Posts from 2024

Posts from 2024

200 Church School Years

The Church School is celebrating it’s 200th anniversary this year! On Sunday, April 21st, the kids met at Academy Hill at 9am. Deenie Burgess, Church Historian led a walking tour and taught us about our church school history.  Then we walked back down to the church to continue class. Thank you Deenie for sharing our church’s history with us!

Welcome Ken

The Music Committee is excited to announce that  that Kenneth Richards, SPC has committed to work with our congregation as a long-term substitute musician. Ken has a many years of experience as an Organist, Vocalist, &  Choir Director. While he continues to work toward higher level certification thru the American Guild  of Organists (AGO), he teaches vocal students at Worcester Music Academy. We believe he has much to offer, and we will learn a lot from him as we look toward the future. Ken…

From The Pastor’s Pen- Eastertide

 As Christ journeyed in the wilderness for 40 days, which we observe approaching Holy Week (excluding Sundays), Eastertide is a similar 40 day observance (in western Christian traditions), celebrating Christ’s resurrected presence amongst the still stunned, loving and enthusiastic disciples. Eastertide ends with Ascension Sunday, which is then followed by Pentecost. We know of several Eastertide customs, though we often think of them as solely customs for Easter Sunday, itself. The donning of Easter bonnets by women, flowering of the…

From The Pastor’s Pen

Peace be with you. With these words, Jesus greeted His disciples after His resurrection, signaling a profound truth that resonates through the ages: His resurrection brings life, joy, and light, ushering in peace, harmony, and tranquility for all believers. As we reflect on the significance of Easter, we are reminded of the boundless blessings that Jesus’s resurrection bestows upon us. It is a time for contemplation, a time to embrace the transformative power of His love, and a time to seek healing of…

From The Pastor’s Pen

Historically, the church has understood Lent to be a time for spiritual reflection,    confession, repentance, and preparation for the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday. Various faith traditions have embraced practices of self-denial, fasting, and honest confession during this period of time as a way of drawing closer to Christ’s experience of traveling through the wilderness and facing the things the worldly aspects of life that pull us away from relationship with God and Christ. N.T. Wright reminds us that…
Confirmation Program

Confirmation Program

Four youth are committed to the Confirmation program this winter and spring and began meeting in late December.  This program has all of the core conversation/exploration components                accustomed to in this congregation, though it is structured a bit differently,        relying on some Conference resources to make the program more robust in       response to our, and Pastor Stacey’s, capacity to facilitate the program. Topics  will include: understanding membership in the local church, the United Church of Christ and the diversity of…
Thank You

Giving Tree 2023

A message from the Christian Outreach Committee     Thank you all for your response to our annual giving tree toy drive! This year we again used the ease of Amazon to our advantage and easily met the needs of children who could use a little extra joy this holiday season. The Christian Outreach Committee partnered with the Community Healthlink residential recovery homes, where children are going through the re-unification process with their mothers.  With your help we were able to fulfill all…

Lent

Lent begins with the starkness of Ash Wednesday. On Ash Wednesday we face our mortality and the limits of our earthborn existence. Ashes are smeared on our    forehead as we hear the solemn words spoken: “You are dust and to dust you shall return.” It is not hard to make the connection with the words often said at the burial of the dead: “Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” Ash Wednesday falls at a time when our…

From The Pastors pen

In an article written by Albrecht Powell for “About.com Guide” the following resolutions make the top ten list across the United States: Did you make a new year’s resolution this year? Does it make this list?  The best resolutions are those which focus on changing behaviors and are attainable by taking a few short steps and sticking with them.  An interesting fact about these resolutions which often goes unnoticed, is that each connects to our lives of faith.  Seeking to obtain…