Simon’s Says Like yours, my heart was broken again at the news of the school shootings in Georgia earlier this week.  Not only is it a horrible way to begin the school year, it is equally horrible that this is no longer an uncommon occurrence.  You don’t have to be anti-gun to lament the all-too-easy access to them, but I believe the case can still be made for more sensible gun laws.  Nonetheless, we mourn with and pray for those who have been impacted, whether family, friends, classmates, teachers, neighbors and members of the wider community.  All of life is a precious gi ..read more

September 1 Worship Service Information Link to Bulletin Link to Service ..read more

Simon’s Says Did you hear Vice President Kamala Harris last night?  She gave a shout-out to her two Judicial inspirations, Justices Thurgood Marshall and Constance Baker Motley.  A proud Chester moment. It looks like a wonderful weekend for the Chester Fair!  But several of last week’s country fairs were cut short in parts of Connecticut when what has been called a “1,000 year rainstorm” tore through the Naugatuck River Valley, the towns of Seymour, Oxford and Southbury in particular.  More than 100 people were displaced and two lost their lives.  While some of our sis ..read more

The Villager Voice During the second half of my sabbatical I took a few not-too-far from home trips I’ll be sharing with you in a couple weeks.  One was to Provincetown, which has become a favorite destination of ours.  We visited the Pilgrim Monument one morning, and after the dutiful climb to the top, I visited the bookstore in the visitor’s center, and came away with Nathaniel Philbrick’s Mayflower, the story of the Pilgrims’ voyage and first fifty-five or so years in New England.   Philbrick first came to my attention years ago with his books In the Heart of the Sea:&nb ..read more

August 11, 2024 Worship Service Information Link to Bulletin Link to Service ..read more

Below are the links to the online bulletin and service: Link to Bulletin Link to Service ..read more

July 28 Worship Service Information Link to Bulletin Link to Service ..read more

July 21st Worship Service Information Link to Bulletin Link to Service ..read more

July 14th Worship Service Information Link to Bulletin Link to Service ..read more

The Villager Voice On the outside of the west wall of my former church is a large wooden engraving with the following words, which could be easily read by passers-by in car and on foot:  “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind, with all your soul and with all your strength.  And you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  - Jesus. I’m certain it was placed there with the best of intentions.  Still, that did not prevent an angry phone call I received one afternoon by one of those passers-by, who remonstrated that the two commandments are act ..read more