Sunday, May 9
Wild Things and Sacred Texts – Rev. Barbara H. Gadon
What do you make of the recent controversy about Dr. Seuss and the removal of six of his books from publication? Children’s stories are a powerful cultural force and have great meaning for us. Rev. Barbara will share her passion for children’s stories and the way they become sacred texts for us.
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Our service video will be available at 10:00 am at eliotchapel.org and will remain there all week. You can also find it directly on Eliot Chapel's YouTube channel.
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Sharing the Offering
Every Sunday, Eliot Chapel shares half of the offertory with an organization in the community whose work reflects our shared values. This is one way that we care for our community and our neighbors. We are very pleased that May’s recipient is Metropolitan Congregations United.
The mission of MCU is to harness the moral authority of St. Louis congregations to work for justice. MCU puts faith into action by developing leaders who move their congregations, organizations, and communities to change public policy for the common good.
Eliot Chapel has been a member congregation for many years. Many of our leaders see their leaders as good friends and partners with whom to share the important work of social justice. MCU helps us to fulfill our commitment to justice, equity, and compassion for all. Key issues for MCU are breaking the school to prison pipeline, police reform, justice reform, prison reform, access to health care, and voting rights, among many others. These are also issues that we are passionate about.
Unitarian Universalists are deeply respected in MCU circles. David Gerth, their Executive Director, at one of the many marches we’ve attended together, said, “Ah, there’s the Unitarian Universalists, the people of the yellow shirts! You always show up!”
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Rev. Krista Taves introduces Metropolitan Congregations United. |
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Our goal for May is to raise a total of $1300, with half going to MCU and half to Eliot Chapel’s many life-sustaining ministries. Let us be good neighbors. Let us be a generous people.
Here’s how you can give:
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Online: Click here. Make sure “Shared Plate” is your chosen fund.
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By Mail: Please write “MCU” in the memo line of your check and mail it to Eliot Unitarian Chapel, 100 South Taylor Ave., Kirkwood, MO 63122.
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By Text: Text "Eliot SharedPlate $(enter the amount)" to 73256. A link in the reply text will take you to our secure database webpage where you can complete your transaction. Please note, "SharedPlate" must be entered as one word to reach that preferred option.
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Through the generosity of Eliot Chapel, we sent $800 to A Red Circle for the April Shared Plate collection.
Nominations for Shared Plate recipients for the coming church year are now being accepted. See full details in Church News below.
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Religious Education
Religious Education for Children (Kindergarten-6th Grade): Sunday, May 9
The online Children’s Religious Education Meetup is not in session today for Mother's Day. The next scheduled gathering is Sunday, May 16 at 9:15 am. Look for more details next week.
Junior High and Senior High Youth
Official youth activities have concluded for the 2020-21 program year. More details will be shared in upcoming months about future programming as they become available.
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Zoom Coffee Hour
At 11:30 am, 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.
Because of the annual congregational meeting, we will not hold a coffee hour next week on May 16.
Sunday at a Glance
Online Church Service – 10:00 am on Eliot Chapel website
Coffee Hour – 11:30 am via Zoom
Young Adult Group – 12:30 pm on Discord
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Monday, May 10
Environmental Justice Team – 7:00 pm via Zoom
Inquirers Series – 7:00 pm via Zoom
Tuesday, May 11
Vigil for Hope & Healing – 5:00 pm via Zoom & on Facebook
EUC Board of Trustees – 7:00 pm via Zoom
Wednesday, May 12
Congregational Budget Meeting – 7:00 pm via Zoom
Meneely Covenant Group – 7:00 pm via Zoom
Thursday, May 13
Lunch with the Minister – 12:30 pm via Zoom
Contact your group leader if you need login information for your meeting.
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Reminder: Getting Involved with Groups
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. |
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Please Remember
Please lift up your prayers for Christie Lee as she undergoes heart surgery on May 14.
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Annual Congregational Meeting Reminder
The 2021 Eliot Unitarian Chapel Annual Congregational Meeting will be held Sunday, May 16, 2021 at 12:30 pm.
