This annual tradition is hosted by the Deacons downstairs in Fellowship Hall.

The Deacons will provide turkeys and a festive table. Please bring a side dish or a dessert. Sign up for help with clean-up is also much appreciated. Please RSVP and sign up here.

All are invited and welcome!

Gather, a new progressive faith community in Austin-Oak Park, is a Fellowship of Affirming Ministries church in “affirming relationship” with the UCC. They meet on Thursday evenings at L!VE Café (163 S. Oak Park) for a refreshing, relevant look at biblical texts, and they are delighted to have us join them.  All are welcome! 

The group is led by Tim Wolfe. Join us this week as we continue the series - FEAST! 5 WEEKS OF DIVINE DELICIOUSNESS  Our focus this week is "The Harvest Feast: Reaping and Rejoicing". This week we will meet in Fellowship Hall at Pilgrim Church.

In Jesus’s day, the agricultural year was framed with two harvest feasts: the Festival of Weeks (or Pentecost) in the early summer and the Festival of Booths (or Sukkot) in late autumn. Both functioned as quasi-Thanksgiving holidays, with Pentecost celebrating the first fruits of the new season and Sukkot rejoicing in the final harvest. But these feasts also obtained all kinds of added meaning and symbolism. As we conclude our Feast! series, we’ll look at our own feasts and contemplate how we might make them more inclusive and joyful and meaningful.

All Pilgrim members are welcome to join us as we host the November meeting of Cluster 3 churches, within the Chicago Metropolitan Association, UCC.

The Chicago Metropolitan Association’s 103 congregations are spread across the beautiful city and out into its near suburbs. CMA is rich in heritage and worship experiences, and represents the intricate web of our wider church as people struggle together over issues, meet each other in the middle in ministry partnership, and lift one another up in shared hope.

Due to the large size of the CMA, churches are divided into "clusters" to facilitate working together and ensure that all voices have the opportunity to be heard. Pilgrim is a member of Cluster 3. You are invited to join us at this meeting to expand your familiarity with our sister churches and engage in supporting one another on the issues that matter most.

The Sacred Conversations on Race Committee invites you and your friends to participate in a mini-version of Michele Norris’ Race Card Project (see www.theracecardproject.com) during the month of October, culminating in an after-church discussion today.

The Race Card Project involves you and anyone you invite to participate reflecting on the word ‘race’ and distilling your feelings, observations, or reactions down to six words. We invite you to add your anonymous six-word contribution to the pink box located on the piano in the parlor. These will be transcribed, posted and reviewed, and then the group of submissions will be discussed during our program today.

Today is Veterans Day and we are honored today to have Zachary Moon, Chicago Theological Seminary Assistant Professor of Practical Theology as our guest preacher.

Professor Moon’s research interests include pastoral and practical theologies, trauma studies, theological education and pedagogies, and topics related to military service, post-deployment reentry and reintegration, and military moral stress. Moon’s research currently focuses on the role of military chaplains and congregations in ministry with veterans and military families.

We are also delighted to have the Sing To Live Community Chorus join voices with our Pilgrim Choir today. It promises to be an engaging and spirit-filled worship service.

All are welcome! Please join us!

Rev. Michelle Hughes leading worship. Rev. Zachary Moon preaching. 

Adult Education at Pilgrim is a wonderful resource and sustenance for anyone on a faith journey. Meeting in the chapel at 9:45 am Sunday mornings from September to May, it is a time for adults to come together and gather strength for the journey, from God and from each other.

Every season of adult education has a theme. This session, hosted by Kathleen Lojas, is the 3rd in a 4 week series on grief.

For children ages 3-12
Admission is FREE

Join us and bring a friend or two to a fun-filled morning of stories, crafts, games and adventures - all featuring November’s #1 main bird, the turkey.
Join us and find out the answer to the riddle!

For more information and to RSVP (don’t delay) contact Maureen at maureen.deahl@pilgrimoakpark.org

Gather, a new progressive faith community in Austin-Oak Park, is a Fellowship of Affirming Ministries church in “affirming relationship” with the UCC. They meet on Thursday evenings at L!VE Café (163 S. Oak Park) for a refreshing, relevant look at biblical texts, and they are delighted to have us join them.  All are welcome! 

The group is led by Tim Wolfe. Join us this week as we continue the series - FEAST! 5 WEEKS OF DIVINE DELICIOUSNESS  Our focus this week is "Banquets: Parties and Parables".

