(704) 599-9810 | Worship Sundays @ 10:55 a.m.
(704) 599-9810 | Worship Sundays @ 10:55 a.m.
Feb 12, 2026
Feb 11, 2026
February is Black History Month—a time to honor Black history, creativity, scholarship, and prophetic witness. This month, Holy Covenant’s Freedom to Read initiative lifts up Black authors whose works have been challenged or banned, yet whose voices continue to shape conscience and courage.
Why we’re focusing here: When books by Black authors are removed or restricted, it narrows the story of who matters and whose experiences are worth hearing. Protecting access to these voices protects truth itself.
Reflection prompt: What voices have shaped your understanding of justice—and how can we make space for stories that challenge and transform us?
Alongside our February focus, we’ve added additional titles that broaden the conversation and keep the circle wide.
📘
Adult Fiction:
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest (Stieg Larsson)
📗
Young Adult:
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Jesse Andrews)
🎧
Audio:
When They Call You a Terrorist (CD edition)
Each week this month, a new Briefing will appear on the display table—an invitation to return, reflect, and continue learning.
#HCUCCEverywhere #ProgressiveClergy
Jan 27, 2026
January is recognized as National Poverty in America Awareness Month—a time to look beyond stereotypes, tell the truth about hardship, and choose solidarity with our neighbors. This month, Holy Covenant’s Freedom to Read initiative highlights stories that illuminate poverty, resilience, and the sacred dignity of every person.
Why we’re focusing here: Poverty is not rare—and not abstract. Millions of people in the U.S. live with unstable housing, food insecurity, low wages, and barriers to care. Awareness is only the first step; compassion and action follow.
Reflection prompt: Where do you see resilience in these stories—and what would it look like to turn empathy into action in our own city?
Alongside our January focus, we’ve added new titles across multiple sections—stories that widen the circle, deepen the conversation, and keep the light on for every reader.
📘
Adult Fiction:
Keeping Faith (Jodi Picoult),
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Stieg Larsson),
The Other Boleyn Girl (Philippa Gregory)
📗
Non-Fiction:
Queerfully and Wonderfully Made: A Guide for LGBTQ+ Christian Teens (edited by Leigh Finke)
🌈
Young Adult:
Flowers for Algernon (Daniel Keyes),
Hatchet (Gary Paulsen)
🐦
Picture Books & Young Readers:
First Strawberries: A Cherokee Story (retold by Joseph Bruchac),
Last Stop on Market Street (Matt de la Peña)
Visit the Banned Book Library to explore these titles, read short reviews, and discover how stories can open hearts and widen justice.
#HCUCCEverywhere #ProgressiveClergy
Jan 02, 2026
Making worship more accessible for our hearing-impaired members and friends.
At Holy Covenant, we believe worship should be something we can hear, feel, and share together. Recently, our Communications Team recognized that some of our hearing-impaired members have not been fully able to hear the spoken word, prayers, music, and announcements during worship and special events. Listening to that feedback, we took a concrete step to make our sanctuary more accessible.
Thanks to a generous donation, Holy Covenant has received a new wireless hearing assist system for use during worship services and church events. The system includes:
These devices send the worship audio directly to a personal receiver, helping those with hearing challenges better hear the service, sermon, music, and announcements.
Before worship or an event, speak with a greeter or usher to request a hearing assistance receiver. A volunteer will help you:
After the service or event, please return the receiver so they can be cleaned, sanitized, and recharged for next time. Personal ear buds are yours to keep.
We are grateful to share that this system was provided to Holy Covenant as a donation. It is a gift offered in the spirit of hospitality and justice — a reminder that every body and every story belongs in our worship life. If you live with hearing loss, or simply find it hard to catch every word in the sanctuary, we hope you will feel free to try one of these devices. And if you notice someone who might benefit, please let them know this resource is available.
At Holy Covenant, we believe God’s Spirit moves through every voice — spoken, sung, signed, whispered, and even held in silence. These hearing assist devices are one more way we are learning to listen to one another with care. If you have questions about using a device, or suggestions about other accessibility needs in our worship life, please email [email protected]. Your feedback helps us create a more welcoming space for all.
