What's Happening
at First Parish -
Our Weekly Newsletter
November 20-30, 2019
We aspire to be a beacon
of liberal religion, strong community,
and transformative service.
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We aspire to be a Beacon of…..
… Liberal Religion
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T
hanksgiving Sunday, November 24, 2019
Thanksgiving Service
As we reflect at this season on what we have received, we are invited to think about the needs of others and how we might share what we have. Wayne Braverman, will speak about his work with the
L Street Mission which serves the homeless in Brockton, Wayne is a speaker, writer, and editor, and part of our First Parish community. He writes about his reflection: We don't have to wait for others to make the world a better place to live. Change begins within each of us - and that's something to be thankful for." Our 4th Sunday offering will support the L Street Mission. The choir will sing
Canon of Thanks,
and there will be a flutist.
As part of the service we will bless prayer shawls. If you have a completed one at home, please bring it to church that morning.
And stay afterwards for our annual Thanksgiving Soup Lunch, when we will give special thanks for our new dishwasher! We are still in need of soups and bread.
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Sunday, December 1, 2019
Bah Humbug
We begin our Advent series "God Bless Us Everyone" looking at the transformation of Ebeneezer Scrooge in Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol, and how Scrooge's transformations might speak to our own lives and our world today. Pamela Barz, preaching. Each service this month will include a dramatic reading by the December Dramatists.
The choir will sing
Watchmen, Sing Noel.
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Thanksgiving Soup Lunch, November 24, 2019
Please stay for the annual Thanksgiving Soup Lunch after the service on November 24! You can help make this event possible by signing up to bring something for the Soup Lunch. If you have not yet had a chance to sign up, there are still slots left!
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Decorating the Sanctuary for December Services: New Date
Friday November 29, 2019 at 1:00 pm
The Religious Services Committee will be decorating the Sanctuary for December Services on
Friday, November 29, starting at 1 pm
. Everyone is invited to join in the decorating. What a festive way to spend the day after Thanksgiving!
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From the Minister
On Sunday November 17, freshly returned from my third session of the Women Touched by Grace clergy renewal program, I spoke about my experience thus far. (You can read the sermon here:
Touched by Grace
) During the sermon, I invited the congregation to think about what "shimmered" for them - what from my experience they'd like to have in their own lives or for First Parish. At the end, I invited people to share what had shimmered.. Here's what was named: opportunities to tell stories, exploring practices of forgiveness, gratitude, and how to have difficult conversations, becoming more welcoming through electronics. What would help you go deeper as a spiritual being? I am hoping to start some small groups in the new year - what topic would you like to gather around?
See you in Church,
Pam
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Pizza and Game Night - Friday November 22, 6:00 to 9:00
Come enjoy a night of pizza, potluck and games. Bring a game or two that you enjoy or a deck of cards. We’ll order pizzas (pass the hat), or you can bring whatever you want to eat. Please bring non-alcoholic drinks.
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Snowflake Fair is only 2 weeks from Saturday!
Saturday, December 7
th
- 9:00am to 2:00pm
This week’s Special Notices:
Greetings from the Snow Flake kitchen!
We need one more person to make clam chowder and two more to make corn bread. Many thanks to those who have already signed up to contribute soup or time. Just a few reminders: Please make certain to prepare your soup in advance and deliver it to the Church COLD no later than 8:30am. The Scituate Board of health requires that we bring all products in a chilled condition, so we need time to bring it up to temperature and maintain that temp in order to serve it. If you bring it warm we must turn you away and we would hate to do that! People ask for soup as early as 10 am so we need it early! Also, if you have a crockpot to lend us please do so even if you’re not making a soup. We have about 15 different soups to heat up and serve and this is the most efficient way to do that. When you arrive be prepared to quickly note on our big board what your soup is and what’s in it. People always ask! Is it spicy or mild? vegan or meat? gluten-free? etc.. And finally, please do not bring anything extra from our already fixed menu to prepare or serve. The kitchen is extremely busy in the morning with a lot of folks bustling around with various duties and we simply don’t have time to accommodate any special extra treats. Thanks again everyone.
Wreath decorations
– We are asking for many more small holiday decorations in good condition that could be re-used on the wreathes we decorate for the Fair. There is a container in the Sloop Room for you to drop them off. Wreath night will be Wednesday Dec. 4 at 6:30 p.m. Please plan to come.
Baking and cooking
- we need more fudge of all varieties – white, butterscotch, dark and milk chocolate and all shades in between. And lots of cookies, squares, cupcakes, shortbreads, breads, pies, and cakes. And more cookies. Take a small decorated loaf pan from the Sloop Room if you need one. Holiday wrappings on the foods are especially inviting. And please, still more cookies.
Jams and Jellies
- Need another helper to staff the table.
Holiday Plants
- Could use one more person to staff the table.
Vintage Jewelry
- Need one more person to staff the table.
How to drop your contributions off at the church before the Fair.
The week before the Fair we will mark the pews to indicate where to leave materials for each table, e.g. Fudge & candy, Crafts, etc. We encourage you to bring stuff ahead of time
Questions?
