December 2008

As I write this, the first snowy blanket of the winter has arrived in Rochester, and the morning ride to church was so bright and lovely. I cannot help but feel happy when I see the fresh white cold cover arrive, even though I know that its presence signals the end to warm weather for a while. This change is part of the mix of things I enjoy about living in western New York. I love the seasons’ changes; I love the way the distinct shifts in climate, four times each year, invite me into seeing another type of pattern in my life. It is almost as if we get to start over, begin anew, with each shift and flow of season. A gift, truly.

And much else has been shifting and changing in our church community. This past fall has seen us with so many exciting events, worship services, lots of visitors, potlucks and guest speakers, old friends ans new ones coming into our Sanctuary. The Sunday visit of Rev. Dr. Mark Morrison-Reed, former co-minister with his wife, Donna, was one such highlight. What a legacy they have bequeathed this congregation. The impact of their ministry here is still strong, 20 years later.

It is my belief that each of us has the potential for such impact upon this community. Despite the challenges of change, we commit ourselves over and over again to start anew. Despite how we are challenged in our quest to create the beloved community, we keep our promise to stay in the discussion, to speak our truth with love and compassion. We must find ways to ‘disagree without being disagreeable,’ as my supervisor once said to us, her team, as we struggled mightily with how to work creatively with one another in our struggling community health care center.

And so it is here, in our church community. Let us promise to stay in the game, to stay on course, to use what two authors (Rendle, Mann – Alban Institute) call ‘holy conversation’; a “people’s understanding of their identity as a faith community, their sense of purpose and their relationship to God” to find out what we mean to on another and to the world. Let us find our way to one another in these exciting and uncertain times.

As the season of seasons comes upon us, and we find ourselves stressed and over-scheduled, stretched financially and emotionally, may we remember to find times to enjoy the peace and quiet of a new winter’s day; find small ways to celebrate with and listen to our loved ones; pay attention to all the ways we are blessed in this world; and continue to create moments where the abundance of hope and joy can hold court in our lives, speaking truth into life.

For each moment is sacred. Each moment is unique. Each moment is a gift.

See you on Sunday.

November 2008

Dear Ones,

As I ponder what it is I want to write to you this month, I am thinking about how much you have taught me already. In just a short time, I have learned so much about this community and how much you love this congregation. It shows in all the ways you step forward to care for one another, and in the depth of passion which each of you brings to the beloved community.

I have found in you models for how to care for the world, for what it takes to step out, over and over again, in courage and in hope, to be good stewards of this faith we love.

The times in which we live are not for the faint of heart. There is so much going on that threatens to disturb all the foundations we took for granted in the past. Not the least among these is the upheaval we have seen in our country’s financial status.

I hear on the radio and on the TV the warnings to stay calm, to stay the course, to not panic, to avoid rash decisions, and all this makes sense to me. At the same time, I wonder about how those among and around us will make do with less, how people will learn to stretch further and further the meager dollars they have to get through the month. It takes courage to step forward, into the unknown, over and over again.

I take comfort in the knowledge that we are survivors of all sorts. Those of us from the northeast, particularly upstate and western New York, have already had too many years of being smart about making dollars stretch. I think we could be the people who write books about this for others to read in detail, so good are we at this, instead of the ones reading and listening to the pundits telling us what to do.

But then I wonder: What else can we learn?

Perhaps the question should be: What else is it that we have to teach?

I think there is still much to be hopeful about and much to celebrate. This congregation has stood through many years of hard times, within a community that has withstood hard times, and yet you still meet and sing with joy and heart every Sunday morning.

You still gather here in this building on the corner of Clinton and Court and work with RAIHN or organize and plan your ministries. You teach your children, or one another; you know every square inch of this building, top to bottom, and you love its peculiarities, even as you struggle with its challenging and aging design. And you write notes of care and concern, make visits and phone calls, check in with one another, always looking to the future, while relishing the present moment.

I look forward to our time together whenever we meet; I know I still have so much to find out about who you are.

In the coming season, as we anticipate ramping up for visitors, special celebrations and times that have, in the past, called for spending extra money, when we can expect to feel swept along with the holiday hype, let us take some time instead to listen to one another, plan in some quiet reflection time, take walks in the brisk fresh air sweeping in off the lake, make tea or cookies and invite the elderly neighbor to come and visit. Find and create new ways to recall what it is that has named us into being in the first place, and practice one of the most important of the ‘holy manners’: that of listening for the voice within that calls us into full interaction with life.

May First Universalist continue to stand proudly here and remain a symbol for the future. May we continue to grow in our knowing of one another and the world, and may we continue to find ways to fill our mission to “Nurture the Spirit and Serve the Community.”

In love and faith,

Universalist Unitarian Association (UUA) news can be found here.

Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC) news can be found here.

UUWorld, the magazine of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations, can be found here.  

National organization of Young Religious Unitarian Universalists (YRUU) news can be found here.

New York State Convention of Universalists (NYSCU) news can be found here.

Saint Lawrence District (SLD) news can be found here.

March 2012 Our Outlook

February 2012 Our Outlook

January 2012 Our Outlook

December 2011 Our Outlook

November 2011 Our Outlook

If you just look around our region, there are lots of celebrations. There are harvest festivals, spring festivals, winter festivals, celebrations of music, culture, art, food and neighborhoods. Around the country, people celebrate history, the black-backed gull, the paddlefish and other regional delights. What do these sometimes zany celebrations tell the world about those who celebrate – and about ourselves? Join us for a chance to laugh and learn!

-with Mary Louise Gerek and Ann Rhody