Dec 25, 2025
Christmas 2025 · Love Made Visible
Christmas does not rush us. It meets us in quiet light — in softened hearts, in love that shows up without conditions. This season, Holy Covenant offers not an announcement, but a blessing.
Not because everything is perfect. Not because the world has suddenly found peace. But because Love came near.
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” — John 1:5
This Christmas blessing unfolds in gentle frames — candlelight, stillness, breath, and hope. It invites us to slow down long enough to remember what we already know: that God comes quietly, that love takes flesh, and that grace does not wait for ideal conditions.
“And the Word became flesh and lived among us.” — John 1:14
May Christmas meet you gently.
May love linger longer than the season.
And may the light you helped tend keep shining —
quietly, bravely, and well.
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace.” — Luke 2:14
#HCUCCEverywhere #ProgressiveClergy #MerryChristmas
#LoveMadeVisible #AllIsWell #GodWithUs #OpenAndAffirming
Dec 24, 2025
Advent • LOVE • “All is Well”
For our final “How Are You?” of Advent, we’re not offering a check-in. We’re offering a blessing — a holy refrain for weary hearts: All is well.
Not because life is perfect. Not because everything is easy. But because on Christmas, Love comes near — in flesh, in breath, in presence — and the world is never the same again.
LOVE • “All Is Well”
The angels announced it first — peace on earth, love arriving, light refusing to go out:
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace…” — Luke 2:14
“The light shines in the darkness…” — John 1:5
“And the peace of God… will guard your hearts…” — Philippians 4:7
“All is well, all is well. Lift up your voice and sing! “
Let that be your whispered prayer when the night feels long.
Let it be your steady breath when the world feels loud.
Let it be your reminder that Love has come — and Love remains.
Today, name one place where Love is calling you to show up — quietly, faithfully, and well.
A text you’ve delayed.
A kindness you can offer.
A boundary you need to keep.
A rest you need to receive.
Love doesn’t have to be dramatic to be real.
Sometimes love is simply showing up — and letting the light do what the light does.
Dec 12, 2025
Each year on the First Sunday of Advent, Holy Covenant gathers to mark the beginning of the season of hope through the beloved tradition known as The Hanging of the Greens. This sacred moment blends worship, symbolism, and community as the sanctuary is lovingly prepared for the coming of Christ.
The tradition includes:
Through sight, sound, and shared ritual, the Hanging of the Greens invites the congregation to prepare not only a space of worship, but the inner landscape of the soul—welcoming the One who is, who was, and who is still to come.
These days are more than events, they’re opportunities for us to express who we are as a community of faith, a people who care about peace, justice, love, and our neighbors. A people who are committed to following the coming birth of the one we call Jesus.
— Rev. Christopher Czarnecki
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.” (Isaiah 9:2) As Advent unfolds, may this light guide our waiting, deepen our hope, and remind us that love is already breaking into the world.
#HCUCCEverywhere #AdventAtHC #HangingOfTheGreens #AdventHope #ProgressiveClergy
#UCCFamily #OpenAndAffirming #LoveMadeVisible
Dec 11, 2025
Advent Week 2 • PEACE • “How Are You?”
As we enter Advent Week 2, Holy Covenant turns toward the gentle, grounding presence of PEACE — not the peace of perfection or silence, but the peace that shows up in real lives, real relationships, and real moments of grace.
This month of Reflect & Celebrate asks again the question at the heart of our December journey:
How are you… really?
Scripture reminds us that peace is both gift and calling:
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.” (Colossians 3:15)
This week, our Consistory leaders share how peace is showing up for them — in small practices, quiet moments, and intentional choices.
Advent Week 2 • PEACE • “Where Is Peace Showing Up for You?”
This week we asked, “As leaders, where is peace showing up for you?
Here is Dawn’s Response:
~Through active listening with an open mind;
~By honoring the unique gifts given to those with whom I interact;
~By appreciating God’s creations through being still, listening, and admiring nature around me.
— Dawn Robinson, Consistory Vice President
We ask you the same question — where is peace meeting you this week?”
As you move through Advent Week 2, take a moment to pause:
Where is peace showing up for you?
In a breath?
In a conversation?
In a choice to listen, forgive, or rest?
Peace often arrives quietly — but it arrives.
