Calendar of upcoming events:

Sunday, 3/24
     RE Faith in Action Sunday – UUCCSM garden prep (see announcement below)
     8th-9th O.W.L. meets
     10th-12th O.W.L. meets
Sunday, 3/31
     Easter Sunday Intergenerational Service, followed by RE Egg Hunt
Sunday, 4/14
     8th-9th O.W.L. meets
     10th-12th O.W.L. meets
     Second Sunday Supper – fun and fellowship for all ages!  6pm in Forbes
Sunday, 4/21
     8th-9th O.W.L. meets
     10th-12th O.W.L. meets
Sunday, 4/28
     YRUU Sunday Service – don’t miss it!
     Faith in Action Sunday for 1st-5th grades – doggy treats for shelter puppies
     8th-9th O.W.L. meets (begins at 12:30 today only)
     10th-12th O.W.L. meets (begins at 12:30 today only)      

Volunteer Opportunities:

Easter Volunteers Needed: Easter’s on March 31st this year, and I’m looking for some volunteers to help with the day’s festivities.  Would you enjoy hiding eggs and/or helping to supervise the after-service eggs hunts for our kids?  If you’d like to help out, contact Catherinedre@yahoo.com or call me at 310-829-5436 x105.

Nursery Assistants Needed 1x per month: As our nursery program has grown this year (in leaps and bounds!), so has our need for assistants on Sunday morning.  Would you enjoy spending one morning per month playing in the nursery with our younglings?  We are particularly in need of volunteers for the 11:00 program, but need at least one more volunteer for 9:00, too.  This is a GREAT opportunity for adults – or teens – to get to know our wonderful babies and toddlers.  It is such fun, and such a service to our UUCCSM parents.  Can you help?  Please contact catherinedre@yahoo.com or 310-829-5436 x105 for more information or to volunteer.

This Week in RE:

·         Preschool-Kindergarten: “Pussy Willows” This week our preschool classes will celebrate the wonder and beauty of springtime. Meets in the NW room of the cottage.

·         1st-5th Grade – Garden Prep Day: This Sunday our 1st-5th graders are invited to join Green Living Committee members for a garden prep day!  We will be digging in the dirt, putting in some compost, and maybe planting a few seeds, too.  We also need to mark our rows for the incoming plants.  This will be a fun digging day for our kids, and we’re planning another day soon to put more plants into the ground, such as tomato, squash and other yummy things.  Parents, please make sure kids wear garden-appropriate clothes and shoes (we will be getting dirty).  Bring a spade if you have one.  Please mark it with your name.  There will be an herb area/corner, and we’re in need of families to bring an oregano, a tarragon, and a mint plant.  We also will need some wooden sticks and string for making rows.  Please let us know if you’d be willing to contribute one of the plants or the sticks & string.  Meets in the cottage.

·         6th-7th Grade (Compass Points): “Two Paths Become One” This week we’ll explore why and how our two faiths of Unitarianism and Universalism  came together, and will think about what it means to have two faith traditions and a dual heritage.  How do the practices and beliefs of Unitarianism and Universalism connect with who we are today as Unitarian Universalists?  Meets in Room 3, the third room down the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         8th Grade (Coming of Age) – 9:00 only:  This Sunday, Rev. Ernie Pipes will visit the class to talk about crafting worship services.  Meets in the mural room at the end of the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         9th-12th Grade (Young Religious Unitarian Universalists) – 9:00 only: This Sunday YRUU will continue working on plans for their YRUU Sunday service in April.  Meets in Room 1, the first room at the top of the stairs above Forbes Hall.

Announcements:

NEW Let’s Go to Camp this Summer!  de Benneville Pines Summer Camp Registration Open:  Flyers and registration information for this year’s Summer Camps at our lovely UU camp in the mountains are now available online.  UUCCSM has its own church camp weekend in September each year (HIGHLY recommended), but there are many more opportunities to go to camp for people of all ages throughout the summer.  See below or check out the full roster of programs at http://www.uucamp.org.

What is Camp de Benneville Pines?  Owned by our UU district (including SoCal, Arizona and part of Nevada), the camp is located in the Barton Flats area of the San Bernardino National Forest, about 90 miles east of Los Angeles. At an elevation of 6,800 feet, the camp is surrounded by a forest of towering pines, cedars, and oaks.  The mission of Camp de Benneville Pines is to provide a mountain retreat where Unitarian Universalist principles and values are lived and celebrated in community.

Elementary Summer Camp, “Generosity of Spirit,” June 30 – July 6, 2013
http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2013/PSWD/elem_summer/Elem_Summer_Camp_2013.html
For youth completing grades 2-5.
Please join us as we play, sing, laugh, swim and enjoy the greatness of being in community with Unitarian Universalists from all over the Pacific Southwest District. We talked last summer about how “what we bring to the world is exactly what the world needs from us.” This summer, we will explore the many ways in which we can share who we are and be where we are needed.  As always, we will have tons, tons, tons of fun!

Jr. High Summer Camp, “Keep the Unity in ComUUnity,” July 7 - 13, 2013
http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2013/PSWD/jrhigh_summer/JrHigh_Summer_Camp_2013.html
For youth completing grades 6-8.
This year, our Junior High summer camp will be centered around becoming peacemakers in our lives and in the world! Each day we will focus on one of the following: respect, communication, listening, forgiving, and living courageously. Living peacefully - at home, at school, with friends - begins with us and spreads like ripples in water. Campers will also participate in swimming, hiking, canoeing, archery, crafts and more!

YRUU Sr High Summer Camp, “Camp IllUUminate-Us,” July 14 - 20, 2013
http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2013/PSWD/srhigh_summer/SrHigh_Summer_Camp_2013.html
For youth completing grades 9-12.
Let that little light of yours shine brightly at Camp IllUUminate-Us, a spectacular summer week of self-discovery and fun in a caring, accepting community. Roast marshmallows, tell stories and worship, all around a blazing bonfire. Join in groups to share your favorite song and learn about each other. Come to Summer Camp! You'll get to discover wonderful friendships, work together in team building games at our Summer Olympics, and enjoy an exciting star-gazing evening, all the while singing "This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine!" Who wouldn't want to let their individuality shine and grow within our spectacular district-wide youth community? Enjoy all of your favorite workshops and events, not to mention quite a few new activities. You can expect an illuminating and exciting week at Camp DeBenneville Pines! We hope to see you there!!

UU Family Camp, “Exploring the Interdependent Web”, July 21-27, 2013,
http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2013/PSWD/family_summer/Family_Summer_Camp_2013.html
Unitarian Universalists affirm and promote 7 key principals or beliefs within our congregations and communities. The 7th principal states: " Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.  But who is included in our web? Does it include all life? What does “respect” actually mean? What does it mean to be “interdependent?” How can we teach our children? How can we influence one another? In this year’s Family Camp, let’s explore the interdependent web and how we are each a part of it. In our beautiful natural setting, we can spend a week together making music, "capturing the flag", tie-dyeing, staring at trees, hiking, contemplating, swimming, worshiping, laughing and playing. In a co-operative environment, we will explore together what it means to be part of an interdependent web. Price includes lodging, all meals, all workshops and activities, including hiking, swimming, canoeing, playing, music making, archery and arts & crafts.  Oh yes, and all the R & R you can fit into the week!  Register early; this camp sells out.  An extra perk for UUCCSM folks: the Camp Dean is our very own Amy Brunell!

DRE Leave Planning:  Now that we’re only three months out from the arrival of the newest member of the Famer Loya household, you may be wondering about what my leave will mean for the RE programs at UUCCSM.  I have been working with Rebecca, the Lifespan RE Committee and the Personnel Committee to make plans for this time, and I am confident that all will go smoothly during my time away.  My final Sunday at UUCCSM, unless the baby arrives earlier, will be May 19th, which is Coming of Age Sunday as well as the Annual Meeting.  My leave will begin on May 23rd and I’ll be away for 12 weeks, returning to UUCCSM on August 15th.  We are in the process of searching for a part-time Acting DRE to provide staff support for our programs while I’m away, and the Lifespan RE Committee will be working with me between now and then to make sure we’re fully prepared.  We need your help too!  We will begin our recruiting for RE volunteers for the summer programs as well as the new program year which launches in September sooner than usual, so we can have as much as possible in place before my leave begins.  So be on the lookout for information coming soon about opportunities to help, particularly in the summer program.  I am so grateful for the care and support shown to my family by UUCCSM members of all ages – thank you.  It is lovely to share this joyful time with all of you, and to know that our child has such a loving community ready and waiting.

