Before you know what kindness really is
you must lose things,
feel the future dissolve
like salt in a weakened broth ...
Then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore ...
only kindness that raises its head
from the crowd of the world to say
it is I you have been looking for,
and then goes with you everywhere
like a shadow or a friend.
- from Kindness by Naomi Shihab Nye
Greetings,
Our
theme for September, as we start our new congregational year, is Covenant. When asked about Unitarian Universalism, I often say we are a "covenantal faith", brought together by
our seven ethical principles. We don't have to believe certain things about God or the afterlife or a prophet. What matters most is how we treat one another. Right relationship is at the core of our faith.
I was reminded of the above lines from Naomi Shihab Nye as we lost two dear members of our congregation in close succession. We were reminded that anything can happen at any time. We don't live forever. The multiple acts of kindness that I've witnessed in the face of these difficult times have been stunning. Difficult times also create stress and anxiety when we struggle to see clearly beyond our own needs for love, recognition, and care. Sometimes it's hard to live by our intent to "honor each and enrich all." That's when our covenantal faith comes in handy. It guides our relationships with everyone we come in contact with.
Here's a quote from Kurt Vonnegut's "God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater" that I've included in some child dedications:
Hello babies. Welcome to Earth. It's hot in the summer. It's round, wet, and crowded. At the outside, you've got about 100 years here. There's only one rule that I know of, babies - "God damn it, you've got to be kind."
Please look over our wonderful
Soul Matters resources on Covenant (also available in print on our Garden Door shelf). Part of becoming a member of UUCM is committing yourself to your own spiritual life. So engage in the spiritual practices suggested in the resources, consider the questions, reflect on the quotes, listen to the audio resources. What are you willing to promise yourself, your community, and the world?
I wish you much insight and joy in your explorations and look forward to seeing you soon.
In faith, kindness, love, and covenant,
Barbara
Rev. Barbara McKusick Liscord
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You'll be hearing a new term this year about our worship services
- Whole Congregation Worship. Recognizing that even without children and youth, we always have several generations in every worship service, we are moving away from the term "Multigenerational". Whole Congregation Worship connotes a gathering of our entire community.
Congregations that include children and youth in their worship services tend to have more young adults stay involved in their communities, thus sustaining their faith into the future. Also, parents have expressed excitement about worshipping more frequently with their children. And volunteer teachers don't want to miss so many worship services with their beloved community.
On Most Sundays, as we have done for decades, the entire congregation will begin together in the sanctuary. Then children (age two and older) will go to their Sunmday morning circles.
On Whole Congregation Sundays people of all ages will experience worship together for the whole service.
Every Sunday, parents of children age up to age two will have the option of having their children cared for in our staffed Nursery starting at 10:15am.
At any time during a worship service, parents and children may leave the sanctuary to go to one of two Family Rooms, which have games available. Because worship may include difficult life and world issues that some parents do not want their children to hear, one of these rooms will not have a speaker broadcasting the service, whereas the other will. Family Rooms also allow an opportunity for fellowship among families with children. Parents must stay with their children in these rooms.
We want our worship services to reach people of every learning style. In June, many at UUCM engaged in an excellent workshop where we learned about learning styles and why different elements of a Sunday morning worship service appeal to certain people. We learned that some people listen better if their hands are occupied, so we will now have Soul Work Boxes (formerly known as "busy boxes") for all ages.
Yours in faith and in love,
Rev. Barbara
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We gather at 9:30am, sitting in a circle in the Fireside Room -- or in Barnum Hall if Fireside is too hot! The facilitator for the day starts the discussion by supplying a word, phrase, or theme, which leads to an exchange of ideas that can evolve in any direction. Some sessions might begin with a short topical video (TED talk) to inspire conversation.
Summer Services are smaller in scale and less formal than our regular services, and are a great way to get to know others in the church community and for newcomers to ease in. There's no sermon and little ritual, but there is a wonderful feeling of nurturing our spirits by sharing our joys, concerns, thoughts, and inspirations in a meaningful way and keeping our connections alive through the summer.
