Announcements at First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington, MA

Issued March 4, 2010, in a First Parish e-mail. To start or stop receiving announcement e-mails, send your request to weekly@firstparish.info.

Weekly Announcements go out every Thursday evening. Deadline for submissions is 9:00am Wednesday.

For longer articles that are not for upcoming events, send your material to spire@firstparish.info. The Spire is issued monthly.

This Sunday Marta will preach on our new draft mission statement. This statement reflects what the mission task force of the Parish Committee learned through the 213 completed mission surveys and the conversations with 150 people at the stewardship socials. Please take a minute to read and consider the draft, come on Sunday to hear Marta preach about it, and stay for reverberations to give us your feedback. There will be a second time for feedback on the draft after the Alliance service on Sunday March 14th.

We choose to be a welcoming liberal religious community.
We encourage each other on our spiritual journeys.
We support one another through the changes in our lives.
We live our faith by challenging the inequities of our time.
Upheld by joy and called to love, thus do we covenant together.

Sunday, March 14th at 10 am, Alliance Sunday
Featured Speaker: Awinja Otiato
Sustainable Development in Kenya and Boston

Awinja Otiato has an MBA in Social Policy Management with a concentration in Sustainable Development. Awinja works with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the Department of Transitional Assistance, bringing the principles of sustainable development to state government.

Awinga writes:
"Working in Mass State government to help welfare participants find ways to overcome barriers and become economically self sufficient, I find myself drawing on my experiences growing up in the village in Kenya. In the village, women have each other. My children are your children. In the American culture, 'good fences make good neighbors'. Our work within DTA is to find ways to break down such cultural barriers and bring welfare participants together to collaborate with each other and look to accomplish the ultimate goal of achieving economic self sufficiency. Poverty is a social injustice.... 'Knowledge Advancing Social Justice' is the motto of Heller School for Social Policy & Management at Brandeis University where I received my degree. The motto calls for each one of us to find a sphere of influence, whether large or small, and to use it to break the cycle of social injustice. Working within the state government is my sphere of influence."

Audio Recordings of the Sunday Sermon are now available online at Sunday Sermons. You will need to login to hear the sermon. While you are on the audio recording page, click on the sermon that you would like to hear. Please note, the whole service has to download before it begins playing; this can take 1 - 3 minutes, even on a fast connection.

First Parish's Green Sanctuary/Climate Change Group is sponsoring three films that will raise our consciousness about issues of food production and consumption.

The second film in the series is Mad Cowboy, based on Howard Lyman's book, Mad Cowboy: Plain Truth from the Cattle Rancher Who Won't Eat Meat. Click here to see more about Howard Lyman's book.

There will be time for discussion following the films, and we will be sharing a meal and recipes on the March 19th event. You will learn about the impact of food production on our environment, how our meat and vegetables are grown, why people eat what they eat, and strategies for more mindful eating.

The purpose of STAR Programs is to support and enrich spiritual growth in the First Parish community.

Pre-registering helps our planners and facilitators, so please sign up for programs you intend to attend. To register, contact the church office at churchoffice@firstparish.info or 781-648-3799 x. 10. Some programs have a fee. If this fee (or any other detail) presents an obstacle, please talk with Marta (marta@firstparish.info). STAR programs are open to all, and we want to know about anything that makes attending difficult.

Registration by March 1st was required for Introductory Meditation Workshop with Tom Hogan
Saturday, March 6: 10 am - noon

This workshop is for anyone who wants to start or deepen a meditation practice — whether or not you have any previous experience with meditation. Tom Hogan will lead a variety of short practice meditations in the vipassana/insight tradition, with lots of time for explanation, questions, and discussion. If there is sufficient interest, he is willing to offer participants a number of additional guided practice meetings in March, April, and May. If you've wanted to learn how to meditate, this is a wonderful opportunity to learn from an experienced leader.

This group will meet on Saturday, March 6, from 10 am to noon in the Damon Room and children's chapel. Please wear comfortable clothing and feel free to bring cushions, pillows, yoga mats, or anything else that would help you be comfortable either sitting or lying down.

Pre-registration by Monday, March 1, was requested so that we could plan the workshop appropriately. For registration questions, contact the church office, at churchoffice@firstparish.info or 781-648-3799 x. 10.

