Table of Contents

• This Week in Worship
• Message from Reverend Lisa
• Music Info
• RE
• Events
• Social & Environmental Justice
• Beyond First Parish
• Actions for Justice and Democracy

This Week in Worship

April Worship Theme: HEALING

“Transformation”

Worship Assistant: Steve Yakutis

Audio: Colin Glazer

Social Hour: Owen and Cathy McGonagle

Social Hour:  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.

Happy Easter, Happy Passover – two Sacred Holidays in the Judeo-Christian tradition, to summon liberation and Grace, manifestation and miracle, hope and courage. Stories of resurrection and the claiming of faith, disciplines of gratitude and the facing history all intertwine messages of resurrection and redemption that resonate with Spring.

Easter touches on our heritage as Unitarian Universalists and calls us to bring Jesus’ life message of justice, equity and compassion back into notice. One definition of resurrection is “to come back into notice”. Passover emphasizes the shaping of where we are going by where we have come from.

We are called to pay attention to what is happening around us – the trends, the power dynamics, the habits of mind and the stuck places – to break free from fear of death to claim the praise of life. Facing our history can compel us to see what needs liberation from distorted systems of beliefs that divide and conquer, separate and judge, demonize and discourage. 

Simply, do we choose life or death? We have the freedom to do either. And we have plenty of examples, right now, of destructive, death leaning behavior. We also see resistance to that trend with growing force. Let us choose life-giving ways, let us choose justice-centered visions, let us choose love of creation. 

Happy Easter. Happy Passover. Brave blooming. Shalom.

Rev. Lisa

TENEBRAE

April 18th 7:00pm-Childrens Church

Slow, somber, inclusive

A service to commemorate the tragedy of Jesus’ death

Music This Week

This Easter Sunday there’s lots of music to look forward to during worship. The Meetinghouse Choir will be offering two selections. One will be a festive Call to Worship called “Alleluia, Sing With Joy” by Dave and Jean Perry. The other will be an inspirational anthem called “Peace By Piece”, by Cantor Robbie Solomon. Carina Digianfilippo and Grace Allendorf will be joining on a duet called “Prayer Litany”, by Helen Kemp. and will be joined by guest violinist Marjorie Gere (who will also be providing solo music throughout the service).

RE This Week

This Sunday will be an Art Workshop in which a visiting artist will guide the kids in making a unique art piece that will be framed and auctioned as part of the Art Festival.

After service, we’ll have the First Parish Easter Egg Hunt! Bring a basket if you can. Easter eggs will be filled with candy (including options for top 9 allergen free goodies) and trinkets for kiddos to enjoy. 

Wee the People workshop visits on April 27th.

Unity Sunday is on May 4th at United Congregational at 495 Canton Ave. 10 am service. Passages with Marie-Laure Brown will still meet at the regular time at First Parish.

News & Announcements

SEEKING LAY LEADERS FOR SUMMER SERVICES

Our summer services provide an opportunity to get creative, try something new, and connect more deeply with others. Summer services start at 9:30 and tend to be more intimate and casual than services during the church year. There’s lots of flexibility to how they’re structured, and there’s also lots of help available. Is this the summer for you to try one?

Please contact Lisa White (lisawhite1250@gmail.com) or Steve Yakutis (steve.yakutis@gmail.com) if you’re interested.

Keep the coffee percolating!

Social hour hosts needed for:

May 4

May 11

May 25

Click HERE to sign up. Thank you for your hospitality!

Gatherings for your Spirit

If there is a topic you would like to explore with others, feel free to contact Rev. Lisa to discuss possibilities. minister@fpmilton.org

Navigating the Political Climate Next meeting May 7thWill meet via Zoom on the first Wednesday of the month 7:00 pm – 8:00 pmWe will meet once a month to help each other sort through the impact of the political climate and share ways to ground ourselves.Contact Rev. Lisa at minister@fpmilton.org if interested.

Events

Many thanks to all who baked, bought, bid, at the Chocolate Auction. We raised over $1,900 to support the building of the new Wayside Pulpit and to spruce up the Narthex! 

