Another busy year! And consequently limited opportunity to read. But praise the Lord that our church and mission are active places! And praise the Lord for healthy family and growing kids. I managed to read just the below 25 books this year. Technically, I’m still working on the 25th book, but hope to have it …
Finding Meeker’s Meeting House, the story of an overlooked Revolutionary War era church near the New York – New Jersey border. By Rev. Douglas J. Douma, Pastor of First Presbyterian Church at Unionville, NY In the year 1780—or sometime previous—a meeting house was built on the land of Samuel Meeker in northwestern New Jersey near …
In the last few years I’ve developed a hobby of woodworking. I’m now glad to offer products for sale, custom to the request of the buyer. I’m “vertically integrated” doing all the work myself from the cutting down of a tree to sawing into boards, drying, design, milling, cutting, routing, and finishing. I’ve primarily worked …
I’ve recently undertaken a study on repentance. I read four books, which I’ll briefly review below, and then give some comments on the subject. The Doctrine of Repentance by Thomas Watson (1668) The Puritan Thomas Watson (c. 1620 – 1686) presumably provides a Reformed view of repentance. He writes that true repentance is made up …
Sola Internship – 2023 General Description: Internship at a Christian hospitality ministry to hikers on the Appalachian Trail in rural New York (discoversola.com) closely involved with the small (36 members) nearby Unionville Presbyterian Church (BPC). Three-month to four-month term preferred (May-August). Work & Expectations: Regular tasks include welcoming Appalachian Trail hikers, making beds and doing …
I really look forward each year to seeing all the “Fathers and Brothers” at the Bible Presbyterian Church General Synod. This year was our 85th General Synod and it took place in Grand Island, NY. The food and the company did not disappoint. My family came along for the week and we especially enjoyed time …
Thoughts on the 85th General Synod of the Bible Presbyterian Church Read More »
I recently preached a sermon on “The Pews are Free.” There I mentioned the old (and rather unfortunate) practice of selling or renting pews to fund a church. Now in my recent digging through old documents I found this 1833 Indenture from my neighboring Presbyterian Church (Westtown, NY). I’m told these are fairly common, but …
Reformed & Evangelical across Four Centuries, The Presbyterian Story in America by Nathan P. Feldmuth, S. Donald Fortson III, Garth M. Rosell, and Kenneth J. Stewart. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2022, 364 pp. This is a valuable book which holds the interest of the reader, no small feat for a book on Presbyterian history. The …
Review of Reformed & Evangelical across Four Centuries Read More »
In a previous post here I noted the existence of a Meeting House that predates all of the churches in my area. Today I went and found it with the help of a local property owner nearby. The Meeting House, built on the land of Samuel Meeker in the late 18th century, is now is …
Today’s Unionville, NY had other names in its early years. According to the histories, it was once known as “Tucker’s Store” since an early resident, Henry Tucker, operated a store out of his house here. Then the general area was referred to as “Westown” (with one “t”) or “Westtown” (with two “t’s”) being as it …
The Changing Name of the Village of Unionville, NY Read More »
Two newspapers noted a surprise wedding at the Unionville Presbyterian Church in 1878. The first is the Evening Gazette of Port Jervis, NY of August 1st of that year. The second, similar but with a few changes, is the Tri-States Union, also of Port Jervis, NY but from the next day, August 2nd.
