VOLUME LXXX, No.7

March 20, 2015

PALM SUNDAY

SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015

Worship Services—9:00 & 10:30 am

Sermon: The Rev. Dr. Ron Cousineau

The Right Man for the Wrong Job (John 12:12-19)

Calendar for Sunday, March 29, 2015

9:00 am Adult Bible Study (library)

9:00 am Chapel Worship Service

10:30 am Sanctuary Worship Service

(infant and toddler care provided)

10:45 am Church School

11:45 am Fellowship (vestry)

Memorial Flowers

The flowers will be given in loving memory of E.

Ashley and Priscilla F. T. Davidson and William F.

Connelly from their family.

Greeters: Joseph and Linda D’Agostino

Ushers: Frank Brown, Tom King, Leith Jones,

Tom Martin, Bill Watt, and Herold

Doherty (captain)

Minister’s Line Volunteer: Joan Potter

EASTER SUNDAY

SUNDAY, April 5, 2015

Holy Communion

Worship Services—9:00 & 10:30 am

Sermon: The Rev. Dr. Ron Cousineau

Calendar for Sunday, April 5, 2015

10:30 am Sanctuary Worship Service

(infant and toddler care provided)

11:45 am Fellowship (vestry)

Memorial Flowers

The flowers will be given in memory of Jane and

Joseph A. Bernabeo by their loving family.

Greeter: Mary Ann and Bruce Londino

Ushers: Joseph D’Agostino, Barbara Flynn, Dante

and Anderson Illanes, Kevin King, Stephen Gates,

Linda Sabatula, Dominic Mercurio (captain)

Minister’s Line Volunteer: Alwyn Van Cor

Communion Servers: Sharon, Jen, Mary Ann,

Peter, Rod and Bruce

The Sanctuary Choir would love to welcome a few more of you to join them for our Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter services; rehearsals will be held on March 25 and April 1 at 7:30 in the Choir Room. Please note that you don’t have to read music (although of course that helps!), and that joining them for these services does not obligate you to continuing, although of course we’d be happy for you to consider that. For any questions, see Don Hodgkins; otherwise, just join us for those two rehearsals. See you then!

May you keep them May you keep them May you keep them May you keep them in your prayers in your prayers in your prayers in your prayers and in your hearts.and in your hearts.and in your hearts.and in your hearts.

The Elliott Family

Roy Evans

Gina Gebhard

Warren Reeves

John Oliphant

Russ Bonanno

Bud Thomas

Nancy Gould is now at the Wakefield Genesis

Center, 1 Barthol Street, Wakefield.

Nancy is in Room #109. The telephone number in

her room is 781-557-2472. She sure would love to

hear from you.

We would like to thank our church family for

all the support, cards, flowers and meals we

received from you as we dealt with the loss of

our son-in-law Eric Johnston. Your kind

words made it possible for us to get through

this.

Joe and Linda D’Agostino, Jillian Johnston

WOOD-TUPPER SCHOLARSHIP FORMS

AVAILABLE

Application forms will be available in the church

office early next week for the Wood-Tupper

Scholarship. Please call or stop by the office and

pick up a copy for you or a family member. The

deadline for returning the application is April 30,

2015.

CHURCH ATTENDANCE

Chapel Sanctuary Total

Sunday, March 15 23 111 134

Sunday, March 22 27 75 102

Church School Attendance

Sunday, March 15 27

Sunday, March 22 32

Donald Van Wagner died in Florida on February 12, 2015,

joined FPCC on March 25, 1948

Safe in His armsSafe in His armsSafe in His armsSafe in His arms

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Would you like to do a good deed and put a smile

on the face of a member of our church family?

Please contact Linda D’Agostino and be one of the

helpers in the delivery of the Easter Lilies on April

5th. There will be over 50 lilies that Sunday

morning in our beautiful sanctuary and I’m going to

need some helping hands.

What a joy it is in being part of this. All I’m asking is

for a little bit of your time. Thank you and God

Bless.

Linda

78l-245-0243 Home

78l-258-8867 Cell

Talk to me at church

NEED FOOD?

During this long, cold, snowy winter Outreach is

reminding you that we have food resources

available to our church family and friends. The

FPCC Food Pantry contains non-perishable food for

short term needs. See Ken Wood or call Jim

Fosnock (781-224-0182) or the church office for

assistance.

Jen Black’s Meals Ministry has home made frozen

dinners for anyone in a stressful situation. Call Jen

(781-608-6727) or the church office.

The Wakefield Interfaith Food Pantry provides 5

days of groceries including meats, dairy products

and fresh vegetables to any Wakefield residents. It

is in the Americal Civic Center on Main St. and is

open Tuesday and Thursday 9-1 and Thursday

evening 6-8.

Look around for elder neighbors or a single person

or a young family who might need a helping hand.