Please sign up to bring snack for your child’s RE Class:  Most of our RE classes still have lots of open spots for parents to sign up to bring a snack to class.  Children and youth value snack highly as part of their RE experience; parents, please take part in making sure it’s available every Sunday!  Here are links to online signup pages for each class; just fill in your last name for the Sundays you’re willing to help out, and you’ll get a reminder email midweek leading up to the Sundays you’ve signed up for.

·         9:00 Preschool-K: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ufVuIEr6mprU7qJoBIB5zLLa_3jE9N7fr3A4zTaWhMk/edit#
·         9:00 1st-2nd Grades: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AF3KpLXhQQ3VjhG6iUoJ_pnLty_UXzI9ZeitbBd0H8M/edit#
·         9:00 3rd-5th Grades: https://docs.google.com/document/d/110AaDJ89pZT_ZjO9lVreQ27fKGmKOFOho7AKExSyLRI/edit#
·         9:00 6th-7th Grades:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EKU4mbGqhw44nPj9LdfW27-csnLDHW5QmxOrejIam74/edit
·         9:00 8th Grade (COA): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FB5jHL7YoaH108ssr5IJGlnhiK8jg20s0Koj11Lm3ps/edit
·         9:00 9th-12th YRUU:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1oqqIus8jaWyxtJYmWcNpmbsosVpi1TfA-F11_sSAwnU/edit
·         11:00 Preschool-K:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1gPziJCMxNoRq40griRoMOrkjZZ5jMqfEzieCUTWpFs/edit#heading=h.gjdgxs
·         11:00 1st-2nd Grades:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UnitBIIPUViUOH-hIAYZD4eMoNSv_Tbpd8pFyCs-q34/edit#
·         11:00 3rd-5th Grades: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zMN3zUu13da4GFt8xgIBQbnoRP1PLh_kA3qr_IYx_xE/edit#
·         11:00 6th-7th Grades: https://docs.google.com/document/d/12d_JtawEjyetDi1mFIKU_Ds8v0KqpCcVEiTGhHEIJZE/edi

RE Books Wish List on Amazon:  Another arm of the “master wish list” for the RE program, is an Amazon Wishlist of books and supplies that will be useful in RE classes this year or that will be valuable resources for teachers & families in our church.  We do have some money earmarked for purchases, but we are running on a tight RE budget, and donations are happily accepted.  If you’d like to help out by donating to the program, check out the Amazon list at http://tinyurl.com/rewishlist.  (Used books in “good” condition are just fine!)  THANK YOU to the members who have already sent books or other supplies our way – they are so appreciated!

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

Chalice Lighting Words of the Week (March’s Theme – EVIL):

March 24:
There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.
--Martin Luther King, Jr.

For the 2012-13 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 March our theme is EVIL, a challenging concept for many Unitarian Universalists!  The chalice lightings shared here will be used in all of our RE classes, and I hope that your family will also share it at home during the 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.

An At-Home Activity to Reinforce our UU Values – “Easter”: (from The Book of New Family Traditions by Meg Cox)  Easter is the most important festival of the Christian church, and celebrates the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.

Washing Hands – Since Jesus washed the feet of his disciples, bring a bowl of water, soap, and a towel to the table one night at dinner, and have family members wash one another’s hands, with care and tenderness.  Talk about what it means to be a disciples, and the importance of being humble, even as a leader.
Fasting Ritual – Fasting isn’t a good idea for small children, but having occasional meals where the family eats less than usual is one way to ritually experience fasting.  The next night, talk about whether everybody was a it hungry when they went to bed, and what that felt like.  One family tried an experiment of computing how much money a family their size would get for food for a week if they were on welfare; they spent only that much money at the supermarket, and ate only that food for the week.
Sunrise Bonfire – Light is a symbol of Jesus, and “seeing the light” figures in many hymns.  At darn, or as early as you can wake the family, walk outside and make or bring a light of some kind.  You may choose to make a small “bonfire” in your yard (or even on an outdoor grill), or have everyone bring a flashlight.  Read from the book of Luke about the resurrection, and break your fast with sweet rolls or other treat food.
Creative Egg Hunts – To avoid fighting over eggs, designate a color for each child and make sure there are the same number of each color hidden.  Some people add extra eggs that are specially marked with a “X” or a sticker; anyone finding those eggs gets a special treat or prize.  One family makes finding the Easter baskets more fun by hiding them in the house but attaching long ribbons to them; the kids wake up to find one end tied to the foot of their bed, then have to follow it to the basket.
Garden Celebration – Rain Mako in Arkansas celebrates Easter with her family as the earth’s rebirth.  They put a brightly colored flag at each of the compass points in the family garden, and the flag colors represent the four elements of earth (both), air (blue), fire (red), and water (white).  As they drive in the four stakes, they talk about how these elements are required by all living things.  The family dresses up in party clothes, beats drums, and sings songs about spring.  Many Christian churches have a tradition of Easter sunrise services, and dawn would also be a good time for a family garden ceremony.

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

March 23, 1657:  Richard Coppin was arrested a second time for preaching Universalism.  One of the first two Englishmen known to have preached universal salvation, he was arrested under a 1648 statute that required belief in future judgment: “Those who held to the final salvation of all people shall be seized and imprisoned until they give assurance that they will teach such doctrine no more.”  There was an outcry against the law, and Coppin was released.  Some sources say he was executed after 1659, others that he lived on without notoriety.  His works were reprinted in the 1700’s and vigorously denounced by James Relly, who used other methods to derive his own theology of universal salvation.

March 24, 1935:  Caroline Julia Bartlett Crane died at the age of 76.  She was a Unitarian minister and activist for public kindergarten and urban sanitation.

March 24, 1882: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, an American poet and Unitarian, died at age 75 in Cambridge, Massachusetts.      

March 25, 1525:  Laelius Socinus was born in Sienna, Tuscany, Italy.  He was expected to study law as many in his family had, but he was seized with the reforming spirit of his day and studied the scriptures instead.  He found them so different from the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church that he became a disciple of Michael Servetus and Bernardino Ochino.  A Latin scholar, Socinus wanted to study the Bible in Greek as well.  His views led him, with his nephew Faustus Socinus, to the formation of Socinianism.  In Venice he met with about 40 others who embraced the principles of the Reformation.  He left Italy in 1547, fearing for his safety because of his radical religious views.  He traveled in France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland, where he became acquainted with Sebastian Castellio and encountered constant opposition to his anti-Trinitarian opinions.  Although Laelius Socinus left numerous writings, his main influence was through his nephew Faustus.  Laelius’ brother Camillus also embraced the principles of the Reformation and carried his views much further than the leading reformers of his day.  Laelius Socinus died in his prime at age 37 of May 14, 1562.

March 25, 1881:  Bela Bartok was born in Nagyszentmiklos, Hungary.  He was an outstanding composer, but his greatest passion was for Hungarian peasant songs.  Bartok was professor of piano at Budapest Academy, but his anti-Fascist stance during World War II forced him to leave Hungary for the United States, where he died in 1945.  Still beloved in Hungary, he is an honorary member of the Hungarian Parliament.  Bartok was an ardent Unitarian and his son served as president of the Hungarian Unitarians.

March 25, 1965:  Viola Fauver Gregg Liuzzo was murdered in Selma, Alabama, at the age of 39.  She was in Alabama to participate in the freedom march between Selma and Montgomery, lef by Martin Luther King, Jr., to secure voting rights for African-Americans.

March 27, 1813:  Nathaniel Currier was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts.  With James Merritt Ives, he produced highly popular lithographs and prints.  They showed typical scenes and events in American family life, decorated with lively young men and women.  Both their sons succeeded to the business.  Nathaniel Currier, a Unitarian, died on November 20, 1888.

March 28, 1841:  At the suggestion of Unitarian minister William Ellery Channing, Dorothea Dix made her first visit to a prison, experiencing such a strong revulsion that she devoted the rest of her life to institutional reform for both convicts and persons with mental illness.

Calendar of upcoming events:

            Sunday, 11/11
                        Jr./Sr. High O.W.L. Parent Information Session between services
Bring donations of travel-sized toiletries and warm clothing for Common Ground!
            Saturday, 11/17
                        Thanksgiving Feast
            Sunday, 11/18
                        Youth Leadership Team meets. Bring donations of travel-sized toiletries and warm clothing for Common Ground!
            Sunday, 11/25
                         Faith in Action Sunday in RE – Donation drive for homeless youth served by Common Ground
            Sunday, 12/2
                         Youth Leadership Team meets. 
                         Mandatory Parent Orientation (Part 1) for Jr. High O.W.L., 1:00-4:30
            Sunday, 12/16
                         Mandatory Parent Orientation (Part 2) for Jr. High O.W.L., 1:00-4:30
            Saturday, 12/22
                         Friendly Beasts Pageant Rehearsal
            Sunday, 12/23
                        Winter Holiday Pageant

This Week in RE:

·         Preschool-Kindergarten: “Chalice Flannel Board” This week our preschool class will continue learning about our UU flaming chalice symbol.  Meets in the NW room of the cottage.

