A note in light of the City of Chicago lifting its mask mandate in most settings:
As Shannon Kershner wrote in her congregational email at the end of February, “until you hear otherwise, please assume that we will keep doing what we are doing now—masks required, restricted campus access and hours, etc. I thank you for your patience.”
The wide range of programs, activities, and participants that are part of our Fourth Church and Chicago Lights community make how we move forward around masking complex, particularly given the number of vulnerable populations we serve—from preschoolers to older adults to those with insufficient access to health care—and given the range of staff and volunteers who work with them.
So while we have not yet lifted our mask mandate, please know that we are hard at work determining what our life together will look like around masks, in-person programs, and more!
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Looking for ways to connect with the Fourth Church community and one another? On the church calendar you will find many opportunities to do so online (or, where noted, in person). Included among them are—
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Friday Noonday Concert—both in person and online—featuring lyric soprano Laura Bumgardner and pianist Heidi Joosten today, Friday, March 4
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“The Book of Job and the Invention of Faith” on Sunday mornings, March 6 and 13
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Books by Women discussing Free Thinker by Kimberly A. Hamlin on Tuesday evening, March 8
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Benevolent Guild on Wednesday, March 9
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Knitting and Crocheting on Tuesday afternoon, March 22
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).
For highlights about some additional opportunities, keep reading!
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First Sunday in Lent, March 6
10:00 a.m. worship in person and online
9:45 a.m. prelude
Shannon J. Kershner preaching
4:00 p.m. Jazz at Four worship in person
with Communion
in Buchanan Chapel
Joseph L. Morrow preaching
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Our Lenten journey began this week with the solemn observance of Ash Wednesday. In the days ahead, we invite you to join with others in this season of prayer and self-reflection, using the variety of resources and opportunities available from Fourth Church.
Lenten Devotions
Offered as a resource for personal meditation and prayer, our daily Lenten devotions are written by Fourth Church members and staff.
Lenten Rhythm and Word
If you missed the beginning of our Lenten “Rhythm and Word” video series on Ash Wednesday evening, you can find the first of this season’s fifteen-minute worship experiences—along with others in this video series—on our YouTube channel (www.bit.ly/fpcvideos).
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Sacred Pause Meditation
Walking the Labyrinth
Another opportunity for meditation is offered on Wednesday and Thursday mornings, when the Buchanan Chapel labyrinth is available to walk between 9:00 and 10:00 a.m. For details, email Rocky Supinger.
Morning Prayer
On Wednesdays we gather to pray together for members of Fourth Church and the community as well as those in need.
Morning Prayer via Zoom takes place at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesdays; in-person Morning Prayer is held in Buchanan Chapel on Wednesdays at 10:00 a.m. For Zoom details, email Rocky Supinger.
Bible Study
Men’s Bible Study meets online on Tuesdays at 7:30 a.m., and Horizons Bible Study for women will host two online sessions this Wednesday, March 9, one at 12:00 p.m. and one at 6:30 p.m. For Zoom links or more information about either Bible study, email Simon Crow.
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Tonight is the Chicago Lights Gala of Hope!
To all who will be joining us for this festive evening, we are grateful you will be attending and hope you have a wonderful time!
If you won’t be with us tonight, there is still opportunity to be part of the fun—and lend your support—by participating in the silent auction.
Your participation supports the life-changing work of Chicago Lights—the nonprofit community outreach arm of Fourth Church, which includes the Tutoring and Summer Day, Urban Farm, Dance Academy, and Social Service Center programs—as well as the work of the Replogle Center for Counseling and Well-Being.
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For anyone interested in becoming a member of Fourth Church, our online Inquirers’ Class will be held next Sunday, March 13 via Zoom.
For additional information about Fourth Church membership, please contact Joe Morrow, Associate Pastor for Evangelism and Community Engagement. |
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In 2021 the following staff members marked significant anniversaries as partners in the work of Fourth Church and Chicago Lights. We are deeply grateful to them for their commitment and for all they make possible in our shared mission.
Please join us in thanking and congratulating them!
Forty Years
Les Ventsch
Thirty-Five Years
Leszek Pytka
Thirty Years
Carol Carpenter
Twenty-Five Years
Stacy Jackson
John Sherer
Twenty Years
Sharon Crawford-Tucker
O.C. Jones
Jill Keiser
Fifteen Years
Caitlin Lucci
Ten Years
Tamieka Sherden
Devon Wojciechowski
Five Years
Marshall Rollings
Rocky Supinger
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To the Fourth Church Youth, who again led our annual Souper Bowl of Caring team, and to all who supported their efforts, thank you!
The final numbers are in, and through the generosity of your contributions of time, money, and canned goods, we collected $7,816 and 100 pounds of food for the Food Pantry of the Chicago Lights Social Service Center.
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If you would like to pray with a Deacon on Sundays, the Deacons invite you to come to Stone Chapel (through the door next to the Sanctuary pulpit) following Sunday morning worship.
If you would like to talk to a pastor, please call the church (312.787.4570) and your request will be forwarded to someone on the pastoral staff.
If you would like to alert pastoral staff to emerging pastoral care needs, please email caringministries@fourthchurch.org; however if the situation is an emergency or requires immediate attention, please call the church at 312.787.4570 to be connected to the Minister on Call.
For one-to-one spiritual and emotional support through life challenges, we encourage you to consider being paired with a Stephen Minister. To learn more about this resource, contact Jeff Doane, Parish Associate for Caring Ministries and Spiritual Formation, or leave a confidential message for a Stephen Minister at 312.573.3365.
To set up a time to talk or for more information about how the staff of the Replogle Center for Counseling and Well-Being can be a resource for you, call the Center at 312.787.2729, ext. 2260.
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In-Person Guidelines
In the Sanctuary, the front section is for those required to or choosing to practice social distancing. The remainder of the Sanctuary is open seating. Seating for Jazz at Four is all socially distanced.
We continue to require that everyone on the Fourth Church campus wear a mask, fully covering the nose and mouth, at all times. Anyone not wearing a mask fully covering their nose and mouth will be asked to leave, as we know that some people make the decision to worship with us in person—or participate in adult education classes—based on the knowledge that everyone will be fully masked. This is but one of the ways we continue to live out our commitment to value the health and safety of all.
Since everyone is masked throughout the service, the congregation is invited to sing.
We are not checking vaccination status, but anyone coming on site certifies by doing so that (a) they do not currently have COVID-19; (b) they are not experiencing COVID symptoms; (c) they have no reason to quarantine; and (d) they will practice social distancing if they are not vaccinated against COVID-19.
Worshiping with Us Online
Our Sunday morning worship service is livestreamed at 10:00 a.m. (Central) via our YouTube channel (www.bit.ly/fpcvideos)
The service is also available online any time afterwards on YouTube.
For those who do not have Internet access, we also make our livestreamed 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
Our Sunday services are available for viewing following the conclusion of worship and throughout the week at www.bit.ly/fpcvideos.
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If you know someone who would like to receive email updates from us but currently is not, please encourage them to add their email address to our distribution list by signing up at www.bit.ly/newsfromfpc
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