We Commit Ourselves and Our Resources to 
Nurture the Spirit, Grow in Community, and Help Heal the World.
Sunday, May 31
10:00 am

ONLINE Worship Service


Music Sunday:
Separate But Together

Deena Hastings & Tricia Naddaff
Join Zoom Meeting:

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.

Or watch the livestream service on our Facebook page .

Please have a candle ready to light during the service.
The above Zoom link will work for all upcoming online services.
Upcoming Online Worship Services
June 7 | 10am
Compassionate Detachment
Rev. Christina Sillari
June 14 | 10am
Flower Communion & Youth Bridging
Rev. Christina Sillari
Please stay for the
Annual Meeting at 10:45
June 21| 10am

Clara Porter
RE Zoom Gathering
Sundays | 9 am
 
This Sunday the RE Program will be holding it's regular Zoom Call at 9am. We will not be doing any kind of lesson this week. Instead, we will be playing games together. Children are encouraged to bring paper, something to draw with, and their sense of humor!  FMI about the RE program, please email Toben dre@firstparishportland.org . 

Sad News

Rev. Christina's father, Salvatore "Johnny" Sillari, died this past Tuesday at his home with Christina and her mother. Christina will be taking some time off, but will be in the pulpit on Sunday June 7th. Please refrain from reaching out to Christina at this time, as she is quite overwhelmed managing her father's service and her family. If you'd like to send her a note, cards can be sent to First Parish, 425 Congress Street, Portland, ME 04103.
Wayside Pulpit
Laurie Hasty, Membership Coordinator

Path to Membership Class
June 4 | 6-8 pm | Zoom

Are you interested in joining First Parish as a member? Join members of the Leadership Team to learn about our church governance and the responsibilities of membership at First Parish.

FMI, please contact, Laurie Hasty, Membership Coordinator: membership@firstparishportland.org
Flowers for
Flower Communion
June 14

Our Flower Communion service will be held on June 14. Since we cannot make an in-person bouquet as we have done in years past, we wanted to offer you all a chance to help create a virtual bouquet. One way to do this is to bring a flower with you to the Zoom service. Another way to do this is to take a picture of flowers and upload it to your Zoom profile photo. 

To do this, visit  https://zoom.us/  and log in. If you don’t already have an account, you will need to create one. Once logged in, the site will automatically take you to  https://zoom.us/profile . You can add a user photo from this profile page. You will need to have the photo on the device you are logging into Zoom from, and the photo file should be no larger than 2MB.
First Parish Annual Meeting
June 14 | Zoom

First Parish's Annual Meeting will be held on Zoom following the worship service on Sunday, June 14. This is an important opportunity for Members to elect officers and approve the budget for the year. The annual report, agenda, materials and voting instructions will be distributed via email on June 8. Members are encouraged to stay on the Zoom call (not Facebook), or call in at 10:45, to ensure a quorum for the meeting. 

Important Voting Information
In order for Members to be able to vote in this new Zoom medium, we need to ensure two things: (1) that all members have their first & last names clearly displayed ontheir screens, and (2) that all members know how to virtually raise their hands. This is critical – without both of these tools, we will be unable to count your vote! Stay tuned for more instructions on both items, or poke around in Zoom to teach yourself!
Kids' Art & Music
in Online Services
Scott Wheatley,
First Parish Music Director

As a fun summer project , I would like to encourage the children and youth of First Parish to send me photographs or pictures of their artwork to be used in our Sunday worship services.  No people, just nature, buildings, pets or examples of their own drawings, paintings or sculptures. In addition, any musically inclined children could submit short videos of them sharing their music-making, as long as the parents are comfortable with us sharing during a service.

The benefits are many: foster creativity in our youth, give them a role and voice in our worship services, and avoid copyright infringement using online content. Please help us feature the amazingly creative youth we have at First Parish. If you have questions or wish to send submissions, contact Scott at  musicdirector@firstparishportland.org .
“UU the Vote”
Campaign Leader

First Parish is looking for a volunteer to organize the “UU The Vote” campaign at our church as part of a statewide effort sponsored by The Maine Unitarian Universalist State Advocacy Network ( MUUSAN ). Along with MUUSAN and other UU congregations in Maine, we can fight for our values, counter voter suppression, and expand democracy. The FPUU campaign leader will be part of a team organized under our Faith in Action Committee. If you are interested in volunteering to organize this campaign or have questions about it please email Carl Cappello at ccappello@maine.rr.com.
Mass Poor People's Assembly
& ONLINE Moral March on Washington

June 20, 2020

The Mass Poor People’s Assembly & Moral March on Washington is going digital! On June 20th, we will hold the largest digital and social media gathering of poor and low-wealth people, moral and religious leaders, advocates, and people of conscience in this nation’s history. A global pandemic is exposing even more the already existing crisis of systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, the war economy and militarism, and the distorted moral narrative of religious nationalism. On June 20, the 140 million poor and low-wealth people across this nation will be heard!
Keeping Busy at First Parish
Moe has been busy washing all the widows of the Parish House this week,
and everything is sparkling! Thanks, Moe!
With Liberty & Accessibility for All
Stephanie Desrochers
May 24, 2020

Did you miss last week's service?

Please note- you do  not  need a Facebook account
to watch the live or recorded services. 
The Stewardship Team
needs to hear from YOU !
 
