Sunday, October 14, 2018
The Twenty-First Sunday After Pentecost
First Sunday in the Season of Generosity

The Life Changing Magic of Giving it Up
Rev. Julie Avis Rogers, preaching
This Sunday at Covenant
10:30 Sunday Worship in the Sanctuary
  
Worship Participants : 
Preacher - Rev. Julie Avis Rogers
Liturgist - Tom Reid
Sabbatical Supply Minister of Music - Kate Salfelder
Lector - Anita Gram
Moment for Mission - Barbara Darling
Ushers  - Holly Humphreys, David McKinney, Ed James
Sexton - Fred Lopes
 
Reading from Scripture:     
Hebrew Bible Reading: Psalm 90:1-6, 13-17, interpreted by Nan Merrill
Gospel Reading: Mark 10:17-31

This Upcoming Week at Covenant

"ALL THINGS" STEWARDSHIP SEASON BEGINS THIS SUNDAY: "All Things"-as in "All things are possible with God"-is the theme that Covenant's Generosity Generators Team has chosen for this year's Stewardship Season. The Scripture from which the team will draw inspiration for their series of Moments for Generosity during Stewardship Season is Mark 10: 17-31: The Rich Man and the Kingdom of God. This is the story Jesus tells of the rich man who asks him:
"Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" 18 Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 19 You know the commandments: "You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your parents.' " 20 He said to him, "Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth." 21 Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, "You are lacking one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." 22 When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had great wealth.
Each of the four Moments for Generosity during the Stewardship Season will be a response to the question, "What did the rich man do next?"   That is, after "the man went away grieving, for he had great wealth," what did he do?  The Bible is silent about the rich man after he leaves Jesus. We don't know if he took Jesus's injunction to heart and changed his ways, or if he just went home and lived his wealthy life just as he had before.  So, in the Moments for Generosity each Sunday during Stewardship Season, a fellow Covenanter will describe how they imagine the encounter with Jesus changed the rich man into a more generous person-generous with his time, his money, his ability to serve, and his activism on behalf of the marginalized.
CREATION CARE VOTING INITIATIVE IN WORSHIP OCTOBER 14! This Sunday, October 14, we will have a chance in Sunday morning worship to pledge to be Creation Care Voters.  One of our deep values as a congregation is love and respect for the beautiful earth God created. So we're joining the United Church of Christ's Our Faith Our Vote in partnership with the Environmental Voter Project to celebrate our privilege to vote and commit ourselves to vote on behalf of God's creation.
WELCOMING BACK REV. RICK SPALDING NEXT SUNDAY, OCTOBER 21: Next weekend is a special time in our faith community not only because of our all-church retreat on Friday, October 19 and Saturday, October 20 but also because we will be welcoming former COTC pastor, Rev. Rick Spalding as our preacher next Sunday, October 21! Join us for worship and our monthly potluck.
STAFF VACATIONS: Rev. Rob Mark is on vacation through Thursday, October 18. Please be in touch with Rev. Julie with any pastoral coverage needs in the meantime.
GREATER BOSTON INTERFAITH ORGANIZATION ACTION ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 22: More than 1250 people of many faith traditions, ethnicities, and walks of life, all part of the 44+ GBIO member congregations and organizations, will come together as one to give public voice to common concerns for justice and call on those seeking or holding public office to commit to real change in the areas of affordable housing, criminal justice reform, and the protection of immigrant families. The gathering is taking place on Monday, October 22 from 7-9 p.m (6:30 arrival) at the The Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Center, 100 Malcolm X Boulevard, Roxbury MA 02120. Please be in touch with Faith Perry ( flejpw@aol.com ), Tim Groves, ( twgroves@comcast.net ), or Kathryn Barry ( kmbarry44@gmail.com ) to learn more and to let them know that you're coming!
MUSICAL GALA "SONGS FROM HOME" THIS SUNDAY AT HYDE PARK PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH: "Songs from Home" brings together music from the Carribean, America, Ireland, Africa as we celebrate our diversity as a community. There will be lots of good music, lots of good food, lots of good singing. And it all goes to support a good cause - support for immigrants and refugees. The concert is this Sunday, October 14 at 3 pm at: 1109 River Street, Hyde Park, MA.
"IMMIGRANTS IN ANXIOUS TIMES: CHANGING LAWS AND PERSONAL DILEMMAS" ON TUESDAY, OCTOBER 16:  What can we do to create a safe & welcoming environment for those who have recently arrived in the United States? You can join in the discussion "Immigrants in an Anxious Time: Changing Laws and Personal Dilemmas"  on October 16, 6:15 to 8 p.m., at the Marriott Courtyard Boston Downtown. Hosted by A Faith That Does Justice, Dr. Westy Egmont of Boston College School of Social Work will moderate, and Eva Millona, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA), and Patricia Sobalvarro, co-founder and Executive Director of Agencia ALPHA, will serve as panelists. Registration is free, and real-time interpretation to Spanish will be provided. To learn more and register, visit: http://bit.ly/AFTDJ-Immigrants
A REMINDER FROM "YES ON 3": Massachusetts Voter Registration Deadline: Wednesday, October 17. This year, voters will have the opportunity to vote Yes on 3 to maintain our state's nondiscrimination laws that protect our transgender community members from discrimination and harassment in public places. October 17 is the deadline to register as a new voter or update your current Massachusetts voter registration. Visit www.freedommassachusetts.org today to update your registration and to find out more about supporting the campaign by voting early, by mail or in person. Early voting will begin on October 22.
20s-30s GROUP THIS FALL: We have an active young adult group that meets regularly to share food together, visit sites around New England, and discuss how our faith motivates and guides us to live through this unique life stage. If you'd like to be added to the email listserv or to RSVP for any of the events, email our Leadership Team at  youngadults@cotcbos.org  or Rev. Julie at rev.julieavisrogers@gmail.com.
SUPPORTING OUR BELOVED SIBLING IN CHRIST ELSA ABELE:  As Elsa is now out of the hospital and in rehab in the same assisted living center where she and Reine live, one way to support her in her journey facing this new diagnosis with brain cancer is to please visit/ post/ follow her new CaringBridge site: https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/elsaabeleupdate. We will of course continue to keep her and Reine in our prayers. If you would like to visit Elsa in New Hampshire, please be in touch with Kay Olm at olmthomask@gmail.com Mid week visits are best as her family visits on the weekends.

