The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
Upcoming Events
October 1, 2014
Sanctuary Boston Worship
6:00 pm in the Barn Room
Cambridge Forum
Carbon Tax to Combat Climate Change
7:00 pm in the Meetinghouse
October 5, 2014
EJTF Report Back
9:00 am in the Parlor
Program Council
12:30 pm in the Barn Room
October 8, 2014
Cambridge Forum
Immigrant Struggles, Immigrant Gifts
7:00 pm in Helverson Parlor
October 12, 2014
MEEG Education Event
12:30 pm in the Chapel
October 15, 2014
Gospel Choir Rehearsal
6:30 pm in the Meetinghouse
October 16, 2014
Gospel Choir Rehearsal
6:30 pm in the Parlor
Cambridge Forum
This Changes Everything
7:00 pm in the Meetinghouse
October 18, 2014
Gospel Choir Rehearsal
3:00 pm in the Meetinghouse
October 19, 2014
Gospel Sunday
Longtimers/Seniors Breakfast
9:00 am in the Parlor
Parenting Workshop
12:30 pm in the Chapel
October 22, 2014
Contemplative Service
7:00 pm in the Barn Room
October 25, 2014
Fall Work Day 9:00 – Noon
October 26, 2014
Semi Annual Meeting at Noon
Reflections from Rev. Lilia Cuervo, Associate Minister
The first few times I sang the hymn, “There is more love somewhere,” I could not understand why a congregation would sing such - in my view - “offensive” words. Was not enough love right there? Why not appreciate the love that we already had and make it grow? It was only when I learned that this hymn arose during slavery to give comfort and hope to people in bondage that I understood the sentiment behind this hymn and I confess I felt ashamed of my ignorant judging. Becoming culturally competent in the genre of the songs sung by other cultures helps us to enter into that sacred space of suffering, of joy, of aspiration for freedom, or any other feeling the composers tried to honor and convey. When we learn to sing Gospel, or Folk, or Romantic songs or to listen to them with respectful understanding and from our hearts, we become part, even if momentarily, of that human group from which the music emanated. Gratefully, we also might experience genuine joy and healing as we unite in body and in spirit with human communities until then foreign to or even despised by us.
Last Sunday we had three people from the Evangelical tradition visiting us. One of them was a Pastor from a 1500 member congregation who delighted in the whole service, and who promised to come back. Seeing the faces of these visitors in a state of reverie as the choir sang “Precious Lord, Take My Hand” and listening to “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” sang by Matthew Truss accompanied by the organ, I felt this is what it’s all about. In trying to learn from other traditions, in letting go of our fastidiousness regarding words like Jesus, Lord, and similar ones, we stretch our boundaries; we become more universal and whole. It is not just that however; when visitors can truly enjoy touches of their own theologies and cultures in our sanctuary, I feel we are “welcoming them into the celebration of life,” therefore being faithful to our covenant.
Let us continue our exciting journey toward becoming a multicultural congregation that learns and honors other people’s stories and traditions. Let us continue seeking to become a loving, justice and peace-making beloved community where newcomers, returning members and friends, and old timers find that there is so much love, respect and compassion for each other among us that nobody needs to go looking for “more love somewhere.” Let it be so.
______
The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
UPCOMING WORSHIP SERVICES
The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
October 5
Blessing of the Animals/
Climate of Change
In this annual tradition we celebrate all animals and especially those who give or once gave us joy and love. Please bring your pet to be blessed by Revs. Lilia Cuervo and Fred Small and introduced to the congregation in this multigenerational and multispecies service. If your pet is no longer living, please bring a photograph or memento. In his homily, Rev. Small reflects on the People’s Climate March in New York City.
Rev. Fred Small preaches.
October 12 Dialogue with Dawkins
In his dazzling 2006 bestseller, The God Delusion, the brilliant biologist Richard Dawkins eviscerates religion and the theological impulse. After so thorough a vivisection, Rev. Fred Small considers whether there’s still life in the corpse. (Spoiler alert! It’s alive!)
Rev. Fred Small preaches.
October 19 Living Our Faith
Gospel Sunday! The First Parish Gospel Choir returns under the inspiring direction of Linda Brown-San Martin. Since Unitarian Universalism has no creed, no required set of beliefs, what does it mean for us to live our faith? Rev. Fred Small preaches.
October 26
The Interdependent Imperative
The dominant American narrative and the Unitarian tradition frequently emphasize the rights and privileges of the individual. Spiritual growth, ecological awareness, and political savvy tend to draw us toward a recognition of interdependence.
Rev. Fred Small preaches.
The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION CORNER
The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
The puppets are coming! The puppets are coming!
On October 26 we are delighted to host Bruce Orr of Mudeye Puppet Company for a puppet-making workshop. We’ll be creating seven large-scale puppets, one to represent each of our 7 Principles.
