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Seeking the Spirit, Building Community, Changing the World
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Sunday, February 11, 2018
9:15 and 11:15 a.m.
The Show Starts Now
Our High School Youth
Cloud Cult has a song entitled, "The Show Starts Now," which is one of the sources for this service. With all that's going on in the world, we need to remember to come back to ourselves. Join our youth for a service that encourages and challenges us to ground ourselves, one day at a time, one step at a time, one moment at a time.
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Sunday, February 18, 2018
9:15 and 11:15 a.m.
The Arc of the Universe is Long
Reverend Scott McNeill
The state of affairs as it relates to race, ethnicity, immigration, and nationality is complex in 2018 (and differs based on each individual's identity). This morning's worship will examine where we are, in terms of our congregation and our country, and where we're headed (hoping to be working all that much harder to bend the arc of the universe toward justice).
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Message from Reverend Macklin
As I mentioned on Sunday morning, our Associate Minister Reverend Scott McNeill received a call Saturday that his mother had died; she resided in North Carolina. Some of you were aware that Scott's mom had been quite ill over the past several years and was in the process of entering Hospice. Still, her death was not expected to occur so soon. Reverend Scott will be away from the office this week as he begins the process of dealing with this loss.
When a minister and family of a large congregation go through such a difficult situation, it is important that we do not overwhelm them with support. While good- intentioned, too many helpful people can create more stress. I encourage you to send cards and messages and keep the McNeill family in your hearts and prayers. I will be in touch with our Caring Committee Chair Sharon Yarber and Connections Coordinator, Ann LeDuc, to prepare various support services at needed. We will put out a call to our congregational community for specific help as we learn more about what is needed.
Peace and Love, MAM
Reverend Mary Ann Macklin, Senior Minister
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Reflecting on Our Racial Justice Work
February is Black History Month, which provides us a good opportunity to reflect on our Racial Justice work (that happens year-round). The Racial Justice Task Force will have their social justice moment on February 18th - where they'll highlight the upcoming production of
Resilience (part two of the project from Gladys DeVane and Liz Mitchell) and other components of the work they've been doing. We are focusing most of our resources and energy on local projects, including (hopefully) the development of a tour related to race and Indiana (perhaps a bus-tour through parts of Indiana).
Here is a link to an article about "Resilence".
Another way you can be involved personally is to learn more about the organization
Black Lives of Unitarian Universalism (BLUU). UUA President, the Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray, has posted helpful information
here.
If you would like to contribute to BLUU, we encourage you to make a pledge/contribution to them using
this link.
We have many connections to work happening at the regional and national level. If you haven't heard, the next UUA General Assembly (GA) June 20-24 is in Kansas City, Missouri.
This year, there will not be a MidAmerica Regional Assembly in the Spring (since GA is nearby); instead, people are encouraged to attend GA. We hope you'll think about attending GA, and/or getting involved with our larger association of congregations. There is always much to learn from reading the UU World magazine (members of the congregation should receive a copy, and it's accessible here.)
Sometimes we receive questions about how our church fits in with the larger Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). We often use UUA resources made available (trainings, speakers, workshops); but doing so is always up to each congregation. The ministers and staff work hard to decide what fits best with our congregation's needs. Contact me anytime if you'd like to learn more!
Scott
Reverend Scott McNeill, Associate Minister
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MAM's Musings
Be willing to change and grow. When new members join the congregation, this bit of advice is often a part of my invitation into our community. Truth is not fixed for religious liberals. It is not codified in a sacred text or in any type of orthodoxy---and so we have an ongoing search for truth and meaning in our lives.
Speaking of changing and growing, Rev. Leite and I will be involved in a Racial Equity Training Series sponsored by the City of Bloomington in the next few months:
Implicit Bias (February 13, 11:00 a.m.- 3:30 p.m), Anti-Racism Primer (February 26, 9:30 a.m- 5:00 p.m.), Implicit Bias Training of Trainers (March 27, 10:00 a.m.- 4:00 p.m.). This series has already maxed out on the number of participants, so we hope to bring what we learn back to the congregation so we all can continue to change and grow. Perhaps some of you were able to register before they filled up? If so, we will see you there.
