Science is not only compatible with spirituality;

it is a profound source of spirituality."

~Carl Sagan

December 11, 10:30 a.m.: "Season of Renewal: Service and the Sixth Source: Earth-centered Love: Loving Everyone at the Table"  Rev. Alex Holt

The third Sunday of Advent in the Christian tradition speaks to many symbols. One of them is Service. The Sixth Source reminds us to live in harmony. How do we care for others and for the entire planet?

As I write this information for Friday I can happily share that we have 20 people signed up for the Thanksgiving Day potluck at church on Thursday afternoon. I hope this might become a new tradition at Westside to have a Thanksgiving Day event for people who would like to gather together for a great meal and companionship.

 

Now the holidays are upon us with all their mixed emotions, messages and occasional dramas. A note that church staff other than Alex will be away for the Christmas Day and New Year's Day Sunday services. The pastoral associates team, Mark and I will all be available if you find the holidays to be a bit much emotionally.

We will have the annual "Blue Holidays" gathering as an informal service on Thursday December 22 at 7 pm in the sanctuary. If the holidays bring up feelings of loss or isolation for you please feel most welcome to come to the gathering and share your feelings safely with others.

I have a iPhone 5s that I no longer need as I upgraded to a 7+. I will restore the 5s to its factory settings and am happy to give it away to anyone who wants a smartphone. You'll have to get your own phone provider (mine is Verizon) and your own phone number but the iPhone is in excellent shape. Please email or text me if interested.

Debra and I both wish you a most happy Thanksgiving Day and as peaceful a holiday season as is possible. 

Beginning January 19, 2017 from 7-9 pm in the Fireside Room, the Westside Christian Fellowship Group will have a meeting on the third Thursday evening of the month.  At our first meeting we will have a chance to share what the term "Christian" personally means to each of us.  We will also discuss and formulate goals and structure for the group.  Finally, we will discuss the first chapter of Christ for Unitarian Universalists: A New Dialogue with Traditional Christianity by Scotty McLennan.  "The retired dean for religious life at Stanford University presents this engaging and thoughtful inquiry into Christianity for Unitarian Universalists and other spiritual seekers-including skeptics, non-religious people, liberal Christians, and those who consider themselves 'spiritual but not religious.'"  It is an excellent book.

 

There are many Unitarian Universalist Christian Fellowship Groups all over the continental United States and in Canada. They are all unique, but share a common goal: to provide support for its members and engagement with some form of Christianity.  If you would like more information about the group, or if you would like to purchase a copy of the book ($15), contact Patti McCall at pattimccall@seanet.com or look for her table in the social hall after Sunday service. 

RE Program Assistant Needed!  Will Haggerty, our wonderful RE Program Assistant has offered his resignation, generously giving us enough time to find just the right person for this position.  He will be moving to other positions in the church and will transition as soon as we hire the right person.  We appreciate all he has done for the RE Program and look forward to his continuing as a congregant at WSUU!  If you know of a non-congregant interested in working on Sundays from 9 am - 3 pm for $15 an hour to help set up, break down, and work in the RE program doing the nitty gritty details of Sunday RE, please contact Cynthia Westby at dre@wsuu.org .

 

All Sunday RE Classes will be held on Sunday, November 27th - the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend.  Our RE teachers look forward to seeing your children there.  Youth Group will also be meeting Sunday evening. 

 

No RE Classes or Nursery on Christmas Day, December 25th or New Years Day, January 1st.  Children are welcome to join their parents in the services held these two days.  We are giving all our generous volunteers and our staff these two national holidays off to be with their families.

 

Multi-Gen Unity of Light Service December 18th Participant Sign Up:  Westside's "Unity of Light" multi-generation service will be Sunday, December 18th.  On Sunday, December 4th, I will put a clipboard on the Greeter Table for children/youth/adults to sign up for reading parts in this service.

 

Christmas Eve Family Service December 24th Participant Sign Up:  Westside's Family Christmas Eve Service will be Saturday, December 24th at 5:00 pm.  I will put a clipboard on the Greeter Table on Sunday, December 4th, for children/youth to sign up for the reading parts for this service.  There will be many parts that evening for all children to participate in a lovely celebration of the Christmas holiday.  We will also need a few hands to help set up and clean up that night.  Thank you!

