TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Sunday Worship Service
- Update from FRS Reopening Team
- FRS Annual Meeting: RSVP Today!
- Your Recommendations Needed for 2022-23 Shared Collection Allocation
- Stories from Our Congregation
- FRS Spring Auction & Gala
- FRS Volunteers Potentially Needed to Support Upcoming LGBTQ dance
- Ways to Connect and Engage
- Sources of Our Faith
- Spring Meet & Greet
- FRS Community Art Project
- FRS & North Shore Pride
- Forest Walks and Meditation
- Church Programming Updates
- Update from Adult Faith Formation and Spiritual Exploration
- Update from Young Church
- Upcoming Events
- Last Call for Mother's Day Walk for Peace
- Retired Old Men Eating Out (ROMEO) Luncheon
- Climate Action Project Meeting
- Beyond Our Doors:
- Congregation Ahavas Achim Celebrates 125 Years of Jewish Community in Newburyport
- Antiracism Workshop
- FRS in the Community: Donate a book to our Little Free Diverse Library
- Thank a UU
- Weekly Wellness Programming
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Annual Ministry Theme: Unity
May Ministry Theme: World Religions
"Each of the world religions has its own particular genius, its own special insight into the nature and requirements of compassion, and has something unique to teach us."
-Karen Armstrong
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Sunday Worship Service
May 8, 2022
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Sunday, May 8, 2022
Buddhist Perspective and Practice
10:30am in-person and livestream on YouTube
Join FRS members Joyce Haydock, Bruce Deveau, and Jeff Bard as they share their experiences with the Buddhist tradition and how it has changed their lives for the better. This will be a special service including Buddhist chants and music. Reverend Rebecca will be leading worship.
Everyone is invited to join Joyce Haydock for a walking meditation around the sanctuary immediately following the service.
“Only the mind that wants to help is truly enlightened.”
-Zen Master Seung Sahn, Founder of the Kwan Um School of Zen
Following Sunday worship service we will host a 30-minute social outside the church (weather permitting).
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Update from FRS's Reopening Team
In an effort to protect our most vulnerable members - both those who cannot wear masks and those who must be around people who are masked - we strongly encourage the wearing of masks while in the sanctuary. Masks are not required, but are strongly encouraged.
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Distribution of Sunday Shared Collection Allocation for 2022-2023 Church Year
The Community Human Service Committee has the responsibility of scheduling the organizations that will receive one half of the unpledged donations collected at Sunday services each month.
Prior to establishing the schedule for next year, we would like to solicit recommendations from the congregation. If you would like to submit a recommendation for an organization serving the Merrimack Valley, please click on the link below to complete the form by Friday May 20, 2022.
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FRS Annual Meeting Sunday, June 12th: RSVP Today! |
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Stories From Our Congregation |
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Goddess for Our Troubled Times: Kali, the Fierce and Compassionate Goddess of India
by FRS parishioner Jane Tuohy
Hindu thought runs the gamut: from animism to nondual, from monotheistic to polytheistic to atheistic, from ritualistic to mystical, and so on.
"Hinduism" as a "religion" is very much a construct of the Western scholars. It has been aptly called a "hothouse orchid" that does not exist in nature! Rev. Dr. Sushmita Mukherjee will offer one tiny crumb from this cornucopia on May 15.
Sushmita is a scientist, a spiritual teacher and counselor, an artist, and a dreamer. By day she is an Associate Professor of Research at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City. As a woman who studies archetypes, the archetype that she feels most reflects her journey this lifetime is that of Hermes, the Greek God who is the patron of travelers and the keeper of crossroads; the one who moves freely across established borders, and brings information of one realm to another.
Sushmita's general spiritual stance is characteristically non-dual, while also being animistic, pantheistic, and Jungian. In her soul, the favorite Indian non-dual mantra “neti neti” (meaning "not this, not that") peacefully cohabitates with the notion that everything around us - the plants, the stones, the stars - are all alive and ensouled. Each of these entities are not just reflections of God, they are gods themselves.
The title of Rev. Sushmita’s sermon on May 15th is "Goddess for Our Troubled Times" and focuses on Kali, a Fierce and Compassionate Goddess of India.
Our times are troubled indeed. Some have called them apocalyptic. War, violence against neighbors, pandemics, global economic inequity, institutional racism, and climate change converge to create "the perfect storm"! I very often feel overwhelmed by the destructive forces at large in the world right now.
On May 15th, Sushmita will remind us that though unsettling, the word apocalypse derives from Greek roots which mean "uncovering, revelation or disclosure." Are we ready to embrace our shadows, personal and cultural - our "demons" - that are being revealed to us by the apocalypse? And if we do, what is our stance in front of these demons? How do we "slay" these demons that will stem the perpetuation of suffering?