We often use the seven colors of the rainbow as a teaching tool to help the children remember the Principles – and I’m excited to carry that one step further this year, letting them dig deep into the meaning and symbols of the Principles. At our last Ingathering, the children gathered in rainbow color-based groups to brainstorm powerful animals that would match each principle. They came up with some great and creative inspirations for us to build! I can’t wait to see the green wolf of Searching for Truth, the violet bee of Caring for Earth’s Lifeboat, and the yellow phoenix of Freedom to Learn Together. We plan to use the puppets later this year in worship. It would be exciting to see them represent First Parish in Cambridge at some of our many rallies and Walk-a-thons, too!
The puppet-making workshop will be a very special day requiring some preparations of us! We’ll need to collect some recycling materials to build the armatures, have a few extra adult/youth volunteers to help, and be ready to build that day!
The workshop itself will run from 10:30 am to 2:30 pm in the Barn Room, with a break at noon. Younger children may be ready to go home at that point, but we hope as many as possible will stay for the full workshop! Parents and guardians, please also note that if you are not volunteering, the afternoon portion of the puppeting workshop will be available as child care for children over 5 during the Semi-Annual Meeting.
The puppets will be made of a sturdy cornstarch papier-mache, over cardboard structures. Please be sure to have your child wear clothes that can get messy on the 26th! Some smocks will be available. Here is a list from Bruce of what to start saving:
- Cardboard. Lots of it. 1 ply or 2 ply is best.
- Newspaper. Lots of that, too. You can't have too much of either for what we are building.
- Old Bike Tubes - Good for harnesses, belt's etc.
- House paint. Bright colors.
- Wash tubs - to hold glue and rinse hands in. (These will be returned to you)
- Grocery bags - this will be the paper part of the papier mache'.
You can bring donations to the Barn Room during any RE session, or during the week, you can drop off donations at the front office, labeled “10/26 Puppet Workshop.”
If you can volunteer to help that day, please email me at to sign up.
Thanks in advance for your support for this fun and exciting learning opportunity for our children!
In faith,
Mandy
The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
Micro – Macro Aggressions
A Follow Up to the Leadership Retreat
by Charlene Galarneau
Leaving the Leadership Retreat, we revel in the magnificent blue sky and crisp air of that September afternoon and walk down the brick alleyway past Passim’s, thinking of lunch. A Cambridge police cruiser, blue lights flashing and horn blaring, maneuvers through the Mass Ave. traffic to pull over a big shiny Chrysler driven by a dark skinned man. My adrenaline rushes. We walk to a concrete sidewalk pillar next to the car, lean against it, and witness. In a show-of-force voice, look, and stance, the white officer tells the driver what he has done wrong. The man responds; the officer responds louder and more emphatically. The officer returns to his cruiser, then to the car, and the driver and car blend back into the stream of traffic.
I wonder about the connection of this traffic stop to microaggressions – the subject of a workshop that Susan Shepard and I had just facilitated at the Leadership Retreat.
Microaggressions are (as defined by Derald Wing Sue):
Commonplace verbal, behavioral or environmental indignities, whether unintentional or intentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative slights or insults to people from marginalized groups
“Where are you from?” “That’s so gay.” “I don’t notice color.” “Don't be a sissy.”
Given the history of race relations in the US, including Cambridge, and how that has manifest - in police violence - in death, Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri being only the latest most well-known, this traffic stop felt “hostile” to me, this white observer, and it felt like something more than a micro-aggression. On the one hand, the officer was just doing his job (though we could talk about whether the job requires such “attitude”). On the other hand, dark skinned men of Cambridge, young and old, tell us how - and how often - they experience interactions with the police – see the recent two-part series in The Cambridge Chronicle (Aug 28 and Sept 4) for their words.
Most of us don't intend to be hostile or negative, to insult or to harm. My microaggressions are usually unintentional, but intentional or not, they hurt. I know because people tell me. And at my best, I drop my defensiveness - “I didn't mean …”; I let go of my fear of making a mistake and I hear what another person says about their experience of my words or action. And I learn that the hurts accumulate quickly given how often microaggressions happen, especially to marginalized persons. And the connection to the traffic stop? Microaggressions help create an environment where not-so-micro-aggressions happen and are tolerated.
Our covenant of right relations here at First Parish reminds me to “Listen compassionately, speak respectfully, and take responsibility for my actions and feelings.” And if that weren’t enough, also to “admit my mistakes,” “assume the good intentions of others,” and “strive to stay in relationship through conflict.” I’m grateful to be part of a community whose people make such sacred promises to one another and work to fulfill them in their journey together.
Centro Presente is Our Shared Offering Recipient for October
During the month of October, one half of the undesignated Sunday offering will support the work of Centro Presente. Centro Presente was founded in 1981 by Sister Rose Marie Cummings in direct response to the rapidly growing community of Salvadoran refugees fleeing violence, government repression and instability during the civil conflicts in Central America in the 1980s. It is a member-driven, statewide Latin American immigrant organization dedicated to the self-determination and self-sufficiency of the Latin American immigrant community of Massachusetts. Their work includes adult education, legal services, community organizing, and a youth group in addition to various campaigns.
