Second Parish Unitarian Universalist
Hingham, Massachusetts
Glad Tidings
From the Minister –
"Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night stays these courageous
couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." –Herodotus
Herodotus was praising the Persian mounted postal couriers about 2500 years ago, but his line was taken over by the U.S. Post Office in reference to the dedication of mail carriers. This season, though, it would not be inappropriate to apply it to our determination to hold our Children’s Christmas Pageant despite the wonderful snowstorm that prevented us from having the pageant the Sunday before Christmas. As it happened, many of the churches in the area closed, so there’s quite a bit of making up to do all around.
There are actually twelve days of Christmas (from Dec. 25-Jan. 5), leading to January 6th, when Epiphany celebrates the arrival of the Magi, the three kings of from the East. In other parts of Christendom – namely Russia and Serbia, as well as the Church in Jerusalem – the older Julian calendar is used. Since that calendar is now 13 days behind our Gregorian calendar, December 25th in those places falls on January 7th and Epiphany on January 19th. Taking this broader view, then, our Children's Pageant on January 10th will actually fall in the middle of (some people’s) Christmas season. Despite the snow, we didn’t want to miss this opportunity to have our children enact the birth of Jesus.
I will be teaching a New Class on “Making Moral Choices Today” starting on January 13th at Linden Ponds for members of Second Parish and anyone at Linden Ponds who wishes to join us. The discussion will be based on the book When Jesus Came to Harvard by Harvey Cox, recently retired professor of theology at Harvard Divinity School. This book derives from a course for Harvard undergraduates entitled “Jesus and the Moral Life” and examines contemporary dilemmas in the light of lessons learned from the Gospels. The intent of this course is to apply the methods of reasoning Jesus taught to his disciples to the choices we face in a far different world than he encountered during his life. The class will meet Wednesdays 1:00-2:30 in the catering room of the Derby Clubhouse at Linden Ponds.
SERVICES – January 3rd: What Would Jesus Do? This expression has sometimes been used as a catch-phrase for deciding how to live. It’s actually not a bad starting point for examining what we mean when we covenant “in the spirit of Jesus.” January 10th: For So They Came Our children will present a brand new Christmas Pageant, “The Friendly Beasts,” and I will speak briefly about the guests at the manger. January 17th: What Now, Martin? Reflections for Martin Luther King Day. January 24th: Ken Read-Brown and I will continue our tradition of pulpit exchange between First and Second Parish in Hingham; I will be preaching at Old Ship and Ken will be in our pulpit at Second Parish. January 31st: Inner Life – Winter is a good time to cultivate our souls. Some ideas about how to go about doing so.
In faith,
Paul
Calendar of Events for January
Weekly Meetings
Sundays Worship Service at 10:00
Mondays Sewing Group 9:30 to 11:00
Wednesdays Beginning January 13th, 2010, Paul's Class on "Making Moral Choices Today" 1:00-2:30 at Linden Ponds
Sunday, Jan 3 No RE Classes. Rev. Kim teaches all ages class on the Parables
SUPER-SIZE COFFEE HOUR! Bring something to share.
Saturday, Jan 9 8:00 am Men’s Breakfast
Sunday, Jan 10 Return Guest at Your Table boxes
Second Sunday Collection: UU Urban Ministry.
RE Committee Meeting after church
Tuesday, Jan 12 7:30 pm Leadership Board Meeting
Sunday, Jan 17 No RE Classes. Rev. Kim teaches all ages class on the Parables
Tuesday, Jan 19 7:30 pm Book Group at Lou Belknap’s house
Book: The Widow’s War by Sally Gunning
Christmas Fair a Success
Fun was had by all at the annual Christmas Fair, held on Saturday, December 5. Traffic was light but steady, as many return customers arrived looking for unique handmade gifts, freshly-cut Vermont cheddar cheese and tempting baked goods. The Choose Your Own Cookies table was full of delicious and attractive cookies, and was very popular. Many thanks to all who baked, worked the day of the fair or helped set up and clean up. The fair raised about $3,000 for the church. We sold out of hand-decorated wreaths, which were particularly beautiful this year. Many thanks to the “wreath elves”: Karen Delano, Stephanie Haff, Jennifer Love, Anna Maude, Helvie Nickerson, Sarah Phillips, Martha Lou Reed and Becky Weston. Special thanks to Tracy White who made all the lovely red bows, Kim Shaw for beautiful holly branches and Nancy Hansberry and grandson Ethan for lots of interesting greens.
