Munster Church Groups
Adult Choir
The prime ‘singing season’ for weekly services is from mid-September to the end of May. We average around a eight singers including our organist Pat Lindsey. Our music resources include a good number of years of subscription to the Volunteer Choir (Lorenz Corporation) and purchases of individual arrangements.
The choir practices Thursday evenings starting at 7:30 p.m. during our ‘singing season’. We are always looking for new members who would like to enjoy fellowship, singing good music, and potentially meeting a desire to fulfil themselves more musically or to learn a little more about music and singing. Anyone interested in singing with us or interested in finding out more about the choir and our music is invited to visit us at a practice or to speak with Pat Lindsey.
The choir has been successful in selling frozen blueberries, raspberries, and cranberries as a fund raiser for the past several years. We sell them in the late October time for ordering. Contact any choir member for more information or to order. If you would like to be notified in advance of our posting notices, ask Pat or Keith Lindsey to add you to our email list. The list is only used for this purpose and your name is not shown to others on the list. And if you have a friend or relative who would like to be notified as well, have them pass their names and email addresses along.
The choir director posted the Ten Commandments of the Munster United Choir. They read as follows:
1. Honour the Choir Director and thine Organist: that thy days may be long upon the seats that the Director of the Choir giveth thee.
2. Thou shalt not take the name of the Choir Director in vain, for she will not hold him or her guiltless that taketh her name in vain.
3. Thou shalt not make noise nor talk one to another when thy Choir Director speaketh.
4. Neither shalt thou make noise or talk one to another when thy fellows singeth.
5. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s sheet music and shalt returneth it promptly.
6. Remember the Thursday night, to keep it open.
7. Thou shalt make no excuses for tardiness or absence, but shalt try thy darndest to attend faithfully and at the appointed hour.
8. That night shalt thou labour, and do all thy singing.
9. Thou shalt not conduct other business during choir practice.
10. Thou shalt not allow jocularity to interfere with thy singing.
And some other words to sing by:
John Wesley’s Rules of Singing
- Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can. Let not a slight degree of weakness or weariness hinder you. If it is a cross to you, take it up and you will find a blessing.
- Sing lustily, and with a good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of it being heard, then when you sing the songs of the world.
- Sing modestly. Do not bawl, as to be heard above, or distinct from, the rest of the congregation, that you may not destroy the harmony; but strive to unite your voices together, so as to make one clear melodious sound.
- Sing in time. Whatever time is sung, be sure to keep with it. Do not run before, not stay behind it; but attend closely to the leading voices, and move therewith as exactly as you can. And take care you sing not too slowly. This drawling way naturally steals on all who are lazy; and it is high time to drive it out from among us, and sing all our tunes just as quickly as we did at first.
- Above all, sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at pleasing God more than yourself, or any other creature. In order to do this, attend strictly to the sense of what you sing, and see that your heart is not carried away with the sound, but offered to God continually; so shall your singing be such as the Lord will approve of here, and reward when he cometh in the clouds of heaven.
Church Women
At Munster Church our United Church Women are not a formally organized group. There is a group of dedicated women who are able to meet the needs of what would be the same demands on the UCW. They cater to groups using the church (e.g annual and special meetings, rehearsals) and for funerals.
If you are interested in more information or participating in their activities, please send us a message.
Adult Fellowship Group – “What’s It”
Our church’s adult fellowship group is called the “What’s It“. This group is open to all members of the Ashton-Munster Pastoral Charge and it is always a pleasure to see members of our sister church in Ashton attending and enjoying themselves. For the past few years, it has been inactive.
In the past it has enjoyed a large variety of activities to provide interesting circumstances and settings in which to share fellowship and have a fun, relaxing time.
The What’s It has undertaken winter sleigh rides, curling, bowling, progressive dinners, a murder mystery evening, a beach party in the winter, a car rally, skiing, swimming, snowshoeing, and more.
Munster Church Council
Munster Church changed it’s internal organization from the ‘standard’ Session and Stewards and Trustees to a church Council. The Council has the same responsibilities as Session and Stewards and Trustees. They look after the spiritual well being of the congregation, plan worship services and special services, manage the day-to-day operations of the church including finances, manage maintenance of the building and property, plan fundraising activities, and manage the financial health of the church.
Council meets on a regular basis. If you would like to be a member of Council or offer your services in another way, contact a member of Council.
Sunday School
We are blessed with a wonderful leader of the Sunday School, Liz Hale. She puts her heart into all the activities they undertake and loves all the kids and helpers (adult and youth). The Sunday School takes on interesting activities when they are downstairs during part of the Sunday worship time. At special times of the year they may present a song or two for the enjoyment of the congregation and typically at Christmas, they put on a pageant. They are an active bunch of enthusiastic people.
If you have a young person in your family, do not hesitate to bring him or her to church with you. They will be welcome in the Sunday School and be active while you worship. Don’t worry about your youngster being upset with unfamiliar surroundings. Sometimes all it takes is for you to spend a Sunday or two with them until they become comfortable with you not being downstairs with them for that short period of time.
Sunday School operates from early in September until the Pastoral Charge picnic around the second week of June.