IN PERSON & LIVE STREAMED

Come explore the spiritual practices of chanting, meditation and sacred poetry. Rev. Anne will help us explore new pathways to the journey of the spirit, as the choir offers magical music from sacred traditions.

This Sunday, the sanctuary choir will sing Manolo Da Rold’s inventive and deeply mystical chant piece “Vi Adoro” and Sergei Rachmaninoff’s deeply inspiring “Bogoroditse” (from Vsenoshchnoe Bdenie (All-Night Vigil), Op. 37). Soloist Julia Jaffe will sing the hauntingly lyrical Hebrew Sephardic chant “Avinu Malkeinu.” Soloists Liz Savir and Chelsea Cannon, with the Sanctuary Choir, will sing the ancient and serene hindu song “The Gayatri Mantra.” And for the centering music, minister of music Rip Jackson will play Paul Sullivan’s ethereal “Rising Moon” (from Paul Winter’s Silver Solstice).

Voices on the Green, First Parish in Lexington’s live music and storytelling series, returns to the stage this Friday night, April 12th at 7 p.m. at First Parish in Lexington. The theme for this spring's show is "Breaking the Rules."

Tickets for the show are available online. Remaining tickets will be available at the door the night of the performance – however availability may be limited (so buy now!)

How did our six storytellers break the rules?

• Don Yansen foraged for a free feast.
• Valerie Overton sat in protest outside the governor’s office.
• JoAnn Mulready-Shick got the drummer to do what the bouncer wouldn’t.
• Ajay G insisted doctors operate on his terms.
• Russ Tanner fought town hall and incurred the wrath of townies.
• Emelyn Chiang struggled against unwritten rules to be herself

Music will be provided by Boston alternative pop singer/songwriter Jodi Heights, with prelude and intermission music by Lexington’s Ken Karnofsky and poet/spoken word artist Regie O’Hare Gibson hosts our performance. We are thrilled to share that Voices on the Green’s Community Partner for this event is LexPride.

Voices on the Green is a program of First Parish in Lexington, founded in 2017 as a community-building endeavor to develop new voices and new relationships in the community and to create connections between performers and audience. The series now attracts a wide audience from many parts of the greater Lexington community. Those who have attended previous shows have remarked on the amazing sense of community connection engendered when diverse storytellers share their compelling personal stories and musical performances enhance them. For more information about Voices on the Green, visit https://voicesonthegreen.org/ and buy your tickets now - you won’t want to miss this amazing show!

A Surge of New Oil and Natural Gas Projects Led by the U.S. Threaten Hope for a Habitable Planet

The science is clear: New oil and natural gas fields and warming of the planet will be disastrous. In 2021 the International Energy Agency (IEA)* warned that the development of any new oil and natural gas fields are incompatible with avoiding catastrophic planetary heating past the international agreed limit of 1.5° C global average surface temperature warming since preindustrial times. Late last year, 2023, fossil fuel producing countries pledged to "transition away from fossil fuels." However, a March 2024 report published by Global Energy Monitor shows new construction projects around the world are about to begin the development of at least 20 new oil and natural gas fields which will instead significantly expand the extraction of oil and natural gas. The U.S. led the approval of new oil and gas projects. Oil and gas producers have offered many “justifications” for the need to discover and develop new fields, but none of these are acceptable.

* The International Energy Agency is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organization, established in 1974, that provides policy recommendations, analysis, and data on the global energy sector. The 31 member countries and 13 associated countries of the IEA represent 75 % of global energy demand.

Reference

CHILDREN'S RE

We'll continue to explore the concept of Interdependence with a game called Balloon Bop. Please join us for some FUN this Sunday!

Caroline and Annelie

SAVE THE DATE: 

Monday, April 22

(one week after this year’s Patriots Day celebration)

The 1775 Patriots Day reenactment will take place this year on Monday, April 15, on the historic Lexington Battle Green just out our First Parish front door. The battle with the British that this event celebrates led to the establishment of our democracy.  

But as we approach the one-year countdown to the Semiquincentennial [250th] celebration in April 2025, the news these days is filled with attacks on the central tenants of our democracy: that all people are created equal, and that all citizens of this country are entitled to be represented through their vote at all levels of our Government, from their statehouse elected officials, up through their US Congressional officials, to and including the US President.

During this Presidential Election year these attacks are being waged through voter suppression legislation to deny significant numbers of citizens that right to vote in many of our 50 states. These legislative attacks have led your First Parish Preserving Our Democracy team to focus on supporting grassroots organizations who fight voter suppression, and candidates for political office who support democratic principles.

Come to our meeting here at First Parish at 4pm on Monday, April 22 to become armed with information and activities to help you cut through the glut of demands being made for your time and money. Please mark your calendar now: Details to follow in the next Weekly Update.

Thursday, April 28th

7:30 - 9:00

Building Bridges will gather online to discuss our own, 'Best of times, worst of times', through videos, conversation, music, and more!

Social psychologist and author Jonathan Haidt delves into the impact of social media on democratic societies:

"The Fragmentation of Everything"

National Governor's Association attendees hear from U.S. Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Amy Coney Barrett, who share opinions on how to engage in productive discourse:

“How to Disagree Agreeably”

From choir rehearsals to Soul Matters, Building Bridges to Meditation Group, Urban Ministry to Democracy Team, Climate Action Team to Youth Groups and all of the other wonderful ways to get involved here at First Parish, please check the church calendar.

Submissions for The Weekly Update are due by the end of day, Mondays. To submit an article or information for consideration, please use this form.

Office: (781) 862-8200 | www.FPLex.org