Golden Nugget - Church of the 49ers, Columbia CA

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Golden Nugget - Church of the 49ers, Columbia CA
Golden Nugget
                    A NEWSLETTER FOR OUR CHURCH FAMILY AND FRIENDS

       A Word from
        the Pastor                                                                                      April 2021
“For Christ’s love compels us, because                                                        First, let’s consider what Paul means
we are convinced that One died for all,                                                       when he writes, “One died for all, and
and therefore all died. And He died for                                                       therefore all died.” What Paul is saying
all, that those who live should no longer                                                     here is that Jesus died for all who
live for themselves but for Him who                                                           would place their faith in Him, He died
died for them and was raised again. So                                                        for our sins, He died as the punishment
from now on we regard no one from a                                                           and sacrifice for our sinfulness. There-
worldly point of view. Though we once                                                         fore, when we place our faith in Him
regarded Christ in this way, we do so no                                                      and accept Him as our Lord and Savior,
longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,                                                    it is as if we have died right there along-
the new creation has come: The old has                                                        side Him; because His death was the
gone, the new is here! All this is from      all those centuries ago. Of course, that         penalty for our sin, when we place our
God, who reconciled us to Himself            includes remembering and reflecting              faith in Him, our sins are immediately
through Christ and gave us the ministry      upon the pain, suffering, and death that         forgiven and washed away. We are, as
of reconciliation: that God was reconcil-    He endured on our behalf on Good Fri-            Paul says in this passage, a new crea-
ing the world to Himself in Christ, not      day, a most solemn and somber occa-              tion; our old, sinful selves are dead and
counting people’s sins against them.         sion as we recount how our Savior was            we are born again to new life in Christ.
And He has committed to us the mes-          brutalized and killed. Good Friday is a          It is a statement of the substitutionary
sage of reconciliation. We are therefore     powerful and emotional day for all of            nature of Jesus’ crucifixion and resur-
Christ’s ambassadors, as though God          us who believe in Christ.                        rection; He paid the penalty of death
were making His appeal through us. We                                                         and won victory over it on our behalf so
implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be rec-      The thing that makes Good Friday bear-           that we could know eternal life in God’s
onciled to God. God made Him who had         able, however, is the knowledge that             Kingdom.
no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we   Easter Sunday is right around the cor-
might become the righteousness of            ner; Easter Sunday with all of its joyful        Second, let us consider what Paul
God.” 2 Corinthians 5:14-21 (NIV)            and exuberant celebration of the fact            means when He talks about God recon-
                                             that the grave could not hold Jesus              ciling us to Himself through Christ and
                                             Christ, our King. The sorrow of Good             giving us a ministry of reconciliation.
We have once again found ourselves in        Friday is replaced with the glory and            This is the whole enchilada when it
one of the most joyous seasons of the        pure joy of Easter Sunday. Death has             comes to the purpose of Jesus’ death
year, the Easter season. Holy Week,          lost its victory, it has lost its sting; Satan   and resurrection; He did it so that we
from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday, is        and hell have been defeated! Hallelu-            might be reconciled to God.
quite possibly my favorite time of the       jah! What an amazing work Jesus com-
Christian calendar. It certainly is the      pleted on our behalf on Resurrection
most important week that this world          Sunday! And that’s what I want us to             Continued on Page 4
has ever known, and I enjoy remember-        think about now, exactly what Jesus              See “Word from the Pastor”
ing and reflecting upon all that Jesus       accomplished on our behalf when He
accomplished for us during this week         arose victorious over sin and death.

