The Rev. William Willimon will speak at the first spring Pastors' Forum hosted by the Ockenga Institute at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary at 130 Essex St. in Hamilton on Wednesday, Feb. 17. The forum, "Preaching as God Talk," will focus on preaching as a theologically driven activity. Session topics will include God talk-preaching, theological preaching, cruciform preaching and resurrection preaching. The second forum will be held March 3, with speaker Derek Tidball. The third forum will be held March 24, with speaker Andy Crouch. Sessions will be held in the Kaiser Chapel from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Registration and more information are available www.gordonconwell.edu or 800-294-2774.
A rummage sale will be held at the First United Methodist Church of Hamilton, 391 Bay Road, on Feb. 25, 26 and 27 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Donations will be accepted starting Monday, Feb. 22, and they should be left near the thrift shop door when the church is open. Items should not be left outside, and only items in relatively good shape should be donated. No computers, TVs or typewriters will be accepted. The sale features clothing for all ages, shoes and boots, books, jewelry, and household items. For more information, call 978-468-1256.
"Love and Respect," a marriage enrichment course, will be offered at South Congregational Church starting Feb. 10, with child care provided. The church is at 60 Prospect St. in Peabody. For more information, visit www.southchurch.net/loveandrespect.htm or call 978-531-1964.
Food collection for Acord Pantry will be held Monday, Feb. 15, between 1 and 6 p.m. at Crosby's Market at 15 Walnut Lane in Hamilton. At the store entrance, members of The First United Methodist Church of Hamilton will have lists of food items that the pantry needs. Shoppers may purchase these items for members of the church to collect at the exit, and then deliver to Acord. For more information, call 978-468-1256.
All-you-can-eat dinners are held every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. for $6 at the First Congregational Church in Boxford. Dinner is followed by classes, prayer and "Hour of Power" for youth. The church also offers the "Friday Night Hang" for young people in middle school and high school every Friday from 7:30 to 10:45 p.m.
A sermon series on activist and controversial figures and issues in Unitarian Universalist history is being presented by the Rev. Frieda Gillespie and Fred Mills on Sundays at the Northshore Unitarian Universalist Church, 323 Locust St. (Route 35), Danvers. Upcoming sermons will address Northshore UU Church history, March 7, and the Prophetic Sisterhood, April 18. For more information, contact the church at 978-774-7582 or visit www.nsuu.org.
"The Hero's Journey," a lecture series that interprets the myth and role of the hero as outlined in Joseph Campbell's book "The Hero With a Thousand Faces," will be held at Ascension Memorial Episcopal Church, 31 County St., Ipswich, in Boone Hall, from 7 to 9 p.m. on five consecutive Mondays from Feb. 22 until March 22. The final Monday evening will cost $10 per person and will feature "The Hero's Journey," a presentation of storytelling and songs by singer-songwriter Becky Williams, followed by a workshop to discover the hero in each participant's life. For more information, call the parish office at 978-356-2560. Directions are available at www.AMCIpswich.org.
The North Shore Teen Initiative has launched a Web site, www.nsteeninitiative.org, as a resource for Jewish teens to learn about social action and community service opportunities, trips, and other sponsored programs. NSTI has also created a calendar on its Web site to post events of interest to Jewish teens. Community organizations that have events targeted to Jewish teens are encouraged to send them to Adam Smith at adam@nsteeninitiative.org. For more information, call Smith at 781-244-5544.
"Shalom Families," a new program geared toward parents of infants ages birth to 12 months and hosted by The North Suburban Jewish Community Center in Peabody, aims to connect Jewish families to one another and to the greater Jewish community. Among other offerings, Shalom Families will host a weekly drop-in parents group called "J Babies" that will meet Friday mornings at 9:30 a.m. at the NSJCC at 83 Pine St. in West Peabody, where parents and caregivers can ask questions, share concerns, celebrate milestones and enjoy camaraderie. For more information or to register, visit www.nsjcc.org or contact Miriam Blue at 978-535-2968 or e-mail miriamb@nsjcc.org.
All-you-can-eat dinners are held every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. for $6 at the First Congregational Church in Boxford. Dinner is followed by classes, prayer and "Hour of Power" for youth. The church also offers the "Friday Night Hang" for young people in middle school and high school every Friday from 7:30 to 10:45 p.m.
First Parish Church in Beverly, Unitarian Universalist, serves a meal to the needy at 5:30 p.m. every Tuesday that is provided by Beverly Hospital. A Yahoo group site has been established, for volunteers who work or would like to work at these dinners, at TuesdayNightDinners@yahoogroups.com. The church is at 225 Cabot St. For more information, call Diane Bianchetta at 978-921-0895 or e-mail auraleeddb@aol.com.
The Our Space group at Ascension Memorial Church meets at 6 p.m. on the second Sunday of each month for grades six and seven and the fourth Sunday of each month for grades eight and nine. The church is at 31 County St., Ipswich. For more information, call 978-356-2560 or visit www.amcipswich.org.
The Clifton Lutheran Church, in partnership with Got Books, has a drop-off location where town residents can donate books, videos, CDs and DVDs. Money raised from the purple container with yellow signs at the church, at 105 Humphrey St. in Marblehead, will be used for community charities, including youth scholarships for summer camps. The drop-off site is open to everyone, at any time.
Alternative Church Service, open to all intellectual abilities, will be held on the third Sunday of every month at 5:30 p.m. at North Shore Community Baptist Church, 9 Hart St., Beverly. For more information, call 978-927-2014.
Collections for the Ipswich Food Pantry will be accepted at Our Lady of Hope Parish, 1 Pineswamp Road, Ipswich, in baskets placed near church entrances. Only nonperishable donations will be accepted. The church can be reached at 978-356-3944 or www.ipswichcatholics.org.
