Rev. Lisa Ward has been our settled minister since August of 2016. Ordained in 1992, Rev. Lisa has served congregations in New York City, Queens, White Plains, NY and Harford County, MD. A graduate from Union Theological Seminary in NYC, she has engaged in social justice initiatives throughout her career… 
This Week in Worship
October 17, 2021
“On Friendship”
Facilitated by: Rev. Lisa Ward
Worship Associate: Penny Partridge
Music: Tim Steele
Audio Engineer: Madeleine Miller
This will be a hybrid service. You are welcome to join us in the Meetinghouse (masks required for those over 5 years old and childcare will be available). If you prefer, you are welcome to join us via Zoom.
Please see the zoom link below. Please log in at 10:20, to give some lead time for the service at 10:30. You will be muted, but you can communicate through the chat box. If you do not have zoom on your computer, please download it ahead of time. It is free.
This Sunday’s collection is designated to the Right Question Institute. RQI is an educational organization offering simple, powerful strategy that builds peoples’ skills to ask better questions, participate in decisions that affect them, advocate for themselves and to become active citizens on all levels of our democratic society. Chris Orchard, Director of Communications, joins us at service.
What is the desperation, I ask myself. What drives the bullying of a large number of anti-maskers and anti-vaxxers? Fear and control are rivers that run through this, but there is something more. There’s a disconnection with the gift of life – a distance from soul. I refer to soul much like Thomas Moore describes it in his book The Care of Soul: “cultivating a depth and sacredness in everyday life”.
There is a vast emptiness about us these days, due in large part to the trauma and global disruption of this pandemic. We are trying to fill the emptiness with self-righteousness and claim of territory. We are manufacturing meaning by forging against “the enemy”. We are simplifying the world into an imperative of “us” and “them”. We think creating drama and conflict helps us feel important and alive. And let’s not kid ourselves. Most of us are tempted to do this, to one degree or another.
The increased display of rudeness and civil cruelty is particularly unnerving, as is the media’s propensity to report it, though it is not unique to these times. Humans have tended toward civil cruelty since societies were formed. One would hope, however, that we could someday transcend these ego distortions that keep us from soul’s wisdom.
Ironically, the healing is in forming societies and depth of connection. You have that possibility here. You have the healing care, the forgiving loyalty, the insistent wonder, the regenerative curiosity. Keep these qualities alive. Dare the hope of your transformative capacity. Stay the course of civility. Do not feed the cruelty. We are, indeed, met with this choice every day. Believe in yourselves. Believe in this faith community. Believe in humanity.
This I pray.
Blessings Be, Rev. Lisa
Religious Exploration
Religious Exploration for Children begins in the courtyard when worship begins and ends when worship concludes. Please sign your child(ren) in on the Contact Tracing Sheet.
Tent Team sets up and takes down the larger tent we use for RE. It takes 5-10 minutes to set up at 9:30 and another 5-10 minutes to take down at the end of coffee hour. If you are able to help with raising and lowering the tent please go to https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090d44aca728a02-2021 and sign up.
Creepy Carriage House Update & Date Change
Due to a conflict with Milton High School Homecoming, we have moved the date of Creepy Carriage House to Sunday 24 October (with a rain date of Saturday 30 October). We will gather at the meetinghouse on Sunday 17 October at 3 PM to work on the event. Please join in!
In the month of October, in worship and Religious Exploration, we lift up and explore cultivating Relationship.
From this month’s Soulful Home, a blessing:
Blessed is the astronomical improbability that resulted in exactly you being born, exactly you growing up, exactly you cultivating a childhood for a so-very-important member of the next generation of humans.
Blessed are the threads that connect us to one another, the universal conscience, the circumstances, the kinship networks that bring us into one another’s lives bearing gifts of joy, laughter, and teaching.
And blessed is the earth beneath you, where at precisely this moment you are sitting, laying, standing, dancing, or swaying; that earth has nourished eons of life forms–grand, grand, grandparent to all of creation.
Molly B. Nolan, Transitional Director of Religious Education
MUSIC THIS SUNDAY
During worship this Sunday Penny Knight will be offering a James Taylor song called “Shower the People”. She will be singing and playing the guitar. Also you will hear Jennifer Sgroe sing a setting of the well-known Emily Dickinson text, “If I Can Stop One Heart From Breaking”. This song is composed by the prolific African-American composer Adolphus Hailstork.
Table of Contents
For Events, News and Announcements
1.Upcoming Meetings
2. All Church Council
3.Milton Diversity Equity & Inclusion Survey
4. Meditation
5.Yoga
6.S & EJ Committee News
UPCOMING MEETINGS
Imaginarium
Meetings are generally on the Fourth Thursday in the Meetinghouse (masks required at this time)
7:00pm-9:00pm (next meeting: October 28)
The Imaginarium is a group that explores our monthly worship themes through discussion, stories and creative play. We meet once a month, crafting ideas and experiences inspired by the themes. Come, enjoy the shared wisdom, creativity and connection. Each meeting stands on its own. Interested? contact the office: office@fpmilton.org.
