Sunday, June 16, 2024

The Fourth Sunday After Pentecost

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• An Introduction to Godly Play

• Church School @ Christ Church Needham

• Church School Wish List

• Wiggles & Wonder, Bird's weekly formation Substack

Dear Church School Friends,

I am a planner.

And when I say that I'm a planner, I mean that as I write this newsletter, I am sitting next to a stack of paper planners and notebooks. In the office, we have something like 5+ different calendars we consult as we organize the collective life of this community.

This past week, CCN's staff sat together coordinating the many months to come, and wow are their wonderful things in store – and key calendar dates until mid September are already in this email! But first, summer – read on for some upcoming opportunities, and make sure the special intergenerational Godly Play & Racial Justice Initiative programming dates, as well as the pop-up choir dates are on your calendar!

The Nativity of John The Baptist

Depictions of John the Baptist are such a delight. As we say when he appears in the story of Jesus's baptism, when his cousin John appears, "he was a wild man."

For a time, John the Baptist lived in the wildnerness eating locusts and honey, and he is often drawn looking quite unkempt. In celebration of the Nativity of John the Baptist, which falls on July 24, I want to invite our Church School children to help host a special coffee hour on July 23 with John the Baptist themed treats!

There won't be any heads on a platter, but there may be some locusts – or at least gummy worms.

Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford

Let My People Go!

This is the cry of both Moses and Harriet Tubman, and in first story that we'll share during our summer Godly Play-RJI series is the story of Harriet Tubman.

This new addition to our library accompanies that story, approaching Harriet Tubman's story in ways that are very similar to that of Godly Play.

You can find this and

other supplemental resources for this summer story series on display in UPH! Please feel free to peruse and borrow them!

For more information on the story series, check the event highlight below.

Join us this summer as we connect Christ Church's ongoing commitment to learning about and working for racial justice with Godly Play's People of Color Who Inspire stories to explore how faith and justice have come together to inform the work of important figures throughout history.

Sunday July 7 & Sunday August 11: Join us following lemonade hour in the Memorial Room to hear the stories of Harriet Tubman (7/7) and Sen. John Lewis (8/11) and wonder about their lives together in supported small groups.

Sunday July 28 & Sunday August 25 (**UPDATED**): Join us on the patio from 5-6:30pm for worship, fellowship, and to share the stories of the Bishop Barbara Harris (7/28) and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (8/25).

Bird will work with the RJI to help curate additional resources and support community members of all ages as we explore these stories.

A Special Note About Telling Bishop Barbara Harris's Story: If you're comparing notes, you'll see that we've switched the dates for the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King and Bishop Barbara C. Harris's stories – and it's for a wonderful reason! July 29th will mark the 50th Anniversary of the first "regular" ordinations of women to the priesthood in the Episcopal Church. While Bishop Harris was not among these first ordinands, her ministry was made possible by these groundbreaking figures and telling her story is one way that we can mark that special anniversary.

Sunday June 16

• 9am Worship in the Chapel

Sunday June 23

• Pick-Up Choir! All Ages Welcome!

Sunday July 7

• People of Color Who Inspire w/RJI following Lemonade Hour

Sunday July 21

• Pick-Up Choir

Sunday July 28

• 9am Worship in the Chapel
• 5pm Outdoor Worship with Godly Play POC Who Inspire Story

Sunday August 18

• Pick-Up Choir

Sunday September 15

• Program Year Kick Off w/the Calendar Carnival!
• Church School Registration & Backpack Blessing

Sunday September 22

• Church School Resumes!
• Youth Ministry Summit @ 5:30 pm - Save The Date!