Second Parish Unitarian Universalist
Hingham, Massachusetts
Glad Tidings
From the Minister –
Easter comes very early this year – on March 23rd, just one day after the earliest possible date it can fall (it has to come after the Spring Equinox on March 21st). We obviously can’t predict the weather for Easter, but we are planning to take the opportunity to invite friends, neighbors, folks who’ve been part of Second Parish in the past but haven’t been around recently, families with kids, newcomers to town – anyone who ought to know about Second Parish and who might want to be part of our celebration of that day and of our congregation in the future. This is a great opportunity for you to get a note to someone you’ve been meaning to ask but haven’t gotten around to. We’ll have a family friendly service for all ages (nursery care provided, but older kids will stay for the service) followed by an Easter egg hunt (hopefully in balmy spring weather!) and a very special coffee hour and treats for friends of all ages. We’re asking that you give us names and addresses of anyone you would like to have invited, either by filling in a form located on the newsletter cover sheet or in the order of service or by calling or emailing Sandi in the office, and we’ll get out a beautiful postcard with the invitation just like we did last year.
Dinners for Eight are being held the first three Saturdays in March and April 12. Deedee & I will try to join all of these if we can and would love to have the chance for a pleasant evening together of food and fun. This is a great opportunity to spend a little extra time with other members of the congregation. Please sign up in Cushing Hall during coffee hour or call or email Sandi in the office.
Membership in Second Parish is open to everyone who is willing to support our covenant and our congregation. I will be holding an orientation session for potential members late in March and we will celebrate new members joining us the first week in May. Please let me know if you are interested in considering membership this year by calling me (781 210-2016) or emailing me at minister@secondparish.org.
Upcoming Services: March 2nd “Thank God for Evolution,” or why the real story of creation is a very good one; March 9th Second Parish is hosting our annual Union Service of the Unitarian Universalist churches in Hingham, Cohasset, Scituate and Norwell. We are inviting a special musician to lead the time for all ages and work with the children from all our parishes. March 15th is Palm Sunday and March 23rd is Easter. On March 30th I will be away and Richard Trudeau from the Weymouth congregation will be speaking about Jesus as Boundary-Breaker. It may be that Jesus' principal contribution to our religious heritage is that he was a breaker of boundaries.
In Faith,
Paul
Notes from the Leadership Board
The Leadership Board Team -- Allan Viden (Chair), Dinah Collins (Membership), Helene Soini (Education), Heidi Brieger (Outreach), Kim Shaw (Finance), Julianna Lovell (Worship), Len O’Connor ( Properties), Paul Sprecher, (Minister), Betty Tower (Recorder), Susan Weisenbeck (Treasurer) – will gather at the church with Management Consultant Gerald S. Jones for its semi-annual Retreat on 15 March. Topics to be discussed as they affect Second Parish will include key goals and objectives, short-term and long-term issues, the church’s culture (i.e., its way of doing things), and what makes our church special and unique. Following this Retreat, at a later date, the team will meet with other church officers and committees to share with them the outcomes and ideas from our discussions and to see how all this can be used to help Second Parish grow and prosper.
-Allan Viden, Leadership Board Chair
Financial Notes
The Finance Committee met on February 18 to address the following subjects and develop recommendations for the Leadership Board:
Annual Giving / Covenant Renewal
Planned Giving
Critical short-term capital needs
Financial Audit
Credit Card for pledges and purchases
Our parsonage responsibilities
-Kim Shaw, Finance Chair
Property
In mid-January we finalized arrangements with Casey Kirsch to be our Sexton. Casey is the son of a former Sexton, Paul Kirsch. While new to the task, Casey is eager to learn and his father will work with him for some time. We believe we should see improvement in overall conditions in our facilities. The new signage has been installed reflecting our new service start time, visitor parking and entrance directions. Finally, we hope to get the electrical work completed in the parsonage for the kiln operation shortly. -Len O’Connor-Properties Chair
Worship
Spring is (almost) here - really! How about the great smell of spring? Order those Easter plants now so that your Easter table will smell and look lovely on March 23. It's just around the corner. See the order form enclosed in the
newsletter. -Julianna Lovell, Worship Chair
Membership
Dinners for Eight:
It’s that time of year when we'd all love to go somewhere and have a great time. Well sign up to go to a dinner for about eight people at someone's home. You will enjoy good conversation and good food.
