On this Sunday, April 6th,
there will be a brief orientation to Unitarian Universalism in the minister's
office after both worship services at 10:30 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. The sessions are informal and designed to
answer your questions, whatever they may be. Everyone is welcome, whether you
are new to the church or have been attending for a while.
Monday, March 24, 2014
Three-Part Orientation to UUism
Are you new to this church?
Have you recently signed the membership book, or
are you considering joining? Would you like to learn more about
Unitarian Universalism? Axel Gehrmann and the Membership Committee
will offer a three-part orientation at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesdays, April 9th, 16th,
and 23rd.
The
sessions focus on individuals’ religious journeys, discuss UU history,
beliefs and polity, as well as explore the various groups and
activities of this particular church. If you are interested, please
sign up using the sheet on the Minister’s Office door, call the
church office, or e-mail Axel at minister@uucuc.org.
Monday, March 17, 2014
Participate in a Coffeehouse
UUs of all ages are invited to perform at the Coffeehouse on Saturday, April 19th at 7:00 p.m. in
an informal environment enriched by cookies and desserts! The Social Action
Committee would like you to consider a song, dance, instrumental, poem, or
other performance that reflects a social justice theme. You could also honor
the recently departed folksinger Pete Seeger, who edited the songbook Rise up Singing. “Follow the Drinking
Gourd,” “Go Down Moses,” “Cotton Mill Girls,” “The Times They are A’Changing,”
anyone?
Look for sign-up sheets on Sundays between services in Fellowship Hall . Space is limited, so sign up early! For more information, contact Sam Beshers at beshers@illinois.edu or Sarah Wisseman at suwissem@gmail.com.
Look for sign-up sheets on Sundays between services in Fellowship Hall . Space is limited, so sign up early! For more information, contact Sam Beshers at beshers@illinois.edu or Sarah Wisseman at suwissem@gmail.com.
Strike Up the Band: New Music Committee
The
purpose of the recently formed Music Committee is to enhance the musical
offerings of our church both during services and during our social gatherings.
We will work closely with all three choir directors, the Music Director, and
the Worship Committee to identify new kinds of performances and groups that can
be formed within our UU community. Contact Sarah Wisseman at suwissem@gmail.edu
to contribute ideas or become a member.
One of our
ideas is to start a church band. The first step is to identify those of you
that currently play or used to play an instrument. Choir Director Matt Sheppard
led a band at the UU church in State College and has agreed to help us organize
here as well. Instrumentalists of all ages are encouraged to show their
interest. Once we know what instruments we have to start, we can begin looking
into making further plans.
Contact
Jerry Carden at jcarden@illinois.edu if you want to join the band
and/or play at the upcoming April 19th Coffeehouse.
Monday, March 10, 2014
Update on Two-Year Initiative Proposals
This Saturday, March
15th is the deadline for submitting ideas to the church-wide
two-year social action initiative. So far, we have received three submissions
for consideration. I know of a couple others that are pending.
To summarize what we
have so far, two focus on the theme of racial justice/mass incarceration, and
the other focuses on homelessness. The pending ones I know of address immigration
justice and environmental issues.
When all of the ideas
have been submitted, they will be shared with the congregation for
consideration. When two or more proposals are very similar, we will combine them
into one, but will note the number of proposals represented therein.
After a theme is chosen
at the May 4th congregational meeting, a steering committee will be
formed to guide the work of the two-year initiative.
We look forward to
hearing from you.
Education Justice Project Presentation and Potluck
UUCUC invites you to an evening of dinner and discussion with Mr. Francis Ssuubi, Founder and Executive Director of Wells of Hope Ministries, titled “Harkening the Voice of Children of Incarcerated Parents: The ‘Wells of Hope’ Story.”
This event begins with a potluck dinner in Fellowship Hall at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, March 10th and continues at 7:00 p.m. with a presentation by Mr. Ssuubi. If you plan to attend the potluck, please follow this alphabetical break-down when preparing a dish to share: Last names ending with A-K bring salad or vegetable; L-R bring rice, potatoes, or bread; S-Z bring dessert. Protein will be provided.
This event is co-sponsored by Incarceration in America: Collateral Impacts of Incarceration Focal Point Group (funded by the Graduate College of UIUC), First Mennonite Church of Champaign-Urbana, Urbana-Champaign Friends Meeting, and the Education Justice Project.
Here is a brief biography of the featured speaker:
Mr. Francis Ssuubi is the Founder and the Executive Director of Wells of Hope Ministries, a non-governmental organization that provides effective and compassionate programs for prisoners and their families in Uganda, with great attention being given to children with parents on death row. He has advocated and spoken on the rights of children of prisoners in Belgium, USA, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland, at the UN. His talk explores the vulnerabilities and stigmas of children of the incarcerated and presents a model of practice for their care and support, with particular attention to the needs of girls and women. Developed within an African context, he will argue that the Wells of Hope model has wide applicability.
