ISSUE 92

FEBRUARY 2024

At a recent retreat for a new Board on which I’m serving, we were reviewing a product that will be launching in the late summer. We were invited to share our questions, suggestions, and observations. Since I was new, I mostly listened. When no one spoke to the thing that was troubling me, I spoke up. My observation was well received and I was then asked how I would improve it. “Oh,” I said. “Of course, it is easy for me to come in and critique. The expectation to create is something different.”

That uncomfortable story reminds me of justice and equity, which is February’s worship theme.

It is easy for most of us, I suspect, to notice that something doesn’t seem right. Sometimes we are so consumed by the effort it takes to make it through our days, we need to be invited to pay attention. Sometimes we notice it immediately. Sometimes we hear others calling out “this isn’t right” and we are awakened to some truth which had previously escaped us.

However it happens, injustice, once seen is easy to name. And yet, the hope of our religion and our moral imagination might impel us to work toward something more just. It cannot be otherwise. Unitarian Universalism demands our commitment to the worth of each and the interdependence of all. Thus, any injustice affects us all and requires our witness and action.

This will be our challenge this month: to notice, name, imagine, and participate. This is not only attending to the outer things so readily highlighted in any of our newsfeeds. It requires an inward attention also. As author Ijeoma Oluo wrote, "When we identify where our privilege intersects with somebody else's oppression, we'll find our opportunities to make real change."

So, come to our Sunday morning worship, wrestle with noticing in your Circles of Connection, show up to the Theme Thing, participate in our Social Justice Challenge, chat with one another, and find times to rest and care for yourselves and each other. The road toward justice is long and we need one another.

February Theme: The Gift of Justice and Equity

It’s a question we all wrestle with: How do you hold on to hope in a world so overrun with injustice and inequity? Paul Goodman, a writer and leftist activist in the 1960’s, had a recipe for holding onto hope that others continue to quote even today. This is Goodman’s three step suggestion:

“Suppose you had the revolution you are talking and dreaming about. Suppose your side had won, and you had the kind of society that you wanted. How would you live, you personally, in that society? Start living that way now!”

With this recipe for hope in mind, take some time this month to do the following three things:

Write down 8 things that would characterize the revolution and kind of society you dream about.
Write down 8 ways you would live differently than you do today in that dreamed of society.
Of those 8 ways you’d live differently, pick one and figure out a way to “start living that way now!”

Beware. Step 3 will likely turn out to be more complicated than you think, or hope. And that’s ok. Wrestling with that complication is a big part of what this exercise is all about. Don’t give up if you can’t live it out perfectly. An approximation is likely the most any of us can do given the society we live in today.

Find someone to share not only what you gained from the exercise but also how it impacted your level of hope.

Board of Trustees January

Meeting Summary

The Board reviewed 2023 church activities as they relate to the Ends developed from the JUC Mission and Values.

We also continued our work on with the Knotty Conversations Curriculum. The JUC BOT is a beta tester for this course designed to help UU churches address the white supremacism in our history and to learn ways to move forward in developing beloved community.

The Gift of Liberating Love and Planned Giving

Liberating Love and planned giving are both acts of generosity that can make a positive impact on the world for ourselves and others. Liberating Love can help us overcome our fears and doubts and create genuine compassion for the oppressed. It can also be the love that enables us to express our true full selves. Planned giving can help us support our beloved institutions such as JUC and Unitarian Universalism to foster this work now and in the future. You may also receive tax benefits.

Please include a legacy gift to JUC in your estate plan and let us know that you have done so. Contact our Planned Giving team: Bud & B.J. Meadows or Carol Wilsey

It’s no coincidence that this month’s gift of justice and equity follows last month’s gift of liberating love. At the beginning of last month, Rev. Wendy quoted Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., on the relationship between love and justice. I requoted it later in the month because I think it bears repeating:

“Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice, and justice at its best is power correcting everything that stands against love.”

Last month’s liberating love was about how we free ourselves, collectively, from the oppressions of racism, patriarchy, capitalism, ablism - all those ‘isms’ that divide us and try to put so many of us outside the definition of “acceptable” - through the power of real, fierce, connecting love. It was about how these systems attack the humanity of all of us, and so we all need to work toward liberation. It was about how Dr. King’s dream of Beloved Community can’t come about until we see ourselves as part of an unbroken whole of humanity that excludes no one, and how that vision means freeing ourselves from oppressions many of us are only beginning to recognize..

Adrienne Marie Brown says, “I believe that all organizing is science fiction - that we are shaping the future we long for and have not yet experienced.”