Let them know about these services and encourage

them to take advantage of these programs. It will

bless them and you!

FROM THE OUTREACH COMMITTEE

The Outreach Committee is planning a Sharing

Walk on Good Friday. As you recall, Pastor Rich

walked 20 miles around the lake on Good Friday for

over 20 years. Through your generosity in

supporting him and others who walked, many

thousands of dollars were raised for Sharing.

Sharing Inc. is grass roots organization started by

Kay Doherty in Hingham after she saw an article in

the newspaper about the plight of Southern black

children. She goes to Mississippi and Alabama

each year to distribute the money raised during the

Walk. Sharing supports day care centers, schools

and a land assistance fund. It also funds

scholarships and a youth leadership program. At

Christmas, books featuring African American

children, beautifully dressed dolls and sports balls

are sent for the children.

This is Sharing’s 44th year! Kay and a few others

have been walking for 43 years. From her

newsletter: “This year on Good Friday why not

walk ONE MILE sometime during the day

wherever you are and meditate on the forms of

crucifixion that have been visited on African

Americans in this .…’the land of the free and the

home of the brave.’”

Some of us will be raising funds and walking the

lake on Good Friday. Join us! Walk for any amount

of time and distance. Walk with a friend. If you are

unable to walk there will be an opportunity to

pledge or give a gift. On Sundays March 22 and 29

there will be a table in the vestry where you can

sign up or pledge.

Walk! Pledge! Pray! From Kay’s newsletter “The

Good Friday Walk is such an inspirational time to

think Jesus lived to show us a way of life, of love

and kindness, and died forgiving us of sin and

sorrow, and lives today offering love, hope and

grace…HOW AWESOME IS THAT!”

Judy Gordon for Outreach

Our church family will be hosting our Community Spring

Dinner on Palm Sunday, March 29. This dinner is for those

in need, the elderly, and the lonely that live in Wakefield

and surrounding communities and will be held at 2:00 p.m.

in the dining room.

We rely on monetary donations, as well as donations of gift

certificates (BJ’s, Costco, Market Basket) to make this

dinner possible. We also seek volunteers to work with us

in the kitchen or to provide transportation to our guests.

If you would like to make a donation, volunteer your time

or know of someone in the community who would benefit

from this dinner, please contact Steve Gates at the church

office—781-245-1539.

When you put on a luncheon or a dinner, invite the poor, the

crippled, the lame, and the blind. Then at the resurrection of the

godly, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay

you.

-Luke 14:12-14

Giving Opportunities – from our tax code

“Tax time” reminds me that many tax laws offer

benefits to charitable givers, to help non-profits

and churches.

If you are interested, here are some of the

provisions for charitable giving that can also help

our Church.

(NOTE: Because everyone’s tax situation is

unique, you should ask your tax advisor for

specific advice.)

Gifts of Stock:

If you sell stock, your capital gain may be taxed.

But if you give (transfer) the stock directly to a

church or IRS-recognized charity, there is no tax,

and you can take a charitable deduction for the

value of the stock. The church will sell the stock,

and apply your gift as requested (to your pledge

or a specific fund or project). Information your

broker needs to transfer a “gift of stock” is

available from the Church Office.

Corporate Matching Gifts:

To encourage employees’ charitable giving, and

to be good “corporate citizens”, many companies

have Incentive Gift-Match programs. As an IRS-

recognized 501(c)(3) organization, First Parish

may qualify to receive Matching Gifts. The TIN

for First Parish Congregational Church of

Wakefield is 04-2108360.

Qualified Charitable Distributions (from IRAs)

If you receive an annual “RMD” (required

minimum distribution) from an IRA, it is

considered taxable income. Under a special

provision for individuals over the age of 70½, an

IRA distribution (including RMDs) made directly

to a church or charity is not taxed.

Unfortunately, this provision expires annually,

and must be renewed by Congress. Although it’s

not currently effective for 2015, Congress has

extended the “QCD” every year since 2006, so

renewal is likely by the end of this year. If

Congress does not extend this tax benefit

through 2015, you can still deduct the

“transferred” IRA distribution as a charitable

donation on your 1040, if you claim itemized

deductions.

Lynn Arena (CPA), for the Church Council

44th HEIRLOOMS

AND ARTISANS SHOW AND

SALE Please come and show your support.

Friday Night and Saturday,

March 27 & 28 The Antiques Show Committee would like to

remind everyone that they are accepting

donations for the church table at the

Heirlooms and Artisans Show and Sale; they

would also be grateful for donations of baked

goods for the desserts table. In addition, many

volunteers, including strong helpful kids, are

needed as porters to help vendors move their

items, and to take orders and serve food at the

kitchen. Please talk to Donna Nicolai, Steve

Gates, or any other members of the Antiques

Show Committee if you can help. Thank you.

.

Thank you.

