 Ministry Highlights for Feb. 2024 Lent Starts The traditional soup supper and service on Ash Wednesday (2/14/24) started Lent this year. (More Ash Wed. photos in Gallery.) On most Sundays in Lent, folks in grade 4 and up have gathered between Sunday Services to Pray with Colors, using our Lenten Devotional linking the art of Henri Matisse to Lenten themes. Feb. 18 was green and Feb. 25 was blue. This Sunday we take a break for Resurrection Gardens (look for info in your Overview Thursday!) and return to Praying With Colors on March 10.  Youth Visit Estes Our youth group had an outing to Estes Park with the youth of First Cong. Greeley.  Marta Speaks at FC Council Meeting on Israel/Hamas War Rev. Marta was #54 out of 169 speakers at the Fort Collins City Council Meeting on 2/20 at which the council considered a ceasefire resolution. The previous Sunday, youth made hearts for Plymouth members to wear at the meeting.  Plymouth Celebrates Verley Boulton's 90th Birthday There were candles and cake on Sunday, February 11 between services as our community celebrated Verley!  ISAAC Love in Action Fundraiser Plymouth folks attended the Interfaith Solidarity and Accompaniment Coalition event featuring internationally-known speaker Father Greg Boyle, author and Hilton Humanitarian Prize recipient, with a message of radical kinship, exquisite mutuality and infectious hope.  Annual Meeting 2/4/24 Festive worship at 10 a.m., followed by a potluck and the annual meeting. More photos in Gallery. Did you miss the Annual Ministry Highlights presentation? View it here.    Image by Karolina Grabowska from Pixabay Dear Plymouth,
It’s good to be entering the season of Lent with all of you. I consider this season a time of curiosity. I am in awe of the beauty of our separate and shared lives. I am glad to be journeying with you and this congregation this year. I love joining you in homes, breaking bread together, sharing our lives, taking ourselves and our values into the public square, and engaging in important local issues. It’s fun to share stories about our personal lives- our favorite T.V. shows, what makes our professions important, and talking about what Jesus means to you! Who is Jesus to you and how does he show up in your faith? I think about this a lot. Jesus often invites and calls me into community. Sometimes, it is a familiar community and sometimes an unrecognizable one- but it is always community. INVITATIONS for you into Community this Lent: The Immigration Ministry Team invites you to join the Fort Collins community at the City Council Meeting on Tuesday, February 20. We will be rallying for peace and love and asking for a Cease Fire Resolution to be passed so that our city can join the list of other cities in the U.S. asking for the same thing. We will meet in the parking lot at 5:40 pm at the City Hall [the patio outside the main door of the City Council Chambers, 300 Laporte Ave]. I have signed up to talk at the Rally. The youth group will be making us large red hearts to wear around our necks as a sign of solidarity as we all witness the horror that is happening in the West Bank–Palestine–Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and others - our vision must be to protect and love and call for peace here and around the world. The Interfaith Council of Fort Collins invites you to join a suicide prevention event on Thursday, March 7, 9-10:30 am at Plymouth! I also invite you to reach out to me if you want to have coffee or sit together and explore your faith during this time of Lent, this time of deepening. I am easy to find. My email is [email protected] and my cell phone is: 719-306-4037 If you have any questions about these events don’t hesitate to contact me. Love and Peace this Lenten Journey, Marta  A couple of weeks ago, I shared a few thoughts with the Chancel Choir about our music ministry at Plymouth. It is helpful to step back and reflect on one's role in the greater mission of the church. The result is often one of rejuvenation, a healthy recalibration and a more profound appreciation of music's healing and life-giving power. This time was no exception. Allow me to share with you then the fruits of this reflection.
I view our midweek rehearsals as so much more than a time to just "get things done." It is a midweek communal oasis in our often busy lives and one path to put faith into practice by giving back to the church in such a purposeful, beautiful and uplifting way. It is inherently a spiritual experience combining beautiful music thoughtfully selected to illuminate the message of our worship services. And it certainly is also a space to grow musically and vocally as choral singers as well. The progress we make together in our weekly explorations and practice allows for quality and inspired anthems to grace Plymouth's worship life. It is a gift of service we can offer to the church. And as choristers know all too well – for ourselves. These thoughts apply to all of Plymouth's music ensembles as well of course. It is clear to me that the intention behind our service is well understood by the Chancel Choir, the Plymouth Ringers and the 9:00 a.m. service musicians. There is joy in our music-making and time together! We have a happy and selfless group of volunteers who generously give their time and talents to Plymouth's music ministry. And I invite you to join us as well in whatever capacity you have available to you! There is never an all-or-nothing commitment. If you enjoy singing, consider sitting in with the Chancel Choir for the Third Sunday "Pick-Up Choir" dates including this Sunday, February 18! Rehearsal is at 10:10 a.m. The music will be very accessible and we'd love for you to join us. The Plymouth Ringers meet on Wednesdays from 6:00 - 6:45 p.m. in the Forum Room. No prior musical experience required. All you need is a desire to have fun and perhaps even to ring! From the youth, Kids Will Sing!, led by Liz McGrew, bring their offerings to worship on occasion with much fervor and joy. Expect a visit from them on Sunday, February 25 at the 11:00 a.m. service! Also coming this spring will be a restoration of a youth hand chime choir. More opportunities abound for youth participation in Plymouth's music ministry! Stay tuned. I have greatly appreciated the value Plymouth places on music in worship over the years in all its wondrous diversity. The universe speaks in mysterious ways whether it be in the grandeur of an organ postlude on a familiar hymn tune, the beauty of an expressive choral anthem, the esoteric sounds of bells in our hallowed space, or the universal message of peace and love in a classic song by The Beatles. With a little help from our friends, we can can ensure a lasting presence of intentional joyful service in Plymouth's music ministry for years to come. Mark Mark Heiskanen, Dir. of Music/Organist   As promised, we’ve lined up some great offerings to help enrich your spiritual journey during Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday…in just a week! We begin on February 14 with a simple soup supper at 6:15 and a service at 7:00 that includes the imposition of ashes, a sign of penitence. I invite you to join us in several ways during this season: PLYMOUTH READS the Gospel According to Mark This is a perfect opportunity to dust off your Bible and encounter the earliest of the four gospels. It’s also perfect for you if you consider yourself a biblical newbie! You’ll receive a bookmark in your bulletin this Sunday with the reading schedule. Each week, Marta and I will craft a Wednesday email for you with some focus questions on the week’s reading, a visual image, and some suggestions for spiritual practice. We also invite you to join Plymouth’s Facebook group, where we will have online discussion: http://facebook.com/groups/plymouthconnection If you’d like an online Bible, here are two recommended translations:
LENTEN DEVOTIONAL: Henri Matisse and the Colors of Lent This wonderful resource from SALT Project invites you into the experience of visual theology through the lens of Henri Matisse. We’ll be sending you both the adult and family-friendly versions of this devotional booklet by email soon. (We’ll also have some printed copies at the church.) Sue Rutherford and the Forum team will be using this devotional as the basis for forums during Lent, and there will be an intergenerational component to this as well. I hope to see you on Ash Wednesday, as we begin our Lenten journey together! Deep peace,  |
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