| .:: Dedications: Chalice and Poinsettia Tree ::. |
The chalice was made by Zimmerman Glassware in Corydon, Indiana. The design of the chalice was used for the celebration of Holy Communion for the union of the North and South Conference to form the Indiana United Methodist Conference at Ball State University in Muncie, IN in the summer of 2009. Zimmerman Glassware was asked by Dr, Rev. Ernie Elder, Jr. and Mrs. Angela Elder to make one for Mt. Zion UMC of West Lafayette, so that the church would remember this historic event in the life of United Methodism in Indiana.
The Poinsettia Christmas Tree was given to Mt. Zion UMC by Brown Street UMC in Lafayette, Indiana in November of 2009. This gift is greatly appreciated by Mt. Zion UMC. The poinsettia plant was introduced to the United States of America from Mexico by Joel Poinsett, who was the ambassador to Mexico in 1824. In that year he attended a Christmas Eve Service at a small Roman Catholic Church in Santa Prisca, where the Franciscans had adorned the nativity scene with exotic red flowers. William Prescott, a horticulturist and friend of Joel Poinstt called this new plant poinsettia and the name stuck. For many Christians, the red reminds us of the blood that was shed on the cross and the green reminds us of the promise of eternal life offered to us through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ our Lord.