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First Congregational Church of Darien
14
Brookside Road
Darien, CT 06820
(203)-655-0491
www.uccdarien.org
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Sunday, May 23, 2010
WORSHIP
SERVICES at 8:30 and 10:00 a.m.
The Rev. Dr. Don Longbottom will give
the sermon
"Touching Earth And Finding
God"
The Scripture will be:
Genesis
2: 4b-24
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A
few thoughts from Dr. Don...
Today's letter comes to you with a variety
of feelings behind it. One is joy as
my fiancé will be in town this weekend.
Following whatever festivities are planned
after church we will be driving to Chicago.
We are planning to be married by my son the
other reverend on the plains of Kansas on
the 29th. Hope to see you Sunday.
The sad feelings I carry come from the
sickening debacle off the coast of
Louisiana. Untold millions of gallons
of oil are pouring into the Gulf of Mexico
in what could well turn out to be humanity's
greatest ecological catastrophe. I
think of the oceans of our earth as the womb
of creation and I wonder what will happen to
our species if we do not very soon learn to
live in harmony with nature.
While I have no expertise that lends itself
to solving the current problems, I do have
some thoughts on the longer term issues.
Human beings have, in my opinion, lost their
sense of the sacred. In particular we
have lost the sense of creation as sacred,
consequently, nature has become a great
grocery store exploited at every turn to
satisfy the seemingly insatiable human
desire for "you name it."
The problem is that the shelves are bare and
we are now eating the "seed corn."
Seed corn is that which is saved back to
plant next year's crop. We persist in
believing that somehow technology will save
us in the end. I am not so sure.
When you think of technology consider the
possibility of unintended consequences.
Sunday I will be preaching a sermon
entitled, "Touching Earth and Finding
God." The sermon is not, I
promise you, doomsday. The key to a
better relationship with nature is for us
human beings to regain an authentic sense of
the sacred. Perhaps we can begin this
process on Sunday.
Peace & Grace,
Don
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Joys
and Concerns
IN MEMORIAM:
We have received news that Ann Nash Rhodes passed away
peacefully on April 29th. Her children, Dan,
Georgia and Doug, were at her side. Our thoughts
and prayers are with Ann's family.
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Events This Week
Dr.
Don's and Mary Ann's Informal Reception, 11th
hour Sunday May 23rd. A time of fellowship, an
opportunity to meet and welcome Dr Don's fiance
Mary Ann.
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Announcements
Pastoral Care and Worship Services during
Dr. Don's absence (May 24 - June 10)
the following ministers/lay leader will be covering
as follows:
Pastoral care emergencies:
The Rev. Gregory A. Errgong-Weider - 203-857-4686
Deacon, Sally Bassler - (203) 655-9658
Worship Service Ministers :
May 30th : Rev. Susan M. Pfeil
June 6th (please note, one service only at 10.00) :
Rev Katherine Silvan
In May We Help, During May please join our
congregation-wide effort to create and distribute
Earthquake Kits for victims in Haiti, Chile and
other areas in need. Church members of all ages will
be assembling baby kits and hygiene kits at the 11th
hour on Sunday, June 6. But in order for
this project to be a success we need everyone to
contribute! What
can you do to help? First, Please pick
up a donation card after church and purchase the items
listed on your card. Next,
sign up now to participate in this great event on June
6. Also,
encourage other members to join you! Remember - June 6
will be a special event for our church. It is
one of the few opportunities for members of ALL
AGES to come together at one time and
help those in need. Not only will it benefit
earthquake victims, but it will be a rewarding
experience for all involved!
Good Morning! Welcome!
A truely enjoyable volunteering opportunity -
greeters are needed for the 10.00 service
- check your diaries, happy smiling faces are
needed in June. Email Caroline Burke at burkes1@optonline.net
with the Sundays that suit you best.
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Upcoming
Events & Save The Date
YOUTH
GROUP NEWS:
Youth vs. Member Kickball Game and BBQ,
Saturday June 5th from 11:30 to 2:30.
Don't miss the first Youth vs. Adults Kickball game
and BBQ. Tickets are $10 and proceeds go
toward the Youth Mission Trip for home repair
projects on the Navajo reservation.
Car
Wash, Sunday June 13th, 11th Hour. Leave
your car in the parking lot and come out after the
10am service with a Shiny Clean Car! Tickets
are $10.
Assemble
Earthquake Crisis Kits, Sunday June 6th. A
all church event to assemble crisis kits from
supplies we will have collected during May, these
will be shipped to Church World Service (UCC
organization). This is a great way to show our
children where our priorities are and participate
fully in a wonderful targeted outreach project.
A
Time to Listen, Sunday June 13th 6pm. For
those who remain disturbed about some of the
church events of the last three years, we are
planning A Time To Listen. This is not a time for
everyone but for those of you who continue to
experience residual feelings. We will meet here
at the church in the Circle Room in an atmosphere
of prayerful trust and respect. This will be a
meeting facilitated by Rev. Dr. Don. This is your
time, whatever your perspective, to ask any
question and share any perspective that you may
have to share. We are also planning a Healing
Service for the entire church body on Wednesday,
June 23rd at 8pm.
"FEED
MY STARVING CHILDREN":
This wonderful community activity takes place
the weekend of October 1st -3rd,
2010. If
you would like to get involved in a more
significant way this year, please speak to
either Tracey Berry (tbcb@optonline.net)
or Nina Miller (pokebox@aol.com)
directly.
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Thought for the Day
"Wishing you a house full of sunshine,
Hearts full of cheer,
Love that grows deeper each day of the year."
(a Welsh wedding blessing)
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Submissions
Your FLASH editors are Caroline Burke and Bill
Lattimer. To send in questions/comments or to submit
information to be printed in the next FLASH, please
send an email to info@uccdarien.org,
and put the word "FLASH"
in the subject line.
Deadline
for inclusion in the weekly edition of the FLASH is
Noon Thursday - please make our job easier and avoid
attachments where possible.
Note
that submission of items to FLASH does not
automatically reserve church facilities - please
contact the Administrator separately to schedule any
church function or resource.
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Church
Office Hours
Our church office is open Tuesday through Friday, from
8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Please note that our
Administrator, Dennis Hanlon, works from outside the
church office on Mondays. In addition, he is on
duty two Sundays per month. You can contact
Dennis directly at dhanlon@uccdarien.org.
The deadline for inclusion of information in the
Sunday Church Bulletin is 2:00
p.m. on Wednesday.
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