Para contribuir a este orfanato, por favor vaya a este sitio web: https://www.life2orphans.org/
#ReformedChurchInAmerica #PastorMarkAuthor
#BergenCounty #BergenfieldNJ
# Ukraine #Russia
#Peace # Conflict
#UkrainianOrphans # Life2Orphans.org
To read more of Pastor Mark’s writings, please order copy of his book: https://deepriverbooks.com/books/the-circle-of-seven/
Monday Ministerial Musings
By Rev. Mark William Ennis
2022 Blog #9
March 7, 2022
A Ukrainian Saint; Serge Zevlever
Just a few miles up the road from us is the town of Harrington Park. It is a beautiful NJ suburb, and a place where the rather prosperous live. A seminary friend pastors the church there. Pastor Steve and his wife, Jeri, have a unique ministry. They have adopted several special needs children from an orphanage in the Ukraine. This special ministry has brought them great joy, but recently the invasion of the Ukraine by Russia has given them a great deal of heartache and now they are mourning a man they knew quite well, Serge Zevlever.
Serge had dual citizenship both in the United States and in Ukraine. He was a gruff man who directed the orphanage from which Pastor Steve and his wife adopted these special needs children. Beneath his gruffness, I have read, he had a big heart and put the whole of his being into protecting and finding homes for the children that he protected as if they were his own.
When Russia invaded he could have easily fled. He was, after all, a United States citizen. He chose to stay. He wanted to protect “his” children and the Ukrainian people that he had fallen in love with. Because of these desires he chose to stay and defend the Ukraine. Tragically, he was killed in the conflict. He was a victim of a bullet fired from a Russian gun. I doubt that the Russian soldier who fired the shot had any idea of who he had killed or the good work that the man had been doing. Whether he knew it or not, he did the world a great deal of harm by killing Serge.
I wish that I had been able to meet Serge and thank him for all that he did. “His” children and the families that adopted them will always feel gratitude for his work. For his selfless work on earth and his selfless death I believe that he is a true saint. May his life and death be examples for us all.
#ReformedChurchInAmerica #PastorMarkAuthor
#BergenCounty #BergenfieldNJ
# Ukraine #Russia
#Peace # Conflict
#UkrainianFaces #SergeZevlever
To read more of Pastor Mark’s writings, please order copy of his book:https://deepriverbooks.com/books/the-circle-of-seven/
Reflexiones ministeriales del lunes
por el reverendo Mark William Ennis
2022 Blog # 9
7 de marzo de 2022
Un santo ucraniano; Serge Zevlever
A sólo unos kilómetros por la carretera de nosotros está la ciudad de Harrington Park. Es un hermoso suburbio de NJ, y un lugar donde viven los más prósperos. Un amigo del seminario pastorea la iglesia allí. El Pastor Steve y su esposa, Jeri, tienen un ministerio único.
Han adoptado a varios niños con necesidades especiales de un orfanato en Ucrania. Este ministerio especial les ha traído gran alegría, pero recientemente la invasión de Ucrania por parte de Rusia les ha dado mucho dolor y ahora están de luto a un hombre que conocían muy bien, Serge Zevlever.
Serge tenía doble ciudadanía tanto en los Estados Unidos como en Ucrania. Él era un hombre brusco que dirigió el orfanato desde el cual el Pastor Steve y su esposa adoptaron estos niños con necesidades especiales. Debajo de su grupacidad, he leído, él tenía un gran corazón y puso todo su ser en proteger y encontrar hogares para los niños que él protegió como si ellos fueran sus el propios.
Cuando Rusia invadió, pudo haber huido fácilmente. Después de todo, era ciudadano de los Estados Unidos. Eligió quedarse. Quería proteger a “sus” hijos y al pueblo ucraniano con el que había enamorado. Debido a estos deseos, eligió quedarse y defender a Ucrania. Trágicamente, fue muerto en el conflicto. Fue víctima de una bala disparada desde un arma rusa.
Dudo que el soldado ruso que disparó el tiro tuviera alguna idea de quién había matado o del buen trabajo que el hombre había estado haciendo. Ya sea que lo supiera o no, hizo al mundo mucho daño matando a Serge.