Donna Nicolai

Book Shelf News In March we are featuring books by Charles

Swindoll.

See our shelf in the Vestry for these selections:

• Growing Deep in the Christian Faith:

Essential Truths for Becoming Strong

in the Faith

• Hope Again: When Life Hurts and

Dreams Fade

• Living on the Ragged Edge: Coming

to Terms with Reality

• Rise and Shine: A Wake-up Call

• Fascinating Stories of Forgotten

Lives

Our New Additions include:

Christian Living

• Messy Spirituality by Michael

Yaconelli

• Just Like Jesus by Max Lucado

• Parables to Live By by John Samaan

Christian Fiction

• The Lost Letters of Pergamum by

Bruce Longenecker

DVD

• The Way of the Master by Kirk

Cameron

EXCITING NEWS: You can now view the listing of the books available

in our library online! Please go to the FPCC

website at

http://fpccwakefield.com/resources/library/ and

view the books that are available. You can search

by title, author, and category: Christian Living,

Christian Fiction, Audio Video, Youth and Other.

We do not have the resources to view if a book has

already been checked out of the library; however

you can view our wonderful book selection!

Please come check out our books! Just fill out the

pink card! Happy Reading!

THANK YOU

to all of you who have sent emails and cards, who

have called me and hugged me tightly, who have

prayed for me and offered words of comfort and

encouragement since Earl Sheaff’s sudden passing.

What a blessing you have been to me!

AND THANK YOU TOO

to all of you who have signed up to participate in

the upcoming sessions of The Journey. As you all

know, Earl worked tirelessly for First Parish in

many capacities and for our church family, most

recently, with the goal of holding things together at

First Parish during our transition time.

What better way could there be for us to

demonstrate our gratitude for all of Earl’s efforts

than to step up and sign up to see our transition time

through. Thank you all for demonstrating your love

and appreciation for Earl through your participation

in the final leg of our transition time.

Barbara Flynn

FPCC MEALS MINISTRY UPDATE

On March 14th, the FPCC Meals

Ministry prepared meals for those in our

extend church family who may be

grieving, ill, experiencing the joy of a

new life, or who just could use a hot

meal. If you are interested in any of the

following, please let Jen Black or the

office know:

1. Delivering meals;

2. Know someone who could use a

meal.

3. Donating money for the purchase

of food;

4. Donating freezer bags and

containers.

Jen can be reached at 781-608-6727 or

at blackpack7@gmail.com.

Thank you for all the helpers who helped

prepare, package, create lists and make

labels for this ministry!

We sure hope you are preparing to “come

aboard” for First Parish's Journey II!

We, as a church family, will gather together in

small groups for a 6-week study in church

leadership beginning the week of April 6. Your

input as you go through the study with your

group will be compiled with inputs from all the

other participants. We will then gather together

as a church family at the end of six weeks and

use these results to create a profile for our next

settled pastor.

It is important that you participate.

We grow in Christ when we all work together

and when we all work together seeking His

guidance, we will be part of a God-glorifying

journey. The result will be a pastor profile

created by our church family with His spirit

working through us. The best part of this

process is that we all work together through

Him.

Please sign up for one of our many Journey II

small groups. If you are unable to get out of the

house, but would like to participate we could

come to you. You can sign up after the church

service in the vestry or call the church office to

select your class.

These are very exciting days at First Parish!

COME ABOARD!

FACILITATORS AND PLACES FOR JOURNEY II

Sunday after the 9 am service: Sharon and Bruce will facilitate a group in Fireside room.

Monday, at 7:30 pm: Mark Hatheway and Andy Black. Location is 5 Sheridan Road in Stoneham. Telephone: for Andy 781-279-9932 Monday, at 7:30pm: Jo Lynn Foster's Bible study. Location is 4 Cardinal Road in Stoneham. Telephone: 781-438-8231 Tuesday at 7:30pm: Ken Hodgson - Location is 50 Federal Street in Reading. Telephone: 781-944-5477 Wednesday at 7pm: Rod Illanes - 5 Kirmes Road in Stoneham. Telephone: 781-572-3068 Thursday morning women at 9:30am in the Fireside Room, First Parish. Thursday evening women at 7:30pm - Jen Black's house, address is 5 Sheridan Road in Stoneham. Telephone: 781-279-9932 Thursday men's study group at 7:30 pm at Bob Blaser's house, address is 12 Montclare Avenue in Wakefield. Telephone: 1-617-943-4030

Friday, at 1pm: Marcia will facilitate group at her home, 17 Louise Avenue, Wakefield, telephone # 781-245-3527. Friday at 7:30 pm: Doug and Nancy Jackson's at FPCC in the fireside room. Telephone: 781-438-1417

With Pastor Ron

Why We Do What We Do

If you sit on any committee at First Parish, you’ll be part of a process at the beginning of the meeting where a

sheet of paper entitled, “Covenant for Working & Worshiping Together” is being passed from one person to the

other to be read aloud. For the longest time, I’ve wanted to add some umph to this thing. So I went to the Word

of God. Here’s what I’ve come up with.

