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
If you are not receiving our monthly newsletter, the
Beacon, and would like to, please contact the
office
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Reflection...
Beloved Community,
We are a community of intellectual and spiritual adventurers. As such, we try many things that are new and very frequently, I believe there is good brain science to back up the idea that experimentation keeps our thinking fluid and clear.
But we are also a people of memory. This Sunday we will share in a beloved ritual of the UUCGT community. Honoring Samhain, our day of Annual Remembrance, is a time when we invite you to bring photos or mementos to the service to co-create our setting. This quiet, gentle service is a time for opening our hearts to the memory of our loved ones who have died. It is a profound time of reflection and healing.
Please bring your photo or memento with you and we will let you know the right moment in the service to place it at the front of the sanctuary.
Holding memory is a great honor. This is such an important moment that we share with one another.
Just a reminder that we also have our 9:00 a.m. "Dialogue in Community" program this week and again next week.
In blessing for the goodness that is you -
Rabbi Chava
P.S.
#MeToo: A Service for Acknowledging and Healing will be held on T
hursday, November 2 at
6:00pm in the sanctuary.
This service will be a time for quiet reflection, ritual and healing (this will not be a time of story sharing or divulging). Begun as an online acknowledgement of women's experiences of being harassed and assaulted, #MeToo has opened an important social conversation on the broader culture women must face. All are welcome.
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Sunday Service
Sunday, October 29
9:00 AM Program: "Dialogue in Community"
10:30 AM Service: "Honoring Samhain ~ Day of Remembrance"
Rabbi Chava Bahle, Sarah Montgomery-Richards
As we end our month of reflection on deep listening, we remind ourselves that so many people we come to love started off as strangers, and it is through story, conversation and shared commitment that the stranger becomes a beloved.
In one of the most beautiful services we hold annually, Samhain honors the ancestors. Bring a photograph or memento you wish to place on the table to co-create our setting. With members of all ages, we remember our personal histories and those who have touched us.
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Lifespan Experience
f
or Children,
Youth
and Fam
ilies!
Sundays in October for preK-8th grade
We have officially kicked off our UU & YOU at Hogwarts year with our first "horcrux", or issue - hunger. The children will learn and grow together as they consider this topic, all while engaging with each other through the magic of the world of Harry Potter. Please feel free to contact me if you have questions about this exciting program.
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As part of the "Hunger Horcrux" that our elementary and middle school children and youth have been working on, they are collecting canned/dried goods for the Grace Episcopal food pantry. The donation box is located outside of the kitchen - please donate generously!
Our families will deliver the food in November, and the children/youth will have the opportunity to meet the coordinators of Grace's pantry, as well as learn more about what a food pantry is, and the community that this particular pantry serves.
Food collection will continue until AFTER SERVICE on November 12
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Suggested readings for families/pare
nts this month include:
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Ravenclaw Reader: Seeking the Meaning and Artistry of J.K. Rowling's Hogwarts Saga, Essays from the St. Andrews University Harry Potter Conference
- by John Patrick Pazdziora (Editor), Micah Snell (Editor)
- Into the Pensieve: The Philosophy and Mythology of Harry Potter - by Patrick McCauley
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Sign-up for Annual Thanksgiving Feast!
Our annual Thanksgiving Feast will be held at Twin Lakes Park
Sunday, November 19
Bring a dish to share (turkey will be furnished)
$5 per person ($15 for families)
You can make reservations by signing up and paying on Sundays
before and after services in the Gathering Space
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Announcement of Special Meeting of UUCGT
called by the Board of Trustees for the Purpose of a Vote
on the UUA Declaration of Conscience
Sunday, October 29, 2017
following 10:30 AM Sunday Service
UUCGT sanctuary
The Board of Trustees of UUCGT calls for a Special Meeting on Sunday, October 29, 2017 - following the 10:30 AM Service for the purpose of voting on the UUA Declaration of Conscience. The Board of Trustees voted its approval on the Declaration at its September, 2017 regular meeting.
This special meeting will consist of the single of item of voting on the Declaration of Conscience. Current members in good standing are eligible to vote.
Voting will be by paper ballot.
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W
hat's Going On At UUCGT?
Shantideva Fan Club: Thursday, October 26, 9:30am, sanctuary
Peacemaker Needleworkers: Thursdays, 1:30pm, social hall
Brewing Community: Thursday, October 26, 5:00pm @ Terra Firma
Family-friendly!
