This Week in Worship

Summer Services 9:30 a.m. – Children’s Church

July 2, 2017

Worship Leader: Jeff Stoodt
Musician: Joel Hiller

Questioning Minds: Our Country’s Founders and the UU Way

First Parish member Jeff Stoodt asks the question: How did our Unitarian principles inform the making of our country?

Message from Rev. Lisa

Just back from the UUA General Assembly (GA) in New Orleans, I am filled with the gumbo of multiple experiences, wonderful presentations, hopeful justice aspirations and tools for beloved community. The five of us from First Parish met to eat some New Orleans delicacies and off we went to gather info to bring back home to our faith community. In the fall we will have a worship service devoted to the findings and wisdom shared at GA.

Highlights include:

• The first election of a female UUA President: the Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray. She will serve one six-year term, the new UU President term agreed upon some years ago.
• In depth training, presentations and messaging around understanding white supremacist culture (aka white dominant culture) and the on-going work of transforming to a more inclusive beloved community.
• The Ware Lecture delivered by Bryan Stevenson, author of Just Mercy and the consequent offering the next morning raising tens of thousands of funds for a local justice org.: “Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children”.
  Many workshops on the environment, immigration, church life and music.

The three Interim Presidents, the Rev. Sofia Betancourt, the Rev. William G. Sinkford, and Leon Spencer, articulated four aspects needed to continue onto a new path: urgency seen, wisdom shared, patterns identified and trust restored. These endeavors were evident at GA. May we continue on the path of transformation for the common good.

Blessings,
Rev. Lisa

Rev. Lisa will be out of the office during July and August as follows:

• June 29 – July 10
• July 20 – August 14

Religious Exploration

Laurel Whitehouse

Director of Religious Education

Religious exploration programming for children or youth will resume in September. Enjoy your summer, everyone!

Youth room painting will be happening over the summer – helpers needed. Please email me if you’d like to volunteer some time on this much-needed project!

News and Announcements

Sunday Meditation Time Change

Meditation will be from 8:30 – 9 a.m. through July.
Thursday evening meditation will continue to meet from 6:30 – 7:00 p.m.
Both sessions happen in the Children’s Church.

Monday evening Yoga continues throughout the summer.

The Building and Grounds Committee, along with one of our resident master gardeners, has assessed the health of our trees on our campus. There are several that are at the point of removal, and some that will need some TLC. We will be replacing the trees that are dying and keep a good eye on the trees that need some extra care. Our stewardship of our faith community naturally extends to our trees. It is a privilege to attend to such beauty.

We have had some volunteers watering our containered trees and will need watering daily for a few weeks. We have been blessed that Mallory Digges and Tucker Smith have been tending these three containers since early May. Jeff Stoodt and Laurie Macintosh will be on duty through at least July 10. We are hoping there are a few of you that will be around and volunteer to water the trees. Please email director@fpmlton.org with dates you can help! Your care will help keep our campus looking beautiful.

Summer Office Information

• Office Hours for the summer generally are Monday – Thursday 10 am – 2 pm. (This may vary depending on vacation schedules).
  If you are coming to the church office, please let us know in advance. We may not hear the doorbell with the window unit air conditioners purring.
• The Link will continue to be published weekly. There will be no written announcements at Summer Services. The deadline remains Tuesday.
• Check Kiki’s Corner for information on the staff’s comings and goings for the upcoming week.
• General Assembly still available online. One of the advantages of modern technology is to be able to be part of things from a distance. This is certainly the case at General Assembly. Currently, there are a number of videos available for most things that were done in the main meeting hall (plenary, worship services, etc.) Here is the link http://www.uua.org/ga/off-site/2017.

Summer Worship Services Schedule

July – September 3

Time: 9:30 – 10:30 am

Location: Children’s Church

Come support our worship leaders over the summer.

*July 9 – Robert Johnson ~ “Finding God in Buddhism?” First Parish member and practicing Buddhist — Robert Johnson — explores the theological aspects of Buddhism.

Musician: Emma Jean Moulton

*July 16 – Francesca Cipriani (HDS Student) ~ “If You Have One Good Parent, You Have A Chance”
Harvard Divinity School ministerial student Francesca Cipriani explores the topic of assumptions about good parenting, particularly when there are complicated roles and factors.

Musician: Emma Jean Moulton

Worship Associate: Mallory Digges

*July 23 – Elise Henricks ~ “Walking a Labyrinth”
First Parish member Elise Henricks will lead a discussion and a walk around First Parish’s portable labyrinth.

Musician: Emma Jean Moulton

Worship Associate Susan Batson

*July 30: A.J. van Tine ~ “Articulating Our Pluralism”
In the text of the UU Principles and Sources, it is said that our living tradition draws on “many sources,” and that we are “grateful for the religious pluralism which enriches and ennobles our faith.” However, this implied pluralism is not clearly defined anywhere in our covenant. How might we articulate it, both to the world and to each other? And what might a greater focus on religious pluralism mean for our practice? Come and hear Harvard Divinity School ministerial student Andrew van Tine contemplate these questions.

Musician: Tim Steele

*August 6: Alex Engel ~ “Fear is the Mind Killer”
Fear can motivate us and drive us to excellence, but too often fear cripples and paralyzes our minds. What can scripture and teachings tell us about our fear, and how can we live with it in our uncertain world?

