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. Included among them are

• Presbyterian Women in the Presbytery of Chicago gathering in person on Saturday, October 26
• “The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy,” in person and via Zoom, on Sunday mornings
• “The Collaborators: The Secret History of South Side Gangs and Chicago’s Presbyterians” in person (off-site) on Sunday, October 27
• Men’s Bible Study via Zoom on Tuesday mornings
• Zoom Morning Prayer weekly on Wednesdays
• Benevolent Guild in person on Wednesday mornings
• Zoom Bible study with Tom Are on Wednesday evening, October 30
• Choral Society rehearsals on Thursday evenings
• Free Friday Noonday Concerts, in the Sanctuary and livestreamed, featuring pianist Ruoyang Xiang on November 1
• Cornerstones dinner and program in person on Friday evening, November 1
• Knitting and Crocheting in person on Tuesday morning, November 5
• Inquirer’s Class via Zoom on Wednesday evening, November 6
• New Grief Group beginning via Zoom on Thursday evening, November 7
• Choral Society concert, featuring Mozart’s Requiem, on Friday evening, November 8
• Deep Listening Dinner in person on Saturday, November 9

For information about whom to contact for an event’s Zoom details or the link to register for an event, simply click on the down “arrow” to the right of the event name in the calendar (which is easily accessible from the “Calendar” at the top of the menu on our website).

You can also find the day’s events on the bottom of our website home page.

For highlights about additional opportunities, keep reading!

Reformation Sunday, October 27

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

Tom Are Jr. preaching

Worship bulletin

11:00 a.m. worship in person

Tom Are Jr. preaching

Worship bulletin

2:00 p.m. worship in person

Rocky Supinger preaching

Worship bulletin

Observing Reformation Sunday

Reformation Sunday is a day when we recall the rich heritage of the Protestant tradition.

The Presbyterian Church (USA) grew out of the Reformation of the sixteenth century under leaders such as John Calvin and John Knox. The last Sunday in October has been chosen as Reformation Sunday because it was on October 31, 1517, that Martin Luther posted his ninety-five theses on the church door in Wittenberg, Germany, the watershed event sparking the Reformation.

Thus on this Sunday we remember and give thanks for Reformation leaders and all others who have kept the faith.

As part of our observance, we will also have a bagpipe recessional, reminding us of the Scottish roots of the Presbyterian church.

This Sunday Morning’s Sermon 

This Sunday we continue our short sermon series entitled “Do the Good That’s Yours to Do.”

Last Sunday, in both the morning and the Gathering (below) services, Tom lifted up the ways in which Fourth Church is a place that nourishes faith, a faith that gives strength in challenging times.

As we continue our focus on dreams and commitments we hold for the ministry at Fourth Church, this week’s sermon will explore the importance of the friendship we share here.

Looking Ahead to All Saints’ Sunday

Next Sunday, November 3 is All Saints’ Sunday, a day when we lift up those whose baptism is new and those whose baptism is now complete.

As part of our remembrance of the faithful who have gone before us and our honoring of departed loved ones, the names of all Fourth Church members who have entered the Church Triumphant in the past year will be read during worship.

During the morning services that day we will celebrate Communion, and in place of the sermon the Morning Choir will offer Requiem by Gabriel Fauré, which will be sung throughout the service.

“Do the Good That’s Yours to Do” is not only the theme of our current sermon series but also our 2025 Stewardship campaign, which we kicked off last Sunday.

In this season we are each called to pledge our support of the mission and ministry of Fourth Church for the year ahead.

Pledge forms have been mailed to member homes. You can also use the forms in the pew racks or submit your pledge online at bit.ly/fpcpledging.

Please take a moment to make your pledge by or on November 10, when we will celebrate Commitment Sunday, a day when we lift up all we are able to do together through our generous response to God’s blessings.

Of the 131 households who have submitted a pledge for 2025, 79 percent have increased their pledge over 2024.

To all who have submitted their pledge for 2025, thank you!

On our website you will find a page of questions frequently asked about stewardship at Fourth Church. Included among them is— 

Q. Aren’t we a rich church? If we have an endowment, why should we pledge at all? 

A. Fourth Church is incredibly privileged to have an endowment that was generously left to us by previous generations. The annual draw of our invested funds does provide a hearty amount of our operating budget. Some of those funds are restricted — meaning the donor’s intent restricted its use — and some are unrestricted.

Still, the needs of our ministry are too great to rely on the endowment alone. If we did, we would drain the funds completely and leave the next generation without this important source of revenue. Even taking a larger draw will reduce its support in the near future.

Endowments ensure our ministry for tomorrow. Pledging equips ministry today. 

You can read the full FAQ on our website.

In this week’s session of “The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy,” Justin Myers and Regan Burke will lead our discussion of the history of race relations at Fourth Church.

Next Sunday State Representative Kam Buckner will talk about the relationship between race and the Illinois state budget.

Sundays through November 3

11:00 a.m.

Borwell Dining Room and via Zoom

Register at bit.ly/hiddenroots24

In the first session of this class, last Sunday Joe Morrow led us in an examination of “Remembrance and Repair: Healing from Historic Wounds,” which you can watch on our YouTube channel.

This Sunday afternoon, October 27 we will join the First Presbyterian Church of Chicago in cosponsoring “The Collaborators: The Secret History of South Side Gangs and Chicago’s Presbyterians.”

Author and journalist Natalie Moore and journalist and community organizer Maira Khwaja will speak; Jeff Doane, former Fourth Church Parish Associate, will moderate.

Sunday, October 27

2:00 p.m.

First Presbyterian Church (6400 S. Kimbark)

RSVP to Nancy Davis

Tom Are will hold his second Zoom conversation about the book of Philippians this coming Wednesday, October 30.