Grief Support Group
Four Tuesdays: Oct. 19 & 26, Nov. 2 & 9
7:00pm – 8:30 pm
Through Zoom at this time
Facilitator: Rev. Lisa Ward
When we lose a loved one through death, the world is different, our lives shift in meaning, our ground is shaken. We can feel isolated by our grief. We can also feel a lack of strength or initiative to find a way through. One way to help adjust to the new reality and find our inner resources is to share our journey of loss and recovery with others. There are many ways that we grieve and many kinds of losses. This group is focused on loss due to the death of a loved one. The loss can be recent or from years gone by. We ask participants to commit to at least three of the sessions, no new participants after Oct. 26.
All Church Council Meeting
Friday, Oct 15th
6:30 pm-8:00 pm
Several times a year, we gather for our All Church Council. All committee chairs or representatives are encouraged to attend. The gathering is open to all church members and friends. This is an opportunity for church leadership to connect and discuss goals and challenges for the year.
We will be holding the meeting over Zoom.
Did you know Milton has an Equity & Justice for All Advisory Committee? To assist the Committee’s work advising the Town Select Board, we have prepared a survey aimed at better understanding Milton resident attitudes on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. If you are a Milton resident, please take part in the survey below:
https://forms.gle/r2EedQ2upkE8zCEU8
You may share this with your Milton network; this is an individual not household, survey – as long as residents are over the age of 18, multiple individuals in a household may take the survey.
Meditation
All are welcome to join for 30 minutes of silent meditation/prayer on:
Thursday evenings at 6:45 pm-7:15 pm
Sunday mornings at 8:30am-9:00am
Newcomers and friends welcome.
Please contact Tracey at tdr02186@gmail.com if you have questions or want to join us!
Classes with instructor Elyse Siegmann!
Online via Zoom (see link below) till further notice
This is a NEW Zoom link!
6:30 pm Monday evenings
From S & EJ Committee
Open Air Art Exhibit
Oct 17, 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM
UU Urban Ministry, 10 Putnam St, Boston, MA 02119, USA
For those who were inspired by Rev Mary Margaret Earl last Sunday and are looking for a fun fall outing next weekend, check out the upcoming Art Show at the Urban Ministry. This event is part of the UUUM’s Roxbury Artist Amplification Project, and will feature the work of artists featured in their Artist Directory.
Calling all Father Bill volunteers!
Next date is MONDAY, October 25th!
Volunteers acquire food and pack 10-20 lunches and deliver to the church between 12:45 pm-1:00 pm on Delivery day (every other Monday).
One team lead drives all the lunches to the shelter in Brockton.
Sign up on our Mainspring Sign up-please indicate number of lunches you will bring.
If you require more information or have questions please contact Peter Schneider at peterlschneider@gmail.com
Fair Foods is a non-profit program that rescues fresh produce that
would otherwise be wasted and uses it to feed our communities. We volunteer together unloading and sorting food and packing bags once a month.
The next volunteer date is Saturday, October 16th
If you want to volunteer, please sign up on Sign up Genius by Thursday
evening before the event. Start time and locations vary depending on Fair Foods’ needs, but typically start at 8:30 a.m. at their warehouse in Roxbury.
Other volunteer opportunities are also available at Fair Foods on weekdays
from early morning until mid-afternoon.
Any questions or for more information contact Tony Dutzik at tdutzik@gmail.com
Sign up to volunteer on Sign up Genius
UU Monthly Action Hour
Next one on Thursday, October 28th 12:00 pm
Do current news headlines overwhelm you? Do you find it challenging to make time to DO SOMETHING, like signing petitions, calling your legislators, or sending emails about issues you care about?
UU Mass Action’s monthly action hour is for you! Some members of First
Parish’s Social and Environmental Justice Committee have taken part in past
months. Justice issues include immigration, climate, economic, indigenous
people’s, and more… all aligned with front line community partners and
Mass Power Forward. Templates and scripts are ready made: all we need is
you! Make a sandwich and tune in here.
STAY CONNECTED
Follow First Parish on Facebook and get updates, poems, announcements and more. You’ll be glad you did!
CHURCH OFFICE HOURS
Monday – Thursday 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Other times by appointment
MINISTER OFFICE HOURS
Tuesday – Thursday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Other times by appointment
The Church office is closed on Fridays
Sundays through mid June
- Worship, 9:30 am in the Meetinghouse
- Choir Rehearsal (most Sundays) at 8:45 am
SIGN UP GENIUS (formerly known as the Planner)
The link to SignUp Genius is: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090d44aca728a02-sunday1
You can sign up for one our our Sunday volunteer positions.