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This Sunday
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June 28 @ Peace
"With joy draw water from the spring,
salvation's living well..."
 This Sunday, Jesus walks through the hot, dusty land of Samaria, where he meets a woman beside a well. Join us as we listen in on their surprising conversation and wonder together about the all the waters of earth that sustain us, body and soul.
Do you have a body of water that restores you? What rivers, lakes, and oceans are you planning to visit in the weeks ahead? This Sunday, you're invited to pick up a tiny water bottle and take it with you on your travels this summer. Fill the bottle with the waters you visit, and plan to bring it back at the end of September: we'll gather up all the waters that have blessed us this season and bless them in return--along with all the waters of earth!
I hope you'll be with us this Sunday morning at 10:30. We'll have our summer choir, our last day of Sunday school, and a big picnic to finish out the day! As always, your spirit, and your heart, make us whole...
All-Church Picnic!
Come celebrate the start of summer
with a Peace United Picnic!
Sunday, June 28th
12:30 - 4:00 p.m.
Harvey West Park
Millennium Circle Picnic Area
Bring a pot-luck dish to share and anything you'd like to put on the grill. We'll have games, friends and fun for all!
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Family Ministries @ Peace United
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Registration is Open for 2015 Peacemakers' Camp!
Children ages 6-13 are invited to join us right here at Peace United Church for our 2015 Peacemakers' Day Camp, July 13-17. Camp runs daily from 9 am to 1 pm: a half-day of stories, songs, crafts, games, and new friends, all in the name of...Peace! Join us as we dive into the peace teaching from around the globe, explore spiritual practices that help our hearts and minds grow more peaceful, and imagine new ways to create peace in our world. Each day, guest musicians, artists, and peacemakers will be visiting camp, helping us enjoy all the many different shapes, sounds, and colors of peace!
Please note that this year, children ages 10-13 are invited to join us as Counselors In Training (CIT's). CIT's will work with camp staff to develop and lead camp activities each day, and are most encouraged to share their own special gifts and passions with our camp community!
Cost for camp registration is $50 per child ($40 per child if more than one child per family). Scholarships are available, and no one will be turned away due to lack of funds. To register, please complete a
Camp Registration Form
by June 30th and return it to: 900 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060.
For more information, contact
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This Month @ Peace
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EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
 Fri, June 26 (4:00 - 9:00 pm) - Robert Valiente-Neighbours has, for three years in a row, shared his passion for art with the Peace United Church community through his Stations at the Cross paintings. As Robert and Jimi prepare for their move to San Diego this August, they would like to open their home to show the paintings Robert has created during his time in Santa Cruz. On June 26th, Friday, from 4pm to 9pm, Robert and Jimi will host an "open house" to display Robert's art over wine,
hors d'oeuvres, and desserts! To help fund his graduate school studies at the University of San Diego in the Master's in Peace and Justice Studies starting this fall, they will also be selling some of his art and other things such as textiles, pottery, jewelry, etc. This "open house" will also be a time to celebrate Robert's birthday! Please send your RSVP by viewing this link:
Robert's Art Show/Sale and Birthday Party Invitation
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Sundays in July (Zentangle Meditative Drawing) -
7/5 and 7/12 After Worship
7/19 and 7/26 Before Worship (9 am)
Meet with Lisa Hoesing for an hour in the Fellowship Hall to learn and/or practice Zentangle Meditative Drawing.
The Zentangle Method is an easy-to-learn, relaxing, and fun way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns.
Almost anyone can use it to create beautiful images. It increases focus and creativity, provides artistic satisfaction along with an increased sense of personal wellbeing. The Zentangle Method is enjoyed all over the world across a wide range of skills, interests and ages.
Sarah's Circle - will now meet twice each month. They will continue to meet on the 2nd Wednesday and add the 4th Tuesday. They will meet in July on this new schedule, take a break in August and resume on September 9th. Still in the Jr High Room at 7pm.
