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The Union Church in Waban
Friday, May 11, 2018
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8:00 a.m.: Practices of Prayer for All Ages
(details HERE)
9:00 a.m.:
Choir Rehearsal
"A SONG FOR OUR MOTHERS"
The men of the congregation are invited to join the choir on this Sunday, May 13th, i
n a celebration of our mothers with song and prayer.
We will be singing the song "What a Wonderful World", which was written in 1968
during the Vietnam war. Made famous by the iconic recording of Louis Armstrong, it
helped in lifting our country's spirits, and it still does to this day.
The words, "I see trees of green, red roses too, I see them bloom for me and for you"
emphasize the beauties of nature that unite all of us in an awareness of the gifts given to us by God.
We look forward to having you join us in singing! Please come at 9 a.m. this Sunday morning for a brief rehearsal.
Bill Merrill
10:00 a.m.: Sunday Worship
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11:15 a.m.:
Bell Choir Rehears
al
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Union Church in Waban at Common Cathedral
Over 20 adults and youth went to the Boston Common on Sunday May 6th to worship with Common Cathedral, a welcoming outdoor congregation whose members are both housed and un-housed. We provided lunch to their congregation and any others on the Common who were hungry. There were a few UCW helpers who'd been to Common Cathedral before, but we had a great group of new servers this time too!
We were lucky - the rain held off and the temperature was perfect. We served meatball subs (which everyone loved), sandwiches, oranges, carrots, chips, birthday cake and brownies. UCW member Abby Larson was our star helper this time, doing the grocery shopping and meatball prep. Abby, Jane Purser, and Pastor Amy organized the youth to help make the sandwiches, and bag the chips and fruit.
Our youth did a great job serving food and talking with the guests. UCW youth Natalie did a wonderful job collecting prayers and reading them during the service. We saw our friend Mabel, along with several other familiar faces. We served lunch to roughly 75 people! Thank you to all who donated socks! They were greatly appreciated!!
Sunday was also the Walk for Hunger. What a wonderful day for UCW to be serving lunch to the Boston residents. Common Cathedral is an outdoor congregation, sharing God's love through community, pastoral care, creative expression, and worship on Boston Common. They have been leading services on the Common for 20 years, in sun, rain, blizzard, and hurricanes. The moving service was officiated by Rev. Laura Shatzer, who led us in music, reflection, and sharing of thoughts and prayers in the housed and un-housed community. Communion was served by members of the Union Church to all who wanted to receive it. It was a very special way for two congregations to worship together.
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Children, Youth and Families
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NEXT WEEKEND! PENTECOST AND EXPLORING OUR FAITH SUNDAY
Next Sunday is a very exciting one for us as we celebrate Pentecost, oftenthought of as the birthday of the church, and also the faithful group of 9th and 10th graders who have been traveling, learning, praying and discerning together as part of our Exploring Our Faith year. We will be led in worship by these amazing young people, as they come before the church to share their faith, and seek Confirmation, Baptism and/or a blessing of their journey and discernment. We hope you and yours will join us on this special day.
SAVE THE DATES: Sunday School, Picnic, and Youth Group Pool Party
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- June 3rd -- Sunday School Planting: Our seedlings are growing strong in theLittlehale Room and we will be planting them outdoors on June 3rd in Sunday School.
- June 3rd - Youth Pool Party! In the evening, the Youth Group (middle and high schoolers) will gather at the Abbiati's for our awesome year-end Pool Party!
- June 10th - Church Picnic: Kids will prepare games for the picnic during Sunday School and then we'll eat and celebrate together following worship
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Offering of Letters to Prevent Gun Violence
Our church has a 3-pronged response against gun violence in our society; the March for Life in solidarity with students who are continuing to advocate for gun control across the country, the Easter offering of funds contributed to the Coalition Against Gun Violence, and the forthcoming Offering of Letters to our Massachusetts legislators regarding laws on gun control.
This Sunday, Mother's Day (May 13th), we will be signing and collecting letters to be sent to our legislators in the Senate and House of Representatives. Marching for a cause, contributing funds, and advocating for legislation reflect our concern for commonsense gun control.
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May 14th with a rally on Boston Common at 2:00 p.m..
This week the campaign unveiled a Declaration of Fundamental Rights and Poor People's Campaign Moral Agenda that will guide the movement through its upcoming 40 days of nonviolent direct action and beyond. Those 40 days will include a rally and direct action at the State House on Monday, May 14 at 2:00.
This campaign is an invitation to us to come along side and learn from those who are suffering from poverty and the issues that perpetuate poverty by attending the rallies with a listening, "companioning" heart.
On every subsequent Monday for the next five weeks, there will be a rally on the Boston Common starting at 2:00. Each week will lift up one area of the moral agenda put forth by the campaign. This Monday's rally is entitled "Somebody's hurting my people - children, women, youth and people with disabilities." Rallies will be held in 41 states across the country at 2:00 local time creating a wave of cry and action across the nation.
