Park Avenue Congregational Church
50 Paul Revere Road, Arlington Heights, MA 02476 — (781)643-8680 — office@pacc-ucc.org
June 2017
The Ladies of the Women’s Guild will be going out to Jimmy’s Steak House in Arlington on Thursday, June 15, 2017. We will meet at the church to car pool at 11:30 a.m. Please RSVP to Beverly or Diane. As always, all women of the church are invited. We look forward to seeing many of you there.
June 17, 2017
Our all-church picnic will be on Saturday, June 17 from noon-4 p.m. at Lexington Christian Academy, 48 Bartlett Ave. in Lexington. The CE ministry will provide hot dogs, drinks, and chips. Please bring a side dish or dessert to share. There’s a pool and tennis courts, so bring your bathing suit and towel and/or a tennis racquet and balls if you’d like to play. There is plenty of shade to sit in near the pool. Bring a game or puzzle to share if you’d like. There’s also a ball field if anyone would like to organize a softball or whiffle ball game. We hope to see you there!
June 2017
Famine has officially been declared in South Sudan and, for the first time in recent history, there is a very real possibility of four famines – in Somalia, South Sudan, Nigeria, and Yemen – breaking out all at once.
Twenty million people face starvation within the next six months. International aid officials warn that this is one of the biggest humanitarian disasters since World War II. rusted, on-the-ground partnerships enable the church around the world to get food resources directly to the people who need them. UCC Disaster Ministries already has sent $85,000 generated through the 2017 One Great Hour of Sharing Offering funds to the ecumenical ACT Alliance and IMA World Health for famine relief.
They were hoping to raise an additional $50,000 by May 21 – Global Day of Prayer to End Famine. PACC’s Mission and Justice Ministry has sent $1,333.33, which is one twelfth of our annual budget, to the Emergency Appeal. Please be generous with your additional donations on-line at: Emergency Appeal for East Africa Famine <https://transactions.ucc.org/engage/TeamCampaign.seam?teamCampaignId=3736> or by check made payable to PACC or cash in a blue pew envelope with “East Africa Famine” on the memo line.
It’s another phase of Budget Debate Season at the Mass. State House – The Mass. Senate has just released its budget. Contact Mike Rich or Josh Young if you would like information on how to advance proposals put forth by any of our mission partners.
We will be collecting non-perishable food items and household goods for the Arlington Food Pantry on Sunday, June 4th. Visit http://www.town.arlington.ma.us/departments/health-human-services/food- pantry/fooddonation for the list of needed and “high need” items.
THANKS to Kate Lindheim for bringing our donated items to the AFP each month. If you are interested in helping, periodically or regularly, talk to Kate, Mike Rich or Jill Lewis.
Join us at Old South UCC, Copley Square, Boston, on Saturday, June 10th, at 11:00 a.m., for the Boston Pride Interfaith Worship. See Jill Lewis, Betty Gitlin-Rich, Mike Rich or http://www.oldsouth.org/events/pride-morning-worship-2 for details.
March with PACC and the other ONA Congregations of the Mass. Conference UCC in the Boston Pride Parade, Saturday, June 10th, at Noon. RSVP to Jill Lewis or Mike Rich to be updated about registration, carpooling, and planning. And see http://www.bostonpride.org/parade/ and http://www.bostonpride.org/festival/.
The Council of Deacons has named Mike Rich and Betty Gitlin-Rich as PACC’s delegates to Tri-Conference Annual Meeting, Friday, June 16, to Saturday, June 17, 2017, in Hartford, CT. See http://www.macucc.org/eventdetail/6345699 for the UCC History-Making details.
At the June 16 – 17 historic Tri-Conference Annual Meeting, delegates will be asked to endorse a proposal by the Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island Conference Boards of Directors to join together to form a new conference.
Conference leaders want to make sure you are informed about this proposal. That is why you are encouraged to attend one of five online forums that will feature a discussion about the proposal.
Each forum will be hosted by a combination of Conference Ministers and Board representatives. Participants who join online will be able to see and hear the panelists and ask questions via the webinar interface. Participants can also listen in by phone – phone callers will be on mute to minimize background noise but will be invited to email questions during the forums.
Excerpts from the forums, or webinars, will be posted online for later viewing.They will be no longer than 90 minutes each (depending on the level of audience participation) and will be limited to 100 participants each.
See http://www.macucc.org/newsdetail/together-as-one-7542219 for details of the merger proposal and to register for one of the online forums.
Jill Lewis and Mike Rich, Deacons for the Mission and Justice Ministry
June 2017
Youth Sunday is June 11! Our theme this year is True Greatness. This comes from our Sunday school lessons this spring about Jesus teaching the disciples that being great isn’t always about being first or being the best at something. It’s about serving others.
We’ll have our one and only rehearsal with everyone on Saturday, June 10, from 9:30- 11:30 in the sanctuary. Please make every effort to come for at least part of the rehearsal, particularly if you have a speaking part. Younger children and youth without speaking parts can just come for the first 30 minutes so we can run through the music together and everyone can see where they’ll be sitting and what the service will look like.
During the rehearsal, we’ll also pot the flowers that we’ll distribute to the congregation at the end of the service. It would be great if a couple of people could help with this. We’ll have the flowers, potting soil, and cups all ready. Please let Kate know if you’re available to help. Thank you!
