Our Vision:
We aspire to be a beacon of
liberal religion, strong community,
and transformative service,
rooted in Love.
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Sunday, May 7 Claiming New Possibilities
On the Sunday of our 389th annual meeting, we’ll reflect on how we got here and where we might go from here. Pamela preaching.
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Sunday, May 14 Leaving Behind What We Don’t Need
On this Mothers’ Day, Pamela will speak about some of the women who’ve served as “mothers” to our Unitarian Universalist tradition and how they helped us expand our understanding and the reach of our care.
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Sunday, May 21 The Places We Will Go -
RE Sunday and Flower Communion
In our annual celebration of the growth and accomplishments of the children and youth who participate in our Religious Education program, they’ll share with us some of the stories and activities which have inspired them this year. We’ll also celebrate the 100th anniversary of the ritual of Flower Communion. In the Flower Communion, each person brings a flower, symbolizing the gifts we bring this community and then receives a different flower, symbolizing the gifts we receive. Please bring a flower to contribute to our communal bouquet.
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Sunday, May 28 Daring New Heights
Our Emerge worship series concludes with a consideration of what we as a church can do to bring peace to our world. In our annual Memorial Day observance, we’ll remember members of the military who have died in service to our country since last Memorial Day.
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Notes from the Music Director
Thank you to Howard for leading the singing of The Garden Song for
our Earth Day service, and to Spencer for reading the poem for our Primavera anthem.
Our Choir Anthems this month:
May 7- What a Wonderful World by Weiss and Thiele.
May 14- Peace I Ask of Thee O River by Gwyneth Walker
May 21- Give Me Wings arranged by Mark Patterson
May 28- ( no anthem )
Choir Rehearsals continue Sunday mornings from 9:00-10:00. Anyone in 7th grade or older is welcome to come sing with us!
On Mother’s Day, all the music I play will be by women composers:
Elisabetta Gambarini, Gwynth Walker, Cecile Chaminade, and Alicia Keys
Guest musicians: Singer-songwriter Christina and bass player Ted
will lead music for our Memorial Day Service on May 28th.
Beth
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Religious Education for Children May 2023
PreK-Grade 5
I will not be here on May 7th. But Sheryl has arranged for some high school helpers to play with the kids on the playground.
I will be back on May 14th to tell the story The Dog and the Heartless King. We will be working on a special craft that day and getting ready for RE Sunday
The 21st will be our RE Sunday. The children and I will be presenting our Gems of Goodness, telling a story, and explaining our moral compass to the congregation to wrap up our time together. There will be an ice cream coffee hour in celebration of filling out the Gems of Goodness jar!
Melissa
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The Religious Education Committee meets on the 2nd Thursday of each month, 8-9 p.m. over Zoom to review and plan for our program. All are welcome to join the meeting.
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Parish Committee
Spring is here and with the emergence of beautiful flowers, joyful bird sounds, and expansive greenery, we celebrate renewal and the changes afoot in our own community. Lin and I with the support of the rest of our committee and many others in our First Parish congregation, submitted our church profile for review by prospective interim ministers. This week, we were notified of several interested candidates, and we are in the midst of reviewing applications, talking with references, and scheduling interviews. We are excited to meet with possible candidates and will keep you updated on our progress.
Our Annual Meeting is this Sunday, May 7th, and will take place after church. Please read the report ahead of time; paper copies will not be available at the meeting. We will hold a separate annual budget meeting at the beginning of June so stay tuned for details on that.
As always, if anyone has questions or wants to connect, please reach out to Lin and Carey, the co-chairs of the PC.
Happy Spring!!
Parish Committee Co-chairs, Carey and Lin
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Social Justice News
Social Justice Committee Meetings in May - The usual meetings of the committee will be replaced by special events this month:
*Brainstorming Meeting May 8th at 7 pm for June 4 Pride Service
Anyone interested in helping the Social Justice Committee plan the June 4th Pride worship service at FPUU, please join us over zoom.
