This Week in Virtual Worship

May 30, 2021

MAY THEME: Emergence

Sermon: “The Guidance of Remembrance”

Facilitated by:  Rev. Lisa Ward 

Worship Associate: Tom Kemp

Music:  Tim Steele

Audio Engineer:  Daniel Truog

Virtual Social Hour Host:   Lisa White

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.

Please be on the lookout for an Order of Worship which will be emailed to you on Friday, 5/28

Sunday’s offering will be dedicated to the services and ministry of First Parish.

We will continue having a social hour after services. Just stay on the Zoom worship call. It will be good to worship together. Do join us on Sunday if you can.

It was heartening to see a number of First Parish members join the March for George and Justice on May 25th, the anniversary of the murder of George Floyd.  The march started in Milton at Parkway Methodist and ended a little more than a mile away, traversing Blue Hill Avenue, at Walker Park in Mattapan.  The march and rally were uplifting, peaceful and contained, to the point that the State Police congratulated us, as planners, for a successful event.  Hundreds of marchers attended, with a wide diversity of race, ethnicity, age, class, sexuality,  and  gender expression.  I know there were many who could not be there, but were with us in spirit.

I had the fortune of taking up the rear with two colleagues of color, who were also block captains.  One colleague lifted up the query, “so what happens now?”    I heard the weariness, the doubt of longevity and the willingness for forward motion in that simple sentence.  After breathing through my need for a solution, I felt an upsurge of hope that what was happening right then was creating avenues for transformation.  “People in Milton and Mattapan are building relationships” I said.  “That’s what’s needed,” she agreed. 

It has been ever true that when we truly recognize one another, we make choices to include and honor others.  One definition of justice, by John Rawls, is “reciprocal recognition”.  And of course, another, offered by Cornell West: “justice is what love looks like in public”.

Writing this morning, I hear the news of another mass shooting.  This one in San Jose.  There have been 232 mass shootings (defined as shooting 4 or more people) in 2021.  People, it’s all connected.  Isolation, hatred, and desperation are caused by lack of healing relationships, helping relationships, love in public.  Keep on keeping on, First Parish.  Let us ever deepen beloved community:  the challenge, the courage and the affirmation, one to the other, and take it into our ways and walking.

In admiration and gratitude for you, 

Blessings Be, Rev. Lisa

Religious Exploration

Calling all families for RE Remembrance Videos! The June 6th worship service will include a collection of memories from families of children and youth who are current or former participants in the religious exploration program or youth program at First Parish Milton. Please share your stories of moments that linger in your families collective memory, such as being a shepherd in the Nativity pageant, surviving Our Whole Lives class, or experiencing the power of a CityReach Boston service trip. Parents can share memories, too! Videos can include one or more family members and should aim for 30 to 60 seconds in length.

Email your video files to fpmiltonre@gmail.com by June 1.

Summer camp opportunity: Explore social justice issues for children entering grades 3 to 5 next fall (posted on the Milton for Social Justice FB page): Imagining More Just Futures. It is a virtual social justice summer camp run by  Harvard grad students. 

[In-person religious exploration programs are suspended until we are able to gather together safely. There will be no Sunday morning nursery care, classroom programming, or youth group activities at First Parish Milton while worship services remain virtual only. Fear not! Religious exploration is continuing as we experiment with new ideas and approaches in this time of liminal space.]

~ Our bodies may not be touching, but our hearts are still connected.

MUSIC THIS WEEK

This Memorial Day weekend the music selections include a moving song byAfrican American composer Jacqueline Hairston with a text by Dr. HowardThurman, “Season of Remembrance”. This will be sung live in the Meetinghouse by Jennifer Sgroe. Grace Allendorf will also be singing “When Music Speaks” by Michael Adler and Brad Green, which states that “when we can’t find the words we seek, when all words fail, still music speaks”.

Table of Contents

For Events, News and Announcements 

1.    Summer Worship

2.    Photo Array 

3.   Church Council Meeting

4.    Church Event: Weekly Meditation

5.    Notice regarding Yoga

6.    Job Posting

7.    Worship Committe News: summer worship

8.    Membership Committe News

9.    Environmental Committe News

10.  Social and Environmental Justice Committee News

Events, News & Announcements

Summer Worship

We plan on staying with livestream worship through June 13th.  The first in-house worship will be Father’s Day (June 20th) which marks the beginning of summer services.  Summer services will be in the Meetinghouse this summer.  We will continue to livestream the services as well.

OUR FINAL PHOTO ARRAY OF THE YEAR!A PICTORAL FLOWER COMMUNION To continue our tradition of a June flower communion, we invite you to submit a photo for our next photo collage. Please submit a photo of yourself and/or family with a flower.Laurel Whitehouse has volunteered to compile the photos. Please send your images to fpmiltonre@gmail.comby June 6th, for inclusion in our June 13th livestream service. Thank you for sharing your images with us.

