‘How to Pray’ Series at First Congregational Church of Danbury

Pastor Pat Kriss recalled two facts about a childhood friend’s family:

1. The mother, Carolyn Hopkins, Sr., was the lead harpist for the Syracuse (NY) Symphony Orchestra.
2. Their dog, a Dalmatian named Brook, was deaf.

Whenever Carolyn began to play her harp in the family’s living room, Brook would come running from the farthest corner of the house, sit by the harp, and place her chin against the sounding board.

“It was quite clear that Brook not only could hear the vibrations the harp put forth, but enjoyed every bit of her own encounter with music,” Rev. Kriss wrote on the First Congregational Church of Danbury’s website.

Reverend Kriss will begin a two-part series called How to Pray. She will introduce the first installment on Sunday, September 15, at 10 a.m. Her sermon will focus on the incredible experience that immersion in music affords us when we open our hearts to let the notes cascade inside.

How to Pray

“Over the years, I’ve had quite a few congregation members tell me that they don’t know how to pray, or even how to get started,” Rev. Kriss said. “What became clear is that people weren’t recognizing that there are many forms of prayer in which they already participate.

“Music, and listening to music, is prayer,” she explained. “Creativity, whether in the visual arts or writing, is prayer. Even gardening and cooking can be a form of prayer.”

On Sunday, September 22, the second part of this series will explore how our creativity enters into our prayers.

“Any time we intentionally reach out in our hearts to be present with God in a moment where we bring our souls to the dialogue -- that is prayer,” Rev. Kriss wrote in an email.

Worship Services at First Congregational Church

Worship services begin at 10 a.m., and include a children’s sermon that features Gospel magic from the pastor’s husband, Gary Kriss, an accomplished amateur magician.

All are welcome.

About the First Congregational Church of Danbury

The First Congregational Church of Danbury was chartered by the General Court in 1696 as the First Ecclesiastical Society, or governing body of the First Congregational Church. The first meeting house was built, and, in the early days, the Society was the governing body of the town of Danbury.

In 1960, the congregation approved the constitution of The United Church of Christ, and therefore became a part of The United Church of Christ. Today, we are a community of people who have come together to serve God the way that Jesus did -- by working to make God’s vision of a peaceful, just and inclusive world a reality. We believe that God is still speaking in ways that are grounded in ancient Christian understandings, but which are fresh expressions of the Divine presence in contemporary life.

The First Congregational Church is now in its fifth meeting house at 164 Deer Hill Avenue in Danbury, Conn. The current meeting house, along with its splendid organ, was dedicated in 1909.