First April 2016 Congregational Church, UCC! First News 906 Main Street 413.458.4273 Williamstown, MA FirstChurchWilliamstown.org From the Pastor Dear Church, On three Sundays in April (4/10, 17, 24), I ll be holding new members classes for people formally to join First Congregational Church. The classes have been fun and meaningful in the past, and will prove to be this time around, too: we tour the entire building, undertake a crash course in congregational governance, read a spiritual book together (this year we re going to read Rob Bell s What We Talk About When We Talk About God), and swap stories of where we ve experienced God in our lives. It s always a special time I can t wait. And, by the way, if you re reading this and you think this might be time for you to join the church let me know, and see you there! A new round of New Member s Classes begs the question, however: what exactly does becoming a member mean these days? It grants a formal annual meeting vote. It s a symbolic way of uniting oneself to a specific faith community. UCC theologians would use the word covenant to describe new membership: we enter into covenantal relationship with one another as Christ s body. The burdens and joys of another become our own. And, in fact, every time we welcome new members into the First Congregational Church body, we pray the Founders Covenant together. This demonstrates the conviction that when new members join, our very existence changes. We reconstitute ourselves as a new, expanded, more whole and more diverse, body of Christ. All of this is deeply meaningful, and yet I also think it s importance for us to grapple with the changing definition of membership in these postmodern, post-christendom, times of church belief, practice, and existence. In other words, I m not so sure membership means what it once did. Probing the assumptions of new membership often reveals more questions than answers: What about long time attendees that have chosen not to become members are they not a part of our church s covenant? What about the many individuals that have volunteered and joined in our church s service and justice efforts, who have played key roles in the church s health, but may not come on Sundays very often are they not vitally intrinsic to our collective body? My response would emphatically be that such people are already bound in covenant with us, even though they have not become formal members. And so maybe our definition of membership needs to change. One option would be to make it exceedingly difficult to become a member. A remarkable church in Washington DC, called Church of the Savior, famously requires new members to undergo 1-2 years of theological and biblical discernment before joining. They believe that to join a church entails a radical reorienting of one s life, such that long preparation is justified and necessary. (This would thin our rolls considerably!) The other option, which I lean towards, is to make membership more lax:
what if membership was a revolving door of blessing for people who are currently finding the church a place of joy, spiritual deepening, and justice? Good questions arise here, too, though, such as: well, if everyone s a member, does the meaning of being a member diminish? I don t pretend to have all the answers, of course, and in good congregational form, we ll need to lean into the future of our church together. For these three weeks however, I can tell you that with our new members we will cover specific material about Christian faith. We will seek to deepen our relationships with each other and with God; we will pray for each other, we will laugh, and we may even cry. We will expand our community in a symbolic, and yet still tangible way. Multiple individuals will take the plunge into covenental relationship with First Church Williamstown, and we will give joyful thanks. With resolute hope, Rev. Mark From the Moderator ring s sounds and sights arrived as we approached this Easter celebration and we were thankful for all of these events. We can see some of the early flowers sprouting up, the arrival of the Spring/ Summer birds feeding at our feeders and on the ground, and we felt the excitement of the Easter celebration. We look forward to the increasing warmth of the sun and the warmer days of summer. We feel happy and energized. So too, is there an excitement going on in our church building, as we watch the Community Hall renovation and await the completion of the ceiling with new beams, lights and of the newly painted walls. There have been some delays in this work. Our contractor discovered that the ceiling wasn t exactly suspended in the sturdiest manner, but those of us who have done renovations in our own homes know that delays are not unexpected in an older building, and we have learned to be patient. As soon as our contractor, Columb Devine receives the town building permit, he will begin placement of the ceiling beams and installation of the lights.. Then we will be able to see how beautiful this new space will be and celebrate its completion. We certainly need to thank Brian Handspicker for all of his dutiful work on this project. There are more upcoming plans for renovation projects which will include the kitchen, but for now we need to keep a close accounting of the Community Hall costs before we proceed. I want to thank all of you who have been supportive and helpful to Katherine and me as co-moderators during our initial induction. We have had the opportunity to see all of the Team groups at work during the Wednesday night gatherings and have been so impressed with the dedication and thoughtful work which you are all putting into your responsibilities. There have been some amazing accomplishments so far, and with more plans to come. Deacons have been so thoughtful about their responsibilities of Sunday worship and spiritual growth of our church; Outreach in its work of reaching out to community groups in need; Education and Fellowship in creating inspiring Second Hour programs, Church School activities with our precious children and offering opportunities to gather in social groups and enjoy delicious meals. Katherine has led the Church Council meetings so far and she has done a great job of presenting the focus issues. We do plan to alternate leadership of these meetings but so far I have been busy with grandmotherly duties and unavailable. Katherine will continue to lead April s Church Council meeting and I will start in May. Please feel free to give us feedback about our jobs and approach us with concerns/ questions. Our wish for all of you, following this Easter celebration is an enduring feeling of peace, a sense of exhilaration, excitement and of happiness. Blessed Easter to you all. Your Co-Moderator, Jody Green
