June 23 - 30, 2023

Below are weekly programs. You can find brief descriptions of these weekly programs on our website:

SUNDAY Morning, 10 am Zoom Worship

https://zoom.us/j/97010988439 Password: betogether

SUNDAY , 11:30 a.m. Bible Study  in person and on zoom

https://zoom.us/j/262314649

MONDAY - FRIDAY, 8 am Morning Devotion

https://zoom.us/j/94276813637

WEDNESDAY Eve., 6:30 pm Midweek Inhale Spiritual Practices

https://zoom.us/j/123020606

Sunday, June 25, Sunday Morning Worship

10:00 a.m. in person & on zoom

https://zoom.us/j/97010988439

Password: betogether

Join us for worship as always!

We still need a couple of ushers for this Sunday's (June 25) worship!! If you can serve in this way please let Pastor Bryan know (pastorb@mcfarlanducc.org or 608-577-8716)

Below are the upcoming non-weekly events on the calendar happening at McFarland UCC for about the next month. All events are on the McFarland UCC calendar with Zoom links and additional information in the details/description area. Click the event on the McFarland UCC calendar to see the details.

Sunday, June 25 10:00 am - 4:00 pm, McFarland Pride Festival (MUCC is a sponsor. Signup to host the MUCC information table.)

Sunday, July 9 9:00 am, Worship Service TIME CHANGE due to Sikh Temple opportunity (In person & Online)

Sunday, July 9 11:00 am, Sikh Temple service with meal to follow (6970 Century Ave, Middleton). Carpooling available.

Sunday, July 9 5:30 - 7:00 pm, Teen Youth Monthly Meeting

Thursday, July 13 6:00 – 8:00 pm, SaLT Monthly Meeting (In person & Online) - Multipurpose Room

Thursday, July 18 6:30 – 8:00 pm, Ecojustice/Green Team Monthly Meeting (In person & Online)- Multipurpose Room

Thursday, July 20 6:30 – 8:00 pm, NION Monthly Meeting (Online only) - Multipurpose Room

Sunday, July 23 10:00 am, Outdoor Worship Service (In person & Online) Indoors if inclement weather.

Wednesday, July 26 6:00 pm, Teen Youth Outing to Madison Foward Soccer Game, Breese Field, Madison

Thursday, July 27 Time TBD, Teen Youth Service Opportunity at Second Harvest, Madison.

McFarland Pride in the Park Sunday, June 25

Every Sunday morning, members and visitors are welcomed with the words “No matter who you are, no matter where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here”. These are the words of an Open and Affirming church within the UCC denomination; for more information, see the Open and Affirming (ONA) Coalition website.  

In support of our commitment to ONA, MUCC leadership endorsed being a sponsor and participating in McFarland’s first Pride Festival, Pride in the Park, on Sunday, June 25 at Arnold Larson Park https://nadinemobley23.wixsite.com/mcfarlandpride. This family-friendly event will begin with yoga at 9 am followed by multiple activities from 10 am – 4 pm including live music by David Landau, food carts and vendors, crafts, face painting, storytime, and a DJ.



We are seeking volunteers to be at the MUCC vendor table at Pride in the Park from 10 am – 4 pm on Sunday, June 25. This is a great opportunity for us to share with the rest of McFarland what a wonderful, friendly, and open church community we have at McFarland UCC. If you are available to spend an hour at our table, please signup online. Contact Joan Jacobsen with questions at treasurer@mcfarlanducc.org or 608-669-7944.

July 4 Racial Justice Meeting Canceled

The July Racial Justice (7/4) is canceled due to the July 4th holiday. The next Racial Justice meeting will be Tuesday, August 1.

An Update on Hosting Tcheki Voltaire and her Family from Haiti.

Submitted by Araceli Wehr on behalf of Aliados (a new ministry of NION)

Thanks so much to Araceli for being the point person on these efforts and to all of you who have participated so far! (This photo shows Tcheki and her husband Jeffrey and Araceli at the Solstice Fire Ceremony this week).

From Araceli:

Hello McFarland UCC,

We wanted to give everyone an update on the Haitian family we are hosting. As we announced last week, Tcheki, Jeffrey and their son Jefferson traveled to McFarland last Saturday. Our first week hosting this family has been very successful thanks to all of your efforts! My heart was completely filled with joy at the overwhelming generous response from the entire community. It has been such a pleasure to participate in this process with you all.

