Author: First Parish Northfield, Unitarian

Rev. Melissa Carvill Ziemer: Last month I offered a reflection on the proposal to name Love as the center of our shared faith values.  With an interactive story for all ages, a helpful graphic and the voice of one of our leading theologians and thoughtful liturgists, this month we’ll explore the values of justice and equity.  This service is crafted with people of all ages in mind and will be offered at 10am on Sunday, February 25th, at First Parish in Northfield, and on Zoom. To participate via Zoom, please send an e-mail to fpnorthfieldma@gmail.com for a link.

“Inspiration and Focus” is the theme of tomorrow’s Sunday’s Chalice Circle.Marcus Graly will lead us in an examination of what motivates us to choose our path in life and how we might balance our time and energy between competing interests and distractions. To participate in this service of reflection and sharing, join us at the church on Sunday February 18th at 10 am. {Photo credit: Fiona Bird}

Tomorrow morning the Rev. Julie-Ann Silberman-Bunn will examine the question “What Drives Us to Action?” when she leads the church service for First Parish at 10 am at the church (corner of Main St and Parker Ave, Northfield). Rev. Silberman-Bunn asks, What makes the difference between what we care about and what we care enough about to take action?

Reverend Julie-Ann Silberman-Bunn is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist. Julie-Ann was ordained in 1992 and since then has served six congregations in five states, as a Parish Minister, Religious Educator, and Minister for Pastoral Care. She has also worked as a Hospital and Hospice Chaplain. Julie-Ann and her husband Ken live in the foothills of the Berkshires in Western Mass with their rescued Maine Coon cat Miss Honey.

To participate via Zoom, please send an e-mail to fpnorthfieldma@gmail.com for a link.

On Sunday, February 4, Lay Reader Dan Tinen will lead our service, delivering the next in his monthly series of sermons. The service will begin at 10 am, and Dan will be live at the church (instead of coming to us by videoconference from his home in Seattle). Although he will speak from the First Parish pulpit, the service will also be available on Zoom. To participate via Zoom, please send an e-mail to fpnorthfieldma@gmail.com for a link.

More details:

“But, How Do You Know?”
Openness to new ideas is a hallmark of liberalism, and of Unitarian Universalists in particular. But in a time when artificial intelligence is making it harder and harder to trust even our own eyes and ears, how can we distinguish reality from delusion while understanding that absolute truth may be the most dangerous delusion of all?

Lay Reader Dan Tinen will lead the 10 am service at the church. Participants may also join the service on Zoom.

Rev. Melissa Carvill Ziemer

The proposed revision to the Unitarian Universalist statement of Principles and Purposes puts love at the center and offers us the vision that the spiritual discipline of love is how we can live all our other values. Come join us as we explore the liberating and liberatory power of putting love at the center. Our service for all ages will be held at 10am on Sunday January 21, in person at First Parish in Northfield and also via Zoom. To participate via Zoom, please send an e-mail to fpnorthfieldma@gmail.com for a link.

In honor of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., whose holiday we celebrate on January 15, First Parish will present a service titled “The Man, the Dream, the Movement”. The service was written by Rev. Clyde Grubbs and Mary Jane Holden, and adapted by Erika Hewitt. It uses readers to tell the story of the Civil Rights movement as it unfolded over the course of a decade. The worship components center black voices as an intentional effort to decenter whiteness. Led by Ann Linge, members of the First Parish congregation will participate in the service. The service begins at 10 am, at the church and on Zoom. To participate via Zoom, please send an e-mail to fpnorthfieldma@gmail.com for a link.

Frank Capra’s beloved 1946 movie “It’s a Wonderful Life” presents a character who continually defers his dreams for the benefit of others. This Sunday Dan Tinen will examine George Bailey from a psychological viewpoint, and consider whether it is possible to have too much of an admirable character trait.

Due to the predicted snowfall Saturday night and Sunday morning, our church service, led by Dan Tinen, will take place by Zoom videocall. The church building will remain closed while we gather in our homes, coffeehouses, or other Internet-accessible locations to link together at 10 am on January 7.

To participate via Zoom, please send an e-mail message to fpnorthfieldma@gmail.com for a link.

Rev. Melissa Carvill Ziemer will lead tomorrow’s service using the theme “Come, Winter.” Join us for this multigenerational celebration of the Winter Solstice. We will welcome the turning of the year and open our hearts to that great mystery in which we all live and move and have our being. All are welcome to participate in the service at 10am at First Parish Church, corner of Parker and Main Streets in Northfield or on Zoom. To participate via Zoom, please send an e-mail message to fpnorthfieldma@gmail.com for a link. {photo credit: Fiona Bird}

Join us this Sunday for a morning of exceptional music and thoughtful concern about peace, love, and conflict. Eveline MacDougall returns to our pulpit with her guitar, violin, and stories. This time she will bring fellow musician John Clark, a noted composer, arranger, and performer on the French horn and bass. All are welcome to participate in the service at 10am at First Parish Church, corner of Parker and Main Streets in Northfield or on Zoom. To participate via Zoom, please send an e-mail message to fpnorthfieldma@gmail.com for a link. All will be welcome.