Our last day of regular Sunday school will be on Sunday, June 18. After that, we’ll move into our Sunday school schedule of one multi-age class. Summer Sunday school is fun and relaxed with popsicles for snack and air conditioning for hot days! We’ll continue to use the Shine curriculum for a multi-age group and we’ll have time to play too.
Our all-church picnic will be on Saturday, June 17 from noon-4 p.m. at Lexington Christian Academy, 48 Bartlett Ave. in Lexington. The CE ministry will provide hot dogs, drinks, and chips. Please bring a side dish or dessert to share. There’s a pool and tennis courts, so bring your bathing suit and towel and/or a tennis racquet and balls if you’d like to play. There is plenty of shade to sit in near the pool. Bring a game or puzzle to share if you’d like. There’s also a ball field if anyone would like to organize a softball or whiffle ball game. We hope to see you there!
We’ll meet at North Prospect Union UCC in West Medford on Sunday, June 11, from 6:30-8 for a karaoke and video game night. Look for an email with details!
June 2014
The Church’s festival season is drawing to an end. That end comes with a beginning! That’s not surprising for disciples of the One who always is doing a new thing, who always is turning expectation upside-down and inside-out.
The festival season ends with Pentecost, the 50th day after the Resurrection of the Christ. The time of waiting was and is over. When one thing ends, another begins. The end of the festival season brings us the beginning of “ordinary time”. That means “the first Sunday…the second Sunday…the third Sunday…” in order.
Pentecost is a beginning too. It’s the beginning of the hands-on mission of spreading the Good News anywhere and everywhere.
The book of Acts records the Pentecost event. It’s when the promised Spirit blew through the midst of Jesus’ closest disciples. They heard the wind. They saw the tongues of fire dancing on their heads. They felt the prophetic urge to speak.
Pentecost is when and how God’s people find their passions and live them in the world so that the Giver of these gifts is honored. So what is your faith-passion? I know most of you well enough to believe that you know the answer to that question! Could it be Bible study, social justice, Christian Education? Could your passion be for worship or a mission project? Could it be visiting a friend or helping with a mailing?
Many of you have more than one passion, and together, this congregation brings the Pentecost Spirit to the world. Remember the theme of last fall’s annual campaign? It was “GO…and do likewise!” That’s the passion of Pentecost. It’s ordinary and it’s extraordinary…and it’s all yours.
Unless the eye catch fire, The God will not be seen.
Unless the ear catch fire, The God will not be heard.
Unless the tongue catch fire, The God will not be named.
Unless the heart catch fire, The God will not be loved.
Unless the mind catch fire, The God will not be known.
William Blake (1757-1827) from Pentecost
Faithfully,
Jill
The Reverend Jill H. Small
May 18, 2017
The Women’s Guild will meet on the third Thursday in May, May 18th, at 11:30 in the Fellowship Room. Please bring your own brown bag lunch, and beverages and dessert will be provided by the hostesses, Beverly Miller and Judy Miller. All women of the church are welcome and are invited to join us for this time of fellowship.
May 9, 2017
Bring your handcrafts and join us on Tuesday, May 9, from 7:30 – 9:00 pm in the Fellowship Room
May 6, 2017
Join us May 6th from 10am – 12pm as we continue the discussion about Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly.
May 2, 2017
We will gather for snacks and conversation in the Fellowship Room at PACC at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 2nd. Speaker and topic to be determined. Note the earlier than usual gathering time. Since people liked the early time for last month’s dinner outing so well, I thought we’d try the early, but not as early, time for our in-house meeting. Please let me know what you might be bringing, if you have a topic you’d like to present, a speaker or topic you’d like to recommend, or if you would like help arranging transportation.
The Reverend Jim Mitulski, guest minister
Metropolitan Community Church – San Francisco
Senior Pastor (1986-2001)
Whoever you are…
wherever you are on life’s journey…
You ARE welcome here!
50 Paul Revere Road
781.643.8680
www.pacc-ucc.org
The Rev. Jim Mitulski comes to the Park Avenue Congregational Church United Church of Christ in Arlington, MA on May 7, 2017, to preach and to share in worship as the church observes the 10th anniversary of its Open and Affirming declaration.
“Open and Affirming” is the UCC’s designation for congregations that publicly welcome persons of any and all gender and sexual identities to full participation in the life of the church.
The Rev. Jim Mitulski currently serves as the Interim Senior Pastor at the Congregational Church of Needham, MA. From 1986-2001, Jim was senior pastor of the Metropolitan Community Church of San Francisco. That church, located in the heart of the city’s Castro section, was a beacon for the LGBT civil rights movement and was at the forefront of proactive response to the AIDS crisis.
As Campus Pastor and Worship Director at the Pacific School of Theology, Berkeley, CA, Jim Mitulski taught courses on HIV and Theology, Liturgy for Liberation, Queer church music and liturgy, and Church Growth for Liberals.
Jim holds a BA from Columbia University, the M.Div. from Pacific School of Religion, and was a Merrill Fellow at the Harvard Divinity School. He is an advocate and an activist with a passion for spirituality and social justice.
Mitulski has been published in Take Back the Word: A Queer Reading of the Bible with “Ezekiel understands AIDS: AIDS understands Ezekiel, or Reading the Bible with HIV”; in John McNeil’s Sex as God Intended; The Christian Century; The Witness; and The Lambda Literary Review.