Church Office Hours

Monday - closed

During this time, the phone messag-

es will be retrieved and mail will be

picked up. Ruth is doing a combina-

tion of working

from home and in the office.

No posted hours available.

Please call with any questions.

781-245-1644

Email office@fpccwakefield.org

Rev. John Dale’s

Remote Worship Schedule

Sunday, May 3, 2020

Communion Sunday

(Please be sure to have a stone or pebble in

your hand for the sermon and

a piece of bread and juice

for sharing remote communion)

Sermon: “Laying Down Our Stones”

John 8:1-11

Sunday, May 10, 2020

Mother’s Day

Sermon: “The Best Mother’s Day Gift”

Exodus 20:12 & John 20:25-27

Go to our website fpccwakefield.org

On Home page right/

above Worship Services

Click on

Also available on WCAT

Sunday Livestream at 11am Monday 8pm

The Church Herald FIRST PARISH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH

Rev. John T. Dale, Pastor

One Church Street, Wakefield, MA 01880-2301

(781)245-1539/1644

www.fpccwakefield.org

Stephen Ministers provide confiden-

tial, one-to-one Christian care to peo-

ple experiencing a crisis or going

through a difficult time. Stephen Minis-

ters meet weekly with their care receiver

for around an hour to listen, care, en-

courage, pray, and provide emotional

and spiritual support for the person. Car-

ing relationships last for as long as the

person’s need persists.

Stephen Leaders: Pam and Ken Hodgson

Stephen Ministers: Bob Blaser, Barbara

Flynn, David and Susan Frey, Judy Gor-

don, Abettina Morano and Donna Wood-

Our Mission is to reflect the Love of God by welcoming all people into a life-changing,

ever-growing relationship with Jesus.

In his heart a man plans his course,

but the Lord determines his steps. —

Proverbs 16:9

VOLUME LXXXV, No. 10

April 28, 2020

Prayer Closet

Continued prayers for those suffering with the

Coronavirus, for all the frontline workers: the

medical staff, restaurants and grocery store

employees providing needed food and supplies,

postal workers and all those providing deliveries, law

enforcement, fire department, and all those not work-

ing, for all those keeping social distancing guidelines

and for the safety of all.

May the Lord keep us and protect us through it all.

Prayers for the family of

Dr. Albert J. Simkins, Jr.

now present with the Lord.

Prayers for healing:

Gadar Abkarian, Charles Arthur, (who remains on

the kidney transplant list), Ed Bohn (Julie’s dad),

Douglas Cook, Jim Donovan, III (recovering from

surgery), Trefina Fox, Julio, (Home Health Aide)

and Donna Nicolai.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers:

John Bohn (Nancy Jackson’s brother), Joanne Frey,

Teddie Fitzpatrick, Gina Gebhard, Arlene Geiger

(Lynn Arena’s mom), Mark Ganong, Lenny Hart,

Prayer Shawl’s Needed for Woman

If you would like to work on creating a prayer

shawl to be given to someone when a need arises,

we are in need of shawls in

colors suitable for woman.

We have about a half dozen of so that are more

like a small afghan or lap robe for men.

COUNCIL MEMBERS FOR 2020

Pastor

Moderator

Clerk

Treasurer

Treasurer of Trust Funds

Board of Trustees

Christian Education

Diaconate

Member-at-Large

Member-at-Large

Music

Outreach

Personnel

Nominating

Rev. John Dale

Mark Hatheway

Joanne King

Brian Roden

Lynn Arena

John Arena

Nancy Kunz

Ken Hodgson

Barbara Flynn

Heather Hulse

Gene Mullen

Judy Gordon

Joanne King

Ruth Ross

Thank You So Much

I want to thank you, and am so delighted

to receive the gorgeous, beautiful Easter

Lillie's. I want you to know, I'm much

appreciative, and will enjoy them for a

long time.

Much love to you, on this Blessed Easter Day.

Abettina

Many thanks to my church family for the

beautiful Easter lily delivered by Linda and Joe

D’Agostino.

I do miss you all. Keep safe, keep well.

Love Joan Potter

To hear my doorbell ring on Easter

was such a surprise since family was

not coming by due to Corvd19. As I

answered the door, there was Linda

D’Agostino, mask and all keeping her

social distancing and wishing me a

Happy Easter! I can’t tell you how

moved I was that Linda and Joe would

go out and deliver these plants all

on their own. Truly a labor of Love

that was felt by the heart. A very

special delivery indeed…

Thank you so much,

Ruth Ross

Dear Church Family,

First of all, I never thought I would ever

see all of the churches closed! We are

living through stressful times. Stay safe

and trust in our Father.