As part of our annual congregational retreat at Ferry Beach, Rev. Barbara McKusick Liscord will lead two services in the Grove. Enjoy the peace of tall pines and the seashore. If you have questions about
Ferry Beach, contact Susan Dyke Deschenes (
suzedesch@gmail.com). (
There might be a few spaces left.)
(Whole Congregation Worship)
Linda Goodman & Nancy Baker
Two of our most gifted worship leaders invite you into a new congregational year of worship services in our sanctuary. Music provided by Joe Pollock. Nursery care for 2 year olds and younger begins this week.
Whole Congregation Worship and family rooms begin next week
Rev. Barbara McKusick Liscord & Kali Fyre, Ministerial Intern
As we begin our new congregational year, everyone will gather for this service of homecoming in our sanctuary. Please
bring water
collected during the summer to be mingled in our common vessel. As we mingle our various contributions of water from the summer, each of us will share our name, the source of the water and what we will bring to this beloved community in the year to come.
More about the Water Communion Ritual
. After the worship service, we'll share in the fellowship of our first coffee hour of the new congregational year.
(Whole Congregation Worship)
NOTE LOCATION: 66 Brook Rd, Amherst, NH
Worship Committee
We open our service by gathering in a circle of community. Then you will have options for guided explorations - walking the trails, exploring the pond, sharing music, or gathering inside the building for a circle of reflection on the role nature plays in our spiritual maturity. You are invited to bring your picnic lunch so that we can break bread together after our explorations.
(Whole Congregation Worship)
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Music! Music! Music!
For more information about our music programs, contact our music director, Carolyn McCreary (music@uucm.org 978-772-5870).
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All singers are invited to join the UUCM choir. We rehearse Wednesday evenings from 7:00 - 8:30pm in the sanctuary. Please join us!
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Unitarian Universalist Congregations are moving away from the term "Religious Education" to describe programs outside Sunday morning worship. Instead, we are adopting the term "Faith Formation". It's the idea that our faith continues to form all life long, just as our self understanding and perceptions about our world change and grow. It is a lifelong process of meaning making inherent in our humanity. It is a shift away from focusing on information we expect from curriculum to forming a personal relationship to it.
During our transition, you will see and hear both terms used. For example, the Religious Education Committee, charged with creating and maintaining programs for children and youth, has not yet settled on a new name for their committee.
Yours in faith and in love,
Rev. Barbara McKusick Liscord
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Rev. Barbara has been working with staff from the UU Congregations in Nashua and Manchester on sharing offerings among our congregations. Preliminary plans include: aging and end of life planning, explorations of Unitarian Universalism, an interactive online art & poetry experience with Nancy Baker based on our monthly themes, science & religion, Transgender 101, social justice book groups, conversation circles, Buddhist Meditation, other spiritual practices, and Adult Our Whole Lives (Comprehensive Sexuality Education). Watch for details in future newsletters.
"A real conversation always contains an invitation." - David Whyte
Small groups meet for a couple of hours once or twice a month to share personal life experiences and insights on monthly themes and other current issues. Information about Small Group facilitators and locations will be available in early September. Learn more about SGM and stay tuned for information on how to sign up for a group forming this fall.
Each month, Rev. Barbara and Kali
Fyre, ministerial intern, add resources from over 30 people from UUCM to their own to increase the richness of our Soul Matters UU interconnectedness. UUCM's resource list is collated by a central administrator with those of 100 other ministers and congregations in the Soul Matters Theme Sharing Circle.
Theme materials support the worship and faith development of people of all ages in our congregations. Rev. Barbara, Kali, the Worship Committee, and our Religious Education Committee helped picked our 2016-2017 Themes, which have the overarching concept of COMMUNITY.