Sushmita introduces us to the fierce and compassionate Indian Goddess, Kali. I emphasize the word “fierce.” Some images of Kali show her dripping blood and eating hearts. Many of us in the West grew up with little or no exposure to the idea of the feminine divine. The closest I came was Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Mary is not a goddess, but a very human mother who is usually depicted as suffering, compassionate, loving, supporting, and…not fierce.
Kali destroys and devours demons.
Sushmita sees our U.S. western society as afflicted with the twin demons of complacency and addiction to material comfort.
The multiple crises of our times call for us to tap into our inner selves and the passion (a word that comes from a Latin root meaning "suffering") to rise up and fight the forces of greed and the illusion of otherness that fuel our multiple crises. Fire has a cleansing power. Throughout the ages, there have been cycles of human evolution in which destruction has preceded rebirth. These are our times, our challenges. Sushmita is calling on us to come together. None of us can face these challenges alone. She is calling upon us to come together and act.
I met Sushmita last year when she was my Dean at the One Spirit Learning Alliance, an interfaith and interspiritual seminary in New York City. I will be ordained in June.
I, and all of my classmates, are called up this month to face any "demons" we must confront, anything that blocks us from stepping fully into our ministries and living as fully as we can, lives committed to spiritual service and social justice. The "stretches" that Sushmita gave me last year were important stepping stones for me along this path.
Come meet Sushmita on May 15th. There will be an opportunity to talk with her at the reception immediately following the service.
Jane Tuohy is a seminarian with the One Spirit Learning Alliance in New York City. She will be ordained as an Interfaith minister at Riverside Church in Manhattan on June 11, 2022.
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DONATIONS NEEDED!
For the FRS Spring Gala and Auction
Do you love to cook dinner and entertain?
Do you have a specialty dinner that everyone loves?
Do you enjoy putting on a wine tastings? Maybe know your cheeses as well?
Do you have a vacation home you could share?
Can you offer a pizza palooza party?
Can you offer a day trip in your boat?
Do you have sports tickets to share?
Can you provide a whiskey and chocolate tasting party?
Tell us what you can do
Help us make the FRS Spring Gala and Auction an evening to remember!
Join us in Fellowship
On the evening of June 10, 2022
At the Newburyport Community Center
More details coming soon...
P.S. You can also look for the Auction table at Sunday's social after worship service!
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Volunteers Potentially Needed!
In case you have not seen the articles in the local news, including Boston.com, FRS is working in solidarity to support "Over the Rainbow," a community dance for teens co-sponsored by Newburyport Youth Services and North Shore Alliance for GLBTQ+ Youth (NAGLY). This dance will be held on Friday, May 13 and the location is still being worked out. The original venue for the dance had been the Masonic Lodge in Newburyport, but the Lodge notified dance organizers last week that they would no longer permit the event to be held in their facility. Since this news, FRS has offered to provide a space for the dance, but planning continues to evolve, and the venue has yet to be determined. FRS will nonetheless provide support as needed. Without knowing what this support might look like, we ask that if you are interested and available on the evening of the dance, to please let us know. If there is a call for volunteer support, we will reach out to you!
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Ways to Connect and Engage |
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Sources Of Our Faith: Monthly Discussion Groups with Reverend Rebecca
When: Tuesday, May 10 from 6:30-7:30pm
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 961 5522 8330
Passcode: 745362
One tap mobile
+13126266799,,96155228330# US (Chicago)
+19292056099,,96155228330# US (New York)
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Spring Meet & Greet
When: Sunday, May 15, in the FRS Courtyard, following Sunday Worship Service
“A friend may be waiting behind a stranger’s face.”
-Maya Angelou
Whether you are newer to FRS or have been a parishioner for a while and are looking to build connections, please join us at our Spring Meet & Greet. We will enjoy a picnic lunch provided by FRS and have fun with getting-to-know-you activities, plus you will learn about all the exciting projects and programming happening in our parish and FRS's impact in the greater community.
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"Where do we come from? Where are we going?"
A Community Art Project at FRS
You are invited to participate in a new community art project this spring! The project title "Where do we come from? Where are we going?" is borrowed from a famous painting by Paul Gauguin. It may speak to you on a personal level about your roots and your vision, or you may prefer to amplify the theme to reflect on history, the state of our community, and the future of the world. All interpretations are welcome.
How does the community art project work?
You will have several weeks to respond to the theme by using writing, photography, visual art including painting, collage, fiber art, found objects, or more. You may choose quotes and images by others (attributed) or your own originals. If you wish to respond to the theme musically or with a short performance, we will try to accommodate you.