Operated and led primarily by Central American immigrants, Centro Presente struggles for immigrant rights and for economic and social justice and is in alignment with Beyond Borders - Sin Fronteras' goals, as well as UU Values. Through the integration of community organizing, leadership development and basic services, Centro Presente strives to give their members voice and build community power. Their Just Communities/Comunidades Justas campaign seeks to counteract the government’s current “Enforcement Only” response to immigration by educating and mobilizing people against efforts to criminalize undocumented immigrants. We partner with Centro Presente, supporting their educational and advocacy efforts and Beyond Borders - Sin Fronteras, part of the Social Justice Council, nominated the group to receive the shared offering.
Women’s Sacred Circle – Open Circle, October 4 at 7:00 pm
Women interested in joining the First Parish Women’s Sacred Circle Spiritual Practice Group are warmly welcomed to the annual Open Circle on Saturday, October 4. Join us in the Nursery/Barn Room at 7 pm.
The Women’s Sacred Circle provides a safe, sacred space for women to explore their connection to feminine spirituality, to the earth, and to each other, celebrating the Goddess within each woman. We open to accept new members only once a year & then meet monthly as a closed group thereafter.
Circles are held on the first Saturdays of each month, October – June. In order to foster a deep sense of trust and community, we ask that members returning in November make a commitment to attend for the whole year. Please contact Holly Williams at if you are interested in attending the October circle.
Women’s Book Group
The Women’s Book Group meets on the first Tuesday of every month from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm in the Chapel. The group is open to women of all ages who are friends or members of First Parish. We are a friendly low-stress group. You don’t have to read every book, just come when you can! Many participants bring a snack or dessert to share. Contact with specific questions or to join our e-mail listserv. Our schedule (potentially subject to re-arranging) is:
October – Letters to My Daughter by Maya Angelou
November – The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert
December – Chrysalis: Maria Sibylla Merian and the Secrets of Metamorphosis by Kim Todd
January – Girl with the Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
February – The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures by Anne Fadiman
March – Claire of the Sea Light by Edwidge Danticat
April – Margaret Fuller: A New American Life by Megan Marshall
May – Moving Violations: War Zones, Wheelchairs, and Declarations of Independence
by John Hockenberry
June – Black Walden: Slavery and its Aftermath in Concord, Massachusetts by Elsie Lemier
Middle East Education Group News
The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
Educational event on Sunday October 12 at 12:30 pm in the Chapel: Who are the Yazidis, the Alawites, the Salafis and the Wahhabis? We hear those names in news from the Middle East, but may have no idea who they are or what they believe. This program will deal with various sects in the Middle East that have been in the news. Most of us know next to nothing about these groups. Some groups are clearly Muslim, but others have adopted beliefs that are not compatible with the tenets of Islam.
Grace Hall will present a summary of the beliefs of these groups as compared to the basic beliefs of Islam. This is not an expert lecture, but a talk that hopefully will help all of us better understand some sources of the conflicts in the Middle East. Note that the basic information will be presented in about half an hour, followed by discussion. If you have other plans for the afternoon, feel free to come in just for the initial talk. There will be handouts available. If you want to read articles on the topic ahead of time, email with your request and she will provide links.
“Instilling Hope in Gaza” Tuesday October 28, 7:00 pm in the Meeting House. The group will host an event presented by the Gaza Mental Health Foundation to honor the memory of Dr. Eyad el-Sarraj, founder of the Gaza Community Mental Health Program, who died in December 2013. Dr. Noam Chomsky will be the featured speaker. Refreshments will be served after the event. The event will be free of charge and open to the public.
Next spring the group hopes to provide some opportunities to learn about Nowruz, the Persian New Year. Possibilities include an organized visit to events at the Museum of Fine Arts and the group is looking for a current film or a book from Iran to be the basis of an educational offering.
The next meeting of the group is Sunday, October 12, at 9:00 am downstairs in the Maria Baldwin Room. For further information, email .
The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
Multicultural Congregations Book in the Works,
Featuring First Parish!
from Karin Lin
The Meetinghouse NewsSeptember 20141
I want to share the exciting news that Skinner House Books has approved a proposal by me and Rev. Nancy Palmer Jones, Senior Minister of the First Unitarian Church of San José, CA, for a book on multicultural congregations within Unitarian Universalism. This book will feature the stories of four congregations on this journey, including San José and Cambridge, and we are aiming for publication in fall 2017. Our working title is The Joy of the Journey: Unitarian Universalist Congregations on the Road to Multiculturalism.
As many of you know, First Parish has been designated one of the Unitarian Universalist Association’s "Mosaic Makers" congregations for our commitment to and accomplishments toward this vision of a multicultural, multiracial future. In 2012, the UUA Office of Multicultural Growth and Witness (MG&W) solicited chapters from a number of Mosaic Makers congregations to be assembled into a book. Fred, Lilia, and I wrote and submitted one, but due to staffing changes and other obstacles, the book never came to pass. Last January, Skinner House and UUA MG&W jointly approached Nancy---a former author/editor---to revive the project in slightly different form. Nancy invited me to be her co-author, which I was honored to accept.