Sign-up sheets are on the credenza in Cushing Hall with dinners on March 1st, March 8th, March 15th, and April 12th, so far. The host or hostess will contact guests about what they'd like them to bring. We hope everyone will take part in the opportunity to get to know people better.
To offer to have a dinner or for questions call Dinah Collins 781-749-7184 or Mariann O'Connor 781-749-9896.
-Dinah Collins, Membership Chair
Music and Greeter Schedule for March
3/2 Elizabeth Morrell, soprano (Greeter: Anna Maude)
3/9 Union Sunday - Combined Choirs of First Parish of Cohasset, Old Ship, First Parish of Norwell, First Parish of
Scituate and Second Parish (Greeter: Karen Delano)
3/16 Palm Sunday - Elizabeth Morrell, soprano (Greeter: Anna Maude)
3/23 Easter Sunday - Choir (Greeter: Mariann O’Connor)
3/30 Mark Slawson, organ (Greeter: Karen Delano)
Community
Hot Soup and Hot Topics-Joint event with both First Parish, Old Ship and Second Parish
Friday, Feb. 29, 6 pm, at Second Parish
Conversation about the upcoming School Vote at Town Meeting that will take place on March 3.
Bring a pot luck dish to share and talk about this important local issue. There seems to be quite a bit of interest both pro and con on this town meeting agenda item. One of our purposes of Hot Soup and Topics is to provide a forum for conversations about matters which affect our lives locally, particularly where there seem to be competing concerns -- on the one hand, the increase in property taxes which will be incurred by the school investments proposed, which may drive out still more of those in the town with lower incomes, thus reducing desirable diversity; and on the other hand, the need to provide the best possible education for our children. Second Parish will have a large pot of soup to offer and Rev. Sprecher will moderate. Sign up sheet in Cushing Hall or RSVP to Paul if you are coming to minister@secondparish.org.
Soul Work
This
is to remind you of the upcoming sessions of the Soul Work conversations. Dates
and locations for meeting are:
March 2 at Second Parish, April 6 and May 4 at Old Ship.
While you
might find participation more meaningful if you have read the chapter, you are
welcome to participate even if you haven't had a chance to do so. And if you
know anyone who might not be receiving this notice who you think might be
interested in participating, please invite them to join us.
Copies of Soul
Work will be available for the reduced price of $18 from Rev. Dr. Jan Carlsson-Bull,
minister at First Parish UU in Cohasset. To
learn more, contact co-facilitators Jan Carlsson-Bull at 781-383-1100 or JCarlssonb@aol.com
or Eva Marx at 781-749-0485 or tomneva@supportlab.com.
Soul Work:
Conversations Across Congregations is a collaboration of three congregations:
First Parish-Cohasset, First Parish-Old Ship, and
Second Parish.
Addressing Racism in a “Liberal” Society – An anti-racism networking and information sharing conclave
The
Ballou Channing District is sponsoring an anti-racism networking meeting on March 6, 2008 from 7:15 - 9:00 pm at Murray Unitarian Universalist Church in Attleboro. This is an opportunity to
learn what other congregations are doing and learn about resources and
education materials. There will also be a presentation by Rodney P. Davis, a Rhode Island African American community leader, about
experiences with "subtle and not so subtle" racism.
To register, call or e-mail the Ballou Channing Office by March 5 - 508-559-6650 or ballouchanning@verizon.net.
Sunday, March 9, 2008 - No Place for Hate, sponsoring program:
Immigration Fact and Fiction, 2:30 - 4:30 PM, Hingham Town Library
Soup & Salad/Hot Topics on Friday, March 14, 6-8
This hot topic night will feature Rebekah Ingram, Volunteer Coordinator for the UU Urban Ministry, describing the good work they are doing from their base in Dorchester. Please sign up in Cushing Hall during coffee hour or call or email Sandi in the office at secondparish@yahoo.com.
