Since 1989, millions of people have joined in displaying and wearing blue bows during the month of April in recognition of National Child Abuse Prevention Awareness Month. Here at Fourth Church we tie those blue bows to the trees along Michigan Avenue, creating a visually stunning and thought-provoking reminder for all who pass by.

Help is needed at Coffee Hour next Sunday, March 30, when we will be tying blue bows on twine in the Commons to later use outdoors in April.

Help is also needed on Tuesday, April 1. The day will begin with a Blue Bows Interfaith Prayer Service and press conference at 9:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary. Afterwards volunteers will tie blue bows on our Michigan Avenue trees. To volunteer to help on April 1, please contact Anne Ellis.

There is opportunity again this Easter to remember loved ones by making contributions toward the flowers that will decorate the Sanctuary on Easter Sunday. It's easy to do this online, indicating the amount you'd like to give in the Easter flowers box, then entering the name of the person(s) you'd like to honor in the "Notes" section on the Gift/Payment Information web page.

You can also make contributions by completing the form found in the church literature racks.

Please note that in order for the names of those honored to appear in the Easter Sunday bulletin, all contributions and names must be received by Friday, April 11. 

Palestinian author, pastor, and theologian Mitri Raheb will talk about his latest book, Faith in the Face of Empire: The Bible through Palestinian Eyes, on Tuesday, April 1 at 6:30 p.m. at Fourth Church. In light of the current geopolitical turmoil, after the hopes of the Arab Spring, and in the face of the latest round of U.S. shuttle diplomacy, Dr. Raheb asks, Can we imagine another Middle East? Can there be a different future?

Mitri Raheb is President of Bright Stars of Bethlehem, President of Dar al-Kalima University College in Bethlehem, and President of the Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land. He is also the Senior Pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem, Palestine, and is the author of several books, including I Am a Palestinian Christian and Bethlehem Besieged.

Time:  

   Tuesday, April 1, 6:30 p.m. 

Place:  

   Fourth Church 

A new Presbyterian hymnal has been published, which Fourth Church will begin using this summer. In addition to all the beloved and familiar traditional music, it also includes new settings of more Psalms as well as world music and meditative music from the Taizé community.

We'll be sharing more information about the new hymnal, and our use of it, in the weeks ahead, butin the meantime, as we prepare to transition from the current hymnals to the new ones, we invite you to take part in a hymnal art project. This Lenten project uses materials from some of the already retired hymnals, which were previously in Blair Chapel. Stop by the Fine Arts Council's table during morning Coffee Hour this Sunday or contact Rob Koon to learn more.

Associate Pastor Adam Fronczek will lead one of two "Journey to the Cross" Lenten Bible Studies on Tuesday, April 8 at 12:00 noon at Chicago Temple (77 W. Washington). The second study, led by Father Don Senior, will be held on Tuesday, April 15. All are invited to join this opportunity to reflect on the meaningful events in Christ's life leading up to Good Friday and the cross. Light refreshments will be provided.

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All are invited to join members of the Fourth Church Mission Committee and the Illinois-Indiana Regional Organizing Network as they travel to Springfield this Tuesday, March 25 to take part in a legislative lobby day. For more information about this advocacy opportunity, visit the Mission table at morning Coffee Hour this Sunday or contact Nancy Davis.

Join Women@Fourth Connect and Fourth Church Moms' Groups for a joint social outing next Thursday, March 27 at 6:00 p.m. at Vineyard Vines, an apparel store on Michigan Avenue. All women are invited to attend and are encouraged to print or bring electronically this coupon to receive 10 percent off purchases and have 10 percent of the evening's proceeds go towards Chicago Lights.

There will also be a drawing for a dinner cruise on the Odyssey. Light refreshments will be offered. RSVP to Liz Nickerson.

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How does the United States protect its national security? What role does the Constitution play? Explore these questions and more at "National Security and the Constitution," a Center for Life and Learning special-topic class led by David Barnum, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, April 1-10 at 10:30 a.m. in the Gratz Center.

Dr. Barnum will lead discussion about how the U.S. Constitution allocates governmental responsibility in protecting national security for the conduct of foreign affairs and the use of military force.  

An outlined syllabus with reading materials for this four-part course is available upon registration. To register, contact Ashley Elskus.

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Please join us in welcoming those who were received into Fourth Church membership this March:

JaCee Burnes

Jennifer Rakstad

Callie Thompson

Michael Wallace

Sermons

from previous weeks are posted online at www.fourthchurch.org/sermons 

Friday, March 27, 2014
3:00 p.m. in the Sanctuary
Covenant Christian High School Choirs

Free concert   

Friday, March 28, 2014
12:10 p.m. in the Sanctuary
John W. W. Sherer, organist
(Organist and Director of Music at Fourth Church)

Monday, March 31, 2014

7:30 p.m. in the Sanctuary

Voce Chamber Choir from Xavier High School

Free concert 

Friday, April 4, 2014
12:10 p.m. in the Sanctuary    

Svetlana Krasnova, pianist
Cosponsored by the Musicians Club of Women  

Friday, April 11, 2014
12:10 p.m. in Buchanan Chapel
Lisa Lee, soprano