*Book/Movie Group Discussion on Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
Please join us on Thursday, May 18 at 7-8:30 pm in the Book Club Room at Scituate Library or on Zoom when the Social Justice Committee hosts a discussion on Just Mercy, a book and movie on inequalities in the criminal justice system that disproportionately affect people of color and low income. Start reading the book now or rent the movie on Amazon Prime or Apple TV. John, Assessment Specialist at South Shore Technical High School, will lead the discussion. Register to attend online and a link will be provided. No registration is needed for in-person participation.
Special Monthly Collection for May
Throughout May the church will be accepting monetary donations for the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), founded by Bryan Stevenson, the author of the book Just Mercy and the topic of our May 18 discussion night (see above). This nationally known organization is committed to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the U.S., challenging racial and economic injustice and protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society. Donations can be made in three ways:
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Cash/check deposited in the basket in back of the sanctuary as you leave Sunday service
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Church website secure online giving (One Time Gifts, mark as “EJI” in notations box)
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Direct donation via the Equal Justice Initiative website Donate page
FPUU Assisting with Pride Breakfast June 10 - First Parish will be assisting St. Luke’s again this year on the Pride Breakfast scheduled for Saturday, June 10 at 9:30 immediately before the Pride Parade to the town green. We are tasked with bringing fruit salad for 60 people and plastic cups to serve them in. Stay tuned for sign-up for making fruit salad and bringing it to St. Luke’s the day before the parade.
Ellen Chair, Social Justice Committee
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Ship Shape Day for Scituate
Join us this Saturday to help keep Scituate clean and spend time outside with our First Parish UU community!
As part of Scituate's Ship Shape Day, we've had an area of town set aside for our members and friends to come together and pick up trash. We are in charge of the First Parish grounds, Old Gates and Cudworth Road. Supplies will be available in the church parking lot by 9 a.m. For more information, visit Ship Shape Day.
Questions - Contact Becky
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Bottles and Cans Update
Mike and Howard stood duty at the Transfer station last Tuesday. It was a rainy afternoon and not a lot of drop-offs.
Also, we, at First Parish, now have a drop-off area for our parishioners to leave their redeemable bottles and cans. It is in the garage behind the church. You don’t have to sort them. We will pick them up and take them to the Transfer Station, to be sorted along with all the other drop-offs.
We need people to be part of the sorting team, please signup on the sign-up Genius. Please do not be intimidated if you have not done this before. You can contact Howard or Mike.
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It’s Our Annual Spring Plant & Bake Sale!!
Think Spring!!!
We are hoping all of our "elves" will put on their garden gnome hats and aprons and join in!!
This year's spring celebration is on Saturday, May 13th, and will feature plants, baked goods, crafts, and more. It will be a great chance to find the perfect Mother's Day gifts!!
As you start to work in your gardens, dig and divide some of your perennials and put a few in pots for the sale!! We are also hoping to have a kids' activity where they can plant their own sunflowers!
Bake some goodies to sell! We are looking for big cookies, brownies, bars, breads, and cakes! We will have a lemonade stand too!
The crafters have been busy making spring & summer goodies to sell .... if you want to add something, please do! It's always fun to make items geared for this time of year.
Are you doing some spring cleaning? If you'd like to set up and staff a table with your gently used "treasures", let us know! We always have a steady flow of customers, and just ask for a donation to the church from your proceeds.
We also need tents/canopies and helpers to set up and take down!
We have a little over a week … please mark your calendars and join in the fun!
Questions? The Spring Fair team from the Finance Committee is ready to answer!
Contact Cathie or Vicki
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Finance Committee
The Finance Committee will meet, Thursday, May 11, at 7:00 p.m. at the church.
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Fididdlers
The Fididdlers will meet Wednesday, May 10, at Eileen's house, from 7 to 9 pm. All are welcome!
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May Monthly Calendar 2023
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