Community UCC eNews
November 14, 2019
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  

On Sunday, Nov. 17, Pastor Ara will deliver the sermon titled " Finally..., " based on the scripture readings Malachi 4:1-5 and 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13.

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.
FIRM's Senior Fridays

One of the community programs that the Missions and Social Justice Team is engaging in is FIRM’s Senior Fridays. This is targeted to seniors in FIRM’s programs who are primarily Hmong, Cambodian, and a mixture of other ethnic groups.

Missions and Social Justice has selected Friday, Nov. 15 , for its service. We need volunteers to engage in activities/games with the seniors and volunteers to donate items.

Items needed are:
  • Games (Bingo, etc.)
  • Food:
  • Chicken
  • Salads
  • Dinner rolls
  • Rice
  • Cookies
  • Lemonade

Please contact Elizabeth Davis-Russell (559.862.6914) or Susan Chavez (559.269.0838) to donate your service and /or food.
Living the Questions 2.0 returns

Living the Questions resumed beginning Sunday, Nov. 3 . Below are the upcoming calendars (subject to change) and themes for November and December.

Theme: INVITATION TO JOURNEY 

Nov. 17 — Thinking Theologically
Nov. 24 — Stories of Creation
Dec. 1 — Lives of Jesus
Dec. 8 — No LTQ, Hanging of the Greens
Dec. 15 — A Passion for Christ: Paul the Apostle
Dec. 22 — Out into the World: Challenges Facing Progressive Christians
Dec. 29 — No LTQ
Men's Book Study Group

Facilitators Rod Zook and Chad Hayden lead a men's book study group from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays in Room 1 on the book "Naked Spirituality" by Brian McLaren. Now reading Chapters 10, 11 and 12.

Thursday Evening Worship

At 7 p.m. Thursdays, we hold a weekly contemplative, interactive, spirit-filled worship service in the Sanctuary.

Come worship with us!
Music: Holiday Happenings at Community UCC

Announcing: The Community UCC Choir Advent Program! We’d love for you to join the choir for a short stint this Holiday Season!

Here’s the time commitment: Rehearsals from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 20 , Dec. 4 and Dec. 20 . Performances on Dec. 8 (Hanging of the Greens), Dec. 20 (Christmas Program), and Dec. 22 (Last Sunday before Christmas).

Rehearsals are in the church Sanctuary, and they’re lots of fun! If you’re interested in joining us for a short stint, please contact EJ Hinojosa at  ejhinojosa@hotmail.com  or by phone at 559.303.8658.

No long-term commitments, and ALL SKILL LEVELS ARE ENCOURAGED TO JOIN !
Journey into Advent: "While it Was Yet Dark"
Nov. 22-24
Join us for Journey into Advent, our annual deeper exploration into our faith as we enter the Advent season of our spiritual calendar.

As we witness the encroaching darkness in our social, political, and spiritual environments, we can welcome the darkest time of the calendar year (the Winter Solstice) as a time to ponder new territory, which can be discovered "While It Was Yet Dark."

This year’s featured speaker, Julia Penner-Zook , member of Community United Church of Christ and member in discernment for ordination with the UCC, will collaborate with a musician and a photographer, inviting us to encounter the darkness from an entirely different angle. Collaborating with Julia are Jenny Regehr and Stacey Rhoades. 

"While It Was Yet Dark" — a collaboration
  • 7-9 p.m. Friday, Nov. 22 in the CUCC Sanctuary: we will gather for an inspiring evening of poetry, music, and photography, introducing three biblical women, each of whom experienced the Divine within profound darkness. (Drinks and snacks follow.)
  • 8 a.m.-noon Saturday, Nov. 23 in Hayden Hall and the Sanctuary: after a light breakfast, we will offer an interactive morning to consider how various mediums (music, visual, writing) can provide tools for us to encounter the Divine in the darkness or the desert of the Advent season.
  • 10:30 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 24 in the Sanctuary: worship with Julia as she continues to lead us in our Journey into Advent. Special music by Jenny Regehr; photography by Stacey Rhoades to underscore elements of worship .

*Childcare is provided on all 3 days.