                First Presbyterian Church of Columbia † “Church of the 49ers”
                                                                Page 1
Golden Nugget - Church of the 49ers, Columbia CA
GOLDEN NUGGET                              CHURCH LEADERSHIP
            Published monthly by
          First Presbyterian Church                  Elders 2020-2021
            “Church of the 49ers”
             Editor: Leslie Davis                    Buildings & Grounds: Co-Chairs Leslie Davis and Sharon Poff
                                                     Christian Education: Pastor Keith Reid and Karla Reid
           11155 Jackson Street
                                                     Fellowship: Deb Handy, with Leslie Davis as liaison to Session*
            Columbia, CA 95310
               209-532-2441                          Finance & Stewardship: Jim Brandt
           churchofthe49ers.com                      History: Tom Kimura
                                                     Missions: Pastor Keith Reid, interim
               Office Hours:
                                                     Personnel: Dean Cunningham
          Tuesday through Friday
            9:00 am—3:00 pm                          Special Projects: Larry Lincoln
                                                     Welcome & Evangelism: Tom Kimura
   Worship Services in Sanctuary:                    Worship: Ken Minett
   8:30 and 10:30 am Sundays,
masks and social distancing required                 *When a committee is not chaired by an Elder, an Elder is assigned to
                                                     act as liaison to Session.
                    STAFF
                                                                         Send your articles and Family News items for the
        Rev. Keith Reid, Pastor
                                                                         May 2021 issue of the Golden Nugget by April
  Rev. Lee Warford, Assistant Pastor                                     25 to Leslie Davis at davisgold@gmail.com or
  Deb Johnson, Office Administrator                                      call her at 532-6604.
 Karla Reid, Dir. of Children’s Ministries
      Carolyn Sylva, Accompanist
     Steve Engle-Borda, Sound Tech
                                                     Deacon Officers 2020-2021
                                                     Moderator:
                                                     Rosie McCarthy
    OUR MISSION STATEMENT                            Vice Moderator:
       We are the Church of the 49ers,               Sheri Pendleton
      where God is the gold. We serve                Treasurer: Jim Lashbrook
     and worship God in spirit and in the            Asst. Treasurer: Vi Morgado
   truth of the scriptures. We live by faith         Secretary: Denella Kimura
        and will be known by our love
      for others and our voice of hope.
                                                     Deacon Committees 2020-2021
                                                     Memorials: Chair Margie Fooshee, Pat Lincoln, Marijean Davis,
                                                     Susie Porte
CHURCH FINANCIAL SUMMARY                             Communion: Chair Marijean Davis
   January 1 through February 28, 2021               Contact homebound parishioners for Communion: Doreen Bass
    (exclusive of other income/expenses)
                                                     Deacon Fund: Chair Jim Lashbrook, Vi Morgado, Susie Porte,
           Budget     Actual      Difference         Gwen Harris, Margie Fooshee
                                  Over/(Under)
                                                     Grief Booklet Coordinator: Chair Jim Lashbrook, Denella Kimura
Income     $17,725    $15,303      ($2,422)          Interfaith: Chair Vi Morgado, Rosie McCarthy
                                                     Worship Liaison: Dana Avila
Expense    $17,629    $15,943      ($1,686)          Session Liaison: Sheri Pendleton
                                                     Prayer Chain (email and phone): Rosie McCarthy
Mortgage Balance as of February 28: $160,361.99
Minimum required Mortgage Payment: $2,236.41
Addtl. principal paid through February 28: $225.00

               First Presbyterian Church of Columbia † “Church of the 49ers”
                                                        Page 2
Golden Nugget - Church of the 49ers, Columbia CA
April
                                                                                                Birthdays
                                                                                             Happy birthday to you,
Rejoicing                                                                                    Happy birthday to you.
Ben Wright and Julia Polson were married on March 12 in Jackson,                             May the Lord bless you
Mississippi. The nuptials were live-streamed for those who couldn’t attend.                       And keep you,
                                                                                             Your whole life through.
Jenni and Bob Lertora welcomed their first baby on March 10,2021:
                                                                                            April 2    Janet Russell
Anthony John Lertora, 5 lbs. 15 oz., 18 in., and thriving. Proud grand-
                                                                                            April 4    Janet Atkinson
parents are Sylvia and Mark Constable and Kim and Tony Lertora, and great-
grandparents are Louise Lertora and Ken Minett and Pirkko and Dick Dyer.                    April 7    Diane Brandt
                                                                                            April 16   Marilyn Williams
                                                                                            April 19   Lee Warford
                                           Happy Anniversary!
                                                                                            April 20   Harriet Durnall
                                         Jon Whited and Suzanne Williamson
                                                                                            April 21   Nora Neves
                                                 8 years on April 13
April Calendar                                                                              April 22   Lynne Higgins
                                                                                            April 29   Micaela Wardlow
Trusting that Tuolumne County will remain in the
                                                                                            April 30   Sierra Bickell
Covid-19 orange tier, worship services will be held
at 8:30 and 10:30 am in the sanctuary. Masks and
social distancing required.