·         1st-2nd Grade (Spirit Seekers):  “Uncle Harry’s Thanksgiving Bread” This week our 1st-2nd graders will begin to explore November’s theme of Gratitude with a story about appreciating the many, many people who have a hand in making a single loaf of bread.  Meets in the SE room of the cottage.

·         3rd-5th Grade:  “Things that Go Bang in the Night” This week, as we continue our exploration of the universe and the development of the Big Bang Theory, we’ll learn why the sky looks dark at night, and how Edwin Hubble proved that our universe is expanding.  Meets in the mural room at the end of the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         6th-7th Grade (Compass Points): “Our Living Tradition” This week we’ll focus on the authority for our religious beliefs and the Living Tradition which informs that authority. Meets in Room 3, the third room down the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         8th Grade (Coming of Age) – 9:00 only:  This Sunday in Coming of Age we’ll think about how we “Live Our Religion,” by exploring a number of ethical dilemmas as well as developing our own personal “Ethical Ten Commandments.”  Meets in Room 2, the second room down the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         9th-12th Grade (Young Religious Unitarian Universalists) – 9:00 only: This Sunday we’ll follow up on last week’s visit from the car wash workers by making signs to be carried at a protest at the car wash on the 14th. Meets in Room 1, the first room at the top of the stairs above Forbes Hall.

Announcements:

THIS SUNDAY Jr./Sr. High Our Whole Lives Parent Info Session November 11:  Short intro and overview of the 8th - 12th grade Our Whole Lives Programs, from 10:15-11:00 am in Room 2, upstairs above Forbes Hall.  If you aren’t familiar with the O.W.L. sexuality education program or aren't sure whether you're planning to enroll your teen(s) in the 2012-13 program please meet with Beth Rendeiro, OWL Coordinator, to learn more.

NEW Children & Youth Readers Needed for 11/17 Thanksgiving Feast:  Peggy Rhoads is looking for a number of children and youth who will be attending the Thanksgiving Feast next Saturday to be readers for the program portion of the evening.  There are 7 “Reader” parts which are well-suited for COA or YRUU youth – about a paragraph of text to read.  And there are 6 “Child” parts, with very short one-sentence questions to be read, suitable for any child old enough to read (or younger children can be helped by parents).  If your child or youth would enjoy participating in this special annual tradition, please contact catherinedre@yahoo.com to let us know – we’d like to get all of the parts assigned ahead of the Feast!

NEW Faith in Action Project - Donation Drive to Benefit Common Ground’s Homeless Teen Program:  On November 25th, children and youth in RE will be putting together “hygiene kits” and organizing other donated items for our November Social Justice Project.  Common Ground is a nonprofit organization that provides services to people living with HIV-AIDS, and one arm of their program is a drop-in center for homeless youth in Santa Monica.  (To learn more about Common Ground, visit http://www.commongroundhiv.org/prevention.php.)  Please, take a look at the list of items below and bring some things in for our donation drive.  Undergarments, socks and personal care items should be new.  Other items can be gently used or new.  Please bring donations beginning this Sunday, November 11th, to the “Common Ground Donations” basket at the Lifespan RE table in Forbes Hall during coffee hour.  We will collect through the 25th, when we’ll organize all of the donations during the services in RE.

Personal Care items needed for “hygiene kits”:

- Travel- or hotel-sized  shampoo, conditioner, lotion, body wash, toothpaste, deodorant, mouthwash, soap
- Toothbrushes
- Shaving razors
- Feminine hygiene products

Common Ground’s homeless youth always have a more difficult time living on the streets during the colder, wetter months. They will greatly appreciate any items- I had a youth tell me last year when we were handing out socks that it is “nice to feel like someone cares”.  The kids need warm things for the winter. Often socks and clothes get wet and they show up at our place soaked to the bone with no other clothes to change into.  They are always in need of the following specifically:

- Sweatshirts/Hoodies (L, XL, XXL) (In the winter they generally wear as many layers as possible to try to stay warm and dry so they need the bigger sizes of sweatshirts)
- Socks
- Warm hats/ beanies
- Underwear- (boxers, women’s underwear)- most youth only have one pair to their name
- Bras

Although the Westside has a cold weather shelter for adults that opens for a few months each year in early December, many of the youth will not access it. Often, this is due to fear. Many of the youth have told me about horrible experiences at various LA shelters. There is no “youth” shelter on the Westside. In the cold months ahead, many of the kids will need other non clothing items to support them on the street including:

- Sleeping bags
- Blankets
- Backpacks

I just provided a long list! Sorry for that! This time of year is always so hard. I wonder how we can let any of our young people sleep out on the cold streets for months on end. It is so difficult to have to shut our doors at the end of a night and send those kids back out to the cold and wet.  Any help that you can provide is wonderful and much appreciated!

The Return of the Friendly Beasts! Once again, our pre-K through 5th-grade children will sing “The Friendly Beasts” song at our holiday pageant on Sunday, Dec. 23, at both services.  Kris Langabeer will begin rehearsing the kids Nov. 4 for about 10 minutes in each classroom.  She’ll begin with the preschoolers and then move from classroom to classroom rehearsing the older kids.  Please mark your calendars: a dress rehearsal for all Beasts will occur Saturday, Dec. 22, 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.

Jr. High & Sr. High Youth Camps at de Benneville Pines – Registration Open:  Youth are encouraged to head to Camp de Benneville Pines this winter for a camp experience like no other!

·         Jr. High Camp is Nov.30-Dec.2, and this year’s theme is “Our Amazing Race!”  Teams of youth will move through the weekend travelling to different countries “around the world”, completing quests, puzzles, challenges and races that emphasize community building and teamwork. There will be road blocks, of course, bonus opportunities and UU fun along the way.  All regular camp activities (raps, workshops and snow play) will be folded into this amazing adventure. This weekend is sure to be a new experience for all and a way to explore the world at beautiful de Benneville Pines!  For more information and to register online, visit http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2012/PSWD/jrhigh_fall/JrHFall2012.html.

·         Sr. High Camp is Dec. 27-Jen. 2, and the theme for this year is “Camp ApUUcalypse.”  Live like you're dying at Camp ApUUcalypse, a winter weekend of survival and growth!  Master the art of zombie fighting. Finish off your bucket list. Come for new friends, laughter and an awesome UU experience! And even if the world does end, then what could be a better send-off than a weekend with our fabulous district-wide youth community? All the traditional workshops will be available during the week, as well as new activities, so we will have fun up until the moment of doom!  For registration online and more info, visit http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2013/PSWD/srhigh_winter/SrHWinter2013.html.

RE Registration & Parent Commitment Form for 2012-13:  Every child and youth who participates in our RE classes needs to have a registration form and parent commitment form filled out and signed each year.  The registration form helps us make sure we have current contact information for your family as well as information about your children’s needs, your dreams for their experience in our RE program, and the areas in which you’d like to help support our church’s educational ministry.  The parent commitment form asks for parents of children in our RE program to help out as volunteers during the year to ensure that our program is fully supported and of the highest quality we can make it.  We’ll have plenty of blank forms at the LRE table in the courtyard before and after the services on Sunday mornings in September, and they are also posted on the UUSM website at http://uusm.org/sundays-and-services/lifespan-RE/registration-permission-forms. Please bring yours on Sunday, or stop by the table to fill them out.  It is very helpful for us to have our registrations right away, so we can begin to build our class rosters and update our church records for this year.

RE Books Wish List on Amazon:  Another arm of the “master wish list” for the RE program, is an Amazon Wishlist of books and supplies that will be useful in RE classes this year or that will be valuable resources for teachers & families in our church.  We do have some money earmarked for purchases, but we are running on a tight RE budget, and donations are happily accepted.  If you’d like to help out by donating to the program, check out the Amazon list at http://tinyurl.com/rewishlist.  (Used books in “good” condition are just fine!)  THANK YOU to the members who have already sent books or other supplies our way – they are so appreciated!

