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Worship This Week:
Baptism of Our Lord Sunday, January 10
11:00 a.m. worship online
Organ prelude beginning shortly after 10:45 a.m.
Shannon J. Kershner preaching
We encourage you to have a bowl of water on hand for use during the Reaffirmation of Baptismal Vows, which will take place during the service this Sunday, a day when we remember Jesus’ baptism by John in the Jordan River.
Connecting to Our Online Worship Services
Our online worship services are available live at 11:00 a.m. (Central) via
For those who do not have Internet access, we also make our worship services available to listen to via the phone. If you know of someone for whom this audio opportunity would be welcome, please encourage them to call 888.916.9166 (toll-free) at the time of the service.
Throughout the Week
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Following worship this Sunday, January 10 we will have a virtual congregational meeting online at www.bit.ly/fpcprograms.
During the meeting, we will elect an Associate Pastor Nominating Committee (APNC) to identify and recommend a candidate to serve Fourth Presbyterian Church as Associate Pastor for Caring Ministries and Spiritual Formation.
The nominees recommended by the Nominating Committee to serve on the APNC are posted online.
Sunday, January 10
12:00 p.m.
To listen to the meeting, dial 888.916.9166
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This coming Thursday evening, January 14 we hope you will join us for an online Michigan Avenue Forum on “Faith in Uncertain Times: Reflecting on the Past and Envisioning the Future.”
In preparation for and follow-up on that discussion, we encourage you to also take part in two Sunday morning Zoom conversations on that same topic, to be held on Sundays, January 10 and 17.
This Sunday morning, January 10 at 9:30 a.m., Lucy Forster-Smith and Jim Garner will use materials from the Christian Century and other sources to help us consider such topics as the pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement, and economic and political uncertainty.
Then the following Sunday, January 17 they will guide us in conversation reflecting on the January 14 Michigan Avenue Forum and how the insights of the speakers can help us grapple with today's current events.
That Thursday, January 14 Michigan Avenue Forum will be a discussion—moderated by Lucy Forster-Smith—among panelists Shannon Kershner; Horace Smith, Pastor of Apostolic Faith Church; Otis Moss III, Senior Pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ; David Crawford, President of McCormick Theological Seminary; and Ozzie Smith Jr., Pastor Emeritus of Covenant United Church of Christ.
As we head into a new year, they will explore together questions such as
- What is the role of faith and religious institutions in these unsettled times?
- How can our faith communities work together to rebuild society and become a unifying force in Chicago?
- What have you learned about faith and humanity from the pandemic?
- How do we survive, thrive, and flourish in these historic times?
- What is your biggest hope for the future?
Sundays, January 10 and 17 Class
9:30 a.m. via Zoom
Thursday, January 14 Forum
7:00 p.m. online
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In this new year we offer a variety of ways to make online connections with others. Perhaps one of these opportunities might interest you!
Books by Women
Tuesday, January 12
6:00 p.m. via Zoom
All women are invited to join in monthly Books by Women discussions whenever their schedules allow and the books are of interest.
January book: The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty
Cornerstones
Friday, February 5
5:30 p.m. via Zoom
Those who are fifty and over are invited to join in a monthly Cornerstones time of fellowship followed by a program. For our next gathering, on February 5, we are honored to have artist Gerald Griffin joining us to talk about his work, the concepts that drive his creativity, and his view of the unique role Black artists play in this city and in our national conversations about race.
Virtual Coffee Hour
On Sunday we have opportunity to connect online with one another and share in a time of fellowship, when we hope you will join us after the congregational meeting for virtual Coffee Hour.
Following the postlude
Meeting ID: 963 5583 1751
Passcode: 631276
Phone: Call 1 312.626.6799
and enter Meeting ID 963 5583 1751#
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“Journal Writing as a Spiritual Formation”
Journaling as a spiritual formation offers us an opportunity to reflect upon the parallel journeys we travel: the actions we take as we “do” life and the sacred center out of which all life comes. The spiritual journey is what the soul is up to while we attend to daily living.
In January the Spiritual Formation Council invites you to join them for an online spiritual journaling workshop led by Christine Vogel, a pastor in the Presbyterian Church (USA), spiritual director, and former Dean of Students and Vice President of Student Affairs at McCormick Theological Seminary.
Together we will explore how through writing down the details and stories of our lives we can see the co-mingling between our spiritual and “ordinary” lives.
Saturday, January 16
10 a.m. to 12:30 via Zoom
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“Loving Our Neighbor in a Time of Social Distancing”
The Board of Deacons invites you to join them in a two-hour online workshop on Saturday morning, January 23, when David Hogue, Professor Emeritus of Pastoral Theology and Counseling at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, will lead a workshop on “Loving Our Neighbor in a Time of Social Distancing.”
This two-hour virtual workshop will offer a theological and biblical framework for the ministry of making phone calls to those who may be isolated during this season. Topics will include, among others, loneliness and depression, the COVID context of isolation and social distancing, and fears of the virus and the prospect of treatments, including hospitalization and ventilators.
Saturday, January 23
10:00 a.m. via zoom
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Those interested in becoming members of Fourth Church are invited to take part in our online Inquirers’ Class, which will be held next Sunday, January 17 at 9:00 a.m. via Zoom.
For additional information about Fourth Church membership, please contact Joe Morrow. |
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On the church calendar are many opportunities to connect online with the Fourth Church community and one another. Included among them are—
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Sacred Pause on Saturday and Tuesday mornings
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TwentiesThirties “Living Faith” conversation, Sunday, January 10
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Men’s Bible Study on Tuesday mornings
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Morning Prayer on Wednesday mornings
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Benevolent Guild on Wednesday mornings
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Horizons Bible Study for Women on Wednesday, January 13
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Friday Noonday Concerts, featuring the Chen Family String Quartet on January 15
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Knitting and Crocheting on Tuesday, January 26
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First Tuesday Book Club discussing Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation on Friday, February 2
For information about whom to contact for an event’s Zoom details, simply click on the down “arrow” to the right of the event name in the calendar (which is easily accessible from the “Calendar” button in the upper left corner of our website). |
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