This month of equity and justice is about how, as we’re liberating ourselves from that oppression, we’re also building the new world we’ve dreamt of: a world where everyone has a place, and where our social and political systems are geared toward making sure everyone’s needs are met, no matter what - a world we have never seen and have yet to create for ourselves.

So this month, your Justice Council will be inviting us - challenging us - to maybe step outside our comfort zones a little bit. The Social Justice Challenge will present our JUC community as a whole with a collective goal for justice work over 6 weeks.

The challenge will launch on the evening of Saturday, February 17 (corrected from the February 24 date you may have seen earlier) with the Social Justice Challenge Extravaganza - a celebratory pasta dinner and trivia for all ages with your JUC friends - with prizes! So please join us for a great evening of community, connection, and fun as we celebrate what our justice teams have accomplished so far this year with food and games and give you a preview of the ways you can join them in their work over the next six weeks!

Over the six weeks from February 17 through March 31, the Challenge will present opportunities to participate in educational, direct service, and systemic change projects. There will be opportunities for participation for children and families. There will be opportunities to participate in whole-day projects, or just for a hour or two. There will be opportunities to participate in person and via zoom. No matter what your situation, I invite you to explore which opportunities might work best for you.

More importantly, I urge you to listen to your own heart to discern what speaks most urgently to you. Where in our society do you most long to see change? Which activities speak to your longing for connection? What have you been thinking of trying, but not quite dipped your toe into yet? Which parts of our wider community have you wished you were closer to? I invite you into this experience as an expression of your faith - not just to do good in the world (though that’s important!) but also to form relationships in our community that will minister to you and tend to your own spiritual wholeness.

My son Luke has been my biggest teacher when it comes to thinking about this month’s theme - The Gift of Equity and Justice. Among the many lessons I have learned from him is that as a white, able bodied, middle class woman it can be easy for me to believe that many of the -isms (racism, ableism, sexism), no longer exist. However, having medical personnel say “I’m sorry” instead of “Congratulations” when they learn your new baby has Down syndrome illustrated very early on that there is much work to be done when it comes to achieving equity and justice for people with significant disabilities, and, of course, for many others.

The first step I had to take In order to be able to advocate for Luke, was to take a hard look at some of my prejudices I held about people with disabilities. Before Luke came into my life, my sister worked as a community support person for people with disabilities. One day she brought one of her clients to a family party because she was providing respite for this young adult’s parents. I remember feeling very judgmental toward this young woman’s parents - wondering what kind of people would have a child with a disability and who then would need to hire someone to care for their adult child so they could get away. I remember being shocked when my sister told me that the woman’s mother was a lawyer - surely, I imagined, this person’s parents must have something wrong with them as well. It is hard, now, for me to admit that I had those thoughts. I feel a sense of shame that I was so biased against people with disabilities and their families.

That experience, and many others that I have had over the years, have shown so clearly that it is easy to think of myself as a “good person” who would never think anything ableist, racist, sexist, but that in truth I am a product of my culture and upbringing with biases that I have inadvertently learned. If we are going to be able to work toward Equity and Justice for all, we first have to be honest about uncovering and then challenging ingrained beliefs that are preventing us from working toward our own liberation. This is humbling work. Confronting uncomfortable truths about ourselves takes commitment and a willingness to admit that we are wrong and to try to learn to do better. Without doing that work we cannot even imagine what equity and justice for people who are different from us means, much less help to do the work that will bring about the change we need so that all (ALL) people are treated equally in our society.

I am grateful to be Luke’s mom for so many reasons - he is a fun, funny and talented person who I enjoy being around. I am also grateful that he has taught me lessons that allow me to understand that as hard as I try, I cannot truly know the experience of another person and that it is my job to listen carefully to someone when they are sharing their experience of lack of equity or of injustice. Luke has given me the gift of belief - he has taught me to listen to the stories of others, to believe them, and then get to work to help change the systemic harms that continue to maintain the systems of oppression that keep all of us down.

January for many people, including myself, is a time to set goals for the year ahead. I am a big fan of the beginning of the year check-in, both in my personal life and in my work life, and this past month has included a lot of asking myself “What do I want JUC Music Ministry to accomplish this year?” Earlier in the month, my goal-setting was very practical: the choir needs “X” amount of pieces, and in order to do these well, we should have “Y” number of rehearsals on each piece. However, now that most of the planning stuff is out of the way, I really get to take a step back and view this through the lens of the JUC Mission and Values. Our website states “In our church, we seek to add to the sum of love and justice in the world by rooting our lives in our shared values and living into our mission.”