Discussion Group on Spiritual Evolution
Tuesdays, March 16 & 23, April 13 & 27, and May 11 & 25, 7-9 pm
Register by March 8

Dick King, Sandy King, and John Hodges invite you to join a program of reading George Vaillant's 2008 book, Spiritual Evolution: A Scientific Defense of Faith, and sharing relevant stories from our life journeys. We will discuss Vaillant's claim that positive emotions – including trust, love, hope, forgiveness, and compassion – are essential to human survival and that they form the neurobiological foundation for our cultural and individual development of human spirituality.

This group will meet in the Parlor from 7 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday evenings March 16 & 23, April 13 & 27, and May 11 & 25. Attendance at the March 16 meeting is required, so that everyone can start off in the same conversation. There will also be an optional inquiry session on Sunday, March 7, from noon to 1 pm in the Parlor, during which people can ask questions and get a sense of the group.

Pre-registration by Monday, March 8, is required. To register, contact the church office, at churchoffice@firstparish.info or 781-648-3799 x. 10. We will ask participants who can to help cover the cost of the book, which will be no more than $15 and probably less. If you have questions about this program, please contact Dick King at richmking@comcast.net.

Creating a Legacy: Making a Record of Your Life
Sundays, March 21 and March 28 (NOTE NEW DATE), 2-5 pm0
Register by March 12

Last summer Sue Cross spoke during a Sunday service about the powerful effects, both for ourselves and for those who follow us, of intentionally leaving a legacy: creating records of our lives and of the objects, ideas, and values that are important to us. Now she and Kathy Kemp are offering a "how to" workshop on creating life reviews, ethical wills, heritage scrapbooks, final wishes, and audio/video recordings of your life's most important stories. You will leave with an audio recording of a legacy conversation, and with the inspiration and tools to continue your own legacy practice.

Pre-registration by Friday, March 12, is required and there will be a materials fee of $25. If this fee causes hardship, please talk with Marta Flanagan to get a waiver. To register, contact the church office at churchoffice@firstparish.info or 648-3799 x. 10. We will meet on two Sundays, March 21 and March 28 (date changed from 4/11), from 2-5 pm in the Parlor.

What's Next? Life When Work No Longer Dominates, with Kit Hayes
Thursdays, April 1, 8, & 15, 7-9 pm

Many Americans get to a stage of life when work no longer dominates their time. What then? How do we decide what to do with this precious gift? How do we deal with the challenges of a self-structured life, and with the uncertainties of modern economic realities?

If you are retired or see retirement anywhere on the horizon, please plan to join Kit Hayes and other First Parish people for a conversation about how to create rich and meaningful lives post-career. We will meet on three Thursday evenings, starting April 1, in the Damon Room. To register, contact the church office at churchoffice@firstparish.info or 648-3799 x. 10.

Save the Date for a Spiritual Retreat with Marta Flanagan
Saturday, April 24

Marta will lead an all-day spiritual retreat at the Henderson House in Weston on Saturday, April 24. More details will be available soon, but for now please mark your calendar if you might like to join us.

We hope you've heard the amazing news that First Parish has been chosen by the American Red Cross as Community Blood Drive Sponsor of the Year for the Commonwealth. For his work with blood drives, NECN recognizes our own John Hodges. Come to the next blood drive, Saturday, March 6th, and be a part of this wonderful community service event.

Be a donor or a volunteer! Bring a friend and just be there to hold hands and chat. Donor hours are 8am - 2pm and we recommend you call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (1-800-448-3543) to make an appointment at your convenience or ask any questions related to your health or about donation. We're always delighted to welcome new volunteers for advance planning and arrangements, for setup at 6a on Saturday, with donors all day, cleanup from 2:30p - 4:30p, and follow up after.

Contact John Hodges, jcfh@alum.mit.edu, 617-943-4399, or be a welcome surprise for an hour or the day.

Wednesday, March 10th, 7pm: Cakes for the Queen of Heaven
Come Explore Female Religious History and Its Meanings for Our Lives

Tina Schultz and Peggy Gardiner will lead a program on female religious history and spirituality based on the newly revised Cakes for the Queen of Heaven curriculum. If you are a woman who would like to lean more about our female religious heritage and share stories with other First Parish women of all ages, this program is for you.