UU religious community is a precious gift. Within it, we find values and questions that are rarely encountered elsewhere in our lives. Values and questions that push us, ground us and remind us of who we most deeply are. This year our themes honor this gift of community and its role as caretaker of values. Together we will ask: What is it we find when we gather? And what is it we are asked to share with the world?
What does it mean to be a community of...
Covenant (September)
Healing (October)
Story (November)
Presence (December)
Prophecy (January)
Identity (February)
Risk (March)
Transformation (April)
Embodiment (May)
Zest (June)
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The Religious Education Committee (REC) has a great year planned for the children and youth this year, including:
- Sunday Morning Circles with new planned curricula from UUA's Tapestry of Faith (for ages two through Grade 8)
- Leader Consistency - Circles will have one lead teacher each semester
- More Whole Congregation Worship services
- New Family Rooms
- New Soul Work Boxes for all ages available in the Sanctuary if you'd like to keep your hands busy during service. Show off your creations at Coffee Hour!
- Middle School Youth Group (MSYG)
- High School Youth Group (HSYG - Will incorporate some Coming of Age activities)
Sun, Oct. 2 @ 9:00am: Faith Formation Kickoff Pancake Breakfast;
for children and families to come meet the teachers and hear about curricula.
Send your questions/comments about Faith Formation programming to
rec@uucm.org or call Jamie Ferrier at 603-673-1870.
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Well, actually, from the President's laptop. And I know it is still hot and humid and people are still on vacation, but fall, church, and school will be here before we know it. I've been meeting with several groups over the past few weeks to make sure the fall programs are all ready to go. Rev. Barbara will be on sabbatical starting mid-September, but there are some exceptional worship services planned in her absence that you don't want to miss. There will be a workshop on October 2 after church to share more information about how we are expanding our worship services this year to serve more of our community. I encourage you to join us. And, before August ends, I will meet with the Congregational Development Committee and the full Council. These meetings are good work, but more importantly they are reconnecting me to my spiritual community. I look forward to reconnecting with all of you soon.
Lynn Coakley
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UUCM
Activities & News
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You can still sign up to attend Ferry Beach in Saco, Maine. Wild fun, great fellowship and tranquillity, all in one weekend! Registration forms are available at the UUCM website, Fill them out, and mail them to Susan Dyke Deschenes with your check made out to UUCM, with Ferry Beach in the memo line. Please email Susan at suzedesch@gmail.com to let her know your check is in the mail. It's too late for scholarship applications, but fees are very low compared to other family experiences: Room Fee $145 (rooms fit 3 to 6 people); Campsites $25 per night; free meals for ages 0-4; 4 meals for age 13 and under $42; 4 meals for 13+ $62.
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All Church Meeting:
Join us for conversation about Whole Congregation Worship and Faith Formation.
- Who should attend? Everyone, especially if you have questions. Your ideas and questions matter to our congregation.
- What will you learn?
- More about our current plan for worship and Religious Education this fall
- How different learning styles will influence our shared ministry
- Which learning style aligns with your preferences and what that means for your continued spiritual growth and faith formation
- Where and When? Barnum Hall, after church. Lunch and childcare will be provided.
Questions? Reach out to Leslie Bennett LeslieYingling1@aol.com
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Rev. Barbara McKusick Liscord
Aug 16-26 - Contact Tricia, our Vice President, 603-554-7429
The 2016 Sabbatical Brochure (available in September) will list coverage during Barbara's absence:
. Sept. 19-29 - Visiting our Partner Church in Transylvania with UUCM pilgrims
September 30-November 30 - Away on Sabbatical
UUCM Office & Faith Formation Administrator, Jamie Ferrier, hours:
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 9:00-5:15
Sunday: 8:00 - 2:00
Any changes to office hours will be posted at http://uucm.org/contact-us/.
It is always best to call ahead to be sure Jamie will be available when you need to see her. You can call or email the office for an appointment: 673-1870, ext. 1, or office@uucm.org.
