First Congregational Church of Rowley

First Congregational Church of Rowley The First Congregational Church of Rowley was established in 1639 by the Reverend Ezekiel Rogers. All are welcome. 175 MAIN ST PO BOX 364 ROWLEY MA 01969

The Fellowship Thrift Shop is located around the back of the building. Offering clothing, home goods, furnishings. Our hours are Thursday 3pm-6pm, and Saturday 9am-1pm.

Rowley's Selectmen will be joining us for this Tuesday's Community Cafe! Free to the community, we invite you to join to...
04/24/2026

Rowley's Selectmen will be joining us for this Tuesday's Community Cafe! Free to the community, we invite you to join together for coffee, treats, and conversation with these wonderful guests. All are welcome đŸȘ»đŸŒž

Greetings friends,Sending warmth of the spirit to you in this Holy Week. Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you...
03/31/2026

Greetings friends,

Sending warmth of the spirit to you in this Holy Week. Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you by Penny Hurley on behalf of the Compassionate Care Network.

Scripture: "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" Romans 8:32

Pics: Penny Hurley

Music: Sunday Will Come Marilee Kay Music

Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smhEDqMDz20

Message: A Walk in Faith

May we walk gently through this week that carries us from Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem, to the Last Supper and the Garden of Gethsemane, through the grief and mystery of Good Friday, to the miraculous and transformative Resurrection of Easter Sunday.

May we experience the community
the possibility
the pain, sorrow, and grief
the astonishment
the deep peace, hope, profound joy and. boundless gratitude - that these days bring in their own time.


"Each time we surrender, each time we trust the dying, we are led to a deeper level... Divine Life is so big, so deep, and so indestructible, that it is able to include death". Richard Rohr



"The seed in the ground must die. To be a seed in the ground of one's very life is to dissolve in that ground in order to become fruitful. One disappears into Love, in order to 'be Love'" Thomas Merton

Greetings friends -Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you by Penny Hurley on behalf of the Compassionate Care N...
03/25/2026

Greetings friends -

Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you by Penny Hurley on behalf of the Compassionate Care Network.

Scripture:
As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples,
2 saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her c**t by her. Untie them and bring them to me.
3 If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
5 “Say to Daughter Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a c**t, the foal of a donkey.’ ”
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them.
7 They brought the donkey and the c**t and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on.
8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.
9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Matthew 21: 1-11

Pics: Penny Hurley

Music: "Palm Sunday" Aaron Shust

Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmpfBt4G1ik

Message: Deeply Human

Anticipation, joy, celebration. Palm Sunday elicits images that reflect the excitement of Jesus' arrival to Jerusalem, greeted by crowds waving palms and proclaiming hosannas. We can envision the scene. We feel it. We are eager to welcome this beginning of Holy Week, culminating in Easter and the joy of Jesus' resurrection. Yet this season of Lent is a time for learning to become more deeply human in the eyes of God. A time for reflection and contemplation. Each year we are invited to discern how we have experienced brokenness and blessing. and how that can bring transformation.

We are called to our highest humanity in adapting to the extremes that occur in our lives. Too often, the beautiful and deeply meaningful Maundy Thursday and Good Friday are considered a passing sadness before Easter. It can be tempting to rush through the pain to get to the celebration. Yet if we look with curiosity, it is often through periods of loss and great challenge that we learn the most about ourselves. And that knowledge can deepen love and compassion for self and others.

May we walk this week with love and intention.

"Above all, there is love, an endless, deep and far-reaching love born from an unbreakable intimacy with God and reaching out to all people, wherever they are, were, or will be."

Henri Nouwen

IMG_9761.HEIC

"Joy and sadness are born at the same time, both arising from such deep places in your heart that you can’t find words to capture your complex emotions.

But this intimate experience in which every bit of life is touched by a bit of death can point us beyond the limits of our existence. It can do so by making us look forward in expectation to the day when our heart will be filled with perfect joy, a joy that no one shall take away from us."

