Learning and Growing at FUUSN

Learning and Growing

The RE Bulletin for the

First Unitarian Universalist Society in Newton

September 6th, 2024

Devin's Reflections

There is a Jewish folk tale about a lone apple tree in an oak forest by Peninnah Schram & Rachayl Eckstein Davis. When looking up one Winter night, the apple tree noticed that the barren oak trees all around her had stars hanging from their branches. She thought that made the oak trees really special and that made her envious. God reassured her that she was special, too, and told her that she needed to be patient. Apple blossoms soon appeared along with Spring.

Despite the beauty of the blossoms and all the other gifts she offered, like shade, a place for birds to rest, and something beautiful for people to look at during the day, she still envied the oak trees and their stars. Once again, God reassured her and encouraged her to be patient. As Summer passed and Fall returned, the apple tree blossoms became fruit—the apple tree, still resentful that she had no stars.

God felt it was time for the apple tree to see her stars and blew a great wind. An apple fell from the sweet little apple tree and split in half. The apple tree noticed that there was a star inside. It was then that the apple tree realized, she had stars hanging from her branches all along. She just needed to wait patiently while they grew.

The thing about (personal or communal) growth is that we may not always recognize it. With each new beginning, like the beginning of the church year, we come face-to-face with our growing edges or compare our progress to others. Every year at FUUSN, we have an opportunity to build community together. We can do this using all the gifts and skills our members and friends have to offer, and we could not do that if we were all the same. What gifts and skills do you bring to help our community learn and grow together?

Volunteer Opportunities for Lifespan Religious Exploration

(and not just on Sunday morning!)

You have an opportunity to share your time and talent with our religious exploration programs across the lifespan. If you are not already volunteering this year, please consider finding time to volunteer with our programs. We are expanding beyond Sunday morning so you won't even have to miss worship to volunteer for some of these opportunities. If volunteering seems interesting to you and you would like to find out more or you have any questions, please respond to Devin Shmueli.

Note: RE Volunteers must have attended FUUSN for at least a year and will be background-checked prior to working with children and youth.

September's Special Sunday Services

This year, we joyfully welcome our new co-ministers, Rev. Joel Miller and Rev. Dr. Debra Haffner, to our community.

September 8th: We'll be having our annual water ceremony and ingathering which is when we gather once again to greet each other, renew friendships and connections, and blend waters both physical and spiritual. Please join us and bring a small sample of water that holds meaning for you.

September 15th: We'll have a Blessing of the Backpacks during the service so if you or your loved ones are in school, bring your backpack for a very special blessing.

Nursery for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers will be available every Sunday there is a service except December 29th.

Community Breakfast is Sunday, September 15th

To welcome all of you back to FUUSN, on Sunday, September 15th from 9:00 AM until 10:00 AM, we will offer an all-you-can-eat breakfast of pancakes, eggs, biscuits, bacon, fruit, and other vegan offerings for $5 each and kids under 12 eat for free.

Important Note: Kids are invited to wear pajamas on this day. We will be tie-dyeing shirts in our Elementary Level Sunday AM RE Program.

K-5th Grade Sunday AM Programs

This year, there will be three formats on Sunday mornings for our elementary schoolers. They will get to choose the name of their program during their first session. This way the name of their group will reflect who they are instead of "Elementary-Level Sunday AM RE."

Club UU is a once-monthly fun and games program where we get to know one another and have fun. On September 15th, we will tie-dye Club UU at FUUSN shirts to kick off the year and decide what fun we want to have next month. This also helps children develop a sense of autonomy as they explore what it means to lead and belong to a faith community.

Once a month, we will explore our Soul Matters theme of the month. September's theme is invitation. Since our Soul Matters Small Group will be reflecting on the same theme each month, they have the opportunity to deepen their exploration of the themes by volunteering with our elementary schoolers. This is an opportunity to build bridges across generations.

Last year, we had a lot of success with Spirit Play so it will take place on the remaining Sundays. Spirit Play is based on story and ritual, play and creativity. This hands-on, interactive program gives children the tools to make meaning of their lives within the context of Unitarian Universalism.

Please register for the nursery and elementary-level programs.

Junior and Senior Youth Groups

This year, we will have opportunities for the Junior Youth Group (5th-7th Grades) and Senior Youth Group (8th-12th Grades) to get together for social and justice-oriented experiences and opportunities. Youth and the adults responsible for them should keep an eye out for more information and an invitation to vote on nights and times for these age groups to gather outside of Sunday Morning.

This year's offerings include Coming of Age (8th-9th Grades) which is already full and Our Whole Lives (7th-9th Grade) which you can register for here.

Soul Matters Small Groups for Adults

Last year, FUUSN had over 20 people in four Soul Matters Groups meeting monthly to explore monthly themes and practice deep listening together. The groups are provided with a packet that enables members of the small group to explore the monthly theme in the way and to the depth that suits them personally. These groups enable participants to share with and listen deeply to one another - Soul Matters is built around deep listening. To learn more about our approach, click here.

Groups reform each church year in September/October which enables members to get to know a different group of people each year. Newcomers are more than welcome! If you would like to learn more about joining a group this fall or have an interest in taking a 2-hour training course* to become a facilitator for a group, please click here. If you have difficulty with Google, please email us at contact-member-services@fusn.org

*New Facilitator Training offered 2 times: Sep 17, and Sep 28

First Unitarian Universalist Society in Newton | www.fuusn.org