Meditation Workshop: Thursday, October 26, 5:30pm, classroom
Vocal Ensemble: Thursdays, 7:00pm, sanctuary
9:00 AM Program - Dialogue in Community: Sunday, October 29, 9:00am, social hall
Congregational Ballot Vote, UUA Declaration of Conscience: Sunday, October 29, 11:45am, sanctuary
Mindfulness Meditation: Sunday, October 29, 5:00-7:00pm, sanctuary
Stretch & Strengthen: Mondays & Wednesdays, 11:00am
Community Lunch: Tuesdays - Volunteers meet at 10:30am. Every week for the past 25 years, UUCGT has provided a free lunch for anyone in the community who would like to come to Friends Church located at Fifth and Oak Streets in Traverse City. For more information, or to volunteer, call Mary Kiner at 935-3050, or email
marykiner@charter.net
Indivisible GT: Tuesdays, 12:00 noon, sanctuary
Bridge Group: Tuesdays, 1:00pm, social hall
Wednesday Potluck: November 1, 5:30/social, 6:00/supper, All Welcome!
Wednesday Night Program: November 1, 7:00pm, sanctuary
Hal Gurian will
present on behalf of the non-partisan group,
VotersNotPoliticians
on how gerrymandering affects your vote in Michigan.
Shantideva Fan Club V2.0: Thursday, November 2, 9:30am, sanctuary
Congregational Care Team: Thursday, November 2, 1:00pm, library
Peacemakers Needleworkers: Thursdays, 1:30pm, social hall
Meditation Workshop: Thursday, November 2, 5:30pm, classroom
#MeToo: A Service for Acknowledging and Healing: T
hursday, November 2,
6:00pm, sanctuary. A
time for quiet reflection, ritual and healing. Open to all
Vocal Ensemble: Thursdays, 7:00pm, sanctuary
Community Needs Committee: Friday, November 3, 3:30pm, library
InterPlay Workshop: Saturday, November 4, 10:00am-1:00pm, sanctuary
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F Y I
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Save the Date!
A Celebration of Rabbi Chava's Ministry
Saturday, December 2, 2017
5:30 PM
Celebration Service
Wine & hors d'oeuvres reception to follow
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Volunteer for Safe Harbor:
UUCGT will be staffing Safe Harbor, at the new Safe Harbor building the week of December 9 through December 16. Many opportunities are available as dinner preparers and servers, evening and overnight volunteers and breakfast, morning clean-up volunteers and to provide food and supplies. Please see
Mike and Sandra McDonald
at the Safe Harbor sign up table in the Gathering Space for the next 3 Sundays.
Donated Dinners:
Checking interest level for 6 - 10 Dinner Hosts!
Are you are interested in hosting a dinner in 2018? Contact
John Hoffmann by November 15th! (
Sign-up sheets are typically offered at
Thanksgiving Dinner -
November
19)
Coffee Orders are due Sunday, October 29
Shantideva Fan Club V2.0:
Thursday, November 2, 9:30am - Organizing meeting for fall/winter program.
The Shantideva Fan Club is a Dharma study group formed in spring 2017 at UUC-GT for the study of and meditation in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. T
he group will again follow the book,
A Fearless Heart, How the Courage to Be Compassionate Can Transform Our Lives
, by Thupten Jinpa.
Read more here...
InterPlay Workshop: Saturday, November 4,10:00am-1:00pm.
Sunday, November 5 Service: Mark Gustafson will relate how he finds the UUA Seven Principles demonstrated in various works of fiction. Those who love to read are invited to bring a favorite book of fiction for the altar setting.
UU Men's Group: Monday, November 6, 5:30pm, UU social hall. Pizza provided, BYOB.
H.G. Smith will discuss the Civil War:
"What is Reconstruction?"
"When did it begin?"
"How did the U.S. Government hope to integrate millions of former slaves into American society?"
UU Book Club: Sunday, November 12 title - "Gulliver's Travels" by Jonathan Swift, Stan & Dottie Cain host
Save the Date: Endowment Program planned for Wednesday, November 15th at 7:00pm following Wednesday Potluck. Details next week.
Local Community Needs
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BEACON articles are due by the 25th each month -
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End Note...
The thankful receiver
bears a plentiful harvest.
~ William Blake
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| FLASH articles are due by noon on Wednesday each week
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