First Parish Church of Groton : Summer Worship Services 2012

Summer Worship Services 2012

During the summer months, informal Sunday services are offered on the first floor of the main Church building — the coolest place in town, most summers. These are lay-led services, and they start at 10:00 am. (For the record, here are 2011 – 2010 – 2009 – 2008 – 2007 – 2006.)

If you want more information or want to volunteer to lead a worship service in 2013, please .

Scroll down for the summer 2012 schedule.

Schedule for 2012

Date	Leader	Topic, title, theme
June 24	Judy Anderson	Old Fashioned Hymn Sing: For an hour, we sing many of the old hymns we grew up singing in other denominations.
July 1	—	Wild Card: Service yet to be determined.
July 8	Ed McNeirney	One Laptop Per Child
July 15	Sarah Iacobucci	A Ministry of Personal Stories: Rocky Sandy and Sarah Iacobucci will be leading a story hour where they will talk about the importance and power of stories in our lives. Members and friends of the congregation will be telling brief stories. Come, listen, and maybe even tell a story of your own.
July 22	Lindy Hanninen	Mandalas: Mirrors of the Heart: Together we will create mandalas, an ancient circular art form used for meditation and healing. It is an exercise practiced across time and the world by religious and spiritual contemplatives. No artistic talent needed.
July 29	Sue Gleason	Meditation Sampler: Many ancient forms of meditation involve sitting cross-legged on the floor while following the breath, focusing on a koan or visualizing a deity. There are also many active forms of meditation. Anything done mindfully and with full awareness can be a form of meditation. We will sample some guided meditation, as well as mindful movement, eating, chanting, drumming and listening.
August 5	Patrick Hughes	Classic Folk Songs of Protest: Music has played a great part in making people aware of inequalities of the working man, promoting peace and not war and in our need to save the environment. Join me in singing many of the old Pete Seeger style of sing-along songs that will leave us inspired and joyful.
August 12	Dix Littlepage	Poetry Sharing This service is a well loved tradition at First Parish. Bring your favorites poem(s) or select a poem from the many books provided.
August 19	Kanti Mann	George Bowman Zen Retreat: [Note: begins at 9:00] Want to learn and practice meditation? Please join us to participate in a half-day meditation retreat (9 am - 12:30 pm) in the vestry. Two renowned teachers will lead the session, Zen Master Bomun (George Bowman) (singleflowersangha.org), and David Rynick (davidrynick.com), whom some of you may have met during Elea's sabbatical. George and/or David will present a dharma talk on Zen practice, and we'll serve a light vegetarian lunch after sitting concludes. Feel free to sit on chairs or bring your zabutons and zafu cushions. The Zen format is to sit and meditate silently for 30-35 minutes, then walk for 10. During the silent walking session, participants can use the washrooms, drink water, or chop wood (!). Suggested contribution for the morning is $25. Please contact Kanti Mann (kantimann@gmail.com) if you plan to attend so we can plan a lunch count.
August 26	Bob Barnshaw	Non-Violent Comunication: This service will discuss communication principles Marshall Rosenberg presents in his book, Non-Violent Communication, a Language of Life. The discussion will be practically-oriented and focused on how we currently communicate and how we can utilize Rosenberg's ideas to strengthen our personal and professional relationships.
September 2	No service: Labor Day weekend
September 9	Big church resumes: Don’t forget your water.