"Fifty years after Rev. Dr. King and the 1968 Poor People's Campaign declared that silence was betrayal, we are coming together to break the silence and tell the truth about the interlocking evils of systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, the war economy and our distorted moral narrative," the Moral Agenda reads. "We declare that if silence was betrayal in 1968, revival is necessary today."
Learn more
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Walk for Peace
This Sunday! May 13
Your generous offerings to the Easter Special Collection will support both the Mass Coalition to End Gun Violence and the Louis Brown Peace Institute.
Please follow the link below for information on the 22nd Brown Mother's Day Walk.
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An invitation for you!
Dear Union Church companions,
As you may know, we as a church have joined dozens of other faith communities around the area as a member of Great Boston Interfaith Organization (GBIO) to share in the good work together of advocating and organizing for policy change at the state level to advance key justices issues in our time.
Currently we are engaging in what is called a "listening campaign," where we will gather in small groups for dinner and conversation about our deepest concerns and defining stories. These conversations will not only help shape what could be GBIO's advocacy agenda in the future but even more importantly give us the opportunity to really get to know each other in a way that coffee hour does not always afford. I see these house meetings as a wonderful expression of being church together as we share, listen and honor each other's stories.
On behalf of our GBIO core team, I invite you to sign up for a dinner. The next one is scheduled for Sun., May 6, at 6:15 p.m., at the home of Carol Bascom-Slack. The one after that is Tues., May 8, at 7 p.m., at the home of Kathleen Hobson. Go
here for the full schedule and to sign up.
In peace,
Stacy
"love one another. Just as I have loved you,
you also should love one another."
John 13:34
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Faith Formation and Fellowship
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WELLSPRING for WOMEN
WELLSPRING for women will meet on Wednesday, May 16th (third Wednesday) for its last gathering before the summer break. We start with a simple meal at 6:30 p.m. in the Reception Room, followed by sharing and reflecting on topics related to women's spiritual journey. All women are invited.
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UCW Women Retreat
a wonderful weekend of conversation, exploration and fun at Toah Nipi Retreat Center
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Practices of Prayer for All Ages over Eastertide
Why do we pray? Who are we praying to? Is anyone listening? Have you ever found yourself asking these questions? Do you still practice daily prayer? During the season of Easter, let us come together to explore any, and all, questions about prayer that weighs heavily on your heart. In our journey together as a community devoted to mindful prayer, we may each discover a daily prayer practice which may add to our spiritual wholeness. Each practice will be explained on one week; then, we will explore together how this form of prayer from various faith traditions rejuvenates the spirit, or if the practice does not help you reach God. This is a multigenerational exploration into the communal and individual prayer practices of humankind. Please join us on Sunday mornings during Eastertide on the Stage from 8-9:00 a.m. If you have any question or for more information please be in touch with Brian Donovan, Brian@ucw.org
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UCW Member Seeking Resources and Referrals
Adam Betters Reed, member of UCW and current Newton resident is a 30-year-old on the autism spectrum with experience living on his own who is looking for both housing and for an apartment/condo mate starting approximately August 2018.
There is no expectation of coordinating meals or social life. Adam has a strong preference for living in Newton, MA with access to the Green Line and near stores. He grew up in Waban and is currently living in Newton Center in a house that is closing this summer.
Adam's interests include: history, politics, Fan Fiction, Anime, walking, dogs/animals, food. Adam is currently enrolled in Pathways to Employment JF&CS program, but this too will discontinue in early fall.
His mother Bonnie is coordinating these multiple searches, and can be reached at
Any suggestions, resources or referrals are greatly appreciated.
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Sun., May 13
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8:00 a.m.
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Prayer Group (Stage)
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9:00 a.m.
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Choir Rehearsal
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10:00 a.m.
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Worship
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11:15 a.m.
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Bell Choir Rehearsal
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Mon., May 14
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7:00 p.m.
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Choir Rehearsal
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Tue., May 15
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6:30 p.m.
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GBIO House Meeting Dinner
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Wed., May 16
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6:30 p.m.
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Wellspring
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Thurs, May 17
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10:30 a.m.
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Waban Health Worship
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Fri., May 18
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7:00 a.m.
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Java Gents
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Sun., May 20
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9:00 a.m.
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Choir Rehearsal
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10:00 a.m.
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Worship
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11:15 a.m.
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Bell Choir Rehearsal
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11:30 p.m.
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GBIO House Meeting
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For a complete listing, and details of all upcoming events,
please
Note
: Material for inclusion in the Friday e-Blast newsletter or our Sunday Announcements insert should be e-mailed to the office at
ucw@ucw.org
, by 9:00 a.m. on the previous Wednesday morning. Please specify whether for e-Blast, Sunday Announcements, or both. Thank you!
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This is an invitation to see
STAIN
on May 13, Mothers' Day, 1:00 p.m. on Boston Common.
STAIN is a performance expressing the collective grief about gun violence.
Here is a write-up below of STAIN as performed on March 24:
In the Mothers' Day performance, we will commemorate the names of women who have been killed by their partners or their ex-partners in Massachusetts over the past year, adding these names to the student names from Sandy Hook and Parkland that we commemorated in the March performance. Every 2 days, 5 women are killed by their partners or ex-partners.
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