Jason Oby Week

Dear Friends,

By the power vested in all of us at First Church, let us hereby declare this past week JASON OBY WEEK in honor of the above and beyond service and gifts of our director of music. On Saturday evening, Jason orchestrated and starred in the Valentine’s Day concert, a delight of pop standards. Bringing together the excellent professional musicians who joined him obviously involved much time and effort. While he was performing this miracle, Jason was also arranging for the loan of handbells, making a perilous trip with the budding Bell Choir to fetch the bells and rehearse (a minor accident occurred, no doubt caused by a motorist who was not a music lover). Our worship on Sunday was unusual and I hope original in several respects, all made possible by Jason with able assistance from the singers of the choir. The bells were played so well, and their rendition of Spirit of Life so moving, that there is talk of the church someday owning a set of handbells.

Not one to rest on his laurels, Jason will join the Rev. Dr. Thandeka, our visiting spiritual guide, for another Evensong this Friday, February 19 at 7:00 p.m. Those who participated in the previous Evensong have been glowing ever since. And then, at 4:00 p.m. on March 20, to cap off the social justice planning weekend with Richard Ford, Jason is planning what some of us might once have called a Hootenanny — a concert for peace and justice featuring favorite folk songs from the anti-war and civil rights movements. Each Sunday and often in between, this gifted music professor, talented tenor soloist, and charming human being sees to it that we are fed and nurtured by marvelous music. Thank you, Jason.

Take my class, please. This is Ash Wednesday, and so begins the season of Lent. It has been observed in our religious movement more by taking something up than by giving something up, as we reclaim the ancient tradition of the season as a time of learning and contemplation. There are any number of “scriptures” you might want to study between now and Easter, from the poems of Mary Oliver to the sutras of Eastern faiths. But if you have not methodically, in a liberal context, lately considered the scope and power of our Great Western Parable and Story Book, allow me to invite you to sign up for the six Tuesday evening “Reading the Bible Again for the First Time” classes I’ll be leading starting on February 23. You can call or email the church office to sign up, or just hit ‘reply’ and I’ll take care of it for you.

Best,
David