Newsletter for September, 2015
From Our Minister:
Growth, Outreach, and Covenant: Key Areas of Ministry for Our Congregation
It’s wonderful to be back at home with you. Thank you again for your support as we spent the last three months welcoming our son Benjamin to the world. It has been a beautiful time of growth for him and our family, as we get used to being a family of five, and as he gets used to smiling, nursing, getting baths, getting his diaper changed, and taking naps. I’m especially grateful to the Rev. Eaton-Guinn, our Summer Minister, and to our Committee on Ministry and Board of Directors, for their care and leadership that enabled so many vital projects in membership, governance, and right relations to go forward during my family leave.
As I return to full-time ministry from August 25 to September 30, it will be our challenge and opportunity to catch up with one another while also preparing to say goodbye again on October 1, when my three-month sabbatical begins. As you know, our congregation has a long history of sending its minsters on sabbatical. Both the Rev. Ernie Pipes and the Rev. Judith Meyer were able to go on sabbatical, and many of our leaders remember fondly both the sabbatical ministers who served during those special times, as well as the stories and experiences Rev. Pipes and Rev. Meyer brought back upon their return.
Unlike family leave, the sabbatical is a time dedicated to your minister’s spiritual renewal, rest, and rejuvenation. Like Rev. Pipes and Rev. Meyer before me, I plan to soak in this special time by pursuing study, reflection, contemplation, and action that is not possible when I am present in full time congregational ministry. Possible sabbatical projects may include close reading of texts in UU and wisdom traditions, an extended writing project, travel in the Pacific Southwest with and without my family, and deepening my connections with some of our community partners such as OPCC and CLUE-Los Angeles. Several years ago I realized that growth, outreach, and covenant are key areas of ministry for our congregation, and I am grateful for the opportunity to pursue these interests. I look forward to returning to the congregation on January 5, 2016, with new perspectives on our life together, as well as a renewed connection to the sources of my own spiritual leadership and courage. Thank you for the gift of this special time, and for your generous investment in your minister’s ongoing education and spiritual development.
While I am on sabbatical, I am delighted that the Rev. Tera Little will serve as our part-time Acting Minister. She will partner with our Board of Directors and the Committee on Ministry to ensure that the important ongoing ministry of the congregation continues uninterrupted, and even deepens with new leadership from your Acting Minister, staff and volunteers. From August 25 to September 30, please write to me at minister@uusm.org or call me at (310) 829-5436 x104. I look forward to connecting and reconnecting with you all. I’ve missed you and our vibrant spiritual home at 18th and Arizona.
With love,
— Rev. Rebecca
From Our President:
“People volunteer because they believe in our future together.”
I am in Woods Hole, MA, where I grew up and have such a fond attachment to. I have a major interest in our family home, which is rented, but the house includes my grandfather’s apartment where Ned and I stay.
I have been thinking about our volunteers, which almost all of us are and without whose help the church could not exist. So why do people volunteer? The following comments are not my words but I like them and hope they can apply to our congregation.
“I believe it’s all about shared ministry; people can grow spiritually as they share their gifts with others. Everything we do is a form of ministry. Instead of trying to get people to do all the things that need to be done, we need to get in the frame of mind that what we’re here for is to minister to and to serve each other. People need to be invited into ministries of leadership and service. And I believe that people volunteer because they believe in our future together. People don’t give to need, they give to vision. Asking someone to do it because we need to fill this slot is not as powerful as saying ‘You understand where this institution is going and we want you to play a vital part in its future.’” (Source unknown)
How can we show our appreciation? Myriad ways are possible and not all ways work for all people but expressing our appreciation in words and writing is heartfelt. In years past David Olson held a volunteer appreciation lunch in the garden of his home. In years past there has been a Volunteer of the Year. Maybe we can find a way to start a new tradition. I think we need one.
The Board will be having its retreat on September 12. The day will include an exploration of Right Relations in the morning facilitated by Rev. Dr. Jonipher Kwong of our Pacific West Region’s Congregational Life Staff. We will explore creating a covenant of right relations for our congregation and building a right relations team to help us with conflict resolution. The morning will be followed by a working lunch dedicated to goal setting based on the 12 Statement of Wishes for UU Santa Monica that were developed as part of the Board’s exploration of Policy Governance, but the aspirations would apply whether or not Policy Governance is adopted. The afternoon will focus on plans for the Board with the recommendations of the Committee on Money. Rev. Rick Hoyt-McDaniels will facilitate that session and will bring his own experience to the issue. We are hopeful that our work will energize and focus the Board for the coming year. We are grateful to Kim Miller for providing her law firm’s board room as the venue for the retreat.
