Hancock UCC Weekly Messenger for September 22, 2024

Then let us, with the Spirit's daring,

step from the past, and leave behind

our disappointment, guilt and grieving,

seeking new paths, and sure to find.

Choir practice on Sunday mornings at 9:15. All are welcome as we look forward to making a joyful noise.

The Union Congregational Church of Hancock, United Church of Christ will hold an emergency special congregational meeting on Sunday, October 6, 2024 immediately following the 10 am morning worship service for the following purposes:

1.    To vote on the expenditure of up to $25,000 to replace the Fellowship Hall and Educational Wing roof with metal roofing.

2.    Any other business to come before the congregation.

Jeanne Edwards, Clerk

September 16, 2024

During the month of September we will be receiving Our Church’s Wider Mission offering. This is one of the 5 for 5 offerings received by the Maine Conference throughout the year.

Our meetings are open to all. If you would like to attend a meeting, please let TJ or Vicky know and they will provide the Zoom link, or you are welcome to attend in person.

The Outreach Committee will meet Thursday, October 10th at 4:15 pm in person and on Zoom

Church Council will meet Friday, October 11th at 9:30 am in person and on Zoom

The Board of Deacons will meet Friday, October 11th at 3:00 pm in person and on Zoom

Our Fall Clothing and Linens Sale is scheduled for Friday Oct. 4 from 5-7 PM, and Saturday Oct. 5 from 8-11 AM. Donations of Fall and Winter Clothing and any linens are appreciated and will be collected now through Oct. 2nd. Help setting up and sorting items is needed Monday - Thursday that week, and we will need volunteers for the sale times and packing up the leftovers for donation to other shops. Please look for the sign up sheet at church, or contact Pat Summerer. Thank You.

It’s getting to be that time of year again when we start gearing up for Annual Reports. If you are responsible for getting a report ready for the annual meeting, please be thinking about it.

 All reports are due in the office NO LATER THAN October 13th.  Thank you!

The Franklin Methodist Church will host Public Bean Suppers, September 21, and again October 19, at 5 pm, a traditional meal with pie desserts. The proceeds will  benefit the heating assistance program for the village.

COMMUNITY BLESSING OF THE ANIMALS SERVICE

10AM – Sunday – Sept. 29

HANCOCK TOWN MONUMENT LOT  Corner of US Route 1 & Point Road

In the spirit of Saint Francis 

Community members and their pets are invited to a Pet Blessing Service at 10 am on Sunday September 29th. The informal service celebrates our pets and the important roles they play in our lives.

Pet or no pet, everyone is welcome to attend.

Children are invited to participate and all types of pets are welcome, leashed as appropriate. If your pet does not play well with others, you may use a carrier or bring a picture.

Dress for the weather and bring a chair. In case of inclement weather, the service will be moved to the church,

Anniversary Remembrance

“We Remember, we Grieve, we Heal…Together”

Hosted by the Maine Council of Churches and the Maine Conference of the United Church of Christ, Tuesday, October 1st  at 10 am, State Capital Building, Augusta

The Plaza between the Cross Building and the rear entrance of the State House

In collaboration with the Maine Council of Churches, our Conference is hosting a time of remembrance for the one-year anniversary of the Lewiston massacre. All are welcome to stand in solidarity with family and friends and communities that grieve deeply. We will hear words of healing. We will prayerfully read the names of all who lost their lives.

"Only in America" is look at gun violence through the lens of a small collective of Social Justice Artists from Maine and beyond.  This exhibit will be on display at the Schoolhouse from September 15th - October 15th.  SAFA Schoolhouse, 23 Harbor Road, Winter Harbor.

Please keep the following people in your prayers this week:

Prayers for Everett’s brother, Darrell; Sandra & Susan; Orrick; Judith C.; Don and Heather; Graham and Joey and Morgan; Bruce’s sister Lynn; Sally’s friend, Sue Barger; Dr. John; Yvonne; Herbie Lounder; Ira; Cathy C.  and for Cynthia’s Aunt Barbara receiving Hospice Care. Prayers for Jane; Ruth; Marie; Joyce; Doris; Ron & Kathy; Jim Snyder; Jonathan Holmes; Brandon Perry-Hudson; John Wood; Sue Davies; Sue Davenport; Liz & Jim; Austin’s cousin Danny; 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 the people of our nation and of our world experiencing escalating wars, conflicts, and disasters. Prayers for all individuals estranged from family members; prayers for all individuals and families experiencing addictions; prayers for all caregivers; and prayers for all that is in your heart…

Hancock Grammar School BackPack Program

         The BackPack Program will distribute BackPacks each Thursday to those students needing additional weekend food support. The packs contain breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks.

Snacks needed for Hancock Grammar School

We were given this list of snacks for the Hancock Grammar School Snack Program. Please stick to this list of healthy, easily distributed snacks. We will also accept cash donations and gift cards.