This seminar meets on four Wednesdays – February 24, March 3, March 10, & March 17 – from 7:00 to 8:30 in the Parlor.

This class is recommended for newcomers who want to learn about First Parish and the UU faith, and all those considering joining the church. Topics covered will be the sharing of religious paths, UU faith, and participation in the community. The course extends for three sessions on consecutive Thursdays: February 25, March 4, and March 11 from 6:30 to 9pm in the Parlor.

Sunday, March 14th, 11:30 to 1 in the Parlor: Open Discussion with Members of Neighboring UU Churches on Partnership Church Programs and Travel

Informal gathering on congregational partnerships and travel to Transylvania with Rodger Mattlage (First Parish, Concord) and other partnership church committee members of neighboring UU churches. Hear how other churches establish and maintain their partnership church relationship. Learn how to join or organize congregational pilgrimages, choir tours, and youth and service tours to Transylvania. Listen to other UU members describe their experiences visiting Budapest UU churches, viewing significant UU sites in Cluj, Torda, and Deva, and, most importantly, staying with Transylvanian Unitarian families during a home stay in a small rural village — all organized by the UU Partnership Church Council. Please come with your questions. All are welcome.

John Burt
Michelle Deakin
Jo Anne Preston
Working Group for a Partnership Church

The ongoing NVC class is reading and practicing with a new text and invites new members. Have you ever been in the middle of an ordinary conflict and wished you knew what to say or wished later that you hadn't said what you did? By learning some skills in conflict management, we can make everyday conflicts, even the tougher ones, go better, often much better.

Of course, there are many chapters on each of these, and practice helps. In class, we practice.

Some have said that learning to state feelings and needs is basically "therapy." That might imply a belief that feelings and needs have no place in everyday interactions. However, basic human needs and feelings are present constantly in human lives, as neuroscience shows, whether they get noticed or mentioned or not. And they are playing a part in every conflict. To have them plainly stated, without blaming, can explain a lot when people are trying to understand each other.

Therapy, as I know it, is for a reexamination of our history and of our family of origin to see how they have shaped us. NVC is not about history. Everyone starts in the present, and stays in the present.

Having studied NVC, I find most of my conflicts and other interactions are more conscious, and a couple of times I have amazed my friends or family. I am often a nicer driver, as well. If your everyday conflicts are not what you want them to be, I hope you will give this a try. Or learn it to model it to the high-conflict members of your circle: NVC is very contagious. The Hartford UUs are learning it to teach it in the school system. I of course think it would be good for world peace.

You would be surprised by the number of "yes" answers you can get with this method. I hope you will come and check it out.

We meet every other week in the Pierce Room from 7 to 9pm to discuss communicating for connection.

The quilt for the fair in November will be available on a drop-in basis for those who can quilt during the day to put in their stitches. Bring a bag lunch if you want to stay during lunch time. No need to let us know, just come. Contact Jean Nagle for questions: jsnagle@comcast.net

Thursday, March 18, April 22 and May 20, 7-9pm: Group Spiritual Direction
Facilitated by Marta Flanagan

Most people find it useful to have help on their journey, as they move closer to that Mystery many call God. Spiritual Direction helps people notice and respond to the movement of the Holy as experienced in prayer, meditation and the events of ordinary life. In spiritual direction we can look honestly at our relationship with the Holy as it is lived out in everyday life. We ask questions like "What is of sacred value in my life right now?" "How is my relationship with the Holy?" and "What is the Spirit inviting me to do?"

Group size is limited and anyone interested is asked to write one paragraph explaining why they want to participate in group spiritual direction. You may leave your paragraph at the church office in Marta's mail slot or email her at minister@firstparish.info.

Before coming to First Parish Marta worked part time as a spiritual director seeing 29 directees each month at the Bethany House of Prayer in Arlington as well as a handful of individuals out of her home in Vermont. Marta was trained as a spiritual director at Mercy Center in Burlingame, California in 2000.

First Parish's Green Sanctuary/Climate Change Group is sponsoring three films that will raise our consciousness about issues of food production and consumption.

Click here to see more about the Botany of Desire documentary, the third in the series.