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

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

November 11:
We drink from wells we did not dig.
We have been warmed by fires we did not build.
We light this chalice in thanksgiving
for those who passed their light to us.
-- Robert Schaibly

For the 2012-13 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 November our theme is GRATITUDE.  The chalice lightings shared here will be used in all of our RE classes, and I hope that your family will also share it at home during the 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 Reinforce this month’s theme of GRATITUDE:

Resources:

Books for Children:
·         The Secret of Saying Thanks, by Douglas Wood, Simon & Schuster, 2005
·         Under the Lemon Moon, by Edith Hope Fine, Lee and Low Books, 2002
·         Brother Juniper, by Diane Gibfried, Clarion books, 2006
·         Franklin’s Christmas Gift, by Paulette Bourgeois, Kids Can Press, 1998
·         The Quiltmaker’s Gift by Jeff Brumbeau, Scholastic Press, 2001

Resources for Adults:
·         Explore the following readings in Singing the Living Tradition published by the Unitarian Universalist Association. (Our hymnal)
o   # 445 by Joy Atkinson
o   #457 by Edward Everett Hale
o   #479 by Denise Levertov
o   #512 by O. Eugene Picket
o   #515 by Richard M. Fewkes
o   #656 by Percival Chubb
·         A Grateful Heart: Daily Blessings for the Evening Meal from Buddha to the Beatles, edited by M. J. Ryan, Conari Press, 1994
·         Check out the Web Site http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/practices/features.php?id=15783 for an article by Frederick and Mary Ann Brussat called “The Spiritual Practice of Generosity.”

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

November 10, 1801:  Samuel Gridley Howe was born in Boston, Massachusetts.  He graduated from Harvard Medical School in 1824 and served as a combat officer and surgeon in the Greek Revolution (1824-1830).  Howe founded the New England Asylum for the Blind in 1832 (renamed the Perkins Institution) and the Massachusetts Asylum in 1839, where he remained as head until his death in 1876.  He also wrote textbooks for teaching the blind, and the principles he drew up for the Massachusetts Board of State Charities became a national model.  Charles Dickens wrote of Howe’s experiments with blind, deaf and mute Laura Bridgman.  Howe also worked for prison reform and aid to discharged convicts, was an active abolitionist, and founded the abolitionist journal Commonwealth with his wife, Julie Ward Howe.  Howe serves in the Massachusetts Legislature in 1846.  He admired William Ellery Channing and was a member of the Church of the Disciples, a free church in Boston founded by Unitarian minister James Freeman Clarke.  Known as “the Massachusetts philanthropist,” Howe died on January 9, 1876.

November 10, 1914:  Carolina Seymour Severance died at the age of 94.  She was a champion of women’s rights and a co-founder of Unity Church (now First Church LA), the first Unitarian congregation in Los Angeles.

November 11, 1620:  Having landed in Massachusetts after their failed attempt to reach the English colony at Virginia, Pilgrim leaders on the ship Mayflower signed a covenant for self-government known as the Mayflower Compact.  They established a church in Plymouth, Massachusetts, now Unitarian Universalist.

November 11, 1744: Abigail Smith Adams was born in Weymouth, Massachusetts.  She was the wife of John Adams, second president of the United States, and mother of John Quincy Adams, the sixth president.  She was the chief figure in the social life of her husband’s administration and one of the most distinguished and influential first ladies in U.S. history.  A lively, intelligent woman who enjoyed the challenge of domestic organization and skills, Adams advised her husband on many issues and her letters are a vivid source of social history.  She worked for social justice and abolition of slavery.  A devoted Unitarian, Adams was noted for a serene religiosity, which sustained her good nature during both adventures and adversities.  She died on October 28, 1818.

November 11, 1893:  Lewis Allen McGee was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania.  The son of a slave, he held several pastorates in the African Methodist Episcopal Church.  He served as chaplain in the infantry in both World War I and World War II.  Late in life, McGee announced that he had become Unitarian and received encouragement and help from the American Unitarian Association and Wallace Robbins, the president of Meadville Theological School, to found the interracial Free Religious Fellowship of Chicago.  He later worked with Edwin Wilson at the American Humanist Association headquarters in Yellow Springs, Ohio.  McGee died on November 10, 1979.

November 13, 1599:  John Saieninius, the ruler of Krakow, Poland, converted from Calvinism to Socinianism during debate at Rakow and became a patron of Socinian churches and an important benefactor of the movement.  A wealthy Polish nobleman, he established a Unitarian congregation.  His son James established a Unitarian seminary and printing office to aid the growth of Unitarianism.  Rakow became the center of the Polish Unitarian community, and its members became known as Rakovians.

November 13, 1618:  The Diet of Dort (Socinian) opened in Holland.  It was convened to discuss major issues relating to the Unitarian belief about the nature of Jesus, whether he was to be worshipped, and his relation to God.

November 15, 1579:  Francis David, a Unitarian leader in Transylvania, died in prison for his Unitarian beliefs.  Transylvanian Unitarians consider him the founder of their religion.  He was first Lutheran, then Calvinist, before George Blandrata converted him to Unitarianism.  After his conversion, David began to dispute the nature of Christ and rejected the Trinity.  The Calvinists challenged him and a diet was held at Torda in 1568, at which Prince John Sigismund presided over a debate between David and the Calvinist bishop Peter Melius.  Sigismund declared David the victor and issued the Edict of Torda, providing tolerance for other religions.  Sigismund also converted to Unitarianism and appointed David his advisor.  After Sigismund’s death in 1571, his successor preferred Jesuit advisors.  David’s standing at court ended, and he was arrested and thrown in prison, where he died.  The place of his burial is unknown, and the date is not certain.  This is the date assigned by tradition and celebrated by the Transylvanians.  The year of his birth is also now known, though generally 1510 or 1520 is assigned. 

Calendar of upcoming events:

            Saturday, 11/17
                        Thanksgiving Feast
            Sunday, 11/18
                        Youth Leadership Team meets
                        Bring donations of travel-sized toiletries and warm clothing for Common Ground!
            Sunday, 11/25
                        Faith in Action Sunday in RE – Donation drive for homeless youth served by Common Ground
            Sunday, 12/2
                        Youth Leadership Team meets
                        Mandatory Parent Orientation (Part 1) for Jr. High O.W.L., 12:00-2:30
            Sunday, 12/16
                        Mandatory Parent Orientation (Part 2) for Jr. High O.W.L., 12:30-3:30
            Saturday, 12/22
                        Friendly Beasts Pageant Rehearsal
            Sunday, 12/23
                        Winter Holiday Pageant

Volunteer Opportunities:

NEW Common Ground Faith in Action Project Helpers Needed: On November 25th the 1st-5th graders & YRUU youth will be collecting donations of hygiene products to make “kits” for teens served by Common Ground’s homeless youth drop-in center, as well as donations of warm clothing, sleeping bags, etc.  I’m looking for people who would like to help out, at either service, during the kit-making & donation-sorting effort on the 25th.  Can you help?  Contact Catherine Farmer Loya at Catherinedre@yahoo.com or call 310-829-5436 x105.

This Week in RE:

·         Preschool-Kindergarten: “I Can Help” This week our preschool class will explore ways in which we can help those we care about.  Meets in the NW room of the cottage.

·         1st-2nd Grade (Spirit Seekers):  “Flaming Chalice Lesson” This week our 1st-2nd graders will learn about our UU symbol, the flaming chalice, and will make personalized tote bags with chalices!  Meets in the SE room of the cottage.

·         3rd-5th Grade:  “Basking in the Afterglow” This week, as we continue our exploration of the universe and the development of the Big Bang Theory, we’ll learn “how we know what we know” about the evidence that supports our current understanding of the origin of the universe.  Meets in the mural room at the end of the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         6th-7th Grade (Compass Points): “What’s the Bible to Us?” This week we’ll gain some understanding of how and when the Bible came to be written, will consider it as a collection of books of different genres, and will begin to understand how much there is to be learned about its many versions and interpretations, both currently and throughout history. Meets in Room 3, the third room down the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         8th Grade (Coming of Age) – 9:00 only:  This Sunday in Coming of Age we’ll explore a number of different spiritual practices.  Meets in Room 2, the second room down the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         9th-12th Grade (Young Religious Unitarian Universalists) – 9:00 only: This Sunday we’ll view some videos from the “It Gets Better” campaign and will talk about ways we can show our support for the worth and dignity of all youth in our communities. (Youth Leadership Team) – 11:15 (following Time for All Ages in sanctuary): This Sunday the new Youth Leadership Team will meet for the second time will explore our own leadership styles as well as craft plans for leading the full youth group in a vote on this year’s “big trip” for YRUU. All high school youth who would like to be involved are warmly invited to join us! Meets in Room 1, the first room at the top of the stairs above Forbes Hall.

