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The Union Church in Waban
Friday, March 31, 2017
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Bible Discussion at 8:00 a.m.
We are walking through the Gospel of Luke and are engaging in discussion with all we find there. All are welcome
Choir Rehearsal at 9:00 a.m.
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Singing the Psalms
at 9:35 a.m.
Join us for our last singing of the Psalms together before worship on Sunday mornings. We gather at 9:35 a.m. in Memorial Chapel (the side chapel off the sanctuary),where we sing and pray t
ogether for ten minutes each week. Feel free to arrive a few minutes early for quiet centering prayer.
(Detai
ls here.)
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Worship at 10:00 a.m.
On this communion Sunday we will reflect back over this season of Lent and on the many ways that we have shared in becoming the beloved community. Our communion liturgy is written by the youth as part of their learning about communion throughout Lent. The youth will also be our servers as we partake of communion by intinction (coming forward to receive the bread which is then dipped in the cup).
Bell Choir Practice: 11:15 a.m.
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 GROWING TOGETHER
2017/2018 Stewardship Campaign
There may still be snow on the ground, but we've turned our clocks ahead, Red Sox Opening Day is right around the corner, and the vernal equinox is in the rear view mirror. Spring is here! So many great things happen in the spring, and right after flowers, birds and green grass comes....The UCW Stewardship Campaign!
During our stewardship Season we remember that Church in not so much something we partake of, but instead it is something we participate in. The church is all of us contributing our time, talents and treasures and creating a thriving community of faith where all can grow together.
Through out the month of April we will be hearing from different members of the church about what UCW means to them and why they give to the church. We hope you too will take a moment reflect on what the church means to you and to consider making a pledge.
You will be receiving pledging information in the mail in the next couple of days. Information is also be available in the Crocker Chapel, off the sanctuary. If you have any questions,
please do not hesitate to reach out to
Grant
Gund, chair of our
Stewardship Team.
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RUSSELL SCHOOL PARTNERSHIP UPDATE
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A Day in the Life at Camp Hale Video
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Summer Camp
Tuition Support!
The Union Church has responded t
o a
request from our partner school, Russell Elementary in Dorchester, for tuition supp
ort for students in need of summer programs. Students who can benefit from the camp often do not have the ability to pay for and other summer camps that have been identified as critically important for them, even life - changing.
Visit the CAMP HALE website HERE
Save Those Cleats and Children's Books!
Save Those Cleats and Children's Books!
Please save your outgrown cleats and any children's books you are clearing out for
the Russell students and parents.
Please put aside student sports equipment, such as cleats and other athletic shoes as Russell School students need our sports equipment that our kids have outgrown.
Any shoes that can be used for sports are appreciated.
Please bring to church the children's books you no longer want, for us to bring to Russell School.
Boxes will be in chapel for your drop- off convenience. Any questions see Kevin Johnson or Wat Matsuyasu.
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C
hildren,Youth, and
Family
Ministries
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Easter is just around the corner, and our annual Easter Egg Hunt following worship on Easter morning is always a highlight! We are very grateful for donations of plastic eggs filled with goodies - e.g. stickers, trinkets or wrapped candies (no NUTS please!). We also have helper-bunnies who can stuff eggs, if you prefer to drop off bags of goodies or unfilled eggs. Please find a box outside the CE office for donations, or contact Amy at amy@ucw.org. Thank you for helping to make this such a fun celebration for our kids!
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Youth Lenten Series
This Sunday, April 2
nd
our Youth will help lead Communion
The youth are engaged in a creative new series, which began on Sunday, March 5th and will run through the five Sundays in Lent, and into Holy Week. This hands-on series explores the mystery of Communion and what it means to live together as beloved community. Over the past few weeks, the youth have baked bread and created items for our Communion table. Today, they will lead our congregation in Communion, with a liturgy they have written. We are so grateful for their leadership and hard work! An overview of the Lenten series, as well as a calendar of Youth Ministry events this year, was sent to parents, and can be found in the Crocker Chapel or online under the Youth Ministry tab of www.ucw.org.
UCW Kids and Mini-Missions
This Sunday will be a special day, as our Rainbows and Stars classes (k-5th grade) share their Mini-Missions projects with the congregation during worship!
Developed by the Christian Education and Teacher Teams, Mini-Missions is an initiative to involve our children in simple, tangible service projects that encourage them to see service as an integral part of their faith and lives, and realize they can make a difference in their communities. The kids are leaders of these service projects from start to finish, and today they will share information about the organizations they have chosen to support and ask for the congregation's help. You will find an insert with lists of needed items in this bulletin, and we are grateful for your donations. Following their presentations, the kids are invited down to the Vestry where they will celebrate their hard work, and decorate their donation boxes. For more information, you can also visit the hallway outside the church offices to see some of the kids' work, or visit the Children's and Youth Ministry tab of our website: www.ucw.org. With questions or to volunteer, please contact Amy at amy@ucw.org. Thank you!
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Adult Education, Fellowship, and Spiritual Formation
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Our book choice for April will be --
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
(Pulitzer Prize, 1975) -- an exhilarating study of faith and nature. A theologian and writer, Dillard explores religious themes in the cycle of the seasons.
