The Union Church in Waban               
Friday, December 13, 2019 

This Sunday
          8:00 a.m. - No Bible this Sunday
  9:00 a.m. - Choir Rehearsal  
10:00 a.m. - Christmas Pageant 





This Sundau we're so grateful to have our children and youth lead us in worship today and share this beloved and foundational story of our faith.  We give thanks also for the families, teachers and others in the UCW community who have offered their prayers, love and support as we prepared for today!  
  12:45 p.m. - Caroling at Norwood Health
All ages are invited to join this joyous tradition, as we bring holiday cheer to our friends at the Norwood Health Center.  Please plan to gather at the church at 12:45 p.m.  We'll go over a few songs, and then carpool together. 
    5:30 p.m. - Nicaragua Traveler's Mtg. & Pizza!
If you are traveling to Nicaragua as part of UCW's service trip in February, please join us tonight from 5:30-7:00 p.m. at the church.  We'll share a pizza meal, learn about the trip, and spend time connecting as a group.  We hope to see you there!  
   7:30 p.m. - Parents Group
Come find a moment of peace and joy with others doing the good and hard work of parenting this season! We'll gathering around tea, cocoa and cookies to share Advent reflections, warm and supportive conversation, and time together.


 
All mittens are due back under the tree this Sunday

Thank you!  

If you have any questions please contact Erika Pond o r Molly Owen-Kiritsy    Thank you for your generosity this holiday season.



Advent and Christmas at UCW



CHRISTMAS PAGEANT - KIDS LEAD US IN WORSHIP
This Sunday, December 15 at 10:00 a.m.  
Our children and youth will be leading us in worship today as together we tell the Christmas story through song, music, narrative and prayer. This is a wonder-filled service that is not to be missed.
 
Carol sing  with the residents of the Norwood Health Center
This Sunday, December 15 at 1:30 p.m.
All ages are invited to join this joyous tradition, as we bring holiday cheer to our friends at the Norwood Health Center. Please plan to gather at the church at 12:45 p.m. We'll go over a few songs, and then carpool together.
 
Contemplative Service 
Friday, December 20, 7:00 p.m.
We will gather in the beauty of Memorial Chapel off the UCW sanctuary for a reflective, candle lit service of prayer, contemplative music and quiet.   In this service we make space for what may not be so merry and bright. We hold what is broken in our world and in our lives. We hold the losses we are experiencing. We acknowledge our need to be held by each other and by God's love.
 
CHRISTMAS SUNDAY 
Sunday, December 22, 10:00 a.m.
On this fourth Sunday in Advent we light the Advent candle of Love and celebrate with festive music and song "Ubi Caritas" - Where there is charity and love, God is there.
 
COMMUNITY CAROL SING 
Sunday, December 22, 5:00 p.m., 
Parish of the Good Shepherd invites us to join them across the street for a time of carols and readings.
 
CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE OF LESSONS AND CAROLS
Tuesday, December 24, 6:00 p.m.
In this inter-generational service, we gather around the manger as we hear the story of Christmas through lessons and carols. We wonder at the good news of God with Us in the glow of the candle lit sanctuary and we go out into the night as Joy to the World rings forth.
 

Our 2019 Christmas Collection

In keeping with our seasonal theme of housing insecurity, this year's recipient of the Christmas special collection will be  Bridge Over Troubled Waters. Dating to the 1960's, this Boston-based organization provides effective and innovative services to runaway, homeless and high-risk youth through a variety of approaches. Their services range from immediate to long-term assistance to help youth avoid a lifetime of dependency on social services, guiding them towards self-sufficiency, and enabling youth to transform their lives and build fulfilling, meaningful futures. Services offered include a daily "foot patrol", a mobile medical van, community dinners, transitional housing, high school certificate programs, a College Pathways program, counseling and a runaway hotline.
 
