CONTENTS
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We Need Your Nominations!
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This Saturday, September 30 is the last day to submit recommendations of fellow members you think are well equipped to serve as Fourth Church officers.
We are hoping to add still more names to the list of those being considered to serve as Elder, Deacon, Trustee, or member of the Chicago Lights Board, so if you haven't done so already, please take a moment today to fill out a nominating form.
You can easily submit your suggestions online!
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A Commitment to Peace and Global Witness
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We join worshipers around the world this weekend for World Communion Sunday as we gather for the Lord's Supper, enacting the words of the hymn "Come, Risen Lord": "One church united in communion blest; one name we bear, one bread of life we break."
We will also receive a special offering for Peace and Global Witness to enable the church to promote the peace of Christ by addressing systems of injustice across the world. Twenty-five percent of this offering will support CureViolence in reducing gun violence in the City of Chicago. The Presbytery of Chicago will use another 25 percent for its ministries of peace and reconciliation, and the remaining 50 percent will be used by the Presbyterian Mission Agency to advocate for peace and justice in cultures of violence, including our own, through collaborative projects of education and Christian witness.
Then during Coffee Hour we will meet some of our world mission partners, and information about our 2018 mission trips will also be available. These trips will take participants to Cuba, with the First Presbyterian Church of Havana; to Mexico, to build rain cisterns; and to Washington, D.C., where with the Interfaith Coalition Against Racism we will have opportunity to learn about the history of oppression.
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Martin Luther and His World
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A New Sunday Morning Class
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Who was Martin Luther?
Join Claudia Boatright and Laura Sterkel the next two Sundays as they lead us in an exploration of "The Just Shall Live by Faith Alone: Martin Luther and the World He Lived In."
This course will serve as an introduction to our fall celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation and will help us place Luther and his radical break with the all-powerful Roman Catholic church in the context of his historic time.
The cast of characters who played a role in the dramatic transformation of his faith will be introduced, a brief overview of Luther's quarrels with Catholic dogma will be presented, and a suggestion as to how the Protestant Reformation impacted the great changes already taking place in sixteenth-century Europe will conclude the class.
The course also includes a showing and discussion of Rick Steves' film
Luther and the Reformation, which originally aired on PBS.
Time:
Sundays, October 1 and 8
9:30 a.m.
Place:
Room 5G
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Tutoring Begins Its Fifty-Third Year
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Outreach as a Church Alive
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This coming Monday night, Tutoring students will return to Fourth Church as the Chicago Lights Tutoring program begins its fifty-third year!
Four-hundred students in grades one through twelve from under-resourced neighborhoods will meet once a week with their tutors between now and May. Together they will focus on improving academic performance, preparing for higher education and meaningful careers, and expanding leadership and social skills.
This fifty-three-year commitment to Chicago's children and to their education as a way to overcome poverty and its challenges is but one example of the way this congregation is a church fully alive, bound and determined to make a difference in our world.
And what makes it possible is the ongoing financial support provided by each of us through our pledges to the Annual Appeal.
You will soon receive materials for the 2018 Annual Appeal, "Called to Be a Church Alive," if you haven't already. In the days ahead, please prayerfully consider your giving for 2018 and turn in a 2018 pledge by October 29 (
the form can be completed online), so that we might all continue the life-changing, difference-making work of Fourth Church and Chicago Lights in the year ahead!
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Calling All Creatures Great and Small
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Blessing of the Animals on October 14
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This October plan to bring your pets and join us on Saturday morning, October 14 for our Blessing of the Animals service!
All pets on leashes or in carriers are welcome. Individuals and families choosing not to bring a pet are welcome to bring photographs of them to be blessed as we celebrate the wonders of God's creation and our relationships with creatures great and small.
Time:
Saturday, October 14
10:00 a.m.
Place:
Michigan Avenue Courtyard
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A Space for Meditation
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Tuesday Evenings at the Replogle Center
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You are invited to make space for meditation in your week by joining others in a time for "silence in community."
Each Tuesday evening the Replogle Center for Counseling and Well-Being hosts a time for meditation at 7:00 p.m.
Come sit with us in Boyle Conference Room for this time of silence, which lasts until 7:45 p.m. Those who wish to leave at that time are invited to do so; those who prefer to stay for a time of discussion afterwards are welcome to take part in the conversation that lasts until 8:30 p.m.