A link to the meeting will be sent by email to Eliot members and friends on May 12, utilizing the “This Week at Eliot Chapel” mailing list. Please plan to join the meeting 15 minutes in advance so that we can admit everyone to the meeting, establish a quorum, and start the meeting in a timely fashion.
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Flower Communion 2021: Be Part of the Eliot Bouquet!
Come to the Memorial Garden at Eliot Chapel on Saturday, May 8, from 1-3 pm and be a part of our flower communion! Bring a flower or two to put into our community vases then take your picture in the garden. Send your photos to news@eliotchapel.org by Monday, May 10, to be added to the "bouquet" in our flower communion service on Sunday, May 16.
When we have collected all our flowers, some of our pastoral care associates will take them to different care centers and nursing homes to bring a little spring and Eliot community to residents.
Please come! We need your participation to make the biggest, grandest bouquet ever.
If it rains on Saturday, come anyway – we will set up under the Adams Hall awning. If you can't make the window on Saturday, feel free to come to the chapel when you like, flowers in hand and take a picture of yourself in the garden. Or take a picture at home. You can share the flowers with someone you love – including yourself!
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Financial Reports Available
The February Financial Reports and Dashboard presented at the April Board Meeting are now available on the Eliot Chapel website. You may access it on the Board of Trustees webpage or click here.
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Shared Plate Nominations Sought
The Eliot Social Justice in Action Steering Committee welcomes nominations before June 30 for Shared Plate for the 2021-2022 church year. Shared Plate is Eliot’s program to divide Sunday offering and designated online gifts with community organizations that align with our mission. Additional criteria for nominees and nomination form can be found here.
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Summer Media Recommendations from SJA
Eliot All Reads and video series are suspended for the summer after the last Community of Hope session on May 18. For covenant groups and other groups looking for summer discussion opportunities, the Eliot Social Justice Steering Committee recommends:
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Breathe: A Letter to My Sons by Imani Perry (this year’s UUA Common Read)
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Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson (an Oprah Book Club selection)
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The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather McGhee
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Reminder: Video During Meetings
Please check with the front office if your group wishes to use video media during a meeting. Whether you're showing clips or a whole piece, whether you're on campus or not, the video needs to be covered under Eliot Chapel's media license. A very wide range of content is available so it shouldn't be hard to stay in legal compliance. Thank you! |
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Registration Open for GA!
General Assembly (GA) is the annual meeting of our Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). Participants worship, witness, learn, connect, and make policy for the Association through democratic process. Anyone may attend. The UUA Board of Trustees has passed a resolution making the 2021 UUA General Assembly – held June 23-27– a 100% virtual event. And this year, the Ware Lecture will feature Stacey Abrams & Desmond Meade! Find details here.
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COVID Support Team
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.
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Reminder: Staying Up to Date
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. Changes to RE information were made this week.
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.
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Protecting Our Democracy
Our Fifth Principle
Adult Version – We covenant to affirm and promote the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
Children’s Version – We believe that all persons should have a vote about the things that concern them.
The practice of democracy is a sacred one for Unitarian Universalists. All our congregations are democracies and have been since their founding. In Unitarian Universalism, congregational members form the bedrock authority in all matters concerning congregational life. At the national level, delegates elected by their congregations gather once a year to address the matters of the Unitarian Universalist Association. In our congregations Settled Ministers are elected by the members. The Board of Trustees is elected by the members. This is how we try to ensure that every single person counts, no one more than the other.
This commitment to a democratic congregational life also carries over into our civic life. Unitarian and Universalist women were at the forefront of securing the right of women to vote. Unitarian Universalists stood strongly behind Black leaders to support the Voting Rights Act. More recently, Unitarian Universalists helped with the effort to secure the right of ex-felons to vote in Florida. Free and fair elections are of paramount importance to us. This is why the Unitarian Universalist Association, with the full support of our congregations, established UU the Vote, a national initiative aimed at protecting the right to vote and encouraging all eligible voters to register and to vote.