Contact the table heads
-Many Thanks from Team Snowflake
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Kids Activities at the Snowflake Fair
We're looking for help with kids' activities at the Snowflake Fair! For years we had free Kids' Crafts and a low cost Kids' Shopping Room upstairs during the Snowflake Fair, and we want to bring these activities back! They're fun for the kids, and give parents time to shop downstairs! I am looking for staff the day of the event - adults to help me staff the Kids' Crafts room, and middle school and high school aged youth to staff the Kids' Shopping Room. Our youth get to price the items and bargain with kids who come in to shop. It's fun! We need three adults to help staff the Crafts Room, splitting the day into two shifts. Also, we
need sheets to cover the preschool belongings.
I am also looking for DONATIONS - Easy, no mess craft items for the craft room. And items that can be sold for under $5 in the Shopping Room. New or gently used decorative items, Christmas ornaments, jewelry, candles, small toys, gadgets, unwanted stocking stuffers, etc. are all welcome.Thanks!
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First Parish Needs Your Help!
Here's how you can serve our church and strengthen our community this week.
We need:
- Coordinator(s) for our new Soup + Song community suppers
- Soup-makers for the Thanksgiving lunch- sign up at: Thanksgiving Soup Lunch
- Adults to help with Pageant Prep in December
- RE teachers for January and February
- Clockwinder for the sanctuary clock
- Readers for both Christmas Eve services
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- Teams Hosting Coffee Hour This Year
This year we are trying to make hosting coffee hour easier for everyone by eliminating the sign-up sheet. We will try this for the year and see if it works!
We randomly created fifteen teams so each team will host coffee hour
two times
during the year. More people will lessen the work and expense. More people
doesn’t
mean “more food”! Let’s bring simpler snacks which makes clean-up easier.
If you do not see your name on any team and you want to be included, please let us know and we will include you. Also, if you feel you cannot serve in this way, you may ask to be removed from the teams list.
If you can’t be there on the date, you could supply some snacks and give them to a team member to bring to church.
Each team consists of four to six people. Duties include setting the table, putting snacks on serving plates, make the coffee and heat tea water, wash the dishes and put the trash in the shed. The team will also bring a quart of half and half and juice. We will send out a more details of how to set up.
Thank you for trying this!!! Please call or email if you have a question.
-Parish Committee
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Soup + Song
On Sunday November 3 a group gathered to talk about the suggestion of offering a community soup supper with music. There was a lot of enthusiasm for the proposal and we decided to give it a try, hosting a community vegetarian soup supper with music on the second Sundays of January, February, and March 2020. We need a couple of people to serve as coordinators for the suppers - if you are interested, please let the office know.
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STRIDE with the Scituate Unity Council
The newly reorganized Unity Council has a new name: STRIDE (Scituate Together for Representation, Inclusion, Diversity and Equity) and will hold their first meeting on Tuesday, December 3rd at 6:30pm at the Scituate Town Library. Come meet the co-chairs, learn about the mission of this organization, and--most importantly--hear from SHS students about their experiences at the high school. This is an excellent opportunity to show your support for our high school students of color and the particular challenges they face as members of our community. Members of First Parish have been involved with the Unity Council since its beginning; let's continue to join with others for this important work.
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Dawnland Screening Monday November 25, 6:30 pm
Just in time for Thanksgiving day conversation, the Scituate, Cohasset, and Hingham Unity Councils invite everyone to a free screening of the documentary
Dawnland
. The movie will be followed by a discussion with the co-director and producer.
Please visit the website:
Dawnland Screening
. Dawnland
is the untold story of Indigenous child removal in the US through the nation's first-ever government-endorsed truth and reconciliation commission, which investigated the devastating impact of Maine's child welfare practices on the Wabanaki people.
Dawnland
aired on PBS in November 2018 and was awarded an Emmy® for outstanding research in 2019.
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Calendar for November 20-
December 1, 2019
Wed. 20th
10:30 am Fididdlers
7:00 pm Parish Committee Meeting
Thurs. 21st
11:00 am Infant Massage
Fri. 22nd
6:00 pm Pizza and Game Night
Sun. 24th
9:00 am Choir Practice
10:30 am Worship and RE
11:45 am Thanksgiving Soup Lunch
5:00 pm Youth Group - Scituate
Mon. 25th
6:30 pm Unity Council- Dawnland Screening
Fri. 29th
1:00 pm Decorating the Sanctuary
Sun. 1st
9:00 am Choir Practice
10:30 am Worship and RE
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Save the Date
December 4th
Wreath Making
December 7th
Snowflake Fair
December 11th
Unity Christmas Dinner
December 15th
Christmas Music Sunday
December 22nd
Pageant
December 22nd
Community Solstice Service, 4 p.m. at St. Luke's
December 24th
Christmas Eve services at 4 and 7 p.m.
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Our Mission
Liberal Faith:
We commit to participate side-by-side across generations in worship, religious education, social activities, environmental protection,
and social justice work—learning, sharing, and growing together.
Strong Community
: We commit to care for one another, nurture the light that shines within each of us, and support each other’s individual search for truth and meaning.
Transformative Service:
We commit to pursue diversity, justice, equality, reason, and discourse;
provide inspiration through music, creativity, and the arts;
and work cooperatively to affect positive change in our community and beyond.
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