Unitarian Universalist Church of Jackson

NUUSLETTER

 A Newsletter for our Members and Friends

December 2005 - Web Edition

Love is the spirit of this church, and service is our law.

To dwell together in peace, to seek the truth in love, and to help one another.

This is our covenant

WORSHIP SCHEDULE

Every Sunday Forum at 9:30am, Service at 11:00am

December 4

Forum:  Jeffrey S. Lowe, PhD, of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Jackson State University, will present and lead a discussion on "The Potential Development of  the Area North of Fondren"

Service:  Questions for the Religious Journey. Dr. Ray Shenefelt and the minister had a very interesting conversation recently on matters religious. That conversation is the stimulus for this sermon in which questions such as What does it mean to be religious? and Why do the idea and the experience of God persist in an age of science? will be addressed. The Reverend Luck will preach with the assistance of Dr. Shenefelt.

 December 11

Forum:  We will have a Christmas tree trimming party.  Maybe we will have some eggnog to supplement our coffee!  Discussion will be open topic.

Service:  Christmas Pudding. Christmas pudding is traditionally made on Stir-up Sunday, which is the last Sunday before Advent in the Anglican Church, and the last Sunday in November this year. The best puddings are then allowed to mature until Christmas. This sermon like Tom Horner will seek the "plums" in the Christmas story for those Unitarian and Universalist. The Reverend Luck will preach and the children will join us in the beginning of the worship service.

 December 18

Forum:  Margaret Drake will present and lead discussion on "How Green is UUCJ?"

Service:  Marianne Hill will speak.

December 25

Forum and Service:  Christmas Reflections (coffee and donuts) at 10:00am

 

Deadline for submissions to the December UUCJ NUUSletter: December 15.  Please make submissions to NUUSletter@uujackson.org.

If you would like to receive the NUUsletter by email, please user our NUUS subscription form.

Mississippi Musings

We began this season with sharing the names of the saints of this church.  I always find it a moving service as we remember with honor and love those who have gone before us. All Saints Day marks a turning of our thoughts toward deeper matters of the soul.

The wind is blowing through the trees this evening promising cooler weather tomorrow. Fall has arrived. In the church calendar we move from reflection on those to whom we are indebted for their heritage to a national day of thanksgiving in November. This, my friends, is a spiritual passage from recognition and naming to gratitude.  

From that day when we focus on our giftedness, we move deeper into the mysterious darkness. Womb-like we are encircled in deep mystery, the vastness of the darkness of germination. As the nights grow longer, the days shorter, candles are lit. Surely, you too feel the awe of candles burning silently in the night. Flames licking the darkness stir our psyches; we sink deeper into our being and our becoming. There is something Holy about in this season of lights.

As the winds chill, we turn to this seasonal spiritual pilgrimage with a sense of expectation. We have been warmed enough, nurtured for the descent into the generative darkness, and with wonder it is asked, "With the coming light, what will be born of us?"

Yours in faith,

Jacqueline

 

The President’s Corner

At our congregational meeting on November 13^th, we made some momentous decisions.  We elected Tom Head to replace Ray Shenefelt on the Nominating Committee.  Ray had returned to the board and could not hold both positions.  Tom joins Susan Haik and Steve Bollinger.  This coming year there will be a number of important positions to fill. 

We voted to repave the parking lots, an issue which has challenged this congregation for a number of years.  The necessity for this improvement was brought forward by the need to cover the trench where the R.E. Building sewer connection was replaced.   So we are going to be able to increase the number of cars we can park in our lot.  We will have better lighting.  All of these improvements will make our facility safer and more “user friendly.”  We voted to increase the Sunday Service line item so we can begin to pay our musician a token amount each Sunday rather than relying on volunteer playing.  And lastly we began to discuss our desire for fulltime ministry.  JoAnn Bienvenu described the situation in which we for the past two years have shared our minister Rev. Jacqueline Luck with Our Home Universalist-Unitarian Church of Ellisville.  We are seeing the fruits of our dedication and focus over the past six years of consulting and part-time ministry move toward fulltime ministry and the growth we expect from such a commitment. 

