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Dear First U Friends,

This week my email got hacked and a whole bunch of messages were sent out to members of our congregation that appeared to be from me, but were not. The subject line was “Blessings __name__” and the email said something along the lines of:

“Good Morning,

I need your help. Please get back to me as soon as you can.

Peace, Rev. Hillary”

Of course, day of all days, this message was sent on Election Day morning when tensions were already running high. The last thing anyone needed was a fake message from their minister feigning alarm! I was, in a word, dismayed about the whole thing.

Thanks to a number of you who brought the email to my attention early, I was able to send a real message out as fast as I could to many of you letting you know the situation.

As I was adding your email addresses to the message, I had the sudden realization that this frustrating fake “Blessings” spam had ironically “blessed” me with the opportunity to make contact with many of you. I couldn’t help but offer you all a real blessing in my message and take a quiet moment to hold you all - and our nation - in my heart and mind.

Many of you responded to my real message, expressing that you needed that blessing, that it steadied and fortified you for the anxious day ahead. I was so glad. Throughout the rest of the day, I corresponded with you through replies to that early morning email - and that steadied and fortified me (‘cause ministers get anxious too, you know). What a circle of curiosity, compassion, courage we create naturally together.

I offer this vignette as a tale of a situation where something seemed broken, frustrating, and potentially harmful. When handled with care, though, it became an opportunity to create goodness, offer help, and deepen connections. I’ll leave it to you to decide if that feels like a fitting metaphor for the stark moment at hand.

What nourishment we have to give to one another and receive from one another at any given moment - at this very moment. Thank you for offering this circle to one another and to me this week. What a blessing!

(Quick note: it’s not unlikely that you will get spam messages pretending to be me again. Please check the email address of messages you receive from me and make sure they are from “FirstUMinister@gmail.com” before replying. Please also know that I will never send you a cryptic “call me right now” email without any additional details!)

Yours in looking for the opportunities and believing in the possibilities,

Rev. Hillary

Unfortunately, phishing (scammers using email or text messages to trick you into giving them personal information or sending them money) is common in our virtual world, and recently, an email has gone out claiming to be from Rev. Hillary that was NOT from her (you will notice that the email address is incorrect - see Rev. Hillary's message above). Learn more about how to recognize and avoid phishing scams from the FTC. If you accidentally give away any information, visit IdentityTheft.gov to receive specific steps to take to help protect yourself.

The Worship Council and the congregation enjoyed seeing lots of our faces as we worshipped together last Sunday in our first Gathering Sunday. Things to know about this new monthly experiment:

1. Wear a face covering when in the church building

2. Sanitize your hands upon entry

3. Securely LOCK and CLOSE door when you depart

This week there is an opportunity for fellowship, an anti-racism

discussion, and sermon discussion following the service.

Read the quote for the anti-racism discussion.

Learning & Social Hour Zoom Link & password: COMMUNITY

Children, youth, and adults are all invited to tidy up First U's

grounds for winter and to plant bulbs for the spring.

Fire Night takes place this Sunday! Participants should check their email for details. Join Rev. Hillary, Alexis, Joanna, Gwen, and Ben.

This Sunday we'll be getting the gardens ready to sleep for the winter, and planting bulbs for the spring. Thank you for joining this community service event. The weather looks perfect, so we hope to see you there! Please note:

Read the letter from the anti-racism working group and find out answers to these questions and more on our website and at 8thprincipleuu.org.

In honor of our 2nd principle, justice, equity and compassion in human relations, our half plate this week supports Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust (NEFOC LT). Access to land is the number one barrier for people of color to feed our communities healthy, fresh food. NEFOC is advancing land sovereignty in the northeast region through permanent and secure land tenure for Indigenous, Black, Latinx, and Asian farmers and land stewards who will use the land in a sacred manner that honors their ancestors’ dreams – for sustainable farming, human habitat, ceremony, native ecosystem restoration, and cultural preservation. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.