Me hubiera gustado poder reunirme con Serge y darle las gracias por todo lo que hizo. “Sus” hijos y las familias que los adoptaron siempre sentirán gratitud por su trabajo. Por su obra desinteresada en la tierra y su muerte desinteresada, creo que es un verdadero santo. Que su vida y su muerte sean ejemplos para todos nosotros.
#ReformedChurchInAmerica #PastorMarkAuthor
#BergenCounty #BergenfieldNJ
# Ukraine #Russia
#Peace # Conflict
#UkrainianFaces #SergeZevlever
Para leer más de los escritos del pastor Mark, por favor pida una copia de su libro: https://deepriverbooks.com/books/the-circle-of-seven/
I have seen many wars and conflicts but for me, they were headlines and I did not always realize the human pain that is involved.
My father was drafted during the Korean war but he never saw action. The cease fire was signed while he was still in boot camp and I knew no Korean people at that time. War in Vietnam raged all through my childhood and I knew people who had been drafted but I did not know, anyone who was killed during the war lived in Vietnam. For me, the war was mostly a news story. The invasions of Panama and Grenada were also for me, news events without any personal connections.
At the time of the middle eastern wars I knew nobody in the middle east and I knew no soldiers. Of course, I felt badly for all those involved but these conflicts were not personal to me. I didn’t know the military or the civilians.
Now Putin and his Russian armies are swarming into the Ukraine. For me, this is not just another news story. I know a number of people from the Ukraine and they have relatives there. For me, the Ukrainians who are in harm’s way are friends or relatives of friends of mine. I feel this war more than I have the other wars that I have lived through.
Pastor Steve is a Reformed Church minister in a nearby town from me. We were in seminary together. He and his wife have made a ministry of adopting and caring for special needs children. Several have come from an orphanage in Kiev. These special needs children worry about their old friends from the orphanage and were frightened to see their orphanage on the television news. They wondered if the building would continue to stand or would it fall to bombs.
The former organist in my congregation came from the Ukraine for work. Her son lived in the Ukraine during her time with us. She posts nervously about the fate of her family and friends now that Putin has chosen to invade her homeland.
An elder of my congregation is Ukrainian although she never lived in the Ukraine. She and her husband had Ukrainian parents but they were born in a refugee camp in Germany following World War II. As far as I know she never visited the Ukraine but she was raised with Ukrainian customs and feels a kinship with people in the Ukraine. Her parents told her stories of the horrors of being invaded and she has deep empathy for every invasion victim. Other wars and conflicts that I have seen were horrible and cost many civilian lives. They caused me to say a lot of prayers. This one for me is more personal. I know people who are greatly affected by it. My prayers during this invasion will be even more fervent. I encourage all who read this to be in prayer for the welfare of all those in the Ukraine who are suffering from this horrible invasion.
A prayer for Ukraine is posted for you:
Prayers for God’s Mercy in Ukraine
#ReformedChurchInAmerica #PastorMarkAuthor
#BergenCounty #BergenfieldNJ
# Ukraine #Russia
#Peace # Conflict
#UkrainianFaces
To read more of Pastor Mark’s writings, please order copy of his book:
The Circle of Seven
A prayer for Ukraine is posted for you:
#ReformedChurchInAmerica #PastorMarkAuthor
#BergenCounty #BergenfieldNJ
# Ukraine #Russia
#Peace # Conflict
#UkrainianFaces
To read more of Pastor Mark’s writings, please order copy of his book:
The Circle of Seven
Amid the increasing tensions on the Russian and Ukrainian Boarder
Monday Ministerial Musings
By Rev. Mark William Ennis
2022 Blog #6
February 11, 2022
Living To Avoid Remorse
Recently the media in our area was filled with two horrific news stories. Both of them involved horrible instances of violence, and remorse.
The first was a man from our nearby town of Mahwah. The man was arrested here in New Jersey following an attack on his parents in Long Island. Media reports say that this attack involved the man’s children, the mother of the children and custody of those children. An altercation occurred and it is alleged that the man, Dino Tomassetti shot both his parents. Fortunately, neither of his parents were fatally injured. Recently Dino was arraigned in court. The news indicates that Dino saw his parents in court and broke down and cried. I’m glad he felt remorse. I wish that he had acted in a way that caused no harm and no remorse.
