www.fpcberlin.org April 2019

Newsletter First Parish Church in Berlin A federated church, gathered 1779

United Church of Christ and Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations 24 Central St. Berlin, Massachusetts 01503

From the Editor

Pizza Nite Friday, April 12 5 – 7 pm Eat in or take

Easter Sunday April 21 Sunrise service-Sawyer Hill 6 am meditation 6:30 am worship

7 am breakfast-MeetingHouse Easter Worship 10 am Egg Hunt 11:30 am

Spiritual Practice Theme for

April : WHOLENESS

I have way too much to do. I’m older and slower, my house is older and needier, spring has sprung and the yard is a mess, I promised myself I would paint more and finally do some marketing of my work. Weekends are a great time to get to some of the tasks that are hanging over my head. Sunday morning could be a valuable chunk of time to cross some things off the to-do list, or visit my kids, or read the Sunday paper. Oh, and I’m supposed to be finishing the paint job on the Children’s Church. Sigh. This First Parish community is so important to me, and I give freely of my time in many ways. I’m there for pizza night, I show up for special events, I’m trying to help out with property concerns. I could easily justify taking Sunday mornings for myself, and still say I’m contributing to the church. And yet. I choose each Sunday that I can to go around the corner for worship with a small but mighty group. I hate to miss a week. Janet’s sermons leave me often in tears, frequently amazed, regularly challenged. I look forward to seeing each and every person who shows up. Really! There is a kind of camaraderie in joining in worship--thoughtful song, prayer, listening, speaking-- that is unlike any other gathering. My mind goes places it would not or could not go without the experience of community gathered. I treasure that hour of worship. We talk and discuss and obsess a little (yes, we do) about what is First Parish’s mission….a lot of really good words and ideas have been shared trying to describe the WHY of First Parish in Berlin. I’ve thought about it a lot myself, and I’ve come to think that some of the best work we do in the world is offering meaningful Sunday morning worship week after week. Yes, we need to work on hospitality. On membership. On Sunday School. On the sound system. I’ve probably forgotten other priorities that need attention. We do tend to focus on our issues-that-need-improvement. But we get some things right. Let me say that I rejoice that we exist, that we want to make a difference in the world in the ways that we can, that we care for each other, that we want to welcome new faces, ….and that we have Sunday morning worship. To those I see each week, thank you for your gift of presence. To everyone else, I invite you to join us--to risk finding a place of shared wonder, personal peace, quieted mind, hope for tomorrow.

Spring is nature’s way of saying “Let’s party!”

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First Parish Church 16 Central Street

minister@fpcberlin.org

Sunrise Service 185 Sawyer Hill Road 6:00am Meditation 6:30am Worship

10:00am Worship Service Jen Johnson, Guest Preacher

Community Breakfast 7:00am, Meetinghouse

Family Service 10:00am, Meetinghouse

April 14, 2019

April 21, 2019

Egg Hunt 11:30am, Meetinghouse

Lenten Soup Supper & Psalms Thursdays through April 18

6:05pm, Meetinghouse

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On exploring the article, “The Four Functions of a Church Choir”, an article written by Brian Hehn for ChoralNet.org, we have covered the first 3 functions he mentioned in his article. This brings us to the final function:, “The church choir sings beautiful and challenging music to praise God and edify the congregation.”

Here’s what Mr. Hehn has to say:

“The music that we create should be beautiful and challenging. This is where the majority of our rehearsal time is taken up, because singing challenging music beautifully is difficult to do and takes lots of practice. It is important that when we sing we sing beautifully, because it touches people’s souls. The reason that we work so hard to create beautiful music together is so that we can glorify God and help people experience a holy moment. On the opposite end of the spectrum, it is important that our singing is not distracting and therefore prevent people from having a holy moment. I find that one of the best motivations for my choir when rehearsal is getting into the nitty-gritty, is to say something like, “This is a moment where we can touch someone and help them have a moment with God.” Reminding the choir that by changing these little musical details can make the difference in someone’s spiritual life goes a long way to power through tough rehearsal moments. It is important, however, that the first three priorities in this article are not forgotten when digging deeper and deeper into the rehearsal process to try and achieve our most beautiful sounds. A church choir’s job is not just to sing beautifully, but rather it is to minister to the congregation and to each other in a variety of ways, helping to change the world into a more loving and peaceful place.”

A prime example of this fourth function is the anthem “Come, We That Love The Lord”, which we sang on St. Patrick’s Day. It was written by David von Kampen in a gospel style, which, after much practicing, the choir was able to present. It was meant to uplift you, the congregation, during the Service, which I believe it did in a very convincing manner.

In a few more Sundays, we will finally reach Easter, and the word “Alleluia” will ring again throughout FPC Berlin. Until that time, the choir will be busily rehearsing on Thursdays, and, if you’d like to join us in rehearsing for a few weeks before Easter, you could sing those Alleluias, too. Praise the Lord!