This past week is what I have been referencing to as phase 1 making sure that Tcheki and her family had the critical care and support to ensure their safety and well-being. As a community we have supplied the family with:

-A safe place to stay, thank you Judy and Mark for graciously offering your home

-Welcomed them with a warm UCC welcome party, thank you all who joined

-Welcomed them with a warm home cooked meal, thank you Martha

-Essential supplies the family needed such as food, clothing, shoes, and hygiene products - thank you everyone!!

-We have taken the proper steps to ensure an immigration case worker is assigned and established in Wisconsin, thank you Paul

-Met with them to assess next steps for social services support, thank you Julie

-Mom and baby also have a scheduled appointment with a doctor this Saturday to ensure immediate medical needs are met, thank you Martha for taking them to this appointment

-We have introduced the family to a park down the street from Mark and Judy’s so that they can get fresh air and let the baby play, thank you Martha

-Introduced them to the food pantry, thank you Judy

-We have taught them how to cook using modern U.S. appliances

-They have cooked their own meal using those appliances, Great job Jeffrey

The family has also joined the UCC community on three occasions by going to church on Sunday the day after they arrived, participating in our summer solstice fire ceremony this past Wednesday and joining the Friday women’s group. The family has been overwhelmed with our kindness, and I’m happy to say in Tcheki’s words “this is a great community such good energy, I can feel it!”

This coming week we will enter phase 2 of hosting this family. During this phase, we will be focused on empowering the family to transition culturally to Wisconsin.

The ways in which you can support ARE:

1. Prayers are always welcome
2. Provide a ride to church on Sunday (Family has a car seat)
3. Volunteer to teach the family how to do laundry with U.S. appliances and products
4. Volunteer to meet with the family and help them practice their English 
5. Volunteer to meet with the family and help teach them about our currency
6. Volunteer to take the family on a walk or other activity

Sign Up to Support at this link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080E4DA5A92CA6FC1-haitian

Please keep checking the list for updated dates and needs as you are comfortable.

Some of you have also reached out asking how you can submit a donation. If you wish to do so please feel free to send a donation either online or via check to the church with a note that this is to support the Haitian family. Thank you to those who have submitted a donation!

Please text or call this number if you have questions or would like to be added to the list of volunteers as we journey through this process: 608-960-9035.

As we continue to navigate this service we know that it will take the continued loving support of our UCC community. While we know we need the support of the McFarland UCC community, there is also no presumption of participation.

With Love,

Aliados (Aliados is the Spanish word for "Allies," and it is a new aspecti of our NION Outreach that focuses specifically on helping immigrants in our local area find whatever support they need to get established and to thrive)

Nora Wroblewski in Kids from Wisconsin's "Star Struck" Performance

Let’s support our very own Nora Wroblewski, who will be in the Kids from Wisconsin 55th Anniversary Tour production, "Star Struck." The Kids from Wisconsin is renowned for their spectacular performances, showcasing the finest young performers from across the state. 

Details: 

Kids From Wisconsin 55th Anniversary Tour "Star Struck"

Saturday, July 8, 2023 at 7 PM

Capitol Theater at Overture Center

Link to ticket sales at Overture

Change of Time for Service on July 9:

Visit Sikh Temple

We are excited to announce a change in the service time for July 9, 2023! In an effort to foster community engagement and cultural exchange, we have decided to adjust the schedule to accommodate a special visit to the Sikh Temple, 6970 Century Ave, Middleton. Our service will now begin at 9:00 am, allowing us to carpool (if desired) together to the Sikh Temple and attend their service at 11:00 am.

The Sikh Temple graciously extends an invitation to our congregation to experience their traditions and join in their worship. This visit presents an excellent opportunity to deepen our understanding of each other's beliefs.

Following the service, we will have the privilege of sharing a meal that is available each week for everyone at the Sikh Temple. Last year a tour of the temple was even offered.

We sincerely invite all members of our congregation to join us on July 11, as we come together in unity and celebrate the richness of diversity within our community. Please mark your calendars and spread the word!

Friday, July 21st, 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. All Ages Fun Night!

Instead of a Sunday Evening Younger Youth Meeting in July, we're going to try something new, and that's just to invite all ages to come and have fun together! Assuming the weather is nice, we'll set up the volleyball net and encourage you all to bring your favorite lawn games. More info on this to come. For now just save the date! We're thinking we'll just keep it simple and not make it a meal, but we can get the firepit going and have s'mores and snacks. Join us and bring some friends. Nothing but FUN!

