We Commit Ourselves and Our Resources to
Nurture the Spirit, Grow in Community, and Help Heal the World.
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Sunday, August 2, 2020
10:00 am
ONLINE Worship Service
New Names
Caro Barschow
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Join Zoom Meeting:
(This link will work for all upcoming online services.)
Meeting ID: 387 790 755
One tap mobile
+19294362866,,387790755# US (New York)
Call in as early as 9:30 am
to test your Zoom connection,
and say hello to other First Parish friends.
Please have a candle ready to light during the service.
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Upcoming
Online
Worship Services
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August 9| 10am
Imagine That!
Caro Barschow
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August 16| 10am
#ProtectTransKids
Caro Barschow
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August 23| 10am
Told In Ink
Caro Barschow
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A Message from
Reverend Christina
Dear Members and Friends of First Parish,
Our church 2019-2020 church year was very full. Shifting all our programming to online has been a learning curve for the staff and the leadership; and fortunately things seem to be going well.
I do still wonder about congregants who are being left out of the fold because we are holding everything online. To you, I send my love and blessings. Please reach out to me if you would like to connect. It is unclear when we will return to in-person worship. We must practice acceptance and patience for where we are at this time.
Our year round church goal has come to fruition as many are attending and enjoying worship. After working until the end of July, I am taking study leave and vacation for the month of August and will not be engaging in any church activities, nor responding to emails, phone calls, or texts. During this much needed break, I will be enjoying reflective time alone in a cabin by the sea, taking an authentic movement class online, brainstorming worship with colleagues in a house by a lake, and spending time with my family.
I feel especially good about my time away this summer because Caro Barschow will be leading worship and tending to pastoral care emergencies. I encourage you to join her for Sunday worship.
May the rest of your summer be filled with the beauty of nature and deep connection to your own being. May you find ways to connect with those you love and reach out to those in need. I look forward to returning to you in September.
I love you!
Christina
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Introducing our Summer Minister
Caro Barschow
It is an honor to inaugurate the position of Summer Minister at First Parish Portland. The opportunity to lead worship on Sundays and provide pastoral care with, and for, this community is a privilege and a responsibility I will hold with joy, love and earnestness.
I look forward to journeying with you in August. I acknowledge that for all of us, it is a challenging time. For some, it’s a time of crisis. May joining together through
the summer spark vitality, warmth and hope. May it lift our spirits, even if just for the moment. May it be so.
In faith,
Caro
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In Case You Don't Know Caro...
Carolyn "Caro" Barschow (she/they pronouns) is an educator, writer and full-time seminary student. Caro’s spiritual influences are broad, woven by the thread of a belief that awakened hearts bring forth healing and transformation to people, planet and society. Caro’s spiritual practices include meditation, dance, prayer and speaking and listening in circles of trust.
At Boston University, Caro is completing a Master of Divinity degree in Global and Community Engagement. They are an aspirant for ordination with the Unitarian Universalist Association. Caro recently served as Director of Religious Education at Allen Avenue UU Church, following a career in Montessori education. They became a Unitarian Universalist in 2006, after being raised non-religious, and joined First Parish Portland after a move to Maine in 2010. Caro now lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
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Newcomer Coffee
This Sunday!
August 2 | 11 am-Noon
Newcomers and visitors to First Parish are invited to chat informally with church leaders to learn more about what makes this church unique. To join the conversation at 11 am, use the Zoom link posted above for the online worship service or just stay online after the service. We look forward to meeting you!
FMI: Laurie Hasty
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RESILIENCE:
Guided Meditation and Practices
Tuesdays, August 4,11,18 | 12:30-1:30 pm
You’re invited to attend a lunch-time class led by Caro Barschow, Summer Minister. Take a pause for a guided meditation and learn simple movement and creative practices for resilience of mind, body and spirit. Attend one or all sessions. Meets on Zoom at
this link.
PLEASE NOTE
: The following password is required for this Zoom meeting:
176841
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First Parish Lives Our Values
as Unitarian Universalists
We are opening our Memorial Garden daily from 11 am to 3 pm to at risk homeless youth and families who are part of the Portland encampment at City Hall. They will observe guidelines for use of the garden, and volunteers and staff at First Parish will be supporting them.
We are also opening our community room bathrooms for one hour in the morning to folks in the encampment following guidelines by the state and the CDC.
This is our beginning attempt to honor the worth and dignity of the most vulnerable among us and to promote justice, equity and compassion in human relations.
As things go well, First Parish may offer more support for these folks.
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Community Room Volunteers Needed
The Faith in Action Team is looking for a group of seven to ten people from First Parish who are willing to volunteer to provide access to the bathrooms in the Community Room for persons involved in the homeless encampment at Portland City Hall.
The bathrooms would be open daily and on weekends from 7:00am to 8:00am. The volunteer for the day would arrive at First Parish at 6:45am to open the Community Room and would leave by 8:30am after securing the area and locking the door. Volunteers would work one shift per week, ideally on the same day.
We are also looking for someone to coordinate this effort. The coordinator would maintain and update the list of volunteers, assign shifts, hand out keys and perform associated duties.
If you are interested in Coordinating or participating in this activity, please contact
Carl Cappello
by email
;
or text/call at (207)749-7769.
