Friday, March 19 at 11am
Lost Hope; Restored Hope!
Spring is in the air – and bursting through the dirt!
Read through this UCC devotion about hope and come talk about it.
Join with video:
Join on your phone: (312) 626-6799
Meeting ID: 857 4736 3728; Passcode: 710134

Saturday, March 20 - anytime that works well for you
Consider planting some easy to grow seeds today – flowers and vegetables. https://getbusygardening.com/easiest-seeds-to-start-indoors/
Worship with us this Sunday!
Join us this Sunday for worship at 10am on Facebook Live. It’s the Fifth Sunday of Lent. Our scriptures include Jeremiah 31:31-34… new
covenant; written on our hearts and John 12:20-26… unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain. Whoever serves me, must follow me – be transformed, grow, change… let go of assumptions. Let go of anxiety. Trust. Why are you anxious? Make room for new understandings.

[This worship service will also be available on YouTube by early afternoon.]
Livestream worship on designated Sundays. Look under videos for previous livestreamed services.
All our worship service videos in one place!
All Mid~Week Meditations that have been recorded on YouTube.
Order of worship, announcements, prayer list, birthdays and anniversaries.
Sunday School
Sunday School for children through 5th grade:

Meeting ID: 383 733 977
Password: 819680
Sunday School for Youth/Teens each week:

Meeting ID: 815 6130 3581
Password: 702228
Fellowship Time
11:15am on Zoom

Find your way to Zoom after worship for a time of connecting and catching up. BYOC (coffee and cookies!)

Join with video:

Join on your phone: (312) 626-6799 

Meeting ID: 817 1299 8273

Passcode: 354178
Tuesday Evening Dialogue 3/23
The Sword and the Shield by Peniel Joseph
2nd & 4th Tuesdays | 7:00pm
Tuesday Afternoon Dialogue 4/6
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
1st & 3rd Tuesdays | 7:00pm
Cross Walk

Come for a Cross Walk sometime between Thursday, March 25 at 7am and Sunday, March 28 at 1pm in the sanctuary.

You must sign up for this event.
Our 36-Hour Easter Prayer Vigil Sign-Up list is up and running for April 2-4.

Please consider signing up to pray for one hour of the 36 hours between Good Friday evening through the Easter Sunrise service. We can give you some ideas for your hour if you’d like…
Easter Sunrise Service in Elm Lawn Cemetery
Sunday, April 4 | 6:30am
Elm Lawn behind Historic Sanctuary

A number of you recently vaccinated PUCCers have asked if you can come to the outdoor Easter Sunrise Service on Easter. Our Covid Team has decided this will be our first in-person worship experience as we begin a measured and intentional transition period – with masks and physical distancing of course.

Questions? Contact [email protected]; 314-872-9330
Holy Week at Parkway UCC

March 28 - Palm Sunday 10am pre-recorded from the Sanctuary
Our scriptures will be: Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29… God’s steadfast love; blessed is the one who comes in the name of God!
Mark 11:1-11… Palm Sunday story of the people rolling out their version of a red carpet for Jesus as he enters the city.

Let’s use our hands for good -- applaud, make music, lift each other up, write letters, make phone calls to tell others about what it means that this expression of God is entering in. What did Jesus see when came in?

April 1 - Maundy Thursday 7pm pre-recorded from the Sanctuary
We will take a look at Exodus 12… Passover guidance on celebrating. Our Gospel stories are all about Jesus sharing intimate time with the disciples – holiday meal, washing feet, the first communion, going out to the garden to pray … and then things take a sharp turn. Prepare your simple communion meal for home.
 
April 2 - Good Friday Noon pre-recorded from the Historic Sanctuary
We will share a mix of scripture, poetry, organ and silence to mark this dreadful day of crucifixion.
 
April 2 - Good Friday 7pm pre-recorded from the Sanctuary
Open your senses to experience what some young people have to say about beauty from brokenness. This is a difficult night. We will sit with the darkness a bit, see the light coming and make some plans to become more light.
 
36 Hour Easter Prayer Vigil
Please consider signing up to pray for one hour of the 36 hours between Good Friday evening through the Easter Sunrise service. We can give you some ideas for your hour if you’d like.
 
