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As the days grow shorter we find ourselves joining with people across the globe who are looking for the light. The beginning of Advent calls us to contemplate the mystery of the Incarnation - the physical presence of God on this earth. Perhaps, as Father Richard Rohr has said, the Incarnation was the moment in Genesis when God joined in unity with the physical universe and became ‘the light inside of everything.”
This Sunday, we will celebrate the theme of Advent with seasonal music celebrating the prophecy of the birth of Jesus. The sanctuary choir will sing Felix Mendelsohn’s passionate “Behold a Star from Jacob Shining'' (from Christus) and Judith Otten’s spirited arrangement of the medieval English carol “Nova, Nova,” with soloists Tim Jacoby and Elisabeth Jas. Debbie Armstrong will play Franz Schubert’s lyrical “Andante” (from his Piano Sonata in A Major, D. 664). Rip Jackson, David Meharry and Jamie Willis, with percussionist Paul Reynolds, will sing the profound medieval advent motet “Angelus ad Virginem.” And for the postlude, Soprano soloist Yunona Tabala will sing George Frideric Handel’s thrilling aria “Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Sion” (from Messiah).
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CHILDREN'S RE
Our theme this month is The Gift of Mystery and this coming Sunday we are exploring that theme by reading a story about how one man discovered the mysterious shapes of snowflakes!
Caroline and Annelie
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CLOTHES DRIVE
For families sheltered in Lexington
Click here for the informational flyer.
|  |  | On Friday, December 22nd, First Parish in Lexington will present a Winter Solstice Experience at 7:30 pm. With music, ritual, candles, dancing and darkness, we will experience the quiet of the longest night, and welcome the sun as we wait for her return. Led by Rev. Anne Mason, with Minister of Music, Rip Jackson, this event will be a mystical experience exploring earth-centered imagery, with an invitation to cherish the darkness. You are invited to set aside your frenetic everyday concerns and take this hour for your own inward journey. The Solstice is honored by indigenous religions around the world and we will have music, dance and poetry which honor many traditions. A group of intergenerational dancers will weave movement and ritual to celebrate the peace of the darkest night of the year and the triumphant return of the sun’s nourishing light. The musicians will include soprano soloists Liz Savir, Chelsea Cannon and Natalie Brierre, soprano sax player Katie Runde Sanchez, along with guitar, electric bass, piano, electronic synthesizer, drums, rain stick, gong, Tibetan singing bowl and other atmospheric musical instruments. They will sing music from diverse genres including music by Paul Winter, Loreena McKennitt, Enya and original music by Rip Jackson. A free will offering will be taken and public parking is in the rear of the church. |  | Join us for this year’s Guest at Your Table program to learn what UUSC partners are doing to address immediate injustices – as well as the collective liberation they envision for the future. Listen to our UU Service Committee’s partners’ stories, such as the national Temporary Protected Status (TPS) Alliance which strategizes to protect TPS in the short term while advocating for legislation in the long term. We will Share the Plate with UUSC in a service later in December. |  | |
POSTCARDS!
This Sunday, December 3rd , after church. We will be writing
postcards to unregistered residents of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania.
Lehigh County is in eastern Pennsylvania and is one of the fastest-growing counties in the state. Allentown, the county seat, is the state's third-largest city after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. The county is part of the Philadelphia television market, the fourth-largest market in the nation.
The postcards we write will provide information on how residents can register to vote. We will supply you with the cards, the stamps, and a brief script. We hope for a small donation to cover our costs. Please bring your coffee and spend 15 minutes with us in action for democracy.
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Interfaith Garden: Diggings and Doings
The 14th season for our Interfaith Garden has just ended! This year, we delivered more than 1500 pounds of organic fruits and vegetables to the Lexington Food Pantry. What was the weightiest item delivered? The answer: Shark Fin Melon How much: 164 pounds. What is it? Shark Fin Melon (Cucurbita ficifolia) is a species of squash, grown for its edible seeds, fruit, and greens. For a photo, click here.
Since the Garden’s beginnings, the Pantry has enjoyed 22,000 pounds of food (not counting 2 years unrecorded during the pandemic) from our small but very productive Garden behind the Fortmann’s house next door.
Thanks to First Parish for its dedicated crew of volunteers and for taking over this year the task of bookkeeping for the Garden’s income and expenses.
For a fuller description of gardening highlights from this season, productivity stats, and the workings of the Garden and the Pantry, click here.
| 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. | |
The Great Fall Auction is just around the corner and we have an amazing collection of 125 items up for bid. Bidding on the auction website starts on December 2nd. In addition, there will be a Live Auction in the Parish Hall on December 9th at 6 PM, featuring food, beverages and live music. For more information, email [email protected]. | |
ALL ARE INVITED!
Let’s talk about
developing a new
Mission, Vision, and
Congregational
Covenant!
When and Where?
Sunday, December 10th after
church with LUNCH in Parker Hall or Thursday, December 14th at 7 p.m. on Zoom
With Whom?
Your Shared Ministry Committee and other delightful persons
Why?
To engage everyone and further develop our draft statements into something amazing for a congregational vote, Spring 2024.
Journeying Together towards Building Beloved Community and Spiritual Wholeness
Click here to sign up!
|  | The Unity Group invites all First Parish members and friends to join us on Monday, December 11th, at noon in Parker Hall. Bring your lunch and a drink (remember no nuts or nut products). We will eat lunch and socialize. After lunch we will have an exchange of gifts called a "Yankee Swap." If you are not familiar with a Yankee Swap we will explain it at the meeting. Please bring a wrapped, bagged, boxed or somehow disguised gift, new or old, worth not more than $15. What an opportunity for fun and re-gifting! | |
Unitarian Universalist Urban Ministry (UUUM)
presents
A Community Conversation on Tuesday, December 12th
6:00 P.M. - 7:00 P.M.
A Long Road Home: The Roots of Homeownership Inequity
with Aja Kennedy
Zoom Link
Co-sponsored by First Parish in Lexington and Follen Church
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CORRECTION:
The Thursday, November 16th session did take place. The next session will be on Thursday, December 21st.
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Are You Among the World’s Top 1 %?
The richest 1 % of the world’s population (77 million people) emit as much carbon emissions (16 %) as the poorest 2/3 of the world’s population (5.3 billion people of the 8 billion world population). This is the finding of an analysis in a report published 19 November 2023 by the nonprofit Oxfam International.
The income threshold for being among the global top 1 %, adjusted by country purchasing power parity, is about $ 140,000 in the United States and about $ 40,000 in Kenya.
While fighting the climate crisis is a shared challenge, not everyone is equally responsible for this problem and government policies should be tailored accordingly. For example, excluding the carbon emissions associated with his investments, Bernard Arnault, the billionaire founder of Louis Vuitton and richest man in France, has a carbon footprint 1,270 times greater than that of the average Frenchperson.
Oxfam is calling for a progressive climate policy that taxes the wealthiest carbon emitters at a higher rate. These measures could include, for example, a tax on flying more than ten times a year, or a tax on non-green investments that is much higher than the tax on green investments.
| 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. | |