As we move into the month of February and begin exploring the theme of The Gift of Justice & Equity, the part of our mission that I’ve been really focusing on is Love Radically. In working with the music area, I’ve been asking myself questions like “How can we demonstrate radical love through our music ministry?” I haven’t found a concrete answer to that question, but I continue to explore it, and I’m looking forward to what February’s theme might teach me. A core value I am trying to recenter in my work at JUC, inspired by February’s theme as well, is Equity and Inclusion. This value has always been important to me, and a part of my own mission as a musician. However, I know I can always learn more about how to further widen the circle. To me, it means doing my best to program a vast variety of music so a wide range of congregants might feel connected to the music each week. It means learning about misappropriation so I can respectfully choose music for Sunday services. It also means attempting to structure choir rehearsals so that they make folks that do not read music feel included and those that are experienced musicians feel challenged. Most importantly, it means contributing to a culture where everyone is welcome to make a joyful noise, regardless of what that noise sounds like.

The staff shouldn’t be the only ones using our Mission & Values to inform our work, and I know that many groups in our church frequently set goals that align with these. I want to remind us that this type of goal-setting can be done at an individual level as well. I invite each of us to review the JUC Mission & Value s and think about how each of these may show up in your everyday life, or in your participation in affinity groups or spiritual practice. Think about how they might encourage you to interact with visitors at the church, or how they might change how you approach Sunday service. Think about the ways that you are already living into the church’s mission and values, and whether there are areas you want to improve, and if you might want to recenter a specific value in your life. As you think about these things, write them down! Life gets busy, and by writing them down, you will be reminded of them every so often, and maybe you will choose to build off of these thoughts and goals over time, so that we may truly root our lives in our shared values and live into our mission.

Use Your Voice

Brooke Maddaford, Trustee

At a concert recently—to see the all-female, neo-acoustic, powerhouse bluegrass band with a “healthy side of lady rage” known as Big Richard—cellist Dr. Joy Adams took the mic between songs.

“As a gun owner, and I’m sure I’m not the only one, this is Colorado after all,” she said, “I want to take a minute to talk to you about something.”

The accomplished cellist went on to plead with gun owners in the audience to store guns separately from ammunition, especially if there were children or anyone who struggles with mental health in the home. Then, she spoke about the importance of having a plan in place, in advance of having “a tough few days or weeks, we’ve all been there” for someone to keep your guns for you until you feel better. “I know I’m not the only one who’s lost someone to gun suicide,” she finished before they covered the Leftover Salmon song Red Fox Run , about mass shootings.

As I looked at my dear friend and fellow JUC mom who had joined me for the show, we both raised our eyebrows and nodded in approval at the message. “They’re becoming political,” I said. “I love it.”

Upon reflection, I don’t actually think Dr. Adams was being “political.” Instead, I realize now that she was using her platform and her privilege to wield her power. She had the mic and our attention, and she used her voice to speak about something she was passionate about, something that affects all of us—whether we’re gun owners or not.

It was brilliant to open her possibly controversial statement by essentially saying, I am just like you. Although it can be problematic, we more easily trust those we perceive to be similar to us.

This experience made me think about how I could use my own privilege, position, and power to speak up and inspire change to address injustices and inequities in our world.

It can be scary to have the mic, but when we find ourselves in positions where people are willing to listen, we must use our voices.

2023 Donations/Statements

Statements for Donations made during calendar year 2023 were emailed on Friday, January 19. Please double-check that you received your statement (look for the subject line Jefferson Unitarian Church 2023 Donation Statement). If you have any questions please call me at 303-279-5282 x 11 or email me.

Church Safety

Staff members have been doing some online training called Fostering Safer Congregations. It reminded us to remind you of our protocols and what you can do to help the church be a safer place. Please read the important information below and watch for future articles on safety. We want you to know what to do in an emergency...or even better...to prevent one.

In 2018, the JUC Safety Team implemented the JUC version of the emergency "standard response protocol" used in schools. This has simple instructions for three types of emergency actions: FIRE, EVACUATE to Maple Grove Park, SHELTER. Signs are posted throughout the campus. Please familiarize yourself with the instructions and feel free to ask questions if you have any.

These three actions are meant to cover large-scale emergencies that require everyone on campus to react -- whether on a Sunday or any other time. If there is a fire, the alarm will be sounding. The procedures need to be followed even if it is a false alarm. A situation where we want an evacuation to Maple Grove Park is if there is a hazard such as a gas leak or other danger such as violence that necessitates moving off of the property. Shelter would be for a severe weather event such as a tornado.

