CONTENTS
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Shannon Kershner's Sun-Times Column
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Friendly Face Easing the Pain of the Homeless
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"I will call her 'Tabitha'--even though that isn't her real name--because I respect her privacy," writes Shannon Kershner.
"Tabitha and I work together. She is often one of the first to arrive at the church in the morning. She is the first face many who come to us see--people who come for meetings or classes or social services or just a warm place to be, to rest, to be safe.
"Tabitha always treats our guests with kindness, dignity, and compassion. Sometimes, she receives kindness in response; other times, she does not..."
So begins Shannon's first column as part of the
Chicago Sun-Times new "Just Relations" series, a series that will be written by a group of Chicago spiritual leaders and will "take some time each week to discuss what we owe each other as citizens and as fellow human beings."
If you didn't see the column on Friday via
our page on Facebook or
Twitter, you can read the entire column, "A Friendly Face at Church to Ease the Pain of the Homeless,"
here or in the Sunday print edition of the
Sun-Times.
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Family Fun at the Skating Ribbon
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It's time once again for one of our favorite January family activities: ice skating after church!
We'll be putting on our skates at the Skating Ribbon of Maggie Daley Park. All families are invited to meet us there this Sunday, January 21 after the 11:00 a.m. Sunday School hour concludes.
Admission is free, but plan to bring your own skates if you can, as skate rentals are $14.
There's also a park area nearby, so non-skaters should have plenty to do as well on this fun Sunday afternoon outing.
Time:
Sunday, January 21
12:30 p.m.
Place:
Skating Ribbon at Maggie Daley Park
(337 E. Randolph)
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Sign Up by This Sunday, January 21
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Each year summer youth trips are powerful experiences of service, worship, and fun. This year we have four great youth mission trips planned: trips to Cuba, Missouri, Detroit, and Montreat.
Youth interested in joining us for one or more of these fun and formative trips are encouraged to sign up online--but do so today: the registration deadline is this Sunday, January 21.
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Trips to Cuba, Detroit, Missouri, and Montreat
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Have you ever thought about supporting our youth ministry by joining the adult leadership team for one of the summer youth mission trips?
If so, why not take a look at the trips we have planned for this summer and consider joining these wonderful little communities within the community, as you build relationships with youth and fellow adult leaders and engage in mission alongside our youth.
You can learn more and sign up online. (The sign-up deadline is this Sunday, January 21.)
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Interfaith Coalition Against Racism
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The Interfaith Coalition Against Racism, of which Fourth Church is a member, invites you to two upcoming events:
The series "Confronting the Moral Crisis of Mass Incarceration: Understanding the Criminal Justice System and Making Change Happen" will take place on Thursdays, January 25 to February 15 at 6:30 p.m. at St. Chrysostom's (1424 N. Dearborn). For details and to register, visit saintc.org/justice
The film
Islamophobia in the USA will be shown at the Downtown Islamic Center
(231 S. State) on Sunday, February 4 at 3:00 p.m. Afterwards Mohammed Hussein will lead a discussion of the hour-long documentary.
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Protestant and Roman Catholic Perspectives
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Luther's "The Freedom of a Christian"
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Martin Luther's act of posting his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517 was not intended as the beginning of a break with the Roman Catholic Church and the establishment of a new church--especially not one titled "Lutheran."
And yet that break was virtually assured by 1520 when Pope Leo X declared Luther a heretic and ordered him to cease preaching. Luther responded with a flurry of activity, capped by the publication of
The Freedom of a Christian, perhaps the clearest expression of Luther's understanding of faith that breaks free from the conceptual vocabulary employed in Roman Catholic scholasticism and of the meaning of faith active in love.
In a ninety-minute class this Sunday, Robin Lovin and Susan Ross will share Protestant and Roman Catholic perspectives on
The Freedom of a Christian.
Robin Lovin is the Cary M. Maguire University Professor of Ethics emeritus at Southern Methodist University and a visiting scholar in theology at Loyola University Chicago. He previously served as Dean of Perkins School of Theology at SMU; Dean of the Theological School at Drew University in Madison, New Jersey; and a member of the faculty at the Divinity School of the University of Chicago. Dr. Lovin has also written extensively on religion and law and comparative religious ethics.