Linda D’Agostino stopped by to bring a

lovely Easter lily—thank you and I wish

we could have visited properly.

The hospital has found an asthma shot,

of all things, and it seems to really be

helping. Hopefully, we shall see you

soon.

Love, Sandy Serrentino

Flowers bloom trees will bud and the leaves will been seen

again. After a season of winter, this life upon the earth is una-

ware of what is going around them, yet they choose to bloom

and grow anyway. Soon we will be able to sit by the shade of a

tree and take in the fragrance of the flowers.

Pastor’s Pen

It seems like the Annual Meeting of First Parish was so long ago, yet we met January 26th which was

only fourteen weeks ago. It seems longer due to our confinement due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

During that meeting, the Council was given the task of making some minor changes to the By-Laws.

The three items were outlined by me at that meeting. First, we need to add a Dissolution Clause as per

the IRS code for 501C3 organizations. Second, we felt it important to reduce the overall size of our

committees to better reflect the size of our congregation. Third, we also thought it important to add to

our doctrinal statement Baptism and Communion.

I want to share with you in this article the Diaconate and Council’s proposed thoughts about baptism

which will be presented to the congregation once we can resume assembling together.

“We believe in celebrating two sacraments of the Church as instructed by Jesus Christ; Baptism and

Communion (Matthew 28:19,20, Luke 22:19). First Parish provides Covenantal Infant Baptism and

Believer’s Baptism. Baptism may be administered by sprinkling, pouring or immersion. We do not

believe in Baptismal Regeneration that is that the act of baptism provides salvation to the person being

baptized. Those desiring baptism will meet with the pastor or a member of the Diaconate, attend a

baptism class and review scriptures concerning baptism.

Believer’s Baptism is generally administered by immersion, but in some cases pouring or sprinkling

may be used. Believer’s Baptism applies to believers of an age of accountability and understanding

and upon their personal profession of personal faith in Jesus Christ. (Romans 6:1-5)

Covenantal Infant Baptism is provided for children of believing parent(s) who desire through baptism

to identify their children with God’s Covenant. This baptism does not provide salvation for the infant

baptized but represents the establishing of a covenant relationship with a gracious and saving God

along with their parents covenant with God to raise their children in the Christian faith with the help of

the church and the grace of God. (Acts 10:48, 11:14, 16:15,33) “The important thing is to ensure that

both expressions of baptism are practiced sincerely and with a good conscience (and) that the meaning

is clear to all.” (J. Legg)

Considering the history of First Parish it is evident that Covenantal Infant Baptism has always been

practiced. But our church has also recognized into membership those who have experienced believer’s

baptism whether by sprinkling, pouring or immersion. In recent years some believers have been bap-

tized at the Baptist Church or in swimming pools of members. It is in this spirit that the Diaconate felt

it would be better if we were able to perform adult or believer’s baptism here at First Parish just as we

practice Infant Baptisms here. We also noted that the Bible clearly supports Believer’s Baptism and

we should be able to offer this form of Baptism to those who request it.

Since the Baptist Church is no longer available, and it can be difficult to find a place for immersion

baptisms, the Diaconate has proposed purchasing a portable Baptistry which could be used as needed

right here in our building so like infant baptisms which can be attended by the entire church, adult or

A portable Baptistry is a self – contained unit with an attractive oak finish cabinet. It has built in heating

and fills and drains quickly. The unit is on wheels and can be moved to various locations as desired. The

unit also has stairs and a railing for easy access.

I was asked to write this article to the church family so you know of our thoughts to provide both forms

of baptism as needed. Perhaps you have never been baptized and would seek baptism or maybe you have

family members who have never been baptized? Our goal would be to provide both forms of baptism

here in our building as needed provided the candidates for baptism make their intentions known and that

the required baptism class is attended.

We are excited that in the near future we will all be able to resume our worship services together and that

we will be able to resume our Bible Studies, Youth Group, and other meetings. Lastly, we are also antici-

pating the possibilities as a church to be able to provide both forms of baptism to our church family and

community.

Pastor’s Pen continued

https://fpccwakefield.org/resources/video_sermons/

Dear First Parish Family,

I hope that all are faring well during this strange time in our lives as we are all impacted by COVID-19. We, as a church, are unable to physically gather together on Sundays to worship and I miss seeing everyone in church. I am thankful we are still able to worship remotely together. I would like to provide the congregation with a brief update on our Church’s financial situation.

As you may recall, our congregation approved a budget at our Annual Meeting with a $52,000 deficit; the idea being that we, as a church, would work hard during this year to close that gap with both increased pledges from current members and the addition of new members. While we have seen that start to happen, the impact of COVID-19 and building use restrictions have created more challenges to overcome. Council has been meeting frequently and monitoring our financial situation. I would like to thank all of those who have pledged their support to the church this year and those who continue to give through this difficult time. As of March 31st, our church’s 2020 expenses ($105,603) continue to exceed our income ($87,653).

