Reign of Christ Sunday, November 26

9:30 a.m. worship in person and online

Tom Are Jr. preaching

Worship bulletin

11:00 a.m. worship in person only

Tom Are Jr. preaching

Worship bulletin

2:00 p.m. worship in person and online

The Gathering: Communion at 2:00

Nancy Benson-Nicol preaching

Worship bulletin

The season of Advent — which begins on December 3 — invites us to set aside time for daily personal prayer and reflection, creating space to prepare our hearts and lives to receive the gift that comes to us in the stable and embracing what it means to travel through life guided by the Light that darkness cannot overcome.

Our daily Advent devotions — which are written by Fourth Church members and staff — offer a resource for this meditative journey. 

To receive them daily by email beginning next Sunday, December 3, sign up online at www.bit.ly/fpcdevotions.

If you already receive our daily devotions, you need not sign up to receive the Advent devotions; they will automatically be sent to you.

Christmas Wishes for Tutoring Students

Women at Fourth is again coordinating our annual Christmas Wishes project to provide gifts for Chicago Lights Tutoring students.

This year we are collecting gift cards to Target, Amazon, Walmart, Starbucks, and McDonald’s, along with books. If dropping off items at the church, please do so by Wednesday, December 6, marking them to the attention of Simon Crow and designating the amount on the card(s). (We are giving $25 worth of gift cards to each student.)

Monetary contributions for book purchases can also be made to Fourth Church, noting “Christmas Wishes” in the designation of an online gift or on the memo line of a check made payable to Fourth Presbyterian Church.

Meals Ministry Gift Bags

Our annual Meals Ministry Holiday Gift Bag Drive is also underway.

This year our goal is to prepare bags for 475 Sunday Night and Monday Night Supper guests, including 75 gift bags for children.

A list of items needed is available online. Items can be shipped to or dropped off at the church by Monday, December 4.

We are also in need of 475 McDonald’s gift cards in the amount of $10 each. (Please keep the cards to $10 so each guest receives the same amount.)

Cards can be dropped off at the church reception desk or mailed to the church (126 E. Chestnut, Chicago, IL 60611.2014).

Please mark all deliveries, mail, or drop-offs “Attention: Meals Ministry” as we receive a lot of items in this season and want to ensure these particular ones quickly find their way to the gift bags. 

Remember loved ones and recognize those who are special in your life by making contributions in their name toward the purchase of Christmas flowers to decorate Fourth Church during the Advent and Christmas seasons. A list of those remembered will be printed in the Christmas bulletin.

With rising flower costs, we are suggesting a donation of $50 per dedication to enable us to purchase flowers, wreaths, and garlands to adorn the Sanctuary and the Gratz Center, but know that all gifts to this project are gratefully received.

Contributions can be made online and must be received by Sunday, December 10 in order for names to be included in the bulletin.

For more information, contact Gloria Vicente.

A Zoom Gathering with Tom Are

If you are among those who regularly connect with us online and thus have not yet had opportunity to meet our new Interim Pastor, the Reverend Tom Are Jr., we have a Zoom event planned for you!

Please plan to join us and Tom via Zoom (www.bit.ly/meetandgreet1128) this Tuesday, November 28 at 6:00 p.m. (Central) for an informal hour with Tom, a time when he will introduce himself to us and we will introduce ourselves to him.

Tuesday, November 28

6:00 p.m. (Central)

via Zoom

Cornerstones: Christmas Carol Sing-Along

Cornerstones, a group of couples and singles over fifty that gather for dinner and a program, will enjoy some Christmas cheer at their December event. John Sherer will provide the music and piano accompaniment as we all lend our voices for an evening of merry music!

Friday, December 1

5:30 p.m.

Borwell Dining Room

Advance registration by Monday, November 27 is required for planning purposes.

A Holiday Deep Listening Dinner

Come get to know others at Fourth Church by sharing dinner and conversation on Saturday evening, December 2 when we gather in Anderson hall for a Holiday Deep Listening Dinner.

Saturday, December 2

5:00 p.m.

Anderson Hall

Advance registration for the dinner is required for planning purposes.

Curious to learn more about Deep Listening Dinners? Contact Simon Crow.

Your Spiritual Gifts

The Volunteer Ministry Council and the Spiritual Formation Council invite you to an in-person workshop on “You and Your Spiritual Gifts” on Saturday morning, December 2 at 10:00 a.m.

For details about this opportunity to discover your unique spiritual gifts and to help you connect with the programs and ministries in the church specifically related to those God-given gifts, contact Robert Crouch. 

Saturday, December 2

10:00 a.m.

Room 5G

Register here

“How (Not) to Build a School in Haiti:

Conversation with Filmmakers”

Next Sunday Kat Evans will lead us in a dialogue with filmmakers Dinesh Sabu and Jack Newell on their documentary How (Not) to Build a School in Haiti. We will discuss the film, ask questions of the filmmakers, and ponder what lessons Fourth Church and other mission-oriented communities can glean from the story of the documentary.

