Calendar of upcoming events:

 

Sunday, 11/6

                        Neighboring Faiths trip to Hare Krishna Temple

                        Middle School parent support group meeting, 5pm (see announcement below)

Sunday, 11/13

                        Children’s Choir rehearses, 9:00-9:15

                        Tree Planting at UUCCSM (see announcement below)

Sunday, 11/20

                        Thanksgiving Multigenerational Service

Sunday, 11/27

                        Faith in Action Sunday in RE – Donation drive for homeless youth served by Common Ground

Sunday, 12/18

                       Winter Holiday Pageant

 

 

This Week in RE:

 

9:00

 

Preschool: “Each Tree is Special” This week our preschool class will explore trees as a wonderful part of the natural world around us.  Meets in the NW room of the cottage.

 

Kindergarten-1^st Grade:  “Wanda’s Roses” This week we’ll explore our fifth UU principle – in Spirit Play referred to as the “Blue Promise”: Believe in our Ideals and Act on Them” – with a story about a little girl who made her dream of a rose garden come true.  Meets in the SE room of the cottage.

 

2^nd-3^rd Grade:  “Service Workshop” This week we’ll continue our exploration of November’s theme of SERVICE with special stories and activities that help children think about the losses as well as the gains that come as they grow and change.  Meets in the NE room of the cottage (formerly known as “the couch room”).

 

4^th-5^th Grade:  “My Name is Felix and This is my Double Helix!”  This week in the UUniverse Story program, we’ll learn about the structure of DNA as the common building block for all life on Earth and to see what a single stand of DNA looks like (as extracted from a strawberry!). Meets in the mural room at the end of the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

 

6^th-7^th Grade:  “Hare Krishna Field Trip” This week our Neighboring Faiths classes will continue their study of Hinduism with a field trip to the Hare Krishna Temple.  The group will leave from the front courtyard promptly at 10:45 am and expect to return to UUCCSM at 2:00 pm.  Because of today’s field trip, there will be no separate NF class during the 9:00 service.  Youth who attend at 9:00 may stay in the sanctuary for the service, or are invited to serve as assistants with younger classes in the cottage.

 

8^th Grade:  This Sunday in Coming of Age we’ll begin to think about “spirituality.”  Meets in Room 2, the second room down the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

 

9^th-12^th Grade:  Meets at 11:00 only this week.

 

11:00

 

Preschool: “Each Tree is Special” This week our preschool class will explore trees as a wonderful part of the natural world around us.  Meets in the NW room of the cottage.

 

Kindergarten-2^nd Grade: “The Empty Pot” This Sunday we’ll explore our fourth UU principle – in Spirit Play referred to as the “Green Promise”: Grow by Exploring what is True and Right in Life – with a story about an emperor who held a flower-growing contest to choose his heir. Meets in the SE room of the cottage.

 

3^rd-5^th Grade:  :  “My Name is Felix and This is my Double Helix!”  This week in the UUniverse Story program, we’ll learn about the structure of DNA as the common building block for all life on Earth and to see what a single stand of DNA looks like (as extracted from a strawberry!). Meets in the mural room at the end of the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

 

“Hare Krishna Field Trip” This week our Neighboring Faiths classes will continue their study of Hinduism with a field trip to the Hare Krishna Temple.  The group will leave from the front courtyard promptly at 10:45 am and expect to return to UUCCSM at 2:00 pm. 

 

8^th grade meets at 9:00 only.

 

9^th-12^th Grade:  This week we’ll brainstorm possible service projects for the YRUU group to do together.  Make sure to come so you can take part in the decision-making process! Meets upstairs to Room 1, the first room at the top of the stairs above Forbes Hall.

 

 

Announcements:

 

·         THIS SUNDAY Support Group for Parents of Middle Schoolers Forming – First meeting Nov. 6:  Resa Foreman will host a gathering of middle school parents and youth at her home on the evening of Sunday, November 6^th, at 5pm.  Please bring a dish for a potluck dinner.  Youth will have a movie night while parents gather in a separate room for support and encouragement.  Please contact Catherine@uusm.org for the address and to rsvp.

 

·         The Return of the Friendly Beasts! Once again, our pre-K through 5^th-grade children will sing “The Friendly Beasts” song at our holiday pageant on Sunday, Dec. 18, at both services.  Kris Langabeer will begin rehearsing the kids Nov. 6 for about 10 minutes in each classroom.  She’ll begin with the preschoolers and then move from classroom to classroom rehearsing the older kids.  There will not be a rehearsal Nov. 20 because the kids will remain in the sanctuary for an intergenerational service. Please mark your calendars: a dress rehearsal for all Beasts will occur Saturday, Dec. 17, from 9:30-10:30 a.m. in the sanctuary.  We’ll need parent/teacher help in supervising/entertaining/feeding kids on Pageant day.  For more info, see the November church newsletter or contact Kris at klangabeer@gmail.com or 310-396-5905.