Council has taken actions, including applying for a Payroll Protection Program loan for small busi-nesses. It is still uncertain if we will receive funding for the loan; as the program’s “first round” of funding was consumed within a few days and we are awaiting a response to our current appli-cation. Council has discussed budget items where savings could occur or expenses could be de-creased or postponed. As of the date of this letter, all church staff are still working and receiving salaries and we thank them for all of their work during this time. Also, our church is continuing to make monthly Outreach donations to the organizations and missionaries we support.

That being said, we as a church family may face difficult financial decisions in the near future. If you are able to continue to support First Parish financially, your generosity is truly appreciated. You can help by mailing a check to the Church office, or making an online donation at fpccwake-field.org. Our e-giving provider will also process donations by phone; you may call Vanco Client Services at 800-675-7430. If you have questions or would like assistance with online giving, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Lynn Arena or myself. Again, I pray that all of you are safe and healthy during this time.

Brian Roden, Treasurer

The Link below takes you to the FPCC website Giving page.

https://www.eservicepayments.com/cgi-bin/Vanco_ver3.vps?

ap-

Shepherds/Diaconate & Flocks/Congregation

Members of Diaconate

Ken Hodgson, Chair – 781-492-1792

kenhodgson184@gmail.com

Angela Faylor – 781-246-0643

angela@faylor.org

Bob Blaser – 617-943-4030

r.blaser@neu.edu

Linda Byam - 781-558-4907

byamlinda68@gmail.com

Barbara Flynn – 781-246-0957

barbarajflynn@yahoo.com

Jim Fosnock – 781-224-0182

radman2531@gmail.com

Dr. David Frey – 781-451-8765

Susan Randolph Frey – 781-451-8765

srandolphfrey@outlook.com

Rodrigo Illanes – 617-651-7312

rillanes@ymail.com

Janice Jones -781-245-2484

lajjaj@verizon.net

Pam Hodgson – 781-492-5284

pjhodgson23@gmail.com

Outreach News

THERE IS STILL AN ONGOING NEED…

FPCC FOOD PANTRY Our Food Pantry Coordinator, Jim Fosnock asks,

“When you are shopping, please consider those folks

in need.” Some of the items needed are Progresso

soups and stews, baked beans, cold cereal, peanut

butter & jelly, mac & cheese, boxed side dishes. This

help is much appreciated by those that use our Food

Panty. Contact Jim at 617-680-4986 if you know of

someone who could benefit from this ministry. He

can also pick up your donation under our stick stay at

home ordinance. Please call Jim if you have a dona-

Donations may be mailed to the church.

First Parish Congregational Church

One Church Street

Wakefield, MA 01880

Online Giving is easy alternative and is available

on the top of the FPCC website: fpccwakefield.org

click on the GIVING tab.

Or the mobile phone app GivePlus. Once logged

in, you can choose from several funds to support,

including the General Fund (Budget), Building

Ken Wood, our Church Sexton has made both the floors in

the dining room and the vestry look like new. He made good

use of this time when many feet would not be walking on

them. God Bless him. Wait till you see them!!!

Youth Corner

The Lion’s Den our connections with each other as brothers and sisters in Our mission is to create a safe

place for each and every one of us to grow closer with God while deepening Christ.

23Am I a God at hand, declares the Lord, and not a God far away? 24 Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I

cannot see him? declares the Lord. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the Lord. –

Jeremiah 23:23-24

God is everywhere.

When we are unable to keep our normal routines, whether that involves going to school or work and seeing our

friends and colleagues, it can be easy to feel isolated and discouraged. But God reminds us in Jeremiah 23:23-24 that

He is present everywhere. He not only keeps us company when we feel alone, but it is His hand that threads us all

together when we are physically apart.

In light of being unable to hold our usual midweek meetings and fellowship events, God has kept the Lion’s Den con-

nected. We have begun hosting our youth group meetings online over video chat where we make the intentional

effort to continue praying and studying God’s Word. God has showed us yet again that He is bigger than our circum-

stances.

THE CHURCH HERALD

First Parish Congregational Church

One Church St.

Wakefield, MA 01880-2301

Phone: 781-245-1644

E-mail: office@fpccwakefield.org

Fpccwakefield.org

April 28, 2020

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

DEADLINES CHURCH HERALD

Thursday, May 7, 2020

(Will cover the dates from

May 17—30, 2020)

ORDER OF WORSHIP

3 pm on Wednesdays.

Meeting Minutes for Council

The Wednesday before Council