This Week in Montreat – July 31, 2022

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The Perfect Church 07/29/2022

Richard DuBose, president of Montreat Conference Center, writes a weekly message to Montreat. An excerpt of this weeks message is below. To read his full message, click the "Read More" button below the excerpt.

Back in the 1980s, right after I moved to Atlanta, I attended a lot of Braves games. The route between home to stadium was quick and passed by a Krispy Kreme calling out with “Hot Donuts Now.” The most notable landmark, however, sat at the corner of Gordon Street and McDaniel Street. Above its front door, in white lettering, read the sign: “The Perfect Church.”    If I was traveling with a companion, The Perfect Church never escaped a mention. To my father, an active pastor over four decades, I’d sometimes point at the sign and suggest, “I’ll bet you always . . .


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This Sunday in Montreat

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We are delighted to continue our Summer Worship Series in which leading preachers from across the country join with visual artists, musicians, and volunteers in a service of worship open to the surrounding community. All are welcome and all are invited.

All summer worship services take place in Anderson Auditorium at 10:30 am.

Preaching Sunday, July 31

Rev. Dr. Frank Clark Spencer is President of the Board of Pensions of the PC(USA). His sermon draws on Luke 12:13-21, and is titled "What Shall We Bequeath?"

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Preaching Sunday, August 7

Rev. Dr. Anna Carter Florence is Peter Marshall Professor of Preaching of Columbia Theological Seminary. Her sermon draws on 1 Kings 17:8-16, and is titled "Picking up Sticks at the City Gate."

Learn More About Summer Worship

A Note About Masks

We are continuing to monitor the need for masks. To find mask requirements for specific events, please visit our Covid Health and Safety page.

Community Announcements

For updates to Montreat Community events, subscribe to Community Announcements

Stay Up to Date

Montreat has an app! Use it to keep up to date with conferences and events, maps, and more. To download the app, download “Yapp” in the Google Play or Apple Store. Enter the Yapp ID “MONTREAT”. Enjoy!

This Summer in Montreat

This Summer in Montreat (TSIM) is a publication of Montreat Conference Center gathering all of the hours, contact details, and opportunities for guest in the summer months.

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Weekly Rundown

Sunday, July 31
10:30 am Summer Worship Service with Rev. Dr. Frank Clark Spencer, Anderson Auditorium
11:45 am Sunday Buffet,
Galax Dining Room
7:00 pm Hymn Sing led by Catherine Harkey and Eunice Stackhouse,
Assembly Inn Lobby
Monday, August 1
7:30 pm Youth Conference Worship,
Anderson Auditorium
Tuesday, August 2

9:00 am

Public Hikes (Half/Full Day)
(more info below),
Nature Center

7:00 pm

Arts, Music, and Theology Lecture Series: “Teaching Evolution, with Care” led by Dr. Miles Engell,
Convocation Hall

7:30 pm Youth Conference Worship,
Anderson Auditorium
Wednesday, August 3
7:30 pm Youth Conference Worship,
Anderson Auditorium
Thursday, August 4
9:00 am Public Hikes (Full Day)
(more info below),
Nature Center
7:30 pm Youth Conference Worship,
Anderson Auditorium
Friday, August 5
7:00 pm Big Circle Mountain Dance,
Cornwell Tennis Courts
8:30 pm Youth Conference Worship,
Anderson Auditorium
Saturday, August 6
7:00 am Second Loaf
(more info below)
Sunday, August 7
10:30 am Summer Worship Service with Rev. Dr. Anna Carter Florence,
Anderson Auditorium
11:45 am Sunday Buffet,
Galax Dining Room
7:00 pm Hymn Sing led by Vivian Hare and Keith Grogg,
Assembly Inn Lobby

Crafts and Pottery

The Currie Craft Center and Sally Jones Pottery are a collaborative ministry of Montreat Conference Center. Classes and pottery are open to people 12 years and older. Class offerings vary from week to week. In addition to classes, we offer independent throwing and hand building.

Sign up for classes begins online each Thursday evening at 6:00 pm. The class registration link will be at the top of the Crafts & Pottery page. If you need further assistance, please email montreatpottery@gmail.com or call Ann Laird Jones at 662.347.3614.

Pottery Hours (Upstairs)

Monday–Tuesday 9:00 am–12:00 pm
2:00–5:00 pm
Wednesday 9:00 am–12:00 pm
Thursday 2:30–5:30 pm
Pottery Glazing
Friday Normally closed
Saturday 8:00–11:00 am
Pottery Pickup

Craft Hours (Downstairs)

Monday–Thursday 2:00–5:00 pm
View Class Schedule and Crafts & Pottery Page

Presbyterian Heritage Center

318 Georgia Terrace. 828.669.6556. Free admission.

This center offers multiple museum displays, special events, art galleries, and a reference library. Free WiFi and air-conditioning. Summer exhibit includes: Mount Mitchell Railroad; Diplomats, Missionaries & Montreat, repatriation during WWII; Native Americans & Presbyterian Missions; Early Montreat and much more!