 

·         Tree Planting at UUCCSM, November 13, Sunday, 10:15am-2pm: Come and help us make our Sanctuary Green!  Let's get our carbon-offsets firmly rooted (Trees)!   The Green Living Committee and the Facilities Development Committee join together to make this event a reality.  All RE families are invited to take part following your children’s RE classes – join in with the group when you’re ready!  Wear your old grubby clothes to church and get dirty after the service planting trees in the Upper Courtyard Area.  We need your help (and sweat) to get our landscape plans going.  Invest in our Sanctuary and make it Green! We are going to start digging holes right after the first service, 10:15am.  We will continue through the second service (being very quiet, maybe taking a break) then continue with putting in the Trees after the Second Service at 12:30pm.  We are putting in 15 trees and assorted plants along the planter at Forbes Hall, South Planter. Please come join us and get dirty!  Be Green!  Let's Green this Sanctuary!

 

·         De Benneville Pines Winter Youth Camps:  Week-long and week-end camps throughout the year provide opportunities for rest, recreation, exploration and making new UU friends from around the Pacific Southwest District (Southern California, Arizona and Las Vegas) at our beautiful mountain retreat.  Located at 6800 feet in the San Ber­nardino National Forest, de Benneville is surrounded by towering pondersa pines, oaks and cedars. Barton Creek is nearby and Jenks Lake within walking distance. It is the perfect location to en­joy the natural beauty of the forest.  Delicious meals are served in Homet Lodge, with vegetarian/vegan entrees offered if requested with registrations. Cabins are comfortable if rustic, with shared bathrooms and showers. Dorms sleep six, cabin rooms sleep four and de­luxe accommodations include a shared kitchen and sitting area. The registration fliers and forms for the Elementary, Jr. High and Sr. High Winter YoUUth Camps are now available on the deBenneville web page.  Go to www.uucamp.org and click on the Calendar link.  Under the date for each camp is a link to the flier and registration form. Direct links are at:

 

Middle School– Coming of Age – Food & Faith (Grades 6-8) 12/2-12/4 http://www.debenneville.org/camps/2011/PSWD/jrhigh_fall/JrHFall2011.html

Not just for Coming of Age groups, any youth in Jr. High or Middle School is welcome to attend this weekend.  Join us for a weekend of sharing and discovery as we explore the magic of community up at de Benneville Pines!  Come with an empty stomach and an open mind, leave with new friends and recipes for fun!  This year’s theme is inspired by the classic story “Stone Soup”, with an added dash of prayer, a pinch of cooking, a sprinkle of baking and a HUGE scoop of fun! Don’t let the only missing ingredient be you!

 

Senior High Winter Camp - Fight Cluub! (Grades 9-12) 12/27-1/1 http://www.debenneville.org/camps/2012/PSWD/srhigh_winter/SrHWinter2012.html

Ring in the New Year with amazing Unitarian Universalist youth from the Pacific Southwest District!  What could possibly rule more than a Senior High camp inspired, created, and led by youth for youth? Nothing, that’s what!  Fight Cluub is all about fighting for what you believe in and standing up for what’s right! Make awesome new friends while finding your strength in the safety of our all-inclusive community.

 

Family and Elementary Camp – Treasure Hunting! (Grades K-6) 2/18-2/20 http://www.debenneville.org/camps/2012/PSWD/elem_winter/ElemWinter2012.html

Families with elementary age campers (or just the campers themselves) are invited for a weekend of treasure hunting with us up here in the snow. We’ll work on an actual pictorial treasure hunt while discovering what fantastic gifts we all carry, regardless of age or ability.  Join us for tons of snow play, hot cocoa by the fire, games, crafts and community worship. Campers grades 3-6 may attend without parents and will be supervised by trained cabin counselors.  For the campers who want to come on their own, we have trained cabin counselors who supervise them throughout the weekend.  Come to camp and find your own treasures!

 

Register early!  These camps usually fill up.

 

 

·         RE Wish List:  I am currently developing a “master wish list” for the RE program, which includes general and lesson-specific RE supply needs for this year’s classes.  While the RE operating budget does have some money for supplies, this year’s budget is very tight and donations are happily accepted.  The list so far includes:

 

 

 

UU Everyday (resources and ideas for practicing your UU values at home):

 

Chalice Lighting Words of the Week (November’s Theme – SERVICE):

 

 

November 6:

People say, what is the sense of our small effort.  They cannot see that we must lay one brick at a time, take one step at a time.  A pebble cast into a pond causes ripples that spread in all directions.  Each one of our thoughts, words and deeds is like that.  No one has a right to sit down and feel hopeless.  There’s too much work to be done. 

                                        --Dorothy Day

 

 

 

For the 2011-12 church year we’re trying out a new way of living as one lifespan religious community: congregation-wide ministry themes.  Each month we’ll explore a new theme, and in September our theme is LOVE.  The chalice lighting shared here will be used on Sunday in all of our RE classes, and I hope that your family will also share it at home during the following week.  I’m tickled by the idea of all of our UUCCSM families sharing a reflection in common each week as we go about our daily lives. 

