Book Groups
WEEKLY
Awakening the Spirit Meets every Monday from 12 to 1:30 p.m.
Rev. Tom Carr, facilitator. Join us as we discuss Brian D. McLaren’s, Do I Stay Christian? A Guide for the Doubters, the Disappointed, and the Disillusioned. McLaren publicly addresses the powerful question that many people―including pastors, priests, and other religious leaders―are asking in private. McLaren’s answer is to combine his own experience, as well as that of thousands of people who have confided in him over the years, to help readers make a responsible, honest, ethical decision about their religious identity. We can say both Yes and No to the question of staying Christian, McLaren says, by shifting the focus from whether we stay Christian to how we stay human. If “Do I stay Christian?” is the question you’re asking―or if it’s a question that someone you love is asking―this book offers valuable insight
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For more information, please contact Jennifer deSimas at jpwebsterdir@whfirstchurch.org or 860-232-3893.
MONTHLY
Food for Thought, Meets on first Tuesdays of the month from 5-6:30 p.m.
JPW Library Staff, facilitators. Next Meeting: February 4. We will be discussing Samba of Survival: My Light Within, a memoir by Maria Leda Souza Hogan. The book is a vivid account of life on the margins of Brazilian society, chronicling the author’s childhood in the “favelas (slums) of Brazil, where hunger, abuse, lack of opportunity, poor sanitation, and food scarcity compel the poor into a desperate, unpredictable dance in order to survive: A samba of survival.”
Dr. Hogan will be here with us at First Church on January 23 — click here to register for your seat.
Please bring your own dinner; refreshments and desserts are served.
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For more information, contact Jennifer or Molly at jpwebster@whfirstchurch.org or 860-232-3893.
Believe in YourSHELF Tween Book Group
6th-8th Graders — This One’s for You!
A book group especially for students in Grades 6-8! We meet (with snacks!) on the third Sunday of the month, 10:15 a.m. in the Community Room. Bring a friend!
Third Sunday of Each Month, 10:15 a.m. in the Community Room
January 19, 2025 book: El Deafo
Questions? See Molly at the Book Mobile or in the JPW Library.
Resources for external book groups
We are happy to lend sets of multiple copies to any book group.
Browse NonFiction Browse Fiction
Contact us to learn more!
Located beneath the First Church Meeting House, the JPWL is the go-to place for books and media related to sermons, Sunday School, social justice issues, and so much more!
Phone: 860-232-3893
Email: jpwebster@whfirstchurch.org