Meanwhile, a friend of the congregation suggested the following workshop "
Learning to Talk Across Divides
" which will take place on February 17th from 9:30 to 3:30 at St. Mary of the Woods near Terre Haute. I will be unable to attend, but hope some folks from our congregation will be able to.
"Learning to Talk Across Divides" is described:
People have difficulty holding a conversation with persons whose opinions differ from their own. At a time when civil discourse seems a lost art, this workshop explores how to listen, to hear, and to learn from each other with genuine respect. Examine how our world views are formed, what helps us change them, and how we can expand our capacity to hear other opinions.
Let us continue to change and grow together.
Peace, Mary Ann
Reverend Mary Ann Macklin, Senior Minister
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Our Folks...
Our thoughts of sympathy and healing are with Reverend Scott McNeill and his family, upon the death of his mother last week, in North Carolina.
Our sympathy and healing thoughts are also with Sonny and Jamie Kirkley and their family upon the death of Sonny's father in late January.
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Calling all COOKIE BAKERS to Support Reproductive Justice
The Reproductive Justice Task Force is holding a Once-A-Year Bake Sale on
Sunday February 11th
- Just in time for Valentines Day! (See article below.) The group could use some help with cookie donations for the bake sale. Please bring your cookie offerings to the kitchen on the 11th, in time for us to sell them back to you between services and after the
11:15
service. THANK YOU!
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Standing on the Side of Love Annual Bake Sale February 11
The Reproductive Justice Task Force will be having their yearly pre-Valentine's Day bake sale after each service on Sunday, February 11. Please join in the fun by creating and buying goodies for a good cause! This is one of our largest fundraisers of the year. We gratefully accept items dropped to the kitchen as early as possible that day for prep if not sale-ready.
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Snacks Needed for Planned Parenthood Patients
Every Thursday morning at Planned Parenthood in Bloomington, you can find quite a hubbub. You will see patient escorts waiting to help patients and their loved ones navigate through the protesters, who are always there, sometimes in various factions, even. Later in the day, although it quiets down, you will see the protesters there until the bitter end.
One of the most basic ways that this congregation supports reproductive justice in our community is to help provide snacks and drinks in the waiting room for patients and their loved ones. This means that, if they don't want to deal with the protesters in order to secure food, they don't have to. We are currently in need of more donations of snack items and drinks. We can use individually wrapped, single serve snacks like granola bars, bags of pretzels, cheese and crackers, animal crackers, and similar, as long as it's not too spicy or flavorful (nothing like Doritos, please, as those don't sit well on an upset stomach). We can also use drinks like smaller water bottles and juice boxes. Donations may be placed in the marked basket under the social justice table in the foyer. Thank you for supporting reproductive justice!
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Crawford 2 Video from Homelessness Task Force
This four-minute video is part of a larger video project to portray people moving into Crawford Homes 2, a federally subsidized housing project in Bloomington, designed for individuals, couples, and families who have experienced long-term homelessness because of a disability. Crawford Homes is a joint project of Shalom Community Center and LifeDesigns.
The video begins by showing a group of men and women from First United Methodist Church organizing household goods for distribution to the apartments in
Crawford 2
. It then goes on to show three IU students setting up an apartment at
Crawford 2
. The final segment of the video focuses on Amber, a long-time winter shelter guest, as she signs the needed documents for securing an apartment of her own and then tours her apartment for the first time.
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Bloomington favorite Diane Kondrat
returns to our Meeting Room
Saturday, March 3 for show on end-of-life issues
As Reverend Macklin announced in her sermon last Sunday, actor and local favorite Diane Kondrat will take the stage again in Bloomington to appear in "Final Acts: End-of-Life Scenarios and Conversation," a one-hour show that portrays some of the complicated questions raised by end-of-life situations.
A single performance of "Final Acts" takes place at 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 3, here in our Meeting Room.