Attendees will be invited to view the film online (for free) before the class.

Sunday, December 3

11:00 a.m.

Borwell Dining Room and via Zoom

Register here for the link to the film as well as the Zoom link

Plus mark your calendars for two more Sunday morning classes planned for later in December!

“Conserving Historic Murals by Frederic Clay Bartlett: A Primer in Art Conservation” on Sunday, December 10

“Art and Faith of the Crèche: The Collection of James and Emilia Govan” on Sunday, December 17

On Sunday evening December 10, we will gather in person and online for one of our beloved Advent traditions at Fourth Church, the Festival of Advent Lessons and Music. 

Once again we will hear the scripture readings of the season and hear and sing the music of Advent as we anticipate the birth of Jesus Christ.

Sunday, December 10

6:30 p.m.

in the Sanctuary and livestreamed

Our holiday concert schedule kicks off next week when on December 5 and 6 a Chanticleer Christmas takes place in the Sanctuary, followed on Friday, December 8 by Holidays a cappella in Buchanan Chapel.

A Chanticleer Christmas

Tuesday and Wednesday

December 5 and 6

7:30 p.m.

in the Sanctuary

Tickets required, available through the Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Holidays a cappella

with Chicago a cappella

Friday, December 8

7:30 p.m.

in Buchanan Chapel

Tickets required, available through Chicago a cappella

For more holiday concerts at Fourth Church, including the December 16 Christmas with Tower Brass, see www.fourthchurch.org/concerts!

Please joins us in welcoming the newest members of the Fourth Church family, who were received into membership by the Session this past Sunday and welcomed by the congregation during the 9:30 service.

Carol Are

Larry Braskamp

Stephanie Buck

Eric Changnon

Sarah Gaskell

Towanna Griggs

Jessica Janicki

Clayton Kindred

Edward Lauber

Elizabeth Lauber

Nataliya Mikhyeyeva

Patricia Nelson

Barbara Pearce

Larissa Rosso

Timothy Southam

Emily Young

James Young

Are you interested in becoming a member of Fourth Church? Please let Associate Pastor Matt Helms know!

At Fourth Church, pledges to our annual Stewardship campaign account for almost one third of our annual budget. Thus member pledging — knowing how much to expect in the coming year — enables leadership and staff to imagine what is possible for the year ahead and plan for what we can accomplish together as a church.

For all those households who have already pledged to Fourth Church and Chicago Lights, for 2024, thank you!

Every gift matters in making it possible for us to do together the work that God has called us to do.

If you have not yet made your pledge for next year, there is still time to submit your pledge for 2024 and help us reach our goals!

One of the favorite Family Night programs of each year is Family Night with Animals, and once again this November it was a lot of fun! Last Friday the children got to meet a collection of animals, who in turn got to know them.

We also had opportunity to touch a variety of creatures, from a tortoise to a tarantula.

Also last Friday we marked the anniversary of our 2015 Andrew Pipe Organ dedication with a concert by organist Isabelle Demers, who then on Saturday returned to our choir loft to present a master class sponsored by the American Guild of Organists.

Walking the labyrinth in Buchanan Chapel was part of last Saturday’s Spiritual Formation workshop exploring the theme of pilgrimage.

Thank you to all who joined us in caroling on the Sanctuary steps prior to the Tree-Lighting Parade, which kicked off the holiday season on Michigan Avenue ...

... complete with an appearance by Santa.

Prayer

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 join in praying for others—members of Fourth Church and those in need—we invite you to gather with us for Wednesday Morning Prayer at 9:30 a.m. via Zoom or at 10:00 a.m. in person. For Zoom details, email Nancy Benson-Nicol.

Conversation and Presence

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 Nancy Benson-Nicol, Associate Pastor 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.

To join a Grief Group facilitated by our Replogle Center, email Sharon Crawford-Tucker.

Children in Worship

Children are always welcome in worship! If you need to step out to comfort your child, the Hospitality Suite, on the second floor of the Gratz Center, is a quiet space for families where worship is livestreamed.

During the morning services nursery care is available on the fourth floor of the Gratz Center for infants through two-year-olds.

Livestreamed Services

Livestreamed worship services (9:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.) are accessible by going to www.bit.ly/fpcvideos, subscribing to our YouTube channel, or clicking on the photo with a “Play” arrow on the home page of the Fourth Church website.

These livestreams are available to view anytime after the service begins if you would prefer to connect online at a later time. For tips on how to watch — from the beginning — a service already in progress, see www.fourthchurch.org/watch-from-the-beginning

Audio-only by phone for the 9:30 service is available (toll free) by calling 888.916.9166 just prior to 9:30.