Spiritually Open, Intentionally Inclusive since 1958
510 N Leroux
Flagstaff, AZ 86001
928-779-4492
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- This Sunday at Beacon -
May 17th, 2020


Virtual Service  
"The Rumi Prescription and the Sacred Heart of Islam"
Rev. Robin Landerman Zucker preaching
with Worship Associate Char Tarashanti
 and music from Gabriel Hernandez and Rebecca Prizznick

In recognition of Ramadan, the holy period of ritual fasting for Muslims between April 23 and May 23, we will clarify the essence of Islam, dispel damning myths, and explore the mystical core of this often misunderstood religion. The service includes poetic interludes by beloved Sufi poets, Rumi and Hafiz, whose words remain wise, ageless, and healing resources for this manic, modern, and currently besieged world.

Tune into the Service via the "Beacon UUC" Youtube Channel.
For the May 17th service Lyrics and Unison readings will be visible in the service recording.

~ Due to our Annual Town Hall there will be no Virtual Social Hour this Sunday ~

Joys and Concerns

While Beacon maintains our Social Distance, please email Reverend Robin if you would like any Joys and Concerns shared with the congregation.  Please submit the Joys and Concerns to minister@beaconuu.com by Thursday at 12:00 pm for inclusion in that Sunday's worship.

Spotlight this Week!

Annual Town Hall
Sunday May 17th, 2020 at 11:00 AM

Beacon members should check their email for their Zoom invitation to the Beacon Board of Trustees' annual Town Hall this Sunday, May 17, 2020.   Please sign in at 11:00 AM to meet and greet before we begin discussing the proposed budget and slate of officers for FY 2020-21.  If you do not receive your invitation contact  president@beaconuu.com  
If you are interested in becoming a member before Sunday, please email Rev. Robin at minister@beaconuu.com to make arrangements for a safe time to join.


Religious Exploration

We encourage Beacon families to continue Religious Exploration at home!  



Religious Exploration for Children
 ~ Beacon At Home ~

"Horton Hears A UU: Life Lessons from Dr. Seuss" 
May 17, 2020 - "Thidwick The Big-Hearted Moose"

Click here to go to our website for full lesson details including links to videos and fun activities for the whole family.  


Religious Exploration for Middle/High School
~ Building Bridges ~

We are ending our Building Bridges Year with PEACE AND LOVE!   Please join us for our final lesson about  the Religious Society of Friends!  We are happy that local Quaker Steve Finger will be joining us as a guest speaker!  Zoom in to learn more about this inspiring faith this Sunday, May 17 at 10am by following the link below!


Meeting ID: 255 096 1410
Password: 513918

If you would like to learn a bit about the Quakers before the presentation, check out this document for some background information.




Religious Exploration for Adults

LUNCH WITH THE TRANSCENDENTALISTS....and Rev. Robin 
"We will walk on our own feet; we will work with our own hands; we will speak our own minds...A nation of men (sic)  will for the first time exist, because each believes himself inspired by the Divine Soul which also inspires all men." - Ralph Waldo Emerson 

Let's have lunch with the Transcendentalists! This series of brown bag virtual ZOOM gatherings with Rev Robin will offer the opportunity to get acquainted with the writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Margaret Fuller, through the Skinner House "Spiritual Guides" series by Rev. Barry Andrews.  Handouts of all readings and reflective questions will be provided in advance in the weekly e-news, beginning April 8. Attend any or all; drop ins welcome.  

Wednesdays, 12 noon - 1:15 p.m. (come early and leave late, as desired) 
(April 15, 22, 29, May 6, 13, 20) 
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 733 037 2039  Password:  968647

Discussion Theme for May 20: The Alcotts and Transcendentalism: Beyond Fruitlands and Little Women

The Beacon website has handouts, resources and activities listed for adults here.



"OUR WHOLE LIVES"  at BEACON UU CONGREGATION 
Real World Sexuality Education for Young People 

OWL has been postponed until in person meetings are once again possible.  For attendees of the 2020 OWL Program, please keep an eye on your email box for updates from the coordinators.
Beacon Stewardship

There are members of our congregation especially impacted by this coronavirus pandemic.  While we wait to see if we're touched by the virus, other health concerns are put at risk.  Some of us have lost income, and others are providing financial support to family members and others who have lost income.   A stewardship campaign to solicit pledges for next year's Beacon budget may not register high on a list of priorities for some of us.  

However, Beacon will likely be adjusting to a new normal during FY 2020-21, to meet the needs of the Beacon congregation and the Flagstaff community.  Beacon has a long history of support for our community on a meager budget.  It has and will survive hard times as long as we remain a connected community - connected with Flagstaff and each other.  