We have much to celebrate in this Holiday Season.  We can celebrate our positive moves toward growing our congregation and toward serving liberal religion in the Deep South.  In this season of generosity and finalizing your donations which can be claimed in this tax year, I ask you to consider a special donation in order to pay the musician. We have already transferred this money from our reserves so you will be replacing that money.  Just add it on to your regular pledge amount and mark it on the check.  That way our treasurer, Ray Shenefelt, will know it is for that purpose.

Over the next month or so I will be speaking to as many of you as possible to solicit a service we can auction off at a party to be held in the winter.  Some examples of services you might want to consider are things such as four hours of baby sitting, a weekend of pet sitting, a gourmet meal to be served either in your home or in someone else’s home, a back massage, twenty pages of typing, or whatever your specialty might be.  Let’s see if we can painlessly raise some money and have fun at the same time.

Margaret

Children’s RE News

The children collected $363 for UNICEF at our annual UNICEF/Halloween party and during our Oct. 30 service. They have had many opportunities lately to interact with the adults in our congregation in ways that have been fun for both children and adults.

David and Sharmila did a brief dramatization for our "Stone Soup" Service, and all the children helped decorate cookies and make sandwiches. Special thanks to Trina Cameron, Barbara Scobee, and Brian Heffner for assisting with this project.

In December the children will learn about Sophia Lyons Fahs, a UU educator who believed "Each night a child is born is a holy night" and encouraged children to ask big questions, to develop a sense of wonder, and to use their imaginations.  We will explore the concept of "advent" for UU’s, and they will prepare a dramatization to present to the adults during the first part of the service on Dec. 11. They'll be making decorations for our Christmas tree and making cards for the immigrant family our congregation is "adopting" during the holidays.

There will be no classes for children on Sunday, December 25, or Sunday, January 1.

Dary Shenefelt

"Roots Class"

Watch for small group start ups in January: A "Roots Class" for those seeking more information on Unitarian Universalist thought, principles, polity, history, and stewardship will be offered on Sunday afternoons. A weekday morning group is being considered, and Jacqueline would like to hear from you about your interests, times and topics. What about a men's group? A group to create fabric hangings for the sanctuary to replace those taken down when it was painted? A study group? Evensong? Please email Jacqueline with your interests.

 

Our UUCJ  Holiday  Community Service Project

In recent years our church has had a tradition of "adopting" an immigrant family for the holidays and providing each member of the family a gift of clothing plus a toy for the children. This year we are "adopting" the Camacho Family, a Mixtec Indian Family from Juxtlahuaca, Oaxala, Mexico.

The Comacho family and a married daughter and her family (13 in all) share a small house. The  Comacho family includes Luis Camacho, age 59 (32 waist-L shirt), Josefina, age 49 ( 18 -XL), 3 sons, Miguel, age 18 ( 38-XL), Raul, age 15 ( 35- XL), Porfiro, age 12 (13-10), and daughter, Alma, age 8.  The married daughter's family includes Solomon Luna, age 37 (36-XL), Angelia, age age 30 (16-L), 2 sons, Ishmael, age 12 (13-10), Gustavo, age 11 (12-9), and 3 daughters, Hilda, age 7, (8-7), Maura, age 5 (7-6), and Noelia, age 4 (6-5).

There will be a sign-up sheet on the church hallway bulletin board to indicate which person you plan to select for your donation. If you cannot sign up, call Dary Shenefelt. You may place your wrapped gift with name tag under the church Christmas tree on Dec. 4, 11, or 18.

Hinds County Detention Center

Last summer we started the project to collect underclothing for the youths at the Hinds County Detention Center in Raymond on the third Sunday of each month.  Hurricane Katrina helped us lose our focus on this particular ministry.  Waverly Liles wants to remind us of these fellows.  Now their particular needs have changed.  They need deodorant soap such as Irish Spring or non-deodorant Dove.  They also need new white washcloths. Let’s collect them to be picked up on December 18th and taken to them before Christmas.  The denomination’s social witness this year is the criminal justice system.  We can consider this ministry as part of the large denominational effort.

Four Day UU Niagara Experience

Come experience the wonder of Niagara Falls including some great educational opportunities while being treated like royalty.  The UU Church of Niagara is conducting a four day UU Niagara Experience which is a lifetime opportunity to encounter the Falls up close from every prospective, even safely riding beneath a tethered balloon.  Spend four days with us exploring the rich historical and natural wonders around the Falls.  For information visit our web site or contact us by email or phone at (716) 791-4453.