Hunt for Depuy Family: Port Jervis Church House

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Port Jervis Church House

Deerpark Reformed Church30 East Main Street
Port Jervis, NY 12771

Reformed congregations share a commitment to sound preaching, Christian education for people of all ages, and loving spiritual care and guidance. RCA worship services range in character from highly formal to very informal, and many congregations have their own special worship traditions and practices.
These aspects of worship are usually shared by Reformed congregations:
Reformed Church worship is corporate.
Worship is not a performance with the minister as actor or actress and the congregation as the audience. God is the audience and the whole congregation is involved in the service, in prayer, song, and offering.
Reformed Church worship is liturgical.
Sometimes the expression "liturgical" is used to describe a church whose worship is highly formal and follows specific rituals; this is not the sense in which the term "liturgical" is used in Reformed circles. The word "liturgy" means "the work of the people." Reformed Church worship is liturgical in the sense that our worship involves the whole people of God in the activity of worship.
While each local congregation has its own worship traditions, most Reformed worship services include singing, praying together, and a message given by the pastor, based on a passage from the Bible.
Reformed Church worship is sacramental.
When we celebrate the sacraments of baptism and the Lord's Supper, God comes to us through all of our senses. We hear God's promise of forgiveness; we see and hear the water of baptism that cleanses; and we touch and smell and taste the bread and wine that signifies Christ's body and blood. Our faith is awakened, renewed, and energized when we celebrate the sacraments.

Source: https://www.rca.org/howweworship

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Reason for this Blog

I received an email which stated "I went into your Hunt and Depuy blogs and am very impressed and have added them to my blog favorites. The first thing I did was copy Lucy Philena's picture as I did not have one. Hope that is ok." That is the very reason for this blog. My thoughts are that if documents on our family are easily accessible we can save time which can be better used searching for new information. Please copy. Please enjoy, and please send back any information you, too, would like to share. "No man is an island" is proven time and again in genealogy. We can't do any of this alone.

Huguenot Cross

History and Making The Huguenot cross is believed to have been a sign of recognition among the French Protestants as early as the 17th century. It was patterned after the Order of the Holy Spirit insignia worn by Henry IV of Navarre, who issued the Edict of Nantes in 1598 to protect Protestant freedoms. The provides the following information as to its history: "The Huguenot cross was designed and first manufactured by a certain Mystre of N�mes in 1688. It has as its predecessor the badge of the Hospitaler Knights of St John of Jerusalem also known as the Knights of Malta, a religious and Crusader order founded in Jerusalem in the 7th century AD. In 1308 they occupied the island of Rhodes after the collapse of the Crusader states, and in 1530 formed the order of the Knights of Malta after Rhodes was surrendered to the Ottoman Turks. They lived for 4 centuries on the island of Malta, hence the name Maltese Cross for the central part. (The Maltese Cross is generally associated with fire and is the symbol of protection of fire fighters in many countries)." "Other predecessors of the Huguenot Cross include the so-called Languedoc Cross, and the order decoration of the Order of the Holy Spirit which Henry III established on December 31st, 1578." Significance and Meaning The gold Cross of Languedoc, with the official ribbon of the Society which is white, edged with stripes of French blue and gold has become the official insignia of The National Huguenot Society worn by members. The Cross of Languedoc consists of four elements:  The insignia consists of an open four-petal Lily of France -- reminiscent of the Mother Country of France -- in which each petal radiates outward in the shape of a "V" to form a Maltese Cross. The four petals signify the Four Gospels. Each petal, or arm, has at its outside periphery two rounded points at the corners. These rounded points are regarded as signifying the Eight Beatitudes.  The four petals are joined together by four fleur-de-lis, also reminiscent of the Mother Country of France. Each fleur-de-lis has has three petals. The twelve petals of the four fleur-de-lis signify the Twelve Apostles.  An open space in the shape of heart is formed between each fleur-de-lis and the arms of the two petals with which it is joined. This shape -- a symbol of loyalty -- suggests the seal of the great French Reformer, John Calvin. A descending dove pendant representing the Saint Esprit or "Sainted Spirit" -- the guide and counselor of the Church -- is suspended from a ring of gold attached to the lower central petal.