This Week in Worship

Sunday, January 10th Worship @ 10:30 am in Meetinghouse

Recently a colleague, who was about to preach at an ordination, sent a note to some clergy asking what surprised us the most about ministry. My answer was about level of vulnerability that people share with their clergy. I thought of a few conversations where people shared information about themselves that left me thinking “why are they telling me this?” The answer was of course that I was the minister.

Being a minister means that I am with people when they are having the best day of their lives, and sometimes when they are having the worst day. The crazy thing is, that I signed up for it, or more precisely, I was called to be a minister. Being a part of a religious community means that you too are willing to be vulnerable, and to accept the vulnerabilities of others. When Anne Principe started as our temporary Religious Educator, she reminded me that she is hearing impaired and that I need to speak a bit slower. I was so grateful for her reminder and also that she felt open enough to remind me with a grace that I don’t always have around my own vulnerabilities.

Being a part of First Parish mean that we are part of a covenanted community where we agree to walk together, with our strengths and weaknesses, whether they are physical, emotional or spiritual. What a blessing.

See you in church!

Hank

P.S. Mark your calendars for…

The Milton Community’s Annual Memorial Celebration of The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Just Us or Justice? The Choice is Ours

When: Monday, January 18th 6:30 – 8:00 pm
Where: Concord Baptist Church, 180 Blue Hills Avenue, Milton, MA

Sponsored by Milton Interfaith Clery Association

Religious Exploration

Sunday, January 10th

Welcome our new Religious Educator, Anne Prinicipe

• Spirit Play Pre K – 2nd grade ~ Go directly to their class room at 10:30am
• SGM 3rd – 6th Graders ~ Will begin in the Meetinghouse before being dismissed to their Religious Exploration class
• Junior Youth Group 8th – 7th Graders ~ Meet in the Parlor at 10:30am
• Youth Chat will meet in the youth room.
• The Nursery is available for children ages 4 and younger.

News and Announcements

ALL Church Council — January 24th – 12pm

The Parish Committee invites Committee Chairs, committee members and everyone with in interest in our shared future to the next All Church Council Sunday January 24, 2016 from noon till 2PM. This is a great event if you are new to committee work or would like to participate in a single project. If you want to know what is ahead for First Parish in the exciting months to come, this is the one forum not to miss. We will take time for each hard working group to update the community on activities, successes, goals and yes, dreams. Please share with anyone interested in getting to know others who do so much for FP Milton.

“S’More Fun” ~ Saturday Night, January 30th

COME FOR “S’MORE FUN” AT CAMP RUN-A-MUK

First Parish Milton’s Stewardship 2016 Celebration

When: Saturday night, January 30, 7:00 – 10:30, in the ol’ Mess Hall

Never been to camp? Unleash your inner camper wannabe!

Dress: creative camp-wear (shorts, boots/mocs/Crocs/flops, lanyards, camp logos, bandanas, badges, hats…)

SOCIAL ACTION COMMITTEE NEWS

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”
-Mother Teresa

January 10, 2016 10 am – 1 pm Fair Food Inc

First Parish members will meet one Saturday a month, from 10 am – 1 pm, to help distribute food. Contact Dave. On December 19th, Dave was joined by 14 others to work at Fair Food Inc. Are you willing to join the team? A FP Milton delegation will be going to the program on the 2nd Saturday of the month. Meet at church.

Renewal House Toiletry Drive – January 2016

As previously announced, the Social Action Committee will be organizing a toiletry drive for the families at Renewal House each Sunday during the month of January. These are the specific items we are looking to have donated:

Toothbrushes and toothpaste, Floss, Mouth wash, Shaving cream and razors, Loofahs (lots of loofahs!) Body wash, Soap, Body lotion, Hand lotion, Deodorant, Laundry detergent, Fabric softener

Look for the white basket with the blue bow in the Parish Hall foyer. Items should be new and unused

Mentors Needed February to May

Mandatory Training – Saturday, January 30th from 1 to 3 PM — UU Urban Ministry

We are in great need of mentors right now. We are working with Boston Partners in Education this year to offer a “Power Lunch” mentor model at the Timilty Middle School in Roxbury. UU volunteers will be matched with a 6th grade child (or two). The goal will be for you to meet once a week for the spring semester (Feb-May) from 12:00-12:45pm to read with your mentee. (Depending on the child, you might read aloud, they might read aloud, or you both might read at home and discuss the book together). Tues, Wed, and Thurs are best. It looks like a lot of weeks, but please keep in mind you will not be meeting with your mentee during school vacation weeks, holidays, or standardized testing weeks.
BPE will be offering a mandatory and comprehensive mentor training for all mentors on Saturday, Jan. 30th from 1-3pm at the UUUM.

