Table of Contents

• This Week in Worship
• Message from Rev. Lisa
• This Week in Religious Exploration
• News and Announcements
• Events and Meetings
• Social & Environmental Justice Committee (SEJC)
• Volunteer Opportunities
• Beyond First Parish

This Week in Worship

Union Sunday

“Peace Be With You“

Unity Sunday: Co-Ministers: R.G. Wilson-Lyons, First Congregational Church and Rev. Lisa Ward, First Parish Milton

Worship Assistant: Brigitte Miller

Greeter: Mallory Digges & Dianna Wilson

Chalice Lighter: Elise Henricks, Chair of the Worship Committee

Audio: Eric Miller

Please join us for service at 10:30am.

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 week’s offering will be given to Alternatives for Community & Environment (ACE). ACE builds the power of communities of color and low-income communities in Massachusetts to eradicate environmental racism and classism, create healthy, sustainable communities, and achieve environmental justice. Deputy Director, Stephanie Williams will speak on its behalf.

I look forward to Unity Sundays. Interfaith engagement is a love of mine. I think it is because we, as Unitarian Universalists, have an openness and curiosity toward various expressions of the sacred and of belief. When in Seminary, I used to love to go to the noon chapel services, led by different students, and wonder “How do you name it?”, the “It” being that which cannot be fully named of which we are a part.

In the last eight years, first with Rev. John Allen and now with Rev. R.G. Wilson-Lyons, First Parish in Milton and the First Congregational Church have increased collaboration, from sharing parking for each other’s events to a joint effort to support LGBTQAI youth through the Rainbow Youth Alliance. It is a pleasure to acknowledge our own particular faith journeys and find the common values of care, justice and shared life.

This Sunday we are celebrating Unity Sunday here, at First Parish. We will have a joint choir and several reflections on aspects of peace. It is a pleasure to share worship together.

Blessings Be, Rev. Lisa

Music This Week

This Sunday the combined choral forces of First Congregational Church and First Parish Church will present two anthems. One will be “Neighbor, Take This Torch of Peace”, by Emma Lou Diemer on a text by Dorothy Diemer Hendry. This anthem was written for the Waging Peace Through Singing project at the University of Oregon in 2006. The other will be a setting of “Milton” by Timothy Olmsted in 1805 on a text by John Greenleaf Whittier. Hunsaker soloists Elaine Daiber and Michael Aoun will also sing a duet arrangement by Joel Raney of the traditional spiritual “Peace Like a River”. Milton Community Concerts would a like to invite you to our final concert of the season on Sunday, April 28 at 3pm, “In Community: A Concert Celebrating LGBTQ+ Stories”.

RE This Week

UU Summer Fun Registration!

It’s time to formally register for our UU summer fun! Follow this link to register. Per the recommendation of the Religious Education Committee, we are shifting our age range to also welcome preschoolers whose older siblings will also be attending our summer fun and/or who attend Spirit Play but may not be entering first grade. Please reach out to Louise (re@fpmilton.org) with questions about this new policy. We continue to want to be flexible and accommodating, while still prioritizing safety and a quality experience for all involved.

News & Announcements

From the Caring Committee:

Calling all cooks, drivers, and helpers! The Caring Committee needs to update its roster of volunteers. Volunteers receive emails from the Caring Committee asking for help when community members need support. Examples include 

– cooking a meal for someone when they are recovering from surgery, or for a family when they are grieving 

– driving someone to or from a medical appointment

– mowing a lawn or other light housework when someone is ill or recovering from surgery or an injury

If you would like your name added to the list of volunteers, please let us know by filling out a form by the grey box in the link or contacting a Caring Committee member at social hour or by email. 

Caring Committee members: Marie-Laure Brown, Suzanne Glazer, Laura Reis, Heather Scranton, Lisa White.

Events and Meetings

First Parish Orientation!

TODAY Thursday, April 4th Zoom 7:00 pm-9:00 pm

The Membership Committee has scheduled our next orientation to First Parish.

If you are someone who has been attending church for awhile and want to officially join, you are invited to attend our session. We will talk about our spiritual journeys, discuss the fascinating history of our Unitarian and Universalist backgrounds, and share what First Parish in Milton offers.

If you plan to attend, please email Leslie at lesliecmacpherson@gmail.com aand she will send you the link.

The First Parish Auction is THIS SATURDAY!

Join us as we welcome in spring with a fun night of food and music. .. AND a silent and live auction to raise funds for First Parish.  Don’t forget to RSVP (via the evite or by letting Cathy McGonagle know) – we look forward to seeing you this weekend – Saturday, April 6th, 6-9pm!