The sewing group, under the direction of Diana Meigs, works all year creating fun things for the fair. After taking a short break, we will begin meeting again on Monday mornings in January at 9:30. We will be making plans and starting projects for next year’s fair. Come join us for good conversation and a lot of laughs as we keep our hands busy. No experience is necessary – we will put you to work!
-Submitted by Susan Weisenbeck
Super Sized Coffee Hour January 3
Come spend a little extra time at coffee hour on Sunday, January 3, catching up with everyone after the Christmas break. If you would like to stay and share a little lunch, bring a dish to share. It can be some sandwiches you threw together, a box of brownies from your favorite bakery or your grandmother's best chicken dish. We aren't having a sign up and no planning is required. We will have a few tables set up for people to sit down and share lunch.
-Submitted by Julianna Dunn
Parishioners Help Food Pantry
On Sunday, December 20, 2009, the day of the “Blizzard of 2009”, a few stalwart parishioners made their way to Second Parish to help the Hingham Interfaith Food Pantry prepare for their Christmas distribution. We bagged custom orders of fruits (apples, bananas, oranges and pears) and vegetables (potatoes, onions, carrots and broccoli) for 160 families. The bags filled half the pews in the sanctuary. Other work crews were preparing bags of paper goods and toiletries in the vestibule and organizing canned goods in Cushing Hall. It was heartwarming to see the number of people from the community–adults, teenagers and younger kids—who made the trek to Second Parish in the snow to make sure this important work was done.
-Submitted by Susan Weisenbeck
Second Sunday Collections
In December we collected $434 for Wellspring’s Diane Edson fund in our Second Sunday collection. Thank you all. The entire amount collected by this fund goes directly to families in need in our area. We also raised $917 for DOmestic Violence Ended in Quincy on Christmas Eve.
January’s Second Sunday collection will go to the UU Urban Ministry in Roxbury. For nearly 200 years, the Urban Ministry has been working side-by-side with residents of Boston’s most underprivileged communities to create opportunities and instill hope for a brighter future. UU Urban Ministry concentrates its efforts primarily in out-of-school-time programming for at-risk youth, and shelter for those fleeing domestic violence. It also operates programs focused on providing support for men in transition, and culturally appropriate food to disadvantaged members of Boston’s Asian-American community. Please be generous in your Second Sunday contribution. This UU organization really needs our help. If you will not be able to attend church on January 10, please mail a check to the church office made out to UU Urban Ministry.
-Submitted by Sandy Peavey
“Making Moral Choices Today” Class at Linden Ponds
“Making Moral Choices Today” is a new class based on the book When Jesus Came to Harvard by Harvey Cox, recently retired professor of theology at Harvard Divinity School. We will be applying the methods of reasoning Jesus taught to his disciples to the choices we face in a far different world than he encountered during his life. The class will meet Wednesdays 1:00-2:30 in the catering room of the Derby Clubhouse at Linden Ponds starting on January 13th. Please contact Paul for further information.
Music Schedule for January:
1/3: Choir
1/10: Choir
1/17: Elizabeth Morrell, soprano
1/24: Choir
1/31: Diane and David Whiting
Community
Men’s Breakfast
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The next Men's breakfast will be on Saturday, January 9th at 8:00 a.m. in Cushing Hall with the usual delicious menu. All men in the Parish are welcome and encouraged to join us for an hour of conversation. Come prepared to talk about whatever is on your mind. Please let Lou Belknap know if you will attend by phone at 781-749-5519 or by email at lsbelknap@verizon.net.
Book Group
The next meeting will be
Tuesday, January 19th at 7:30 p.m. at Lou Belknap’s house. We are reading The Widow’s
War by Sally Gunning. Call Lou at 781-749-5519 if you have any questions.
