Church Women United Plan

World Community Day Service Nov. 5

Mime Connie Roberts will interpret the Church Women United’s Annual World Community Day Service November 5 at both a day and evening service. The day service will be held at 11 am in the First Congregational church in Danbury with a bag lunch fellowship immediately after. The evening service at 5:30 will be in the Newtown Congregational Church on West Street with a light supper and fellowship immediately after.

Newtown Youth Service Director Debbie Richardson and Marge Osterman from St Rose Church will be directing the services with the assistance of members from the CWU units of Greater Danbury (including Brookfield, New Fairfield, New Milford, and Danbury) and Newtown/Bethel.

CWU throughout the world will be observing “God’s Passionate Love: Holy Laughter, Holy Tears” on November’s first Friday, the traditional day for the annual World Community Day event. All will be using the basic service that was written by members representing several churches from the Southern California area.

The service will expand on the nature of God through Scriptural references to God who weeps and laughs with us, and of Jesus who shares our humanity with us, according to the authors of the service.

“Often worship denies the deep passions of our hearts and the ways in which God is working through the shared vulnerability of the human condition. In this service we want to consider the possibility that when we laugh, or when we cry, we also reflect God’s image. If there is any truth in that, then where better to express these emotions than in our worship of God who made us?” ask the authors.

Offerings will be taken at both services and will be used for CWU’s national ministries working toward “Making the World Safer for Women and Children.”

Ms Roberts, a member of the Walnut Hill Community Church, was introduced to mime through the Boston Pocket Mime Theater and later to Christian mime with the Living Springs Christian Fellowship Mime Ministry out of Seymour. She has studied in Canada and in Massachusetts with MIMEistry International which was originated by the Rev Todd Farley and his wife, Marilyn, both of whom had studied with the late Marcel Marceau. Ms Roberts has done miming for several church groups in the Greater Danbury area.

Reservations must be made for the evening service and supper. The cost is $4 and tickets can be bought or put on “will call” by contacting representatives from the member churches in Newtown and Bethel or calling Annie Orr in Danbury at 748-1991 or the First Congregational Church in Danbury at 744-6177.

Newtown/Bethel unit representatives are Barbara Gates (United Methodist) at 426-3446; Pat Stroud (St Rose) at 426-5270; Betty Williams (Newtown Congregational) at 270-9931; Doris Schoonmaker (St John’s) at 270-0311; Barbara Gorham (Walnut Hill Community Church, Bethel) at 426-2110; Althea Benedict (St Thomas, Bethel) at 748-2910, or Newtown/Bethel Chairlady, Jeane Roberts at 426-9707.

Beverages and desserts will be available with the bag lunch (bring your own) in Danbury and with the light supper in Newtown.