Keeping Connected March 15, 2024 | |
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Connect Virtually
We will continue using our new live streaming equipment. You may access our Sunday morning worship service via our YouTube Channel and our Facebook page.
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Greetings Church School Families,
Our Church School is bustling with activity as we gear up for the upcoming Easter celebrations. We want to extend our heartfelt thanks for entrusting us with your children in both church school and worship. Beginning a Sunday morning in the church building with the warm greetings and high-fives from your child is truly special. Watching your child participate in the Lord's Supper and sharing in that sacred moment not only nurtures their faith but also enriches the spiritual tapestry of our entire community.
Being part of the communion experience alongside believers of all ages, witnessing the connection between adults and children as they share profound words about Jesus, and offering prayers with folded arms create visual reminders of Jesus' sacrifice for all of us. We understand that parenting is a demanding journey, and there might be Sundays when you crave a moment of quiet reflection. We also acknowledge that there may have been times when you wondered if your little ones truly belonged in the worship setting. Despite these challenges, we encourage you to persevere, because beyond the joy your children bring to our collective worship, you are actively shaping their path of lifelong worship—a journey we're privileged to undertake together.
Top of Form
Holy Week Schedule
March 24th: Palm Sunday--Palm Procession
- Students will attend Church School at 9:30 and teachers will bring them into Church for the opening procession and blessing of the palms. We will return to class afterward to learn more about Palm Sunday.
- Prepared Communion class will meet as usual after their regular Church School class.
March 28th: Maundy Thursday--Prepared Communion Class, Bread Making, and Foot Washing
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5:00 PM Prepared Communion Class: Bread Making, Soup and Supper in the Parish Hall. ALL families are invited to bring 1 cup of your favorite vegetable (or more!) for our community chicken broth soup. While the soup is simmering students will hear the story of the last supper and participate (if they choose) in a foot washing activity. We will share a simple supper together after the lesson.
- We will make Communion Bread for the 7PM service, visit the Sacristy and the altar with Robin Nielson. She will show them how to set the altar and show them the "secret door"! We will also make our very own Communion Bread to be blessed and used at the 7 pm service.
March 29th: Good Friday--Stations of the Cross for All Ages
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10:30 AM Story and Craft: All families are invited to participate in a craft, story lesson, and snack focused on Good Friday and Easter.
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12:00 PM Stations of the Cross: Stations of the Cross for students and families. This is a truly meaningful way to help students understand the events of that day and the sacrifice that Jesus made for us.
March 31st: EASTER SUNDAY!!
- There will be an Easter Egg Hunt for kids of all ages after the 10 AM service. We are providing special bags for collecting your eggs!
Please encourage your children to invite their friends to our Good Friday activities and stations of the cross and our annual Easter egg hunt.
Blessings in Christ,
Donna Eby & Su D’Ambrosio
Interim Sunday School Coordinators
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Dear Beloved Church Family,
Warm greetings to each and every one of you! As we approach the joyous season of Easter, we are thrilled to embark on the preparations for our Annual Easter Egg Hunt at Christ Church.
In the spirit of togetherness and celebration, we invite those who are willing to contribute to the festivities. We are kindly requesting donations of plastic eggs, small, individually wrapped nut-free candies, and Easter-themed items to fill these eggs with love and joy.
Your generous donations can be dropped off conveniently at either the education office or the church office. The collection period will run until Sunday, March 24th, giving everyone a chance to participate in making this event truly special.
We sincerely appreciate your kindness and the spirit of giving that unites our Church Family. Thank you in advance for your heartfelt generosity, which will undoubtedly, again this year, make our Annual Easter Egg Hunt a cherished and delightful event for all.