Cost is $25 per person for this event. Full and partial scholarships available upon request. Or if you are able, please fund a scholarship. To register or for more information, call Marilyn in the Church Office at 559.435.2690 . More information about the presenters and videos can be found on our homepage .
Fellowship Bake Sale

Fellowship will have a bake sale in Hayden Hall on Nov. 24 following worship service. Donations of baked goods are welcomed! Contact Bonita Earl or Patty Parks if you would like to donate something for the sale.
Raffle tickets available for two Christmas quilts 

Two Christmas quilts made by local quilter Becci Zaninovich especially for our church will be raffled off separately on Sunday, Dec. 1 . Raffle tickets will be available each Sunday in November and in the church office for $10 each.

There will be a separate raffle for each quilt so buy several tickets and put them all toward your favorite quilt or split them between the two. Sponsored by the Finance Team. Contact Sharon Powers for more information.
Saturday Morning Breakfast Group
Saturday, Dec. 7 , Conference Room
Breakfast at 8:45 a.m., talk begins at 9 a.m.

For Dec. 7, Michael Kunz will discuss "John Muir, Climate Change, and the Future of the Sierra Nevada Ecosystem.” Michael published a book titled " Muir's Temples; A Natural History of Sequoia Grove Plants," available on Amazon . The Hoaglands will provide breakfast for this date.
Shop on  Smile.Amazon.com  and Amazon will donate money to Community UCC!  

Community UCC is now part of the AmazonSmile Foundation charitable organizations that can be supported while you shop at  Smile.Amazon.com . Register Community UCC as your charity and Amazon will donate 0.5% of the eligible purchase price to our church. How does it work?

  1. Log onto Smile.Amazon.com. Use your regular Amazon log in information. The online page will look exactly like your regular Amazon.com page and all your lists and history will be there. Prices will be the same. There is no difference between the Amazon.com and Smile.amazon.com sites except that the AmazonSmile Foundation will make charitable donations to your selected organization if you use smile.amazon.com for eligible purchases. 
  2. Select Community Ucc as your charitable foundation and be sure you pick the one in Fresno CA. The last two "c"s are lower case letters. If you can't find it by name, use our EIN:  94-6050078.
  3. Whenever you want to shop on Amazon, log on to Smile.Amazon.com.
  4. Phone shopping: Android has an app for AmazonSmile, but the iPhone does not. There are many suggestions online for how to set up a work-around on the iPhone if you shop from your phone.
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.
Supreme Court takes up DACA; Dreamers, interfaith allies rally outside

The futures of more than half a million young, undocumented immigrants hang in the balance as the United States Supreme Court takes up cases of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals today, Nov. 12. Immigration activists, UCC and other faith-based advocates and the Dreamers themselves rallied outside the court on Tuesday morning challenging the Trump Administration's efforts to end  DACA .

Advocates believe the 2017 rescission of DACA, which shields recipients from deportation and allows them to work, is unlawful. They are urging the Court to agree. Continue reading at the UCC.com website.
Happy Birthday and Anniversary to all who are celebrating this month!

November Birthdays
4 — Terry Cole
8 — Meg Gallagher
9 — Lisa Boyles
10 — Felicia Rocha
13 — Shelia Earl
17 — Laurie Labbitt
18 — Margery Mulvihill, Vivienne Barrett, Sarah Hayden
19 — Janice Perrigo
21 — Jack Wolfe
22 — Tony Fazio
24 — John Donaldson, Eileen White
27 — Jordan Ruffin
30 — Carol Kilburn

November Anniversaries
17 — Laurie Labbitt and Ron Perry

Upcoming Church Events

  • Nov 15 - FIRM's Senior Fridays, see Elizabeth Davis-Russell
  • Sundays at 9 a.m. - Adult Education in the Conference Room
  • Tuesdays - Women's Book Discussion Group, Conference Room, 6 p. m.
  • Tuesdays - Men's Book Study, Room 1, 6 p.m.
  • Nov. 22-24 - Journey into Advent, with Julia Penner-Zook, theme is "While it Was Yet Dark"
  • Nov. 24 - Fellowship Bake Sale, donations welcomed!
  • Nov. 28 & 29, Office closed (Thanksgiving)
  • Dec. 1 - Recycling Sunday, First Sundays of the month
  • Dec. 7 - Saturday Morning Breakfast Group, Michael Kunz will speak

Keep up to date with our Church's online calendar!
Early deadline Thanksgiving week,
Content due at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 26; eNews will publish on Wednesday

 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 .
Phone: 559.435.2690 
Email: office@communityucc.com