Memorial Service for Robert Fuller

May 25, 2022

The Memorial Service & Celebration of Life for Robert L. Fuller will be held in the Sanctuary at First Congregational Church of Reading. The service will also be streamed online on Zoom. A small collation reception will follow the service in the Chapel. Click here to view the obituary for Robert Fuller.

Sign up below if you would like to receive the Zoom link to attend this memorial service virtually.

Visitation
Wednesday, May 25, 2022
3:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Douglass, Edgerley & Bessom Funeral Home
25 Sanborn St.
Reading, MA 01867		Memorial Service
Thursday, May 26, 2022
11:00 AM
First Congregational Church
25 Woburn St.
Reading, MA 01867
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Holy Week & Easter Services

April 11, 2022

Join us April 10 through April 17 for Holy Week services to celebrate these sacred days. All services will be both in person and online.

Palm Sunday 10 AM Worship in the Sanctuary in-person & online with palms

Maundy Thursday 7 PM Worship in the Sanctuary in-person & online, reading the Gospel of John as we hear the story of the Last Supper and Jesus’ arrest. This service also includes “tenebrae” (which means “shadows”) where we extinguish candles with each reading. There will also be Communion & interactive prayer stations.

Easter Sunday
5:55 AM Sunrise Service – informal and brief service with Communion at Laurel Hill Cemetery. Meet at the entrance of the cemetery behind Old South Church at 5:55 (for sunrise at 6 AM).

10 AM Worship in the Sanctuary – Traditional worship service with brass quintet in the Sanctuary both online and in-person. …

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April Mission Collection

The Mission Collection for April will be Hygiene Kits for Church World Service

Ten million refugees have now been forced to leave their homes in Ukraine. Some with only the clothes on their backs. We can help in a small but important way with the collection of Hygiene Kits. These kits could mean the difference between sickness and health for these struggling families.

The Kits contain the following seven items:

1 Hand towel (15×28 to 16×32)
1 washcloth Wide Tooth Comb (with at least 6″ of teeth)
Fingernail or toenail clipper
Bath size bar of soap (in package)
1 toothbrush in the original package
10 standard size bandaids

All items should be packed in a gallon zip lock bag and left in the collection box outside the church office.…

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March Mission Collection

March 9, 2022

We are collecting new white socks for the homeless and unhoused during the month of March. These will be distributed to groups like Outdoor Church and Common Cathedral, who work directly with the unhoused populations in Harvard Square and downtown Boston.

To donate, you can drop off socks in the box outside the church office and music room. …

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February Mission Collection

February 7, 2022

This month we are collecting new and gently used linens, towels, and washcloths for Emmaus Inc. Shelter and Services in Haverhill, MA. Emmaus is in particular need for twin sized sheets. Additionally, small packaged snacks (like chips, cookies, etc. in individual serving bags) are needed.

We will be collecting the above items throughout the month in the box outside the office door by the music room.…

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21 Days of Service

January 11, 2022

Each year, we host a day of service with Reading Cares. It’s a morning of activities on the Saturday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s Birthday weekend, where volunteers from all over town, of different ages and backgrounds, come together to spend time working on different projects to give back to various local organizations. When we couldn’t meet last year because of COVID, Reading Cares found a way to create a virtual socially-distanced way to give back. Instead of one morning, we have 21 days of service. Click the button below to read about the various projects you can sign up for. Once you select the project(s) you’d like to participate in, a volunteer will contact you with more details.

Click here to sign up
Click here to donate to the Food Pantry Gift Card initiative
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Christmas Eve at First Congregational Church of Reading

December 9, 2021

This year’s in-person and online Candlelight Service will begin at 5:30 PM in the Sanctuary. Masks must be worn in the church at all times, regardless of vaccination status.

Join us on Zoom or on Facebook Live online. If you’re feeling sick at all or have symptoms, we ask that you join us online for the health and safety of all.

If you don’t already receive our weekly emails, and you’d like to receive the Zoom link for the Christmas Eve service, please email office@churchofreading.org to request to be added.

If you’re planning on attending in-person, you’re invited to Join us as we celebrate Christmas Eve with caroling outdoors on the Woburn Street steps from 4:45 – 5:30 PM (come for the whole time, or just come early for a carol or two before you arrive to worship!) …

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Blue Christmas

Tuesday, December 21, at 7 PM

Each third Tuesday of the month we hold a special “Pressing Pause” service of quiet reflection and meditation. This month, the service will focus on the theme of “The Longest Night” or “Blue Christmas.” December 21st marks the longest night of the year, when the sun sets the earliest and rises the latest in the northern hemisphere. For those who aren’t able to be “jolly” in this season, it can be especially lonely and difficult. If you are grieving, depressed, anxious, lonely, heartbroken, or just fed up with the pandemic, you might find this meditative space helpful.

The Sanctuary will be open with contemplative live piano music and candlelight from 6:30 to 7 PM

From 7 to 7:30 PM there will be a brief service of meditation on the theme of Blue Christmas.

You’re invited to come in, light a candle, listen to the music, and press pause, whether that’s for 10 minutes, 30 minutes, or the whole hour. …

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