Pilviskiai Church

This last year has brought serious challenges as well as moments of profound joy to the people of Pilviškiai United Methodist Church. The crisis brought about by the prolonged conflict within the congregation and the chage in pastors has culminated in the resignation of the church council and thus created a temporary leadership vacuum. The situation was resolved by calling a charge conference and electing a new church council, which faced the task of revitalizing the congregational life. The successful resolution of this crisis largely depended on the cooperative efforts of the pastor and the members of the congregation.

We continue to thank God for the many events and new initiatives within the church since the congregational conflict has consumed so much energy. This July the congregation organized a regional family camp, with more than sixty participants of all ages from Pilviskiai, Kybartai and Kaunas. The visitors from our partnering church in Green Bay, Wisconsin have also significantly contributed to the camp. This summer the church also hosted a seminar on conflict resolution, led by the log time friend and supporter of Pilviskiai UMC, Jeanie Reimer.

This year has also marked the birth of a new tradition – community dinner, an event which gathers the church members around the table for a joint meal and an educational program. The meal is prepared by the people of the church and the educational program by the pastor. We dreamed of the future of Pilviskiai UMC, learned about the history of Methodism in the Southwestern Lithuania and shared memories of various events from the churches past at these dinner gatherings. We have also preserved the traditional  Christmas Eve services with a concert and a shared meal following. New liturgical traditions (All Saints Day services, Ash Wednesday, to name a few) have been introduced to the life of the church also. Sunday School for children has been restarted and is especially popular in the summer time, when the children do not have to go to school.

The church’s diaconal ministries continue to run with the help of Betanien programs. Seventeen elderly people are being visited each month, doctor Danute Gaveniene comes to offer medical help monthly, subsidies for medication are given out to those in need. Prior to major holidays the participants of the home visitation program receive food packages. The sick are visited at home and in the hospitals. .

Another exciting aspect of our congregational life is renewed relationship with partner churches. Pilviskiai UMC is supported by its partner church First United Methodist Church of Gree Bay (Wisconsin). We also maintain relationships with other congregations, including Mt. Zion UMC in North Carolina. This next summer at least three visits from churches in the US are scheduled. In order to improve our communication with the partner churches we have created a Facebook page where we post information, pictures and videos of our church life.

The members of Pilviskiai UMC are active in the district programs also. This summer we had a group of kids participate in the district camp for children where a good number of adults from our church served as leaders. Some of the women contributed to the women’s seminar “We Are One in the Spirit” by participating in the round table discussion on issues of women’s groups and emotional wellbeing. There are two persons who participate in the lay speaker training and we have representatives on most district committees.

As we look forward to the future, we pray for growth in numbers and in faith and live in hope that Pilviskiai UMC can be a sign of new life to all those who are looking for hope and meaning.

 Pastor Gražina Bielousova