Save APRIL 25 in your calendar
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A
dult, Small Group Retreat
Toah Nipi
Retreat Center
Rindge NH
Spring is the season when our natural world begins to wake up from its winter sleep and make ready for a new season and summer. It is when the frozen earth thaws; bears and their cousins emerge; tree sap flows. It is when many of our birds return home from their far away travels; and when our lakes and streams rebound with oodles of life. With all this stirring - "mixing memory with desire", the woods and fields become filled and pungent with ancient and new smells and sights and sounds and sensations that trigger and feed our own world and imagination. Let us take up spring's invitation and "Come to our Senses".
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HOLY WEEK OFFERINGS AT UCW
Palm Sunday, April 9.
Palm Sunday marks the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem as the crowd gathered waving palms and singing Hosanna, and the beginning of Holy Week. As we remember the story from long ago, we take time to consider our own walk of faith and how we too are challenged to bring God's love into the death-dealing places of our day.
Maundy Thursday Service, April 13, 6:15 p.m
.
Our worship begins with a light meal as we join with Jesus' Last Supper with his disciples on the eve of his betrayal and death and remember his commandment to love each other as he has loved us. ("Maundy" is the Latin word for "commandment"). As the light fades, we move into our Tenebrae portion of the service where we move through scripture and song with Jesus and the disciples as the events of Holy Week unfold. "Tenebrae" is the Latin word for "darkness" and it is therefore during this time that we contemplate our own brokenness and weakness in the light of God's powerful message of redemptive love. Child care will be available. There will be a suggested donation of $5/individual or $20 cap for families to help cover the cost of our simple supper.
Holy Saturday Vigil, April 15, 7:00 - 8:00 p.m.
We begin our worship in the darkness that closed our Maundy Thursday service, but move steadily through song and prayer, communion and the reaffirmation of our baptisms into the dawning of the Good News of Easter that we know is coming! Child care will be provided.
Easter Sunday Worship, April 16, 10:00 a.m.
With joy and thanksgiving we celebrate the gift of Easter. Children are invited to share in worship, though we will have nursery care available. After the service, there will be a Easter Egg hunt.
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 Time to update the directory!
Karen Weisgerber will have a draft copy of the
directory this Sunday. Please check with her to
verify and/or update your contact information.
Also, please
send
in a
photo of you/your family
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If you do not have a photo, Jim MacDonald will be
available after church to take one.
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Lent at the Union Church in Waban
"Creating the Beloved Community - A Lenten Journey of Communion"
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Lent is a season in the liturgical, church year that begins on Ash Wednesday, March 1st and ends at sunset on Maundy Thursday, April 13th. Lent is a season of renewal, a time of growing through repentance, fellowship, prayer, and the embrace of our covenant with each other and with God. Lent is not so much about giving up something but rather about trying to be intentional about opening up to the renewing work of God's grace. Just as the bulbs planted deep in the ground begin to stir to new life as the days grow longer in the coming of spring, so too does this season encourage a kind of germination of God's spirit in us, calling us to new life and new beginnings, of which we will celebrate in the mystery of the empty tomb on Easter morning.
In the very early church, this season was one of intentional formation where those who wished to join in following the Way of Jesus would undergo a concentrated period of study and preparation which would culminate with their baptism and welcome into the church during the Easter Vigil, Saturday service. The liturgical color for Lent is purple which you will remember is also the color for Advent, which is si
milarly a season of preparation.
Food for the Journey
:
Wednesday Evening Worship at
7:00 p.m. Throughout Lent
Come be nourished each week as we journey towards Easter! Each Wednesday night, we will share bread and cup as we are nourished for our pilgrimage. Each worship service will be unique, and there will also be some ongoing practices that we include each week. Come walk the labyrinth, pray with paint, hear a story, sing a song. There will be many opportunities to be renewed with each other!
Memorial Chapel (the side chapel off the sanctuary). Wednesday nights at 7:00 p.m., starting March 8th. Childcare will be provided.
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April 5:
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Babbette's Feast
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Sun., Apr. 2
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9:35 a.m.
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Singing the Psalms
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10:00 a.m.
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Worship
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11:15 a.m.
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Bell Choir Rehearsal
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Mon., Apr. 3
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7:00 p.m.
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Choir Rehearsal
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Tue., Apr. 4
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6:00 p.m.
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Deacons
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Wed., Apr. 5
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7:30 a.m.
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Prayer Group
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9:00 a.m.
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Coffee w/Stacy at Starbucks
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7:00 p.m.
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Wednesday Evening Service
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Sun., Apr. 9
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8:00 a.m.
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Bible Study
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9:00 a.m.
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Choir Rehearsal
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9:35 a.m.
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Singing the Psalms
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10:00 a.m.
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Worship
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11:15 a.m.
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Bell Choir Rehearsal
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11:30 p.m.
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Worship Team
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For a complete listing, and details of all upcoming events,
please visit our website calendar HERE
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Help lay the table during fellowship hour
One of the many ministries of UCW is hosting a fellowship hour after worship on Sunday morning. This table, laid with love and a simple spread is (as Adam Hearlson said in his mission moment a few weeks ago) very much a communion table. It not only nourishes our bodies, but it also nourishes the relationships that make us one Body, one with each other and with God. If you would like to share in this ministry and host this time of communion, please go
here.
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OPEN MOSQUE DAY
This Sunday, April 2, 4-6 pm
For more information go
here
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