Congregational Vision
We are a Congregation creating a better world by nurturing the heart and expanding the mind.
We provide a safe, caring community where all can freely explore diverse religious thought. We work for justice and equality with the power of compassion and compassionate power. |
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UUCGT
Beacon
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Beacon, and would like to, please contact the
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Reflection: Doing Something!
Friends, thank you for your wonderful participation in last Sunday's service on "Slavery is Not Over." Below are three ways we can help, and four things for this COMING SUNDAY for which we ask you to prepare, as we explore "Standing on the Side of Live."
This Sunday, you will have the opportunity to:
1) Sign a card for Dr. Lacrytia Hawkins who taught that Christian and Muslims pray to the same God, and as a result, Wheaton College began termination proceedings. This brave woman was attempting to address growing anti-Muslim sentiment in the Christian academic community. You can read more here: http://www.huffingtonpost
2) CHANGE FOR FLINT - bring your loose change as we will send the money to the UU congregation in Flint as they help address the water crisis. Thanks to Misty Sheehan and the Green Sanctuary team for gathering the information so we can act.
3) What do you know? Our fantastic UU Library team will assemble some good reads from our very own library to help us think about "Big Community."
4) Standing on the Side of Love - we are seeking a volunteer who would be willing to take photos of our members as they hold a sign saying, "I stand on the side of love because ...." We'll have an opportunity to say what we stand for, and these photos will become part of our website and shared with the UUA's project.
5) $89 to Free a Slave in the Sudan - let's join as a community to change one life through the American Anti-Slavery Group's partner CSI.
It currently costs CSI about $89 to help emancipate a slave and return him or her to South Sudan. This figure includes $43 for the cattle vaccine that retrievers offer slave owners as an incentive to release a slave, and $46 for providing food and other care for each freed slave from the time of their liberation until their repatriation to South Sudan is completed. In addition, to help these people build new lives in freedom, CSI provides each liberated slave with a survival kit costing $62.50, a female goat costing about $60 and a 16-lb. ration of grain costing $7.50.
The information on human trafficking can be found here:
Thank you in advance and I look forward to standing with you this Sunday and beyond. Together we can DO SOMETHING.
In blessing -
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Sunday Service
February 14
9:00 a.m. Contemplative Reflection
10:30 a.m. "Share the Love Sunday" - Rabbi Chava Bahle
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
This year we once again join with UU congregations across the country to honor
Share the Love Sunday. How do you see justice unfolding and how can we be part of it? How do we, as people of faith, respond to inequality and oppression? How do we ensure that the divisions among us - racism, classism, ableism, sexism, heterosexism, and religious plurality - don't prevent us from reaching for something better? What does it mean that listening is an act of love?
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This Sunday for Children and Youth
February 14
9:00 am: Childcare is available for pre-K-5th grade during Contemplative Reflection
10:30 am: Programming & Education for Children and Youth
Children (preK-5th grade) and Youth (6th-12th grade, 12-18yrs) are invited to join their families in the service through the Story Wisdom. Following Story Wisdom, Children (preK-5th grade) will follow their teachers to the large classroom space. Youth (6th-12th grade, 12-18yrs) will join their teacher in the Office. Parents of Children (preK-5th grade) should make their way to the classroom/program wing of the building to sign their child(ren) out of programming following the service.
This Month for Children
...While the adults in the congregation explore our Second UU Principle - Justice, Equity, and Compassion in Human Relations, we will be exploring the theme through story in our classrooms. This month will include Lily's Purple Plastic Purse, Old Turtle, and The Grateful Bull - from "Buddha at Bedtime." The last Sunday of the month will be Super Activity Sunday - we will make this a regular monthly occurrence, providing children with the learning-center opportunity that was available (and very popular!) earlier this fall.
This Month for Youth
...This month our youth will continue to explore justice. They will continue to learn about homelessness through activities and discussion.
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Friday Night Out is FULL.
We will see all of those who have already registered this Friday, February 12 from 5:30-9:00pm.
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What's Going On At UUCGT?
FLASH CALENDAR: The UUCGT weekly FLASH calendar is linked to the UUCGT website calendar, and may be viewed HERE.
This link will connect you to the website calendar page where you will find information and details about upcoming programs and meetings.
Weekly activity schedules are also listed in Sunday's Order of Service, and monthly calendars are included in the Beacon.
Upcoming
meeting dates and events are listed below.
Brewing Community is cancelled tonight.
Next gathering is Thursday, February 25, 5:00-7:00pm at Rare Bird
Wednesday Night POTLUCK: Wednesday, February 17, 5:30pm s
ocial time, dinner at 6:00pm. Delicious meals, shared fellowship!
Upcoming Colloquiums:
February 24 - Mark Hoffmann & Dan Mauk, "Introduction to Backpacking for Beginners"
March 9 - Pete Kirkwood of Workshop Brewing, "How My Beer Will Change the World - Creating Community"
Brew Crew: Have-a-Java-with-Rabbi Chava and Friends!
