Why Give?

The New York Times’ Sunday travel section includes an article describing 36 hours in a tourist destination around the world, from classic favorites like Paris to less common highlights like Boise, Idaho. The articles capture the fun and interest in a destination. This same approach - 36 hours at Plymouth - can express why “the World Needs a Church Like Plymouth.” Just think about a recent 36 hours (plus) at Plymouth.

• Friday 5:30pm - Dinner with Pathfinders Young Adults - Volunteers from Plymouth provided a meal and discussion with young adults from Pathfinders about the importance of voting. Later we opened up the gym for basketball. The world needs a church like Plymouth, where people volunteer and provide significant financial support to our partner nonprofits like Pathfinders.
• Saturday 8:30am - 2pm and 8:00pm - 9:30pm - Gym Groups and Narcotics Anonymous - Every day of the week our building gets used by the wider community, including two basketball groups and a fencing club on Saturday mornings and an NA Group in the evening. (Other groups rent/use the building & gym during the week, including UWM.) The world needs congregations that don’t just exist for themselves. Our church home is open to the wider community.
• Saturday 10:00am - Worship with Congregation Shir Hadash - After the shocking violence in Pittsburgh, our congregation joined Shir Hadash, the Reconstructionist Synagogue that meets at Plymouth, for a “Solidarity Shabbat.” (We also sent flowers to our neighbor Lake Park Synagogue.) The world needs people of faith with open hearts. Our congregation truly practices interfaith engagement.
• Saturday 8:00pm - Coffee House Concert - Plymouth recently partnered with The Coffee House to bring its program to our congregation. About forty people came to Saturday’s show; Plymouth volunteers sold coffee & snacks to benefit America’s Black Holocaust Museum and collected food & donations for Friedens. The world needs a congregation forming creative collaborations.
• Sunday 9:30am - Worship - We gathered on Sunday morning to celebrate “All Saints,” a special Sunday in the life of our congregation when we remember friends and family who’ve passed away and to pray for healing in our own lives. The world needs a church where worship connects us to the sacred and to the deepest part of our souls.
• Sunday 10:30am - Church School - Using a curriculum created by our own congregation, volunteers gather up our young people for a time of learning, games, and activities. The children learn how to think about Bible stories and put their faith into action. The world needs a church which encourages people of all ages to wonder, to question, and to think for themselves.
• Sunday 10:30am - Smorgasbord - After worship our adults choose from a variety of options, from the literal smorgasbord of treats in coffee hour to a chance to engage justice issues through the arts to a strategic planning conversation about our congregation. The world needs a church that finds ways to talk, play, learn, and grow together.

This 36-hour snapshot captures some of the many ways our congregation impacts our lives and that of the wider community. We welcome people no matter what to gather for worship, discover meaning in our lives, grow closer to God, and serve our neighbors, near and far.

Gifts and offerings make possible all the good we do as a church. Not just for 36 hours one weekend but all the time our congregation makes a difference in our community because of the generosity of our friends and members.

The world needs a church like Plymouth. And our church needs your support to continue our faithful and transformative work. Please consider making a gift of financial support to Plymouth.