Henri Nouwen

“Compassion asks us to go where it hurts
 it means full immersion in the condition of being human”

Henri Nouwen

Spring greetings to all,Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you by Penny Hurley, on behalf of the Compassionate ...
03/13/2026

Spring greetings to all,

Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you by Penny Hurley, on behalf of the Compassionate Care Network.

Scripture: " Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge Him. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth."

Hosea 6:3

Pics: Penny Hurley

Music: "In The Bulb There is a Flower" Natalie Sleeth

Listen here: https://youtu.be/FH7k63gaVAs

Message: Hidden Gifts

I imagine we are all reveling in the glimpses of green and growth we are witnessing as the snow melts with the rising temperatures!

What a gift to breathe in the warmer air, to inhale the fragrance of the grass emerging from a long winter's sleep.
Hear the birdsong coming to us through the trees, watching robins tiptoe across the melting snow and explore the long-hidden grassy ground. I feel my soul lift in peace as I witness this transition.

The word Lent is derived from the Old English word "lencten", meaning lengthening of days. This is a time to praise our Creator for the beauty of our world, while holding the knowledge that we remain in the wilderness. Even in the darkest of times—the deep snow, the gathering storm clouds—may we remember that the space between the "blue skies" in our lives is filled with the beauty of creation. Simply awaiting its time to emerge.

Hidden gifts.

"We, too, must remember that the road to freedom doesn’t follow a straight line from point A to point B. Instead, it zigzags and backtracks through a discomfort zone of lack, delay, distress, and strain. In those wild places, character is formed—the personal and social character needed for people to enjoy freedom and aliveness." Brian Mclaren

"Spring drew on...and a greenness grew over those brown beds, which, freshening daily, suggested the thought that Hope traversed them at night, and left each morning brighter traces of her steps."
Charlotte Brontë

Greetings to all,Spring will come, no matter the depth of snow. I am sharing aspirational pictures of spring flowers not...
03/03/2026

Greetings to all,

Spring will come, no matter the depth of snow. I am sharing aspirational pictures of spring flowers not yet visible, but nourished through the roots and tree branches, and under the snow and earth - preparing to bloom when the time is ready. Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you by Penny Hurley, on behalf of the Compassionate Care Network. Dedicated with love and deep prayers from the heart to Jen and Chuck Loring.

Scripture:

"But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always."

Hosea 12:6

Pics: Penny Hurley

Music: "Salvation Works" by Jennifer Nettles

Listen here: https://youtu.be/fXpd1mbeXE8 *

*Fun fact: This YouTube video was made by my daughter, Jordan Hurley, 10 years ago. It has had over 38,500 views : ) Jordan loves music and creates high quality videos shot from the crowd, accumulating 11 million views. She is a long distance runner, belonging to Pioneers Run Crew, the first Black and Brown-led Boston running group. She works at Epic Works, a non profit supporting organizations fighting for justice.

Message: A New Light of Salvation

With each season of my life, Lent acquires a deeper meaning, brought by new perspectives. The rigid concepts of fasting and repentance soften over time. The linear thinking that deprivation will ensure salvation. Humility and sacrifice can be learned in new ways, starting within the ego but extending beyond ourselves.

These 40 days can be a time of reflection and transformation. The path to salvation can be a journey during our lives, rather than a desired destination at life's end. We can experience new meaning by developing practices that can foster understanding and compassion for our fellow human beings, all equally beloved by God.

“Men lose all the material things they leave behind them in this world, but they carry with them the reward of their charity and the alms they give.”

Saint Francis of Assisi

“Let us all walk in the same direction, tending toward the same goal, attentive to one another in love and patience.
Pope Francis

"O Lord, make this Lenten season different from the other ones. Let me find you again. Amen."

Henri Nouwen

02/23/2026

Tomorrow's Community Cafe is cancelled due to inclement weather. See you in March!

Greetings friends,Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you by Penny Hurley, on behalf of the Compassionate Care N...
02/21/2026

Greetings friends,

Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you by Penny Hurley, on behalf of the Compassionate Care Network.

Scripture: “Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.”