Free Admittance
Heritage Center Hours:
Monday 1:00–4:00 pm
Tuesday–Friday 10:00 am–4:00 pm
Saturday 12:00–4:00 pm
Sunday
closed

Wilderness Hiking Program

The Ranger staff will offer public hikes each Tuesday and Thursday during the summer conference season with two special full day Saturday hikes. Skill demonstrations will be held on Thursdays. All hikes are free and open to the public. You must be 13 or older to attend a hike without an adult guardian. Hikes will leave at 9:00 am, unless otherwise noted, from the Montreat Nature Center, located just below the Lake Susan spillway. All hikes this summer are subject to change based on evolving health guidance and weather.

Tuesday, August 2

Lookout Loop (Half Day)

The "Top o' the Valley" Hike (Full Day)

Thursday, August 4

Pinnacle (Full Day)

More About Summer Hikes
More About Montreat's Wilderness

Arts, Music, and Theology

Arts, Music, and Theology is a mission and ministry of Montreat Conference Center. Its purpose is to provide the community with educational nourishment via various lectures and lecturers during our summer season. Themes of the lectures span disciplines.

“Teaching Evolution, with Care” led by Dr. Miles Engell.

  • Date: Tuesday, August 2
  • Time: 7:00 pm
  • Place: Convocation Hall

Big Circle Mountain Dances

Summer dances will take place on Friday nights through August 5.

  • Date: Friday, August 5
  • Time: 7:00–9:00 pm
  • Place: Cornwell Tennis Courts

Big Circle Mountain Dancing is a special Montreat tradition! It's a fun filled night of dances called by the Bannerman family and music from the Stoney Creek Boys. All are welcome and admission is free.

Pickleball

Pickleball is offered on Monday and Friday mornings from 10:30 am–1:00 pm. The cost is $3 per session. Pickleball will conclude for the summer after the first week in August.

The Huckleberry Café

The newly renovated Huckleberry will be opening this summer! Details on our reopening date (once determined) will be included in Montreat's Community Announcements and on social media. Stay tuned!

Second Loaf

Second Loaf continues its long history of collecting food donations for the food insecure in our community on Saturdays, in the parking lot area in front of Black Mountain Presbyterian Church. Adjusting for COVID-related restrictions, Second Loaf can only take shelf ready non-perishables, cold or frozen food in their original unopened packaging (such as a whole, unopened package of hot dogs), personal care items and paper goods (opened or unopened), and fresh produce (fruits and vegetables). Individually wrapped snacks are especially welcome. We are grateful for the generous response of groups who drop off their "second loaves" on their way home.

Second Loaf's last summer collection is Saturday, August 6.

Interested in renting your home to Youth Groups in 2023?

Each year we have youth groups looking for suitable housing for their Montreat Youth Conference experience and we are beginning to update our Private Housing List. Are you interested in renting your house to youth groups in 2023? If so, please fill out the form below, even if you are on our current list. This will allow us to have the most up-to-date information for our list.

If you have questions, please email us at privatehousing@montreat.org.

Private Housing List

The Montreat Store

The Montreat Store is an awesome mix of boutique, gift shop, and general store. From snacks to t-shirts to toiletries to books to pottery, the Montreat Store has it all!

Monday–Friday 10:00 am–6:00 pm
Saturday 10:00 am–5:00 pm
Sunday closed

Contact: 828.669.5298
Located: 2nd floor, Moore Center

Ten Thousand Villages

Ten Thousand Villages is a global maker‑to‑market movement that breaks the cycle of generational poverty and ignites social change in the developing world.

Monday–Friday 10:00 am–6:00 pm
Saturday 10:00 am–5:00 pm
Sunday 12:00–5:00 pm

Contact: 828.669.1406
Located: 3rd floor, Moore Center

Galax Sunday Buffet

The Galax Dining room is closed to the public for all meals except for Sunday lunch June 5–August 7. Non-refundable tickets may be purchased at the Assembly Inn front desk and used on any Sunday. You can call the front desk at 828.669.2911 for more information or to purchase tickets.

Adults Ages 5–11 Under 5
$17.00 $8.50 FREE

The menu for Sunday, August 7 is:

Beef Stifado
Parmesan Crusted Tiliapia 
Basmati Rice Pilaf
Summer Squash Medley 
Roasted Baby Carrots with Thyme 
Dinner Rolls 
Salad Bar 
Fruit & Assorted Desserts 

Development Summer Events

To support these activities and all aspects of Montreat's ministry visit montreat.org/support.

Welcome Center at the Gatehouse

The Montreat Gate House will be open beginning Memorial Day through the conference season. The Gate House is staffed by volunteers in two hour shifts. Volunteers are needed to serve, either as a regular volunteer or a substitute. If you are interested, please let Jim Richardson know.

Monday–Thursday 10:00 am–4:00 pm
Friday 12:00–2:00 pm

 

Support Montreat

Support Summer in Montreat and all aspects of Montreat's ministry!

Hymn Sings

Montreat Conference Center's in-person hymn-sings are back. After two pandemic summers of turn-on-a-dime live-streamed hymn-sings, we return for in-person gatherings. A stellar group of musicians, introduced by congenial community hosts, will lead the hymn-sings.

We will gather Sunday evenings, 7:00–8:00 pm, in the Assembly Inn Lobby. Masking protocols, per Montreat Conference Center, apply. Please come and bring your fellow singers!

Hymn Sing Lineup
Date Leader
July 31 Catherine Harkey
August 7 Vivian Hare and Keith Grogg