"An Exercise of Intention" – Sabrina Trupia

Outside of the burgeoning online cottage industry of "intentional living" accoutrements (Google offers many examples), what does living with intention really entail on a day-to-day basis? How do we move away from the platitudes and get to a meaningful spiritual space?

About our guest speaker: Sabrina, whose pronouns are they/them, is a third year Master of Divinity student at Eden Theological Seminary in Webster Groves. They plan to graduate in May 2022. Sabrina's spirituality combines Buddhism with elements of Judaism and mystical/contemplative Christianity. Their favorite sacred imagery is Howard Thurman's 'Island of Peace within One's Soul.' Sabrina's interests are in social justice, with specific emphasis on anti-racism.

We're going LIVE! on Zoom. Eliot Chapel is worshipping fully online through the month of February in response to the current coronavirus surge. Here’s how it works:

See you there!

In January we will be sharing our Sunday collections with the Meacham Park Neighborhood Improvement Association (MPNIA). Meacham Park is a predominantly African American community in Kirkwood. Even before Meacham Park was annexed to Kirkwood, an intentionally diverse group of Meacham Park and Kirkwood residents formed to advocate for Meacham Park and Eliot Chapel has long ensured that we have one of our members at the table so that we are always ready to lend a hand. Learn more about MPNIA at meachamparknia.org.

Here’s how you can give:

Eliot children and families are invited to gather from 9:15-9:45 am via Zoom for connection and community. This week’s session is hosted by Christie Lee and Deb Eldarrat. It continues a four-session series for children on Zoom titled “Spirituality, Songs, & Stories,” featuring the storytelling and songs of Lea Morris, who is collaborating with the UU Soul Matters program to share wisdom stories and music on a variety of spiritual themes from multiple religious traditions. This week’s featured story is “Maybe Yes, Maybe No,” which explores ways we deal with changes and new possibilities. Check out more about Lea Morris and her work here and here. Zoom links will be distributed to registered families by email no later than Friday, January 28.

Special Thank You:  A HUGE thank you to Amy Carre, Lara Snyder, Chris Ciszewski, and Deb Eldarrat for co-hosting children’s Religious Education in January. Thank you for sharing your time, wisdom, and love for Eliot children and making our gatherings possible this month.

Youth in 8th-12th grade are invited to gather on Zoom for community, connection, and FUN this Sunday, January 30. The room opens at 10:45 am and activities begin at 11:00. This gathering is hosted by Scott Stewart, Curtis Twombly, Dave Day, and Mary Hoehne. A Zoom link and more details about this Sunday’s youth gathering will be sent to registered Eliot youth and families no later than Friday, January 28.

Zoom Coffee Hour takes place from 12:00 pm to 1:00 on Sunday. You are invited to “walk down the hall” and come to our Zoom Coffee Hour! We’ll take about 10 minutes or so to gather and let people settle in. We'll say a few words of welcome and then create break-out rooms – random groupings of 5 or 6 people. Everyone will likely make a new friend at Eliot from this exercise! You’ll have the chance to introduce yourself and then share your answers to a few questions, like “How has this week been for you?” and “What feelings has it brought up for you?” Each person has about 5 minutes to speak; you are welcome to pass if you like. In half an hour, everyone will return to the big group and we’ll say our goodbyes for the week. Please watch your email for "Eliot on Zoom" which will include a link to join the Zoom Coffee Hour. If you're not on our mailing list, sign up here.

Sunday Worship – 10:00 am via Zoom

Community Now – 11:00 via Zoom

Coffee Hour – 12:00 pm via Zoom

Young Adult Group – 12:30 pm on Discord

Women's Alliance – 9:30 am via Zoom

Vigil for Hope & Healing – 4:00 pm in front of Eliot

Many groups at Eliot are meeting despite the distance between us all. Check with your group leader or get involved with a new group! Find contact information in our Getting Involved booklet.

Group leaders, have you set up an area for your group in Realm? You have a secure place to chat and share documents and photos. Contact Christie Lee to set up your group.

Please remember Rev. Krista Taves and her family in your thoughts. Her dearest uncle, John Taves, passed away on Monday, January 24, in Powell River, British Columbia after a long journey with cancer. He joins his wife Mary Ann who passed away two years ago.  A wonderful tribute from the Mission Folk Festival, which he helped to create, can be found on Facebook.

Our worship and other Eliot activities will remain virtual for the month of February. We are very encouraged by the rapidly declining number of COVID cases in the St. Louis region, but it's just a bit too soon to open. March is starting to look possible – but stay tuned.

We need community, now more than ever, don't we? It's tempting to think that the closing of our building because of the recent surge requires us to put that on hold. It doesn't have to! We still need one another. We still need a community to hold us together and help us through this long winter. On Sunday, January 30, at 11:00 am, we will gather online to consider ways that we can build community online right now. Ideas and leaders WANTED. Join Revs. Barbara and Krista as well as members of the Board of Trustees for this fun and important conversation. Hop on at 11:00 or stay after the 10:00 service. You'll get a link in the Eliot on Zoom email on Sunday.

Recently, the Board of Trustees surveyed the congregation about our relationship with the chapel. There is a lot going on at Eliot right now, so you might not be able to give the survey results a great deal of attention, but it is YOUR data, and you deserve to view the results. At this time, we are sharing only the executive summary. If you would like more detailed information, please feel free to contact the committee that interpreted the data. The committee members are Kalen Ponche, Sara Fleming, and Chuck Schuder. (See Realm for contact information.)

Our COVID team is here for you. If you are quarantining and need support having groceries and prescriptions picked up, please email pastoralcare@eliotchapel.org with your contact information. 

In an email letter to members and friends, Rev. Barbara outlined "How We Do Church Now" as Eliot Chapel suspended face-to-face meetings. As a guiding document, it was always open to changes as we found out what worked and what didn't in our response to this extraordinary situation. You can find this document on our website now. We will keep it updated as things change. We'll also try to let you know here of any changes.

All staff are working from home. The building and grounds are closed for general use. A staff person is checking on the building and grounds periodically throughout the week for any facilities or maintenance issues. If you need assistance or have any questions, please email the appropriate staff person.

Women’s Alliance will meet via Zoom on Tuesday, February 1, at 9:30 am. We’ll have conversation and a brief business meeting, then will discuss the book Anxious People by Fredrick Backman. Lori Kesler will lead the discussion. Please feel free to join us, whether you’ve read the book or not. For more information, contact womensalliance@eliotchapel.org.

All are welcome; wearing a mask is required as is maintaining the 6-foot social distancing guideline. Please remember that the building is not open so there are no available restrooms. 

February 14, March 14, April 11 & May 9

"Widening our Sense of Self" – Rev. Krista Taves

Our Universalist theology assures us that we are good enough just as we are. Our Unitarian theology asks us to stretch, always becoming just a bit more. We are good enough to grow.