Getting to Know You! The First Church Vitality Team will initiate a fun and exercise in the coming weeks, in an effort to help all of us get to know each other better. A member of the team will ask you a few very basic questions about your background that could be shared on a Friends Wall. The Wall will include a photo and a few brief notes about you. We hope sharing this kind of personal information will help newcomers and First Church veterans find ways to connect. Please do consent to be a part of this experiment to help all of us strengthen our connections! Housing. News Flash!!! Volunteer Opportunites The Vitality Team has been reviewing the results of our Visioning Retreat. Some of you asked to be notified if there were volunteer opportunities in the areas of Housing, Immigration, Food Insufficiency and Transportation. We have looked into it and here are some folks to contact if you are interested. Habitat for Humanity, a program that our church supports, builds or renovates homes that are made available to eligible low income families. Keith Davis, our Habitat representative, is starting the renovation of an interesting older home on West Shaft Road in North Adams on April 2nd. Work days will be Wednesdays and Saturdays until the house is completed, hopefully by September. You do not have to have any experience or tools, Keith told me. He will put you to work, show you how to do it, and provide the tools. Give Keith a call, 413-822-9134, and help provide a family with a lovely home. Higher Ground, the non-profit that was founded with major help from our church, was founded to address the loss of the Spruces, a trailer park here in Williamstown, due to flooding a few years ago. They have almost finished their work, as the last few folks are preparing to move into new homes at Highland Woods, next to Proprietors Fields. Check with Sherwood Guernsey, our Outreach Co-Chair, 413-458-4417, and see if you can help out with Higher Ground or other housing efforts. Immigration. The Outreach Committee is exploring a number of interesting options. They will be going to Springfield to meet with others who are hoping to sponsor immigrant families. This work is just off the ground and should be an interesting and useful place to volunteer. If you are interested in more information, call either of the co-chairs, Sherwood Guernsey, 413-458-4417, or Phil Smith, 413-458-3894. Food Insufficiency. There are two local efforts responding to this great need. Our church Outreach Committee is working with local food banks. Again, call Sherwood Guernsey, 413-458-4417. There is also a group of churches working together on this issue from a legislative and community organizing angle, Berkshire Interfaith Organizing (BIO). One of the issues they are addressing is the recent closing of the North Adams Price Chopper. Our church is a founding member of BIO, and a number of our members are participating in this effort. Call Sam Smith, 413-458-4309, for more information. Transportation. News Flash!!! BIO is also working on Transportation, an issue for anyone who must rely on public transportation to get to and from work. Transportation is also critical for folks who are trying access healthy food, and medical care and do not have a car. We have two folks representing our church on this task force, and one of them is about to leave the area for a year. We need another person to work with our remaining member, who needs transportation to make evening meetings. This is interesting and useful
work. If you want to know more, call Moira Jones, 413-458-9407, or Jean Vankin, 413-458-5606. Our Outreach Committee is working to provide transportation for folks who visit the local food pantries and need help getting home. Call Phil Smith, 413-458-3894, if you would like to help. Fly Fishing Anyone? Anyone interested in trying their hand at fly fishing is invited to join a group on Saturday April 23rd and April 30th. Plan to gather at 2:30 pm and stay out until dusk. If you are interested, send a quick note to Steve Chick at schick124@msn.com for details. All welcome. Outreach Report Outreach is reaching out. Here are some recent initiatives: Activist Table: During second hour, Outreach is now hosting an activist table with opportunities for people to present petitions and information on issues which coincide with the Church s outreach concerns, including Immigration, housing/ homelessness, food insecurity, climate change/environmental protection. Let us know if there is some issue that you would like us to consider for this table. A thank you to Julie MacDonald for organizing and being responsible for this outreach. Immigration: Our latest initiative is to find out how our congregation might host a family or two of recent immigrant refugees. In early April, a small delegation will be visiting a refugee resettlement center in Springfield to get us the information we need and to understand if it is possible to become a resettlement satellite center ourselves. We have much to learn. Stay tuned. Louison