 

 

 

At-Home Activities to Explore our Congregational Theme for November - SERVICE

 

 

“Sharing the Bounty of Thanksgiving": (from The Book of New Family Traditions by Meg Cox)

 

Make a Helping Others Jar – Take a used, clean coffee can and cut a slit in the plastic top.  To decorate the can, cut white paper the height of the can, wrap this paper around the can, and secure with glue or tape.  To decorate, use crayons or markers, or paste magazine photos on the paper.  Display the can in the kitchen, and put some money in while discussing a weekly plan of family giving.  Talk about how that money could help others and discuss possible charities. 

 

Feast for the Animals – Nancy Mendez and her family share their feast with “the birds and beasts.”  Before they eat, her children and their cousins take a walk in the nearby woods (with a grown-up), carrying a bucket of seeds and food scraps. On the way back home, the kids fill the bucket with twigs and kindling for the fireplace.

 

Feed the Poor – Some families try to work some part of the Thanksgiving weekend in a soup kitchen, but there are other ways you can help as well.  On is to buy a duplicate feast: if you’re having turkey, buy a second bird; if you’re making mashed potatoes, buy a second bag.  Pack this feast and deliver it to a local homeless shelter or agency that serves the poor.  (Make this arrangement before buying the food.)

 

A Great Charity for Kids – Heifer International has over 50 years experience in donating farm animals to the world’s poor, and has a great website, www.heifer.org.  Also, the picture book Beatrice’s Goat, about how a heifer goat changed the life of a real African girl, makes a big impression on kids.

 

 

 

This Week in UU History: (From This Day in Unitarian Universalist History, by Frank Schulman)

 

November 4, 1563:  The Synod at Pinczow, Poland, granted all preachers the right to interpret the Helvetic Confession, the statement of faith of the Reformed (Calvinist) churches, as their consciences dictated, paving the way for the spread of Unitarianism for several decades.

 

November 4, 1807:  A group of Unitarian ministers in Worchester and Middlesex counties organized the Evangelical Missionary Society in Lancaster, Massachusetts, to counter Jedediah Morse’s diatribe against their growing liberalism.  Its constitution said, “The great object of this society is to furnish the means of Christian knowledge and moral improvement to those inhabitants of our own country who are destitute or poorly provided.”  It distributed Bibles and other publications.

 

November 5, 1872: Susan B. Anthony, the famous Unitarian suffragist, cast a ballot in the presidential election, though women at the time were prohibited from doing so. Two weeks later, she was arrested, and the following year, she was found guilty of illegal voting. It would take another 50 years until the Nineteenth Amendment, passed in 1920, would grant women nationwide the right to vote.

 

November 6, 1654:  The British House of Commons, under the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell, began debate on liberty of conscience, which resulted in general tolerance for religious views but was overturned when Charles II was restored to the monarchy in 1660.  Cromwell, although not Unitarian, defended the rights of Unitarians and all Dissenters to worship according to their own preference as long as they kept the peace.  Although he disagreed with the beliefs of the Unitarian John Biddle, he protected him against persecution by Parlaiment.

 

November 8, 1586:  John Evertson Geisteranus was born in Alkmaar, Holland.  He became pastor there but was dismissed for his Unitarian beliefs in 1619.  After a trial, Geisteranus was banished to the Leyden area, but fearing deportation to England for execution, he abandoned preaching and supported his family as a weaver.  Hoever, an anonymous book supporting noncreedal religion was subsequently attributed to him.  Geisteranus died on October 14, 1622.

 

November 8, 1638:  First Church and Parish in Dedham, Massachusetts, was organized on this date.  This church, now Unitarian Universalist, was the focus of the Dedham Decision, a decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in 1820 that gave property rights to parishes rather than churches and, in the process, influenced every Congregational church in Massachusetts.  The decision arose from a division within the Dedham church between the more conservative Trinitarian church members (those who had assented to the church covenant) and the more liberal parish churchgoers.  The Trinitarian members withdrew from the church, taking some of the church property with them, and the parish sued for the return of the property. The resulting decision in favor of the parish changed a long-standing tradition whereby church members held the right to church property.  This cleared the way for the new liberal Unitarianism that was emerging in America in the 1820s, and within 20 years one quarter of the Congregational churches in Massachusetts were Unitarian. 

 

November 8, 1674:  John Milton, the author of Paradise Lost, died at age 65.  His posthumously-published papers declared his Unitarian beliefs.

 

November 9, 1721:  Mark Akenside, a great English philosophical poet and devoted Unitarian, was born at Newcastle-on-Tyne.  He was principle physician to St. Thomas’ Hospital in London.  Akenside died at age 48 on June 23, 1770, after a life dedicated to liberty, wisdom, poetry, and religion.

 

November 9, 1805:  Harriot Kezia Hunt, a life-long Universalist, was born in Boston, Massachusetts.  She was a pioneer in medical practice and a strong advocate of abolition, women’s rights, and public health education.  In 1827 she opened a school. She stressed strong family life as a key to health and well-being and mental health as a strong factor in physical health.  She published her autobiography, Glances and Glimpses, in 1856. 

 

November 9, 1940:  Arthur Neville Chamberlain, a Unitarian and the prime minister of England, died at the age of 71.