Highlights
First United Church and its offices are closed for worship and all non-essential events except the Beyond Hunger food pantry. Church staff are working remotely as much as possible, but they are still there for you.
Send prayer requests via email: Send in a prayer request in advance of Sunday's streamed worship service to prayers@firstunitedoakpark.com.
Need assistance or a mask? Church members are available to run errands for those unable to leave their homes and to sew and deliver masks for those who need one. Contact Alicia Reese if you need help or are willing to volunteer.
Sept. 16 to Nov. 18 — Adult Ed: Zoom book group discussion, Good Grief, 7 p.m. Wednesdays
Sept. 27 — Fourth Sunday Offering: Inclusive Collective
Oct. 4 — Congregational Meeting to approve budget
Evotional
Mosaic
How did Moses ... know the people should love God, love each other, and remember that God loves them (the three overarching themes of the Ten Commandments)? Well, he knew what it looked like when people forgot to love God, to love each other, and that God loves them. ... He saw the commandments “chiseled in his mind by the persistent wind of the desert, by wind in the bulrushes.”
The word for wind in Hebrew is ruach, the same word used for spirit. That wind is God at work on Moses’ heart, preparing him for each and every moment. What is the spirit chiseling on our hearts through the winds of change in our world right now? May we be as attentive as Moses there on Mount Sinai.
— Lydia Mulkey
Calendar
During this time of social distancing, First United is offering online fellowship and events through YouTube, Facebook, and Zoom. Here's how to join in the life of the church:
Sundays — Deacon-led prayer availability via Zoom, 10 minutes after worship at this link
Second and fourth Mondays — Prayer Shawl Ministry via Zoom, 10 a.m. at this link
Mondays — Sing hymns along with Bill Chin via Zoom, 12:30 p.m. at this link
Wednesdays in September — Weekly prayer circles led by deacons, 7 p.m. at this link.
Sept. 24 — Prime Time picnic, at a distance, noon
Pastoral Letter On Kenosha
“They shall beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks…”
— Isaiah 2
Police killings of unarmed black people happen with alarming frequency. ... It can feel like an endless chain of hashtags, a vicious and deadly cycle that cries out to be broken. There needs to be fundamental, real, deep change in the way that policing works in this country. Otherwise, it seems things will only continue to get worse in this country with black people suffering the worst of the impacts.
— John Edgerton
About Us & Registration Forms
Pandemic protocols
Although church is not yet reopened for worship, Church Council has adopted protocols drawn up by the church’s Public Health Task Force on how the building can be used safely, and only by people authorized to conduct church business.
The protocols include arranging entry with a staff member, filling out a health check questionnaire, wearing a mask at all times, and keeping at least six feet away from others. See the link below to find out more, or contact the church office for more details.
A busy summer for Beyond Hunger
Since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Beyond Hunger has been delivering food to clients in multiple ways. Groceries are still available for walk-up clients, and some food packages are being delivered by volunteers, but most clients pick up food at the drive-up line in the First United parking lot.
Ricardo Garcia, Beyond Hunger volunteer and pantry manager, says the monthly average has gone from 1,200 clients a month to 1,500. Many usual clients are being served by multiple pop-up markets in Chicago's Austin neighborhood. When those pop-ups end this fall, he expects the number served by Beyond Hunger to soar.