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Learn how to advertize your event in the newsletters and on the church calendar.
October newsletter - Sept 15 (earlier than usual!) - Send to news@uucm.org
Weekly update - Every Monday starting Sept 5 - Send to office@uucm.org
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Are you interested in learning more about how worship services are crafted and offered? Perhaps you don't feel ready to offer an entire service but might be willing to work with others to do part of one. We would like some new voices for the pulpit for 2017, and will work with you to do what you feel comfortable with. If you have a sermon idea, but would prefer not to do the rest, that's OK, too. We'll help take care of that.
The Sermon Seminar group meets monthly to share a meal and help each other with worship planning from start to finish - music, readings, story for all ages, sermon, order of service preparation, etc. We'll be starting in late September. If you'd like to join us, please contact Nancy Baker (ntbaker@att.net) for more information.
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Volunteer at the Nashua Soup Kitchen
Every month we need three volunteers to help Meghan Hoye (424-3431 or
meghan_jeff@comcast.net) serve Sunday lunch at the Nashua Soup Kitchen.
When: 2nd Sunday of every month (next on
September 11)
Time: 10:30am-2:30pm
Duties: Setup, simple food prep, serving, cleanup
Who: Adults and youth 14 and older (accompanied by a responsible adult)
Learn more: Talk to an NSK volunteer: John & Marty Miller, Jeff Hoye, Marti Kennedy, Dona Eaton, Barbara Coan
Click here to volunteer for one or more Sundays.
Thanks so much!
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, 5:30-6:30pm (Third Wednesday Every Month)
Our suppers are becoming ever more popular! To learn more or to join the pool of volunteers, please contact Nancy Danzinger, UUCM Community Supper Coordinator, (ndanzinger@comcast.net, 673-9561), Barbara Smith (673-6629, brbsmith@me.com), or Dona Eaton (donageaton@gmail.com, 673-7526).
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Greater UU Community Events
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Imagine just for a moment. Imagine people from many faith traditions standing and walking together in solidarity celebrating our common humanity and desire for peace while respecting religious variations and differences. Imagine that peace could be found in unity, not uniformity. Imagine that religious inclusion, understanding and dialogue could spring from the steps of those willing to walk demonstrating that peace across faith traditions is possible. Yes! Imagine we could come together, for one short day, to demonstrate what is possible. Our world is in desperate need of the hope, faith and love needed to unite faith traditions on the holy ground of our common humanity. Let's make our interfaith message visible by joining our footsteps in unison, walking in solidarity and linking our hearts in unity to become a living symbol of peace in the world. It is time.
by Rev. Stephanie Rutt (organizer for the Souhegan Valley Interfaith Council)
Contact Linda Goodman (673-6567) for details.
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August: Carole Treen, Treencarole24@gmail.com
September: Linda Higgs, 603-673-7601, lbhiggs@gmail.com
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Send an email to commteam@uucm.org.
Please leave contributions in the SHARE basket in Barnum
. This month's needs: Canned Fruit, Flour, Sugar, Boxed Mixes,Baking Supplies, Coffee & Tea
Please observe UUCM's Food Allergen and Alcohol policies on the
UUCM Policies
webpage.
Weekdays before 6pm and Saturdays before 5pm: Park only behind the church or in the circular driveway in front (and NOT in front of the Garden Door). For more parking information (including a printable map),
click
here
.
In the
Members & Friends section
on the UUCM website,
you will find the latest directory, committee listings, and info about people who've moved. Or you can get a directory from the UUCM office. If your contact information is incorrect, email office@uucm.org with 'Directory Changes' in the subject line.
Minutes from Council meetings (http://uucm.org/members/governance/governance-council/), plus Treasurer's reports, newsletter archive, services provided by UUCM members & friends,
rides to the airport or bus terminal,
recipes, how to buy or consign goods with the proceeds going to UUCM -- plus links to hundreds of shopping sites where your purchase benefits UUCM, and much, much more!
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