|
|
Service will be In Person Only Except...
If you are joining Joanne in Zoom for Lectio Devina
ZOOM LINK
Meeting ID: 946 7374 0010
Passcode: FPLex
Dial in: 646-876-9923
Wear comfortable clothing!
| |
On Sunday, we toss convention out the window! Come to church ready to engage in spiritual practices as we travel throughout the building. We will begin and end together in the Sanctuary. Each session will last 20 minutes. Pick two sessions to try - or repeat a session. But above all, engage in these practices toward developing greater spirituality. Join the choir in the Sanctuary for Music Meditation. Sit in the Parlor for Soul Matters with Debbie and Jane. Practice Restorative Yoga in the Common Room with Robi. Walk the Labyrinth in Parish Hall with Dori, Teresa and Liz. Let Erik teach you the ancient methods of Martial Arts in Parker Hall. Take part in Art Meditation in Robinson Hall. Or if you must participate online, join Joanne in Zoom for Lectio Devina, the reflective study of sacred poetry.
Kids are enthusiastically invited to this inspiring and unique Multigenerational Service exploring spiritual practices. Here is your chance to actually choose two practices out of many offerings to TRY! Coming-of-Age follows at 12:15 p.m. and later that evening brings us Junior Youth Group at 5:30pm and Senior Youth Group meets at 7 p.m. Junior Youth Parents, please sign-up to host a dinner for them at: JYG dinner host link
| |
ORDER YOUR EASTER FLOWERS!
Flowers will adorn our sanctuary and can be taken home after Easter Sunday Service. The deadline to order is Sunday, March 19th.
ORDER HERE
| |
A Message from our UUA President:
Showing Up for Trans, Nonbinary+, and LGBTQIA+ Community
Dear Friends,
You all are so much in my heart. These are heartbreaking and terrifying times. An onslaught of oppressive laws and policies are threatening the well-being of our children, young people and adults, and the very fabric of communities. I know how hard you all are working to care for your people and communities while also organizing for justice. I see you. I love you. And you inspire me in your witness and your depth of pastoral care and commitment.
I am praying especially for all our trans and nonbinary+ kids and adults, their families, and the communities supporting them. Too many trans and nonbinary+ people are living in an environment where policy makers are criminalizing their very existence.
My heart is also with all of you in frontline communities and states. I know you are holding so much – too much. We are in the fight to provide support and safe harbor with you, as we have been so many times throughout our history. We may not win every battle but we are in this work for the long haul. And we are digging deeper to expand our partnerships, find new ways to support people, and organize for a future where everyone can fully be who they are and flourish in their identities.
As Unitarian Universalists, we are clear and unapologetic. Our LGBTQIA+ siblings are sacred, whole, and divine. We understand the full expression of the diversity of gender and sexuality is a gift. As progressive people of faith, we know this is a fight for everyone’s humanity.
As an Association, we have shown up for trans and nonbinary+ youth and individuals through words and actions. I want to make sure you are aware of these resources for your own efforts and as additional support for members of your communities. Please visit Side With Love’s UPLIFT Action webpage to see our ongoing work and ways your congregation can participate. UPLIFT also sponsors monthly gatherings for trans and nonbinary+ people of all ages. You can also stay connected to this work, and receive pastoral messages and opportunities to take action by joining our UPLIFT newsletter and following the blog. Also please visit the UUA’s Five Practices of Welcome Renewal for Welcoming Congregations page for ways to ensure that members of the LGBTQIA+ community can feel fully welcomed, centered, and embraced in your congregation.
I am with you as we confront these devastating challenges – and hold you all close as we work to protect our loved ones, our families, our communities and neighbors.
I pray that each of you, in your own way, is doing something to care for your spirit, to lean into community and love, to tend to your own need for gentleness and care – that we might be nourished for the work that continues.
Yours in love and faith,
Susan
P.S. Here are some additional resources that may be helpful:
From Side With Love
From the UUA
Rev. Dr. Susan Frederick-Gray spends her days strengthening the thriving mission of this faith. In her spare time, she enjoys being with her family and playing with their dog, Hercules.
|  |  |  | |
Send us Your Feedback on the Revised ByLaw Proposals for Shared Ministry and Standing Committees
For members who were not able to attend the conversation after church on March 12, we want to hear from you! We hope everyone gets ‘in the know’ about the ByLaw revisions proposed in preparation for voting at the Semi-Annual Meeting this spring. Please provide us your feedback on the proposed Shared Ministry Committee as a new Standing Committee by viewing the video recording, reviewing the suggested resources, and completing the feedback form (send to JoAnn Mulready-Shick) . We hope to hear from you by March 31.
In gratitude,
Your Governance and Shared Ministry Task Forces
|  | |
Special Neighboring Faiths Invitation
Our generous Sikh neighbors have invited us to two very special events giving us opportunities to get to know them and their faith tradition.
On Friday, March 31st from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m., several Sikh families will meet with us at First Parish to introduce us to their culture and faith, including a kirtan led by children and a joint prayer with Rev. Anne, followed by a delicious homemade traditional meal.
On Friday, April 14th, from 8:00 - 9:30 p.m., FPLex parishioners are invited to attend a special holiday service at their temple, Gurdwara Sahib in Westborough that would include the final kirtan (hymns), prayers, and a community meal. (We'll organize carpools for this.)
We hope to follow up on these extremely generous offerings with additional opportunities to share and explore our faiths together. Please let us know which events you and your family plan to join us for so that we can plan accordingly with them.
