The Reopening Task Force has decided to very slowly begin the process of opening up in person Sunday morning worship at Harvard-Epworth. During the month of April, the church is going to begin to let five people attend on Sunday morning in person. Then, as we go into May and beyond, depending on trends in COVID, we will increase in person attendance step by step. If you are interested in attending a Sunday morning worship service, go to this google form - https://forms.gle/rjbQPEzZnGdSGXjeA - and register your interest. We will then randomly assign people to Sundays and be in touch relative to the date for attendance. Please keep this process in your prayers and let Rev. Taylor at pastor.herb@harvardepworthchurch.org know if you have any questions.

If you are interested in finding out more about our ministry at Harvard-Epworth, whether you are new to the church, interested in membership, or just have questions of any sort, we hope you will join Rev. Taylor on Sunday, April 18, at 12:45pm after worship and coffee hour for a zoom discussion. You can access the meeting at https://zoom.us/j/97631785779 or else dial in at 1-929-206-6099 and use meeting ID 976 3178 5779. Rev. Taylor will discuss the history and ministry of Harvard-Epworth as well as membership in the church. But, anyone who wants any information about the church family or its ministry is welcome to come and ask any questions they have.

United Methodists have been recognized through the years as agents of change in society. As we walk through our changing world today, join us in looking back on our Wesleyan heritage to uncover the beliefs and practices that make us Methodists and enable us to journey through change. In this six session series, on Wednesdays at 7pm beginning on April 28, we will examine John Wesley’s life and legacy to reconnect with the core beliefs of our faith and to find some Wesleyan wisdom for responding to the changes of our lives, our church, and our world today. To access the discussion each Wednesday, join by zoom at https://zoom.us/j/99925205944

April 28: Introducing John Wesley: Transformer of Souls and Society

May 5: Wesleyan Theology: ReOpening the Heart and Mind

May 12: Methodism in America: Responding to New Beginnings

May 19: Contemporary Wesleyans: The Journey Forward

May 26: Wesleyan Practices for Us: Becoming Champions of Change

June 2: Wesleyan Practices for Our Church: A Change to Keep

All women of the church are invited to a fun and relaxing time of connection together on Tuesday, April 20 at 6:45pm, using the zoom link:  https://zoom.us/j/99390000417. If you'd prefer to call in, dial 1-929-205-6099 and use meeting ID: 993 9000 0417. 

On Tuesday, April 20 at 7:30am, there will be an online Men's Breakfast gathering, where men are invited to join for a Zoom online virtual men's breakfast.  

To join online, get your coffee and/or breakfast, and then join by going to https://zoom.us/j/94818464828. If you'd prefer to call in, dial 1-929-205-6099 and use meeting ID: 948 1846 4828. 

During the "online reality" that we find ourselves in, it is difficult for new people to get a sense of who we are as a church. Therefore, the Welcome and Evangelism committee is inviting people to submit a video (30 seconds or less) that introduces themselves and says what they find special about our church. We are hoping to put together a number of these short videos and release them in the coming weeks and months. This will be a great way for people to get a sense of this ministry we share in together. Please consider recording a short video and emailing it to Erin Lee, our Welcome & Evangelism Chair, at erinism614@gmail.com. Thank you in advance for being a part of this important opportunity of welcome! 

Harvard-Epworth is making a commitment through this crisis we find ourselves to provide opportunities to connect each day.  Look for an email tomorrow that will outline program and support opportunities for next week. To see this week's programs and opportunities, click here.

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/93538291213

You can also join by phone at 1 929 205 6099. The meeting ID is ID 935 3829 1213.

Adult Forum meets once a week before the Sunday service. Feel free to come to all or to whatever might interest you. To join Adult Forums on Sundays at 10:00am, go to: https://zoom.us/j/96481096640 or call 1-929-205-6099 with meeting ID 964 8109 6640

This Sunday, April 18, Grace Killian will lead the discussion on "Theology in International Relations."

Next Sunday, April 25, Steve Dry will lead the discussion entitled "Longing for More", while sharing about our church's work in assisting people in finding their calling.

