Author: Pastor

It's one of the biggest weekends of the year at Berkeley Friends Church! Tomorrow night, Friday, 4/15, we'll be having a simple potluck meal to welcome our Quaker Heritage Day speaker, Marlene Pedigo. Everyone is welcome at about 6:30 PM for food and fellowship. If you'd like to come and haven't contacted us, please let John Maurer or Brian Young know. Then, on Saturday, 4/16, QHD 2016 begins at 9 AM! Marlene will be speaking on "Forgotten Friends' Testimonies (?)" The question mark is there because, while some of us may think that we haven't forgotten about important things like eldering and supporting women in the ministry, we may very well find ourselves learning some things... see this post for the schedule and other details. Finally, we gather on Sunday,…

This Saturday, 4/9, is the bi-monthly Harvest Day food collection for the Berkeley Neighborhood Food Project, from 9:30 AM to 12 noon. If you'd like to help, contact Pantry Director Sara Webber; if you forgot your green bag last week and need to bring it in, come by any time between 10 AM and noon. And then this Sunday, 4/10, the Stewardship & Finance Committee will convene first, at 9 AM. Our regular Sunday School classes for adults & kids follow at 10 AM. Then we'll gather for Meeting for Worship at 11 AM,seeking God together in song, prayer, and corporate quiet (this month our open worship Sunday comes one week early).Fellowship time follows worship, and then the Singing Ensemble rehearses at 1 PM. And a reminder: Quaker Heritage Day…

Another First First Day at Berkeley Friends Church approaches--but to start, don't forget that there's a Work Day this Saturday, 4/2, from 10 AM to 2 PM. There's plenty of spiffing up to do in preparation for Quaker Heritage Day in a couple of weeks. Bring gardening tools if you have them, and a brown-bag lunch. Then on Sunday, 4/3, the Trustees are first, meeting at 9 AM. Then our Sunday School classes for children and adults gather at 10 AM. We meet for Worship at 11 AM, bringing our hearts together in song, silence, communal prayer, and a message based on another of Jesus' post-resurrection appearances in John 20. Fellowship time and refreshments follow worship, and then the Missionary, Outreach & Christian Education Committee meets at 1 PM. Don't…

This weekend we remember Jesus' Passion and celebrate his Resurrection! 1) Tomorrow, 3/25, observe Good Friday with the Bay Area peace & justice community with two opportunities for public witness: A) The annual vigil at Livermore Nuclear Weapons Laboratory, this year with the theme "Empire and the Cross: Sowing the Seeds of Hope." Gather at Vasco and Patterson Pass Roads in Livermore at 6:45 AM; worship at 7:00 AM, followed by procession to the gate of the lab and acts of civil disobedience (not required of everyone!). For complete information, see the Ecumenical Peace Institute website. B) A little closer to home, the East Bay interfaith community sponsors "The Crucifixion Continues" at Frank Ogawa/Oscar Grant Plaza, in front of Oakland's City Hall, 12th & Broadway. Gather at 12 noon to…

This Saturday, 3/19, the quarterly gathering of the Christian Friends Conference-Western Region will take place from 9 AM to 3 PM at the Palo Alto Friends Meetinghouse, 957 Colorado Avenue in Palo Alto. If you don't know the CFC, this is a group that we often host, composed of Christian Quakers from around the Bay Area. They meet for Bible reading, waiting worship in the traditional manner of Friends, and fellowship. For more information, see the attached flyer. Then, at BFC on (Palm) Sunday, 3/20, things begin with our Sunday School classes for children and adults, meeting at 10 AM. Worship is at 11 AM, with our monthly time of extended open worship, readings meditating on Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, and corporate song and prayer. A potluck lunch follows, and…

First off, this Sunday, 3/13, is the one where we all lose an hour of sleep due to the return of Daylight Saving Time. Before you turn in on Saturday, set your clocks ahead one hour so we'll see you bright and early on Sunday! Then at BFC, the brightest and earliest will be the members of the Singing Ensemble, gathering for a special rehearsal at 9 AM. Sunday School for adults and kids convenes at 10 AM. In Worship at 11 AM, we will reach towards God in song, stillness, and supplication, and consider together a message focused on Ephesians 5:15-20 and our query #6, on standards of life. Fellowship time follows worship, and then, if needed, the Singing Ensemble may have additional rehearsal time at 1 PM. Even…

Third Month rolls in (lamb-like?), and we have another First First Day: To start, the Trustees meet to attend to the care of our building & grounds at 9 AM. Then our Sunday School classes for children and adults gather at 10 AM. We meet for Worship at 11 AM: song, silence, communal prayer, and a message based on both Mark 10:13-16 and two of our queries--this time, #s 4 & 5, on home, family, youth and the church. Fellowship time and refreshments follow worship, and then the Missionary, Outreach & Christian Education Committee meets at 1 PM. Hope to have you with us as we praise the Lamb together!