Announcements:

NEW Guest at Your Table begins this Sunday: Every year UUCCSM supports the work of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee by participating in the annual Guest at Your Table program during the holiday season.  This year’s GAYT program will begin this Sunday, November 18th.  For more than 30 years, UU communities nationwide have participated in Guest at Your Table. They have come together for this special tradition to give thanks, celebrate UU values, and partner with UUSC to change the world.  After our kickoff on Sunday, we invite you to place a Guest at Your Table box where you have your meals and keep it there for several weeks. During that time, share the Stories of Hope — stories drawn from UUSC’s human rights work which we’ll send to you in our weekly UUpdates emails — to imagine a different guest at your table with you each week. And when you have your meals, insert coins or bills into the box to help feed the guest in need who has come to your table. Then bring your box, or write a check to UUSC, on one of the first two Sundays in January, when we’ll be collecting them and sending our congregation’s contribution to UUSC.

Faith in Action Project - Donation Drive to Benefit Common Ground’s Homeless Teen Program:  On November 25th, children and youth in RE will be putting together “hygiene kits” and organizing other donated items for our November Social Justice Project.  Common Ground is a nonprofit organization that provides services to people living with HIV-AIDS, and one arm of their program is a drop-in center for homeless youth in Santa Monica.  (To learn more about Common Ground, visit http://www.commongroundhiv.org/prevention.php.)  Please, take a look at the list of items below and bring some things in for our donation drive.  Undergarments, socks and personal care items should be new.  Other items can be gently used or new.  Please bring donations this Sunday, November 18th to the “Common Ground Donations” basket at the Lifespan RE table in Forbes Hall during coffee hour.  We will collect through the 25th, when we’ll organize all of the donations during the services in RE.
Personal Care items needed for “hygiene kits”: 

- Travel- or hotel-sized  shampoo, conditioner, lotion, body wash, toothpaste, deodorant, mouthwash, soap
- Toothbrushes
- Shaving razors
- Feminine hygiene products

Common Ground’s homeless youth always have a more difficult time living on the streets during the colder, wetter months. They will greatly appreciate any items- I had a youth tell me last year when we were handing out socks that it is “nice to feel like someone cares”.  The kids need warm things for the winter. Often socks and clothes get wet and they show up at our place soaked to the bone with no other clothes to change into.  They are always in need of the following specifically:

- Sweatshirts/Hoodies (L, XL, XXL) (In the winter they generally wear as many layers as possible to try to stay warm and dry so they need the bigger sizes of sweatshirts)
- Socks
- Warm hats/ beanies
- Underwear- (boxers, women’s underwear)- most youth only have one pair to their name
- Bras 

Although the Westside has a cold weather shelter for adults that opens for a few months each year in early December, many of the youth will not access it. Often, this is due to fear. Many of the youth have told me about horrible experiences at various LA shelters. There is no “youth” shelter on the Westside. In the cold months ahead, many of the kids will need other non clothing items to support them on the street including:

- Sleeping bags
- Blankets
- Backpacks 

I just provided a long list! Sorry for that! This time of year is always so hard. I wonder how we can let any of our young people sleep out on the cold streets for months on end. It is so difficult to have to shut our doors at the end of a night and send those kids back out to the cold and wet.  Any help that you can provide is wonderful and much appreciated!

The Return of the Friendly Beasts! Once again, our pre-K through 5th-grade children will sing “The Friendly Beasts” song at our holiday pageant on Sunday, Dec. 23, at both services.  Kris Langabeer will begin rehearsing the kids Nov. 4 for about 10 minutes in each classroom.  She’ll begin with the preschoolers and then move from classroom to classroom rehearsing the older kids.  Please mark your calendars: a dress rehearsal for all Beasts will occur Saturday, Dec. 22, 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.

Jr. High & Sr. High Youth Camps at de Benneville Pines – Registration Open:  Youth are encouraged to head to Camp de Benneville Pines this winter for a camp experience like no other!

·         Jr. High Camp is Nov.30-Dec.2, and this year’s theme is “Our Amazing Race!”  Teams of youth will move through the weekend travelling to different countries “around the world”, completing quests, puzzles, challenges and races that emphasize community building and teamwork. There will be road blocks, of course, bonus opportunities and UU fun along the way.  All regular camp activities (raps, workshops and snow play) will be folded into this amazing adventure. This weekend is sure to be a new experience for all and a way to explore the world at beautiful de Benneville Pines!  For more information and to register online, visit http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2012/PSWD/jrhigh_fall/JrHFall2012.html.

·         Sr. High Camp is Dec. 27-Jen. 2, and the theme for this year is “Camp ApUUcalypse.”  Live like you're dying at Camp ApUUcalypse, a winter weekend of survival and growth!  Master the art of zombie fighting. Finish off your bucket list. Come for new friends, laughter and an awesome UU experience! And even if the world does end, then what could be a better send-off than a weekend with our fabulous district-wide youth community? All the traditional workshops will be available during the week, as well as new activities, so we will have fun up until the moment of doom!  For registration online and more info, visit http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2013/PSWD/srhigh_winter/SrHWinter2013.html.

RE Registration & Parent Commitment Form for 2012-13:  Every child and youth who participates in our RE classes needs to have a registration form and parent commitment form filled out and signed each year.  The registration form helps us make sure we have current contact information for your family as well as information about your children’s needs, your dreams for their experience in our RE program, and the areas in which you’d like to help support our church’s educational ministry.  The parent commitment form asks for parents of children in our RE program to help out as volunteers during the year to ensure that our program is fully supported and of the highest quality we can make it.  We’ll have plenty of blank forms at the LRE table in the courtyard before and after the services on Sunday mornings in September, and they are also posted on the UUSM website at http://uusm.org/sundays-and-services/lifespan-RE/registration-permission-forms. Please bring yours on Sunday, or stop by the table to fill them out.  It is very helpful for us to have our registrations right away, so we can begin to build our class rosters and update our church records for this year.

RE Books Wish List on Amazon:  Another arm of the “master wish list” for the RE program, is an Amazon Wishlist of books and supplies that will be useful in RE classes this year or that will be valuable resources for teachers & families in our church.  We do have some money earmarked for purchases, but we are running on a tight RE budget, and donations are happily accepted.  If you’d like to help out by donating to the program, check out the Amazon list at http://tinyurl.com/rewishlist.  (Used books in “good” condition are just fine!)  THANK YOU to the members who have already sent books or other supplies our way – they are so appreciated!

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

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

November 18:
Amid all the noise in our lives,
We take this moment to sit in silence –
        To give thanks for another day,
        To give thanks for all those in our lives who have brought us warmth
and love
        To give thanks for the gift of life.
-- Timothy D. Haley

For the 2012-13 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 November our theme is GRATITUDE.  The chalice lightings shared here will be used in all of our RE classes, and I hope that your family will also share it at home during the 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 Reinforce this month’s theme of GRATITUDE:

“Thanksgiving” (from The Book of New Family Traditions by Meg Cox)
How to Make a Thankfulness Tree – Draw a maple lead template.  Once you have the template, use a pencil and outline the leaf shape on colored paper.  Cut out as many leaf shapes as you wish.  If your children are very young, you may want to do this part ahead.  Spread the leaves across the table, and let everybody in the family write things on the leaves for which they are thankful this year.  Poke a small hole in the stem part of the leaves, thread with string, and hang on the branches.  Afterwards, save all the leaves, either gluing them into the family scrapbook or stuffing them in a plastic baggy marked with the year.  (When he gets older, my won will love that he was thankful for “my brane” at age six.)  Alternate idea:  Make your thankfulness tree as a poster, drawing a picture of a tree, then having the kids trace around their hands on colored paper and make those handprints the leaves.  Glue “leaves” to three on poster.

Thankful Box – Put a cardboard box with a slit cut into the top on the kitchen counter the week before Thanksgiving, with a pile of blank paper and a pencil next to it.  Everybody writes down things they’re thankful for.  Read them aloud during the feast, and guess who wrote what.

Thanksgiving Scroll – Each year before the feast, the Butman family of Walkersville, Maryland, unrolls a paper scroll across the kitchen table.  (Arts and crafts stores sell paper rolls, which are about 1 foot wide.)  To start, Bryan Butman or one of his three kids picks out a Bible verse having to do with giving thanks, and they write it across the top.  The paper is taped to the table and divided into five sections, one for each family member.  Each family member draws or colors something they were thankful for that year, whether a pet, good grades, or close friends.  The Butmans keep adding on to the same scroll until it’s full, but you could also cut off each year’s section and carefully tape it to the dining room wall while eating your feast.

Corn Kernels – Put three kernels of corn next to each place setting for Thanksgiving dinner, and at some point, have each person count out three things for which they are grateful.