Together we will continue our exploration of this most joyful writing in the Bible — a book amazingly written while Paul was in prison. 

Prior to the session, participants are asked to watch videos of the in-person classes that Tom led earlier this fall. You can watch the videos here.

For Zoom details, register at bit.ly/zoomstudy102024

Join us for an evening of moving music when the Fourth Church Choral Society presents their fall concert, featuring Mozart’s Requiem.

Friday, November 8

7:30 p.m.

Sanctuary

Cornerstones

A fellowship group for those fifty and over, Cornerstones will meet on Friday, November 1 at 5:30 p.m. in Anderson Hall for a presentation on Inspiration Corporation, a resource for exiting homelessness and poverty. To join us for the dinner and program, register (required) by Monday, October 28 at bit.ly/cornerstones112024

Deep Listening Dinner

On Saturday, November 9 we will gather in Anderson Hall at 5:00 p.m. for a Deep Listening Dinner, as we get to know one another through conversation over a shared meal. To join us for dinner, register (required) at bit.ly/deep112024

Books by Women

The Books by Women book group will discuss Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano on Tuesday, November 12 at 6:00 p.m. in the Bumpus Room.

We hold in prayer the twenty-eight members of Fourth Church and the Chicago Presbytery who, as part of their Civil Rights Trail Pilgrimage, have spent this week visiting historic sites in New Orleans, Louisiana; Jackson, Mississippi; and Montgomery and Birmingham, Alabama.

Before returning to Chicago, this Sunday the travelers will worship at the historic 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham. The site of civil rights activities, including the organization of marches, the church was bombed in 1963, resulting in the deaths of four young Black girls: Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Denise McNair, and Carole Robertson.

A sculpture by artist Nettie Terman Nechine, which depicts the experience of loss and grief in that bombing, is on display in our Allison Library, outside Buchanan Chapel.

Today, as part of the free Friday Noonday Concerts series, our Associate Organist, Michael Rees, played works by Bach, Howells, Buxtehude, and Franck.

Next Friday pianist Ruoyang Xiang will present our concert.

On Monday we welcomed District 6 and 4 candidates who are vying for election to the board of Chicago Public Schools. Moderated by Kate Grossman of WBEZ, this forum offered opportunity to hear from school board candidates and engage in meaningful conversation about the future of our schools.

If you missed the forum, we invite you to view it on our YouTube channel.

On Sunday we were delighted to welcome to our worship life our Interim Organist and Director of Music, Doug Cleveland.

You can find signs of our 2025 Stewardship campaign across the campus, including in Sunday Coffee Hour. Stop by this Sunday morning and say hello to the volunteers at the table and learn more about our partnership in doing the good that is each of ours to do!

There are a few days left in our October Snack Drive for Fourth Church Meals Ministry!

Meals Ministry is a visible direct outreach program of Fourth Church, an example of how we live out our mission to be a light in the city. In addition to feeding guests at Fourth Church this program also does outreach at other locations in the city.

Details about contributing single-serving, individually packaged snacks — chips, pretzels, granola bars, and fruit snacks — in support of this outreach can be found at the Meals Ministry cart during Coffee Hour as well as on the Meals Ministry page of the website.

There you can find lists of preferred items and links for ordering them with direct shipment to Fourth Church.

Donations, marked to the attention of Meals Ministry, can also be dropped off at the church reception desk.

In partnership with Alderman Reilly’s 42nd Ward office, our Center for Life and Learning is again cosponsoring a blood drive, this time on Saturday, November 16.

Our participation as donors is one of the ways we live out our commitment to care for our neighbors and community: each donor can save up to three lives!

Walk-ins will be welcome, although advance appointments are appreciated.

Saturday, November 16

10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Borwell Dining Room

Appointments appreciated; walk-ins welcome

Schedule an appointment online or by calling 800-7TO-GIVE (800-786-4483)

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) is working to provide necessary resources to support the many communities affected by the recent hurricanes.

To support that relief work, you can make an online gift to PDA on the home page of our website or at bit.ly/pdahurricanes

Marriage

We give thanks to God for the gift of life together.

Gabrielle Jade Gaule and Phillip Michael Daniels

Married October 19, 2024

Grief Groups

Grief Groups facilitated by our Replogle Center for Counseling and Well-Being meet for four weeks via Zoom. The next group will begin on Thursday evening, November 7. To learn more or register for a group, contact the group facilitator, Sharon Crawford-Tucker (312.787.8425).

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, illnesses, hospitalizations, or deaths, please email Gloria Fleming, Assistant for Caring Ministries and Spiritual Formation; 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.

Prayer

If you would like to submit a prayer request to our Morning Prayer or Deacon Prayer Ministries, please email Gloria Fleming or Nancy Benson-Nicol.

If you would like to offer individual prayers of praise or concern with a Deacon, you are invited to do so on Sunday mornings in Stone Chapel (through the Sanctuary door to the right of the pulpit) following the 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. services.

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 weekly at 9:30 a.m. via Zoom. On the first Wednesday of the month (November 6) we also gather at 10:00 a.m. for in-person Morning Prayer in Buchanan Chapel. For Zoom details, email Nancy Benson-Nicol.

Children in Worship

Children are always welcome in worship at Fourth Church! 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 Sunday morning services nursery care is available on the fourth floor of the Gratz Center for infants through two-year-olds.

Worship Livestream

We livestream the 9:30 a.m. worship service on our YouTube channel, which is accessible by going to www.bit.ly/fpcvideos, subscribing to our channel, or clicking on the photo with a “Play” arrow on the home page of the Fourth Church website.

The livestream is 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 is available (toll free) by calling 888.916.9166 just prior to the start of the 9:30 service.