Your Beacon leadership will be preparing a budget based in part on the results of the stewardship campaign.  If you wish to make a pledge, please download the form at https://www.beaconuu.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/PledgeForm2020.pdf and send it to:

Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation
510 N. Leroux St
Flagstaff, AZ 86001

OR


Thank you all so much for supporting our Beacon community.

Dennis Spurlin
Stewardship Co-chair
May 24 th ~ In Person Labyrinth Service
In an outdoor setting with low COVID risk

Walking the Flagstaff Community Labyrinth

Labyrinths have been part of many cultures around the world for 3,000 years. Walking a labyrinth in community with music (as we will do May 24) is a special shared meditation. The Flagstaff Community Labyrinth, perched on the edge of a small cliff, is made of 15 tons of lichen-covered lava boulders. It has a path length of a quarter mile; its wide lanes allow you to walk at your own pace. Photos and much more information  on the web.

The best current evidence is that less than 0.3% of COVID cases were contracted outdoors. The huge outdoor air mass rapidly dilutes any COVID particles (especially in Flagstaff's famous spring winds). We are implementing two strategies to drive that risk closer to 0.03%. (1) We ask that you arrive between 9:30 and 10:30 AM. We will create a 3-minute gap between start times of each family group to help space out the labyrinth walkers. We will allow no more than 12 persons in the 52-ft diameter labyrinth at any one time. Total time from entry to exit is about 15 minutes. (2) Even with staggered entry times, people on the outward path will encounter walkers on the inward path; next week's Beacon Newsletter will include a 20-second video showing how to reverently and affectionately approach another walker, pass back to back, and continue your walk. 

Children are welcome to walk the labyrinth with a spirit of reverence, or to visit nearby Sawmill Park under the supervision of parents.Wear good walking shoes (no high heels). Sorry, the labyrinth is not wheelchair-accessible.

Afterwards, you can mingle with other Beaconites (in small groups with appropriate distancing) on the adjacent FUTS trail (absolutely the most scenic mile of the FUTS!), in Sawmill Park, and on the gazebo and grounds of Willow Bend, all of which are accessible within a 3-minute walk from the labyrinth.  

Three parking options and a google map are available on the " Where is it?" page of the Flagstaff Labyrinth website. 
Call for Member Reflections

On May 31st, Beacon member Mark James will be leading a virtual service entitled "Solitude and Grief in the time of Covid".  

Please share a brief note (two or three sentences) regarding lessons  or insights gained from your experience with this pandemic.  These will be read aloud (and recorded) at the end of the sermon, as part of the May 31st service.  Please include your name with your contribution of words.  Send to  office@beaconuu.com .  Thanks for sharing with your community. 

~ Beacon Connections ~

Robin's Bird's Eye-View

As a follow-up to my sermon of May 10 about the wisdom of weeds, I share this heartfelt reflection by the journalist Connie Schultz. Plant your hopeful seeds, water them with the Miracle-Gro of our community, and bloom where you are planted.

Hello, Joy
By Connie Schultz

My annual order of wildflower seeds arrived in the mail, and I've never been so eager to start something new - something beautiful and immune to the virus taking so much away.

I love reading aloud the names of the flowers that, in theory, will thrive here in northeast Ohio. Purple and gray-headed cone flowers, and clasping ones, too. Scarlet ax and Shasta daisy. Purple prairie clover and black-eyed Susan. Ox-Eye sunflower and gay feather. Prairie Aster, evening primrose and lavender hyssop. And cosmos, always cosmos, because they bloom into bountiful bouquets until the first frost. 

One of my favorite photos of my husband is from three years ago, his grin wide as he walked through the kitchen door holding two dozen cosmos fanning out in every direction, two weeks before Halloween.

I've been eager to plant, but I have to wait. It snowed here last week, in not-so-early May. I grew up in Ohio's snowbelt and have lived more than 30 years just an hour east, in Cleveland, where the words "lake effect" explain the reason and lay the blame. I'm used to snow, but I can't find anyone who remembers getting it this late. 

Our two dogs left paw prints from the back fence to the length of our porch, but that felt normal in the way things do when life is abruptly so strange. A part of me worries that you're thinking, why is she writing about wildflowers and paw prints when so many people have died? 

The less insecure part of me thinks you know exactly why. We have to remember to breathe. One of my oldest friends died last week in a hospital 900 miles away. She didn't have the coronavirus, but the coronavirus kept me away just the same. After almost 40 years of friendship, I couldn't kiss her forehead or whisper in her ear.

I need to believe that soon I'll be able to look out my kitchen window and see those wildflowers waving at me. They'll remind me of my friend, who liked manicured gardens and used to tease that she never saw anyone make more excuses for flowering weeds than me. Even typing that, I see her smile.

