RE Weekly Newsletter  July: Family

FIND US ON INSTAGRAM Follow us here! . PARENT RESOURCES Learn more about Soul Matters curriculum guides . JOIN OUR RE FACEBOOK PAGE Here . With things how they are, how are we taking the time to be in gratitude? Give someone a compliment. Just a few words can change the rest of someone's day. Tell them they have a bright smile or a great sense of humor. Who did you compliment today? What did you say? How did they react? How did you feel afterwards? W E L C O M E UU Friend This journey together has been a very interesting one. UU families across the nation have created their own Sabbath Spaces. We have one final week after this one. Enjoy what you gave created with your families and continue to shine on! 1. Focus on progress, not perfection. 2. Stop comparing yourself to others. 3. Let go of what no longer serves you. 4. Open your mind to the possibilities of what you cannot see.

Caring & Connected Newsletter We are continuing to send out the e-newsletter  “Caring & Connected”  to help sustain our UUSP community during uncertain times. Click  here  to read it and learn “how can I help?” and "how can I stay connected?” during the church closure.  -  Sharon Winters , from the Communications Team

Religious Education Virtual Classes K-12th

Ms. Jeanay & Ms. Trish Sabbath Space Family Worship Week Four This week we will place a piece of nature into the Chalice Home. As UU’s, we celebrate the seven Principles of which the seventh Principle reads: Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. Nature also reminds us of our Sixth Source - Spiritual teachings of Earth-centered traditions which celebrate the sacred circle of life and instruct us to live in harmony with the rhythms of nature. Pagan altars and Native American altars have much to teach us about opening ourselves to nature’s healing power. With this as inspiration, this week’s additions to the Chalice Home will remind us of the healing harmony of nature and that we are all part of a greater whole. Ms. Trish's & Ms. Jeanay's Last Sunday Lesson June 28th Subscribe to our RE YouTube Page!! RE Classes K-12th Grade - YouTube Hello and Welcome! Please take the time to sit and follow the lessons with your children and youth. There are many activities you all can do right at home. Read more www.youtube.com Week 4: Preparing to Add a Piece of Nature   Our family worship includes a time for you and your children to find one or more pieces from the natural world. So if you’d like to go outside, you will want to prepare for that. However, don’t shrink at adding a favorite houseplant. Simple is fine. A twisted twig may appear. Pine cones count too. Dandelions count, although they won’t last past the end of the worship time, so prepare for that eventuality. Celebrate imperfection. Remember, nature is beautiful but it can also be messy and wild. So reflecting that wild beauty is a good thing!    Using Your Chalice Home: Not Just for Sundays or Family Worship Besides using it for Sunday morning as the focal point for Sabbath worship, consider:   ● using your altar to begin your day. It can be something as simple as lighting the chalice and reading a poem before or after breakfast. ● Or try it as a bedtime ritual, closing the day together. ● And each person can always visit it whenever they feel the need to center themselves. Family Worship Sabbath Space Week Four Sabbath Activity One: Three Things to do with Wildflowers Here we are, betwixt and between--spring is becoming summer, life in a pandemic beginning to feel like the new normal in some ways, and utterly untenable in others. Playing with wildflowers, those quintessentially adaptable and ephemeral beauties, might help us embrace now for what it is. Here are three ways to do it:   1. You could try out this super easy way to press flowers, allowing them to retain their color and form-- though alas, not their fragrance or dimensionality--for 5-7 years! This was a common activity in generations past, so you might consider sharing the results of this project with an elder family member, friend, or congregant through email or video call. You might also use your pressed flower s to make some salt dough ornaments to hang in your home. Here’s a tutorial. Sturdier leaves, twigs, and flowers also make interesting impressions in salt dough .   2. You might learn the take-anywhere art of weaving flower crowns , sashes, necklaces, etc.  "Spirit of Life, All Souls Virtual Choir"

Click on the flyer to go directly into the call! The password is displayed on the flyer! See you Sunday!

Calendar Connections

History of July 4th United States Independence Day "The Fourth of July —also known as Independence Day or July 4th—has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941, but the tradition of Independence Day celebrations goes back to the 18th century and the American Revolution. On July 2nd, 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, and two days later delegates from the 13 colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence , a historic document drafted by Thomas Jefferson . From 1776 to the present day, July 4th has been celebrated as the birth of American independence, with festivities ranging from fireworks, parades and concerts to more casual family gatherings and barbecues."

The Next Full Moon The next full Moon will occur on Sunday, July 5, 2020, at 12:44AM ET, and is known as the Full Buck Moon. It is also known as the Thunder Moon , Hay Moon , or the Wort Moon .

UU People in History

Béla Viktor János Bartók (March 1881 – September 1945) ..."was a  Hungarian  composer, pianist, and  ethnomusicologist . He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and  Franz Liszt  are regarded as Hungary's greatest composers ( Gillies 2001 ). Through his collection and analytical study of  folk music , he was one of the founders of comparative musicology, which later became ethnomusicology." "Raised as a  Catholic , by his early adulthood Bartók had become an  atheist . He later became attracted to  Unitarianism  and publicly converted to the  Unitarian  faith in 1916. Although Bartók was not conventionally religious, according to his son Béla Bartók III, "he was a nature lover: he always mentioned the miraculous order of nature with great reverence." As an adult, Béla III later became lay president of the Hungarian Unitarian Church ( Hughes 2001 )." Source

Healthy Resources

Please review this website for your local food locations for Pinellas County Schools. Schools are providing food pick ups during the summer time! Times of pick-ups have changed so please review the link to see the new times!

Unitarian Universalist Church of St. Petersburg is not affiliated nor a sponsor of the community events posted on our UUSP RE e-newsletters. The information is derived from PeachJar.com, The Parent's Guide Magazine and City of St. Petersburg Events page, PlayLargo.com and various applications for family engagement strictly for informational purposes only. The information posted is not for profit or for monetary gain unless specified to contribute to a fundraiser in whereas the donations are to UU and/or UUA affiliates such as UUSC. If you have any questions or concerns about this statement, reply to this email. Stay Connected! Friend Jeanay Johnson here. I am the Religious Education Coordinator & Communications Coordinator at UUSP. This newsletter is put together by myself using family based resources from SoulMatters and many more. If you have any submissions for the RE weekly newsletter, please submit your information to email  me  by noon every Tuesday to have it posted to the newsletter for Friday's e-print.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CHURCH OF ST. PETE | 100 Mirror Lake Drive Saint Petersburg, Fl 33701 UUStpete.org

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