April 18 - Brooklyn: A Novel by Colm Toibin
(comes out March 2 in paperback, just in time)

Always the third Sunday 7:15-9pm in the Damon Room. Contact Jean Nagle for further information
(e-mail is jsnagle@comcast.net).

Please join us at the First Parish Passover Seder on Saturday, April 3rd. All are welcome, but advance sign up is necessary. Sign up will be held after church during the month of March for the event and for pot luck contributions that all participants are asked to bring. Exact details available when you sign up.

The service is short and intended to be suitable for all ages. The participants typically include families with little kids, families with teens, extended families, couples and singles. All kinds of families are warmly welcome. We usually number from about 40 people to over 100 people. Walk ins are not possible. Everyone must sign up and commit to making a dish in advance.

Our Hagaddah is a mix of traditional and new elements and is somewhat to the left of the Reconstructionists. It is feminist, egalitarian and participatory.

We do the Seder as a potluck, with easy recipes that are passed out at Coffee Hour when people sign up. Everyone is asked to contribute to the meal. We charge a small fee to cover wine and Seder plate items. The meal is in the spirit of kosher for Passover, but is not strictly kosher. There will be vegetarian and meat options available.

Here's your chance to shine under the spotlight at First Parish. On Sunday, April 11, 2010, starting at 2:00 p.m., the music committee will host this year's talent revue. It's not just about music any more. If you sing, play, compose, could give a dramatic reading of your poetry, or have some unique performance talent you'd like to share, please contact Dorothy May (doromay@comcast.net) or Jean Ward (jrward@alum.mit.edu). Acts should be approximately three minutes in length, not to exceed five minutes. All proceeds go for the First Parish Instrument Fund. Let your talent shine at this great community event!

Come see what your First Parish friends and neighbors do when there is an audience watching!

Check with Jean Renard Ward or Dorothy May if you'd like to share your performance talents.

Andrew Leonard has lined up a great evening of jazzy musical entertainment. Food and modest libations will be served.

All proceeds from these events will benefit First Parish's Instrument Maintenace Fund.

Sunday, March 7: Teacher Bagel Breakfast for winter and spring teachers. 9:00 a.m. in the Parlor

Sunday, March 7: OWL begins, 7:00 pm. Students gather in the Vestry to meet your teachers and learn where your classes will be held.

Friday, March 5, 5:00pm: Cars depart First Parish for the youth group retreat.

Sunday, March 7, 11:30 am: Cars return to First Parish from retreat. Youth should be picked up at the church at this time.

Saturday, March 13, 6-9pm: Youth-Group Sponsored Family Dance!
Dance to raise money for the Youth Group Social Action Fund, which will go towards organizations working to fight hunger. Join us for an evening of dancing and merry-making. For ages 0-99. We ask that children under 12 be accompanied by a parent. Tickets available during Coffee Hour on Mar 7. When you prepay, you get to put in a song request!

Lay Ministry is an important function of our church that helps to extend the pastoral care of our minister, enhances our church as a caring community, and provides outreach to parishioners in need. Recently the Parish Committee appointed a Shared Ministry Committee to work with our minister, the Rev. Marta Flanagan, in selecting parishioners who are interested in serving as Lay Ministers. This committee consists of Peggy Gardiner, John Laurenson, Angel Seibring and Barbara Tosti.

The Lay Ministry consists of two groups. The first is the Wider Network of Care. These are members of the congregation who are interested in periodically providing meals, sending cards, running errands, or baby-sitting children for parishioners who are in need. We hope that all church members and friends will participate in the Wider Network of Care.

The second group is the Lay Ministers who serve in conjunction with our minister to provide support to those in the congregation who are adjusting to change, loss, illness or death. They meet with the minister once a month on a Wednesday evening to further the church’s mission of a community of care and concern. They coordinate the Wider Network of Care. Lay Ministers commit to a two year term, providing approximately 15 hours a month to those in need. They attend a mandatory training session on May 21 and 22. Additional information is available in the Lay Ministry brochure, and on the Lay Ministry section of the church website at Members/SharedMinistry.

