Women's Circle
The newly formed Women's Circle will be meeting on Sunday July 31, after services. Potluck for lunch at noon, meeting to begin at 12:30. We will be posting ideas and getting women connected for smaller sub groups and talking about the future.
To RSVP, or for any questions, contact jacki Weber at Jacki.weber@uusm.org.
Date / Time:
Sunday, July 31, 2022 - 12:00pm - 2:00pm
Contact Name:
Jacki Weber
Lunches for Bunches
Sunday, March 13 at 11:30 - Join us under the shade structure after the service as we prepare brown bag lunches for our homeless neighbors. We'll pack sandwiches, fruit, chips, beverages, and desserts for as many as we can. Afterward, we'll deliver them to Turning Point - a 55-bed temporary housing shelter for homeless people in Santa Monica.
Contact hunger@uusm.org for more information. If you're unable to join us, you can support the Hunger Task Force by choosing Hunger Fund under Program Support on our Online Donation webpage.
Date / Time:
Sunday, July 31, 2022 - 11:30am - 12:00pm
Nature Journaling by Dorothy Steinicke - Zoom/Online
Nature Journaling – Leaves
August 28, 2022 2:30pm-4pm
We will devote this session of nature journaling to leaves. Participants are
requested to come to the on-line session with a variety of leaves to observe
and journal on. Having colored pencils and a magnifying glass may enhance
the experience but are not required. We’ll take the time to take a close look
and record our observations by writing and drawing.
A lifelong lover of the outdoors, Dorothy Steinicke has more than twenty
years experience introducing people to a love of the natural world. She leads
hikes for children and for adults in Topanga Canyon, Ballona Wetlands, and
Dockweiller State Beach.
Date / Time:
Sunday, August 28, 2022 - 2:30pm - 4:00pm
"At the Center of All Beauty" - UUSM Sunday Service - July 17, 2022
Rev. Hannah Petrie, preaching
Chela Metzger, worship associate
This is a service based on the book by Fenton Johnson on the lessons of solitude and the creative life.
We welcome back to our pulpit the Rev. Hannah Petrie who in her 18-year career has served several full-time parish ministries including Neighborhood Church in Pasadena and UU Church of Studio City. She serves on the board of Pasadenans Organizing for Progress (POP), as Secretary, and on the Altadena Town Council where she resides.
Embedded Video:
"Exodus Moments" - UUSM Sunday Service - July 10, 2022
Rev. Liz Murphy, preaching
Sue Bickford, worship associate
In a season of immense change, we’ll be turning to one of the classic stories of transition: Exodus. It’s a story of freedom, of fear, of an upside-down world… sound familiar? This Sunday we’ll re-examine this story — which is one of our 6 UU sources — to glean wisdom, hope, and strength. These days are full of “Exodus Moments.” How might we respond to these thresholds with connection to community, with compassionate love, with a conviction for justice?
Rev. Liz Murphy (she/her) is a Chaplain Resident at the VA Hospital in Loma Linda, CA. She is also the affiliated community minister at Orange Coast Unitarian Universalist Church. She previously served as the Interfaith Programs Assistant at the University of Southern California’s Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, as well as a chaplain intern at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Liz graduated from the Claremont School of Theology with a Master of Divinity in 2020. Originally from Pittsburgh, she lives in Los Angeles with her wife, Hilary.
Embedded Video:
"Wandering in the Wildreness" - UUSM Sunday Service - July 3, 2022
Rev. Michael Walker, preaching
Amy Brunell, worship associate
Wandering in the Wilderness is about journeys and quests. About the journey not the destination. Not all who wander are lost.
The Rev. Michael Walker, who was ordained into the Unitarian Universalist ministry at the First UU Society of San Francisco in 2010, after completing studies at the Pacific School of Religion and in internship at the First UU Church of San Diego. For the next 11 years, he provided interim ministry services in Massachusetts, Washington, Pennsylvania, California and Illinois – in that order… Many cross-country moves! He has taken a hiatus from parish ministry to complete requirements for his PhD studies, and currently lives in Los Angeles.