Please pick up an unfinished wooden frame/shadow box after church beginning on April 10th and take it home to finish with your interpretation of the theme. One per person, please. We will collect all contributions at the church by May 8 for a group exhibition, exact location and time TBD. On April 10th during the 30-Minute Social, you can also visit with some of our creative members who will help get you inspired by sharing ideas and materials!
Everybody is an artist! All ages are invited.
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FRSUU & North Shore Pride
Planning for North Shore Pride celebrations are underway, and FRS has been invited to participate in planning the interfaith service for Thursday, June 23rd at 7pm which will be held this year at Tabernacle Church in Salem. If you would like to assist in planning the interfaith service as a representative of FRS please contact Christine Doherty at christine.doherty@comcast.net. Meetings will be a combination of Zoom, email correspondence, and a minimal number in person. These volunteers would also be expected to attend the service. Christine will connect you to the committee’s contact person.
Additionally, mark your calendars for the primary North Shore Pride daytime celebration — a parade and activities in Salem, MA on Saturday, June 25th. The Welcoming Committee, in collaboration with the FRS Intergenerational GSA, will be coordinating a group of FRS members to attend Pride events that day. We hope to travel together or meet up there, have fun, and represent FRSUU and Unitarian Universalist principles in action. More information will be available soon, but if you’d like to express your interest, please contact Christine at christine.doherty@comcast.net.
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Forest Walks and Meditation
When: Fridays, May 13 and 27, from 9-10:30am
Maudslay State Park, Newburyport
Much research in recent years has brought to light the benefits of being in nature mindfully, using all the senses, giving rise to practices such as Forest Bathing (Shinrin-Yoku) in Japan and Scandinavia. Join us for four such walks, experiencing the emergence of spring. Walks will be silent and will include a number of mindfulness practices, and will be followed by tea and conversation.
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Church Programming Updates |
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ADULT FAITH FORMATION AND SPIRITUAL EXPLORATION
by Julie Parker Amery, Director of Faith Formation and Spiritual Exploration
UU Wellspring is Coming to the FRS
We won!
A couple of months ago, I entered a lottery to get a free subscription to the UU Wellspring program and… we won! This is terrific news if you’re wishing to take your spiritual exploration deeper, while staying grounded in Unitarian Universalism, and if you’d like to connect deeply with other parishioners who are on a parallel search.
What is Wellspring? UU Wellspring is a 10-month spiritual deepening course for Unitarian Universalists, developed in 2005 by the Rev. Jen Crow for her congregation in Rochester, NY. Since then, the program has gone continental, as more and more UU leaders have brought the program into their own congregations. Typically, a congregation pays a subscription fee for the materials and support (the fee being waived for us as a winner of the lottery).
The Wellspring program runs from September until June, meeting twice a month. Participants experience deep listening and spiritual reflection in small groups of about ten, inspiring personal and community transformation. Participants read, view and respond to pre-session assignments that are focused on spiritual topics and UU Theology.
In addition to the meetings, participants engage in a spiritual practice of their choosing, and find a spiritual companion to meet with outside of the sessions.
Some of the themes explored in this first offering of Wellspring include: Everyday Theology; Your Own Prophetic Voice: Vulnerability and Courage; Nature as Spiritual Guide; Good Without God; and UU Perspectives on Death and the Afterlife. To learn more about the Wellspring program, you can check out the website here: https://uuwellspring.org/
I participated in a Wellspring group several years ago. It was a group for religious professionals, and we met via Zoom (in the pre-pandemic days, before Zoom was really much of a thing!) I found the program to be challenging and enriching, and it both deepened my understanding of what it means to be a UU, AND it gave me new spiritual and theological insights. I couldn’t wait to see the program come to the FRS. And now, here we are!
This program will be offered in-person and will begin in the fall. If you’re interested, please fill out a form here: https://bit.ly/WellSpringInterest. By doing so, you are in no way committing to the program, or even registering for it. It will simply guarantee that you receive communications as our plans develop. It will also help us with our plans if we have an idea of how many people are interested. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me: julie.amery@frsuu.org.
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Circle Dance performed at the April 22nd Climate Justice Rally in Newburyport organized by FRS and community-wide partners. Photo by FRS parishioner Jay McCarthy. |
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YOUNG CHURCH UPDATE
by Mara Flynn, Director of Children's Ministry
Greetings from Young Church!
April was action-packed: Young Church led the Time for All Ages during the climate action service on April 10, holding the climate justice signs they’d made for all to see as several children shared their reflections about climate change. During Easter service the Young Church Singers had their debut singing Louis Armstrong's song "What a Wonderful World." There wasn’t a dry eye in the house as we listened to children’s voices singing in our sanctuary for the first time in a long while. And on April 22nd, Young Church families joined us at the FRS Climate Justice Rally on Earth Day, a wonderful day of celebration, protest, connection, and learning.
