Our Mission: "We are an inclusive Open and Affirming faith community reaching out with love, compassion, and justice."
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Thursday, December 23, 2021
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IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM OUR BOARD PRESIDENT MARY FUNG |
Dear Church Family,
I realize that this is short notice and that many of us have plans to attend the Christmas Eve service, but the Omicron variant of the COVID virus has rapidly become the dominant strain in the U.S. Because it is so transmissible and has shown significant ability to infect even people who are fully vaccinated and have gotten a booster shot, the Executive Board agreed on Tuesday night to implement the following tools that we know work to reduce transmission of the virus:
- Everyone, including the choir, will be wearing masks during the entire worship service. The exception is Jill, who will continue testing as usual. Also, the worship leaders from Mentone UCC, like Jill, will be testing and working unmasked on December 26.
- We are reinstating social distancing, which will make capacity limits in the sanctuary necessary. Any overflow will be accommodated in Covenant Hall, where the worship service will be live-streamed.
These changes will begin with our very next service, which is Christmas Eve, and will continue as long as needed. As always, the services can be accessed online.
As we move through these challenging times together, I am grateful for our church family and for the love and light we show to each other.
Mary Fung, President
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Don't forget that there is a Christmas eve Service at 5:3 on Friday, December 24, followed by "grab and go" tamales for you to take home and heat up.
There is a good chance of rain throughout the day and on into the evening, so be prepared!
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The Christmas Fund, a UCC Special Offering will be received on December 26 |
We will be collecting our annual special offering for the UCC Christmas Fund. Through these gifts, we support our retired clergy and those with medical (or other) emergencies. It's important for us to give to those servants who have given so much to our churches! Just mark your check 'Christmas Fund." or use the "GIVE" button on our website.
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Our Preacher will be Rev. Rudy Dimery |
First Sunday of Christmas, December 26 ~~ "Jesus at the Temple"
This first Sunday after Christmas, RUCC and Mentone UCC will worship jointly at our Sanctuary. Mentone's Pastor, Rev. Rudy Dimery, will be our preacher.
Pastor Rudy has chosen Luke 2: 41-52 as his text, which recounts the story of the 12 yeare-old Jesus remaining in Jerusalem after Passover. His parents discovered him 3 days later, in the temple, sitting among the teachers.
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Sunday's Scripture.
Luke 2: 41 - 52
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December 26 ~ First Sunday of Christmas |
Prelude: O Holy Night Adams Malinda Sewer Muganzo
Welcome, & Announcements: ...........................Rev. Dr. Jill A. Kirchner-Rose
Welcome Songs: ........................................................Malinda Sewer Muganzo
..........I'm So Glad Jesus Lifted Me, Jesus is on the Mainline, It's Service Time
Children's Circle:....................................................................\Sophia Ohanian
Joys and Concerns:.............................................................. Dr. Kirchner Rose
Silent and Pastoral Prayer:...................................................Dr. Kirchner Rose
Special Music: Aint’a that Good-News by H.T Burleigh.................Peter Tupou Scripture: Luke 2: 41 - 52............................................................Kathleen Fox
Scripture Hymn: #129 Good Christian Friends, Rejoice
Message: "Jesus at the Temple"...........................................Rev. Rudy Dimery
Offertory: Because of Who You Are by Judy Jacobs. .Malinda Sewer Muganzo
Doxology:.................................................................................Sophia Ohanian.
Prayer of Dedication:....................................................................Kathleen Fox
Closing Hymn: #154 Go Tell It on the Mountain
Benediction: ..........................................................................Dr. Kirchner-Rose
Time of Reflection: Thank You Lord Dr. E Dewey Smith
......................................................................................Malinda Sewer Muganzo
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Concerns:
- Maegan Hill requests prayers for 19 month old niece, Brooklyn, who is facing medical challenges.
- Maegan Hill requests prayers for niece, Michelle, who is facing complications following surgery.
- Carla Becerril requests prayers for her aunt Margaret, uncle Raul, and cousin Kathy who have been diagnosed with COVID.
- Prayers for Margaret Barnett who passed from life to Life on December 18.
- Prayers for Caroline McAllister whose dear friend, Laurie, just passed from life to Life.
- Prayers for the family and friends of Gloria Ebert who passed from life to Life on December 8.
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Prayers for Eleanor Kemp who broke her hip and is currently recovering at Highland Care Center.
