Upcoming Sunday Worship Services
SUMMER
2008
Summer Services begin at 9:00 a.m. and are held in the Parish Hall.
July 6: “What It Means To Be Pagan” Dean Blackburn
Being pagan, to me, is a personal journey. What it means to be pagan is more up to you. This talk will provoke your thoughts more than give you my answer to the question.
July 13: “China Through the Eyes of a Visitor” Helen Casoli & Nancy Backus
Touring China for a month this spring, Helen and Nancy found a sprawling, lively, modern country well on its way to world superiority. China’s people love their government and their lives. Come hear some thoughts from inside China.
July 20: “Learning
to Fly” Annie Giddings
Dealing with
chronic illness often requires a step back from the “real world” and the
creation of a new life largely in the “medical world.” But with some recovery,
reintegration into the “real world” may not be as easy as it might seem, and
maintaining a balance between the two worlds can be difficult. Today Annie will
speak about her own process of recovery after more than ten years of existing
largely in the “medical world” of chronic illness and the process of learning to
fly.
July 27: “UUs Coming Together: From Cacophony to Choir” Nancy Banks
How can we mobilize Unitarian Universalists individually and congregationally to take action in support of UU principles for a more just, equitable and compassionate Commonwealth? That is the mission of the UU Mass. Action Network, of which our church is a member. Nancy Banks is the executive director of this statewide network of ministers and lay members representing Massachusetts Unitarian Universalist churches and fellowships.
August 3: “Your True Religion” Chris Korben
The Encarta Dictionary defines religion: “a set of strongly held beliefs, values and attitudes somebody lives by.” What does that mean to UUs, and how do we apply it in our lives? Are we really living Unitarian Universalism as our religion? If we did, would our lives look different from how they do now?
August 10: “Faith in a Community” Thomas Putney
A young UU will explore how a community creates one’s faith and how this community has brought him to choose the path to ministry.
August 17: “Middle Class Blues” Elizabeth Gish
A recent student minister here and currently a Th.D. candidate, Elizabeth will reflect on how we balance our desire for material goods and the good life with our desire for a different world.
August 24: This morning FUUSM members have a choice:
9:00 a.m. “A Celebration of the Earth’s Bounty” Jeff Stevens & Friends
At the Soule Homestead Education Center, Soule Street, Middleborough
Our CUUPS group will help us connect with the forces of nature in the Homestead's beautiful natural setting. Please bring produce or flowers that are abundant in your garden to share and exchange as we celebrate our connections to Mother Earth and the coming harvest she provides.
and/or
11:00 a.m. Cranberry Cluster Worship Service Reverend Dan King
At the Cedar Hill Retreat Center, Duxbury (See the back of page 2)
August 31: “Saved By Zero: The 1980s—Alpha or Omega?” Michael F. Hall
The 1980s are an often parodied and misunderstood time. Please join our other seminarian, Michael F. Hall, as he explores this fascinating and forward-looking decade.
IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER
Tricia Returns & Church Office Reopens: Friday, August 15
September Newsletter Deadline: Sunday, August 17
Ingathering: Sunday, September 7
JOTTINGS FROM JANET
As I write this, we are facing a cool week of showers while last week was a week of record-breaking heat. This leads me to believe that this summer is as yet an unknown. Our formal church year is ending, and another season of summer sharing is beginning. This past year has seen Tricia complete her second sabbatical, our student intern complete his first year with us, our vision statement and architectural plans completed, a less than ideal budget and the loss of our music director. It also has been a difficult year in many members’ lives due to illness, death, and job loss.
Such is life, the good mixed in with the bad, the joy with the sorrow, the old with the new. I hope this summer season is a time of replenishing our vitamin D and energizing our bodies and souls. Next year we will face new challenges and new opportunities as the circle of life and living continues. Those of you with animals know that they are masters of living in the moment while looking forward to the next treat. Let’s try to do the same!
Janet Walkden
CUUPS
The CUUPs meeting in July will be a self-healing ritual. Please bring an empty jar
to the ritual. We will be meeting on Monday, July 21, at 7:00 p.m.