Dec 03, 2025
Advent Week 1 • HOPE • “How Are You?”
As December begins, Holy Covenant steps into a month of Reflect & Celebrate with a simple, honest question: How are you… really? In this first week of Advent, we lean into HOPE — not the loud kind, but the steady kind that keeps showing up even when the headlines are heavy and our hearts feel tired.
The prophet Isaiah reminds us:
“Those who hope in the Holy One shall renew their strength.” (Isaiah 40:31)
All month long, we’ll be lifting up our Pastor and Consistory leaders as we ask how it is with your spirit, your hope, and your heart.
Advent Week 1 • HOPE • “How Is Your Hope Holding Up?”
I might be the worst person to ask about hope, because I’m a pastor and pastors are expected to be full of hope. I mean, aren’t we the ones who are supposed to lead people toward more hopeful lives and a more hopeful world? The truth is, when something unexpected happens or a new circumstance pops up in my own life, my mind usually rushes straight to the worst-case scenario. I worry. The anxiety hormones kick in. I paint a bleak picture in my head, and I start mentally doomsday prepping.
And I don’t think that’s bad or wrong, I actually think it’s just human. And honestly, to me it’s a sign that I deeply care about whatever has stirred up those emotions or feelings in the first place.
I don’t tend to think about things like hope or faith as things that rise and fall depending on the circumstance. What I’ve come to understand is hope is created by doubt and things like doubt and fear start to show up because uncertainty feels present. Yet beneath all of that, what I know to be true is that God’s love is real, that things can be made better and will be made better, no matter the circumstances.
So, in a way, all there is…is hope.
For me, hope is the choice to step out of that fear, or at least loosen our grip on it, even if it’s just for a moment, and to recognize that whatever has us dreaming up worst-case scenarios or doomsday bunkers isn’t real. I’m not saying it doesn’t exist in a physical sense or isn’t causing us pain or hurt or grief, what I’m saying is that I believe God is repurposing it in a way we cannot yet see, which makes hope real.
There is so much in the world right now pulling at our heartstrings and that tempts us to just want to throw the remote at the TV. But what I think hope does, is it opens us to the awareness that God is still present in our lives. For me, hope isn’t something we have more or less of at times, I tend to believe it’s just something we learn to notice. And we notice it because God simply is.
-Pastor Chris
As we move through Advent Week 1, we invite you to pause and gently ask yourself:
How am I, really? How is my hope?
If your hope feels thin or tired, let your church family hold some of it with you. You are not alone, and your honest heart is welcome here.
Nov 28, 2025
Community Thanksgiving Event · Third Annual
At Holy Covenant, Thanksgiving is more than just turkey — it’s about belonging, connection, and radical welcome. 🌈🧡 What began two years ago as a way to make sure no one spent the holiday alone is quickly blossoming into a beloved traditions of our church family. Whether you’re a longtime member, a newcomer, a neighbor, or just looking for a place to be — you belong here.
This year, we opened our hearts and tables once again, including to several families from Charlotte Family Housing, a Charlotte-based organization that provides temporary housing for families of all shapes and sizes as they transition to a long-term, stable home. Their presence reminded us of the transformative power of community and our shared commitment to hope and healing — a living picture of what it means to gather at a true Table of Grace.
“This dinner began as a way to make sure no one spent Thanksgiving alone… and it’s become an important time for many. For me, being so far from our family back in St. Louis, it’s been deeply meaningful to share this holiday with others who’ve become like family.
I’ll say it every time if I have to — All are welcome.”
– Pastor Chris
Our 2025 Community Thanksgiving video, “Thanksgiving Words of Grace”, weaves together what this gathering is truly about: a softer rhythm, a shared table, and a story told in gentle frames. It invites us to slow down long enough to notice the quiet ways God carries us — in a warm light in the window, in the comfort of a familiar chair, in a simple table set with love, and in the relief of whispering, “I made it this far.” Rest, gratitude, and grace met us here.
This gathering comes to life because of the many who pour love, labor, and grace into it.
We offer heartfelt thanks to:
#HCUCCEverywhere #ProgressiveClergy #TableOfGrace #CommunityThanksgiving #RestInGod #ThanksgivingGrace #GratitudeAndGrace #RadicalWelcome
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