Unfortunately, we’ve seen the right to vote eroded by voter suppression legislation in almost every state. Over 360 voter suppression bills in 47 states, including Missouri, are on the legislative docket this session. These bills will make it more difficult for everyone to vote, but especially Black, Brown and Indigenous people.
The Democracy Action Team with UUs for Social Justice has asked for our help to create a groundswell of support to pass the For the People Act of 2021. This bill would:
- expand and protect voting rights for all,
- end partisan and racial gerrymandering,
- get dark money out of politics, and
- restore transparency and accountability in our government.
It would also largely counteract those 360 voter suppression bills. National polling shows that 67 percent of Americans, from both parties, support this bill. My hope is that you, our beloved friends and members, will be part of a groundswell of support that will pass this bill into law.
UUSJ is asking us to call or email our Senators and urge them to pass this bill. Please contact your Senators BEFORE MAY 11 as this is when the bill goes into markup, the process by which congressional committees and subcommittees debate, amend, and rewrite proposed legislation.
Use this link provided by UUSJ to email your Senators:
Let us anchor in our Fifth principle and protect our cherished democracy.
Rev. Krista Taves (she/her)
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Inquirers Series
Join Rev. Krista Taves for the next in the series of this three-part introduction to Unitarian Universalism on Mondays in May. If you are new to Unitarian Universalism, new to Eliot Chapel, or want to refresh your connection to the Chapel and your faith, this is the class for you.
Session 2 - May 10 - Unitarian Universalist Theology
Session 3 - May 24 - Everything Eliot! - Religious Education, Social Justice, Small Groups, Social Groups, Membership and more!
Each session runs from 7:00 to 8:30 pm and will stand alone. Join at any time – you may attend one or both of the remaining classes. A link to the class will be included in the Eliot on Zoom email or you may register now on Realm.
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Environmental Justice Meeting
The Environmental Justice Team will meet on Monday, May 10 at 7:00 pm via Zoom. If you would like to join us, please contact us at environmentjustice@eliotchapel.org. We will be following up on questions raised by the documentary, Kiss the Ground, such as “What could Eliot Chapel do to encourage food practices that support healthy soil and food justice? Could Eliot Chapel encourage Kirkwood to start a compost program, and offer curbside compost pick-up? What could Eliot Chapel do to address the food deserts in north St. Louis County and city?"
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Vigil for Hope & Healing
Tuesday, May 11
5:00 pm via Zoom
The Black Lives Matter vigil has gone digital! Our Black Lives Matter in-person vigil has been suspended for the duration of the stay-at-home order in St. Louis County. This doesn’t mean that we are going to stop witnessing for Black lives!
Join us for our weekly online vigil Tuesdays at 5:00 pm. We will meet on Zoom and livestream our vigil onto Facebook.
How to prepare for our online vigil:
- Write “Black Lives Matter” in dark lettering on a small piece of paper, no bigger than a standard letter envelope.
- Check your background to be sure nothing is visible that you don’t want broadcast in public!
- Connect to the vigil using the Zoom link provided in the weekly Eliot On Zoom email that comes Sunday morning. Make sure you are muted.
- Sit silently with your BLM sign for the duration of the vigil.
- Help expand our witness! During the vigil, go to the Eliot Unitarian Chapel Facebook page and share the vigil to your Facebook page, twitter feed, or any social media platform you use so that it can be shared further!
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Lunch with the Minister
Revs. Barbara and Krista invite you to a weekly Lunch with the Minister every Thursday at 12:30 pm. Bring your lunch or just bring yourself! Depending on the size of the group, we will hang out together in the main room or go into breakout groups. The link to join this Zoom meeting will be in the weekly Eliot on Zoom email. Check it out and get together!
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Sunday, May 16
Of Ritual and Story: Flower Communion – Rev. Barbara H. Gadon
Every year, we retell the story of the flower communion, a treasure of our Unitarian heritage. Each time we revisit a story, it has a different meaning. What does the story of flower communion, with its innovation and heroism, mean to us today?
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ourEliot promotes and enables healthy communications as promised to one another through the Congregational Covenant. If you have a compliment, suggestion, or concern that is important to communicate to a responsible party, please email ourEliot@eliotchapel.org. |
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