Friday, February 12, 10:00-12noon at BREW in downtown TC.
Upcoming Brew Crew date: Tuesday, February 23
UU Book Club: Sunday, February 14, 2:00-4:00pm. February title is "Everything I Never Told You," by Celeste Ng. Host:
Mark Gustafson
"Little Spiritual Book" Brown Bag Lunch & Learn:
Join Rabbi Chava for this monthly brown bag "lunch and learn" program. Pack yourself a lunch and come with an open heart.
Tuesday, February 16, 12-1:00pm: Eknath Easwaran's, "
Your Life is Your Message: Finding Harmony with Yourself, Others and the Earth" (Nilgiri Pre
ss).
Tuesday, March 15, 12-1:00pm:
Rami Shapiro, "
Ecclesiastes: Annotated & Explained
" (SkyLight Illuminations). Please get
Rami
Shapiro's SkyLight version
of Ecclesiastes - any edition of this version is fine.
Committee on Ministry Invites You to Small Group Congregational Conversations on
Sunday, February 21:
As a continuation of the work of the small group and Communication Task Force sessions, the Committee on Ministry invites you to join us for small group conversation on communication and our congregational covenant. We will focus on the question, "How has this congregation helped you feel valued?" Conversations will take place following the 10:30 AM service on February 21. Child care will be provided. Please join us.
Death Café - Open Meeting: Friday, February 26, 10:00am-12:00noon
The members of the Death Café would like to extend an invitation to all UU congregants to a one-time open meeting, Friday, February 26 at 10am, at UU. Join us to explore the many aspects of death and dying in a positive, informal setting. The Death Cafe is not grief counseling, but rather an opportunity to talk openly about a sensitive topic that touches us all.
UU Men's Group: Monday, March 7, 5:30pm, Minerva's
"Islam, Radical Islam and Political Islam," presented by Hal Gurian with guest, Samer Bourdkani. Due to the complexity of the subject, many sources will be utilized. Three books are highly recommended:
- "Heretic: Why Islam Needs a Reformation Now," by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
- "The Infidel," by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
- "The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11," Pulitzer Prize winning book by Lawrence Wright
Leadership Development Committee Experiential Workshop
- Save the Date! Saturday, March 5,
10:00am-2:00pm
"What's Discernment Got To Do With It?" See February Beacon for more information, or contact
Tom Darnton.
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F Y I
2016 UUCGT Directory Reminder:
Please email any changes to your address, email or phone to
office@uucgt.org. Data collection will be finished soon!
UU Library -
On Our Shelves: Check out these books from our UU Library to commemorate Black History Month
"All Labor Has Dignity: the King Legacy," demonstrating Martin Luther King, Jr. as a tireless champion of the working class.
"Creating Black Americans: African American History and Its Meanings, 1619 to the Present," an art book which interweaves straight-forward narrative with vivid portraits of black artists to record how an unloved people created a vibrant but still endangered Black America.
"Bound for the Promised Land," revealing Harriet Tubman as one of the giants of American history.
UUCGT Financial Statement:
The UUCGT Financial Statement as of 1.31.16 is available here for your information and review. If questions, please contact Mike McDonald.
Rabbi Chava at NMC Extended Education:
"Meeting Jesus in His Jewish Context" - Explore the Jewish context of Jesus and how this can help deepen your understanding of the ministry of Jesus. By looking at Jewish approaches to God, sacred text, and cosmology, you will discover how Jesus taught and why his message was both timely and timeless.
Tuesdays, February 16 - March 1, 3-5pm at the University Center. Call
(231) 995-1700 for more information.
Pasty Party! Sunday, February 28, 2:00-6:00/7:00 p.m.
Have you ever wanted to make this favorite UP standard? Now you can, along with other UU friends and colleagues - Pasty Party at the home of Lauren Keinath. Learn how 3 basics work together to make a satisfying pasty - comfort food to thousands. Have fun in the Pasty Line; bake, eat, enjoy the fruits of your work; plus take some home for your freezer for easy-peasy convenient meals later.
Lauren has been making pasties for 50 years, learning at a young age from good UP cooks. She'll share her version, and show you how to add your own unique stamp to this malleable classic.
We have room for 7 more participants; extra eaters (such as kids) may also come, but we'll need to know, so we know how many to plan for dinner. Costs and pasties-to-freeze are divvied up at the end of the Party. Contact Lauren or call 231-342-0617 to reserve a spot.
Local Community Needs: Please find a Local Community Needs request form here.
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phone: l(231) 947-3117 website: www.uucgt.org email: office@uucgt.org Office hours: Tuesday - Thursday, 9:00 - 4:00 Friday, 9:00 - 12:00 noon (Monday by appointment) FLASH articles are due by noon on Wednesday of each week
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