Laura Stevens
BUILD A FLEA MARKET DAY
Saturday, August 16
10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
The Planning Committee has set a date for an all church "Build A Flea Market Day." Pencil Saturday, August 16, on your calendars.
This year this event will be a bit different. We are asking everyone to collect all kinds of items - furniture, household, etc., that you no longer need and bring them in the morning of the flea market. Have them all priced, and stay to sell them. All proceeds get donated to the church. There will be tents and tables set up, so grab a space. Anything left at the end of the day will be set out as free (unless you decide to cart it home - we won't be advertising that!), and everything will be removed the next day to the 4H Fair. There will be a sign-up sheet to sign up for set up, having a table, having a truck, and clean up. There are rumors of the Yard Sale Cafe also. This year the theme is to simplify; and although we may make less money, we get to recycle and provide useful items to the community - and have fun!
So get cleaning and sorting now so you will be ready. If you cannot staff a table, look on the list and ask another to add your stuff to their table. Let's do it! Andrea Priest
CRANBERRY CLUSTER
Our next cluster gathering will be this summer at the Cedar Hill Retreat Center in Duxbury at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday, August 24. The Reverend Dan King, minister of The First Congregational Parish UU in Kingston, will be our outdoor service leader. People will come for the service and socialize over coffee and donuts. Some will stay for a picnic lunch and/or use the nearby beach and water.
The Cranberry Cluster has been actively meeting since 1992 and will continue its fall schedule at the First Congregational Parish UU (Beale House) in Kingston in October. (Date to be announced.) Bud Soule
FALL
FUNDRAISER
Saturday, October 4
Our church has been
invited by the Lakeville Fall Festival Committee to run one of the lunch
concessions for the annual October event, scheduled this year for Saturday,
October 4. We three have agreed to organize the lunch concession, which will be
a fundraiser for our church. Those of you who have attended in other years know
what a great local event it is. We’re excited to be a part of the festival.
Our committee is already meeting regularly to plan and organize so that things run smoothly. We’d love to have you join us in making this a success.
Cindy Benard, Cheryl MacQueen, Barbara Bancroft
NEWSLETTER
POLICY CHANGE
The Parish
Committee has had to make some difficult choices during the budget planning
process for 2008/2009 fiscal year. As a cost saving measure, the PC decided
that the monthly newsletter will transition from an optional electronic format
to the electronic format for everyone who has an email address published in the
Church Directory.
Over the summer, the Technology Committee will add these email addresses to the e-list for emailing the monthly church newsletter. In the fall, the hardcopy newsletters will be discontinued for these folks. The newsletter will also transition from the current legal size format to an 8.5 x 11 format for ease of home printing, as well as reduced paper and postage costs. This measure will also support the Green Sanctuary efforts through reduced paper use. Due to our desire to be increasingly “green,” other changes may be in the works. Stay tuned.
Thank you for your
cooperation,
Parish Committee
and Technology Committee
$ MONEY $ MONEY $ MONEY $
Just a reminder from the Stewardship Committee that you made your pledge based on weekly or monthly amounts. Please continue to bring your pledge with you to the 9:00 a.m. summer services, or you may send your pledge to the church in care of the Collector, Pam Davis. Thank you.
ADULT SQUARE DANCING
Twelve adults have completed three years of square dance lessons with our caller, Bob Butler of the Cupid Squares, Bridgewater. We have been introduced to some “Plus” level calls; and with the help of club members, we still have good fun and exercise.
On Sunday, June 8, we closed out the year with a Pizza Party and dancing. We will start up again in September but have the opportunity to dance in air-conditioned halls all summer if we wish. Bud Soule
THE GREEN SANCTUARY COMMITTEE
The Green Sanctuary Committee is closing out a successful year, having improved the church's systems for recycling, using more recyclable products, and consuming less energy.
In the fall, the Committee will continue these efforts and will work towards becoming certified. We expect to have a presentation for church people, and maybe the community at large, late in the fall on environmentally lawn care procedures and techniques.
Have a green summer! Jim Noyes
