On the church calendar are many opportunities to connect online with the Fourth Church community and one another. Included among them are—
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Friday Noonday Concert, including an April 23 performance by pianist Amy Wurtz
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Sacred Pause on Saturday and Tuesday mornings
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Foundations of Faith Bible study with Rocky Supinger on Sunday after worship
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Men’s Bible Study on Tuesday mornings
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Morning Prayer on Wednesday mornings
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Benevolent Guild on Wednesday mornings
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TwentiesThirties Bible Study on Wednesday evenings
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Horizons Bible Study for women on Wednesday, April 28
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Inquirers’ Class on Sunday, May 16 for those considering becoming members of Fourth Church
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 of some of the opportunities you will find on the calendar, keep reading!
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Fourth Sunday of Easter, April 25
11:00 a.m. worship online
10:45 a.m. prelude
Rabbi Seth M. Limmer preaching
Connecting to Our Online Worship Services
Our online worship services are available live at 11:00 a.m. (Central) via
For those who do not have Internet access, we also make our 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
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In our sesquicentennial year, one of the relationships we celebrate is our long friendship with our neighbors down the street, Chicago Sinai Congregation.
Over the years we have been partners in the community and in interfaith relationships, including serving together through Sunday Night Supper; cohosting interfaith worship services at Thanksgiving and in remembrance of 9/11; and participating together in vigils for anti-racism and in memory of those who died of COVID-19. We are also honored to each year welcome Chicago Sinai to the Sanctuary, where they hold High Holy Days services.
Thus we are delighted to be welcoming to the Fourth Church pulpit this Sunday, April 25 Rabbi Seth M. Limmer of Chicago Sinai.
Rabbi Limmer has been Senior Rabbi of Chicago Sinai Congregation since July 2014. He currently serves as Vice President for Leadership of the Central Conference of American Rabbis and is a former Vice-Chair of the Union for Reform Judaism’s national policy-setting body, the Commission on Social Action.
He also teaches as adjunct faculty at the Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion and has been appointed to serve on the Illinois State Commission on Discrimination and Hate Crimes.
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We look forward to gathering with several of our interfaith partners on Saturday, May 1 for a virtual interfaith Iftar.
This event is cohosted by the Niagara Foundation, Fourth Presbyterian Church, St. Raymond Church, A Center of Christian-Muslim Engagement for Peace and Justice at Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, and Congregation Beth Judea.
We hope you will join us in sharing this Ramadan observance with our Muslim friends and others in our interfaith community!
Saturday, May 1
7:30 p.m. via Zoom
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Our calendar includes a variety of opportunities for connecting online with one another for fellowship. These are just three of them!
Women at Fourth
Thursday, April 22 (tonight!)
6:00 p.m. via Zoom
For the April gathering of Women at Fourth, Chris Norton, Music Coordinator at the church, will talk with us about the amazing array of concerts that take place at Fourth Church and what goes into making that happen.
Knitting and Crocheting
Tuesday, April 27
4:00 p.m. via Zoom
This monthly online gathering offers opportunity to bring your knitting or crocheting to our Zoom conversation to work on while we chat and show off finished items.
Cornerstones
Friday, May 9
5:30 p.m. via Zoom
Those who are fifty and over are invited to join in a monthly Cornerstones time of online fellowship followed by a program. At the May gathering via Zoom, professional harpist and educator Autumn Selover will lead an evening of performance and interactive learning as she expands our assumptions of what we might call to mind when thinking of harp music.
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Community provides relationships with the opportunity to grow, flourish, and connect, so the Replogle Center for Counseling and Well-Being is offering a series of Couples’ Nights In.
On Friday evenings, April 23–May 14 facilitators Alexis Barnes and Sarah Sievertare are offering virtual space for couples to reengage and play into our current reality. It will be a time of using humor and games to help couples explore their relationship while bolstering skills.
Fridays, April 23, April 30, May 7, May 14
7:00 to 8:00 p.m.
via Zoom
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“His Truth Is Marching On: The Life of John Lewis” is a new adult education class that begins this Sunday, April 25 at 9:30 a.m.
Jeff Doane will lead us in a closer look at the life of the late civil rights pioneer and US Representative John Lewis, who is the subject of a recent biography by Jon Meacham.
That book—His Truth Is Marching On: John Lewis and the Power of Hope—which serves as the basis of this class, explores Lewis’s struggles during the 1960s, his later political life, and his faith in the American system to overcome its past problems and affirm the worth and rights of all its citizens.
Class participants are encouraged to read the first eighty pages of the book prior to this Sunday’s session.
Sundays, April 25–May 9
9:30 a.m. via Zoom
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In addition to discussing His Truth Is Marching On on Sundays, we also have two other book conversations planned for the weeks ahead:
First Tuesday Book Club
Tuesday, May 4
7:00 p.m. via Zoom
This book group hosted by the Adult Education Committee examines the ethical and social issues facing Christians today.
May book: Rethinking Incarceration: Advocating for Justice That Restores by Dominique Gilliard
On May 4 we will have opportunity to talk with author Dominique Gilliard about his book exploring the history and foundation of mass incarceration and examining Christianity’s role in its evolution and expansion.
An ordained minister and Director of Racial Righteousness and Reconciliation for the “Love Mercy Do Justice” initiative of the Evangelical Covenant Church, the author will also talk with us about ways in which Christians can pursue justice that restores and reconciles, offering creative solutions and highlighting innovative interventions.
Books by Women
Tuesday, May 11
6:00 p.m. via Zoom
All women are invited to join in monthly Books by Women discussions whenever their schedules allow and the books are of interest.
May book: Elinor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
In this uplifting novel, we follow our ordinary heroine’s journey of surviving by opening her heart.
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All are invited to take part in this opportunity to talk about the stewardship of our financial resources and the ways in which living generously can enrich our lives and deepen our faith.
Purchasing the book is suggested but not required. It is available in e-reader or print formats at www.christianbooks.com and elsewhere.
Tuesdays through May 4
6:00 p.m. via Zoom
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We are grateful to all who have made gifts in support of our mission and ministry this year. Thank you! This monthly generosity report summarizes those contributions to Fourth Church as of March 31, 2021. |
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God never intended that we struggle through life’s crises alone. For one-to-one spiritual and emotional support through difficult times, be it death, loss, illness, financial insecurity, pandemic fatigue, or other life challenges, we encourage you to consider being paired (virtually for now) with one of our congregation’s trained and caring Stephen Ministers.
To request a match with a Stephen Minister or to learn more about this opportunity, contact David Handley, Interim Minister for Caring Ministries, or leave a confidential message for a Stephen Minister at 312.573.3365.
As many of us are looking for healthy ways to cope with stresses and anxiety, anger and frustration, grief and uncertainty, the staff of our Replogle Center for Counseling and Well-Being is also available to offer suggestions and support through phone appointments or teletherapy, whether for just a few sessions or on an ongoing basis.
To set up a time to talk or for more information about how the Center can be a resource for you, call the Center at 312.787.2729, ext. 2260.
Additionally, 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.
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Each Sunday after worship we offer another opportunity to connect with familiar friends or meet new people: virtual Coffee Hour via Zoom.
We hope you will take a few moments for this casual time of Sunday fellowship!
Following the postlude
Meeting ID: 963 5583 1751
Passcode: 631276
Phone: Call 1 312.626.6799
and enter Meeting ID 963 5583 1751#
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