The Board will host 2nd Sunday Supper in September with a comfort food theme as we ingather for the coming year. Come and sample some favorite family recipes.
Remember to thank and hug a volunteer. A self-hug is OK too.
— Patricia Wright
Featured Articles:
Quotes About Forgiveness:
Bettye Barclay has provided this list of quotes about our ministerial theme for September. Daily quotes also appear in the weekly electronic announcements.
Week 1. Forgiveness means letting go of the past. — Gerald Jampolsky
Week 2. When you hold resentment toward another, you are bound to that person or condition by an emotional link that is stronger than steel. Forgiveness is the only way to dissolve that link and get free. — Katherine Ponder
Week 3. A happy marriage is the union of two good forgivers. — Robert Quillen
Week 4. The willingness to forgive is a sign of spiritual and emotional maturity. It is one of the great virtues to which we all should aspire. Imagine a world filled with individuals willing both to apologize and to accept an apology. Is there any problem that could not be solved among people who possessed the humility and largeness of spirit and soul to do either — or both — when needed? — Gordon B. Hinckley
Week 5. Let us forgive each other — only then will we live in peace. — Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy
UU Humor
(from the First Unitarian Congregation of Ontario)
Q. What is a Unitarian Universalist?
A. Someone who believes in life before death.
A. Someone who faces all questions with an open mouth.
Q: How many Unitarians does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We choose not to make a statement either in favour of or against the need for a light bulb. However, if in your own journey, you have found that light bulbs work for you, that is wonderful. You are invited to write a poem or compose a modern dance about your personal relationship with your light bulb. Present it next month at our annual Light Bulb Sunday Service, in which we will explore a number of light bulb traditions, including incandescent, fluorescent, 3-way, long-life, and tinted, all of which are equally valid paths to luminescence.
A UU is told “I hear you deny the divinity of Christ.” “That’s not true!” said the UU, “We don’t deny the divinity of anyone.”
Q: Why can’t UUs sing very well in choirs?
A: Because they’re always reading ahead to see if they agree with the next verse.
Q: Why did the UU cross the road?
A: To support the chicken in its search for its own path.
“I know my humor is outrageous when it makes the Unitarians so mad they burn a question mark on my front lawn.” — Lenny Bruce
Q: How does a UU walk on water?
A: She waits until winter.
Visitors on a tour of Heaven noticed a group of Unitarian Universalists, who were arguing about whether or not they were really there.
“A Unitarian very earnestly disbelieves in almost everything that anybody else believes, and he has a very lively sustaining faith in he doesn’t quite know what.” — Somerset Maugham, Of Human Bondage
Unitarian Universalist prayer: “Dear God, if there is a God, please save my soul, if I have a soul.”
A Unitarian Universalist died, and to his surprise discovered that there was indeed an afterlife. The angel in charge of these things told him, “Because you were an unbeliever and a doubter and a skeptic, you will be sent to Hell for all eternity—which, in your case, consists of a place where no one will disagree with you ever again!”
News & Announcements:
DeReau Farrar, Director of Music, will help launch Ingathering Sunday with the choir singing at both the 9 and 11 am services. Photo by Charles Haskell.
On Sunday, August 23, we bid farewell to our intern and summer minister, The Rev. Nica Eaton-Guinn, and celebrated the beginning of her exciting new adventure as a fully ordained UU minister. Photo by Carol Ring.
Faith in Action News:
March to Stop Police Killings September 26
Seventy people, including 14 members and friends of UU Santa Monica, marched in Venice August 8 to demand justice for Brandon Glenn and Jason Davis, who were (separately) shot to death by L.A.P.D. officers. Our Peace & Social Justice Committee, which initiated the demonstration, is working to bring 30 of our congregants to a follow-up rally and march September 26, at 1:30 pm. If you can be one of them, that’s 3.3% of our goal; if you bring someone with you, 6.6%. We are urging the nine co-sponsors of the first march to also bring more people, so that we can make an even more powerful statement against these local killings and the national pattern they are a part of.
The September 26 march, like the first one, will start with a rally at 1:30 pm in Venice, at the intersection of Main Street and Windward Avenue (on the sidewalk on the southwest side of the traffic circle). Parking there is difficult and/or expensive, but several bus lines terminate at the traffic circle, including Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus #1.