Often Jesus begins or ends one of his stories with a banquet. We read these high-end party scenarios and assume we get the picture. Perhaps, to a certain extent, we do. But banquets in Jesus’s day carried all kinds of ethical and class implications. Cuisine was important, but plenty of other dynamics came into play: status, gender, ethnicity, service, dress, host obligations, entertainment, and on and on. This week we’ll investigate the social scene of Jesus’s day. Think of it as Miss Manners meets the Gospels. It will be rich indeed!

Join us at Pilgrim Congregational Church, 7:30 p,m. for this special session.

Join Pastor Michelle for the next New Members class. Please let her know if you will be attending. michelle.hughes@pilgrimoakpark.org

Everyone is invited to after worship for Trivia & Tacos – and a special “experiences” silent auction event!

Instead of the usual items, we’re going to offer a dozen experiences for you to choose from – like someone to help with yard work/snow shoveling, babysitting, homemade chili dinner for 4-6, a weekend getaway, etc. Plus, we’ll also have a raffle for a few delicious custom homemade holiday items.

Of course, there will also be a tasty make-your-own taco bar, yummy desserts and team trivia – with Wisconsin-themed prizes for the winning team. All this for only $10/adult, $5/children under 12 years old.

RSVP here https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040a48aca928a20-trivia and mark your calendars now to join us in having a great time for a great cause.

At worship we celebrate our relationship with God, we strengthen our relationship with each other, and we explore what it means to "do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God".

Please join us on this special Sunday when we will celebrate an All Saints Liturgy. You are invited to remember those who have passed away by bringing to church pictures of our loved ones. These will be placed on the communion table during the service.

All are welcome!

Rev. Michelle Hughes leading worship and preaching.  Focus scripture:  Mark 12: 28-38

Adult Education at Pilgrim is a wonderful resource and sustenance for anyone on a faith journey. Meeting in the chapel at 9:45 am Sunday mornings from September to May, it is a time for adults to come together and gather strength for the journey, from God and from each other.

Every season of adult education has a theme. This session, hosted by Mary Leger, is the 2nd in a 4 week series on grief.

Join the Jewish community of Oak Park River Forest and the Near Western Suburbs, for the soulful celebration of the Sabbath, with prayer, singing and joyful worship to bring us together and to lift us out of the darkness into the light and peace of the Sabbath

The Shabbat services will be held at West Suburban Temple Har Zion in partnership with Oak Park Temple B’nai Abraham Zion.

All are welcome but please let us know if you are planning to attend by emailing office@wsthz.org or by calling 708.366.9000 so that we can prepare accordingly.

Rabbi Adir Glick, West Suburban Temple Har Zion

Rabbi Max Weiss, Oak Park Temple B’nai Abraham Zion

Gather, a new progressive faith community in Austin-Oak Park, is a Fellowship of Affirming Ministries church in “affirming relationship” with the UCC. They meet on Thursday evenings at L!VE Café (163 S. Oak Park) for a refreshing, relevant look at biblical texts, and they are delighted to have us join them.  All are welcome! 

The group is led by Tim Wolfe. Join us this week as we continue the series - FEAST! 5 WEEKS OF DIVINE DELICIOUSNESS  Our focus this week is "All Saints Day: Feasts for the Faithful".

Long before Christians had the means and freedom to build the vast cathedrals they named for their celebrated forebears they honored their saints with “feast days” (a.k.a. “holidays”) characterized with special memorial services and sacred meals. As church-bound Christians, we get the worship side of things. What we may miss is that feasting was itself a form of worship in Early Church culture. Why? For starters, worship and celebration were inseparable in the minds of first-century Jesus followers. A special All Saints study looks at the connection between our hallowed ancestors and the ancient practice of feasting.

Middle School and High School youth are invited to join us as we close out our observance of Hispanic Heritage month with a Mexican themed meal (please bring $5 to help cover the cost) and the movie Coco!

Despite his family's baffling generations-old ban on music, Miguel dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz. Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the stunning and colorful Land of the Dead following a mysterious chain of events. Along the way, he meets charming trickster Hector, and together, they set off on an extraordinary journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel's family history. This is a movie about what family means. A movie about the choices we make, and the roads not taken.

RSVP to gloria.cox@pilgrimoakpark.org if you’d like to join us.

One of the important contributions that the concept of interim ministry has made to the church is an emphasis on the actual experience members were having in their congregations. Understanding how we experience being a faith community is an important first step in informing how we might approach the future.