Animal Crackers; Nutri-Grain Bars; Trail Mix packets; Mini Pretzels; Cheez-Its; Mandarin Orange Cups; Peach Cups; Mott’s Applesauce cups;

Planters Salted Peanuts packets; Lance Toasty Peanut Butter Sandwiches;

Lance Cheddar Cheese Sandwiches; Graham Crackers

We have a total of 13 classes (including our middle school). So with that in mind, it looks like we will need about $350 a month to supply snacks for our students that are in need.         

Official Call of the 2024 Annual Meeting of the

Maine Conference of the United Church of Christ

The 93rd Annual Meeting of the Maine Conference of the United Church of Christ (successor to the Congregational Christian Conference of Maine; it being the 113th Anniversary of the Congregational Conference and Missionary Society of Maine; the 199th Anniversary of the State Conference, the 214th Anniversary of the Maine Missionary Society, the 192nd Anniversary of the Maine Congregational Ministerial Relief Society, and the 54th Anniversary of the Maine Conference as a Conference of the United Church of Christ), will: convene in person at Pilgrim Lodge and via Zoom at 8:45 a.m., Saturday, October 19, 2024. Connection details to be provided pending registration.

 Items to be voted at this year’s meeting will be the: 

●       Proposed 2025 Conference Budget

●       Slate of Officers Elect

●       2025 Clergy Compensation Guidelines  

Susan E. Burgess, Conference Clerk

Maine Conference of the United Church of Christ

From Our Maine Conference

Rural and Remote Realities: A Unique Niche in Theological Education

 by MESOM Dean, Rev. Dr. Malcolm Himschoot

The educational ministry of the church astonishes me. It serves to build people up in the light of their Creator, deepen and expand the love of Christ in the world, and imagine the sweep of the Spirit’s purposes. Comprised of stories and questions, traditions and critique, practices and theories, concepts and conundrums, theological education cultivates no less than personal and generational revival. Discovery. Amazement. Passion for ministry.

Theological education happens in many places: in local church settings, in covenantal settings of the wider church, and beyond. It happens in hymnbooks and coloring pages, prayers said at a bedside, and canoes perched on a lake; in visual art, in mentorships and regional theological education programs, in degree-granting institutions, in the publishing industry; and in independent centers, institutes, and wherever specialized groups gather for inquiry, research, and consulting. The Maine School of Ministry serves the essential dynamic of practice and reflection for the life of the church through lifelong learning.

In our twelfth year now, MESOM has an excellent reputation among UCC conferences for regional theological education. Students find MESOM as an exciting breath of fresh air, a space to devote themselves to learning and transformation, a catalyst of new possibilities, and an affirmation of queries and quests that God has been using to call them their whole lives. Simply by being available, accessible, and affordable, we get to accompany people on profound moments of lifelong theological journeying.

Our certificate program of classroom and contextual ed brings together people and educational resources. For twelve years MESOM founders and teachers, mentors and lay ministers have found and shared multi-generational and ecumenical resources of faith and learning.

Meanwhile, MESOM exists in a broader ecosystem of innovation and curation. We steward only a part of the church’s educational ministry. Our portion is unique for crossing geography and crossing class in Maine, combining academic and applied learning, prioritizing settings of congregational life for the local church, and mingling lay learning and vocational development. For both cultural and economic reasons, our niche serving rural and remote realities is not well-covered by other programs. However, there are many other wonderful organizations nationwide and locally promoting theological education in ways that serve clergy, and through clergy build up the church. Many of their newsletters come into my inbox. Here is a list of supplemental continuing education possibilities worth distributing:

Congregational tools: Faith + Lead Resources

Preaching and worship: Festival of Homiletics, Wild Goose Festival

Theology and culture: Christian Century

Social issues: UCC National Setting Webinars

Public Policy: Maine Council of Churches

Organizational and systems leadership: Interim Ministry Network, Healthy    Congregations, Leadership Education at Duke Divinity

Innovation and trends: Convergence

Spiritual, ecological, and justice practices: BTS Center, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Kairos Center

Christian education: SoNEW Conference Faith Formation Program; Practical Resources for Churches, Traci Smith

Lifelong sexuality: Our Whole Lives, Open and Affirming Coalition, The Fellowship of Affirming Ministries

Church finance: United Church Funds

Financial education: Pension Boards UCC

Bible: Center and Library for the Study of Bible and Social Justice

Seminaries: Chicago Theological Seminary, United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, Eden, Lancaster at Moravian University, Pacific School of Religion, and AndoverNewton at Yale

Other related seminaries: see United Church of Canada and Disciples of Christ (Christian Church); also Formula of Agreement partners (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Reformed Church in America, Presbyterian Church-USA)

Seminary offshoots: Auburn, Union Beyond

Research: Louisville Institute

The list is long; possibilities for continuing education are great. At MESOM we are not just a clearinghouse but a network of relationships serving leadership development for the future. We will continue to attend to sacred possibilities serving God’s people in rural and remote realities.