Love Has the Final Word Support Group Announcement

There is a support group for adults that have been estranged from family members that will begin this fall.

Being estranged from a family member means that the relationship has been cut off or lost for whatever reason. This experience can be lonely and painful and is oftentimes similar to the grief experienced after the death of a loved one. 

We seek to bring those suffering from estrangement together to offer a safe and confidential environment where people can come share their stories, and connect with others who have experienced similar loss. Through this sharing, we hope that attendees will find a path to peace and healing.

Sessions will be held on the second Saturday of September, October, and November here at MUCC at 10 am. (Sept 9, Oct. 14, Nov. 11)

Please connect with Trish Kalhagen or Araceli Wehr by either finding our contact information in the church directory if you or a friend should be interested, talking with either of us after worship, or sending an email to Trish at chmusiclvr59@yahoo.com.

A Few Words From Pastor Bryan

...and Gregg Braden

Another Way To Pray...

As I have often said, prayer is quite a Mystery. That's another way of saying that I don't think anyone knows in any definitive sense exactly how prayer works. For that reason, while I'm a HUGE believer in the power, significance, and according to Jesus the centrality of prayer, I approach it with a good deal of humility and wonder.

I recently heard someone say that the earliest words used for prayer in the Bible actually meant to "commune" with God. Another way to say that is that it's about doing whatever we can to consciously connect--be in union with--the Divine. I like that. There are countless ways to pray--to consciously connect with or to be intentionally aware of the Divine Presence. Which one is best or most important? Whichever one nurtures your sense of being "in" and with and connected to God. That may change and evolve during the course of your life. That's beautiful as well. I encourage people to learn many ways to pray and to meditate.

I also remember learning that the verb "to pray" in biblical Greek is ALWAYS in the reflexive tense. The reflexive tense means that the action of the verb is done 'to oneself.' If the word "hit" was used in the reflexive tense for example, it would mean, "to hit oneself." So when we pray, whatever prayer is, we are doing it "to" or somehow "through" ourselves. I find that really interesting.

Even though we all so often do it-as I do in my pastoral prayers each week in church--prayer really isn't about asking God--a separate Being "out there"-- to do something God wouldn't otherwise do if we didn't ask. It's more a matter of aligning ourselves--our thoughts, feelings, and actions--with whatever it is we long to have happen. It's about doing our best to make sure that our thoughts and actions AND our feelings and emotions are all somehow in sync with the Divine Intention. When we notice that our desires are somehow out of alignment with the leading of God, we bring ourselves back "into true." Jesus famously taught us what this looks like in the Garden of Gethsemane when he prayed that famous line, "Nevertheless not my will but thine be done."

This all liines up nicely with a different way of praying that I heard explained by a teacher named Gregg Braden (that's him in the photo above and he's got lots of YouTube videos if you're interested). Here's how it works.

Instead of verbally asking God for something you're hoping for or hoping to see happen--and I'm not talking about asking for silly or petty or selfishly egocentric things. Just assume you're asking for something good and beautiful for yourself or others. But instead of using silent or spoken words to express the petition as most of us tend to, instead simply imagine what it would FEEL like if what you are longing for was/is actually happening right now. Or imagine it has already happened and you're just getting the news and soaking in the relief and joy and gratitude that this beautiful thing you were hoping to see realized has already come to pass. See it happening in your imagination. Imagine being "surrounded spiritually and emotionally by the answers to your prayer." Linger in that feeling. As Gregg Braden puts it, "wrap the beautiful answer around you like a warm blanket."

Gregg Braden suggests that this form of prayer is NOT about trying to manipulate God into giving us what we want. It' more a matter of honoring what Jesus was teaching us in Mark 11:24, when he said;

"So I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."

There's something about this that feels powerful and True to me. Sure, I'm aware of egoic distortions of "law of attraction" teachings, and I will always end my prayers with a surrender to the Mystery of God's Providence which is welcome to be beyond what I think is best or desirable. That's simply a matter of trusting that God knows better than my limited perspective on everything and that ultimately everything is in God's perfect hands.

But I'm going to pray this way more often. If nothing else, I'll simply bathe in the warmth of intentions that are all about Divine Love, Healing, Truth, Justice, Beauty, and Grace.

Hope to see you Sunday. If not at church then at McFarland Pride Fest!

Pastor Bryan