During the month of October, we will be doing exactly that. We have scheduled four small group meetings. Each church member is asked to sign up for one of the sessions. During this first round of small group meetings, we will explore your experiences being a member of Pilgrim and compose a statement about our past and future longings. These group statements will be shared with the wider congregation as a beginning point in discerning who Pilgrim is being called to be in the future. These sessions are interactive and fun, so please make sure you participate.

There are 4 date/time options - 10/11, 10/14, 10/16 and 10/28. Signup sheets are in the rear of the sanctuary.

Today is Higher Education Sunday. In the UCC, this is the Sunday we lift up the institutions of higher education which are affiliated with our denomination.

We are honored today to have Scott Haldeman, Associate Professor of Worship at Chicago Theological Seminary as our guest preacher. Specializing in the history, theology and practice of US Protestant worship, Professor Haldeman is also interested in the less formal ways human beings ritualize themselves in relation to various categories of identity, such as race/ethnicity, gender and sexuality.

All are welcome! Please join us!

Rev. Michelle Hughes leading worship. Professor Scott Haldeman preaching. 

Adult Education at Pilgrim is a wonderful resource and sustenance for anyone on a faith journey. Meeting in the chapel at 9:45 am Sunday mornings from September to May, it is a time for adults to come together and gather strength for the journey, from God and from each other.

Every season of adult education has a theme. Over the next 4 weeks we will focus on grief, beginning with this session hosted by Mary Leger.

We are excited to invite you to A NIGHT OF COLLABORATION IN CONCERT featuring pianist Andrew Barnes Jamieson, former Oak Parker and member of Pilgrim in collaboration with dramatic baritone Darnell Ishmel offering original musical compositions. Mr. Ishmel's arrangement of John Stainer's God So Loved the World will also feature Pilgrim's Chancel Choir under the direction of Dr. Wilbert O. Watkins.

Pilgrim native Andrew Barnes Jamieson is dedicated to spiritual transformation through his work as pianist, keyboardist, composer and arranger. With a passion for gospel music, he is the Minister of Music at Bethel Community Presbyterian Church, the music director at Pacific School of Religion, and plays piano for City of Refuge, UCC in Oakland, California.

Darnell Ishmel grew up singing, playing, and directing gospel music at his local church. After finishing his studies in Music and African American studies at the University of Michigan, he went on to make his professional debut with Cincinnati Opera. Hailed by the New York Times for his, "show-stealing" stage presence, "rich baritone, precise diction and superb comic timing" in his New York opera debut, he is a flexible vocalist and an innovative recitalist who constantly explores programming in an effort to enhance the recital tradition, attract new audiences, and preserve the art form.

To learn more about their story, 'It's sort of a homecoming for me': OPRF grad returns for gospel collaboration at Oak Park church, click here

For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.

Join us at the last Farmer's Market of the season and enjoy delicious, fresh donuts!

Last farmers’ market means chocolate frosted and apple cinnamon frosted donuts at the Pilgrim Donuts line. You’ll want to get there early to ensure that you don’t miss this end-of-the-year treat.

Made for you today by Pilgrim Congregational Church!

Gather, a new progressive faith community in Austin-Oak Park, is a Fellowship of Affirming Ministries church in “affirming relationship” with the UCC. They meet on Thursday evenings at L!VE Café (163 S. Oak Park) for a refreshing, relevant look at biblical texts, and they are delighted to have us join them.  All are welcome! 

The group is led by Tim Wolfe. Join us this week as we continue the series - FEAST! 5 WEEKS OF DIVINE DELICIOUSNESS  Our focus this week is "Bread of Heaven: Manna and Metaphor".

In the Exodus narrative, the daily provision of manna to feed the Israelites also provided reassurance that God was with them. Very quickly, bread acquired significance as a way of signifying awareness of God’s dwelling among the people. Jesus takes this idea to its metaphorical extreme when he calls himself the Bread of Life, which helps explain why Christians spend so much time making bread (or donuts), talking about bread, and blessing bread before it’s broken and shared. This will be a special evening as we break bread together!

The Community of Congregations will hold our Fall Meeting at the First United Methodist Church of Oak Park, located at 324 N Oak Park Avenue. This will be a facilitated conversation addressing the hopes and reactions and uncertainties that have been raised in our community, stemmed largely by America to Me. It will be a time for people of diverse faith to reflect together, to listen, and hopefully identify next steps that we as members of the faith community want to make happen. The facilitator will be Reesheda Graham-Washington, founder of L!VE Cafe and the co-author of recently published Soul Force: Seven Pivots toward Courage, Community, and Change.