April 4 - Easter Sunrise 6:30am In-person and on Facebook Live in Elm Lawn Cemetery behind the Historic Sanctuary
We commit ourselves to being open and available to the miracles of Easter morning and to the possibilities that are unfolding. He is risen! We rise!
[A number of you recently vaccinated PUCCers have asked if you can come to the outdoor Easter Sunrise Service on Easter. Our Covid Team has decided this will be our first in-person worship experience as we begin a measured and intentional transition period – with masks and physical distancing of course. We will have chairs set up for you.] Questions? Contact [email protected]; 314-872-9330]
 
April 4 - Youth Easter Breakfast
Sunday, April 4 | 8:30 – 10:00am | Back Parking Lot Parkway UCC
Calling all Youth! Let's meet in the back parking lot for Easter morning breakfast. Masks and physical distancing will be in order.
You can stay and watch worship on the big screen in the Gathering Space – it’s a pre-recorded service. It's been so long since we’ve been able to get together, I cannot wait! Hope to see you Sunday, April 4—Easter Sunday—at 8:30 for food and fellowship! Questions? Let me know…. [email protected]

April 4 - Easter 10am pre-recorded from the Sanctuary
Listen to varied expressions of the Easter story. How did that huge stone get rolled away from the tomb? Do we have the strength and spirit to do things like that? We will take another look at what Jesus has accomplished with his hands as we live into being Easter People modeled after his words and ways.
Prayer List Updates
All the acts of kindness, justice and equity near and far!
The Journey of Lent.
Marion Pleis, Jo Grove, Mike Comens, Bill Hilgeman - healing at home after recent hospital stays.
Janet Prendergast - preparing body and spirit for surgery (Larson).
Litzsinger School - reeling from several recent losses/traumas.
Physical Distancing… if anyone needs groceries, medicine and/or other support OR if anyone newly vaccinated would like to be part of the Care Team, please reach out to [email protected]; 314-330-0629.
The violence outside of Atlanta.

St Louis Assn UCC Covenant Partner
Week ending March 21 - Faith UCC, Little Rock, AR; faithucclr.org
Week ending March 28 - First Congregational UCC, Bonne Terre;
fcuccbonneterre.org 
Humor
What did the big flower say to the little one?
You’re really growing, bud!

Why couldn’t the flower ride its bike?          
It lost its petals.
Ponder
There are people who've said that I'm being brave for being openly supportive of gay marriage, gay adoption... With all due respect, I humbly dissent. I am not being brave, I'm a decent human being... Love is a human experience, not a political statement.
~Anne Hathaway
Video
First of Many — Women’s History Month explained in a minute and half … I think you will be inspired to look up some other "firsts" on your own.
And please don’t miss this incredible brief video of a Missouri father talking about his transgender child…
VAX
We can all agree that the pandemic has caused incredible emotional and economic stress. It is clear that the pandemic will end when community transmission of the virus is halted. Public health measures such as effective masking, physical distancing, and personal hygiene practices have been the only measures available to limit community transmission for the past year. The recent distribution of vaccines offers tremendous hope their addition to our armamentarium will allow us to bend the transmission curve to truly begin more normal life and relationships. These vaccines come at the convergence of several new technologies that make them much better than we are used to with flu vaccines.

Moving forward to approaching normalcy will require vaccination of at least 70-80% or more of the population. Therefore, if you haven’t been vaccinated, do so at your first opportunity. Any of the currently approved vaccines are safer and provide more protection against severe COVID 19 disease than any of us could have imagined.

Evidence is also emerging that the available vaccines are also effective against any of the currently known virus variants. The virus doesn’t recognize nationalities, so the sooner vaccines can be administered globally, the safer everyone will be.

However, as Dr. Fauci has said, we can’t spike the ball until we actually get to the end zone. Thus, while vaccinated individuals can begin to increase social interactions, we must remain vigilant until community spread is dramatically reduced globally. Even if you have been immunized, it is still recommended that you minimize close contact with crowds and wear a mask. These mitigation measures will both protect you against possible unknown variants and send a message to others of support for public health measures in our polarized society.

[Thank you to PUCCer John Russell for sharing this as a follow-up to the interesting and informative Speaker Series he facilitated about Covid on March 14.]
Virtual zoom symposium sponsored by Peace UCC and Eden Seminary.
This event is free but register at the website provided within the flyer so you will receive a link.
The Samuel UCC Build Habitat Challenge

We appreciate your submissions of jokes, quotes, videos, weekly opportunities, Mid~Week Meditation ideas, scriptures that are important to you, hymn/song suggestions, poetry, etc We would love to hear from you [email protected]
Visit our social media for a mix of pix and to see what other PUCCers would like you to attend/experience/ponder/pray about with them.
Please post a picture of you/yours on our social media:
WORSHIP SUNDAYS at 10:00am
(314) 872 9330 [email protected]
2841 N Ballas Road,
St. Louis, MO 63131

PUCC eNews is published weekly in order to broadcast Parkway UCC events and happenings - and items of interest to the Parkway UCC community of faith - for the upcoming week. Please submit all communications requests, via the button below, by noon Monday.