UUCSC News and Updates
Weekly on Fridays
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Unitarian Universalist Congregation of South County, RI
All are welcome!
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Reverend Denis Letourneau Paul, Minister
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This Sunday, January 23, 2022 |
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Worship
Virtual in January
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“Into the Unknown”
Rev. Denis Letourneau Paul and Rev. Betty Kornitzer
January 16, 2022
Spirituality is all about connecting to something larger than yourself. But what exactly exists “out there,” beyond the boundaries of our own personhood? The physical world on this planet is easy enough to comprehend, but what about beyond it? Not so much the cosmos, but the forces that bind us together, the connections we can’t readily see? It’s unknown, a mystery worth exploring and moving toward.
Virtual Coffee hour to follow.
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Religious Exploration
In-person Outside
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We're bringing back the Stuffed Animal and Doll Sleepover and this year we're inviting adults to send in a stuffed friend to participate! The video above shows all the fun we had last year. I hope you'll join us this year! Here is a shorter video, if you just have 3 mins. The deadline to drop off an animal is Jan. 28th.
I will email on Friday to confirm whether we are meeting outside on Sunday. If the weather is below freezing, we will not meet. I want to share again this month's RE newsletter here. If we don't meet, I hope you will find a story, song or video from the newsletter to bring some RE love into your home.
Lee Cowan, Director of Religious Exploration
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On Saturday, a stranger knocked on the door of Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas. Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker, being the person of the Torah he is, figured the man needed shelter from the cold, and invited him in, then offered him a cup of tea.
You probably know from the news where this story is going. Moments later, the man produced a gun from his coat and took the good rabbi and three others hostage. Four hours
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later, at the right moment, Rabbi Cytron-Walker threw a chair at the man, momentarily disarming him, giving his congregants and himself a chance to escape. He is now being touted as a hero.
He is absolutely a hero. Thanks to his training, he acted in a situation when most of us, I think, would have frozen. He saved lives.
Rabbi Cytron-Walker has a long history of feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, and giving voice to the oppressed. Even while living in a community that is often itself under attack, he has always reached out to those in need. To me, that’s what makes him a hero.
I know what it’s like to do the work of hospitality in a community where violence is likely. When I worked in the street ministry in San Francisco, every time a person unknown to me came to the door, I never knew what I would be inviting in. During my time, there were two murders right outside our door. One left blood all over the sidewalks and building for me to clean. I witnessed the other, the gruesome stabbing of a blind man on the busy street. Once, a man I was acquainted with followed me up the long concrete staircase, then shoved me down from the top. I was deeply shaken, but unhurt.
More likely than violence was theft. Where there is great need, people do what they think they must — even turn on friends — and so, we spent a lot of time locking doors and guarding valuables. But still, we invited everyone in.
The man who knocked me down the stairs returned as a guest again and again. I’ll be honest. I didn’t relish his presence, but there were moments when the two of us connected on a meaningful level, however briefly. I heard his story and got a glimpse into the workings of his mind. I learned about myself and humanity. He taught me how to be a non-anxious presence: how to keep calm in dangerous situations, and to keep offering what I could, even in the face of uncertainty.
I don’t know if I could have responded as courageously and calmly as Rabbi Cytron-Walker, or if in the aftermath I could continue in this vocation. My experiences in the street ministry were nowhere near as harrowing as the event at Congregation Beth Israel, but they taught me one thing: to keep doing the work, even as I healed from trauma. I know the rabbi will do the same, and to me, that’s what makes him a hero.
In Peace,
Rev Denis
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Guest At Your Table Campaign |
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The video above introduces the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee’s special annual program called Guest at Your Table, a long-held tradition in which participants learn about UUSC partners and raise much-needed funds to support grassroots human rights initiatives.
Donate online or by sending a check with "GAYT" in the memo line to:
UUSC, PO 808, Newark, NJ 07101-0808
Thank you for joining us in upholding the inherent dignity and worth of all people. Your generosity is changing lives.
Submitted by Mary Fulton, Chairperson
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The Coordinating Council met on January 12th. Read the minutes here. Get up to date on the committee work that goes on behind the scenes and step up to the plate to give of your talents and interests to enrich UUCSC and your own life. Connections make all the difference! Join a Committee!