Enjoy some of the most important and influential American popular songs and jazz standards from the early 20th century including the wonderful music of Harold Arlen, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Hoagy Carmichael and much, much more.

Click here to purchase advance tickets

Middle School and High School students (and their friends) are invited to join us for a light lunch (please bring $5 to help cover the cost) and discussion of the book, “A Night Divided” by New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen.

Described as "absorbing and deeply suspenseful, with plenty of ticking-clock tension... an eye-opening glimpse of history", this work follows the brave journey of 12-year-old Gerta and her older brother, Fritz, as they try to leave East Berlin. Gerta's father escaped right before the Wall went up, but Gerta spots him across the Wall and deciphers his secret message that she is to dig her way through freedom. It’s a story of intrigue and courage – and I’m sure we’ll have a great discussion!

The books are available at the Main Branch of the Oak Park Library – just ask for Pilgrim Young Adult book club at the front desk.

At worship we celebrate our relationship with God, we strengthen our relationship with each other, and we explore what it means to "do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God".

All are welcome! Please join us!

Rev. Michelle Hughes leading worship and preaching.  Focus scripture:  Mark 10:35-45

Adult Education at Pilgrim is a wonderful resource and sustenance for anyone on a faith journey. Meeting in the chapel at 9:45 am Sunday mornings from September to May, it is a time for adults to come together and gather strength for the journey, from God and from each other.

Every season of adult education has a theme. This week we continue our discussion of UCC General Minister and President John Dorhauer’s book, “Beyond Resistance”.

In this time of evolution for the mainline Protestant church and of transition for Pilgrim. “Beyond Resistance” helps to provide context for what might be next if we’re willing to let our faith lead us to explore new possibilities. Please join us for an informative and engaging discussion, led by Rev. Gloria Cox.

All men are invited to join us for great food, fellowship and fun.  Mike would appreciate help in providing the meal. For more information, and to let Mike know what you can contribute, RSVP to mhanes003@yahoo.com by October 1st.

Join us for our October Book Club meeting to discuss "Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders & Birth of the FBI" by David Grann

In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Indian nation in Oklahoma. After oil was discovered beneath their land, they rode in chauffeured automobiles, built mansions, and sent their children to study in Europe.
      Then, one by one, the Osage began to be killed off. The family of an Osage woman, Mollie Burkhart, became a prime target. Her relatives were shot and poisoned. And it was just the beginning, as more and more members of the tribe began to die under mysterious circumstances. 
      In this last remnant of the Wild West many of those who dared to investigate the killings were themselves murdered. As the death toll climbed to more than twenty-four, the FBI took up the case. It was one of the organization’s first major homicide investigations and the bureau badly bungled the case. In desperation, the young director, J. Edgar Hoover, turned to a former Texas Ranger named Tom White to unravel the mystery. White put together an undercover team, including one of the only American Indian agents in the bureau. Together with the Osage they began to expose one of the most chilling conspiracies in American history. 

For more information, please email: office@pilgrimoakpark.org.

One of the important contributions that the concept of interim ministry has made to the church is an emphasis on the actual experience members were having in their congregations. Understanding how we experience being a faith community is an important first step in informing how we might approach the future.

During the month of October, we will be doing exactly that. We have scheduled four small group meetings. Each church member is asked to sign up for one of the sessions. During this first round of small group meetings, we will explore your experiences being a member of Pilgrim and compose a statement about our past and future longings. These group statements will be shared with the wider congregation as a beginning point in discerning who Pilgrim is being called to be in the future. These sessions are interactive and fun, so please make sure you participate.

There are 4 date/time options - 10/11, 10/14, 10/16 and 10/28. Signup sheets are in the rear of the sanctuary.

One of the important contributions that the concept of interim ministry has made to the church is an emphasis on the actual experience members were having in their congregations. Understanding how we experience being a faith community is an important first step in informing how we might approach the future.

During the month of October, we will be doing exactly that. We have scheduled four small group meetings. Each church member is asked to sign up for one of the sessions. During this first round of small group meetings, we will explore your experiences being a member of Pilgrim and compose a statement about our past and future longings. These group statements will be shared with the wider congregation as a beginning point in discerning who Pilgrim is being called to be in the future. These sessions are interactive and fun, so please make sure you participate.

There are 4 date/time options - 10/11, 10/14, 10/16 and 10/28. Signup sheets are in the rear of the sanctuary.