Particular thanks to Tom Kemp, our intrepid auctioneer; Guy Pugh, auctioneer assistant; Steve Yakutis “front desk”; Debbie Alsebai, organization; Lisa Ward, set-up; Dianna Wilson, Children’s Raffle; Sherri and Susan for their behind the scenes work. 

It was another yummy day at First Parish!

Milton Creates!

A Community Arts Festival at First Parish

Saturday May 3rd, 6:30pm-9:30pm

Don’t miss this fabulous evening of art, fine crafts, live music, wine, cheese, and raffle prizes. An immersive experience, where you can bid in both live and silent auctions and help raise funds to support First Parish’s programming and our commitment to community outreach.

How to participate:

• Share your talents and donate your original artwork or fine craft.
• Volunteer to set up, clean up, or organize.
• Invite your friends and show up for an evening of art appreciation and comradery with friends, old and new.
• Check out your living space. Imagine some exciting and evocative new artwork there.

For more information contact: jennifer.pinkus@gmail.com

The Mother’s Day Walk for Peace (MDW4P) is a beloved Boston tradition honoring the lives of our loved ones who have been murdered. It is the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute’s (LDBPI) largest fundraising event to grow and sustain our services, advocacy and training.

This year’s theme is “Cultivating Cycles of Peace.” In our society, we are constantly looped into cycles of violence that overshadow the transformative power of peace. We have the agency to cultivate these cycles by empowering survivors, supporting returning citizens and their families and investing in Generation Peace, the young people shaping the world.

Thank you for walking with us on Mother’s Day as we Cultivate Cycles of Peace in our communities. With your help, we can reach our goal of $600,000 together by Mother’s Day, May 11, 2025!

Click on the register tab. Join First Parish team by search for FP Milton UU team to join our team. Once registered, you will be given your own fundraising page to send out to friends.

Click to Register and Walk

Click to Donate Only

Social & Environmental Justice

Next date: May 21st

S&EJ (Social & Environmental Justice committee) is looking for volunteers the third Wednesday of each month to contribute lunches. We hope to deliver 70 lunches a month to support shelter guests.

Please sign up whenever you can help out by clicking on button below.

We are counting on your support!

Beyond First Parish

APRIL 22 E-WASTE COLLECTIONCelebrate Earth Week!  An E-waste collection drive is on!!  4/22 from 2-5 pm at Milton Academy.Here is the flier with full details.Thank you to the school’s Sustainability Committee, student members, and faculty mentors.Bust junk responsibly!

“LIGHT TRESPASS” WARRANT ARTICLE.37 

at MILTON TOWN MEETING MAY 5

Do you experience glaring overnight light intrusion from a neighbor’s property? Security lights? Porch lights? Garage lights? Some, or all? What’s a nuisance to humans is a killer to nocturnal wildlife and an ecological threat to insects. Light reduction — not elimination, to be clear — as proposed by Warrant Article 37 would help restore and preserve Milton’s biodiversity and quality of residential life. 

Be an advocate: contact your precinct’s Town Meeting Members AFTER April 29 local elections and BEFORE May 5 Town Meeting. For the full text: Draft Warrant Article: General Bylaws Amendment re: Light Trespass 

TIP: Did you know that a yellow-tinted LED bulb is the least attractive to nocturnal bugs and the safest alternative to a white bulb in exterior fixtures? Show some love to bugs.

Actions for Justice and Democracy Coming up this week…

As students and immigrants here in Boston and across the country face deportation for speaking in support of Palestinian lives and the Trump administration openly declares its intention to ethnically cleanse Gaza, the American Jewish community has a choice: will we comply with Trump’s authoritarian agenda, or will we fight antisemitism by protecting civil liberties for all?

This Passover, the holiday of freedom and liberation, join Jewish organizations from around Boston to call for the release of student protestors, including Rumeysa Ozturk and Mahmoud Khalil, to protect free speech, and to ensure the right of all people to live in our homes free from fear. We say clearly that deportations for political speech will not support the fight against antisemitism. Rather, we know that Jewish safety is intertwined with that of all marginalized people, including Palestinians both here and in Israel/Palestine. Jewish safety comes from shared safety for all people. RSVP here