Staff and key volunteers are trained to lead should one of these emergencies arise. We will be scheduling a drill of the FIRE protocol, so watch for information about a date for that important preparation.

Thank you for doing your part to prepare for a possible emergency!

On January 21, we held a New Here class after the Sunday service. I’m not going to lie; I was a little frazzled. It was my first ever class and I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I have stood in front of many people and delivered presentations before. However, this was different. I was asked to give my own personal testimony as to why I was in church. Eww… personal. Being vulnerable in front of many people I barely know yet.

*gulp*

In the end it all worked out and everyone yelled, “HURRAH!” after I finished. I believe the parade will be next week to honor the greatest speech of all speeches. Oh wait. Yeah, no parades will be had in my honor. I’m also very ok with that fact. I did get through it and from the response, I did ok. In the end of the day though, I did it. I learned so much from just stepping out and doing it. What’s the phrase? You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. Super true.

Fireballs don’t just happen. They are the effects of something happening to something. Something must start that space stone turning and once it does, it lights up a galaxy! Sometimes it takes guts just to get up in the morning. Your goal is to get out there and make a difference. Start with your church, your congregation, your community. Find something to do and get that ball rolling. Come chat with me on Sundays or just email me and let me know how you want to get started. How can I get you connected with something you might be truly passionate about? Be a fireball, start today!

Metro Denver Habitat for Humanity (MDH4H) Update

Bruce and Cathy Martin

Thank you JUC community for your support of our fundraiser to provide welcome baskets to the new residents of the Miller St. duplexes in Wheat Ridge. Our goal was $400, and you raised $537 at the last tally. After the baskets and cleaning supplies are purchased, any excess funds remaining will be contributed to the general funds of MDH4H. We wish to especially thank Danielle Faris for her leadership in coordinating this collaboration and effort.

There is another JUC opportunity to support MDH4H coming up during our Social Justice Challenge planned for February 17 through March 30. We have scheduled a JUC workday at the MDH4H Production Shop (near 6th Ave. and I-25 on Raritan Way) doing painting or assembly. This will be on Saturday, March 23 from 9 am to 4 pm. We have room for eight JUC volunteers (ages 14 and up). If interested, register by March 8. Registration Link. Thanks again JUC, for your ongoing support of MDH4H projects.

The Power of Community

Jill Armstrong, JUC Community Action Network

During the January 21 Sunday worship service, Laura Lizut read the children’s book “Say Something.” In her sermon, Rev. Jen. talked about how people who are thought to hold no power can find their power. Rev. Jen reminded us how oppressive systems harm all of us, and challenged us to use the power we each have to resist and challenge the current structures and systems that do not align with our values. And I thought about how it is even more powerful when people can work together - the power of a community.

For the past seven years, our JUC CAN (Community Action Network) group has been advocating for affordable housing and other community efforts that assist those who are oppressed, marginalized, or disadvantaged. We’ve spoken up for affordable and supportive housing and for the rights of mobile home parks residents in Jeffco (the largest source of naturally occurring affordable housing). Through the Community Action Network, JUC members have supported multiple pieces of legislation that balance the the rights of renters and the rights of landlords much more than previously.

Recently, we have been advocating for shelter for the unhoused—a basic human need—during severe and extreme weather. Fortunately, the county and city governments responded and some positive things are happening. But homelessness continues to get worse, with increased evictions and more need. There is an annual Point in Time count of the number of unhoused on a single 24-hour period in January. Between January of 2022 and January of 2023, in Jefferson County there was a 73% increase in the unhoused, from 493 to 854. Half of the unhoused that were counted were homeless for the first time and one third of them were counted in places not fit for human habitation – in other words, without shelter. This problem is especially severe in Jefferson County due to our lack of shelter. The 2024 count took place and the numbers are expected to only increase.

So how do we change this? By Using our Power! By making our voices heard, by writing letters, attending city council meetings and county commissioner meetings. By speaking up when we hear misleading things about the unhoused. By speaking up in favor of new housing and shelter. By remembering our UU values of the inherent dignity and worth of every person – this is how we use the power of our beloved community.

Do you want more ideas or support? During the Social Justice Challenge in February and March, JUC CAN is offering a session on advocacy and letter writing. A written letter is now more powerful than an email since it is so rare. Look in the Weekly Connection for the specific time and join us to get ideas to help you speak up. As Laura said, “The World Needs Your Voice.”