- Kathryn Gallagher requests prayers for her son, Andrew, who has been diagnosed with COVID
- Cid Breyer requests prayers for her sister in law, Karen, who is going through chemo and radiation for blood / bone cancer and has just been diagnosed with COVID.
- Prayers for all of those affected by the tornados.
- Beth Welsh requests prayers for her niece Heather who is pregnant and has been diagnosed with COVID
- Mary Lou and Jennie Haney request prayers for Lois, Mary Lou’s sister, who has COVID for a second time now and is not doing well.
- Prayers for the brother-in-law of Sarah Montez whose brother-in-law tested positive for COVID. Sarah’s sister is in the early stages of pregnancy.
- Prayers for Carole Beswick who is recovering from partial knee replacement surgery.
- Prayers for Marcia Taack who is recovering from knee replacement surgery and has been diagnosed with cellulitis.
- Prayers for Glenda Bates, friend of Gretchen Andrews, who has been diagnosed with operable pancreatic cancer
- Prayers for Carole Wesson who is currently in the Health Facility at Plymouth Village.
- Rosemary Tuohy requests prayers for family and friends of Nancy Ruth White who passed from life to Life. Celebration of Life will be January 8, 2 p.m. at San Bernardino United Church of Christ, 3041 N. Sierra Way.
- Nan Root requests prayers for her brother Gary who has dementia and has placed on hospice.
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Ryan Zappia requests prayers for his father who is hospitalized with severe pneumonia.
- Prayers for John, cousin of Virginia Cruz, who is hospitalized with COVID
- Carla Becerril requests prayers for her friend, Edward, who works for a small business in which 7 of the 10 workers have been diagnosed with COVID
- Prayers for Helen Hurley, mother of Ken Hurley, who fell and fractured her vertebrae.
- Susan Kirkhart requests prayers for her 91 year old Aunt Helen who is struggling with health issues.
- Prayers for Cynthia McGuigan undergoing chemotherapy treatment for Stage 4 Lung Cancer.
- Prayers for 7 members of Janet Wilson’s family, including 3 year old niece, who tested positive for COVID.
- Continued prayers for Kathy Blanchard who is recovering at home.
- Prayers for Richard Ault who broke his hip and is currently in Heritage Gardens Rehabilitation Center in Loma Linda.
- Prayers for Bob Sheets who is recovering from eye surgery.
- Prayers Angie, sister-in-law of Sue Hammond, who has been diagnosed with COVID.
- Prayers for Eber, brother of Lara Urrutia, who is undergoing tests for a mass in his neck
- Prayers for Laurie, dear friend of Caroline McAllister, who is in hospice with end stage breast cancer.
- Prayers for Lisa, friend of Beth Welsh, who is recovering from emergency surgery.
- Johanna Ballard requests healing prayers for her dear friend, Lana.
- Sue Hammond requests prayers for her sister-in-law, Linda, who is receiving treatment for multiple myeloma.
- Prayers for Burt, family member of Johanna Ballard, who is facing severe health challenges.
- Prayers for Susi Jacobsen for health concerns she is facing.
- Eliza Ames requests prayers for her brother Coyne who is hospitalized and is very ill.
- Beth Welsh requests prayers for her brother, Michael, who is recovering from surgery following a work accident.
Ongoing Concerns:
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Joe Adcock, family member of Mary Mortensen
Anden, nephew of Michelle McNevin
Jerry Andrews
Jeff Bonadiman
Les Budai
Burt, family member of Johanna Ballard
Diane Campbell
Diane, Sister-in-Law of Heather King
Dave, brother of Johanna Ballard
Carol Chaney
Caroline, mother of Karen Blad
Claudine, grandmother of Paul & Dantae Welsh
Precia Gwenhwyfer Courtney-Hveen
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Cousin of Rick Cruz
Norma Erickson
Michael Flores
Betty Gayle
Emma Grimauld
Katia Hage
Beki Hill
Jody Hoelle
Harriet Holt, Beki Hill's mother
Mark Alan Johnson, friend of Nancy Hotaling
Kim Johnson, friend of Gretchen Andrews
Jenny, Sister of Jules Rattray
Emily Jones
Hank Kirchner
Amber McGuigan
Sara Montez
Bill McIntyre
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Maria Montana
Carmen & Jim Neafsey
Ryan and Evan Paul
Rick Peetz, Sr.