Looking ahead to May, Young Church will be getting ready to lead the annual Young Church Sunday Service on May 22nd outdoors at Atkinson Common – we hope to see you there!
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Last Call for Mother's Day Walk for Peace
When: Sunday, May 8, 9-11:30 am, at Madison Park High School, Roxbury Crossing, Boston
Our FRS team is now at least 17 members strong, with many more who have donated to support the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute in Dorchester. Thank you all for your support. We will walk together to be in community with mothers, families, and neighborhoods who have lost loved ones to homicide, and to support the Peace Institute - a center of healing, teaching, and learning for families and communities impacted by murder, trauma, grief, and loss.
The walk is four miles through neighborhoods of Boston where violence is all too common. Walkers come from throughout Greater Boston and beyond. Here is a moving short video titled "Why I Walk": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbL61uoB-xs&t=4s.
You can register here on the FRS Team page:
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Retired Old Men Eating Out (ROMEO)
When: Tuesday, May 10 at 12pm, The Grog, Newburyport
No reservations required. The Officer of the Day is Les Ferlazzo, phone, 617-429-2087 or email, sealore@live.com.
Please bring money along with yourself.
"It takes a good lunch to keep the church moving forward" - Maxine S. Steeves (paraphrased)
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Climate Action Project Meeting
When: Wednesday, May 11 at 7pm on Zoom
Mission & Goals:
An informed citizenry insistent on urgent government action to slow climate change! In response to this need the FRS Climate Action Project plans to:
- Think globally, work locally, act personally.
- Raise awareness within FRS and the local community on the urgent need for climate action by organizing a series of events, discussions, and communications on key climate change topics.
- Grow the reach and effectiveness of our small group by attracting more FRS members and friends to join with us in this cause, and by collaborating with other like-minded local organizations and agencies of government.
- Publicize concrete actions by which concerned citizens can combat climate change in their personal lives, through government channels, and/or by participating with advocacy groups.
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Congregation Ahavas Achim Celebrates 125 Years of Jewish Community in Newburyport
When: Sunday, May 25 from 4-6pm at Congregation Ahavas Achim, Newburyport
Click here to download the flyer!
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Antiracism Workshop Featuring Debby Irving, Racial Justice Educator and Author of Waking Up White
When: Sunday, May 15 from 2-5pm at Church of St. Andrew, Marblehead, MA
The workshop, titled "I'm a Good Person! Isn't That Enough?" is designed to support white people in making the paradigm shift from "fixing" and "helping" those of other races, to acknowledging internalized views of white superiority and understanding how such views perpetuate racism at all levels.
During the first hour, Irving will discuss how, socialized on a narrow world view, she used her white-skewed belief system to interpret the world around her. She will offer first-hand insight into the everyday perpetuation of racial inequality by well-intentioned white people. The remaining time will be more interactive, with questions and answers, discussion, and small-group work.
This free workshop will be hosted by the Church of St. Andrew in Marblehead.
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Give the Gift of a Book to FRS's Little Free Diverse Library (LFDL)
Help us amplify and empower diverse voices and stories in our community by donating a book to our Little Free Diverse Library on Pleasant Street.
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THANK A UU!
Once a month we will publish a list of thanks to all who help to make our day a little brighter and our community stronger!
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Minister–The Reverend Rebecca Bryan; Ministerial Intern–David Livingstone; Affiliate Minister–Rev. Stan Barrett; Affiliate Minister–Rev. Helen Murgida; Minister Emeritus–The Reverend Harold Babcock. Staff: Director of Church Operations–Rob Authier; Office Administrator–Diane Carroll; Audio-Visual Engineer–Rob Close; Director of Children's Ministry–Mara Flynn; Director of Church Music–Justin Murphy-Mancini; Director of Faith Formation and Spiritual Exploration–Julie Parker Amery; Sexton–Donny Rogers; Director of Congregational and Community Engagement–Cynthia Walsh. Parish Board: Chair–Holly Cashman; Vice Chair–Tina Benik; Finance Chair–Tim Fountain; Governance Chair–Juliana Beauvais; Endowment Treasurer–Kim Kenly; Finance Treasurer–Micah Donahue; Parish Clerk–Kathy Desilets; Vern Ellis, Minnie Flanagan, Michelle Kimball, Lucy Litwin, Annie Maurer, Jim Supple, Renée Wolf Foster.
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First Religious Society, Unitarian Universalist | 26 Pleasant St., Newburyport MA 01950
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