In addition, the cookbook features recipes associated with the different seasons of the church calendar, with separate sections for Advent and Lent.
One of the several Lenten recipes is for the Polish paczki, or "little package," a potato doughnut that was a favorite recipe of Kiefer's Polish grandmother.
"We all liked them so much that we made her serve them for all the holidays," Kiefer said.
The idea for the cookbook arose more than two years ago after Nativity Friends members, who got together to bake holiday cookies for shut-in members of the church, wanted copies of one another's cookie recipes.
"One thing led to another, and before we knew it, we were asking church members to contribute their favorite family recipes and were scouring the Internet for recipes associated with feast days," said Kiefer, one of the editors of the cookbook.
Sometimes the search led them to the Middle Ages, with recipes for Slavic Lenten potato pancakes, tarts, Michaelmas broth, and other food.
"Some religious orders, many of them very old, posted recipes on the Internet, which we have incorporated into the book," Kiefer said. "Although there are recipes reflecting nationalities from around the world, many of the recipes we have included have their origins in the Middle East, which was the birthplace of Christianity."
The cookbook, which took 18 months to produce, sells for $12, with proceeds to benefit church projects.
"Within the covers of the book is 1,000 years of cooking," Kiefer said.
For more information, call 856-694-2349.
Rally for Israel. The Jewish Community Relations Council of Southern New Jersey will hold an Interfaith Solidarity Rally for Israel at 3 p.m. Sunday at Voorhees Middle School, Holly Oak Drive. People of all religious backgrounds are invited.
The keynote speaker will be Moshe Fox, minister of public affairs at the Israeli Embassy. For more information, call Arlene Circus at 856-751-9500, Ext. 203.
Two installations. St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Haddon Heights will formally welcome its new vicar at a service Feb. 16, and Holy Trinity United Church of Christ in Willingboro will install its new pastor Feb. 24.
The Service of Institution for the Rev. Henry Jansma, the 13th spiritual leader of St. Mary's, will begin at 2 p.m. The church is at Green Street and the White Horse Pike.
Father Jansma, a native of North Jersey, had been a vicar at an Anglican church in Lincolnshire, England, for 10 years before returning to the United States to accept the pastorate in Haddon Heights.
For more information about the St. Mary's service, call 856-547-3240.
For the Rev. Thomas James Arey, becoming the spiritual leader of the Willingboro church is something of a homecoming. In 1963, his parents bought a home in Willingboro.
Mr. Arey graduated from John F. Kennedy High School in 1971, and then from Burlington County College and Stockton State College before being ordained in the United Methodist Church in 1981. He became a minister in the United Church of Christ denomination in 1984, the same year he joined the Army as a chaplain.
Mr. Arey's installation will begin at 2 p.m. at the church, Beverly-Rancocas Road and Pageant Lane. For more information, call 609-877-2540.
Successful fund-raising. The Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey's 22d Super Sunday phone-athon brought in more than $630,000 last weekend on behalf of its Allied Jewish Appeal fund-raising campaign. More than 5,000 Jewish households in Burlington, Camden and Gloucester Counties were contacted. The money will support social-service programs locally and worldwide.
Soup and spirituality. The Riverfront Episcopal Team Ministry is sponsoring a six-week study of spirituality on Wednesdays from Feb. 20 to March 27. A soup supper at 6:30 p.m. will be followed by Holy Eucharist, an educational program and closing prayers.
The study will be conducted at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, 324 Bridgeboro St., Riverside, on Feb. 20, March 6 and March 20 and at Christ Episcopal Church, 638 Parry Ave., Palmyra, on Feb. 27, March 13 and March 27.
For more information, call 856-461-1037.
The Inquirer would like to hear about special events and topics of religious interest. Information must include a name and phone number. Items should be mailed to Louise Harbach, The Inquirer, 53 Haddonfield Rd., Cherry Hill, N.J. 08002. Items may be e-mailed to lharbach@phillynews.com or faxed to 856-779-3221.