Lately, I've been forced to think about my own mortality because it seems to be the new hobby of virtually everyone around me. I'm 62, which, in the age of the coronavirus, is the new 90 to both the CDC and people who love me most. I never saw that alliance coming.My children, whom I raised to believe that they would never have to take care of me, have become the adults in my life who want to know why I'm not answering on the first ring. They love me, and I'm lucky for that. So far, so good, I tell them, but then I cried during my son's Mother's Day call. I don't know which of
us was more alarmed by this development. With their tender notes and multiplying calls, my son and daughter have been as grown-up as I've ever known them to be. I feel I've turned a corner with my kids, and there will be no returning to where I used to be.

I study my husband's face when he's not watching, and more than I used to. I assure myself that I should have been paying this kind of attention all along. We've always said we married too late to reach that golden anniversary, but neither of us has ever wanted to believe this could come to an end. This pandemic has forced so many of us to pause, if only to wave away those new and unwelcome possibilities. Sometimes, I feel guilty in moments of happiness. But I try to remind myself that no good comes from squandering what remains. Life still brings us joy, and what a waste of a heart to deny its entry. We must rely on the researchers to find the cure for this virus, but we can do our part to limit its destruction.

This morning I discovered two birds building a nest in the crevices of our front porch light, just to the right of the door that opens and closes all day long.

What an act of optimism. I will plant my wildflowers. One day, they will wave.
~ Monthly Touchstone Theme: Sabbath ~

~If you enjoy the Touchstones Journal, here's a virtual event you may wish to attend~

Touchstone Vespers at First Unitarian Church of Rochester, NY
Every Wednesday 7:00 - 8:00 PM EST (4-5 PM Arizona time)
Details and Zoom links at:

Other ongoing UU small spiritual exploration groups that will be meeting virtually are listed on the www.communitynowuu.org website, such as: 
  • Sanctuary Boston small group gatherings on Mondays 3:30-5:30 PM (Arizona time) 
  • UU Wellspring online - two hour sessions meeting every other week, beginning April 7. 4-6 PM (Arizona time) 

Chalice Circles
Tuesday, May 19th from 6:30pm - 8:00pm.  


Zoom meeting info:  
Meeting ID: 733 037 2039    Password: 968647
  Or you can call:  +1 669 900 6833

All are welcome!   The theme for May is Sabbath. This month's Touchstones journal link can be found here.

Touchstones Chalice Circles are designed to meet our needs for belonging (intimacy) and meaning (ultimacy) by building friendships and providing opportunities to ponder life's questions, small and large, with others who share the common values of our UU Principles.  All are welcome.

Discussion examines subjects as provided in the monthly journal of Unitarian Universalism,  Touchstones.   To meet the needs of the congregation, we have made attendance open. 

Rev. Robin will lead the May Touchstones discussion group.
Beacon's Stories Project

 
This week's featured writer is Andy Hogg.  Please follow the link to read his story.  May the stories ease your isolation, provide some entertainment and help you feel more connected to other Beacon members during this time of social distancing!  We plan to provide a story each week until we run out!   

If you would like to contribute to this project, send your 1000 word or less story to Dru Monroe at  edrumonroe@gmail.com or write to ask for more information.  Don't miss this chance to share a part of yourself with our loving Beacon community!  

Special Recognition

Please take a look at the Beacon Community Action Committee's (CAC) impressive record of support for the Flagstaff Community at https://www.beaconuu.com/social-action/.  The Beacon Board of Trustees recognized the CAC for their work with the Share the Plate Partners.  This program provides undesignated contributions of monthly offerings above $350 to local community charities.  Nominations for 501c3 agencies can be made through a form linked on the web page.  CAC members are Joanne Parkes, Steven Patrick, Susan Patrick, Sue Strobel, and Lynda L. Dorweiler.



 ~ Wider Community ~


PLUS:  Beacon has funds for 3 registration fees!


 
Beacon would love to be fully represented at GA this year!  Rev. Robin has funds designated to pay the full registration fee ($150) for 3 Beacon Delegates!  Speak to Rev. Robin if you are interested in serving!

UU Justice Arizona Network

UUJAZ has several ongoing campaigns that we would encourage members to look into and contribute to.

UUJAZ Book Group
Friday, May 15th at 12:00 pm 

It's more important than ever to stay justice centered in our faith, as decisions made now will affect climate justice and structural inequity for years to come. Join Rev. Tina Squire the third Friday of each month at noon for a book discussion. In May we'll start with  An Indigenous People's History of the United States, the UUA Common Read for 2020, by Roxanne Ortiz. June will feature On Fire: The Burning Case for a Green New Deal, just in time for author Naomi Klein's Ware Lecture at this year's GA.


