March 11, 2022
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—

  • “The Book of Job and the Invention of Faith” on Sunday morning, March 13
  • Benevolent Guild in person on Wednesday morning, March 16 (contact Simon Crow to register)
  • Friday Noonday Concert—both in person and online—featuring Mike Brozik (trumpet) and Patrick Godon (piano) on Friday, March 18
  • “Israel and Palestine: How We Talk about the Conflict” adult education class beginning Sunday morning, March 20
  • Knitting and Crocheting on Tuesday afternoon, March 22
  • A Women at Fourth program on “Dementia 101” on Thursday evening, March 24
  • LGBTQIA+ Widen Our Welcome fellowship and discussion on Wednesday evening, March 30
  • A Cornerstones program, for those fifty and over, on Ukraine and Russia on Friday evening, April 1

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!
Second Sunday in Lent, March 13

10:00 a.m. worship in person and online
9:45 a.m. prelude
Shannon J. Kershner preaching
The worship bulletin will be available to download and print on Friday
In person and streamed from the Sanctuary on our YouTube channel: www.bit.ly/fpcvideos

4:00 p.m. Jazz at Four worship in person
with Communion
in Buchanan Chapel
Shannon J. Kershner preaching
The worship bulletin will be available to download and print on Friday
Daylight Saving Time begins this Sunday, March 13.

Be sure to set your clocks ahead an hour as we “spring forward.” We don't want to begin worship without you!
To help provide emergency humanitarian aid such as food items, shelter, medicines, diapers, hygiene items, and more to those affected by the war in Ukraine, you can give a gift online through Presbyterian Disaster Assistance.
The Session of Fourth Presbyterian Church has called a congregational meeting for Sunday, March 27 following 10:00 a.m. worship.

The purpose of the meeting is to hear a report from the Associate Pastor Nominating Committee and to receive and act on their recommendation of a candidate to serve this congregation as Associate Pastor for Caring Ministries and Spiritual Formation.

The meeting will be held both in person and online.

The Zoom link will be posted on our website in the week leading up to the meeting. Following our practice of preserving confidentiality out of respect for the existing employment relationships of a candidate, no information about the candidate will be shared before the March 27 meeting (at which the candidate will be present).

All members are encouraged to take part in this important moment in the life of our congregation!

Sunday, March 27
11:15 a.m.
In the Sanctuary and online via Zoom
In Lent we embrace the faith journey by reflecting upon and deepening our relationship with God and acting upon our Christian beliefs. In doing so, we invite you to join with others in 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.

If you would like to receive them in your inbox each day during Lent, simply sign up at www.bit.ly/fpcdevotions or email devotions@fourthchurch.org.


Lenten Rhythm and Word
Each week during Lent we are offering for your midweek reflection a new video in our Lenten “Rhythm and Word” series. You can find these fifteen-minute worship experiences on our YouTube channel (www.bit.ly/fpcvideos).
Sacred Pause Meditation
A Sacred Pause time of meditation is hosted virtually by our Replogle Center for Counseling and Well-Being on Tuesdays (7:45 a.m.) and Saturdays (8:30 a.m.) at facebook.com/reploglecenterforcounselingandwellbeing


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 on Wednesday, March 23, 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.
Thank you to all who made last week’s Gala of Hope a huge success, raising more than $650,000 to support the life-changing work of Chicago Lights and the Replogle Center for Counseling and Well-Being.

To all involved—from those who planned the Gala to those who sponsored the event, attended the evening’s festivities, or participated online in the silent auction—we are so very grateful!
For anyone interested in becoming a member of Fourth Church, our online Inquirers’ Class will be held this Sunday, March 13 via Zoom.

You can register for this one-session class at www.bit.ly/inquirersclass322

For additional information about Fourth Church membership, please contact Joe Morrow, Associate Pastor for Evangelism and Community Engagement.
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 submit a prayer request to our Morning Prayer or Deacon Prayer Ministries, please email caringministries@fourthchurch.org

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.
About Masking
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 when we do!


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.

Worship and sermon podcasts are available via iTunes and Spotify, and you can sign up to receive the text of the weekly sermon by email.
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
Fourth Presbyterian Church | 312.787.4570 | www.fourthchurch.org