Church of Endicott, NY

Our Mission

As members of Union Presbyterian Church, we live to serve our Lord, our congregation, our community, and our world. We unite our spirits in faithful, loving commitment to this calling in Jesus Christ and, as a church family, we celebrate the Kingdom of God. 

From the Pastor: How Does a Weary World Rejoice?

An Advent Prayer

* I arise today, present with the Holy One, in the embrace of love, in the hope of renewal, in the joy of belonging to the great I AM. * I arise today in the life of the Creator, in the image of the Eternal One, Planter of gardens, bearer of burdens, breath of the world. * I arise today, child of the Faithful One, Lover of souls, reviver of spirits, Blesser of all that is good and true and praiseworthy. * I choose to live today in the name of the Caring One, Compassion in my heart, Gratitude in my thoughts, Generosity in my deeds, Justice as my passion. * "
I choose to live today in the light of Christ. *
~ Christine Sine

Dear Friends,

We are now moving into the darkest part of the year. Soon it will be the longest night, with its corresponding shortest day. And the instinct of the world—of every faith, it seems—is to kindle light. Soon the Hannukah candles will be lit, a festival of lights marking the miraculous provision of oil for lamps in the Temple. Our Hindu siblings have already celebrated Diwali, the celebration of light over darkness. And we Christians are ready to begin to light our Advent wreaths, lighting an additional candle each week until the feast of the birth of Christ, the light of the world, is upon us.

Why do we kindle light in the darkness? In simple terms, we all want to be able to see, to see clearly. In spiritual terms, we know that the darkness will not last forever. We know that light will come, and we remind ourselves of that by decorating our houses, outside and in, with lights designed to brighten our spirits as well as our neighborhoods.

This year UPC will celebrate Advent and Christmas with the assistance of a resource from the good folks at A Sanctified Art, called “How does a weary world rejoice?” I’ll allow the creators of this resource explain how we will answer that question:

In each week of our series, we respond to this question with a statement inspired by our scriptures. These texts bring us into a space of possibility; in them, we find rhythms for rejoicing, even in the midst of difficult circumstances. Each weekly sub-theme is a “we” statement because joy is deeply relational and rooted in the fact that we belong to God. As we move through our series, we hope to create space for acknowledging the weariness of our world while celebrating God’s closeness with great joy.

It is my dearest hope that our Advent and Christmastide together will be enriched by the stories, song, and resources we will share throughout this season, to bring each of us a deep sense of that connectedness and joy.

Grace and Peace, Rev. Pat Raube

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