Transforming Hearts Webinar
Thursdays, every other week at 7:00pm, 
starting May 14th 

Missed the first session? No worries! There's still time to learn how to create congregations that are fully inclusive and affirming of the full breadth of gender diversity. Over six sessions we will deeply explore the intersection of trans identity, spirituality, and faith community, and gain the grounding, context, and skills to transform yourself and your congregation.

UU Congregations Response to 1918-19 Flu Pandemic

Harvard Square recently released an eight minute video about the UU response to the 1918-19 Flu pandemic.  The video is likely of some interest to congregants and can be watched for free at the link below.

1918-19 UU Flu Response

~ This Week at Beacon  ~


Virtual Worship
Sunday, May 17, 2020
10:00 am - 11:00 am
Beacon Town Hall
Sunday, May 17, 2020
11:30 am
Chalice Circles
Tuesday, May 19, 2020
6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Click here to join on Zoom
Core Leadership Council Meeting
Wednesday, May 20, 2020
6:00 pm

 
If you would like to submit a calendar event, send an email to  office@beaconuu.com . With all requests, please indicate the following: proposed start and end time of the event, the space/room preferred, and a rough group size. On the occasion of a cancellation or rescheduling of an event, please let the office know in a timely fashion to ensure that your event is correctly represented in the newsletter and order of service. Thank you!
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Everyday Ways to Support Beacon UU 

1.  When you go to  Fry's  grocery store, use the Beacon phone number ( 928 779 4492 ) as the Alternate ID when it asks for it at the beginning of checkout, and you will get shopping discounts for Fry's members, as well as donating a percentage of your expenditure to Beacon. You can also sign up for an individual account if you prefer that, or want to take advantage of the gasoline discounts. You have to pick Beacon as your beneficiary when you set up your own account.

2.  If you shop on Amazon, please use "Amazon Smile"  and choose Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation (do not abbreviate UU) as your recipient. We will receive a 0.5%  for every purchase and that can add up!  Remember that you have to start each shopping session at  smile.amazon.com  for us to receive the donation. 

3. Another online fundraiser is   igive.comOnce again, create your own account with a user name and password, then select settings, my cause, and type in Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation (do not abbreviate UU) . Then you can order from any of the hundreds of organizations listed under igive.  There are also coupons listed online you can use when ordering from some organizations.

4.  Basha's has a special debit card that you can charge up before shopping, and a portion of  what goes through the debit card gets donated to Beacon because that card is tied to Beacon.  Ask Anne Wittke for further information.

Have other ideas for our income incubator? leave them on a card in the bin in the lobby, or send them to Rev. Robin. 
Beacon Office Hours & Contacts  ~
Office Phone (928) 779-4492

Minister,
Rev. Robin Zucker

Mon: 11:00 am - 4:00 pm
Wed: 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
Thurs: 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
Or by appointment:
978-505-7245 - talk and text (confidential line) 
Get to know Rev. Robin at  www.uurobinzucker.com
Director of RE 


Our engaging programs for all ages continue while  we search for a new Religious Exploration Director.

Rev. Robin can answer your RE questions.
  Office Manager,
Ben Jefferies
 
Mon: 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
Wed: 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
Thurs: 9:00 am - 2:00 pm


 

~ Unitarian Universalist Seven Principles  ~

Unitarian Universalist congregations affirm and promote seven Principles, which we hold as strong values and moral guides. We live out these Principles within a "living tradition" of wisdom and spirituality, drawn from  sources  as diverse as science, poetry, scripture, and personal experience.  Learn more at beaconuu.com!




You no longer need to forward your spam emails to spam@uce.gov , because the Federal Trade Commission is now collecting spam through a honeypot, which is an online trap. This change makes it more efficient for the FTC to collect spam that is deceptive or violates the CAN-SPAM Act. This change saves tax dollars, your time, and helps the FTC collect deceptive and illegal spam.  If you lost money to a scam that started with an email, please report it at ftc.gov/complaint . There, you can also report spam you receive.  Read more about how to limit spam, phone calls, and mail

~ Beacon Google Group  ~

If  you are not on Beacon's exclusive Google group, you are missing out on an important communications link within our congregation. It is useful for spreading information about something going on in Flagstaff, informing others of social action activities, offering an item for sale or to give away, sharing enthusiasm about a book or movie, requesting information or recommendations -- and more! It's simple to sign up! Email our Office Manager, at  office@beaconuu.com or Visit:  https://groups.google.com/d/forum/uuflag
Contribute to Beacon's Weekly News

Newsletter submissions must be submitted by Wednesday at 4:00 pm to  office@beaconuu.com  in order to be included in the newsletter.