Hancock UCC Weekly Messenger for November 17, 2024
Then shall the wolf dwell with the lamb, Nor shall the fierce devour the small; As beasts and cattle calmly graze, A little child shall lead them all.
P.E.O. Thanksgiving Pies
Wednesday, November 27nd at Reny's in Ellsworth
9:00am to 11:00 am (or until sold out!)
Delicious homemade pies! Choose from many different varieties. (Gluten-free pies may be available upon request.) Call Kathy at (207) 570-3539 by November 23rd to place your order. Pies starting at $25 & up.
Pre-Ordered pies must be picked up by 10:30am
P.E.O. is a Philanthropic Educational Organization; where women celebrate the advancement of women; educate women through scholarships, grants, awards, loans and the stewardship of Cottey College; and motivate women to achieve their highest aspirations. To learn more about P.E.O., call Ann Dederer at (207) 266-5563 or visit our website at www.peointernational.org
Join us for lightly guided meditation at 9:00 a.m. on Fridays in our Sanctuary. In the spirit of the sessions led by Angela Absher at the Hancock Point Chapel we will begin with a lightly guided non-denominational meditation followed by a few minutes of discussion and ending with another 20 minutes of meditation. The program will be led by novices Alison Boden and TJ Mack. Now and again we may have guest speakers. Our goal is friendship and happiness. No experience is necessary. We leave in silence. Do come…
Our Church Council will meet Friday, November 15th at 11:30 am in person and on Zoom
November Birthdays and Anniversaries
17: Cookie Thelen 20: Kathy McGlinchey 24: Jimmy & Liz Awalt
26: Clint Ritchie 30: Arthur Ashmore
Chris Ross has a hometown show happening in our sanctuary on Friday, November 15th
Doors open at 6:30, music at 7:00. Suggested donation of $20
but all are welcome regardless of ability to pay.
Invite your family and friends and come and enjoy the music.
The “Claiming Your Call for a Climate-Changed World” team – Amelia Ashmore, Alison Boden, Nick Davis, Pat Summerer and Pastor TJ invite you into a congregational conversation on Sunday Nov. 17th after our worship service. Help us to discern our “small project with radical intent.” Thank you in advance for your participation.
Information about the journey these five have begun on behalf of our church can be found at https://thebtscenter.org/claiming-your-call-for-a-climate-changed-world
To recap, here are excerpts of the reflections of the past three weeks:
Alison Boden wrote: “I came away from the conference thinking that religious communities have a central role, maybe THE crucial role, to play in the climate crisis, because it is a spiritual transformation that is necessary in how we humans relate to the rest of creation, and whether we preserve or destroy it.”
Pat Summerer contributed: “We were encouraged to touch, listen and look for everything from the smallest ant, leaf or lichen patch, to the power of the ocean, the vastness of the forest, and all the “more than human” population within them. We are all connected.”
Nick Davis added: “The “Call” in the title of the Retreat refers to our “communal call” to address the Climate crisis with all the faith, hope, and love we can muster - TOGETHER - with allies within the Church, and beyond! It means compassionately caring for all life on this land which God created and called good!”
From Pastor TJ: We live in an absolutely beautiful postcard setting consisting of sea and shore and forests and fields populated with an abundance of creatures that walk and fly and swim and slither. The diversity of this beauty that we know cannot be taken for granted. We invite each one of you into a conversation with us, and deeper into conversation with the “more than human” world. What “small project with radical intent” shall we name together? Please join us after our worship service this Sunday, Nov. 17th in-person or on Zoom. Your presence and your ideas matter greatly.
From our Student Ministry Intern, Sarina Brooks:
Peace and Prayer Vigils
In solidarity with other local UCC churches, will be holding one more peace and prayer vigil on Monday, November 18th from 1-2 PM. This will be a time of quiet; for prayers, meditation, reflection or any other ways you seek to use this time and space. We will have printed prayers you may take; candles you can light for your prayers, and quiet music for reflection. Come and stay, for a minute or the entire hour. All are welcome. Please extend the invitation to others that you know. Sarina’s home church, Centre Street Congregational Church in Machias is also offering Peace and Prayer Vigils on Monday, November 25th from 12-1PM and 6:30-7:30PM
Help Keep Grammar School Kids Healthy and Focused - Bring your returnable beverage cans and bottles to the church and support our campaign to provide snacks for students at the Hancock Grammar School. It's an easy and painless way to collect lots of nickels which will add up to a meaningful contribution for the snack program and help the kids stay focused, healthy and thriving. Call David Wildes at 422-3739 with any questions. He will pick up your bottles/cans upon request.
Please keep the following people in your prayers this week:
Prayers for the family and friends of Dr. John VanPelt who passed away earlier this week.
