Blankets are on their way

Valerie McEntee brings the first 18 blankets from CCSM’s collection to her car for distribution to people living on the street in San Francisco.

Undergraduate and Graduate Scholarships Available!

The Ministry of Children, Youth and Families is soliciting candidates for receiving both undergraduate and graduate scholarship aid.    Selection criteria and application instructions are available at ccsm-ucc.org/adults. You’ll find links with complete instructions and application packets for both the CCSM undergraduate scholarship and the Bullis Graduate School Scholarship there. Deadline for both the undergraduate scholarship and Bullis graduate scholarship … Read More

Music & Art: Chris Yeh, Marty Lee and Amy Brooks

Friday, March 15 • noon-2pm Buckham Room Our program this month will feature CCSM’s own Chris Yeh on violin, ably assisted by violist Marty Lee and Amy Brooks on cello. Remember to bring your own sandwich/salad; beverages and dessert are provided.  A brief business meeting will follow and we will then adjourn to the sanctuary for the special musical program. … Read More

Spiritual Conversations

Mondays, February 25-April 15 • 7:00-8:30pm • Upstairs library The discussion group Spiritual Conversations will read 8 Habits of Love: Open Your Heart, Open Your Mind by Rev. Ed Bacon, the book Penny will use for her Lenten sermons. Retired rector and author Rev. Bacon describes different kinds of love: generosity, stillness, truth, candor, play, forgiveness, and community, and suggests … Read More

March 31 – Council of Ministries and Ministry Fair

Everyone, whether a Newcomer or a “seasoned” member of our community, is encouraged to attend the Council gatherings, which are inspirational as well as practical, as we engage in fellowship, visioning, planning, and caring for one another. As a preface to the Council meeting, during Coffee Hour on March 31 we will offer a Ministry Fair in Kloss Hall.  Each … Read More

Second Hour: March 24 – Progressive Christians Read the Bible (Part 3)

Penny Nixon • This session will look at the Gospels as Memory, Metaphor and Method. As progressive Christians, we do not take the Bible literally. So how do we read them? What role does historicity play in our contemporary interpretation? We will practice with a hands-on “bible study” incorporating the scholarship presented. Join us after worship at 11:45am in the … Read More

Second Hour: March 17 – Progressive Christians Read the Bible (Part 2)

Jorge Perry Bautista • Any time you take something out of context—a word, an event, a person—you misunderstand it. Part of progressive Christianity is to understand the historical Jesus; therefore we have to situate him in his own world, the world of first-century Palestinian Judaism. In this session we will consider Jesus’ context by giving a brief outline of the … Read More

Second Hour: March 10 – Melia Zimmerman

One Love CCSM Senior Higher Melia Zimmerman • Melia is a volunteer for One Love, an organization seeking to educate young people about healthy and unhealthy relationships and galvanizing them as leaders of change. Join Melia on March 10 as she presents short videos about healthy relationships and leads a discussion on the ten warning signs of unhealthy relationships and … Read More

Second Hour: March 3 – Rev. Jim Mitulski

This Is Our Story, This Is OUR Song Rev. Jim Mitulski • Churches continue to debate whether LGBT people should be allowed in the pulpit, and even in the pews, but gay people have always been present in the hymn books! Join us for an hour of song and lecture about queer hymnody—the writers, poets, composers, musicians who have enriched … Read More

Upcoming Second Hour Sundays

Second Hour Sundays Join us after worship on the following Sundays for discussions and topics to engage your heart, mind and soul. March 3 This Is Our Story, This Is OUR Song Rev. Jim Mitulski • Churches continue to debate whether LGBT people should be allowed in the pulpit, and even in the pews, but gay people have always been … Read More

Stay Connected! Sign up for Penny’s Midweek Connections email

Each week, Penny sends out an email with a brief thought-provoking reflection, poem, or quote, as well as what is most current in the life of the church — upcoming events, speakers, teaching series, etc. You don’t want to miss it. If you’re not already signed up for Connections, please go to our news sign-up page and fill out the … Read More

Camp Caz Registration Now Open

Already our kids are signing up for Camp Caz—join the adventure!  Current kindergarteners through second graders can go to Caz July 5-7.  Then it’s time for current sixth through eleventh graders to go, from July 7-13 (two separate camps during the same week at the same location).  And finally July 21-27, current third through fifth graders can go to Junior … Read More

Pancakes for Dinner on Shrove Tuesday!

Shrove Tuesday, March 5, 6:00-7:30pm • Kloss Hall Before you give up anything for Lent, come enjoy Mardi Gras crafts and music, as well as the pancakes, sausage, fruit and more. The youth will help with this CYF-sponsored event—flipping pancakes and serving you.  (They are practicing to be helpful at home!).  Come join us!

Coming of Age Retreat

Parents, please put March 22-23 on your calendars. This month on their third annual Coming of Age retreat, our middle school youth will explore what it means to grow up. Along with studying Bible heroes’ adolescent experiences (most of which didn’t turn out so well), the youth also search for their personal mountain top experience.  The first year they climbed Mount … Read More

Our Lenten Theme: InHABITing Love

Our Lenten theme this year is Inhabiting Love, based on the book by Ed Bacon, The 8 Habits of Love. When I proposed this idea at the Council of Ministries, people enthusiastically signed on to going deeper into love. Perhaps one of the most important questions I can ask myself is, “To what extent is my life loving?” For me, … Read More