Church Matters - Save the Dates 
Meeting of the Congregation
Sunday January 26, immediately following worship, 
 and a preparatory session on Sunday, January 12
The Church Council invites all members of the Union Church community to meet on January 26 for three important items:
  1. A briefing from our Communications Committee on a Statement of Purpose, an outward-reaching description of who we are that can be used on our web site an in publicity
  2. A vote on adding four words to our Church Covenant (our promise to each other within the church) to update our language with respect to being open to all:
"We, the members of the Union Church in Waban, true to our founding principle of being an inclusive church, covenant together to nourish and to sustain in our common life and practice a fully welcoming and affirming church for all persons. Welcoming all persons who seek to join with us in a commitment to love God and our neighbors, affirming the inclusive love of Jesus, we are open to all, without regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, nationality, ability or economic circumstance. We invite all to full participation in our worship, membership, leadership and life of this church.
 
3. A creative and interactive conversation about our visions for the church so that we may set our priorities for our spring stewardship campaign and budget-setting process the coming year. This session will set the context for the spending plan we will vote to adopt in June.
 
To prepare for this important meeting, members of the community are invited to engage in conversation and reflection on the importance of being open to all regardless of "gender identity and expression".  We will gather on the stage immediately following worship on
Sunday, January 12.
Mission Outreach 
Advocates for Racial Justice (ARJ)
A new group at the The Union Church
The June travelers to Montgomery, Alabama have formed a new group to promote the work of racial justice in our community and nation. We are calling the group

Advocates for Racial Justice.
The mission statement of our group is below:
 
Responding to our call as Christians to see the image of God in all people, and to seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God, we pledge to each other and the Union Church congregation to be faithful Advocates for Racial Justice. We will engage our congregation and the larger community in continuing study and conversation about ideology of white supremacy at its root. We want to unmask and oppose the racism that divides the people of God from one another, unfairly empowering some and not others, in our personal relationships, community, state, and nation.

Martin Luther King, Jr., said that "true peace" is "the presence of justice." Bryan Stevenson of the Equal Justice Initiative says, "We must acknowledge the truth about our history before we can heal." This is our main purpose: to seek, understand, and proclaim the truth about our history-specifically, about slavery and white supremacy-so that we can be properly reconciled to one another and prepare the way for true peace, which is the presence of justice.
 
Adovcates for Racial Justice is open to anyone who would like to join us in our work and be on the committee. Please contact Brita Gill-Austern ( [email protected]), if you are interested.   

Please note the following:
  • There is now a bulletin board downstairs with information and upcoming programs in the church and outside about racial justice.
  • There is a bookcase at entrance of Reception Room for borrowing books related to racism, white supremacy, white privilege, etc. Check it out and check one out and return when you have finished.
  • Please put Sunday March 8th at 6 p.m. on your calendar for a potluck and amazing speaker, Jospehine Mc Call, author of Penalty for Success. Her book tells the personal story of her father's lynching and how this was used as a common practice used when African Americans became successful.
  • If you have not had the chance to see the movie Harriet about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad I strongly recommend it.
  • If you can see the very beautiful Black Nativity in Boston through December 26th to broaden your exposure to African American culture and conceptualizations of the Nativity. For discount tickets go to Boston Arts Tickets. A great family activity!
 
Brita Gill-Austern, chair of ARJ.
(Committee members are Annie Gatewood, Jenny Weisz, Kathleen Hobson, Nancy Zollers, Frank Laski, Arlyne Grant and Stacy Swain.

homelessness and housing


This year your    Mission Outreach Leadership Team  is organizing its work (and coordinating with the other areas of UCW life) around seasonal themes. These will provide an organizing context for the many mission activities and we will coordinate educational opportunities, worship, and children's education around these themes when possible. We also hope to coordinate our seasonal offerings around these themes.