April 6, 8:30 am: Prayer Group in CE Room 2                    Session Highlights—March 24, 2021
April 7, 10 am: Men’s Bible Study in Faith Hall                Session voted to not hold a Maundy Thursday service, and to
April 8, 2 pm: Women’s Bible Study in Faith Hall               have Pastor Keith conduct a Good Friday service in Faith Hall.
April 10, 8 am: Men’s Breakfast Fellowship at                  A congregational meeting will be held at 10:00 am on April
                Papa’s New Roost Restaurant (no-host)          18 between the two worship services (we missed our annual
April 11, 9:30 am: Deacons in CE Room 2                        Congregational Meeting in January). Covenant partners
                                                               (members) will vote on the following: Bylaw changes to re-
April 12, 10 am: Buildings & Grounds Cmte. in Faith Hall       duce the number of Elders required from 9 to 7, and to clari-
April 13, 8:30 am: Prayer Group in CE Room 2                   fy wording describing qualifications for Clerk of Session. Also,
                                                               the 2021 nominating committee members will be appointed
April 13, 2:00 pm: Missions Committee in CE Room 2
                                                               for the purpose of selecting a slate of Elders and Deacons for
April 14, 10 am: Men’s Bible Study in Faith Hall               terms beginning July 1, 2021.
April 15, 2 pm: Women’s Bible Study in Faith Hall              Session voted to move worship services back into the sanctu-
April 18, 10 am: Congregational Meeting in Faith Hall          ary beginning Easter Sunday, providing Covid-19 numbers
                                                               continue to improve in our county. We will continue to con-
April 20, 8:30 am: Prayer Group in CE Room 2                   duct two services, with social-distancing and masks required.
April 20, 1 pm: Finance Committee in Office                    Also, the Nursery and Sunday School for children will re-open
April 21, 10 am: Men’s Bible Study in Faith Hall               in CE1 and CE2 respectively—with Covid protocols in place.

April 22, 2 pm: Women’s Bible Study in Faith Hall              Karla Reid was approved for the paid position of Director of
                                                               Children’s Ministries.
April 27, 8:30 am: Prayer Group in CE Room 2
                                                               Session approved the hiring of Les West to repair/paint sanc-
April 28, 10 am: Men’s Bible Study in Faith Hall               tuary and CE building exteriors.
April 28, 2 pm: Session in Faith Hall
                                                               Diane Brandt, Clerk of Session
April 29, 2 pm: Women’s Bible Study in Faith Hall