Blessings and gratitude,
Donna Eby
Interim Sunday School Coordinator
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The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the crocus it shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice with joy and singing. - Isaiah 35:1-2
Dear Ones of Christ Church,
March can be a difficult month for many of us here in Massachusetts. The cold, the wind, the change of seasons—there is a tension between wanting to stay in cozy winter hibernation mode and being drawn out by birdsong and emerging flowers. March is always, also, for us in the Episcopal Church, a Lenten month, a time of spiritual examination and turning, with the turning of the season, toward Holy Week. Some of us may prefer to skip over the suffering and death of Holy Week and get right to the new life. Others of us might rather stay at the foot of the cross, or at the tomb, holding vigil with our own grief, feeling unable to face the brightness of Easter. Jesus understands this, even as he calls us to stay with him the whole way.
This past week, to process some of my own March and Lent feelings, I went out to do some work in a corner of our yard that gets overgrown with invasive vines… in past years it has been bittersweet, and this year English ivy has moved in. As I pulled up the ivy (very therapeutic!), I shifted a log, and under it was a large white crocus, with purple stripes. And I remembered the quote above from Isaiah, proclaiming that in the wilderness-y places, in the desert-times of our lives, God promises new life, and that God’s whole Creation itself sings with this promise. As we prepare for and pray and sing and move together through the stories and liturgies of Holy Week, may we keep our hearts open to what we might find. May we keep watch for the bright hope God reveals to us, in the overgrown, vine-y, desert corners of our own lives, under a log or under our noses, blossoming abundantly.
With peace,
Melissa +
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Finances: Last week we received in over $3162. When giving online, be sure to change the 'Fund' to 'Pledges' so your contribution goes toward your pledge.
Thank you for your loving support of Christ Church.
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Lenten Mite Box blessing this weekend! | |
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A reminder to please bring in your Lenten Mite Box offerings to be blessed at services this weekend! All donations will support the Christ Church food pantry. Thank you to our Church School for leading us in this collection as part of their "Love your Neighbor" curriculum.
Wishing you a meaningful Lenten journey,
Our Church School Children, Coordinators, Teachers and Assistants
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The Resource of Prayer: Six Week Lenten Series |  | |
Join us at Christ Church in Plymouth this Lent as we explore the meaning and gift of prayer in the Christian tradition and share resources and practices to enrich our prayer lives. We will meet for six weeks, with two options for meeting times and "spaces:" either Thursday evenings by Zoom from 6-7:30 PM, or Saturday afternoons in-person from 3-4:30 PM at church.
Here are our meeting schedules and topics for each week:
Week 1: Introduction - What is Prayer? - Thurs 2/15 and Sat 2/17
Week 2: Praying with Scripture - Thurs 2/22 and Sat 2/24
Week 3: Time and Space: Making a Habit of Prayer - Thurs 2/29 and Sat 3/2
Week 4: Praying Through Action, Movement, and Service - Thurs 3/7 and Sat 3/9
Week 5: Praying Without Words (or With Very Few Words!) - Thurs 3/14 and Sat 3/16
Week 6: Praying With the Senses and the Arts - Thurs 3/21 and Sat 3/23
Melissa will start each meeting by sharing about a particular way to pray, and then we will break into small groups to share our thoughts and experiences using reflection questions to guide us. There is still room in our Thursday evening Zoom group - to join, or if you have questions about the series, please contact Melissa: revmelissa@christchurchplymouth.org
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Palm Sunday Weekend Passion Readers Needed
We are looking for people to read bit parts in the Passion for each of the three Palm Sunday weekend services.
Please contact Connie (conmel@aol.com– 508.746.3805 if you would like to participate. Let her know for which service(s) you would be available.
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Prayer Vigil Watchers
As has been our tradition, beginning after the Maundy Thursday service through early Friday morning, we have folks who take an hour block to sit in the chapel to watch and pray as Jesus did in the garden at Gethsemane. A sign-up sheet will be posted by St. Francis Garden door for those interested in participating., or you may call Connie 508.746.3805 or email at conmel@aol.com
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Easter Flowers and Musicians | |
If you wish to remember or honor a loved one or give in thanksgiving, you may do so by sponsoring the flowers and guest musicians for our Easter services. The form will be included at the end of the service bulletins or you can download it here. In order to have your memorial listed in the Easter bulletins, please return the form to the church office by Sunday, March 24. | |
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Overnights of Hospitality Winter Emergency Shelter
We want your help!