Check out the Auction Catalogue (click on underlined words)

There are so many creative items and services offered by community members! You don’t want your chance to bid to be eclipsed by the solar eclipse! If you can’t be there, find a friend to proxy bid for you on Saturday night; or text your final bids to Cathy McGonagle at 617-833-8908 by 5pm on Friday. Don’t worry about payment, we’ll catch up with you later!

Two More Circle Suppers

Our first two Circle Suppers filled up and were a big success. There are two more opportunities to socialize with First Parish friends and acquaintances in an informal setting. These potluck gatherings, April 26 and May 3, will include facilitator-led discussions of the proposed changes to Article II, which we’ll be voting on at Annual Meeting in May so that our delegates to General Assembly can represent our wishes.

Sign up for your preferred date and food contribution here:

Link to sign up.

STORYTELLING IN THE CHILDREN’S CHAPEL

April 27th at 4:00 pm

Do you have a story you want to share? Come join us at 4 p.m. on Saturday, April 27, in the Children’s Chapel. Our gathering will be like the Moth Radio Hour with a five minute limit for each story – but it’s not a competition. You can just listen if you want. The theme will be “Beginning.”

Questions? Contact Dan de Angeli (dandda14@gmail.com) or Penny Partridge (ppartridge9@icloud.com)

Social & Environmental Justice Committee (SEJC)

April 17th is the next date!

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

See updated instructions on the Mainspring SignUpGenius page and signup whenever you can help out.

We are counting on your support!

Climate Action@HOME

SUNDAY May 5, 2024 12:00pm-1:00pm Chase Parlor

Climate Action at Home wraps up our year-long series of discussion. Come learn more about Carbon Footprints!

 A small FPM group has been meeting for several months learning how to calculate our own Carbon Footprints. We would like to share what we learned and see if others are interested in learning more about their own carbon footprints. Please join us.

Bikes not Bombs

Anyone want a tour of Bikes not Bombs?

Dnaye Fangonga visited First Parish recently to share his experience and passion for the wonderful organization Bikes Not Bombs – located in Jamaica Plain. Dnaye has invited us to bring a group of interested people to tour the headquarters in JP and learn more about how social change fuels the work they do. 

If you are interested in joining a field trip, contact Tracey (tdr02186 @gmail). We will identify possible dates in the coming month.

Beyond First Parish

Embracing our Trans and Gender Diverse Community:

A Panel Discussion April 21st 4:30 pm

At First Congregational Church, our first priority is “Belong.” We want to be a church where everybody feels like they belong. In reality, to make this happen, it takes a willingness to grow and learn. At this event, a panel of people closely connected to our church will share their own experiences and answer questions about being trans or the parent of a gender-diverse child. This is meant to be a time to ask questions without worrying about saying the wrong thing. It is a time to learn about other people’s lived experience and to think through how our church might become a place of even greater belonging for everyone.

You also may wonder why a conversation like this is needed. Perhaps you’re a parent of a child who is expressing gender diversity. Or perhaps you’re hoping to be an ally but are not quite sure how. Maybe you’re wondering why it’s worth learning about different uses of pronouns. Whatever your reason, the reality is that there are trans and non-binary people who are part of our church, part of our wider community, and, whether you realize it or not, likely a part of your family or close network of friends. And we believe that having a loving supportive community makes a huge difference. In fact, the Trevor Project reports that trans and gender-diverse youth who have affirming and accepting adults in their lives and are a part of affirming and accepting communities have much lower rates of significant mental health challenges, including suicidal ideation. Learning how to be a trans ally can make all the difference for someone.

Join us on April 21st at 4:30 p.m. for a time of learning as we further lean into our priority to be a church where everyone belongs. 

*See flyer below*

Courageous Conversations Towards Racial Justice’s next read will be “The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America” by Richard Rothstein. 

We will meet on Zoom on Tues 5/14/24 and 5/28/24 from 7:00 pm-8:30 pm  

For 5/14/24 we will read through Chapter 7 and we will finish the book on 5/28/24. 

It is not readily available at the Milton Library or the Boston Library (online at least) without a wait, but used copies are available at BooksRun and new and used at Amazon.  

Ibram X. Kendi in “How To Be an Antiracist” pointed out that policy is either racist or antiracist. This new book seems to add support of this concept. 

For Questions and or the Zoom link please reach out to Debbie Alsebai at alsebai@verizon.net.

AMERICAN RED CROSS BLOOD DRIVE

Sponsored by

Milton Interfaith Clergy Association

Thursday, June 27th 1:00 pm-6:00 pm

Congregation Beth Shalom of the Blue Hills

18 Shoolman Way

Milton, MA 02186

The blood drive will be live and ready for scheduling by March 18th. 

 To schedule appointment on or after Mar 18 please visit www.redcrossblood.org and

 enter sponsor code: MICA

Or call 1 (800)-Red-Cross

---

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.