Saturday, July 25 (9am - 9pm)
- LIFE BEYOND LIFE. New views of the near death experience featuring Dr. Raymond Moody & Dr Nikola Ristic. This one day seminar is happening here at Peace. Visit WWW.LIFEBEYONDLIFE.ORG for more information and to register.
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Peace Makes a Difference!
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UCC SUES THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
Protecting Freedom, Supporting Marriage Equality
The United Church of Christ (UCC), joined by a group of LGBT-friendly clergy and same-sex couples, has
filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of North Carolina's laws and constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. Not only does the ban inhibit same-sex couples' equal protection under the law, the complaint argues, but it also violates the religious liberty of these religious leaders.
HEALTH CARE PROGRAM WINS SUPPORT
Peace United in Collaboration with COPA!
After an impassioned plea for funding from
COPA (the Communities Organized for Relational Power in Action) Monterey County Health Department director Ray Bullick asked the Board of Supervisors for $500,000 for the pilot program, which would provide those who don't qualify for expanded Medi-Cal or private health insurance subsidies under Covered California due to their immigration status with lower-cost prescription drugs and other specialty health services. An estimated 13.5 percent of the county's population doesn't qualify for health reform's entitlements. While the supervisors asked Bullick to return later with more details about the developing program, including potential funding sources, before promising any county money, the board made its support for the concept clear.
UCC GENERAL SYNOD 30
Action on a Just Peace
Forty-six members of Peace have signed a letter urging delegates at General Synod 30 to pass a resolution calling on church bodies to participate in limited divestment from five companies profiting from war and violence in the occupied territories of Palestine. As of today, seven UCC conferences have similarly voted in support of the resolution
(found here). See information at the
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This Month in the Wider Community
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EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
 Day of Decision: Supreme Court Rules on Marriage Equality.
A potential historic moment is on the horizon for the LGBTQ community as the Supreme Court prepares to release its decision on Obergefell v. Hodges. If the case passes, the federal government would establish a constitutional right to same-sex marriage in all fifty states, eliminating an individual state's jurisdiction in refusing to recognize same-sex marriages or issue nuptial licenses.
Whether the decision is good or bad, The Diversity Center will host a Decision Day event in mid-county (Temple Beth El in Aptos) as soon as we know the court's announcement date. The event will begin at 6 pm on the day the decision is announced.
The ruling is expected before the end of June and while the Supreme Court releases opinions every Monday and Thursday, they sometimes add additional days toward the end of the month. We will not know in advance whether the marriage case will be announced on any given day. Check this page for more information!
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Have You Visited Us?
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If you have, your visit matters to us. It's often strange to visit a church for the first time: to see new faces, hear old words spoken in new ways. We appreciate your trust, and we eagerly await the chance to see you again.
When you return, there will likely be a name-tag with your name on it, a chance for us to greet you more personally. Always, your questions and your curiosity thrill us. Return with these, return with your whole selves...
And know that you are God's blessing.
Every day.
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Who We Are...
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We're an
congregation of the United Church of Christ--which means we take diversity seriously and we welcome all God's children as full and beloved members of our community.
We're part of
COPA (which stands for Communities Organized for Relational Power in Action)--and in that way we work in solidarity with peoples of many traditions, bringing justice and decency to public life on the Central Coast.
We're decidedly
CHRISTIAN, and in the most inclusive, generous way possible. We believe that--at its core--the gospel is a call to compassion. And that's what we try to be about every day, every week.
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Contact Us
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Peace United Church of Christ
900 High Street
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
831 426-2010
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This Month's
Still Speaking
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Click here to see our monthly newsletter, "The Still Speaking Journal" of events and ideas!
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Pray for One Another
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We invite one another to hold our friends and many others in prayer, inviting God's light to shine upon those in need...
Sondra Ziegler
Joanna and Lou Hildebrandt
Mia Furnish and Her Family
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This Week's Reading
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Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.
John Lubbock
The Use of Life
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