Following the rally, at about 2:15 pm, we’ll march on Windward Avenue to Ocean Front Walk (OFW), pausing briefly at the spot where Brendon Glenn, an unarmed, un-housed black man, was killed May 5. Then we’ll march up OFW to approximately Rose Avenue, then back down to Windward, where we will have a concluding rally in front of the Venice Beach L.A.P.D. substation. The reaction of the crowds to our signs and chants when we took this route August 8 was overwhelmingly positive. Chants included “No justice, no peace, no racist police,” “Justice for Brendon Glenn; Justice for Jason Davis,” and “Black, Latin, Asian, White, to smash racism we must unite!”
The shooting of Brendon Glenn was recorded by a security video camera outside the bar. After reviewing the video, L.A.P.D. Chief Charlie Beck said, “Any time an unarmed person is shot by a Los Angeles police officer, it takes extraordinary circumstances to justify that. I have not seen those extraordinary circumstances” (LA Times, May 6, 2015). One of the demands of the march is that the police release the video, which they have refused to do.
Jason Davis, a white un-housed man, was killed July 13 near Rose Avenue and 6th Street. The police claimed Jason, who appeared to be mentally ill, had a knife. What’s visible in a video made by a bystander is a box cutter on the sidewalk about 10 feet from Jason’s body.
An Action of Immediate Witness passed at the UUA General Assembly in June, entitled “Support the Black Lives Matter Movement,” calls on UU congregations to act to demand that these killings stop.
Please plan to join us Saturday, September 26. For more information, contact me at fia@uusm.org or (310) 625- 4033.
— Rick Rhoads
Update on Textbook Fund Campaign
Update on Textbook Fund Campaign As of mid-August, contributions to the textbook fund for books for student inmates in the California Prison System have reached our initial goal $1,500! John Sussman is adding $500, bringing our total to $2,000! Many thanks to those who have contributed, helping us to reach our goal in such a short time. As you know, funds for textbooks have an important role in enabling incarcerated students to continue their education, an important factor in improving their prospects for the future.
For those who would still like to contribute, the campaign will continue over the next several weeks. Checks should be made out to UUCCSM, with FIA — Textbook Fund in the memo line. Those wishing to donate may send checks directly to the church; checks and cash will also continue to be collected at the FIA table in Forbes Hall after the Sunday service.
— Nora Hamilton
Splinters from the Board:
Sanctuary Rewired; Theatrical LED Lighting Next
The meeting of August 11 was our last meeting with Nica Eaton-Guinn, who has been with us over a year, first as our intern minister and then as our summer minister. She expressed how much she has enjoyed working with our congregation and her gratitude for our time together. She also reminded us that UUA policy requires that she not be involved with our congregation for a year following her departure. She has a new job as a Contract Minister at UU Studio City, which will begin September 21 and continue for 10 months.
President Patricia Wright praised Nica for the membership forum she led on August 2. The forum was well attended and useful, and we now have a new chair of the membership committee: Olga Felton. We are excited to welcome her into leadership here at UU Santa Monica. Patricia also reported that during Rev. Rebecca’s absence, requests for information that fall outside of the normal duties of staff will be funneled through Patricia and decided by the executive committee.
The consent agenda was approved, including the Annual Meeting minutes, which will soon appear on the website. There are no new members this month, and membership remains at 338. The generous congregation donation for July totaled $990.
Cathy Gentile, representing the Faith in Action Commission, reported that they are interested in having a banner at church representing the idea “Standing on the Side of Love; Black Lives Matter.” Exact wording and design would need to be decided. The Board felt that this should go before the congregation for a vote, and the committee will begin working on that process.
The Board briefly discussed the tiered-funding proposal for the Garden of Eternity. The Board agreed with the proposal in general but felt that there remain some questions to be answered about the mechanics of the process, and the Board tabled the motion for approval. The Board is sending the motion back to the Green and Garden of Eternity Committees for a proposal which answers the remaining questions.
Treasurer Kim Miller gave the treasurer’s report. We are only one month into the new fiscal year, and our income and expenses always fluctuate month to month. For July, pledges are $4,000 less than budgeted. Rental income is $1,000 more than budgeted. Total support expense is $4,000 less than budgeted.
Joe Engleman, Member-at-Large, reported on his progress with assessment and possible survey planning. The Board decided to wait until after the Board Retreat in September, when Board goals will be set for the year. Assessment will be tied to goals.
The Board affirmed the appointment of Steve White to the Finance Committee.
Brad Hutchinson, representing the Facilities Development Committee, reported on the SoUL (Sanctuary Upgrade Lighting) Project. The Sanctuary has been rewired and the conduit is in place. The next phase involves the purchase and installation of programmed theatrical LED lighting. The Board requested that Brad obtain three bids and return with the bids and a recommendation regarding them. A contract will be drawn up for the chosen vendor, and the contract will be reviewed and ultimately approved by the Board. The Board reviewed the UU Santa Monica policy for engaging independent contractors.