Psalm 51:2

Pics: Penny Hurley

Music: "Dust I Am" Mark Miller

Listen here: https://youtu.be/czHilAdriD4

Message: Listen to the Quiet

On this day before Ash Wednesday, we are invited to prepare to listen, hear, and grow closer to God through our brokenness and the world's brokenness. One way to embark on this 40 day journey is to listen to the quiet. Prayer, meditation, and contemplation are but a few of the doorways to the Divine.

Today I share a prayer, and some thoughts on Ash Wednesday. I wish you peace.

We forget sometimes that ashes come from fire,

That this soft black powder was once a firm green frond,

Bright and vibrant before it became dry and brittle,

Stiff and fibrous before a flame transformed it into dust.

Every living thing submits to change.

Let’s not fear it.

From seed to plant, palm to ash,

This bit of the earth smudged on our foreheads today

Was carried lovingly in the hands of the Creator.

What fires will we step into this Lent?

What new forms will our souls take

When we encounter the holy blaze of the Living God?

We are—it is true—ash to ash and dust to dust,

But whether in youth or in old age, in life or in death,

Let us be assured,

We are held, and we are God's.

Amen

A Prayer for Ash Wednesday - jesuits.org

đŸ”„ đŸ”„ đŸ”„ đŸ”„ đŸ”„

"Lent marks the forty days leading up to Easter, mirroring the forty days Jesus spent in the wilderness. During Lent, we ask God to show us the world as it is...

Of course, the cross isn’t the end of the story, but this season of grief is carved out to acknowledge the reality of Christ’s sacrifice. And the reality of suffering that so many of our circumstances reflect too —our own pain and grief and despair. Easter is coming, yes. But for now, we sit in the ashes of our broken dreams and broken hearts, knowing that God sits here with us."

Kate Bowler - "Good Enough" Lent

02/07/2026

OUR THRIFT SHOP WILL BE CLOSED TODAY, FEBRUARY 7TH.
We will reopen on Thursday February 12th from 3pm to 6pm.

01/29/2026

Hello to my fellow snow survivors -

Hope you are all warm and well. Today's Inspirational Message is brought to you by Penny Hurley, on behalf of the Compassionate Care Network. It is inspired by every one of you.

Scripture: "Fire and hail, snow and mist, stormy wind fulfilling his word!" Psalm 148:8

Pics: Penny Hurley

Music: Almighty Father Benjamin Harlan & J. Paul Williams

Listen here: https://youtu.be/TxLz4gJfpFE

Message: Rebirth in the Snow

Looking out at my woods I see only the crystalline snow, soft and drifted. Covering every tiny branch and vine still peeking out of the ground. Walking outside this morning, there were chickadees in full song with one another. Fourteen cold degrees Fahrenheit. Singing in the snow! The skies were grey with clouds on the horizon. I felt peace.

The natural world possesses unmatched resilience. Constant stresses and then renewal. Rebirth of the old giving way to the new. Under all the snow, life continues and is nurtured. When I consider all God's creatures and the myriad adaptations they go through, it gives me hope.

And courage, to keep adapting and learning how to lean into this life, no matter where it leads.

The thin snow now driving from the north and lodging on my coat consists of those beautiful star crystals... perfect little wheels with six spokes, without a tire... How full of the creative genius is the air in which these are generated! I should hardly admire more, if real stars fell and lodged on my coat. Nature is full of genius, full of the divinity, so that not a snow-flake escapes its fashioning hand.

Henry David Thoreau, journal, 1856 January 5th
..I shall smile when wreaths of snow
Blossom where the rose should grow...

Emily Brontë

01/25/2026

Due to the impending snowstorm, our January 25th Death Cafe at First Congregational Church of Rowley in has been canceled. Use the time to rest, read a good book, spend some down time with family or simply enjoy a cozy winter moment. See you next month!

01/24/2026

Our Community Cafe will be canceled for Tuesday, see you all next month!

Address

175 Main Street
Rowley, MA
01969

Telephone

+19789483993

Website

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