The show presents various end-of-life scenarios that many families and loved ones confront, such as the pressures of taking care of a loved one with dementia, deciding whether to pursue exceptional life-saving procedures, the questions surrounding physician-assisted death, end of life planning, and more. During the show, audience members may question the actors, who stay in character as they respond.
Cost: Freewill donations taken at the door to benefit Compassion & Choices of Indiana and UU Church of Bloomington End-of-Life education programming Click here for details.
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Community Connections
Our Faith in Action in the Community
Hydrocarbon Spiritualities: Religion, Climate Change, and Fossil Fuels--
Talk on February 9
This talk by Evan Berry will be held on Friday, February 9 at 5:30 pm at the Hoagy Carmichael Room in Morrison Hall on the IU Campus.
Details here, and on our bulletin board in the courtyard entrance.
Voces Novae Choral Pops Concert February 10 at Harmony
Susan Swaney's other choir, Voces Novae, is presenting Dance Party Dance! - a choral pops concert you can dance to - Saturday, February 10, from 7:00 - 9:00 at Harmony School. Kids 12 and under free. All others $10.
Conflict Resolution Training Offered Feb 10-24
The Community Justice and Mediation Center (CJAM) offers a 40-hr Conflict Resolution and Mediation training held over five weekend days on February 10, 11, 17, 18 & 24 from 8:30AM - 5:00PM. This interactive and engaging training lays the groundwork for anyone interested in enhancing their conflict resolution/management and communication skills. To register or learn more, call Liz Grenat at
812-336-8677
, or visit
www.cjamcenter.org
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UU Book Discussion Group February 18
The UU Book Discussion Group will meet
Sunday, February 18, 2018 at 3:00 PM
at Elof and Nedra Carlsons' home. The novel is CALL ME BY YOUR NAME. The author is Andre Aciman and there should be lots of hardcover and paperbacks available.
Here are the plans for March and April:
March: non fiction will be a pdf of Elof Carlson's yet unpublished (almost completed) memoir with the working title BITS AND PIECES. Send him an email to receive a copy: [email protected]
April: fiction by Sandy Dolby: THE HANDEL LETTERS. It is a controversial biography imagining a correspondence.
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Do you live alone and worry about your safety?
We are starting a new program at UUCB for those of us who live alone. It's called "Calling Buddies." We will pair members of our UU community who live alone with other UUs who live alone. These matched pairs will call each other regularly (daily or every other day) to check on each other's safety and well-being.
If you are interested in participating in the Calling Buddies program, please contact Ann LeDuc at
[email protected]
or
(812)322-3695 ext 203
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This Sunday! Find your calling at the Getting Involved Fair!
February 11, 18, and 25 we will hold our biannual Getting Involved Fair in the Fellowship Hall. This is an opportunity to find U.U. groups and activities that excite you! Each Sunday a different mix of groups will be available to offer information about their group, and a member of each group will be present to talk with you. This is a great opportunity for newcomers, and long time folks too. -
-Ann LeDuc, Connections Coordinator
Exploring Unitarian Universalism Class
March 4 and 11
Are you interested in learning more about Unitarian Universalism (UU) and this congregation? Are you considering becoming a member of this dynamic religious community? Whether you are considering membership or are just curious, this class is for you. The Exploring UU Class will be held on March 4 and 11, 2-4 p.m. in the church library. Please plan to attend both Sunday sessions, since different material will be covered in each session. Register before February 26 by signing up at the Welcome Table in the foyer, or emailing Ann LeDuc at [email protected]. Free childcare is available if requested in advance. David and Carolyn Emmert will facilitate this fun and informative class.
Welcome to our newest members!
On January 28, we welcomed 10 new members into the congregation. Please offer a warm welcome to our newest members: David Dilcher, Robbie Gonyea, Steve Host, Linda Hunt, Linda Kaplan, Laura Kress, Julia Merkt, Crystal Olry, Michael Rhodes, and Jay Sissom. Below are a few bios to help you get to know them. --Ann LeDuc, Connections Coordinator.