                First Presbyterian Church of Columbia † “Church of the 49ers”
                                                           Page 3
Golden Nugget - Church of the 49ers, Columbia CA
Word from the Pastor                           we accept Christ as our Savior, we are       everyone because, if you don’t, who
Continued from Page 1                          called to no longer live for ourselves,      will?
                                               but to live for Christ. This means that we
A reconciliation is the restoration of a       no longer focus on our own personal          May the blessings of the Father and the
broken relationship. When Adam and             wants, whims, and desires, on living life    peace of the Son be with you,
Eve committed the original sin, they           on our own terms; rather, we focus on
fractured humanity’s relationship with         what God is calling us to do, where He is    Pastor Keith
God, they drove a wedge between us             calling us to go, on living life on His
and our Father. This relationship re-          terms. It means that we faithfully and
mained fractured in very real and tangi-       lovingly serve others, care for others
ble ways throughout early world history,       just as Jesus did.                                  Sermons and
such as in the fact that a large, thick veil
was placed in front of the Holy of Holies      Second, Paul tells us that we are called              Scripture
in the tabernacle and temple to sepa-          to be Christ’s ambassadors, as though
rate the people from God. But, when                                                             Pastor Keith is beginning a new
                                               God were making His appeal through us.
Jesus came onto the scene, when He                                                               sermon series April 11, called
                                               Paul is telling us here that, just as am-
defeated sin and death in His crucifixion                                                           “The God of Daniel: The
                                               bassadors serve a King in a foreign coun-
and resurrection, He repaired and re-                                                              Sovereign God of Exiles.”
                                               try, we are called to serve THE King in
stored our broken relationship with the        this world. Ambassadors do not speak           Listed below for each Sunday are the
Father; He is the glue that holds us to        for themselves, they do not share their           scripture verses each sermon is
God; and, my friends, Gorilla Glue has         own opinions and ideas; rather he is                based on, and other verses.
nothing on Jesus!                              sent as a representative of the king to
                                               deliver the king’s message. And that is        If you have email and want to listen/
Third, let us consider what Paul is telling    exactly what we are called to do and be;       watch the weekly YouTube videos of
us when He writes that “God made Him           we are called to be Christ’s representa-       our sermons, contact Pastor Keith at
who had no sin to be sin for us, so that       tives on this earth delivering the mes-         ktreid84@gmail.com to receive his
in Him we might become the righteous-          sage of the saving work that He accom-              Sunday emails with the link.
ness of God.” What Paul is saying here is      plished in His death and resurrection.
that, in Jesus’ crucifixion, God took all of   We are called, as Paul says, to implore                    April 4
our sins and placed them upon Jesus as         people on Christ’s behalf to be recon-
                                                                                                Easter Sunday, Communion
the substitutionary sacrifice for our sin-     ciled to God through faith in Jesus Christ
fulness; then, in Jesus’ resurrection, God     and His victory over sin and death.
                                                                                               Old Testament: Jonah 1:17-2:10
credited Jesus’ righteousness to us. So,                                                      Sermon: Matthew 28:1-10, 16-20
in the work of Good Friday and Easter          Jesus died for YOU, He arose on the                         April 11
Sunday, we have a transaction taking           third day for YOU. But, he also died and
place whereby Jesus took our sins upon
                                                                                                      NT: Romans 13:1-7
                                               rose on the third day for the woman
Himself and placed His righteousness                                                                 Sermon: Daniel 1:1-7
                                               working the register at the grocery
upon us so that, when God looks at us,         store, for the man walking his dog down                     April 18
His believers, He doesn’t see our sinful-      the street, for the children playing bas-
ness; rather, He sees His Son’s right-                                                              NT: Revelation 2:8-11
                                               ketball in the driveway, for the home-
eousness.                                                                                           Sermon: Daniel 1:8-21
                                               less, drug-addicted and abused. These
                                               people all need to know the work that            April 25—Rev Janet Russell
And, finally, let us consider what Paul        Jesus accomplished on Good Friday and                    preaching
tells us that all of this means for us;        Easter Sunday some 2,000 years ago.                  NT: Revelation 22:6-10
what we are supposed to DO in light of         So, this Easter season, I implore you, as            Sermon: Daniel 2:1-23
Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection on       Christ’s ambassadors, go and tell them
our behalf. First, Paul tells us that Christ   about Jesus, go and tell them the deep         Visit churchofthe49ers.com to listen
died for all so that those who live should     love that He has for them, a love so           to past sermons. The audio includes
no longer live for themselves but for          deep that He willingly died for them and       the Scripture verses being read and
him who died for them and was raised           then rose victorious on the third day;              goes right into the sermon.
again. Paul is telling us here that, once      share all of this wonderful news with

