Community UCC eNews
February 13, 2020
Community UCC is an inclusive and progressive Christian Church doing social justice, environmental faithfulness, interfaith collaboration and and spiritual formation to help ourselves and others grow in faith, hope and love.

Sunday Sermon  

Sunday, Feb. 16, our music director EJ Hinojosa will lead a special worship focusing on African American spiritual music as part of our honoring of Black History Month.

Worship Service Each Sunday at 10:30 a.m.
NOTE: We broadcast our Sunday Worship service on Facebook Live beginning at 10:30 a.m. We want to make service accessible to members or friends who can't be with us on Sunday mornings. The camera captures the front of the Sanctuary and the first couple of rows of seats.
One Great Hour of Sharing: Your are God's Field, God's Building

We will collect donations for the UCC Conference's offering One Great Hour of Sharing (OGHS) this Sunday, Feb. 16.

Through the One Great Hour of Sharing offering, we are planting seeds of new life. Together, we are investing in communities worldwide: providing education to girls and boys, empowering f communities through vocational training, supporting microcredit lending and seeing people through to self-sufficiency, empowering families with skills to support themselves and their neighbors, and participating in sustainable solutions that offer dignity to all. these are just a few ways the OGHS offering touches God's children, in addition to disaster relief and refugee initiatives.
Fundraiser: Gifting Tree!

The Missions and Social Justice Team delights in offering you “The Gifting Tree,” filled with various gift cards with a value over $400.

Tickets are $10 each, 6 for $50, or 13 for $100. Drawing will be held on March 15 .

Cards on the tree include the following:
  • $60 - Perfect Balance Yoga
  • $50 - Southwest Airlines
  • $80 - Curves gym two-month membership
  • $50 - Olive Garden
  • Two $25 gift cards to Alla's Mediterranean Restaurant
  • $25 - Amazon
  • $25 - Regal Cinemas
  • Two $10 Starbucks gift cards
  • $20 - Target
  • $20 - Panera
  • $20 - R&G Threading Bar
Black History Month Worship

We have four very different worship services planned for the celebration of Black History month at Community UCC.

  • Feb. 16: African American Sacred Music - EJ has a very special worship planned. The usual great, but different, music and an informative talk on African American Church music.
  • Feb. 23: Emulating Zacchaeus - The Call to the Church on Stewardship of Our Abundance with those who have been denied...

After worship on Feb. 23, we will gather in Hayden Hall for “A POT-LUCK LUNCHEON OF EXTRAVAGANT PROPORTIONS.” Please bring a large portion of a very favorite food-comfort, delicious, a dish that evokes beautiful memories. We will share, eating more than we should and sharing any remainder for any one to take home.

Finally, we will have a movie night at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 28, in the Sanctuary. We will view “ The Long Shadow, ” a documentary that connects the racial injustice of today with brutally dehumanizing institutions of slavery and Jim Crow. The movie will be followed by a reception in Hayden Hall for discussion inspired by the movie. Donation welcome, but not required.
Living the Questions 2.0

Below are the upcoming topics (subject to change) and theme for February and March.

Theme: RECLAIMING THE WORLD 
Feb.  16 — Practicing Resurrection
Feb.  23 — Debunking the Rapture

Theme: CALL TO COVENANT
March 1 — Reclaiming the World
March 8 — A Kingdom without Walls
March 15 — Social Justice: Realizing God’s Vision
March 22 — Incarnation: Divinely Human
March 29 — Prayer: Intimacy with God
Men's Book Study Group

The men's book study group, led by facilitators Rod Zook and Chad Hayden, will continue their study of "Naked Spirituality" by Brian McLaren at 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 17 . The group will discuss Chapter 27 and the book's afterword.
The Women's book for January and February will be "Holy Envy, Finding God in the Faith of Others" by Barbara Brown Taylor. We study at 6 p.m. Tuesdays in the Conference Room.