Thank-You Notes – Kim Meisenheimer realized that many of the people for whom her kids were thankful didn’t come to their Thanksgiving dinner.  So she started having her sons write (and mail) two or three special thank-you notes a year to special people, anyone from the soccer coach to Grandma.  On Thanksgiving Day itself, each family member could be required to write a thank-you note to each other person attending the feast.  Slip them under the plates before the meal.

Connecting When You’re Apart – On the day before Thanksgiving, Gines family members all over the country make pie at exactly the same time, using Grandma Betty’s pie crust recipe.  Betty herself calls each household in turn, and speaks to each grandchild.

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

November 18, 1787:  James Freeman was ordained as a Unitarian minister at King’s Chapel in Boston, by authority of the congregation, after two Anglican bishops refused to ordain him.  At the service, he was names “Rector, Minister, Priest, Pastor, and Ruling Elder.”  Thus the first Anglican church in America became the first avowedly Unitarian church in America.  Through Freeman’s Harvard College associations and civic activities, King’s Chapel grew into full relations with its former Puritan enemies.

November 18, 1861: The Unitarian Julia Ward Howe wrote “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” at the specific request of President Abraham Lincoln.  Many of the Union forces adopted it as a marching song in the Civil War, but it soon gained nationwide popularity.  American troops sang it in the Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War II.

November 18, 2003:  The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued its decision in the case of Goodridge v. the Department of Public Health of Massachusetts.  The court held that under the Constitution of Massachusetts, it is illegal to deny to people of the same gender the same marriage rights granted to people of different genders.  The primary plaintiffs were Hillary and Julie Goodridge.  Of the 14 plaintiffs, seven were Unitarian Universalists, including Hillary Goodridge.  The Unitarian Universalist Association and the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association of the Masachusetts Bay District filed amicus curiae briefs in the case.

November 19, 1621:  A mob of angry orthodox Christians stormed the Unitarian congregation in Haarlem, Holland, on this date.  The Unitarian minister and Remonstrant Hermann Montanus escaped, but 25 of his parishioners were arrested.  Remonstrants, especially those showing Unitarian tendencies, were frequently persecuted at this time.  The Haarlem congregation had been infiltrated by Daniel Brenius, who betrayed its Unitarian tendencies to the authorities.

November 20, 1850:  Charlotte Garrigue Masaryk was born in Brooklyn, New York.  Her family belonged to First Unitarian Church of Brooklyn.  Masaryk spent some time in Germany studying piano.  Friends there told her about Thomas Masaryk, whom she married on March 15, 1878.  The couple moved to Prague, Czechoslovakia, where Thomas fought for his country’s independence and Charlotte devoted her time to social problems.  Thomas became the first president of Czechoslovakia, elected in 1920 and again in 1927 and 1934.  Charlotte died in 1923.  At her funeral at First Unitarian Church in Brooklyn, her husband and her son spoke from the pulpit.

November 20, 1888:  Nathaniel Currier, a Unitarian and noted lithographer with partner James Merrit Ives, died at age 74.

November 24, 1597:  George Enyedi, the third superintendent (bishop) of Unitarian churches in Transylvania, died.  In a time of fading religious faith, Enyedi rallied the Unitarians with regular synods and writings.  His death, followed by that of King Sigismund II, marked the end of Unitarianism’s major presence in the area.

November 24, 1859:  Charles Darwin, a Unitarian, published The Origin of the Species, setting forth radical ideas that challenged biblical literalists.   

Calendar of upcoming events:

Sunday, 10/7
          Teaching team meetings between services, 10:15-10:45
          Lunch between service & Town Hall meeting to benefit UCLA campus ministry group
Friday, 10/5-Sunday, 10/7
            YRUU Youth Con in San Diego
Saturday, 10/20
            Coming of Age/YRUU Beach Bonfire at Dockweiler!
Sunday, 10/28
            Day of the Dead Multigenerational service

This Week in RE:

·         Preschool-Kindergarten: “Memory Game” This week our preschool class will take part in a special memory game, introducing many of the sights and people of our own UUCCSM community.  Meets in the NW room of the cottage.

·         1st-2nd Grade (Spirit Seekers):  “Tenzin’s Deer” This week our 1st-2nd graders will further explore the story shared during the Time for All Ages in the service, about a boy who learns how to love and let go.  Meets in the SE room of the cottage.

·         3rd-5th Grade:  “And Then There Was Light” This week, we’ll explore the nature of visible light and invisible light (as part of the larger electromagnetic spectrum).  We’ll experiment with lenses and prisms, and prepare for our exploration into the origins of the universe in the weeks to come.  Meets in the mural room at the end of the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall. Note: THIS WEEK ONLY – Room change for 9:00 class – will meet in Room 2, the second room down the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         6th-7th Grade (Compass Points): “What Do I Carry With Me?”  This week we’ll explore the gifts and talents each participant possesses which can help them on their spiritual journey, and will think about personal priorities and develop ways to understand the consequences of the choices we make. Meets in Room 3, the third room down the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         8th Grade (Coming of Age) – 9:00 only:  This coming Sunday we will be create our class covenant, an agreement we will make with each other about how we will treat each other in the class.  For the students, please be thinking about how you want to be interacted with and what is important to you regarding how we relate to one another. We will then talk about famous Unitarian Universalists throughout history.  Note: THIS WEEK ONLY – Room change – will meet in the mural room at the end of the hallway upstairs above Forbes Hall.

·         9th-12th Grade (Young Religious Unitarian Universalists) – 9:00 only: This week YRUU will talk about social justice ideas and projects for the year, and play some fun group-building games.  Meets in Room 1, the first room at the top of the stairs above Forbes Hall.

Announcements:

NEW Jr. High & Sr. High Youth Camps at de Benneville Pines – Registration Open:  Youth are encouraged to head to Camp de Benneville Pines this winter for a camp experience like no other!
·         Jr. High Camp is Nov.30-Dec.2, and this year’s theme is “Our Amazing Race!”  Teams of youth will move through the weekend travelling to different countries “around the world”, completing quests, puzzles, challenges and races that emphasize community building and teamwork. There will be road blocks, of course, bonus opportunities and UU fun along the way.  All regular camp activities (raps, workshops and snow play) will be folded into this amazing adventure. This weekend is sure to be a new experience for all and a way to explore the world at beautiful de Benneville Pines!  For more information and to register online, visit http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2012/PSWD/jrhigh_fall/JrHFall2012.html.
·         Sr. High Camp is Dec. 27-Jen. 2, and the theme for this year is “Camp ApUUcalypse.”  Live like you're dying at Camp ApUUcalypse, a winter weekend of survival and growth!  Master the art of zombie fighting. Finish off your bucket list. Come for new friends, laughter and an awesome UU experience! And even if the world does end, then what could be a better send-off than a weekend with our fabulous district-wide youth community? All the traditional workshops will be available during the week, as well as new activities, so we will have fun up until the moment of doom!  For registration online and more info, visit http://www.uucamp.org/camps/2013/PSWD/srhigh_winter/SrHWinter2013.html.

RE Class Snack Signups:  Parents, please sign up to provide a snack for your child’s RE class this year.  If each family signs up for 2-3 Sundays during the year, we will be covered!  Younger children’s classes have signup charts posted next to the classroom doorway.  Parents for grades 6-12 are invited to sign up via email; contact Catherinedre@yahoo.com to volunteer to help.

RE Registration & Parent Commitment Form for 2012-13:  Every child and youth who participates in our RE classes needs to have a registration form and parent commitment form filled out and signed each year.  The registration form helps us make sure we have current contact information for your family as well as information about your children’s needs, your dreams for their experience in our RE program, and the areas in which you’d like to help support our church’s educational ministry.  The parent commitment form asks for parents of children in our RE program to help out as volunteers during the year to ensure that our program is fully supported and of the highest quality we can make it.  We’ll have plenty of blank forms at the LRE table in the courtyard before and after the services on Sunday mornings in September, and they are also posted on the UUSM website at http://uusm.org/sundays-and-services/lifespan-RE/registration-permission.... Please bring yours on Sunday, or stop by the table to fill them out.  It is very helpful for us to have our registrations right away, so we can begin to build our class rosters and update our church records for this year.

RE Books Wish List on Amazon:  Another arm of the “master wish list” for the RE program, is an Amazon Wishlist of books and supplies that will be useful in RE classes this year or that will be valuable resources for teachers & families in our church.  We do have some money earmarked for purchases, but we are running on a tight RE budget, and donations are happily accepted.  If you’d like to help out by donating to the program, check out the Amazon list at http://tinyurl.com/rewishlist.  (Used books in “good” condition are just fine!)  THANK YOU to the members who have already sent books or other supplies our way – they are so appreciated!

