On Sunday, October 7, the Woodridge Congregational Church in Cranston celebrated World Communion Sunday in a joint worship service with the First Korean Church of Rhode Island, UCC.  Both congregations use the sanctuary for Sunday morning worship each week, one service at 10 AM and the other at noon.  And both churches have been worshiping in their fellowship hall since June while major renovations of the sanctuary were undertaken by the Woodridge Church.  Sunday was the first Sunday back in their beautiful modern sanctuary; new carpet and new pews making the space stunning. 

Transitional Conference Minister The Rev. Marilyn B. Kendrix brought greetings from the Rhode Island Conference and shared some of her dreams for the Together, As One Conference – a coming together of the three Conferences of the UCC in southern New England.  In her remarks, she invited people in the pews to join with her and the Conference Ministers of Connecticut and Massachusetts to dream about how to make our little corner of the world a more just and loving place.

The Rev. Kendrix joined with both the Rev. Scott Spencer and the Rev. Yongwhan Noh to serve communion to the combined congregations.  Pastor Noh preached the sermon, “We Are All Children” and longtime member Dr. Jhung W. Jhung translated his words into English for the Woodridge congregation.

Both churches ate lunch together following worship with a mixture of traditional Korean dishes and classical Italian American fare. The Together, As One Conference is all about collaboration and community.  These two churches have been at it for quite some time.