Our winter theme is  -  Homelessness and Housing.  Please consider participating in some of the offerings listed below: 
        

This Sunday, December 15 - 
  • Mitten Tree gifts for Norwood Health and for Project Care and Concern are due back under the tree. 
  • Caroling at Norwood Health at 1:30 p.m. 
February 2 Common Art Show at the Union Church
    March 1 - Public Voices Speakers from City Mission

Our spring theme is  -  Climate Change (and disaster relief)

For more information about these offerings please feel free to reach out to
Carol Bascom-Slack,Jaap van Reijendam or Julie Heffernan.
Adult Education, Spiritual Formation and Fellowship


Java Gents
Friday, December 20 th  at 7:00 a.m. 

Java Gents is an informal monthly breakfast hour for the men of the UCW congregation and our community of neighbors and friends. Please join us for this friendly gathering of fellowship and mutual support.   Buz Bedford and Jay O'Beirne host lively discussions of timely topics, and personal goings on amongst the group.  (Java Gents meets the third Friday of each month in the church reception room at 7:00 a.m.)

Book Group
Tuesday, January 28 th  at 7:00 p.m. 
Our next book is " Evicted " by Matthew Desmond.

" In Evicted," Princeton sociologist and MacArthur "Genius" Matthew Desmond follows eight families in Milwaukee as they each struggle to keep a roof over their heads. Hailed as "wrenching and revelatory" (The Nation), "vivid and unsettling" (New York Review of Books), Evicted transforms our understanding of poverty and economic exploitation while providing fresh ideas for solving one of twenty-first-century America's most devastating problems. Its unforgettable scenes of hope and loss remind us of the centrality of home, without which nothing else is possible . "
(Amazon review)
norwood health  
Pen Pal ministry
   
Once a month, a group from UCW worships with the residents of Norwood Health.  Many of these residents were formerly our neighbors, living at Waban Health before that facility closed.  

In addition to our monthly worship service, many of the residents enjoy writing and receiving cards.  We know that loneliness adversely affects health and well being and many of the residents are quite socially isolated.  Writing cards is one way we can help foster connection and share the love of UCW.  If you are interested in being a pen pal with a resident of Norwood Health.  Please be in touch with Stacy .
NEW DAY - THURSDAY MORNINGS   
PRAYER GROUP: 7:30 - 8:15 a.m.
  
 
We live in a noisy world.  There is much that clamors for our attention.  Even when we shut our eyes at night it may take a while for the din to die down enough for us to sleep.  You are invited into a practice of cultivating spaciousness and silence.  You are invited into the beauty of the morning light streaming in through the windows of Memorial Chapel.  You are invited to rest a while in the peace of stillness.  If you have questions, please be in touch with  Sandra DaDalt or  Pastor Stacy .
CYFChildren, Youth and Families
Growing in Faith and Community 
MIDDLE SCHOOL CHRISTMAS PARTY!  
Tonight Friday, December 14th, from 6:30 - at 8:30 p.m.
Middle School Youth and members of the Youth Ministry Team are invited to gather at the Hunt-Stevens home with friends for food, Christmas-themed games, and a white-elephant gift exchange (bring something wacky, weird or wonderful under $10). We'll have a jolly good time! Please RSVP on WeSpire, or contact Amy ([email protected]) or Susan ([email protected]). 
CHRISTMAS PAGEANT - KIDS LEAD US IN ADVENT WORSHIP
This Sunday, December 15 th ,  (with rehearsal tomorrow Dec.  14th )
Calling all UCW Musicians!
We're so grateful to have our children and youth lead us in worship this Sunday and share this beloved and foundational story of our faith.  We give thanks also for the families, teachers and others in the UCW community who have offered their prayers, love and support as we prepared for today!  