Three facilities expenditure requests came before the Board. We need 50 new chairs for the upper Forbes classrooms to meet our needs and those of our rental groups. The City of Santa Monica has evaluated our water use, which currently is high enough to potentially result in fines. The city recommends changes in our landscape and irrigation in the courtyard and cottage area. The FDC had requested these funds come from unrestricted savings, but the Board felt they should come from the Facilities Upgrade Fund and, therefore, do not require Board approval. The third request was a proposal for Ralph Mechur Architects to design a new corner sign, as ours is broken. The drawing and rendering will need to go before the Architectural Review Board. Both the landscaping and signage work will be cheaper if they are done at the same time as the Garden of Eternity work. The Board approved the expenditure of $1,500 from the Building Fund for Ralph Mechur Architects to prepare drawings for congregational approval and Santa Monica/ARB approval.
— Cynthia Cottam
RE News:
From Our DRE:
As the summer winds down, we come together once again to launch our 2015 to 2016 program year, and we move into September’s ministry theme of Forgiveness. Some religious traditions have a strong grounding in the practice of forgiveness, but it’s not a theme we grapple with often in UU circles, though it is certainly a worthy one. We live in a culture which does not encourage either selfforgiveness or the forgiving of others. Maybe that’s why it’s so very hard, at times, to accept or to offer forgiveness. But to forgive is to make room for new health, new growth. It means letting go of anger or hurt that holds us captive in the past. It does not mean failing to hold others accountable into the future for past hurtful actions, but rather to take away the past’s power to continue to wound.
In the Jewish tradition, the New Year is celebrated on Rosh Hashanah, which begins at sundown on the day of our UU Santa Monica Ingathering on September 13 this year. The ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur mark a time of self-reflection and making amends to any you have wronged in the last year. I am
reminded of the refrain from a reading by UU minister Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs: “We forgive ourselves and each other; we begin again in love.” What a timely reminder as we begin a new church year together; while certainly we as a congregation don’t always get everything right, every fall we join hands and hearts yet again to help bring our UU Santa Monica mission to life in our church and in our world: Love Generously, Seek Truth, and Serve the World.
I am so excited about what’s in store in our religious exploration programs for all ages here at UU Santa Monica. Take a look at these Lifespan RE pages for an overview of what’s coming this fall. I’ve decided that the overarching theme of this year is “deepening.” That is the core purpose of our educational ministry to children, youth and adults: to provide opportunities for our members to deepen their spiritual lives, to deepen their understanding of our UU history and values, to deepen their ability to live with compassion, integrity and joy. We’re trying out some new ways of offering these opportunities, particularly in our 11 am children’s RE program, and I can’t wait to get it all started. Let’s play and experiment and grow together! And may we all, this month and throughout the year that is before us, practice forgiving ourselves and each other, and seek always to begin again in love.
— Catherine Farmer Loya
Children and Youth Programs
On Ingathering Sunday, September 13, we’ll celebrate the beginning of a new church year together as one community of all ages, as we “Gather the Spirit” — all will attend the service in the sanctuary. Then on September 20, all children and youth who attend will take part in a special RE Faith in Action project, providing some care and cheer for our UU Santa Monica classrooms and grounds, while many of our church families are enjoying the church camp weekend at Camp de Benneville Pines. RE Classes will begin on Sunday, September 27. No matter the age of your child, we have something exciting in store this year:
9 and 11 am — Care for our Youngest UUs
Nursery Care: Babies and toddlers are kept safe and happy with loving care. Our nursery room is a warm and welcoming place for our children.
Preschool: “We Are Many, We Are One” encourages young children to learn how to play and work cooperatively, appreciate how we are all alike yet different, and celebrate the different religions and cultures of the world.
9 am RE Classes
Kindergarten to 2nd Grade: “Spirit Seekers” share core stories of our faith, focusing this year on themes from our UU Santa Monica RE Covenant: Love, Service, Peace, Knowledge, Freedom and Building Community. We’ll engage children in stories and activities to help them make meaning of their lives, grow a strong UU identity, and create a spiritual community together that honors multiple learning styles and celebrates beauty in diversity.
3rd to 5th Grade: How do we know what we know? “The UUniverse Story” is designed to nurture a sense of awe and wonder for the world around us through a hands-on, sciencebased curriculum. Kids will engage our UU Principles and values as they explore the chemistry of life, the ideas of evolution and change over time, and the interconnectedness of all people from our shared ancestry with each other and every other life form on the planet.