This spring, persons who are interested in becoming lay ministers must fill out an application and reference forms. Selected applicants will be interviewed by the Shared Ministry Committee in conjunction with the minister. If you are interested in becoming a Lay Minister, please fill out an application and forward it to the Shared Ministry Committee before the deadline, March 28. Applications are available on the Lay Ministry section of the church website. If you have questions direct them to the Shared Ministry Committee at sharedministry@firstparish.info .

Have you thought about leading a summer service? Summer services are an excellent way to share what you care about with other First Parish people. The Worship Task Force (Marta Flanagan, Lori Kenschaft, Dick King, Sandy King, and Eric Segal) invites any individual or group who might be interested in leading a summer service to contact us. Please come talk with us at our table in the vestry during coffee hour this Sunday, or send a paragraph describing your idea to marta@firstparish.info. If you are involved in a project or activity that you think other First Parish people would like to know about, please let us know!

Applications Are Now Being Accepted for the Nora Catherine Tosti Memorial Scholarship

The fund was established to help people who, like Nora, want to pursue careers in health care or child care at the Certificate or Associate Degree level. Although candidates for Bachelor’s Degrees will be considered, those pursuing Certificates or Associate Degrees will have first preference. This scholarship is open to adults as well as new high school graduates. The $1000 scholarship will be awarded to a current or former resident of Arlington.

The Nora Catherine Tosti Memorial Scholarship will be awarded without regard to race, gender, nationality, religion, disability or sexual orientation.

To get an application, contact First Parish member Barbara Tosti at abtosti@rcn.com

Are you someone who wants to explore your faith with other UU’s? Do you want an expense paid trip to be in the company of people who are seekers, thinkers, do-ers and like to have fun at the same time? Are you at least 18 years old but no older than 24? If so, think about your summer plans and consider applying for the Mary Davis General Assembly Scholarship. UU General Assembly 2010 will take place in Minneapolis, Minnesota from Wednesday, June 23rd – Sunday, June 27th. For an application, or to find out more, please contact Alliance member Lisa Heisterkamp Davis at southpacific@comcast.net or Religious Education Director, Tina Schultz at tina@firstparish.info. Also check out the information on the web at: uua.org/events/generalassembly.

The First Parish Giving First recipient for March will be the Arlington Food Pantry, which has provided food and necessities to low-income families since 1990. Funds are overseen by Arlington’s Department of Human Services; however, all the work at the Pantry is done by volunteers in space provided by the Church of Our Savior on Marathon St. The Pantry provides food to over 340 residents in over 150 Arlington families and is seeing an average of 8 new residents per month. Costs are increasing and donations are not able to keep up.

Many organizations, including our congregation, send volunteers and donations of non-perishable food to the Pantry. Cash donations are used to purchase other needs such as toothbrushes, soap, toilet paper, special dietary needs and perishable foods, and to pay a small rental fee to Church of Our Savior. We all know that visits to the grocery store are more and more expensive. As the number of people needing help increases, please consider expanding our support of the Pantry through Giving First.

¹Giving First is a Social Justice program at First Parish, where 25% of our non-pledge Sunday morning offerings is given to a different charity each month.

This year you have the option of making special year-end donations to First Parish at YourDonationPlace.com. The site is available 24/7 during the holiday season. We hope this convenient method of giving will appeal to both regular contributors and to members who traditionally make contributions on a seasonal or annual basis. Simply go to YourDonationPlace.com and follow the onscreen instructions to make a donation and print a confirmation page for your records. Secure donation services on the site are provided by Vanco Services, the same company that processes electronic donations for First Parish and more than 10,000 other nonprofit organizations and churches.

The Green Sanctuary Group has books that they are recommending on display at the Social Justice table this Sunday. They would be excellent Christmas presents, and the Group is selling them at cost. Al Gore's new book, Our Choice, will be used for a book study group to be sponsored by the Green Sanctuary Group in the coming new year. Get a copy now and read it over the holidays. There are also Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer, 18th on the New York Times Nonfiction Best Seller List in January, and the substantially revised Plan B 4.0 by Lester Brown that we studed two years ago.

We are looking for members to help make the church and our lives more in keeping with good environmental practices. We look forward to talking with you.