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

Chalice Lighting Words of the Week (October’s Theme – LETTING GO):

October 7:
Some think it’s holding on that makes one strong; sometimes it’s letting go.
-- Sylvia Robinson

For the 2012-13 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 FORGIVENESS.  The chalice lightings shared here will be used in all of our RE classes, and I hope that your family will also share it at home during the 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 Reinforce this month’s theme of LETTING GO:

Possible Activities:

·         Simple living is in large part the discipline of letting go. Spend some time considering what “things” in your life you can let go. Take a good look at your calendar and consider if there are activities that can be let go in order to simplify your life.

Resources:

Books for Children:

·         “The Boy and the Filberts” from Aesop’s Fables
·         Letting Swift River Go by Jane Yolen, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 1995
·         “The Monk’s Heavy Load” in the book Kindness: A Treasury of Buddhist Wisdom for Children and Parents, collected and adapted by Sarah Conover, Eastern Washington University Press, 2001

Resources for Parents:
·         Living Simply With Children: A Voluntary Simplicity Guide for Moms, Dads and Kids Who Want to Reclaim the Bliss of Childhood and the Joy of Parenting, Marie Sherlock, Three Rivers Press, 2003

Resources for Adults:
·         Explore the following readings in Singing the Living Tradition published by the Unitarian Universalist Association. (Our hymnal)
o   # 482 by Jacob Trapp
o   # 583 by Wendell Berry
o   # 522 from the book of Luke
o   # 526 by Inuit Shaman Uvanuk
o   # 527 by Richard Jeffries
o   # 529 by Rabindranath Tagor
o   # 541 by Denise Levertov
o   # 552 by Nancy Wood
o   # 556 adapted from Ralph Waldo Emerson
o   # 595 adapted from the Bodhisattva vows
o   # 654 by Ralph Helverson

·         Love is Letting Go of Fear, Gerald G. Jampolsky & Hugh Prather, Celestial Arts, 2004
·         Learning to Fall: The Blessings of an Imperfect Life, Phillip Simmons, Bantam, 2003
·         “A Lifetime Isn’t Long Enough” Sermon from the Service of the Living Tradition 2009 by Mary J. Harrington http://www.uua.org/documents/harringtonmary/090626_lifetime_not_enough.pdf
·         Poem “In Blackwater Woods” from American Primitive by Mary Oliver, Back Bay Books, 1983
·         Story “Letting Go” in the book One Hundred Wisdom Stories From Around the World, Margaret Silf, The Pilgrim Press, 2003

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

October 5, 1655:  Having determined that John Biddle was so controversial that any court decision on his case would endanger the Puritan government, Oliver Cromwell, the lord protector of England, exiled him and imprisoned him on the Scilly Isles.

October 6, 1779:  Nathaniel Appleton was born in Ipswitch, New Hampshire.  He was a merchant, manufacturer, financier, politician, and philanthropist.  A mill owner and operator himself, he was concerned about the human suffering caused by the factory system, and sought to change working conditions in the United States.  Appleton believed the Unitarian principle of the goodness of human nature could be combined with sound business practices.  He was an active member of the Federal Street Church (now Arlington Street Church) in Boston under the ministries of William Ellery Channing and Ezra Stiles Gannett.  As one of the 10 richest men in Boston, he engaged in large-scale philanthropy and public service.  He served six terms in the Massachusetts legislature and one term in the U.S. House of Representatives.  Nathaniel Appleton died on July 14, 1861.

October 6, 1967:  The Emergency Conference on the Black Rebellion began on this day at the Biltmore Hotel in New York City.  Organized by the Unitarian Universalist Association in response to racial strife in American society, this conference marked the beginning of what is known as the Black Empowerment Controversy within Unitarian Universalism.  The controversy focused on the creation and funding of a Black Affairs Council (BAC), which would be run by African-American leaders within the UU movement.  At the 1968 General Assembly in Cleveland, Ohio, the delegates voted in favor of the BAC but complications arose regarding funding and the all-black nature of the council.  A year later, a substantial number of black delegates walked out of the General Assembly in Boston in protest over the failure of the UUA to fully support the plan.  In 1970 the BAC disaffiliated with the UUA.  The failure to fully fund BAC called into question the UUA’s commitment to racial justice, and over 1,000 black Unitarian Universalists left the church over this controversy, including William Sinkford, recent president of the Unitarian Universalist Association (2001-2009).

October 8, 1793:  John Hancock, a Unitarian merchant, political leader, and signed of the Declaration of Independence, died at age 56.

October 11, 1564:  The anti-Trinitarian Martin Cellarius died in Basil, Switzerland, at the age of 65.  Considered the first self-proclaimed Unitarian, he was imprisoned in Germany for his beliefs.  Cellarius is the author of several biblical and philosophical works, and he influenced both the Polish and the Transylvanian Unitarian movements.

October 12, 1576:  Adam Neuser, minister of St. Peter’s Church (Unitarian) in Heidelberg, Germany, died.  Said to be the first Christian to insist on the complete humanity of Jesus, he disputed church authorities over the Trinity.  Neuser is credited with introducing Socinianism into Germany.  Five years before he died, he fled to Turkey to escape persecution and became a Muslim.

October 13, 1841:  Thomas Lamb Eliot was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of William Greenleaf Eliot, Jr.  As a student at Washington University, he suffered a serious eye injury that often required him to have someone read materials to him.  Nevertheless, he graduated from Harvard Divinity School and became minister-at-large and then associate minister in St. Louis.  Repeating his father’s legacy, Eliot headed to a frontier town of 6,000 inhabitants – Portland, Oregon – and entered the ministry of its new Unitarian church.  He built up the congregation, founded Reed College, and was a civic leader with great impact on the cultural and political development of Portland.  In later years, his eye injury forced him to accept his son-in-law, Earl Morse Wilbur, as an associate minister.  He died on April 26, 1936.

Dear friends,

By now many of you have heard this week’s sad news.  For those of you who have not, it is with great sorrow that I share the news that beloved UUCCSM member Judy Federick passed away on Sunday.  Judy was a longtime member of the church, a member of the Lifespan RE Committee, and in past years a teacher of Coming of Age and Senior High O.W.L.  This Sunday, we will spend some time during the Time for All Ages in the sanctuary talking about things we can do to take care of ourselves and get help when we are sad.  The nursery and preschool will meet as usual, and children in grades 1-7 will take part in a social justice project together.  We will gently acknowledge the loss with our younger children, as it is often more upsetting to children to perceive that people around them are very sad without knowing why.  Older youth, those in 8th-12th grades, who may have known Judy well, are invited to join Catherine Farmer Loya and YRUU advisor Emily Linnemeier during the 9:00 service for an opportunity to process our loss and ways to provide support for one another.  Youth should attend the first part of the service, rather than heading immediately upstairs at 9:00.  Following the second service, at 12:30, members of the Our House grief support center will join Rebecca and Catherine for a one-hour program of support for our church community.  Childcare will be offered during this program, and youth are invited to attend.  I hope many of you will join us.

Calendar of upcoming events:

Friday, 9/21-Sunday, 9/23
  UUCCSM camp weekend at de Benneville
Sunday, 9/23
  Multi-age Social Justice Sunday
Sunday, 9/30
  Youth Programs brunch for youth in grades 8-12 and their families, hosted by the Youth Programs
  Subcommittee of the Lifespan RE Committee.  Held between the services from 10:15-11:00
Sunday, 10/28
  Day of the Dead Multigenerational service

Volunteer Opportunities:

Nursery/Preschool Assistants Needed – Would you enjoy spending one Sunday a month with the youngest members of our UUCCSM community?  We’re still looking for several assistants for the nursery at 9:00 or 11:00, and for the preschool class at 11:00.

This Week in RE:

·         Preschool-Kindergarten: “Welcome to Chalice Children” This week our preschool class will take part in an introduction to this year’s Chalice Children curriculum, with some special getting-to-know-you activities and stories.  Meets in the NW room of the cottage.

·         1st-7th Grade: This week our 1st-7th graders will take part in a special craft activity, in preparation for our upcoming RE Offering project to support School on Wheels.  We’ll learn about the help that School on Wheels provides to homeless children and youth, and will decorate special collection boxes to be used throughout the year to collect pennies and other coins.  At the end of the year we’ll count up all of our RE donations and will send the balance to School on Wheels to support their important work.  Meets in the center room of the cottage.