Our goal this year is to collect $225,000 in pledges! If you haven't done so already, please take the time to fill out your pledge card and return it to us, or make your pledge ONLINE here!   
If you did not receive a pledge packet, please contact Greg Dorsey at  soulrnrg@gmail.com . The magic of what we do together is the miracle of community. Thank you! The Stewardship Team
Palaver Strings is a rental partner with First Parish- please help support their good work in our community!

Virtual Palaver Gathering
May 31 | 5 PM
 
Join Palaver Strings for a dynamic and intimate video performance as we celebrate the joy and togetherness that music can create, even in these difficult and separated times.
 
The Virtual Palaver Gathering will support the 50+ live and live streamed concerts in our upcoming 7th Season, as well as our second year of music education programming in the Portland community. We look forward to another year of sharing live music and reflecting on social issues in New England and beyond.

The Gathering will be streamed live on YouTube at 5 PM on Sunday, May 31. We will email the link to you and put it live on our website the week before.

Noonday Concert Series
Online Performance Schedule

May 21 – June 3: Mary Johnston Letellier

Each Noonday concert will be available online for two weeks. Be sure to join us online for the entire series. https://portlandconservatoryofmusic.org/
Pastoral Care Calls & Office Hours
with Reverend Christina
Mondays | 9 am - 12 pm
Tuesdays | 2-5 pm

Reverend Christina will be holding Pastoral Care calls and Office Hours for meetings by phone or Zoom every Monday & Tuesday for members and leaders of First Parish. Please email Sheila to schedule a call.
Breathing and Meditation Class
Wednesdays | 8-9am
Join Zoom Meeting

Explore breathing techniques to nurture your mind, body and spirit from the comfort of your own home! Pranayama is an ancient practice from India used to heal dis-ease, prepare for meditation, and access spiritual realms. All are welcome to join in these powerful tools of transformation.  Taught by Rev. Christina.

Join Zoom Meeting: https://zoom.us/j/630981602
Meeting ID: 630 981 602

One tap mobile (audio only): +19294362866,,630981602#
Poetry & Meditation
Gatherings
Thursday Mornings | 8-9 am
Join Zoom Meeting: https://zoom.us/j/250298315

Join Rev. Christina on Zoom on Thursday mornings for Poetry and Meditation. We will share poetry and spend time in silence together. All are welcome. 

Join Zoom Meeting: https://zoom.us/j/250298315
Meeting ID: 250 298 315

One tap mobile: +19294362866,,250298315#
Text to Give &
Pledge Checks

You can now make donations
to First Parish via TEXT
by following these steps:


  1. Type in (833) 763-0068 in the "To:" field of a text
  2. Type in the amount you want to give in the text box
  3. Click on the link to enter your billing information
  4. 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!
Campaign and Construction Update

Wonderful news! On Monday, the City Council voted to accept Community Development Block Grant allocation recommendations that included $50,000 for our A Church for EveryBody (CFE) Accessibility Project! This brings the total pledged to our project to $1.1 million, 92% of our goal!

THANK YOU to all who have contributed to our CFE campaign so far. THANK YOU to all who have worked so hard on behalf of First Parish to make our accessibility vision a reality. We are SO CLOSE!

If you have not made a pledge to our campaign yet and would like to do so, please let us know. There are still four years over which you can fulfill your pledge! If you know of friends or businesses in our community who may like to make a tax-deductible donation to our campaign, please let us know. We would love to reach our campaign goal prior to our planned groundbreaking in June! FMI, please email Austin Farrar at ahfarrar47@gmail.com.
Mask Collection for our Community

Kate and Jen Stenberg are still making face masks! If you'd like to help make them for donation, or if you need masks for you and your family, please reach out to us!  Kate.a.stenberg@gmail.com.
Welcome VISITORS!

To receive more information about First Parish, please fill out the Visitor Card linked HERE or email our Membership Coordinator, Laurie Hasty, at  membership@firstparishportland.org. We look forward to connecting with you!
Tara Brach's
Podcasts & Guided Meditations
Sheila Sullivan,
Congregational Administrator

Please join me in listening to Tara's most recent dharma talk, "Sheltering in Love (Part 9: Finding Freedom in the Midst of Failure". Tara writes, " These talks explore the bodhisattva path – practices of an awakening being dedicated to living from love. The invitation is to let this season of close-in and global suffering deepen our collective commitment to creating a more compassionate world."

I listen to these podcasts while doing the dishes at night, or while getting ready for the day in the morning- instead of listening to the news! You can also find a wonderful variety of Tara's Guided Meditations HERE . Email me and let me know what you think! office@firstparishportland.org
Need Help Getting Started on Zoom?

Thanks to Kate Stenberg, Worship Team, we now have our very own

Have a look through this guide well before Sunday morning so you are up and running for our online worship service! Or watch this helpful Zoom video.

If you run into trouble accessing our online worship service, please email Laurie at membership@firstparishportland.org and someone will contact you to help troubleshoot your tech issues.

If you are not able to join us at 10 am on Sunday mornings, look for all recorded services on the First Parish Facebook page. Be sure to Like us on Facebook, and you will be alerted when services are LIVE!
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.

Have you visited the UUA's website recently? Many great resources can be found there, including the following:
Braver/Wiser : Courage & Compassion For Life As It Is
Fortification: Spiritual Sustenance for Movement Leadership
425 Congress Street Portland, Maine 04101   207-773-5747  

 Nurture the Spirit, Grow in Community 
and Help Heal the World