Please join us for All Church CouncilThursday, June 3rd at 6:30pm

All Church Council is a time for committees to report on their activities and share resources. It is open to all parishioners. We’re looking forward to seeing you all! The Zoom link is below. Agenda to follow. 

ZOOM LINKTopic: All Church Council Time: Jun 3, 2021 06:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada

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 9:00am-9:30am

Newcomers and friends welcome.

Please contact Tracey at tdr02186@gmail.com if you have questions or want to join us!  

Important Notice

There will be NO classes on Monday 5/30, Memorial Day or on Monday, June 7th. Yoga classes will resume on June 14th with Jayne Ogata.

First Parish is still  searching for a part-time RE coordinator — please go to FP website https://fpmilton.org/for more info. Spread the word!

Worship Committee News

Watch this space next week for the 2021 summer services’ lay leaders and their interesting themes. And if you signed up without a theme, please send it to us in care of Penny.  Thank you!

Elise Henricks-elisemhenricks@gmail.com

Penny Partridge-ppartridge9@icloud.com

Membership Committee News

Reminder to create panels for banner

We are coming to the end of what we call our church year. No one knew what the past fourteen months would mean for us.  This year, the Membership Committee focused on hosting virtual events that we hoped would make people feel that they were still part of something.  We weren’t sure if we could make it happen.  What we discovered – something I’ve heard again and again – is that many of now know each other better AND more deeply after these gatherings.   We may not have been physically together, but we have absolutely been connected.

As we move into spring and the return of life around us, we are beginning to think about moving forward in being physically together again. With the approval of the Parish Committee, we are now planning a gathering in June: our annual First Parish Picnic! The details are being worked out and everyone’s safety is the priority.  The date will be on June 13, starting at noon. Watch for more news about this.

To make our first time back together even more special, we are inviting you to help us create a special banner. In this envelope are fabric panels. We invite you to think about what this year has shown you and what wishes you have for next year. Using markers, glue, fabric or whatever materials you have, please decorate your panels. These could be words, pictures or simple colors. Have fun!

When you have finished your panels, please drop them off at church. There will be marked drop box in the Carriage House. Please drop off the panels by June 6th. We will link all your visions and hang the banner for all to see.

Happy creating!

Leslie and everyone on the Membership Committee

From S&EJ Committee:  Environmental News

FP commits to the Environment

At the recent Annual Meeting, FP congregants voted overwhelmingly to a commitment on climate change. Bravo! Specifically, our congregation committed to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions and practicing total sustainability in all congregational activities by 2035. Stay tuned to learn the specific strategies that we will devise and implement to accomplish this goal and fulfill our commitment to the environment. …and is committed to Others… Recently, the Parish Committee approved S&EJ’s proposal to increase our donations to charities from once per month to twice per month starting Fall 2021. Congregants have shown increased generosity to various organizations which address issues such as climate change, immigration, economic, racial and social justice. For the 2020-21 church year, our collective contributions from the Share the Plate program are expected to exceed $10,000. Soon, you’ll hear more about the selection process and charity designation.

From your Social and Environmental Justice Committee

From S&EJ: Social Action Committee News

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 on the 2nd Saturday of every month. The next volunteer date is Saturday, June 12th.  If you want to volunteer please signup on Signup Genius by Thursday evening before the event. Start time and locations vary depending on Fair Foods’ needs, but typically start between 8:00 and 10 a.m. at Fair Foods’ warehouse in South Boston. Please wear a mask and bring gloves if you have them. You can sign up to volunteer on Signup Genius.  Any questions or for more information contact Tony Dutzik at tdutzik@gmail.com

The Mainspring lunch squad is celebrating a year of delivering lunches to Mainspring shelters in Stoughton and Brockton. We deliver 100 lunches every other Wednesday – next date is June 2nd.  Join the fun-new volunteers always welcome. 

Volunteers acquire food and pack 10 lunches and deliver to the church between 12:45-1pm on Delivery day. One team lead drives all the lunches to the shelter in Brockton.

If you can help, please contact Peter Schneider at peterlschneider@gmail.com for instructions or if you already know the drill, signup on our schedule Mainspring SignupGenius – please indicate number of lunches you will bring.

Looking to Make a Difference in a Students Life? Milton Interfaith Clergy Group partner church, Church of the Holy Spirit in Mattapan Square is offering remote tutoring on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 2:00 PM to 5:30 PM for students of the Mildred Middle School in Boston. For more information please reach out to Debbie Alsebai at 617-821-9460 or alsebai@verizon.net