Susan Ross is Professor of Theology and a Faculty Scholar at Loyola University Chicago. She is the author of
Anthropology: Seeking Light and Beauty; For the Beauty of the Earth: Women, Sacramentality, and Justice; Extravagant Affections: A Feminist Sacramental Theology; and more than fifty journal articles and book chapters. She is past President of the Catholic Theological Society of America (2012-13) and also served as Vice President and member of the editorial board of
Concilium: International Theological Journal.
Time:
Sunday, January 21
11:00 a.m.
Place:
Borwell Dining Room
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The Fourth Church Handbell Choir will be performing some of their favorite pieces on Friday, February 2 at 7:30 p.m. in Buchanan Chapel.
Mark your calendar and come enjoy some fun music while supporting this Fourth Church ensemble!
Time:
Friday, February 2
7:30 p.m
Place:
Buchanan Chapel
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All women are invited to join us next Saturday, January 27 as together we explore "Women in God's Story."
Ann Gaston of St. Christopher's Episcopal Church will offer a keynote presentation on "
Women Making Our Mark through History: We Are God's Story."
There will also be four different pull-out sessions:
"Women of the Story and How They Influence Our Faith Today"
presented by Anne Ellis of the Fourth Church staff
"Does My Faith Have Legs? Sunday Works--How About Monday through Saturday?" presented by Leslie Deslauriers of Second Presbyterian Church
"Faith Stories" presented by Linda Gibboney, Fourth Church member
"Meditation on Her Story as My Story: Images from the Bible"
presented by Vicky Curtiss, Fourth Church Associate Pastor
To help us plan, please register in advance with
Anne Ellis.
Time:
Saturday, January 27
8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Place:
Buchanan Chapel
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Worship This Week
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Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
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Sunday, January 21
8:00 a.m.
Communion
Rocky Supinger,
Associate Pastor
9:30 and 11:00 a.m.
New Members at 11:00
Shannon J. Kershner,
Pastor
4:00 p.m.
Jazz at Four | Communion
Alex Wirth,
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Passages
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Births
We give thanks to God for the gift of new life.
Child of Kristina Bonesteel
Deaths
We give thanks to God for the gift of life eternal.
Gayle Engberg
January 8, 2018
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, February 10 at 10:30 a.m. in the Sanctuary.
Sue Felty
January 10, 2018
A service was held on Monday, January 15 in Zionsville, Indiana.
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Concerts and Musical Events at Fourth Church
All concerts are free unless ticket information is noted.
Friday, January 26
12:10 p.m. in the Sanctuary
John W. W. Sherer, Fourth Church Organist,
organ
Tuesday, January 30
7:30 p.m. in Buchanan Chapel
Friday, February 2
12:10 p.m. in Buchanan Chapel
Chicago Recorder Quartet
Friday, February 2
7:30 p.m. in Buchanan Chapel
Fourth Church Handbell Choir
A complete Fourth Church concert schedule is available online.
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Volunteer and Donation Needs
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There are several ways to get involved in the mission and ministry of Fourth Church. See below for just some of the details!
Current Volunteer Needs
Leaders for 2018 youth mission trips; details and a sign-up form are online at www.bit.ly/youthtrips2018; sign-up deadline is January 21
Greeters for the Jazz at Four 4:00 p.m. Sunday service
Current Donation Needs
Individually packaged snack items for Fourth Church Meals Ministry bag lunches
Men's clothing
(all sizes)
for guests of the Chicago Lights Elam Davies Social Service Center
Large paper grocery bags for use in the Social Service Center Food Pantry (four grocery bags are needed for every guest who visits the Chicago Lights Elam Davies Social Service Center Food Pantry)
Unless otherwise noted, to sign up for volunteer opportunities or to learn more about them--as well as additional volunteer opportunities--stop by Coffee Hour on Sunday morning or email Robert Crouch, Director of Volunteer Ministry.
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