Bob Specian, Choir Director, FPC Berlin

Music Notes

There are always flowers for those who

want to see them.

-Henri Matisse

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How to Make a Crayon Roll (taken from https://www.skiptomylou.org/on-a-roll/) I used two pieces of fabric 5 X 16 1/2 inches (for the outside and inside), one 6 X 16 1/2 inch piece of fabric folded in half lengthwise and pressed (for the pocket), one piece of lightweight fusible interfacing 5 X 16 1/2 inches, one package of ric rac trim, 30 inches of ribbon, one package of 16 count crayons. Iron the interfacing to the wrong side of the 5 X 16 1/2 piece of fabric that you want to be on the inside. Line up the bottom edges of the folded piece and the piece with interfacing, pin together. Starting over from the edge 1 1/4 inches sew lines parallel with the

edge starting from the top of the crayon pocket, back-stitching at the top to reinforce. Sew the lines one inch apart across the pocket. You will have 1 1/4 inches on each side. If you want to use ric rac, pin it around the edge as shown. Fold the ribbon in half and pin it on the edge. On the one I didn’t use ric rac I did a blanket stitch around the edge when finished. Pin remaining piece of 5 X 16 1/2 inch fabric right sides together with the pocket piece. Sew around edges with 1/4 inch seam. Leave about 3 inches across bottom for turning. Trim corners, turn, press and top stitch being careful to catch all layers of the opening to close.

Calling all who are handy with a needle and thread! Instead of the boxes of crayons and the cups of colored pencils I am in need of some people who would be willing to sew some crayon and pencil rolls for use during Sunday worship. The directions are included below for the crayon roll (and will be available for taking on the RE bulletin board near the kitchen). Ideally, I’d like ten to twelve of each type of roll. Yes, I know we don’t have that many children, but this way we can have extras on hand for times when more children may be in attendance (like Easter and Christmas) and for when the ones currently in use wear out. If you would be willing to sew some please email me (redirector@fpcberlin.org) and let me know. Or see me after worship. Or just make some and drop them off either at the church office, or in the RE office or bring completed ones with you to Sunday worship! If you have any questions please let me know. The children of First Parish and I thank you! Blessings, Shel

From the RE Director: A Call

Here is the web address for pencil roll directions. If you don’t have access, please call the editor (978.838.2104) and leave a message asking for a print out, or take one from the RE board in Sawyer Hall at the Meetinghouse. How to Make a Pencil Roll (Taken from http://livelovesew.com.au/pencil-crayon-roll-pattern-tutorial/)

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Volunteer Application

Please check days/times you would be available:

_____Tuesday 10:00am—12:00pm

_____Tuesday 12:00pm—2:00pm

_____Thursday 12:00pm—3:30pm

_____Thursday 3:30pm—5:30pm

_____Thursday 5:30pm—8:00pm

_____Saturday 10:00am—12:00pm

_____Saturday 12:00pm—2:00pm

Name _________________________________________________________________________________________________

Email __________________________________________________________________________________________________

Phone __________________________________________________________________________________________________

Please check tasks you would like to help with:

_____ cash out sales on the register

_____ straighten clothing racks

_____ tag clothing with price tags

_____ bring items out onto the sales floor

_____ create clothing displays

_____ sort clothing donations

_____ iron clothing donations

Our Mission… “Providing the residents of Berlin and the surrounding area access to affordable clothing, as well as creating an opportunity for many hands to volunteer for a worthy cause while supporting a caring environment in our community.”

Volunteers get first choice of incoming donations and your purchase is half price!

1st & 3rd of each month

The First Parish Thrift Shoppe is named “Many Hands” for a reason…and we need more to be able to continue our service to the wider community. We teach our volunteers how to do the various tasks, so don’t think you have to know how to run a register or use a tag gun before you can volunteer, or that you have to be a member of First Parish Church. Applications can be returned to the shop during open hours, or mailed to Many Hands/First Parish Church, 24 Central St., Berlin, MA 01503.

Thrift Shoppe Volunteers Sought

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Spiritual Exercises for April: Wholeness