                 First Presbyterian Church of Columbia † “Church of the 49ers”
                                                                Page 4
Golden Nugget - Church of the 49ers, Columbia CA
From Allen Graham, Missionary
Hello Church of the 49ers family! Happy     again. Pray as we encourage our liste-
Easter weekend! Thank you so much           ners to live with hope.
for your prayers in March.
                                            Please pray for the runoff presidential
It has been a very busy month and God       elections on April 11. As I mentioned
has been showing our radio team a           last month, the elections are causing a
great deal about how He is at work          lot of anger and division in the country.
through the ministry. All of us have        Please pray for God’s peace to come
been calling our donors to thank them       over Ecuador and its people.
for their support and partnership with
us. It has given us many moments to         Thank you for praying for the team at
laugh with them and sometimes even          CCFM in Cape Town, South Africa. Re-
cry with them as we hear their stories.     member? I did a virtual training with
                                            them as they prepared for their sha-
Mónica told us: My mother died of           rathon last week. They did not meet
COVID a few days ago, but your radio is     their goal, but were very encouraged
a voice of encouragement and hope. I        by the interaction with their listeners.              Allen at transmitter site
can even hear Mayra’s smile. (Mayra is      Please pray especially for Wesley
the announcer for our morning pro-          George, the station manager. Wesley
gram. How cool that Mónica could hear       suffered a heart attack the week before       Ecuador has gone into a 30-day period
a smile on the radio. I love it!)           sharathon. He is doing well, but still        of heavier restrictions. No one can be
                                            needs more time to fully recover.             outside their homes from 8 pm to 5 am.
Raquel told us that she has problems in                                                   COVID cases have been rising over the
her uterus and the doctors say it has to    We suffered damage to our Guayaquil           last few weeks so these measures were
be removed. However, she has no chil-       transmitter in late February and have         taken to combat the situation. Please
dren and God has promised her an in-        not been operating at full power. With        pray for protection for our team and
heritance. She is asking God to speak       a local broadcast engineer, we have           me.
clearly to her. She is grateful for the     been analyzing the transmitter module
prayers, messages, and music that she       by module to locate the exact problem         Thank you for praying and for your fi-
hears on the radio.                         so we can effect repairs. We were able        nancial gifts for my ministry through
                                            to do that this past Tuesday and will         Reach Beyond and HCJB2 in Ecuador.
Please be praying for our on-air and        now order the parts from the manufac-         Many blessings to you this Easter
support teams as we share Christ by         turer in Maine. Please pray that they         season. Together we serve a risen
radio. It has been one year since the       will arrive quickly.                          Christ!
pandemic began and many of our liste-
ners lost loved ones. The grief hits once                                                 Allen

Interfaith News                                                         Cathie or         We are still accepting donations on
Interfaith is preparing a schedule for                                 Barbara. If you    Tuesdays - Fridays between 10 am and
when we can once again offer "inside                                   are new, you       12 noon. After that, place items in the
services.” With that in mind, if you                                  will need to fill   drop container on outside of premises.
would like to become a new volunteer                               out an information
for Interfaith Community Social Ser-                              form. If you like,      I am always available by phone to an-
vices, or come back as a “returning                               I would be glad         swer any questions you may have or
volunteer,” please let me know so I                               to get the form and     take suggestions for services you would
can get the information to the people       bring it to church (let me know which         like for Interfaith to provide. My num-
setting up schedules. Also, you can call    service you will be attending).               ber is 209-532-4358.
Interfaith at 532-0905 and ask for
                                                                                          Vi Morgado, Interfaith Liaison

                First Presbyterian Church of Columbia † “Church of the 49ers”
                                                              Page 5
Methodist Church (South) purchased by the Presbyterians in 1855