Prayers for Ron & Kathy and their brothers Joe and David; both receiving radiation or chemotherapy treatments for cancer. Prayers for Donald B. and Kenny V., Orrick, Brian, and Jane of Golden Acres. Prayers for Sally M.; Xyerra; Everett’s sister Libby; Judith C.; Don and Heather; Eleanor A.; Bruce’s sister Lynn; Sally’s friend, Sue Barger; Yvonne; Herbie Lounder; Ira; Cathy C.; Ruth; Marie; Doris; Jim Snyder; Jonathan Holmes; Brandon Perry-Hudson; John Wood; Sue Davies; Sue Davenport; Liz & Jim; Kenny Stratton; Joy & David & Lori & Melissa; Debbie & Lincoln & son-in-law Aaron, daughter Ashley, and granddaughter Brielle; Sandy Phippen; Betty & her step-daughter Mollie; Debbie & Hollis & Holly and Debbie’s Aunt Linda Reed; Amy Nickerson; Tom & Judy’s son Andrew & family; Kevin and Vanessa & family. Prayers of strength and healing for all awaiting diagnoses and for all recovering from surgeries & procedures. Prayers for all that are unsafe, unhoused, hungry & in need of care & compassion. Prayers for all caregivers; and prayers for all that is in your heart…
Photo Directory — Have you ever heard anyone say “I know the name but don’t know the face” or “I know the face, but am not sure of their name?” Well, over the next few weeks, Sarina will be taking pictures so that we can begin to put together a photo directory. If you absolutely don’t want your photo to go with your name and address, your info will appear as it always has. Thanks in advance.
From the Maine Conference
Justice Leadership Program
4 month cohort starting in January
Do you feel called to work for justice? This online program is for adults interested in weaving social justice into the fabric of their faith in a meaningful and transformative way. Deepen your understanding, learn practical skills, and gain the confidence to take meaningful action through this foundational program. Participants meet weekly. Apply by December 15th.
Scholarships available for UCC members from FaithINFO (inquire upon applying)
A Reflection from Liz Charles McGough, Pilgrim Lodge Director
Dear Friends,
Connect. What a time it is in which we are living. Whatever our affiliations, it is clear that division and polarization characterize this moment in our country and in our world. In the face of this awareness, for the past week, I have been holding a yearning to connect. I wonder how reaching beyond myself with empathy could bridge the chasm of divide. In the moments when I feel isolated and alone or too small to make a difference, I try to remember that I am connected through webs of relationship. As I considered this idea, this image came to mind:
This is an image of an installation project at Pilgrim Lodge from the summer of 2019 (this is a screen shot from a promotional video that you can check out here). Each camper who came to Pilgrim Lodge throughout the course of the season was invited to add a string, representing their own unique identity, to this giant web of individuals connected to one another. My present day yearning to connect looks like this web in my mind’s eye as I visualize all the people with whom I interact – neighbors in the grocery store, teachers at the school, the mail carrier, my co-workers, folks at church, the community of Pilgrim Lodge, the Maine Conference UCC….the web of connection weaves us together.
As I have been holding this yearning to connect, other verbs have been popping into my awareness as I open myself to wisdom for navigating the confusion and uncertainty of these days.
Hope. I heard of the concept that hope is not an emotion but an action. Brene Brown writes, “Right now, the thing that is helping the most is micro-dosing hope…I am asking myself how I can support the people around me. The people on my team, in my community. How can I make sure that, in the maelstrom of my emotions, I stay committed to courage, kindness, and caring for others regardless of the choices made by others?”
Rest. In Kate Bowler’s blessing “For when you need a gentle day,” she prays, “God give us grace for one whole day of turning, of turning away from worry toward restful action.” I am struck by the reminder that turning toward “restful action” is a choice to embrace rest as an active process, a turning toward healing to confront each new day. She continues, “When checking the news one more time seems a good idea…let the hands rest and the computer screen go dark.” Choose rest.
Speak. In a time when silence may be interpreted as complacency, filling the void with the message we want the world to hear is powerful. In a meeting I attended this morning, the opening words by an unknown writer were offered as the opening prayer, “Deserve confidence. Take up arms against malice. Decry complacency. Express your gratitude. Worship your God. Gladden the heart of a child. Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth. Speak your love. Speak it again. Speak it still again. Speak it still once again.”
Connect. Hope. Rest. Speak.
These are good words for us to hold as we navigate the days to come. “Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ.” – 1 Corinthians 12:12.
When we face the realities of the division in our world, I recognize that my own words feel a little Pollyanna-ish. I am not quite naive enough to believe that we will achieve this perfect vision for the world Christ invited us to create together, but it is a worthwhile vision to strive for. If you are feeling alone, isolated, and powerless, I invite you to remember that we share a strong web of connection. A micro-dose of hope and our worlds of love may be the antidote we need to start the work to connect.
Speaking of connecting…..we, at Pilgrim Lodge, would love to connect with you at your local churches to build our web of connections. If you’d like to have a Pilgrim Lodge staff member come to your church, please reach out to me at echarles@pilgrimlodge.org.
Yours in Love,
Liz Charles McGough, Director
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