Through his adult life, Mike has been a nurse, Navy veteran, ordained minister, and now a PhD Candidate in Clinical Psychology at Pacifica Graduate Institute, after completing studies and currently working on a dissertation about trauma experienced in religious settings. He has therapeutic experience working with groups, adult and adolescent individuals, and adult couples, in secular and religious settings, including the military, LGBTQ+ and HIV communities, and in private psychological practices. He maintains his connection to the UU movement as a Community Minister.
Embedded Video:
Let All That You Do Be Done in Love
Theme:
Quest
Sunday, July 24, 2022 - 10:30am
Rev. Rick Hoyt-McDaniels
“In our social justice work, UUs say we “Side with Love.” Isn’t it interesting that “love” never appears in our Seven Principles? The title comes from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, which is also included as a reading in our hymnal, #713, 1 Corinthians, 16: 13-14. Keep alert, stand firm in your faith, be courageous, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.
The Rev. Rick Hoyt-McDaniels, a Unitarian Universalist minister working in the Los Angeles area, grew up in Santa Monica. He received a Masters of Divinity from the Claremont School of Theology in 1998 and was ordained and fellowshipped with the Unitarian Universalist Association later that year. During his 24 years in the ministry, he has served UU congregations in La Crescenta, Santa Clarita, Los Angeles, and Long Beach. Currently, he serves the UU Fellowship of Kern County in Bakersfield, CA. He lives with his husband in downtown Los Angeles.
I Owe God a Death
Theme:
Quest
Sunday, July 31, 2022 - 10:30am
Rev. Tom Owen-Towle
Worship Associate:
Amy Brunell
Our American culture remains death-defying and our UU movement failed, a decade ago, to embrace mortality during our re-envisioning process of our purposes and principles. We have work to do. If we earthlings wish to live more robustly and caringly, we must consent to die. As naturalist Wallace Stegner put it, “I owe God a death.”
The Rev. Dr. Tom Owen-Towle is entering his 56th year of ordained ministry and is the author of two dozen books on personal relationships, social justice challenges, and spiritual growth. Tom and his life-partner, the Rev. Dr. Carolyn Sheets Owen-Towle, are the active parents of four children, seven grand-children, and one great-grandchild.
Tom is a guitarist and parlor magician who, in “refirement,” sings with seniors, mentors youth, and volunteers with San Diego’s homeless. He also lectures and conducts workshops on the core themes of conscious aging and mindful dying. He is honored to be returning to the pulpit of our Santa Monica congregation and preaching on “I Owe God a Death!”
At the Center of All Beauty
Theme:
Quest
Sunday, July 17, 2022 - 10:30am
Rev. Hannah Petrie
Worship Associate:
Chela Metzger
This is a service based on the book by Fenton Johnson on the lessons of solitude and the creative life.
We welcome back to our pulpit the Rev. Hannah Petrie who in her 18-year career has served several full-time parish ministries including Neighborhood Church in Pasadena and UU Church of Studio City. She serves on the board of Pasadenans Organizing for Progress (POP), as Secretary, and on the Altadena Town Council where she resides.
Exodus Moments
Theme:
Quest
Sunday, July 10, 2022 - 10:30am
Rev. Liz Murphy
Worship Associate:
Sue Bickford
In a season of immense change, we’ll be turning to one of the classic stories of transition: Exodus. It’s a story of freedom, of fear, of an upside-down world… sound familiar? This Sunday we’ll re-examine this story — which is one of our 6 UU sources — to glean wisdom, hope, and strength. These days are full of “Exodus Moments.” How might we respond to these thresholds with connection to community, with compassionate love, with a conviction for justice?
Rev. Liz Murphy (she/her) is a Chaplain Resident at the VA Hospital in Loma Linda, CA. She is also the affiliated community minister at Orange Coast Unitarian Universalist Church. She previously served as the Interfaith Programs Assistant at the University of Southern California’s Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, as well as a chaplain intern at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Liz graduated from the Claremont School of Theology with a Master of Divinity in 2020. Originally from Pittsburgh, she lives in Los Angeles with her wife, Hilary.