Linda Kaplan retired to Bloomington in 2010. She has been married almost 50 years to Marty Kaplan. They have three children and five grandchildren. In her spare time she enjoys tennis, golf, Mah Jongg and bridge. She also enjoys singing in the UU choir and volunteering at the Community Kitchen. Linda is looking forward to being a part of such a liberal community.
Laura Kress
has lived in Bloomington for the past 20 years and lived in a variety of cities around the state prior to that. An IU Alumni, she has worked in the IT and HR areas of
IU since moving back to Bloomington. She's the proud mother of two young adults and is fortunate to have a close family (four siblings and most of their families) living nearby. She enjoys spending time with family, cooking, traveling, reading, and attempting to improve her gardening skills. She and her husband Jay are looking forward to becoming active members of the church community.
Julia Merkt, a native of New Haven, Connecticut, decided two years ago to return to Bloomington where she attended IU law school graduating in 1981. Julia has lived many places since law school including seven months last year in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and 20 years in El Paso, Texas, where she practiced elder law for 15 years. Julia is single, retired, and looking forward to becoming an active member of the Bloomington UU congregation.
Michael Rhodes recently moved from Indianapolis to Bloomington for his life's next chapter. With an M.P.A. from SPEA, he has a long time passion for facilitating job creation projects by providing site selection services for growing companies and by helping cities to improve their community and economic development programs. He enjoys photographing and digitally enhancing graffiti and he plays a variety of music on a classical guitar. His career and life's focus has been to enhance the quality of life for those with limited opportunities and for those unjustly challenged.
Jay Sissom is a life-long Hoosier who has spent the past 20 years in Bloomington. He works in IT at Indiana University. He enjoys playing the piano, reading and building electronic gadgets. He lives with his wife Laura and their dog Lilly.
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Women's Alliance Meets
March 1
"Sanctuary/Immigration" by Gracia Valliant is our program for Thursday,
March 1st. The hosts are Harriet Pfister and Arzetta Hults-Losensky.
The Women's Alliance meets the first
Thursday
of each month at
11:30 a.m.
in Fellowship Hall. The meeting begins with a brown bag lunch. Drinks
and dessert are provided by the hosts of the month. The program begins at
noon
, followed by a business meeting. Join us. Everyone is welcome.
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Interested in Digging Deeper
Into Unitarian Universalism?
Plan to attend UUA General Assembly in June!
Join us at the Getting Involved Fair on February 11 to learn more. The UUA General Assembly is in Kansas City, Missouri,
June 20-24th. We look forward to sending ten member delegates. Will you be one? If interested, contact Iris Kiesling, [email protected] More info here: https://www.uua.org/ga
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UU History for You--
The Only Humanist Professor of Theology
Johannes A.C.F. Auer
Johannes Auer was born in Middleburg in the Netherlands in 1882 and died in Chapel Hill, South Carolina, in 1964. He was raised in the Dutch Reformed Church and decided to go to America for his college education. He chose Meadville Theological School because it was founded in 1844 by Unitarian and Dutch-born Harm Huidekoper. He received his Bachelor of Divinity degree and did further study in Berlin and Heidelberg. He returned to the U.S. and served several Unitarian and Protestant congregations, including his last appointment at First Parish in Concord, Massachusetts. He pursued graduate studies at Pittsburgh and then finished his PhD at Cornell in church history. He was a signer and contributor to the first Humanist Manifesto. He taught 30 years at Tufts and 25 years at Harvard in his academic career. He also had a sense of humor, which was reflected in his class lectures and discussions. When several of his students flubbed trying to define what the Trinity was, he helped them by saying, "Let me explain. It's like three-in-one oil." Auer retained his Dutch citizenship but lived almost all his adult life in the United States. He wrote books and articles on Humanism as the religion of the future.