No reservations are needed; come as your schedule allows. A suggested donation of $10 will be received at the door.
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Carol Moseley Braun: Christianity and Capitalism
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A Cornerstones and Academy for Faith and Life Event
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The Academy for Faith and Life--our adult education program--and Cornerstones--a fellowship group hosted by those fifty and older--have teamed up to cohost a special forum on Friday evening, October 6:
Carol Moseley Braun, the first black woman elected to the United States Senate, former ambassador to New Zealand, and current small business owner, will be with us to talk about "Christianity and Capitalism."
In her time with us she will focus on the importance of Christian values as she quotes Adam Smith, Dickens, and the pope. She notes that in every person there is a reflection of God and that we should be the change we want to see in the world.
Prior to her 7:00 p.m. presentation in Buchanan Chapel, Cornerstones will host their monthly dinner in Borwell Dining Room, this month at 5:30 p.m. Prepaid reservations for the dinner are required by Wednesday, October 4 and can be made with Anne Ellis.
Time:
Friday, October 6
7:00 p.m. program: no RSVP necessary
Place:
Borwell Dining Room (dinner)
Buchanan Chapel (program)
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A Congregational Meeting: October 22
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Electing a Senior Associate Pastor
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At their September meeting last week, the Session of Fourth Church acted upon a motion from the Personnel Committee to call a congregational meeting for Sunday, October 22.
At that congregational meeting, which will be held in the Sanctuary following the 11:00 a.m. service, the Senior Associate Pastor Nominating Committee will present, for your vote, their recommended candidate for Senior Associate Pastor for Leadership Development and Adult Education.
Please plan to be with us for this important moment in the life of our congregation.
Time:
Sunday, October 22
12:00 noon
Place:
Sanctuary
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Systemic Racism: A Workshop
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Living into a Vision of Inclusiveness
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Last weekend more than forty members and staff participated in the thought-provoking and challenging workshop "Introduction to Systemic Racism."
Several more individuals have indicated an interest in joining this conversation as well, and so on Saturday, October 21 we will be offering the workshop again.
To take part in the next "Introduction to Systemic Racism" workshop--which will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the church--RSVP to Anne Ellis by Friday, October 13. (The workshop fee is $25.)
Come join us as we work to live into our commitment and vision of Fourth Church being a fully inclusive, anti-racist congregation.
Time:
Saturday, October 21
9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Place:
Room 4G
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Worship This Week
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World Communion Sunday, October 1, 2017
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Our "Always Reforming" sermon series marking the 500th anniversary of the Reformation continues this week with a focus on "Priests without Robes (or Tabs)."
8:00 a.m.
Communion
Rocky Supinger,
Associate Pastor
9:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.
Communion
Shannon J. Kershner,
Pastor
4:00 p.m.
Jazz Communion
Shannon J. Kershner,
Pastor
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Passages
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Marriage
We give thanks to God for the gift of life together.
Scarlett Gene Kline and Thomas Andrejevic Jr.
September 23, 2017
We give thanks to God for the gift of life eternal.
James M. Conner
September 4, 2017; a memorial service has been held
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Concerts at Fourth Church
All concerts are free unless ticket information is noted.
Friday, October 6
Esther Nyberg, piano
12:10 p.m. in Buchanan Chapel
Friday, October 13
Natalie Mann, soprano
12:10 p.m. in Buchanan Chapel
Friday, October 20
Penelope Shumate, soprano
12:10 p.m. in Buchanan Chapel
Friday, October 27
John W. W. Sherer, organist
12:10 p.m. in the Sanctuary
A complete 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 Donation Needs
Men's clothing
--particularly sizes L, XL, XXL, and XXXL--for guests of the Chicago Lights Elam Davies Social Service Center
Snacks--5,000 single-serving, individually packed items are needed per month--for Fourth Church Meals Ministry bag lunches and Chicago Lights Social Service Center emergency snack packs
Current Volunteer Needs
Teams to assist areas hurt by recent hurricanes
(to express interest, contact Vicky Curtiss)
Tutors to work with students of the Chicago Lights Tutoring program one evening a week, October through May, at the church
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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