                                                          Columbia looking north from Kennebec Hill, circa 1855
John and Ellen Brodt
By Dick Dyer, Church Historian
This narrative features the Brodts—         The pioneer days were not a semi-          described residents from Columbia
from East to West to East—their Great       illiterate frontier of Easterners specu-   walking to Springfield during the winter
Adventure. Their lives, tragedies and       lating on a bonanza in the undeveloped     in late 1853 to join other worshipers
triumphs, have enabled us to consider       American West. Many arrivals were          and a lay minister for a special prayer
them influential pioneers for ministers     educated—men and women—who                 meeting. At the door of a Christian fam-
of the historic Church of the 49ers.        ultimately provided a foundation for a     ily’s house, “… each one knelt down
                                            New California. This included pastors      and prayed in secret as he entered the
In Old Tuolumne colorful Columbia was       and ministers of the historic Church of    house….” Such prayer meetings were
perhaps the most spectacular gold rush      the 49ers.                                 common at the various camps in the
camp of the southern Mother Lode. Its                                                  early fifties.
landscape was exceptional, offering         The early fifties for Columbia’s resi-
resources for a diverse population—         dents was a time when only a few vis-      Ellen Augusta Sears was born April 22,
plants, animals, people. The undulating     iting preachers and lay ministers con-     1834 in Richford, Vermont—a “pretty
hills of the lower Sierra Nevada moun-      ducted services with small gatherings.     child” with an inclination toward the
tains harbored fertile flat lands of        The first organized churches were the      engaging outdoors. Her education was
meadows with bulbs, wild flowers,           Catholic Church in central Columbia        at a teachers’ academy; she received
grasslands and forests. In the begin-       and the Methodist Church at the com-       her certificate at age sixteen. After her
ning, waterways enriched the area now       munity plaza. Rev. Long is considered      father (Alden Sears) joined the gold-
known as Columbia and also surround-        to be the first resident minister in the   hungry forty-niners in Columbia, she
ing camps: Whimtown, Yankee Hill,           mining camp; he supervised the build-      was invited to be his housekeeper and
Knickerbocker Flat, Morman Camp,            ing of the Methodist sanctuary in 1852.    teach at one of the first schools in the
Squabbletown and other sites where          A characterization of Pastor Long by       thriving mining camp. She reached San
available gold deposits awaited ambi-       folklorist G. Ezra Dane is interesting.    Francisco on June 29, 1855 and trav-
tious prospectors. Newspaper articles       “He had a long face, and long whiskers,    eled to Columbia where she joined her
reported that gold led to rapid growth      and a long black coat, and legs so long    father at the Gold Hill house he had
in the early 1850s—500 houses, 150          that they say when he rode in on his       constructed. Near their house across
businesses and at least 5,000 residents.    mule he had his spurs fastened at the      the community plaza was a small
Before long, the original canvas shelters   calf. The longest thing about him,         church; later after it became a Presby-
and log cabins were replaced with clap-     though, was his sermons.” Church His-      terian church, Ellen reminisced about
board dwellings, brick stores, and          torian Dorothea L. Jones’ manuscript       its pastor, Rev. Brodt. He was “…a very
church sanctuaries with Catholic and        has the final word about this yarn:        bright, wide-awake preacher….”
Methodist worshipers. The public            “Dane’s tall tale is “…a good story,
“good” confronted the “bad” in sa-          rather than history.” Hmmm!
loons, fandango houses, and hurdy-
gurdy taverns. Nevertheless, by the         The miners at neighboring Springfield
mid-fifties tidy houses and flourishing     camp were thought to be the first in
gardens indicated that Columbia had         the southern mines to erect a place of
deservedly become “The Gem of the           worship before a gambling saloon. In       Continued on Page 7
Southern Mines.”                            the diary of Clementine Brainard, she      See “The Brodts”