--Elof Carlson, UUCB Historian
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Current Membership: 535
Attendance Sunday, January 21 9
:15: 139 11:15: 208 TOTAL: 347
Sunday, January 28
9
:15
: 127 11:15: 145 TOTAL: 272
Sunday, February 4 9:15: 103 11:15: 205 TOTAL: 308
Non-Pledge Offering January 21
$748.10 January 28 $571.00 February 4: $540.25
Total to be donated (25%) to All-Options Pregnancy Resource Center $475.97
Grocery Card Sales (Bloomingfoods or Lucky's Market)
January 21: $525, income to UUCB $28.75 January 28: $675, income to UUCB $35.25
February 4: $1,425, income to UUCB $71.75
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Adult Religious Education Opportunities
Being Mortal by Atul Gawande: End of Life Issues
led by Anne and Chris Haynes
10 a.m. - 12:00 noon, Four Saturdays, March 10, 17, 24 and 31,
Library
Atul Gawande's book, Being Mortal, raises important questions about how people are treated at the end of life and how death and dying are seen by medical practitioners. It provides new perspectives on end of life experiences and how society does and could deal with issues around aging and the dying process.
We will explore these issues through reading and group discussion. Please read chapters 1-2 before our first session. Copies of the book are available for purchase at the UU Booktable or can be borrowed from the church library.
This course is offered through UU Adult Religious Education.
Please register by February 22: contact
[email protected]
or 812-332-3695 ext. 204. Childcare can be provided if two or more families need it in order to attend. Contact Kitty at [email protected] by February 22 if you will need childcare.
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Family-to-Family Class on Mental Illness Starts February 13
Family-to-Family is a 12-week course designed for family members or caregivers of someone with a mental health condition such as schizophrenia, bipolar, obsessive compulsive disorder, depression or PTSD. The course includes: asp
ects
of the major mood disorders, medications and their side-effects, a little neuroanatomy, self-care, communication skills, an empathy workshop and opportunities for advocacy. National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Family-to-Family is taught by NAMI-trained family members who have been there. It provides mutual support and shared positive impact-you can experience compassion and reinforcement from people who understand your situation. You can also help others through your own experience.
The next class begins Tuesday February 13, 7-9:30 pm. and will run through May 8 (allowing for a week off for Spring vacation) It will be held here in our Library. Please contact Laura Jesseph if you are interested in enrolling: [email protected]
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The Labyrinth Returns
Our Labyrinth Walk has been re-created in our Meeting Room in preparation for a youth retreat this weekend. You may also come and walk the labyrinth this week, February 5-9, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Please use the West Office Entrance on weekdays. The Labyrinth will also be open on Saturday morning, February 10 from 9-10:30 a.m. (Please use Main Entrance on Saturday.)
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Shambhala Meditation Meets Mondays at 12 noon
Join us at 12 noon every Monday in the Library for an hour of Shambhala Meditation, walking meditation, and Shamatha yoga with Sarah Flint. Beginners welcome to participate in this 2500-year-old
tradition. [email protected]
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Open Mind Zen Meets Mondays at 7:00 p.m.
Join Frank Seisho Diaz for meditation, talks, and discussions on Zen Buddhism, Mondays 7:00-8:30 p.m., in Room 110 here at the church. All are welcome regardless of faith or experience.
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Traditional Taiji on Saturdays at 8:00 a.m.
Brian Flaherty leads "Wu (Hao)" style Taiji in Fellowship Hall on Saturdays at 8:00 a.m. Anyone is welcome, even those with no experience. Please wear loose-fitting clothing.
[email protected]
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UU Humanists Meet February 11
An opportunity for regular, open, wide-ranging discussions relating to ethics, human development, and the nature of the universe. The bi-weekly forum will meet next on Sunday, February 11, at 12:45 p.m. The group will meet will meet next on Sunday, February 11, at 12:45 p.m. in Room 208. The discussion will be led by Elof Carlson on "Much ado about cloning." For general questions about our UU Humanist group,
contact
Ann Watzel.
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UU Freethinkers Enjoy
Free Ranging Discussion
February
18
The purpose of the UU Freethinkers bi-weekly meeting is to create the opportunity for participants to raise questions and engage in open and non-structured discussion of issues of social concern, political concern, and theological/religious concern. UU Freethinkers meet on alternating Sundays after children's religious education classes end, in Room 208.