WEEKLY PUBLIC WORSHIP VIGILS  against the Back Bay Fracked Gas Billionaire's Pipeline: Every Wednesday at Noon (stay for 5 min or an hour - whatever time you have) at the intersection of Huntington Ave. and Belvidere St.

The October issue of Covenant News  can be read online  here . 

 
Every Sunday at Covenant
click on the links to learn more:   
  • NURSERY CARE FOR CHILDREN:  Nursery Care is provided by our wonderful caregivers each Sunday from 9:15 am onward. Please ask an usher for directions if you need help finding it. 
Upcoming Events
 
EXCITING UPDATES FOR CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES:
A new year is in full-swing with new and inspiring opportunities for children of all ages to grow in faith and community. Our nursery continues to be open and staffed from 9:15 am - 1:00 pm each Sunday. In addition, there are two classes for kids each Sunday (each begins at 10:30 am with a circle time for all ages):
  • Godly Play for children ages 3-9: A multi-sensory, Montessori based curriculum focused on Bible stories and children's spirituality.
  • Youth classes for children ages 10-13: A class that engages a monthly focus-scripture and includes opportunities for service, art, and worship around the focus scripture.
INTERESTED IN JOINING CHURCH OF THE COVENANT ? We are most certainly interested in you! There are 3 important things you should know about: 1) Our next "COTC 101" session is Sunday Nov. 4, noon-1:15pm in the J. Black room on the second floor. This session goes over some of our church's  history, theology, governance, and sense of mission and calling in the world. 2) On a future Sunday in November/December, as part of the service, we will have a new members joining Sunday. 3) If you can't make either, or can only make one of these dates, don't fret - speak to Rob, and we can accommodate and make something else work. rob.mark@cotcbos.org.

MAKING GIVING EASY: Thanks to our COTC Generosity Generators, we can all now give fully online and set up automatic, recurring giving to the life and ministry of our beloved church. Simply click on the "Give" tab on our website to do some generous clicking! http://www.cotcbos.org/give.html  
THANK YOU!!

EVENT SEXTONS AND OPEN SANCTUARY HOSTS NEEDED: 
Church of the Covenant looking to expand our team of  Open  Sanctuary hosts and Event Sextons. Both hosts and sextons are so important in helping us make Covenant a welcoming place for the wider community. OS hosts staff our  Open  Sanctuary program that opens our building to the public, welcoming visitors and telling them about our building. Event sextons work with outside groups holding events here,  opening and locking up the building, assisting with set-up (must be able to lift/carry moderately heavy objects), and making sure that events run smoothly.  If you think you or someone you know would be a good fit for either of these positions, please email Bill Brown at bill.brown@cotcbos.org to set up an interview! Please note that these are both paid positions.