Sunday, March 16, 2008, HHRLA, Sponsoring Interfaith Hot Topics, 7:00 PM, Linden Ponds
Understanding and Interpretation of the Bible from Faith Traditions
-Jim Rafferty, Roman Catholic
-Diane Mix, Progressive Orthodox Protestant
-Ken Read-Brown, Unitarian Universalism Humanism
-Shira Joseph, Reformed Liberal Judaism
SNOW EMERGENCY NOTICE:
In case of severe weather WBZ Radio and Television will announce cancellation
or call the church office at 781-749-1671.
We will leave a message on the answering machine to indicate whether or not church is being held.
If you get the normal greeting, services will be held as usual.
Book Group
The Book Group will meet on
Tuesday, March 18th at 7:30 p.m., location TBA. The book is
The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. Any questions, call Jennifer Love at 781-749-3243.
Men’s Breakfast
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The next men's breakfast will be held at 8:00 a.m. in Cushing Hall on Saturday, March 22nd. All men of the parish are welcome to join us for breakfast and conversation. We have no set agenda. Come prepared to talk about anything on your mind. We break promptly at 9:00 a.m. Call Lou Belknap at 781-749-5519 if you can join us, or email him at lsbelknap@verizon.net.
52ndAnnual Exhibit and Sale of Art and Fine Crafts, May 8th-18th
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Great plans are under way! With encouragement from the Leadership Board, the decision to extend the show hours to cover two weekends has been made. Please mark your calendars for the dates. The times will be 10:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. and Sundays noon – 4:00 p.m. Opening reception is Wednesday, May 7th,
7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. The Junior reception is Thursday, May 8th, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
The committee is excited about the extended hours. Volunteers will be asked to serve only a two hour time, for manning the sales desk, instead of three. Hopefully, this will encourage hosts and hostesses to give us more time by serving more than once. As you are aware, this event is a major fund raiser for the church.
The entry forms are being emailed to all the former participants this year. This will be a substantial savings on postage and paper. There will be more news in the April newsletter. -Submitted by Becky Weston
Would you like to help?
Senior church member looking for in-home assistance: Light housekeeping, laundry, running errands and transporting to appointments, meal preparation. Two or three days per week, flexible but consistent hours. Hourly rate-$20. Must be reliable and have own car. References and interview required.
For additional information, please contact:
Elizabeth Chamberlain Habich, 978-664-0187 (home/evenings)
Rich Chamberlain, 781-749-7647 (home/evenings)
Anne Chamberlain Tuite, 914-548-5556 (cell)
News from our Cooperative Religious Education Program
Everyone very much enjoyed the special Indian session and coffee hour we just had. Many thanks to the Shetty family who went out of their way to do a great job.
We are delighted to announce that March and April RE sessions will be using clay as a creative medium, thanks to the expert guidance of Allison Crowe. Some projects will relate to the curriculum and some will be making great presents for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.
Everyone is invited to attend our annual UU Union Sunday, March 9th. We are the hosting congregation this year. The ministers of the five UU local churches will hold a service on the theme of Democracy and the children will enjoy a special musical session of drumming, singing and movement, with wonderful guest artist Dawna Hammers.
The Easter service will be intergenerational again this year.
Grateful thanks go to Becky Weston for donating a costumes storage unit and to Gene Chamberlain for donating his National Geographic collection.
-Liliane Verdier
, Director of Religious Education, Lilianevhing@aol.com, 781-749-9581
Easter Sunday – March 23
Easter Plant Order Form
___ Tulips at $10.00 each = $_______
___ Hyacinths at $10.00 each = $_______
___ Daffodils at $10.00 each = $_______
___ Lilies at $10.00 each = $_______
Given by Name:
___________________________________
In Honor of Name:
___________________________________
In Memory of Name:
___________________________________
Please send form and check made out to the
Second Parish in Hingham and mail to:
Second Parish
685 Main Street
Hingham, MA 02043
˜ No later than March 16 ™