6th to 8th Grade: “Interfaith Quest” takes participants outside of our own walls to learn about the world’s religions through direct engagement and building connections with youth from other religious traditions. Participants will reflect on the unique and the universal of religious experience, explore their own values as they relate to many other faith traditions as well as our UU faith, and increase their appreciation of religious diversity. This year’s program will focus on exploring Asian and earth-based religious traditions.
9th to 12th Grade: “Young Religious Unitarian Universalists (YRUU)” empowers teens, with the guidance of adult advisors, to create their own vision and mission for their program. YRUU youth will explore what it means to be young and UU, how our UU principles inform how we live our lives, and what power young UUs have to change the world. YRUU also takes part in social justice projects, organizes social gatherings, and will plan and lead a Sunday worship service for the congregation.
11 am RE Programs
“Spirit Explorers Multi-age Program”: Children and youth will explore the UUSM monthly ministry themes through story, craft, song, movement and more. Each week will begin with the sharing of a story to help us enter into our theme, and then participants will choose among two to three workshop options for further exploration engaging mind, body, and spirit.
Instead of RE “teachers” in this new program model, volunteers focused on building caring community within our RE circle will be trained as “Spirit Guides,” to lead the opening ritual and story and then assist in the workshops, providing consistency and connection with the kids in the program. The workshops will be led by UU Santa Monica members who volunteer to offer a workshop for a span of two to four weeks to explore the theme further (Yoga? Sand mandalas? Children’s Choir? Gardening? Cooperative game day? Building a UU box city? Making Lunches for Bunches? The possibilities are endless!)
8th to 9th Grade (and beyond): “Coming of Age,” which will launch in late October during the 11 am service, provides opportunities for youth to learn who they are and where they are on their spiritual journey, bond with other teens, learn about the church and how it works, and articulate their own personal beliefs within the context of our UU faith. The year culminates on Coming of Age Sunday, May 15, 2016, when the youth will present religious credo statements before the congregation in a worship service of their own design. This program is a special opt-in opportunity for youth in grades 8 to 9 (also open to older high school youth who have not yet been in COA), and requires a strong commitment to attendance and participation. Will begin in late October with parent/youth orientation earlier in the month.
5th to 6th Grade: “Our Whole Lives Sexuality Education.” This class nurtures and supports the “three Rs” of childhood sexuality—Respect, Relationships, and Responsibility — by helping children gain self-respect and respect for others, build relationships with members of all genders and with many kinds of families, and understand their responsibilities regarding their own health and that of others. This curriculum helps participants integrate the values of the program with their own system of values in an open, affirming and anti-bias environment and a community of trust and authenticity. Will be held January to March, with mandatory parent orientations in preceding months.
K to 1st Grade: “Our Whole Lives Sexuality Education.” The OWL Grades K to 1st grade curriculum is based on specific values related to human sexuality. It nurtures the worth and dignity of every participant. It fosters loving, equitable and healthy relationships and counters injustices such as homophobia, stereotyping, and sexism. Children are encouraged to value themselves and act on their values throughout their lives. This elementary-age program is based on the philosophy that parents and religious communities can form a meaningful partnership for positive responsible sexuality education. Will be held March to May, with mandatory parent orientations in preceding months
— Catherine Farmer Loya
Adult RE Class To Study the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Beginning in October, a new Adult RE class on the decadeslong Israeli-Palestinian conflict will be facilitated by members of the Peace and Social Justice Committee. We will use an online study guide recently created by UUs for Justice in the Middle East (UUJME), an independent UU organization in existence since 1971. Each of seven sessions will be based on one of our seven UU principles, beginning with our third principle — acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregation. There will be pre-readings and/or videos to preview for each session. Readings have been compiled from articles and essays written by UUs, correspondence with ministers and UUs of Jewish and Palestinian origin, and resources from allied U.S., Israeli, and Palestinian groups.
UUJME supports ending the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories taken in 1967 and stopping the settlements, and seeks to change U.S. foreign policy to support these goals. This curriculum reflects these opinions and the opinion that the sides in the conflict are not equal; there is a much stronger oppressing power and a much weaker occupied population. UUJME supporters hold differing opinions on political tactics and solutions but share UU values which inform their mission: to educate ourselves and our fellow UUs and citizens about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its legal, moral, and ethical issues in an effort to bring about peace and justice in Israel-Palestine, including a settlement of the conflict affirming the equality, dignity, freedom, and security of all peoples involved.
We invite you to sign up for our class where we will engage in study and respectful dialogue. The class will meet on the second and fourth Tuesdays from 7 to 9 pm.
— Roberta Frye