Submitted by Elizabeth Donovan and Etta Zasloff
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UUCSC Anti-racism Group
Monday, January 24, 2022 * 7:00 PM
The UUCSC Anti-Racism Group, facilitated by Penny Hall, meets via Zoom every 2nd and 4th Monday. We'll be reflecting on our antiracism work, planning our future direction, and hearing action updates. Please come with your ideas and questions. All are welcome and invited to attend as we work to undo racism in ourselves, our families, schools, communities, and government.
Zoom links are also available on the UUCSC Calendar, which is
Submitted by Penny Hall, Racial Justice Chair
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Starting January 25th, our UUCSC Congregational Administrator, Sara Kaplow, will be on site 8:30 AM to 2:30 PM Tuesday through Thursday, and 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM on Fridays. We hope this will allow her to better serve the congregation moving forward.
UUCSC Board of Directors
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Welcome Back to the East Coast! |
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Ann Seemann is settling into her new home in Connecticut. Her address is:
Apt. 315, 124 Cooper Ave., Simsbury, CT 06089
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Adult Education and Experience |
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Submissions for this column may be made directly to the newsletter editor or to me barbaralholtzman@gmail.com. Please include Newsletter Adult Ed in the subject line.
Barbara Holtzman, Chair
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Free Class -- Learn how to regulate your nervous system – keeping it calm, energized and engaged in the face of adversity, overwhelm, discouragement…
Submitted by Barbara Holtzman
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Submitted by Johnnie Rodriguez
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2022 Registration Information
Join us June 22 - 26, 2022 online or in-person in Portland, Oregon. General Assembly 2022 will be a multiplatform event, with registration options for in-person and/or virtual participation. In-person registration for GA 2022 in Portland, Oregon is open. Registration for Virtual participation will open March 1. Financial support for registration as well as a payment plan are available.
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The governor is in the process of finalizing the budget for 2023. We have a chance to make sure that it reflects our values by encouraging him to assure that everyone has access to the full-spectrum of health care they need, including abortion.
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Call Gov. McKee (401-222-2080) – Likely you will just be asked to leave a message, so it is really simple, but calls make a BIG impact!
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Email Governor McKee governor@governor.ri.gov
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Let RI Vote 2022 Launch
Tuesday, January 25 at 3:00 PM.
This will be a virtual event to ensure supporters can join us safely. Please join at https://bit.ly/LRIV22launch to the FB Live event page to kick off the push to codify the special voting practices that were used in 2020 during the pandemic.
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Saturday, January 22 - Sunday, 30: Funda Fest 24: A Virtual Celebration of Black Storytelling
Join Rhode Island Black Storytellers for Funda Fest, which will showcase over 25 performers from around the world, including Maria Broom, Derek Burrows, and others! Tickets available online starting at $80 for access to the full festival.
Submitted by Johnnie Rodriguez
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Tuesday, January 25, 2022
7:00 - 8:00 PM
Now in its 20th year, Reading Across Rhode Island has selected Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley for the state-wide read. Lorén Spears, Executive Director of the Tomaquag Museum and 2016 recipient of the Humanities Council’s Tom Roberts Prize for Creative Achievement in the Humanities, will be the Honorary Chair of this year’s program.
“Firekeeper’s Daughter is a page turner allowing the audience to learn about the complexities of Indigenous life in the 21st century. We look forward to engaging the community in enriching dialogue around this intriguing mystery novel.”
– Lorén Spears
Readers are invited to join moderator Jim Ludes, Executive Director, Pell Center for International Relations and Policy; Honorary Chair Lorén Spears; Silvermoon Mars LaRose, Assistant Director of the Tomaquag Museum; and Reading Across Rhode Island Education Chair Maureen Nagle for an engaging introduction to the book. Learn more about the book at ribook.org.
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Dorothy Devine adds to her personal narrative/memoir.
Your search for truth and meaning begins here.
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How to Submit Info to This Newsletter |
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Send announcements and news with Newsletter Item in the subject line to Etta Zasloff, Editor, at zasloff.etta@gmail.com and Sara Kaplow, Congregational Administrator, at uucscri@yahoo.com by Tuesday Noon
to assure publication by Friday of that week.
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