Kristin Farmer Preslica
Nancy Rojas
Adolph Romero
Joan Roth
Spencer, friend of Stacey Greene
Miguel Sewer
Doris Stockton, Kathi Roth's Grandmother
Heather Tee
Arika Torres
Rosemary Tuohy
Vasquez Family
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Special note regarding the Prayer List: Please review the list for any prayer requests you made that are outdated or that may be removed. Please notify both [email protected] and [email protected] of any changes that are needed. Thank you. |
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Reflection of the Week from the Racial Justice Team |
bell hooks argued that feminism’s claim to speak for all women had pushed the unique experiences of working-class and Black women to the margins. “A devaluation of Black womanhood occurred as a result of the sexual exploitation of Black women during slavery that has not altered in the course of hundreds of years,” she wrote. If that seems like conventional wisdom today, that is in large part because of the enormous impact Ms. hooks had on both feminism and Black women, many of whom had resisted aligning with a movement they felt was designed to diminish their experiences.”
- bell hooks, whose incisive, wide-ranging writing on gender and race helped push feminism beyond its white, middle-class worldview to include the voices of Black and working-class women, died on Wednesday at her home in Berea, Ky. She was 69. Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/15/books/bell-hooks-dead.html
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Plastic World or Plastic-Free World? Some History
From the Environmental Justice Team
We know that plastic is ultimately a harmful substance that cannot be composted, and is produced using petrochemical ingredients supplied by the oil and gas industry. As early as the 1960's and ‘70s scientists understood plastic’s permanence and presence in the environment, where it harmed wildlife. Big Oil may have muffled early research on the effects of plastics, but it could not shield the public’s eyes from the plastic waste building up all around them—in landfills, on beaches, on streets, in the oceans.
The 1950s mass production boom of petrochemical-based plastic has created to date more than 8.3 billion metric tons of mostly non-recycled material worldwide—in 70 years only 9% has been recycled. This dismal number is not for lack of people trying to recycle plastic, but the result of poorly designed and outdated recycling systems and our inability to recycle certain kinds of plastic. Much plastic intended for recycling ends up in other countries, usually burned or dumped in a landfill, or in nature. China now refuses our waste. Much plastic cannot be recycled.
While we all must live in a world with plastic, some are also forced to carry the additional and emotional burden of living in the shadow of the dirty refineries and dangerous manufacturing plants where plastic is made. Plastic has helped perpetuate systems of injustice from the moment its oil-and-gas building blocks are extracted from the earth.
By Erica Cirino, Excerpted from an article in Yes Magazine: The Solving Plastics Issue In the next View we will address personal and collective solutions.
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UPCOMING DATES TO REMEMBER |
- December 24 - Christmas Eve Service at 5:30 p.m. with "grab and go tamales."
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December 26 - Worship with Mentone UCC at Redlands UCC. Pastor Rudy will be preaching. We will also receive our Christmas Fund Special Offering this day. The Christmas Fund supports our retired ministers and church workers.
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January 2 - Epiphany Sunday -- Be sure to get your "Epiphany .Word" for 2022!
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January 8 - 9:00 a.m. Sacred Saturday.
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January 9 - Seekers resume meeting.
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January 9 - Book Group.
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January 30 - Annual meeting in the Sanctuary immediately following the 10:30 a.m. service.
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This Week at RUCC
Calendar for December 26, 2021 to January 2, 2022
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Sunday, December 26 -
- 9:15 a.m. Kids' Zone
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10:30 a.m. Worship Service
- 11:30 a.m. - fellowship hour on the patio
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11:30 a.m. Youth Group
Monday, December 27
Tuesday, December 28
Wednesday,December 29
- "The Pastor is In" Weekly zoom gathering
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Thursday, December 30
Friday, December 31 -
- 7 p.m. Closed women's AA meeting in the Founders' Room
Sunday, January 2 - Epiphany Sunday
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9:15 a.m. Kids' Zone
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10:30 a.m. Worship Service with Mentone UCC at RUCC
- 11:30 a.m. Fellowship hour on the Patio
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RUCC Staff
Senior Pastor: Rev. Dr. Jill Kirchner-Rose
Honorary Minister of Arts and Worship: Rev. Erin Beardemphl
Music Director: Jim Tong
Accompanist: Sophia Ohanian
Children's Education Director: Susi Jacobsen
Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries: Vacant
Office Manager: Nancy Sheets
Child Care: Joette Orman
Caretaker: Vacant
Phone: (909) 793-3520
Staff and Other Emails
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