 If you or your kids would like to share music for this special service, lead our storytelling or liturgy, or help behind the scenes, greeting, or in any other way, please let Pastor Amy ( [email protected] ) know. There are ways for everyone to participate!  
SAVE THE DATE:  CITYREACH OVERNIGHT SERVICE TRIP 
Sunday, December 22nd
Teachers and anyone interested in our ministries with children on Sunday mornings is invited to gather in Amy's office for some holiday goodies, to celebrate and debrief about the pageant, and look ahead to the New Year!
SAVE THE DATE:  CITYREACH OVERNIGHT SERVICE TRIP 
Friday - Saturday, January 10th - 11th

Donations of travel-sized toiletries, used men's outdoor clothes, blankets, sleeping bags, carrying cases/bags, and new underwear or white socks are VERY MUCH APPRECIATED! 

Exploring Our Faith students, and other high-schoolers and adults are invited to join this powerful overnight service trip with our partner, Ecclesia Ministries in downtown Boston. We'll learn from and serve with Ecclesia members who are experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity, share meals, and distribute needed clothing, blankets and hygiene items to guests. If you can contribute any of the items above, we would be so grateful, and will have a collection box in the Crocker Chapel. 

Please let Pastor Amy ([email protected]) know asap if you can join us.
From the Wider Community
Opera Group to Perform at the Union Church

Due Donne Productions  presents 
Engelbert Humperdinck's 
Hansel and Gretel  (sung in English) 

Saturday, December  21, at 7:30 PM. 

This is a holiday revival of the company's first production, and is cast with students from the New England Conservatory. Performance is December 21, at 7:30 p.m.. All performances are free with suggested donation and family friendly. More information at  duedonneproductions.com 




Revisiting Civil Rights Sites in  Montgomery, Selma, and Birmingham Alabama,  and Boston MA
 
Purpose             
We propose a project of Civil Rights era remembrance for two audiences, for youth and for civic and academic leaders. This venture is intergenerational. Youth will be involved with film and social media; civic and academic leaders in an academic conference drawing from the New Democracy Coalition's program on Civic Literacy, CMM's Values over Violence and Interfaith Youth Initiatives, the Ella J Baker House and Seymour Institute, and additional partners, churches and synagogues. We seek to acknowledge the 55 th anniversary of the crossing of Pettus Bridge in Selma (2020) and related events.
Selma - 2020     Phase One:
Focus on Youth: travel seminar by bus and one night's hotel lodging

February 28         Friday: 20-hour bus trip as traveling seminar with civil rights video
February 29         Saturday: Montgomery, AL; visit National Memorial for Peace & Justice                                       (Saturday Night - in hotel/motel)
March 1                Sunday: Jubilee Sunday: Church Service and Pettus Bridge Crossing
March 2                Monday: Birmingham Civil Rights Museum and 16 th Baptist Church      
March 3                Tuesday: Back in Boston in the early morning/mid afternoon
April                      Gathering of Sojourners: "What Did It All Mean?" Date & Place: TBA
Boston - 2021   Phase Two:
Five nights of Boston hospitality, receptions and academic conference

April 16                Friday: Welcome reception by a supporting Institute
April 17                Saturday: Freedom Trail and civic welcome, Faneuil/Crispus Attucks Hall
April 18                Sunday: Church Services and Thurman Center, Boston University
April 19                Monday: Black Freedom Trail, Tubman, Baker Houses welcome
April 20                Tuesday: Seymour Institute Academic Round Table, Harvard University
April 21                Wednesday: Depart

Contact CMM for interest and further information at  [email protected]
or by phone at 617-244-3650.
                                                
                                      Our Covenant
 
We, the members of The Union Church in Waban, true to our founding principle of being an inclusive church, covenant together to nourish and to sustain in our common life and practice a fully welcoming and affirming church for all persons. Welcoming all persons who seek to join with us in a commitment to love God and our neighbors, affirming the inclusive love of Jesus, we are open to all, without regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, ability or economic circumstance. We invite all to full participation in our worship, membership, leadership and life of this church.


For a complete listing, and details of all upcoming events,  please 
visit our website, www.ucw.org 
 
Note : Material for inclusion in the Friday e-Blast newsletter should be e-mailed to the office at [email protected] , by 9:00 a.m. on the previous Wednesday morning.