The Plymouth Taskforce to End Homelessness, in collaboration with the Fr. Bill’s and Mainspring (FBMS) organization, offers winter emergency shelter to 20-25 single individuals which began here at Christ Church on Nov, 26th and will continue through Saturday, March 30. We can’t continue this important ministry without your help. We want volunteer chaperones to commit to giving one evening of their time from 5pm-11pm to provide support to the Fr. Bill’s staff person and to show our unhoused neighbors that they are not forgotten. We who have volunteered in the past have been touched by the appreciation shown by many of the guests. It has been a very rewarding experience!
Two people are needed at the shelter at all times. There are two Fr. Bill’s staff from 11pm to 7am, so the volunteer chaperone is only needed for the evening until the second staff person arrives.
The shelter rotates weekly among three congregations which began Sunday, November 26 and will continue through Saturday, March 30 - Christ Church, First Baptist Church and St Mary’s and St Joseph Collaborative at St Mary’s Parish Center, using the fellowship halls. Orientation is provided.
To sign up as a chaperone, go to https://www.mealtrain.com/trains/k4w5gd
To review the chaperone guidelines, go to https://plymouth-taskforce-homeless.org/volunteer/
Questions? Call Connie Melahoures, President of the Plymouth Taskforce to End Homelessness at 508.367.0516 or email conmel@aol.com.
The next week that Christ Church will be hosting begins Sunday, March 17th.
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Christ Church Thrift Shoppe | |
Spring is in the air at the Thrift Shoppe with seasonal transition of clothing now underway. Help us make room on the racks! Sales continue with all clothing just $2.00. Beginning Thursday, March 21, all remaining winter items $1.00.
We are grateful to the many generous donors who are at the core of this ministry. The need for donations is endless as we work to meet the needs of our community. Donations of gently used housewares, men’s and women’s seasonal clothing, and small furnishings from smoke-free homes can be dropped inside during shop hours, or at the garage on Saturdays from 10-1.
Volunteers of all ages are welcome, regardless of religious affiliation. For information please speak with any volunteer or contact a leader at christchurchplymouth.org
Needed - bubble wrap for wrapping of glassware. Please leave in the box located below the office mailboxes. Thank you.
Shoppe Hours
Thursday and Friday 10-4
Saturday 10-2
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Christ Church Food Pantry | |
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All are welcome to the Christ Church Food Pantry!
We are open by appointment:
Tuesday 4:00-5:15
Thursday 12:00-1:15 and 4:00-5:15
Saturday 10:00-11:15.
Call the pantry message line: 508-746-4959, ext 6, BY 1 PM THE DAY BEFORE YOU WISH TO PICK UP YOUR ORDER. Our volunteers check messages and return your call from their homes to ask you what you need.
Leave a message if you wish to donate non-perishable food and household items, or you may leave your donations under the mailboxes outside the office or in the front entrance to the sanctuary. Squirrels like to get into any bags left on the porch of the food pantry!
Thanks to an outpouring of support, we are all set for egg cartons for a while! This week we are low on spaghetti & egg noodles. Ramen noodles also welcome.
If you wish to volunteer, contact Eileen Paris at eileenpca@aol.com
For more information, please contact Barbara Wojtklewicz at 617-291-4634, or by email at barbara.wojtklewicz@gmail.com
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Pastoral Care
For any pastoral care needs of Christ Church, please call Robin Nielsen (774-454-2776) or email robinmarianielsen@gmail.com ~ A home visit, a home visit with holy communion or a phone call can be arranged. Although a small group, our Pastoral Care Ministry team meets monthly in confidence.
For any pastoral emergencies, please call Rev. Melissa Howell 508-746-4959 ext 4, and follow the instructions in her voice message.
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We want to keep you in the loop regarding the happenings at Christ Church. Please send your announcements for the weekly bulletin and Keeping Connected, to the office by 12 Noon on Wednesday. They should include date, time, place, description of event, contact information and should be written exactly the way you want them to appear.
The church office will close at Noon on Wednesday, March 20th.
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