THE PASCHAL TRIDUUM
The Paschal Triduum (Lat. 3 days) begins with the commemoration of Jesus?s last supper with his disciples before the agony of the crucifixion at the hands of the Roman Empire.? It continues through Good Friday, which commemorates that dreadful event and concludes with the celebration of the resurrected Christ.
At First United, we will begin with our Maundy Thursday service where we gather for a simple supper coupled with a solemn retelling of the passion of Jesus along with singing and prayer.? The event begins at 6 p.m. on Thursday, April 13.
The ecumenical Good Friday service will be held at First United this year beginning at 12:10 p.m. on Friday, April 14. This solemn occasion marks the nadir of the Christian story, when Jesus?s disciples were afraid, desolate, and unsure of the future.? Many believe that the glory of the Resurrection as we celebrate it on Easter morning can only be fully understood when coupled with the observance of Jesus?s torturous death.
The Triduum concludes with the celebration of Easter, which falls on Sunday, April 16 this year.? We hope you will be able to join us for as much of the Triduum as your schedule allows.
?
CHURCH TOUR, April 9 after morning worship.? A member of Building and Grounds will have keys in hand to give a tour of our church building after the Palm Sunday service.?? You are invited to come and see, whether it is your first visit to our church or if you?ve attended for years and years.? The tour will start from the pulpit area of the sanctuary and should last about fifteen minutes.
?
SPRING YARD WORK DAY, SATURDAY,?APRIL 8, 9 A.M. TILL NOON. ?Please join us for all or some of a morning tidying the church grounds for Easter. ?We will again have a wood chipper on hand to chip brush. ?In addition, there is raking, removing of old?flower foliage, and bush trimming to do. ?Bring (labeled) favorite tools if you have them. ?We also have many rakes, plus we’ll provide some?brown jersey gloves and earplugs. ?Also refreshments! ?Questions: ?laura_b_kao@hotmail.com
?
LENTEN PRACTICES – Any of the following sound familiar? ?You?re still wondering what Lent and practice are about. You wanted to have a special practice for Lent this year but haven?t gotten around to it. You started your Lenten practice with a bang but it got lost somewhere along the way. Your Lenten practice just doesn?t seem to be the one for you right now.
It?s never too late to start AND it?s never too late to begin again, and again, and again?. ?no judgement, no catch-up! If you need ideas, pick up one or more of the suggestion pages from the narthex (that?s the lobby space behind the sanctuary) or in the Fellowship Hall lobby.
If you?d like support for your practice or a listening ear, contact Dawna at spiritual.director@firstuc.org?or 812-272-5404.
?
ADULT STUDY CLASS – SCIENCE AND RELIGION SERIES. Please join us on Tuesday, from 10:00 to 11:30 am as we continue a new video series that will explore the interplay between science and religion.? In addition to a presentation and discussion, there will be coffee and snacks.
?
YOU HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO HOST A STRANGER…
The Organizing Committee of the Fourth Street Festival of the Arts and Crafts is seeking host homes for artists. Hosts would provide sleeping accommodations for artists the Friday and Saturday nights of Labor Day weekend (Sept 1 & 2.) ?No meals are necessary. Visit 4thstreet.org and click on “Would You Like to Host an Artist During the Show” for a short questionnaire regarding your home (space, pets, non-smoking etc.) This is an easy way to get to know someone from outside Bloomington, and get a glimpse into the life of a festival artist. Questions? Contact Elizabeth Busey (ebusey@yahoo.com or 812-345-3840.)
?
NEEDED COFFEE HOUR HOSTS ALL OF APRIL. One of the ways we build our community of faith is through our coffer hour or fellowship time immediately following Sunday services.? Hosts help with this important aspect of our community life by showing hospitality to members, friends, and guests of First United Church. ??Coffee hour hosts typically leave Sunday services at the end of the sermon to brew the coffee and put out the snacks.??The Church provides all supplies for coffee hour.? If you sign up for coffee hour, a friendly member of the Board of Christian Worship will explain where to find the supplies.
CALLING ALL KIDS FOR EASTER SINGING! Easter is coming up soon and now is a great time for kids from CLT and beyond to begin learning a song that they can sing here on Easter morning!? Beginning March 5th we invite all kids to join Rebecca, Vini and Ashley to meet in the choir room for about 15 minutes right after church (during Coffee Hour) to practice.? Please see Vini, Rebecca Keith, or Derek Roe with questions!
?
FRIDAYS AT FIRST UNITED
?
Play Friday: Our next Play Friday will be on Friday, April 14 from 6-8 p.m. We will have a small indoor egg hunt and an easter/spring related craft. As usual there will be an assortment of games to play and yummy pizza to eat! It helps with food planning if you can RSVP to Hopi Stosberg at hopi@stosberg.com or, if you are on Facebook, to the Facebook event page at: https://www.facebook.com/events/345435315857965/
Play Friday is a recurring family friendly event on the 2nd Friday of each month. This event is fun for all ages!
Just Friday: Our final Just Friday discussion in the series of stereotypes and bias will be on April 28 from 7-9 p.m. We will focus our media and discussion that night on the importance of communication between groups and methods of effective communication. Starting in May we will continue Just Friday discussions focused on a new justice related topic (TBA). Just Friday is an adult discussion group focused on discussing issues of justice. We meet on the 4th Friday of each month from 7-9. Desserts and drinks will be available, no childcare is provided.
MINISTER OF CARE FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 02, IS DOUG PETERSEN.? A minister of care is a church volunteer who visits members in their home.
Follow