Cleveland Park Congregational UCC
Nurturing love of God and love of neighbor in the world
I invite you to read my bi-weekly newsletters below for reflections on Sunday worship and updates on congregational life. I hope, and believe, you will also enjoy my Sermons. I look forward to seeing you and sharing worship with you.
- Blessings,
Pastor Ellen
Here are some spiritual resources that I find myself returning to time and again. I hope you will also enjoy them.
UCC Feed Your Spirit
Bite in the Apple
Patheos.com
The Listening Hermit
RickMorley.com
Larry Patten.com
Dear Church Community,
You may recall that this was the theme of my 2022 Sabbatical, and I think it’s relevant to this season of our congregation’s life. I wrote about it in my Pastor’s Report, which I hope you’ll read, along with the rest of the updates collected in our church’s Annual Report. On Sunday we’ll gather for our first hybrid Annual Meeting after worship, at which time we’ll vote on the 2023 budget, elect our committee chairs, leadership team,
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Dear Church Community,
This quotation recently appeared in a weekly email I receive, and for some reason it stuck with me. So often, we get hung up on our expectations of the way things “should” be, and when they aren’t we feel disappointed, unhappy, even depressed. However, as our Buddhist neighbors know, it’s the attachment to specific expectations of what and how life should be that lies at the root of most suffering.
Other traditions emphasize this as well. Twelve
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Dear Church Community,
I like to remember that Christmas is more than a day, it’s a Season. So, if last week flew by in a flurry (no snow but an excess of activity), this is your chance to experience a more peaceful holiday. December 29th is the fifth day of Christmas, and though internet sources disagree on what “five golden rings” means, it sounds important. Thus, I urge you: carpe golden diem! Claim an hour for yourself and
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Dear Church Community,
This Sunday we’ll enjoy the first Christmas Pageant during Sunday morning worship in three years! This is no small milestone, and it’s a blessing to be able to gather knowing the virus (with vaccines) is now mostly a minor inconvenience and not a deadly threat.
Having said this, I know many of us are on our first, second, and even third go ‘round with Covid, and my prayers are with you—as well as with anyone dealing with
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Dear Church Community,
This first week of Advent, I’m still buzzing from my trip to NYC. It was a magical weekend (photos below) but the rapid swing from one holiday to the next (our hotel changed its decorations from Thanksgiving harvest to Christmas trees overnight) felt a little frenetic.
This is one of the reasons I encourage you to embrace Advent as a Season. It’s not that I oppose early Christmas decorations (I support anything that brings light
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