All young adults are invited to the events hosted by the group, which usually range from engaging discussions to outings and meals. If you are a young adult or university student who would like to receive weekly email updates from Dom Mejia regarding programming for young adults and students, and are not yet receiving those, please email Dom at dom@harvardepworthchurch.org to be added to the list.

Neighborhood Text Groups: Connect with Your HEUMC Neighbors! As vaccines roll-out and weather improves, several young adults have volunteered to coordinate neighborhood group texts. Find someone to go for a masked walk, share info of interest for your neighbors, and check-in with your church family near you.

Right now we have Clara coordinating a group in JP, Janie connecting folks in Cambridge, and Bailey organizing people in Brighton. If you would like to join one of these group texts, please email Dom with your phone number and your neighborhood. Is your neighborhood not represented? Connect with Dom to set up your own group text. Please reach out with any questions.

Young Adult Check-ins: We have Young Adult Zoom check-ins only on the first Wednesday of the month at noon. 

Thanks for all the students and volunteer teachers who were involved in online Sunday School this past Sunday. It was a great experience and we had great numbers, so a wonderful start to this new initiative.

Children's Sunday School will be offered virtually for children age 3 to 4th grade from 10-10:25 am via zoom. We will have a brief Bible lesson and a craft or activity. To join, please go to https://bostonu.zoom.us/j/5397806919 at 10:00am on Sunday.

Youth Sunday School will be offered virtually for students grades 5 to12 from 10:30-10:55 am via zoom. We will provide an opportunity to check in and discuss how our faith relates to our church and wider world. To join, please go to https://bostonu.zoom.us/j/5397806919 at 10:30am on Sunday.

Volunteers are needed to help us ensure Sunday School on Zoom is a success this Fall.  Please consider volunteering in Sunday School this year. There are opportunities for people of any ability to get involved for whatever time in whatever way you can help. Please express your interest in volunteering for Sunday School go to https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050B4DA4AA2CA7FA7-youth to sign up.  By volunteering you will make a big difference to the children and youth of our church and a big difference to your life too!  Thank you in advance! 

If you would like to take a tour of Harvard-Epworth join Rev. Taylor as he gives a brief visit to the building by going to https://youtu.be/Lp1YeyzDP84 or clicking the image below!

If you'd like to learn more about Harvard-Epworth, you can watch this video from the Harvard Square Business Association's (HSBA) "Sacred Spaces and Good Works" project by clicking on this link. 

Thanks to all those who have donated to the Stained Glass Window Project. We have raised over $30,000 of our $35,000 goal, so are hopeful that we will reach it soon. Please help ensure the light of God shines bright and that these stained glass windows continue to inspire for decades to come.

   This individual giving, plus funds available within the church and a grant from the Cambridge Historic Commission combine for us to accomplish this $125,000 project to restore and refurbish the stained glass windows which have not yet been restored. This project will include the large windows behind the altar, as well as 15 other windows in the sanctuary and vestry hall. As you can see in the photo below, the stained glass windows have already been taken out and work has begun on them. We took photos of the windows people could see on the worship livestream and hung these posters in front of the weather tight wood structure that replaced the windows

Please send in a check to the church (1555 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02138) or go to http://harvardepworthchurch.org/giving/ and click on Give Now so you can be a part of this important effort. Note on your gift that this is for the Stained Glass Window Project.(This picture is from Easter, 2017.)

Friday Cafe will now works in a bag-lunch format, offering lunches provided by caring neighbors like you! With the help of Doing Good Together, Friday Cafe has set up an online signup  where you can commit to making 10 or more bagged lunches each week. Sign up to make sandwiches once, or once a month, or every week, if you want to! This is a great activity to do with kids, if you're home with family and looking for things to do. Lunches can be dropped off curbside on Fridays from 12:30-1:00: You don't even have to get out of your car. Just text Rev. Kate Layzer, Director of the Friday Cafe, at (617) 851-5074, and she'll come to you.

Remember that we have a Harvard Epworth Church Member Online Directory.  You can log in to the directory by going to directory.harvardepworthchurch.org by clicking on the link in the menu on the church website (it's next to the live stream link).

Current users can reset their password with the "Need a password" button on the directory login. If you don't have a directory account or access to it, email pastor.herb@harvardepworthchurch.org  and we will be in touch with login information for you