Last Call to RSVP for our Special Neighboring Faiths Invitation!
| |
The First Parish Churches of Lexington and Concord are glad to join together in celebrating our UU communities over the Memorial Day Weekend, May 19-22, with a wonderful, family-friendly weekend at the Ferry Beach Camp and Conference Center in Saco, Maine. For those of you who have never been to this weekend – we warmly invite you to visit the Ferry Beach website to get a glimpse of this gorgeous retreat center.
Here is the link to Registration info which begins March 6, first come/first serve!. We hope many families will join with us and enjoy the wonderful the Ferry Beach housing facilities or at the lovely Grove campground, as well as lots of fun activities for all during the weekend.
Rain or Shine, the beach, the croquet courses, the talent show, board games, puzzles, marshmallow roast/campfire and MORE are waiting for you at Ferry Beach on Memorial Day weekend.
For more information, please see Elisabeth Jas, Deb Weiner Soule, Ben Soule, Susanna Whitman, Amy Jamison, Katie and Regie O’Hare Gibson, or many others who have experienced Ferry Beach. Watch for Registration Materials coming soon!
Warmly,
Your Ferry Beach Coordinating Team
|  | |
Support our Youth Group Eco-Justice Service Trip happening Sunday, June 25th to Friday, June 30th. The youth chose to travel to Maine to deep dive into eco-justice, witnessing some of the impacts of climate change, and caring for our natural world. Please consider financially supporting their efforts by signing-up to receive or gift an inspiring daily email (with an image and quote created/chosen by our youth) to inspire you. With Easter, Earth Day, and Mother’s Day all coming soon, what a perfectly eco-friendly way to send a gift while living our values! You and your loved ones can feel a little U.U. spirit every day while lovingly supporting their eco-justice service!
https://forms.gle/aYBCof41iZrMmR8H9
| Submissions for The Weekly Update are due by the end of day, Mondays. To submit an article or information for consideration, please use this form. | |
|
First Parish Annual Stewardship Campaign Update
The Annual Stewardship Campaign is when all First Parish members and friends make a commitment to the church to donate a certain amount of money to First Parish for the upcoming church year that begins on July 1, 2023.
Here’s where we stand this week:
- Number of households pledging to date: 52, with a goal of 145
|
- Amount pledged to date: $240,970 with a goal of $510,000
You can pledge online HERE. You can also email your pledge to
stewardship@fplex.org or mail your pledge to the church office. For more information on the Stewardship Campaign and for guidance on how much to pledge, please visit fplex.org\stewardship.
Please pledge by March 26. Thank you for your support of First Parish!
Omar Khudari and Tom Rich (Annual Stewardship Campaign Co-Chairs)
| |
"How can you hate me, when you don't even know me?" Thus began Daryl Davis' effort - at age 10 - to understand racism after being taunted while marching in the Lexington parade. During Building Bridges on March 16th we'll watch his TED Talk, "Klan We Talk?" Thereafter will be opportunities for considering an encounter with the 'other side' in both small and large room discussions.
ZOOM LINK
Meeting ID: 968 5208 9665
Passcode: Reunited
|  | |
Join Us for Restorative Yoga!
Robi will be leading us in Restorative Yoga on Tuesday, March 21st at 8 p.m. She led it with some of our youth recently and they were pleasantly surprised to discover how easy and relaxing Restorative Yoga is. All yoga that Robi teaches is for everybody and every body as it highlights taking time to listen to your body communicate it’s needs. To participate, please reserve your spot by Monday the 20th by emailing Robi so she can prep the space (and bring with you one big/beach towel, two regular towels, a blanket, a water bottle, and an eye mask). This class will be approximately one hour and it will give you tools to create a new 15 to 30 minute bedtime ritual.
| |
Greetings from the 8th Principle Implementation Team (PIT)! As part of the ongoing process updating governance and shared ministry, our congregation is in the process of drafting a Congregational Covenant. After the workshop last spring describing Covenant, the September worship service and December 4th workshop generated a Draft FP Covenant. We hope that will all participate in the upcoming workshop April 2, after the Sunday service as we finalize the wording ahead of the semi-annual meeting. Here is a link the full draft of the FP Covenant so far. You can also look at it on the bulletin board next to the Sanctuary. We would like to hear from you!
Please send your comments using this link. The Google doc will allow you to comment on the current structure, its wording and the feelings it evokes.
Having a congregational covenant is an opportunity for us all to raise the “we” above the “I”, the community above the individual.
|  | |
FLOWER POWER
Spring is arriving earlier than usual this year. And with it come many opportunities to show support for the earth and decrease your carbon footprint.
Consider “Flower Power”:
- Grow flowers in a small plot – plants friendly to pollinators are even better. Give these flowers as gifts, instead of something manufactured and traveling from elsewhere.
- Grow plants that can be dried and given later in the year for holiday presents
- If you choose to buy flowers as a gift, please choose those that are from local growers, thus decreasing the transportation carbon footprint.
| |
Dismantling Racism in Our Town:
New Zoom Session starts April 28, 2023
| |
Registration for Dismantling Racism in Our Town is now open!
Dismantling Racism In Our Town is a seven-week learning journey offered by and for those who live, work, study and/or worship in Lexington or nearby towns. It is designed to strengthen our personal and collective awareness of anti-Black racism and its consequences; and to commit together to undo and repair the legacies of racism and white supremacy in ourselves and our communities. Please join us!
The spring session will be meeting via Zoom on Friday mornings from 10 a.m. - 12 noon, running from April 28 through June 9. Learn more and register here for this popular, free learning & action series!
Contact us at LexDismantlingRacism@gmail.com with questions.
Supported by the Lexington Human Rights Committee
| From choir rehearsals to Soul Matters, Building Bridges to Meditation Group, Urban Ministry to Democracy Team, Climate Action Team to Youth Groups and all of the other wonderful ways to get involved here at First Parish, please check the church calendar. | |
