Worship This Week

Please join us

in the Sanctuary

or online at 10am for

Fourth Sunday of Advent with our theme:

How Does a Weary World Rejoice?

Also, please join us for the Celebration of Baptism of Emma Kathleen Montgomery, daughter of Alanna Montgomery and granddaughter of Tommy Bastian

Coffee hour will be held

after the service

in Hadley Hall.

The service will be live streamed

through Facebook Live here

or on 3CX here

Reader: Fred Malcolm

Coffee hour host: Donna Hanson & Judy Ross



artwork: "Child of the Universe" © Mary Southard

www.ministryofthehearts.org. Used with permission.

Christmas Eve Worship Service

We will have one Christmas Eve service this year on Sunday, December 24th at 4pm. It will be in the sanctuary and will also be live streamed on Facebook Live and recorded

Please bring your families and invite your friends to participate in this special service. We will not have a morning service that day. 

Cards for Claire



Claire Hubley is a long-time congregant and served as the organist at HCC many years ago. She has been a faithful letter and card writer to many in our congregation, and now it is our turn as we show our love and support to her.

Claire has entered hospice as her health declines. She would be delighted to hear from any and all.

Send a note or card to:

Claire Hubley, 23 Cottage Lane, East Hampstead, NH 03826.

And please hold Claire and her family in your prayers.

New Meditation for Wellbeing Series

Begins January 4th

Please join us for this four-week series, as we will experience several meditation practices, using easy breathing techniques and guided imagery. These practices will help us enjoy a state of general relaxation for healing, and the promoting and sustaining of mind and body health.

Meditation is a key component of all the world’s religions, as it slows our minds and bodies and allows us to be open to the divine. This series will come from more of a health and wellness perspective. No prior meditation experience or knowledge is required.

Sessions will be held on Thursday mornings at 10am upstairs from Hadley Hall, beginning on January 4th, 2024. The meditation leader will be Karen Galipeau, a long-time Hampstead resident and friend of HCC. She draws on her personal practice with meditation, in addition to much training and coursework in a variety of mind and body techniques, as well as her professional nursing experiences over 35 years. We are grateful for her willingness to share her time and gifts in this way! We hope you will consider attending. 

Connecting with Pastor Kathy

Pastor Kathy wants to make sure to connect with congregants before her departure on February 5th.

If you would like to meet with her, whether it is in the office, or for coffee or lunch, or something else, please contact her to set it up. Her upcoming days and weeks will be busy, and she wants to make sure to provide opportunities for everyone to meet with her who would like to.

Each year we support the wider United Church of Christ in a variety of ways. We offer financial support to our NH Conference and Rockingham Association through Our Church's Wider Mission, and we collect financial donations for four special offerings from the UCC that support churches, retired pastors in financial need, disaster relief and much more.

Thank you for all the support you offer not just our own community,

but the nation and world!

Hampstead 275th Anniversary

Tickets Now On Sale

On January 19, 2024 the town of Hampstead will be celebrating its 275th anniversary. Numerous events will be held throughout the day (see flyer below).

Tickets for the celebration dinner are now on sale for $25.00 at the Hampstead Public Library (cost includes entry into the colonial dance afterwards).

The Manchester Diaper Pantry has been low in supplies for months. They give out upwards of $1000 worth of supplies a month to families in needs. Any support you could give to this drive will make a world of difference to families in need! Thank you!

A Word from Peace & Justice

I am so amazed at the generosity of strangers!

The story of RIP Medical Debt Relief receiving $903,000 and counting is a tribute to Casey McIntyre. She wanted her legacy to be clearing medical debt for others as a way to express gratitude for her own excellent health insurance that kept her family from facing staggering medical debt from her ovarian cancer treatments. These treatments kept her alive for four years; she died in November at age 38.

Two links:

The Casey’s story AND the donation appeal.

The Music Corner by Herb Tardiff

The Twelve Days of Christmas, also known as Twelvetide, is a festive Christian season that celebrates the Nativity of Jesus.

In Western ecclesiastical traditions, "Christmas Day" is considered the "First Day of Christmas" and the Twelve Days are 25 December – 5 January, inclusive, with the last day being Twelfth Night (Epiphany Eve). The period begins with the birth of Christ on December 25th and ends with the coming of the Three Wise Men on January 6th, also known as the Epiphany or Three Kings Day

In theory:  However, read the last comment.

• Turtle Doves = The Old and New Testaments
• 3 French Hens = Faith, Hope and Charity, the Theological Virtues
• 4 Calling Birds = the Four Gospels and/or the Four Evangelists
• 5 Golden Rings = The first Five Books of the Old Testament, the “Pentateuch,” which gives the history of man’s fall from grace
• 6 Geese A-laying = the six days of creation
• 7 Swans A-swimming = the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, the seven sacraments
• 8 Maids A-milking = the eight beatitudes
• 9 Ladies Dancing = the nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit
• 10 Lords A-leaping = the Ten Commandments
• 11 Pipers Piping = the 11 faithful apostles
• 12 Drummers Drumming = the 12 points of doctrine in the Apostle’s Creed

The partridge in the pear tree, naturally, represents Jesus Christ.

However, it is unlikely that there are any religious overtones to this song.

Steeple Lighting

Steeple Lit the week of

December 11th - 17th

Wishing

Happy Holidays

to All

New Hampshire Conference UCC Weekly News

We thought you might enjoy reading the NH Conference UCC weekly newsletter. You can read it with this link.

12/12/2023 Newsletter



Each week, we will update this section of our Weekly Word with the new link

for the current newsletter.

St. Anne's Food Pantry

The food pantry is currently

collecting for their

holiday distribution.

Donations are appreciated.

 Current needs:

Hearty Soups

Salad Dressings

Spam

Muffin mix/quickbread mix

Pie Filling/Pudding Mix

Jelly

Cereal

Brownie Mix



Please drop off any donations in the foyer of Hadley Hall

Please, no expired items.

Thank you for all your support!