Youth

This group for children up to grade 1 meets in the Children's Chapel on Sundays from 11:45-12:15 (during coffee hour) on two Sundays per month leading up to Easter. Complete dates include: 3/21, 3/28, + performing in the 10am Intergenerational Easter Service on April 4. This group is led by Music Director Laura Prichard and students Rowan Wheeler and Allison Stillerman.

Intergenerational

Contact Laura Prichard with questions at laura@prichard.net - our Spring performance is on April 4 (Easter). The full Symphonic Band will play twice in May (and rehearse in April).

The Flute Loops is an intergenerational group of flute players who will be playing in the Sunday services on April 4 (Easter) and April 11.

Our regular Sunday rehearsals this Winter will be from 12:15-1pm on the following dates: 3/14, 3/21 & 3/28 at 12:15pm.

Adult & Advanced Students

This group is open to adults and students in grades 7-12. We rehearse on Thursdays (8-9:30pm) and meet on Sundays for a 9am warmup.

Our Spring music service will feature three selections from the English cathedral tradition for choirs and organ. Music will include: Parry's coronation anthem I Was Glad, Stanford's beautiful miniature Beati quorum via, and a piece new to our choir: John Stainer's I Saw the Lord.

We will be joined by the Newburyport UU Choir for our Sunday, March 21 service, and members of our choir will travel to Newburyport for a combined service on March 7.

Anyone may join the choir for this special music, and those pieces will be rehearsed from 8:30-9pm on the following dates: 2/11, and 2/25.

Info Links

For schedule information about Sunday service music: Music/FPAschedule.html . To join a Music email list for weekly announcements/practice materials: Music/music_lists.html (Username: firstparish and the usual password)

Now cocoa is on the list of wants and, as always, juice, personal items, jelly and peanut butter. Donation boxes are by the front door and the office door.

Monetary donations can be sent to: The Arlington Food Pantry, Department of Human Services; 670R Mass Ave., Arlington, MA 02476

The Spire Writers' Group—for people who like to write and want to develop their writing in the company of other writers at First Parish—gathers monthly, usually on the second Sunday of each month, from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m., in the Damon Room (next to Tina's office in the RE wing). Bring writings to share, if you like, or just come and join in... We do brief writing exercises, give critiques when requested, and discuss the craft of writing. The group is appropriate for all levels, prose or poetry, no matter what our writing styles or experience. All are welcome. If you like to write, or want to explore the possibility, please come join us.

Please join us in the First Parish Meditation Group. We hold drop-in groups Mondays, gather at 6:00pm and start at 6:15 (in the Damon room) and Sundays, gather at 9:00am and start at 9:10 (next door at the Senior Center at Maple and Academy St) We sit for 35 minutes in the style of Vipassana (Insight) Buddhist meditation, and beginners are welcome. By focusing on mind/body sensations in meditation, it is possible to become more mindful in daily life. ALSO – 2 ongoing discussion groups meet one Sunday night each month. A waiting list is now forming to join a group. For more information, contact Lynn Rosenbaum or e-mail meditation@firstparish.info

Arlington Workers in Transition is an ongoing group for anyone interested in help with networking and coaching through their job search activities. We meet Tuesdays, 10am-noon, in the 4th floor conference room at Robbins Library next door to the church. Questions? Contact Stewart Jester at 643-6123 or dstewartjester@aol.com.

A group has formed to read and discuss A Course in Miracles (ACIM) on Wednesday evenings from 7:00-8:30. We meet in the Damon Room (Carlton's old office). If you are interested in joining us, please bring a copy of ACIM , available at major booksellers such as Amazon, as well as from The Foundation for Inner Peace (acim.org). Please contact Cheryl Dressler at cheryl.dressler@comcast.net with any questions you may have about the meeting.

First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington
630 Massachuetts Avenue, Arlington, MA 02476
Parish Office Phone: 781–648–3799
Website: firstparish.info
e–mail: churchoffice@firstparish.info

The deadline to submit items for next week's announcements e-mail is Wednesday at 9 am. Office Hours: Weekdays 10 to 4 except Wednesday 1 to 7

Requests for verbal announcements in the following Sunday's worship are due each week by noon on Wednesday.

This is a Welcoming Congregation
warmly and openly welcoming to gay, lesbian, bisexual & transgender people.

First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Youth

Intergenerational

Adult & Advanced Students

Info Links