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Update on Church for EveryBody
First Parish's Accessibility Project, The Church for EveryBody, is moving forward -- the church's back wall has started to come down and the project leadership team including Patty Reynaud, Austin Farrar, Ted Asherman, Jan Berlin, Jason Shedlock and Reverend Christina gathered at the church this week to officially kick things off. You can learn more about the project's status
here.
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While Reverend Christina is Away...
Please note: Reverend Christina will be on study leave/vacation from August 1
st
– September 6
th
.
If you have needs, questions or concerns regarding First Parish during this time, please contact church members below and they will be happy to assist you.
Building
Teams and Committees
Pastoral Care Emergencies
August Summer Minister
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Notice on Building Access
As a reminder,
The First Parish Meeting House and Parish Hall are closed until further notice due to the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result,
only First Parish staff and volunteer church leadership with explicit authorization and specific business at the church are allowed in the buildings at this time.
We are following the State of Maine reopening guidelines to determine when we will allow individuals and groups back in the buildings. We will be sure to share that reopening schedule widely once it is known.
Thank you for your attention to this issue.
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Call for Stories and Images
Do you have a relationship to tattoos? As part of the August 23rd service, titled "Told in Ink," our Summer Minister, Caro Barschow, would like to share stories from members and friends of First Parish about how tattoos relate to their spirituality. Would you be willing to have a conversation about tattoos? And/or share images of your tattoos? If so, please contact Worship Associate Deena Hastings at
deenahastings@snet.net
.
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From the Music Director, Scott Wheatley
I believe this beautiful song by Andra Day speaks volumes about many aspects of what’s happening in our world. Enjoy
Rise Up
.
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Survey re: Remote FP Events
The First Parish Membership team would like to host online groups for our First Parish Family to still feel connected even though we are temporarily apart. Please fill out the survey at
this link
if you would be interested in participating or even leading a remote event with our First Parish Community. Thanks! For more information, please contact Emily Bolt at
emswah@gmail.com
.
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Portland Parks Conservancy
Seeking Volunteers
Portland Parks Conservancy (PPC) is a new nonprofit organization with a mission to support Portland's public parks by raising private funding and engaging the community.
With municipal budget and staffing challenges brought on by COVID-19, the PPC is focusing this summer and fall on recruiting volunteers to help the Portland Parks, Recreation, and Facilities staff with picking up trash, raking, weeding, clearing brush, and other light maintenance that will allow City staff to do their jobs more efficiently.
PPC is currently recruiting volunteers to assist with this effort!
Email
Jesse
for more information or to volunteer!
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Finance Committee Seeking
Additional Members
Are you looking for a way to make a meaningful contribution to First Parish that involves money but doesn’t require writing a check? The First Parish Finance Committee performs essential financial and operational functions of the church. If you have an interest or skills in finance, accounting, communications, fundraising or special projects we would like to talk with you. Please contact Claire Cowan (
mclairecowan@gmail.com
or 608-333-2753) for more information.
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UU The Vote
Are you interested in the UU the Vote Weekly Update or learning about the Summer Social Justice Organizing School conducted by the UUA? Learn more
Here
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Help Wanted:
Public Safety Team
A new First Parish Public Safety Team is forming, and we are looking for folks with skills in the following areas:
basic web research on topics such as police use of force, citizen participation in review of complaints against the police, model policing reforms and policies adopted by other U.S. cities & states, etc.;
social media & email lists; website building & maintenance; fundraising; writing letters to the editor; emails and phone calls to elected officials; and connecting with allied organizations e.g. MUUSAN, Poor People's Campaign, NAACP, Black Lives Matter, etc.
Our city needs your energy and skills NOW!
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Ongoing Meetings & Resources
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Wayside Pulpit
Laurie Hasty, Membership Coordinator
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Thanks to Jaime Parker for hanging our BLM Banner!
Photo by Moe Blanchard
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Prominent Support for
Black Lives Matter
Everyone loved the giant HEART displayed on First Parish's tower for Valentine's Day this year. Our beautiful, historic building located in the heart of the City gives us a prominent position to now share our support for the
Black Lives Matter movement. We hope this banner will help remind us of all the important work ahead to build a more just world.
Many thanks to Jaime Parker for his help in hanging the banner, and to John Tiedje, John Schaberg, and Francesca Galluccio-Steele for their help in making this banner a reality.
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Text to Give/
Mail Pledge Checks
You can now make donations
to First Parish via
TEXT
by following these steps:
- Type in (833) 763-0068 in the "To:" field of a text
- Type in the amount you want to give in the text box
- Click on the link to enter your billing information
- For subsequent donations, simply text the amount you want to give to the (833) 763-0068 & hit SEND.
OR... Mail Your Pledge Check!
Many of our parishioners usually pay their pledges with a check placed in the Offertory, and may prefer not to give online. If this is YOU,
please mail your pledge checks
to the church office at 425 Congress St, Portland, ME 04101. It is essential for us to maintain a smooth cash flow in these difficult times.
Thank you for your generosity!
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Rev. Christina's Sermons
We receive many requests for copies of Rev. Christina's thought-provoking sermons. You can now find her sermons in this
Shared Sermons Folder. Please allow up to a week for sermons to be posted here.
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Have you visited the UUA's website recently? Many great resources can be found there, including the following:
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425 Congress Street Portland, Maine 04101 207-773-5747
Nurture the Spirit, Grow in Community
and Help Heal the World
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