If you would like to sign up please fill out this application on line:

For the “Group Affiliation” tab be sure to select UU Urban Ministry.

For further information on Renewal House and Focus on Children projects, please contact Social Action Committee member, Linda Carney-Goodrich.

SAVE THE DATE! Saturday, January 23, 2016

And please spread the word

What: Anti-Racism Summit

Where: UU Urban Ministry (10 Putnam Street Roxbury, MA 02119)

Time: 10am-2pm (Coffee and registration at 9:30am)

Featuring a panel discussion with representatives from Black Lives Matter Boston and the Muslim Justice League.

This summit for Unitarian Universalists engaged in and thinking about Racial Justice will provide an opportunity for UU groups to be together, meet others fighting for racial equality, and share best practices and ideas. Come learn how to be a more effective ally and stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter Boston and the Muslim Community in Boston.

The Search Continues

News from the Ministerial Search Committee

Ready, Get Set…

During the month of December, prospective ministers are reviewing our Congregational Record to determine whether they will express interest in our position. Meanwhile we are putting the last finishing touches on our Congregational Packet. Once complete, the Congregational Packet will take the form of a password-protected website. Later this week we will be making that website accessible for the congregation to view via the members’ page of our main First Parish website. We have all put many hours into the website to ensure it shows all the great things a new minister would gain from joining us, so if you see any your MSC members and we seem a little sleep-deprived, please offer us a smile or a hug … And if any of you are in touch with Laurie Macintosh, make sure to express your gratitude to her for the enormous number of hours she has put into constructing our website.

In January, we will begin the process of reviewing Ministerial Records from those interested in First Parish. When we determine there is mutual interest, we will exchange Packets, which contain much more information than the Records. We will study candidate materials, and conduct preliminary interviews (either by phone or Skype) with the candidates that look best to us.

We will have a list of our top candidates by the end of January. We will provide as much generic information as we can about the process, but as mentioned previously, we will be operating in confidential mode, and will not be including specific information about any candidate. Thank you for your understanding and support!

As always, feel free to contact the members of your Ministerial Search Committee with questions or concerns:

Debbie Alsebai, Charlie Franich, Franc Graham, Elise Henricks, Jim May, Brigitte Miller, and Tracey Robinson.

Kiki’s Corner

Yes we have new gas furnances, they work and we have heat. Hopefully, it is seemless to you as you use the Meetinghouse, Link and Parish House areas. All this happened pretty seemlessly the weeks of December 21 and December 28. Roger Gray, our most excellent Building and Grounds Chair, followed this project from beginning to end and we are deeply in his debt. He was here most of Christmas week. (We found out that Roger’s own home was under renovation that week as well.) Williams Energy, who has provided service on the old funace was selected to do the converstion. Kevin Harnden, our Sexton, once again was invaluable in keeping track of the various folks in the building and learned about our new system each step of the way. Miriam, Rev. Hank & I braved the inside cold (and smells) to continue to keep things going that week. So thanks to Roger and his great efforts this program year we have completed the repavement of the parking lots and now the oil to gas furnace conversion. And we have one more major repair in process this year, the replacement of the Parish Hall doors. Doors have been ordered and when they arrive (probably 4 – 6 weeks) we will embark on this last project. Thanks Roger and Kevin for working the magic on our version of This Old House.

STAY CONNECTED

Follow First Parish on Facebook and get updates, poems, announcements and more. You’ll be glad you did!

EVERY SUNDAY

Worship, 10:30am in the Meetinghouse

Silent Prayer & Meditation, 9:00am in the Children’s Church

THE SUNDAY PLANNER

Please consider volunteering for important Sunday worship positions like ushering, hosting social hour, providing flowers for worship, and lighting the chalice. Sign Up Here!