The second news story was even more horrific. A registered nurse, Nicholas Pagano who worked as a travel nurse attacked a patient care tech at Hackensack Medical Center. He is reported to have attacked this woman by striking her with a wrench before setting her on fire with a blow torch. At last report, the woman was in critical condition at a nearby burn unit. Prayers and a Go Fund Me page have been set up to support this injured woman. This attack caused a manhunt for Nicholas. The body of Nicholas was found a day later. He had killed himself. I assume that it was out of remorse. Again, I wish that he had acted in a way that he would not have had to regret later.
I don’t know anyone who has acted as horrifically as those two men but I can’t think of anyone who has not acted in a way that has caused remorse later on. Everyone at one time or another has acted impulsively, without thought. Usually such impulses later cause embarrassment, remorse and shame, not to mention the harm that impulses do to others, those we act toward and those who are hurt by unintended consequences of our actions.
Remorse, guilt and shame can all be avoided. Let us all think about our actions before we take them. If we have hurt people, let us make amends with anyone we have hurt before we live with those awful consequences of bad behavior, remorse, and guilt. Let us also resolve to live lives that do not lead to such things.
#ReformedChurchInAmerica #PastorMarkAuthor
#BergenCounty #BergenfieldNJ
# Dino Tomassetti # Nicholas Pagano
#Regret #Remorse
To read more of Pastor Mark’s writings, please order copy of his book:https://deepriverbooks.com/books/the-circle-of-seven/
Reflexiones ministeriales del lunes
por el reverendo Mark William Ennis
2022 Blog # 6
11 de febrero de 2022
Vivir para evitar el remordimiento
Recientemente, los medios de comunicación en nuestra área se llenaron de dos noticias horribles. Ambos involucraron horribles casos de violencia y remordimiento.
El primero era un hombre de nuestra cercana ciudad de Mahwah. El hombre fue arrestado aquí en Nueva Jersey después de un ataque contra sus padres en Long Island. Según informes de los medios de comunicación, este ataque involucró a los hijos del hombre, la madre de los hijos y la custodia de esos niños. Ocurrió un altercado y se alega que el hombre, Dino Tomassetti, disparó a ambos padres. Afortunadamente, ninguno de sus padres resultó herido de muerte. Recientemente Dino fue tramados en la corte. La noticia indica que Dino vio a sus padres en la corte y se rompió y gritó. Me alegro de que se haya sentido remorso. Desearía que hubiera actuado de una manera que no causara ningún daño ni remordimiento.
La segunda noticia fue aún más horrible. Una enfermera registrada, Nicholas Pagano, que trabajaba como enfermera de viaje, atacó a un técnico de atención al paciente en el Centro Médico Hackensack. Se informa que ha atacado a esta mujer golpeándola con una llave antes de prender fuego con una antorcha de golpe. En el último informe, la mujer estaba en estado crítico en una unidad cercana de quemadura. Oraciones y una página Go Fund Me han sido establecidas para apoyar a esta mujer herida. Este ataque causó una cacería de Nicholas. El cuerpo de Nicolás fue encontrado un día más tarde. Se había matado a sí mismo. Supongo que estaba fuera de remordimiento. Una vez más, me gustaría que hubiera actuado de una manera que no hubiera tenido que lamentar más tarde.
No conozco a nadie que haya actuado tan horriblemente como esos dos hombres, pero no puedo pensar en nadie que no haya actuado de una manera que haya causado remordimiento más adelante. Todos en un momento u otro han actuado impulsivamente, sin pensamiento. Generalmente tales impulsos causan más tarde vergüenza, remordimiento y vergüenza, por no mencionar el daño que los impulsos hacen a otros, a aquellos hacia los que actuamos y a aquellos que son heridos por consecuencias no deseadas de nuestras acciones.
Remordimiento, culpa y vergüenza se pueden evitar. Pensemos todos en nuestras acciones antes de tomarlas. Si hemos lastimado a la gente, hagamos modificaciones con cualquier persona que hemos lastimado antes de que vivamos con esas terribles consecuencias de mal comportamiento, remordimiento, y culpa. Resolvamos también vivir vidas que no conducen a tales cosas.
#ReformedChurchInAmerica #PastorMarkAuthor
#BergenCounty #BergenfieldNJ
# Dino Tomassetti # Nicholas Pagano
#Regret #Remorse
Para leer más de los escritos del pastor Mark, por favor pida una copia de su libro:https://deepriverbooks.com/books/the-circle-of-seven/
Pastor Mark Author 