John Schork, Liturgist

Many people who grew up in Harrisburg knew my grandfather, John Schork.  Unfortunately, I am not one of those people.  He died when I was just a young boy and I have no memories of him whatsoever.  What I do know of him comes from others telling stories and sharing their memories of him.  I wish I had known him like many of you did.

Yesterday, the Schork Family gathered for our annual Christmas celebration.  You may have heard me talk about this gathering before and the traditional dessert we "enjoy" called plum pudding.  My brother (bless his heart) made it this year, as our grandmother is unable. 

Speaking of my grandmother, she recently moved from her little house on Granger Street into an assisted living facility in Harrisburg.  This was her decision- 100%.  She has transitioned well and is enjoying her new home.  During the move, my mother and aunt discovered some documents that my grandfather had written over the course of several years.  In this collection of documents were a number of prayers and calls to worship that John Schork had written to be used in his role as Liturgist at the First United Methodist Church in Harrisburg.

My aunt secretly took a sampling of these liturgies and made a book for myself and John Schork's other 3 grandsons.  It is a priceless treasure that I have only begun to explore.  This little book is the first gift I have received this Christmas and it will likely prove to be my favorite.  I hope to share some of his writings with you on this blog, so please stay tuned.  Maybe you knew him well enough to imagine him standing before the congregation and speaking these words.

Here's a little sample for Christmas:

O Lord, our God, we give thanks again and again for the coming of your Son into the world to bring light and love to all men.  Help us to keep that light and that love always in our hearts and to share them, not just at Christmas time but in all our days.  Open our eyes and our hearts, dear God, that we may find your goodness and beauty in all of life and grant us grace to share our best gifts with each other and to walk together as your children, guided by the light of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Amen.