UU Freethinkers will meet next on Sunday, February 18, 12:45 pm.
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Earth Kin Book Discussion on the Shamanic Path
February 26
For Earth Kin's second book discussion series, we will read Sandra Ingerman & Hank Wesselman's Awakening to the Spirit World: The Shamanic Path of Direct Revelation. The first discussion--Introduction + Chapters 1 through 5 (pp. xxi-110)--will take place on Monday, February 26th from 7pm-8:30pm in the Library. There are many affordable ways to get the book from E-Books to used copies on Amazon to library copies. Please contact Brooke Opel at [email protected] if you have any issues finding the book.
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Works by Members and Friends Available at Our Booktable
Non-fiction and Fiction
1. Anna Wiley wrote two memoirs: Act Well Your Part and Learning To Be Lilly.
2. Terry Loucks and Ursula Loucks penned Burning Words.
3. Patrick Brantlinger's States of Emergency: Essays on Culture and Politics sells!
4. Tomilea and Jim Allison wrote The Accidental Mayor.
5. The Seven Sexes is by Elof Axel Carlson.
6. John Fulling Crosby has five titles on the shelf:
The Flipside of Godspeak: Theism as Constructed Reality;
Aftermath: Surviving the Loss of God; Grounds For Marriage: If Only I Had Known; Divided We Stood: A Tale of the Last Orders as told by...(JFC); and
Sons and Fathers: Challenges to Paternal Authority
Also, padded mailers still needed for Pages to Prisoners project. Please bring your used ones to the Booktable on Sunday.
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Keeping it Comfortable and Saving Energy
in Rooms 108, 110, and 112
We learned today that our very efficient Mitsubishi heat pump that serves Rooms 108, 110, and 112 will keep the rooms economically comfortable in cold weather if we leave the thermostats all set at 68 degrees. The rooms are all on the same compressor, and so they all need to be set to the same temperature! Our technicians advise that leaving the rooms at this warmer temperature will not use more energy than asking the unit to ramp up to 68 from 60 degrees for each meeting. So bring a sweater, and
please don't adjust the thermostats in these rooms for a few weeks, so we can see if the temperature stays comfortable. Let me know what you think after you have been to a meeting in one of these rooms!
--Carol Marks, Church Administrator, [email protected]
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Reverend Mary Ann Macklin, our Senior Minister,
can be reached at 812-332-3695, ext. 201 and is available by appointment on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons.
[email protected]
Reverend Scott McNeill, our Associate Minister,
can be reached at 812-332-3695, ext. 209 and is available by appointment on Wednesday and Friday afternoons.
mcneill@uu
bloomington.org
. He can also be reached on his mobile phone, 703-577-0919 and for after-hours pastoral emergencies, please call him at 812-727-0919.
Reverend Emily Manvel Leite
,
our Minister of Religious Education,
can be reached at
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Our Covenant of Right Relations
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Snow and Ice Awareness and Event Cancellations at Church
When travel conditions become hazardous after snowfall or ice storms, please always check our home page,
www.uubloomington.org,
or our Facebook page,
www.facebook.com/uubloomington
or
www.wfiu.org
for updates on event cancellations or delays. If church services or other major events in our building are canceled, this information will also be broadcast on radio at FM 103.7 and on WTIU television. Group Leaders: Please check your email frequently on days we have snow and ice, because administrative staff may be trying to reach you.
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Livestreaming Our Sunday Services
You can view the livestream of our Sunday services and view archived video from the last few months
at this link. If you have a problem, please email Andy Beargie at
[email protected]
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Church Calendar
Office Hours: M-F 10-4
Calendar: A link to our church calendar can be found on
this page of our website.
Facebook:
Many church events also appear on our
Prologue Publication Schedule:
The deadline for articles is 10 a.m. on the date of publication, which is the first and third Tuesday of each month. Next few issues:
Feb 20, Mar 6, Mar 20, April 2, etc.
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Masthead photo by Marcia Hart.
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