This event begins with a potluck dinner in Fellowship Hall at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, March 10th and continues at 7:00 p.m. with a presentation by Mr. Ssuubi. If you plan to attend the potluck, please follow this alphabetical break-down when preparing a dish to share: Last names ending with A-K bring salad or vegetable; L-R bring rice, potatoes, or bread; S-Z bring dessert. Protein will be provided.
This event is co-sponsored by Incarceration in America: Collateral Impacts of Incarceration Focal Point Group (funded by the Graduate College of UIUC), First Mennonite Church of Champaign-Urbana, Urbana-Champaign Friends Meeting, and the Education Justice Project.
Here is a brief biography of the featured speaker:
Mr. Francis Ssuubi is the Founder and the Executive Director of Wells of Hope Ministries, a non-governmental organization that provides effective and compassionate programs for prisoners and their families in Uganda, with great attention being given to children with parents on death row. He has advocated and spoken on the rights of children of prisoners in Belgium, USA, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland, at the UN. His talk explores the vulnerabilities and stigmas of children of the incarcerated and presents a model of practice for their care and support, with particular attention to the needs of girls and women. Developed within an African context, he will argue that the Wells of Hope model has wide applicability.
STEWARDSHIP MATTERS
Thanks and a Gentle Reminder
Once again, we can celebrate
the ways in which we are deepening our community and spiritual connections. An
11.5% increase in your donations is necessary to fund the Strategic Plan you
worked so hard to develop and which you approved at our Annual Meeting last
spring. Your Stewardship Team has wonderful news… Early returns indicate your
ideas are being supported with your dollars. As of February 26th, we
have 44 pledges, with an average individual/family increase of 11.1%. Many
thanks and congratulations!
And now for the gentle
reminder: By mid-March, our Finance Committee members need to know how much
money we have pledged so they can develop our budget for next year, send it to
the BOT for their April meeting, and have it ready to present to you for
approval at our Annual Meeting on Sunday, May 4th. Whew!
So,
here is our collective challenge. In order to meet our goals, 44 pledges, or
50, or even 100 are not enough. We need support from our entire congregation,
and that means you. Pledges were due
February 28th. If you have
not sent us your pledge, please mail it or bring it to the church as soon as
possible. If you are able to give the amount you donated this year, or increase
it to help accomplish our goals, or even if you need to give less because
circumstances have changed… all will be welcome. It is the commitment to our
church home that is important.
If you have not been
contacted or if you have not received your pledge packet, please contact Mona
Shannon by phone at 217-649-5049 or via e-mail at mona4shannon@gmail.com
Thank
you for supporting our church home.
–
Kathleen Holden and Kathleen Robbins,
Co-chairs Stewardship Team
On Our Upcoming Guest Speaker
On Sunday, March 23rd, the
church will welcome Rev. Martin Woulfe,
who will deliver a sermon titled “The Spirituality of Carl Sagan”
Rev.
Martin Woulfe was raised in South Holland, Illinois and graduated from Loras College
in Dubuque, Iowa in 1982. Raised as a Roman Catholic, he discovered UUism in
1987 when he first attended the First Unitarian Society of Chicago. While in
seminary, Martin worked at Columbus/Maryville, an emergency service shelter for
abused and neglected youth.
Martin
served for two years as the Interim Minister at the UU Community Church in Park
Forest, Illinois; the members there ordained him in March 2003. Afterwards, he
accepted a call from the Abraham Lincoln UU Congregation in Springfield, where
he has served as their first full time minister for nearly eleven years.
Thursday, March 6, 2014
Shared Offering for March: Channing-Murray Foundation and Red Herring Vegetarian Restaurant
Half the cash collection and all designated
checks from the collection each Sunday in March will be shared by
Channing-Murray Foundation and Red Herring Vegetarian Restaurant (a program of
CMF).
Channing-Murray
Foundation (CMF) is the Unitarian-Universalist Campus Center at the University
of Illinois. CMF is known throughout the campus community for its good music,
great food, and the opportunity to engage in nonjudgmental spiritual
exploration. The UU Young Adult Group meets on Tuesdays and Wednesdays for a
shared meal and discussion of topics of interest to young adults. Sunday
services take place in the chapel during the university academic year. In
addition, writing, dance and arts workshops flourish, and the chapel hosts a
wide array of justice oriented community forums, concerts, poetry slams, and
student theatrical productions. CMF hosts social justice films and forums each
semester which are co-sponsored by the UU Social Action Committee.
The Red
Herring Vegetarian Restaurant (RHVR) has been serving the Urbana-Champaign
community for over 30 years and serves all vegan food. It was started by the
Channing-Murray Foundation as a way to put Unitarian-Universalist principles
into action. RHVR is non-profit, so all the money made goes back into making the
restaurant better for their cooks and customers, and to keeping their prices
accessible for those trying to live a healthy vegetarian/vegan lifestyle.
Cooperatively run, the Herring serves lunch five days a week from 11:00 a.m. to
2:00 p.m. RHVR is committed to providing healthier lunch alternatives by
cooking from scratch and using local ingredients whenever possible. RHVR also
hosts International Vegan Fusion Dinners every week on Wednesday evenings from
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., featuring food from a different country each week.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)