Option A: Name Your Names

Israeli poet, Zelda, speaks powerfully to this month’s theme with her poem, “Each of Us Has A Name”. With it, she reminds us that our wholeness is not so much a matter of holding tight to your one true name, but embracing the many names given to us by the experiences of our lives. The full poem can be found at this link (https://www.lilith.org/articles/each-of-us-has-a-name/), but here’s a taste: Each of us has a name given by God and given by our parents... Each of us has a name given by the mountains and given by our walls... Each of us has a name given by our sins and given by our longing… So, this month, you are invited to reflect on how these universal experiences have “named you.” Spend a few hours or a few days going through Zelda’s poem line by line, stopping after each one to think about how that experience imprinted itself on your and added a dimension to your wholeness, for better or worse. It helps to think of each of these experiences as completing the sentence, “You are…” So here’s an example of what you might ask yourself as you work with each line: ● What name was I given by “God”(or Love)? How did my first God experience complete the sentence, “You are …” ● What name was I given by my parents? How has my relationship with them completed the sentence, “You are …” ● What name was I given by the mountains? How has my experience with nature completed the sentence, “You are …” ● What name was I given by my “sins”? How has my experience with my shadow side or mistakes completed the sentence, “You are …” After answering the questions, consider assembling all of your names into a list that functions as a poem of sorts. Read your many names aloud one by one, or ask someone close to your to read them as you listen. Alternative Approach: You can streamline and focus this exercise by reading through the poem multiple times until a single line pops out for you. In other words, don’t engage each line but instead find the one line that engages you.

Option B: Test to See Which Wholeness is Yours Some of us have been engaging with the Enneagram in our book discussion of The Road Back to You. While all personality tests seek to offer insights into our self-understanding, the Enneagram specifically seeks to capture us in our wholeness. It helps us understand ourselves at our best and our worst. It is also based on how we deal with stress and fear, or to put it into the language of this month’s theme, how we maintain and restore our wholeness in the face of stress and fear. So this month, as your spiritual exercise, engage the Enneagram and what is says about the best and not-so-best of your whole self. Here are some ways into the work: Read About the Various Enneagram Personality Types: ● A quick overview of the types: https://www.popsugar.com/news/What-Enneagram-Test-44593655

Continued on the next page

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Spiritual Exercises for April: Wholeness continued

● A detailed description of each type: https://www.enneagraminstitute.com/type-descriptions/ ● The types framed in terms of “at your best and worst” and from a Christian perspective: http://www.safeharbor1.com/documents/Enneagram-Personality-Type-Indicator.pdf ● The types framed in terms of one’s fears: https://thoughtcatalog.com/heidi-priebe/2015/11/if-youre-confused-about-your-enneagram-type-read-this/ ● How the Enneagram differs from the well-known Myers Briggs test: https://www.bustle.com/p/whats-the-difference-between-the-enneagram-test-the-myers-briggs-type-indicator-each-test-measures-a-different-part-of-your-personality-8539839 Here are a few free tests; if you choose to take tests to help you narrow down your type, remember that these can only offer entry points and options, not definitive answers. You will still need to interpret and interrogate the responses to determine if they work for you. ● A 36 question test: http://www.9types.com/newtest/ ● A longer a 60 question test: https://similarminds.com/test.html Option C: The Wholeness of Another This exercise invites you to explore your experience of wholeness by learning about the wholeness of others. Hearing how others talk about their lives clarifies our own. So pick 2-4 people to interview this month about wholeness. We suggest that you use the following five questions: 1. When was the first time you thought to yourself “I’m complete”? 2. In what space or place do you feel most whole? How often do you spend time there? 3. How has your understanding of wholeness changed with age? 4. What was your proudest moment of maintaining and standing up for your wholeness? 5. What part of yourself hasn’t been let out in a while? If these five questions are too many or not quite right, then alter the list any way you like. The important part is to ask each person the same question or questions. The contrasting answers and differing perspectives enable new insights to emerge. Who you pick is also a value part of the exercise so pay attention to the feelings and motives that arise. Are you nervous or excited? Are you only picking people you are comfortable with? Do you see the topic of wholeness as a chance to go deep with someone or impolite because it is too intimate of a topic? Are you surprised that you’ve never talked with these people about this before?

Workshop to celebrate the release of new anthems by Rev. Shelton. Saturday, May 11, 10 am – 5 pm. UU Church in Haverhill MA $40 per person, lunch included. Go to uua.org/new-england to register.

24 Central St. Berlin, MA 01503 Office 978.838.2575 Building Use Coordinator Email: secretary@fpcberlin.org Secretary’s hours are flexible, so please call ahead. 978-838-2575 Minister’s hours Friday 1-4 or by appointment: 978.592.2329

Sunday School & Sunday worship @ 10 a.m. childcare

First Parish Church United Church of Christ and Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations 24 Central St. Berlin, Massachusetts 01503

Janet Newton, minister Shel Frolich Tscherne, religious education

Robert Specian, music director Robert Cunningham, musician/accompanist

www.fpcberlin.org

Join us in the Meetinghouse for pizza buffet or order a take-home pie…Second Friday pizza night! All made in house, 14” rounds which can be baked, unbaked or wrapped for the freezer. Cheese $13 Very Veggie $14 Pepperoni $14 Specials $15 Special this month:

• Chicken Broccoli Pesto • Spring Celebration

It’s Time for Pizza Again on April 12

Breakfast at the Meetinghouse

Easter Sunday, April 21 7 am

Rejoice!