                First Presbyterian Church of Columbia † “Church of the 49ers”
                                                             Page 6
Fort Humboldt in northern California. A
The Brodts                                                                                 few southern sympathizers departed to
Continued from Page 6                                                                      join the Confederacy in the East. It was
                                                                                           not the best of times in Old Tuolumne.
John Henry Brodt was born June 2, 1827
in Troy, New York. After completing his                                                    By the mid fifties, Columbia’s bonanza
seminary education on June 29, 1854,                                                       days were over; it had been memorable
he became an ordained Presbyterian                                                         years of excitement in the mining camp.
minister. The Home Missionary Society                                                      Although mining continued with occa-
agreed to provide financial support for                                                    sional discoveries of valuable glory
his ministry after his calling led him to                                                  holes, Old Columbia would struggle as
California. In November he met with a                                                      the gold and population slowly declined.
small group of concerned Columbia
Christians to assist in establishing a                                                     At the same time, Rev. Brodt’s increas-
church in the growing mining camp. On                                                      ing throat problems (bronchitis?) affect-
December 19, 1854, Rev. John Henry                                                         ed his ministry; he decided to reduce his
Brodt became the official pastor of the                                                    agony by accepting a less demanding
First Presbyterian Church of Columbia—        Rev. John Henry Brodt, first pastor of the   position in San Francisco at The Pacific,
beginning his twelve years in California.      First Presbyterian Church of Columbia       a Christian newspaper. Unfortunately,
The dynamic pastor of the 49ers provid-       December 19, 1854—September 30, 1855         this position lasted about one year after
ed distinction and substance for the                                                       the newspaper ceased publication. At
church, establishing precedence for                                                        any rate, he always felt his calling was
worship today. The following year,           as pastor of the nearby church and sec-       preaching. He accepted the pastorate of
arrangements were completed to pur-          retary of the Columbia Water Company,         a Petaluma (California) church; alas, his
chase the original Methodist church at       he received a comfortable annual in-          leadership lasted only a few months due
the community plaza. (A few church           come of $1,800. At his town lot, he had       to community hardships. During the
historians believe the genesis of the        a plan for a modern house with a fruitful     Civil War the Brodts relocated to a
Presbyterian church was actually Febru-      garden—a “place for peace and quiet.”         Marysville church. It was another chal-
ary 1854 when Sonora Presbyterian pas-       Ellen always considered a garden to be        lenge. Local Unionists and Secessionists
tor Rev. Silas S. Harmon announced in        her Gold Mine. After a short courtship,       violently confronted each other making
the local newspaper he would hold            the young couple was married by Rev.          his position untenable. It was time to
monthly worship services in the Colum-       Laurentine Hamilton in the Presbyterian       “go home.” On December 3, 1865, the
bia Methodist Church.) Nevertheless,         Church with an overflowing audience of        family sailed from San Francisco,
Rev. Brodt’s short pastorate was im-         friends and family.                           crossed the Isthmus of Panama and
pressive—membership increased, plans                                                       three weeks later reached New York.
to enhance the impaired sanctuary were       During the national struggle about slav-      They reunited with East Coast relatives,
made, and biblically-based sermons           ery, tension erupted in the Mother Lode       developed new life-long friends, and
were given. Additionally, the popular        camps. “Richmond,” the editor of the          sought a more traditional family life.
young pastor was noted for his “…gift        Union Democrat, was inclined to sup-          However, the Grim Reaper seemed to
of extemporaneous speaking.”                 port the Secessionists in various news-       follow in their footsteps—a third infant
                                             paper articles. At the same time, the         died, a daughter developed poliomyeli-
In the meantime, Ellen was a popular         Columbia Times adamantly called atten-        tis, the throat problem continued,
newcomer as she settled into a commu-        tion to the righteousness of the Union-       preaching positions were unpredictable.
nity with very few women. Eighteen           ists. Even local pastors became overly        However, they remained optimistic and
young companions called on her to            involved. Rev. Silas Harmon (Sonora           Ellen’s good health kept her active in
participate in exciting social events—       Presbyterian Church) was criticized for       her beloved garden for almost eighty-
household visits, dances, picnics, church    “courting the Southern party” while           eight years.
socials, carriage rides. Soon thereafter a   Rev. John Brodt supported the Union-
change occurred when Rev. John Brodt         ists. As a military solution appeared like-   Continued on Page 8
“came calling” at the Sears home. From       ly, young miners eagerly volunteered for
the first his “enthusiasm” and “fine         “The Tuolumne Rangers” who were
                                                                                           See “The Brodts”
looks” captured Ellen’s attention. Also,     organized and eventually garrisoned at

