By Lisa Carolin
The Parables worship service at Chelsea First United Methodist Church has become a weekly destination for many members of the community.
Reverend LeAnn Seto, Parables program director at the church, found her calling back in 2016 when she visited the Parables service in Wayzata, Minnesota.
“The Parables service is for families with members of all abilities,” said Seto. “People who are nonverbal or who use devices for speech or mobility have amazing gifts to share with the community, as much as persons who are neurotypical in a lot of ways.”
Seto decided to create a similar service for her church as the one she visited in Minnesota, and now that service is held every Sunday morning at 11 a.m. at Chelsea First United Methodist Church, located at 128 Park St.
“A common response to the service is, ‘I feel God in such new ways here,’” said Seto. “There is a level of spontaneity and a setting aside of order to allow for different ways of being in the world. For example, we have a visual schedule board that provides those who prefer a sense of predictability to help move the picture cards as we go through the service, but we also have therapy dogs, fidgets, and interactive parts to the service that allow people to move around and make noise without feeling disruptive.”
Seto says that some of the strongest participants at the Parable services are people looking for a more progressive and inclusive kind of spirituality.
“Parables is not a program for people who are looking for a quiet, contemplative retreat-like experience,” said Seto. “Sometimes it can feel like sacred chaos, but I find that often it’s when I’m not in control of what’s happening that the people at the service get to respond with the lead of the spirit within them to the situation unfolding, and it’s so beautiful. Every week it’s something new as they are encouraged to trust and accept themselves and each other.”
In the first week of November, members learned a new spiritual practice, focusing on gratitude. Each month the service offers a different focus such as creativity, peace, and joy. Members are currently learning about offering gratitude for themselves each day to better share gratitude with others.
“We also added the names of our saints to paper chain links and added them to our large paper chain shaped heart on the wall where we have been linking together our weekly prayers, reminding us each week of how deeply our lives are all linked and knitted together in God’s love and light,” said Seto.