Upcoming reading assignments:
Feb. 18 — Ch. 10 and 11
Feb. 25 — Ch. 12 and Epilogue
Interfaith Scholar Weekend
Feb. 21-23

As part of the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi, one of his grandsons, Rajmohan Gandhi, will be the speaker for the 2020 Interfaith Scholar Weekend event Feb. 21-23 . For more information and to register, see the website www.interfaithscholar.org or pick up a brochure in the Narthex.
Saturday Morning Breakfast Group
Saturday, March 7
Conference Room
Breakfast at 8:45 a.m.,
talk begins at 9 a.m.

On March 7, Gary Walker will talk about "The Life and Legacies of Leonardo da Vinci.”

On April 4, Nancy Pressley will discuss Focus Forwar d, a program to aid troubled youth.
In each week's eNews, we include a news article from our larger denomination, United Church of Christ , to show the faithful work being done in other places.
UCC youth invited to UNITE! at NYE 2020

Youth from across the United Church of Christ are invited to UNITE! at this summer's National Youth Event (NYE), July 22-25 in West Lafayette, Ind. The quadrennial event centered on the four pillars of faith, leadership, service and social justice is returning to the campus of Purdue University, with registration for groups now available on the  NYE website .

The gathering, open to young people who have completed grades six through 12, got its start in 1980. This year's planning team, which includes UCC national staff from different ministries and conference and local church volunteers, is led by Local Church Ministries Faith INFO (Faith Education, Innovation, and Formation) clergy and youth ambassadors. All have been focused on building on the wisdom learned from past events while opening up to new ideas and embracing new leadership. Continue reading at the UCC.com website .
Happy Birthday and Anniversary to all who are celebrating this month!

February Birthdays
2 — Rod Zook
4 — Diana Kloos, Dwayne Ruffin
7 — Michelle Williams
10 — Bonita Earl, John Comegys, Beryl Weinschenk
12 — Alexandra FitzGibbon
14 — Cathie Moseley
15 — Christian Fazio
16 — Ruben Fernandez, Bob Garcia
17 — Rose Rowe
19 — Charlene Toews
22 — Vhuso Sukuta
26 — Cheryl Jones
27 — Anne Simone

February Anniversaries
No anniversaries in February.

Did we overlook someone's birthday or anniversary for this month? Please let Marilyn ( office@communityucc.com ) and Lisa ( lisamboyles12@gmail.com ) know so we can get you in next week. We never intend to leave anyone out.
The Big Read – 'Citizen: An American Lyric'
Through April 25

The Fresno County Public Library system has several activities and events planned over the next couple of months around The Big Read of the award-winning "Citizen: An American Lyric," by Claudine Rankine, including an author talk at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13, at Fresno City College . The Big Read, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts, broadens our understanding of our world, our communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book.

Jamaican-born and raised in the Bronx, Claudia Rankine is an award-winning poet whose works depict the outside and inside perspectives of American culture.  Citizen: An American Lyric  won the National Book Critics Circle Award in Poetry, and was the first work of poetry to become a  New York Times  best seller for multiple weeks on the paperback nonfiction list.


Upcoming Church Events

  • Thursday Evening Worship – weekly at 7 p.m., we hold a weekly contemplative, interactive, spirit-filled worship service in the Sanctuary
  • Sundays at 9 a.m. – Adult Education in the Conference Room
  • Feb. 14-22, Pastor Ara on vacation. Please contact Robin Carlson with any emergencies
  • Feb. 17 – Church Office closed/President's Day
  • Feb. 26 - ASH Wednesday
  • March 1 – Recycling Sunday, first Sunday of the month
  • March 7 – Saturday Morning Breakfast Group, 8:45 a.m., Conference Room (see article above)

Keep up to date with our Church's online calendar!
eNews deadline is 10 a.m. Wednesdays

CUCC eNews is a weekly publication distributed every Thursday. Deadline for submitting announcements is 10 a.m. Wednesdays (and earlier is appreciated). Please send your announcements to Marilyn at office@communityucc.com . Lisa Boyles (lisamboyles12@gmail.com, 559.244.9502) is the eNews editor and communications liaison for our church.
We've updated our Joyful Giving page to reflect the many ways members can help support our Church's missions and operations.

Phone: 559.435.2690 
Email: office@communityucc.com