                 First Presbyterian Church of Columbia † “Church of the 49ers”
                                                               Page 7
The Brodts
Continued from Page 8                                                         Death Could Not
Rev. Brodt’s persistent health problems affected his ministry at several
                                                                                 Hold Him
churches, leading to his retirement in 1872 while living in Dansville, New       He bore the cost
York. John Henry Brodt died at age forty-eight on September 8, 1875. “His        The price for our
life peacefully left his aching body.”                                                 Sins
                                                                                     Mocked,
In New York City, the Union Theological Seminary’s Necrology Report in-           And ridiculed
cluded, “Mr. Brodt…had a good presence, fine looks, a bright eye and clear          A crown of
full voice, and so was a very pleasing preacher.” In 1922 Ellen Augusta              Thorns
Brodt once again became his loving companion as they resumed their                 Pierced his
“Great Adventure.” Their daughter, Ellen Reeve, wrote, “There was some-               Head,
thing inexpressibly beautiful…” about their relationship.                        Salvation’s child
                                                                                   Now a man.
“Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
                                                                                 He bore the cost
Dick Dyer, Church Historian                                                     Carrying the weight
                                                                                   Of the cross
                                                                                   To Golgotha
                                                                                      Broken
                                                                                   And bleeding
                                                                                  He carried the
                                                                                      Weight
                                                                                      Of our
B & G “Wish List”                                                                       Sin
The Buildings & Grounds Committee feels it’s not yet safe to host the                 On his
usual Work Party, where we gather a group of volunteers together on                 Shoulders.
one day to work to beautify the church (and fellowship together too).
But there are plenty of small jobs that can be accomplished by one or          Beaten and humiliated
two persons following safety protocols. Following is a short “wish list” of      Christ our savior
projects in case you’re itching to get out of the house and do something           Bore the pain
different for a change, especially to support the church. If none of these          Of the cross
appeal to you, contact me and I can suggest other tasks.                              Of hell
                                                                                   So we did not
• Remove dirt/old clippings from the base of the wooden                              Have to.
  fence behind the sanctuary — to keep fence from rotting.                          But on the
                                                                                     Third day
• Steam clean approximately 30 upholstered pew chairs                                 He rose
  located in the Lower Sanctuary and Sadie Nicholls Room                            Death could
  (20 chairs in the CE building have already been cleaned and                        Not hold
  look SO much nicer).                                                                 Him,
                                                                                    The son of
               Reupholster three pastor’s chairs in the sanctuary so                   Man,
               they match the pew cushions.                                          The hope
                                                                                   Of mankind.
               Leslie Davis, Co-Chair Buildings & Grounds Committee
                                                                               © Michelle R Kidwell
                                                                                 March.30.2021

                First Presbyterian Church of Columbia † “Church of the 49ers”
                                                              Page 8
A Florida Court Sets Atheist Holy Day
In Florida an atheist created a case against Easter and Passover holy days. He hired an attorney to bring a discrimination
case against Christians and Jews and observances of their holy days. The argument was that it was unfair that atheists had
no such recognized days. The case was brought before a judge. After listening to the passionate presentation by the law-
yer, the judge banged his gavel declaring, “Case dismissed!”

The lawyer immediately stood and objected to the ruling, saying, “Your Honor, how can you possibly dismiss this case?
The Christians have Christmas, Easter and others. The Jews have Passover, Yom Kippur, and Hanukkah, yet my client and
all other atheists have no other holidays…”

The judge leaned forward in his chair, saying… ”But you do. Your client, counselor, is woefully ignorant.” The lawyer
said, “Your Honor, we are unaware of any special observance or holiday for atheists.”

The judge said, “The calendar says April 1st is April’s Fools Day. Psalm 14:1 states ‘The fool says in his heart, there is no
God.’ Thus, it is the opinion of this court that if your client says there is no God, then he is a fool. Therefore, April 1st is
his day. Court is adjourned…”

Shared by Darrol Davis

     First Presbyterian Church
       “Church of the 49ers”
       11155 Jackson Street
        Columbia, CA 95310

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