Tag: messenger

August 7, 2024

We will change the publication schedule of The Messenger next month. Beginning in September, we will return to issuing two issues a month, retiring the weekly schedule we have used since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020.

The Messenger requires a significant amount of resources. It accounts for the bulk of our mailing costs each month. Staff – both Momi Lyman and myself – devote time to it. Reducing the frequency of these mailings will save dollars, and also give us time for other responsibilities and projects.

Fewer congregations and other settings of the United Church of Christ produce printed newsletters these days. All of the national office’s publications are electronic. The Hawai’i Conference’s The Friend is one of the last conference newsletters to be printed and posted.

Personally, I am glad that we still print and post The Messenger. Not everybody has access to electronic communications even now, and there are others with access who still prefer a physical newsletter. I strongly believe that effective communication relies, in part, on reaching people where they are. Because I believe that our words have value, I want them to be easily accessible to those who want to hear them. During the pandemic, this was the safest way with which we could remind people that their church cares about them.

We increased the publication schedule in an environment where other contact incurred dangers we needed to avoid. With the risk significantly lessened, I think we can return to the twice-monthly schedule we had when I arrived as your pastor eight years ago.

This is still the church that cares for you.

In peace,

Pastor Eric