 

Lama Lekshay thanked us for all we did for him yesterday.  He was touched by the generous donation of food and meals from the Middle School students, teachers and WSUU.  He said in his thank you, "It was a pretty wonderful experience for me and I hope everybody learned something useful.  What a nice group of people I met yesterday. A nice community."  It was a great experience for all of us who had a chance to meet, talk and engage with him. 

 

Christmas Cookies:  Please join us on December 11th from 3-5pm in the social hall to bake and decorate holiday cookies for the kids that Youthcare serves.  Youthcare offers programs and services to run away, homeless, and at risk youth. We will also be collecting socks, underwear, and toiletries (travel size or not) to donate.

Interested in teaching in RE?  Please let Cynthia, Director of Religious Exploration at dre@wsuu.org know if you want to be in Westside's pool of RE teachers!  Each class has a team of 4 teachers or more so your rotation into the teaching schedule could be as little as once a month! 

   

 Questions about RE?  Please contact Cynthia Westby, Director of Religious Exploration at dre@wsuu.org if you have questions or want to discuss the RE Program. 

Big THANKS to everyone who helped at the Mary's Place Shelter and especially to Regina Brennan and Charlotte House for organizing and treating volunteers to a delicious breakfast this week.

Our loving thoughts and best wishes are extended to Joann Gertig who was recently diagnosed as having a mass on her liver. She soon will be undergoing tests, including a biopsy. She also lives with a previous condition, a partially collapsed lung. Joann would appreciate "some extra strong thoughts" at this time. 

Our best wishes and healing thoughts are extended to Emily Davila, daughter of Jill Fleming. Emily was injured in a bicycle accident and is recovering at home in Bonn, Germany. May Emily's healing be smooth and swift.

This past Sunday was Transgender Day of Remembrance--an opportunity for communities to come together and remember transgender people, gender-variant individuals, and those perceived to be transgender who have been murdered because of hate. To date this year, there have been 21 such murders reported in the United States. May Westside always be a safe and loving community for transgender people, gender variant individuals and those perceived to be transgender. Perhaps the need is greater now than ever.

Best wishes to Eileen Duffy as she transitions to apartment living in a brand new building. May Eileen have many, many enjoyable and maintenance-free years in her new home.

Westside's Pastoral Associates:   Westside has continued to grow in a variety of ways over the past several years. With that growth comes a need for increased attention to the pastoral needs of our members. To help address those needs three of our members have completed training as Pastoral Associates and are now available to serve our members and friends,along with our Chaplain, Mark Newton. They are: John Britt,  Marie Hoover, and Fred Matthews.  Requests for pastoral support may be made by email at pastoralteam@wsuu.org   or directly with an Associate on Sunday mornings.

Westside Helping Hands:   We are a caring community and we prove it in how we show up for our friends and neighbors here at Westside. For 2017 we are building a database of caring members and friends who are willing to be asked on occasion to provide support to another friend or neighbor. During the month of November we are hoping to build a strong list of people who could be available to provide a ride or do an errand for someone in need. The more of us who are willing, the more we can be there for each other in times of hardship. If you would be able to offer a ride once, twice, a few times (you decide) during the year, please contact

Partner Church Ministry Team: Meetings are 1st Sunday of the month, 12:15-1:15, Westside north classroom, lower level.  We build and maintain cross culture friendships through on-going communication with our Unitarian Partner Congregation in Transylvania.  We are doing this through Pilgrimages/exchanges, emails, cell phone & skype calls, and now pen pal letters with interested kids.  We welcome all who are interested in knowing more. Visit our Partner Church table during social hour the 2nd & 3rd Sundays or pop in on our meetings.   www.UUPCC.org  for the international partner program.  For Westside - jcslatkin@comcast.net

The Spiritual Study Group-  meets the 4th Thursday of the month, from  7:00-9:00 PM  in  Westside's Social Hall,  September thru May. December's meeting will be Thursday Dec. 22, & we'll be reading about 50 pages of our new book. Watch to see what book we choose.  We are an enthusiastic, informal group & it's ok not to like the book!  We hope you will join us on Dec. 22nd. For information contact Cynthia Townsend at  cynthiastownsend@gmail.com  or  (206)-261-5141 .

Buddhist Meditation: Wednesdays 7:00- 8:00 Westside Social Hall. Rev. Alex will lead a one hour meditation weekly in the social hall. Everyone is welcome regardless of experience level. Please enter through parking lot doors. Contact Rev. Alex with questions. revalexholt@gmail.com