SCRIPTURAL COVENANT FOR WORKING & WORSHIPING TOGETHER

(Preamble & Scripture Added March 2015)

Preamble

Believing that God has called us to order and to peace,1 we covenant before God and one another to

conduct ourselves in the following manner:

• The Word of God says: “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Him who is the

head, into Christ” (Ephesians 4:15, ESV)

Therefore, we will be as honest as we can with each other.

• The Word of God says: “Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves” (Romans

12:10, NIV).

Therefore, we will speak to one another with respect.

• The Word of God says: “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than

for people” (Colossians 3:23, NLT).

Therefore, we will all be responsible for the successful implementation of any action we decide to

take.

• The Word of God says: “Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for

we are all members of one body” (Ephesians 4:25, NIV).

Therefore, we will communicate directly to each other using the first person “I.”

• The Word of God says: “Each one of you should look not only to you own interests, but also to the interests of

others” (Philippians 2:4, NIV)

Therefore, we will recognize and identify merit in another person’s idea before we note its

weakness.

1 “For God is not a God of disorder but of peace—as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people” (1

Corinthians 14:33, NIV).

• The Word of God says: “The purpose in a man’s heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it

out” (Proverbs 20:5, ESV).

Therefore, we will repeat what the other person has said to confirm we have understood them, and

ask them to do the same if we feel we have not been understood.

• The Word of God says: “The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward

appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7, NLT)

Therefore, we will not jump to conclusions.

• The Word of God says: “Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to

speak, and slow to get angry” (James 1:19, NLT)

Therefore, we will listen to understand, but don’t necessarily have to agree.

• The Word of God says: “Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses” (2

Corinthians 13:1, NIV).

Therefore, we will deal only with “Directly Observable Data” (D.O.D.), not rumors, and seek to

understand all sides.

God’s Word adds umph! Just saying the verse before reading the statement puts a whole new meaning behind

the statement. It adds power to why we do what we do. Don’t you agree?

This Pastor Who Loves You

From Pastor Ron

Please note our schedule for Holy Week this year: Palm Sunday, March 29th through Easter Sunday, April 5th

• First Parish will celebrate Palm Sunday with a wonderful recognition of Jesus’

entrance into Jerusalem leading up to His passion, death and resurrection. The

message for Palm Sunday will be "The Right Man for the Wrong Job," taken from

John 12:12-19.

• With the Passion Play cancelled for this year, we will offer a Good Friday service

on April 3rd. This service will begin at 7 p.m. and will feature a scriptural rendition

of the Stations of the Cross. You will also be invited to participate in a unique

communion you won't want to miss. We are planning very worshipful, beautiful

music during this service. It is one service you will want to invite your family,

friends and neighbors to attend with you.

• On Easter Sunday, we encourage those who desire to attend a sunrise service to

participate in First Baptist Church's service. Our Celebration of the Resurrection

will begin at 10:30 a.m. in the Sanctuary with a theatrical re-enactment of the

events on the first Easter morning on April 5th, A.D. 33. Expect to be blessed

during our worship of the Risen Christ!

The next installment from Historian Marcia Phinney in recognition of the

80th Anniversary of the Church Herald

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

THE CHURCH HERALD

First Parish Congregational Church PO Box M, Wakefield, MA 01880-0301

Phone: 781-245-1539/1644

FAX: 781-557-1000

E-mail: FPCCX1644@aol.com

March 20, 2015

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

To Receive The Church Herald by

email: Simply email your request to the Church at

FPCCx1644@aol.com, or click the link

on our new website!

Why is there no Passion Play this year?

I can’t answer that question for certain, but I can say that God has something else He wants us to do this year.

God has something unique for us at this time at First Parish.

I want to invite you to participate with us in a Good Friday service in our sanctuary. I promise you it will be a

service you will remember for years.

Now this is important: Those of you who are able to do so, I’d like to invite you to participate in a day of prayer

and fasting—from 8 p.m. Thursday evening to 8 p.m. Friday evening. The purpose of this fast is to appeal to

God for His Spirit to move in our hearts to bring about repentance for sin and revival for our church. Every

time you feel a need for food, use that as a reminder to pray as the Lord leads you. We will break the fast

around the Lord’s Table on Good Friday evening.

God is doing some significant things at First Parish. There is a fresh movement of His Spirit among us. Such

stirrings call for renewed spiritual strength. Let’s join the Lord and one another this Good Friday.

This Pastor who loves you!

DEADLINE FOR NEXT CHURCH HERALD

Thursday, April 2, 2015

(will cover the dates from

April 12 -25, 2015)

April 3

7 p.m.