Musician: Tim Steele

Worship Associate: Leslie MacPherson-Artinian

*August 13 – Susan Batson and Pat Neves ~ “The Magic Within That Allows Us to Connect with the Divine, Ourselves and Others”
Pat and Susan share the sacred aspects of creativity, inherent in all humans in all cultures, that has helped them to take risks, live with more purpose and joy and to become the creative beings they were meant to be.

Musician: Tim Steele

Worship Associate: Susan Batson and Pat Neves

*August 20 – Rev. Lisa ~ “Body Wisdom”
In Interplay, a common phrase is “unlock the wisdom of your body”. We are embodied creatures, we humans. There is much we know in our cells.

Musician: Peter Smith (tentative)

Worship Associate:

*August 27 – Rev. Lisa ~ “The Physicality of Grace”
To piggyback the previous sermon, yet standing on its own, we can feel and find grace in the living of our lives. It comes over us, passes through us, alights upon us. Let us welcome grace into our days.

Musician: Tim Steele

Worship Associate: Mallory Digges

*September 3 (Labor Day weekend) – Leslie ~ “Hope is the Thing with Feathers”
First Parish member Leslie explores what it is that gives us hope and keeps us going.

Musician: Tim Steele

Follow up Meetings

Give Light: Spiritual Nurture for Climate Activism program

• Tuesday,, July 25 ( home of Hale and Tucker Smith) 7:30-9:30pm.
• Tuesday, August 29 (Home of Jennie Mulqueen) 7:30-9:30pm.

What is calling you to do environmental justice work? There will be 2 more meetings over the summer to talk more about environmental justice and what might we do at First Parish. You need not have attended the program to attend these meetings. Here are the dates. If you would like to sign up for one of these gatherings, please contact Jennie by email.

Dear Friends,

First of all, I need to say a heartfelt thank you to Linda and David Carney-Goodrich for their leadership and enthusiastic support of adding an environmental justice component to our social justice work at First Parish Milton. On Sunday, June 11, FP MIlton’s Social Action Committee sponsored a workshop led by the Reverend Fred Small entitled “Give Light: Spiritual Nurture for Climate Activism”. Peter Schneider was also instrumental in creating publicity materials and getting the word out about our gathering. Finally, without Debbie Alsebai and Linda, we might have had some rumbling stomachs, so a hearty thank you to them for providing nourishment for our soul diving!

Attendance was strong; we had over twenty-five FP MIlton multi-generational congregants in attendance, including Rev. Lisa and Laurel Whitehouse. It was indeed powerful to be in our sacred space on Sunday afternoon as we went deep into environmental justice and sustainability. Moving forward, I am genuinely inspired to continue the conversation and we will be doing so by holding three visioning gatherings over the summer. As we ponder the UUA Green Sanctuary Certification program and how we can do environmental justice work as a faith community, it is important to hear many voices during the team formation and visioning process. It is also important to acknowledge from the onset that this effort simply CANNOT be the work of a small team; there MUST be buy in and commitment of the larger congregation if this initiative is to sustain and have any meaningful impact.

At these meetings we will discuss four fundamental questions:

What is calling you to do environmental justice work?
What, specifically, do you have in mind for First Parish Milton?
What questions do you have?
What do you imagine could be your role in working for environmental justice at FP Milton?

(Most likely, the Green Team will meet monthly to provide leadership and coordination of efforts throughout the congregation. If this level of commitment does not feel right, we invite you to think out of the box and consider what projects or initiatives you could spearhead in a coordinated and well-led campaign.)

These meetings will be held on the final Tuesday evenings of the summer months: July 25 ( Home of Hale and Tucker Smith), and August 29 (Home of Jennie Mulqueen) from 7:30-9:30pm.

If you would like to sign up for one of these gatherings,please contact Jennie by email.

Namaste,

Jennie Mulqueen, Social Action Committee Member

Kiki’s Corner

Monday, July 3 – Thursday, July 6 Staff Updates/Office Closing

• The office is closed on Tuesday, July 4th.
• Kiki and Kevin are in the office all week.
• Kathy will be in on Thursday only.
• Rev. Lisa and Laurel are out of the office all week
• Tim, Joel, and Sara Elizabeth are off in July.

STAY CONNECTED

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REMINDER THE LINK DEADLINE IS TUEDAYS

“Brevity Matters” – Peter Bowden, Social Media Guru and wise UU

Deadline for submissions is Tuesdays. You need to address email to both office@fpmilton.org and director@fpmilton.org to assure your announcement will be included in the weekly Link. Written announcements for the Sunday Order of Worship are derived from the announcements for The Link. We, from time to time, will also publish non-church events with a connection to a member of the church. Your submission may be edited due to space requirements. We recommend that you submit no more than 1 – 2 paragraphs.

CHURCH OFFICE HOURS

Monday – Thursday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Other times by appointment

MINISTER OFFICE HOURS

Tuesday – Thurday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Other times by appointment

The Church office is closed on Fridays

SUMMER SUNDAYS

June 25 – September 3
Worship, 9:30 am in the Children’s Church
Silent Prayer & Meditation, 8:30 am in the Children’s Church
No Religious Exploration Program , Nursery Care, Choir Rehearsal

Beginning Sunday, September 10

Worship, 10:30am in the Meetinghouse
Choir Rehearsal (most Sundays) at 8:45 am
Silent Prayer & Meditation, 9:00am in the Children’s Church

EVERY THURSDAY

Silent Prayer & Meditation, 6:30pm in the Children’s Church

SIGN UP GENIUS (formerly known as the Planner)

The link to SignUp Genius is:

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090d44aca728a02-sunday?1472051612751