·         8th-12th Grade (Coming of Age & YRUU) – 9:00 only: This week youth are invited to gather to talk about loss and ways to ask for help or give help to others when they are struggling with depression and grief, as well as sharing our remembrances of Judy Federick. Meets in Room 1, the first room at the top of the stairs above Forbes Hall.

Announcements:

NEW RE Class Snack Signups:  Parents, please sign up to provide a snack for your child’s RE class this year.  If each family signs up for 2-3 Sundays during the year, we will be covered!  Younger children’s classes have signup charts posted next to the classroom doorway.  Parents for grades 6-12 are invited to sign up via email; contact Catherinedre@yahoo.com to volunteer to help.

Pick-Up Procedures:  Children through Grade 5 must be picked up from class by their parents.  Class time lasts until 15 minutes after the hour (10:15/12:15), in order to allow for a full hour of class time, and so parents have time to grab a cup of coffee before coming to collect their children.  Please be prompt; RE teachers deserve to take part in coffee hour, too!

Allergy Information:  If your child has any food allergies (or allergies to other materials that they would possibly come into contact with in a church school setting) PLEASE make sure that we know about them!  We do provide snacks in our RE classes, so it is very important information for us to have.  There is a spot on our RE registration form for this information, but if there is allergy information for your child that you did not include on the form, or if you have not yet turned in a registration form, please email me right away with the information.  I am creating allergy alert lists for all of our classes this week.

RE Registration & Parent Commitment Form for 2012-13:  Every child and youth who participates in our RE classes needs to have a registration form and parent commitment form filled out and signed each year.  The registration form helps us make sure we have current contact information for your family as well as information about your children’s needs, your dreams for their experience in our RE program, and the areas in which you’d like to help support our church’s educational ministry.  The parent commitment form asks for parents of children in our RE program to help out as volunteers during the year to ensure that our program is fully supported and of the highest quality we can make it.  We’ll have plenty of blank forms at the LRE table in the courtyard before and after the services on Sunday mornings in September, and they are also posted on the UUSM website at http://uusm.org/sundays-and-services/lifespan-RE/registration-permission-forms. Please bring yours on Sunday, or stop by the table to fill them out.  It is very helpful for us to have our registrations right away, so we can begin to build our class rosters and update our church records for this year.

Youth Programs Brunch, September 30:  Youth in Coming of Age (grade 8) and YRUU (grades 9-12) and their parents are invited to a brunch between the services on Sunday, Sept. 30th from 10:15-11:00 under the shade structure in the courtyard for an introduction to our youth programs for the year and to meet our fabulous Youth Programs committee members.  Siblings are welcome too!  We’ll share calendars for the year, talk about our monthly COA/YRUU social events (and ask for parents’ help in coordinating), and discuss the “big picture” of our congregation’s engagement with and support for our youth.

RE Books Wish List on Amazon:  Another arm of the “master wish list” for the RE program, is an Amazon Wishlist of books and supplies that will be useful in RE classes this year or that will be valuable resources for teachers & families in our church.  We do have some money earmarked for purchases, but we are running on a tight RE budget, and donations are happily accepted.  If you’d like to help out by donating to the program, check out the Amazon list at http://tinyurl.com/rewishlist.  (Used books in “good” condition are just fine!)  THANK YOU to the members who have already sent books or other supplies our way – they are so appreciated!

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

Chalice Lighting Words of the Week (September’s Theme – FORGIVENESS):

September 23:
For every time we make a mistake
And we decide to start again,
We light this chalice.

For every time we are lonely
And we let someone be our friend,
We light this chalice.

For every time we are disappointed
And we choose to hope,
We light this, our chalice.
-- M. Maureen Killoran

For the 2012-13 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 FORGIVENESS.  The chalice lightings shared here will be used in all of our RE classes, and I hope that your family will also share it at home during the 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 Reinforce this month’s theme of FORGIVENESS:

Are you holding on to a hurt that was done to you? Is there someone you are holding a grudge against? Think of a way of letting the “wind blow that hurt away.”

You could write the hurt into sand somewhere outdoors, and as the wind and weather slowly erase your words, work to let go of the hurt inside of you.

If you have been holding a grudge, actively work to reconcile yourself to that individual.

Explore ways that people are using forgiveness and reconciliation as a form of justice-making in the world. Some places to start might be The Fellowship of Reconciliation (http://www.forusa.org), South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, or the Victim Offender Reconciliation Program
(http://www.vorp.com).

Resources:

Books for Children:
  The Story of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles
  Lets be Enemies by Janice May Udry
  That’s Mine, Horace by Holly Keller
  My Two Uncles by Judith Vigna
  Yoshi’s Feast by Kimiko Kajikawa
  Zinnia and Dot by Lis Cambell Ernst
  Feathers and Fools by Mem Fox

Further Reading for Adults:
·         Explore the following readings in Singing the Living Tradition published by the Unitarian Universalist Association. (Our hymnal)
o   # 438 by Clinton Lee Scott
o   #440 by Phillip Hewett
o   #461 by Reinhold Niebuhr
o   #464 by Judy Chicago
o   #477 by Vivian Pomeroy
o   #478 from the UN Envirmonmental Sabbath Program
o   #634 by Jack Riemer
o   #635 by Chaim Stern
o   #637 by Robert Eller-Isaacs
o   #666 by Thandeka
·         “Reconciliation as a Spiritual Discipline,” by Paula Cole Jones; UUWorld Magazine, February, 2004 http://www.uuworld.org/2004/02/feature1.html
·         “The Practice of Reconciliation,” by Paula Cole Jones; UUWorld Magazine, February, 2004 http://www.uuworld.org/2004/02/feature1b.html
·         Forgiveness is a Choice: A Step-By-Step Process for Resolving Anger and Restoring Hope by Robert D. Enright, American Psychological Association, 2001
·         A Little Book on Forgiveness by Marilyn Sewell, Fuller Press, 2008

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

September 24, 1825:  Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was born in Baltimore, Maryland.  She was an important African-American feminist, abolitionist, and writer.  Harper was a strong advocate for the Underground Railroad and worked for women’s suffrage, temperance, and education.  She taught school at Union Seminary near Columbus, Ohio, and except for the years 1860 to 1864, when she stayed home with her young daughter, she lectured widely and kept a grueling schedule.  A member of the First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia, Harper was also a poet and popular novelist.  Her books include Iola Leroy (1892), Minnie’s Sacrifice (1868), Sowing and Reaping, and Trial and Triumph.  In her later years, Harper helped found the National Association of Colored Women.  She died on February 22, 1911.

September 26, 1539:  Sebastian Franck was banished from Strasburg, Germany, because of his Unitarian beliefs.  A Lutheran who converted to Unitarianism, he wrote popular books on history and religion.  Franck eventually settled in Basel, Switzerland.

September 27, 1616:  The Unitarian Church in Rakow, Poland, sent Peter Statorius III and John Lunkwitz to Altorf, Germany, to help free Unitarian students imprisoned for their beliefs.

September 27, 1833:  Rajah Rommuhun Roy died in England at the age of 61.  He was the founder of the Brahmo-Samaj, a form of Hinduism similar to Unitarianism.

September 28, 1746:  John Disney was born.  He left the Church of England to become Unitarian and succeeded Theophilus Lindsey as minister of Essex Street Chapel in London.  A leading scholar of his day, Disney worked for repeal of all laws restricting liberty of conscience.  He died on December 26, 1816.

September 28, 1891:  Herman Melville, an important American novelist and Unitarian, died at age 72.  Melville was born in 1819 in New York City.  Although his family heritage was distinguished in cultural and military circles, poverty limited his education and forced him to ease the family’s financial woes as a clerk, common seaman, and country schoolteacher.  However, Melville’s family inherited extensive libraries, in which he read widely.  He left home at age 17 and served on the whaler Acushnet, deserted in the Pacific, and lived briefly with a cannibal tribe.  His works include Typee (1846), Omoo (1847), and Mardi (1849), but he is most famous for his 1851 novel Moby Dick.  He also wrote a series of poems about the Civil war.  In later life, Melville withdrew from society almost completely, working as a customs agent and writing Billy Budd (1891).  He was a member of the Unitarian Church of All Souls in New York City.

September 29, 1929:  The first service of the Humanist Society, the first independent Humanist congregation, was held at Steinway Hall in New York City on this date.  Charles Francis Potter, a Unitarian minister and one of the signers of the Humanist Manifesto, conducted the service and delivered the sermon, “A New Faith for a New Age.”  (Catherine’s note: for more information about religious humanism and to read the Humanist Manifesto, visit http://www.americanhumanist.org/Who_We_Are/About_Humanism/Humanist_Manif...)