As you can see from this picture, Beacon was well represented in our larger community gathering last Sunday morning at the Border Wall, in Nogales, AZ.  The Borderlands Justice District Assembly was indeed a transformative event for all who attended.  Please know that more from our collective experiences will be shared in community in the coming weeks.  Please do make plans to attend Sunday April 30, 2017 for our Youth Sunday, our high school youth will offer service and some reflections on their engagement, excursions and transformative opportunity having attended DA.

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UUA Update: I shared a letter last week to alert and advise the congregation as to the unexpected resignation of our UUA President Rev. Peter Morales.  Since last week, there have been two additional UUA Staff resignations.  (Please see links below for additional information) This is a defining moment in our movement's history, how we will respond to crisis, change and move into opportunity.  Please know that as your minister and most direct contact with the UUA, I am staying apprised of the quickly changing situation and providing direct updates and communications with our Board.  Additionally, I am in ongoing conversation with our staff locally as well with my colleagues and staff members within the Pacific Southwest District, 

for how we each and all shall best respond and continue 

the vital and necessary work of our congregations.

Sadly, the kernel of the recent turmoil at the UUA stems from aspects of hiring practices and policies, and the concerns of institutionalized white supremacy with regard to said practices and policies.  This matter of institutionalized racism and white supremacy as matter of due course are very obviously areas of significant concern within our UUA.  

The UUA has long promoted awareness for anti-oppression, anti-racism and multicultural engagement; however, we presently find our 

larger  association at odds with these very same goals from

 within its own direct actions in hiring and promotion.

Please see the attached call from Black Lives of UU (BLUU) for a #UUWhiteSupremacyTeachIn, I am in conversation with our DRE Sakenya McDonald and indeed, Beacon will participate in this national call for this moment of Planned Learning Opportunity.   Click Here for More Info .  I am please to share that Sakenya and I are in development for this very special service opportunity May 7, 2017.  At this service we will offer education, awareness, and opportunity for how race, privilege, language and more either build bridges to understanding, or maintain divisions of segregation.  

I hope you will make plans to be with us for 

this  timely conversation and service.

While it is true that presently our national UU movement is the subject of media awareness and some articles have appeared within the Washington Post, the Huffington Post and other religious news agencies, with questions raised as to our full commitment to honoring and welcoming diversity.  Now is the time for each of our individual congregations, who indeed do comprise our National Association, to walk our talk, to engage in direct dialogue 

and to seek positive and healing opportunity from crisis. 

Blessed Be, Rev. Kevin