House: The Louison House is a family life support center, providing housing and supportive services to the homeless. Pillows have been collected, linens are being collected, and the director of the Louison House, Lindsay Errichetto, is attending our next meeting on April 13. We want to be sure we understand how best to assist them. Marimba Band Concert: A must see and hear: On Saturday April 23, 2016, at 1;00 pm, outreach is sponsoring a fantastic concert by the marimba band from Maru-a-Pula School in Gabarone, Botswana. The concert in our sanctuary is part of the band s east coast tour to raise funds for the education of aids orphans. The Maru-a-Pula School was founded 45 years ago as a co-ed, inter-racial boarding and day school at the height of the apartheid movement in South Africa. The founders desire was to place an inclusive school of this nature as close to South Africa as possible (10 miles from the South African border). The total enrollment, including international students is 750, with about 70% of the school s population native Matswana. When the aids crisis broke in Botswana, Maru-a-Pula has taken a lead role in educating aids orphans of which the country has a large population. The teacher leading the Marimba band this year is Laone Thekiso, Williams 12, whom some will remember as the lead player in the Williams Zambezi Marimba band and as a student piano soloist with the Berkshire Symphony when he was an undergraduate here. Over the years Williams has educated up to 20 Maru-a-Pula graduates, most of whom are working professionally back in Botswana. One MaP graduate is presently at Williams, Nicole Salani 17 who is head of the Williams African Student Association which is helping to sponsor the marimba concert. Sherwood Guernsey for the Outreach Ministry Team
ABC Earth Day Clothing Sale ABC (A Better Community) will be having an Earth Day Sale of spring and summer clothing April 23rd, 10-1 in Community Hall. Come and shop, and support ABC for a better community! Also let this be a reminder for you to recycle your clothing and household linens that are in excellent condition, by donating them all year round, at the church, between 9:30 am and 2 pm, Monday through Friday. Donations should go downstairs and to the right, in the ABC receiving area. The mission of all the ABC sales are to benefit local charitable organizations serving youth and families at risk, and to address hunger, poverty and inequality in our communities. Seed Bank Coming! the deposit box. A seed bank for vegetables, herbs, and flowers is in the works for this spring s planting season. Bags of seeds will be available for you to select from. We will provide small bags, tape, and wooden plant markers for you to use. Please take as many seeds as you can use, but use all you take. If you have any seeds you could donate for others to use, please put them in Also, watch for Elizabeth Smith s poster on the bulletin board outside the church office, announcing the grand opening of the seed bank. The opening will also be announced in First Church weekly e-mail blasts. From Anne Short Coffin Prize Speaking Event Passionate Public Speaking about timely matters of social justice and spirituality! Come hear six articulate and committed Williams students speak their minds as they compete for the William Sloane Coffin Prize for Passionate Public Speaking on Saturday, April 16th, beginning at 7:30 pm here in our Sanctuary. This is the 6th Annual Coffin Prize competition, a joint venture between our church and the Williams Chaplains Office and a true highlight of spring! Finalists are in Social Justice & Activism: Philemon Abel 19 Penny Sun 16 Suiyi Wendy Tang 19 And in Spirituality & Faith: Ranana Dine 16 Nathan Leach 17 Abigail Matthew 18 You can find more information on the Chaplains Office website. Plan to stay for the festive reception, at which the winners names will be announced. Refreshments will be served.
Empty Bowl Dinner The 12th biennial Empty Bowl dinner, a fundraising event to support the Berkshire Food Project, will be held on Friday April 8th. The dinner will be held here at the First Church, Williamstown. Tickets are $30.00 with two seatings offered, the first at 5 pm the second at 7 pm. What is the Empty Bowl Dinner? The Empty Bowl Dinner is an annual tradition for the Berkshire Food Project. It is a simple meal of soup, bread and cookies, all locally made. The bowls are donated by local ceramic artists. The soups are donated by local restaurants and chefs. All proceeds help to feed the hungry in our area. Guests select and keep a bowl to use for their soup, which then serves as a reminder that not everyone s bowl always filled.
From the Financial Secretary Record of Pledge Contributions Calendar 2015 Calendar 2016 Needed monthly $18,746 $15,826 Needed (January 1 - March 31) $56,238 $47,556 Received (January 1 - March 31)* $60,758 $57,340 *Includes pre-paid amounts ($21,089.59 & $18,702.18 respectively) 2015 Pledge shortfall: $2,643.50 - Received toward shortfall as of March 31, 2016: $1,447.00 We have received pledge contributions through the first quarter of Calendar Year 2016 at the rate of 30.14% up from last year s rate of 27.00%. One Great Hour of Sharing: (UCC Special Offering) $891.00 Easter Offering: (donations to- Friendship Center Food Pantry) $397.00 Thank you for your contributions. The Church greatly depends on your continuous financial support! Convenient Giving by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT): Please join other church members by contributing online, (the paperless way). Go to the online giving webpage and click on GIVE. You will find instructions- How to Give and a convenient form for entering your information. Alternatively I would be happy to help you set-up the transaction! Please contact me: 458-4273 ext#107 or e-mail: finance@firstchurchwilliamstown.org - Annie M. Parkman Financial Secretary