Led by the Rev. Melissa Carvill-Ziemer and Worship Associate Justin Czekaj – This Memorial Day weekend we will return again to the story of Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross. Barton devoted her life to tending the needs of soldiers. How are we tending the needs of soldiers and their families today and caring for veterans and their families when they finally return home?
Month: May 2013
June 2013 Sermon Topics
2 June Happiness is …………
Religious Education Sunday and Flower Ceremony – This annual multigenerational worship service is the time for our RE program to shine! Join us as each class presents a special learning from this past church year. We will honor our volunteer teachers, award Boy Scouts with the emblem they have earned and bridge our high school seniors into young adulthood. Please bring a cut flower or two or three for the Flower Ceremony.
9 June Here’s to Happiness!
One service @10:00 am
Rev. Melissa Carvill-Ziemer, Director of Religious Education Karen Lapidus and Worship Associate Bonnie Harper – Our annual outdoor worship service and picnic will be at Plum Creek Park in Kent (which is at the intersection of Cherry Street and Mogadore Road). We will be meeting at Pavilion #2 for one service only at 10:00 am. Our service will be fully multigenerational; the whole community is invited to worship and play together.
Please bring a lawn chair (and maybe an extra to share), a dish to share at the picnic following the service, your own place setting, any games you would like to play during the picnic and anything else you will need to be comfortable. And remember, we will have one service only beginning at 10:00 am!
16 June That All Should Be Well
Rev. Melissa Carvill-Ziemer and Worship Associate Sophie Smith – Dorothea Dix was a leading Unitarian reformer of the 19th century. She worked for improved conditions in prisons and especially for improved treatment and accommodations for people living with mental illness. This morning we’ll look at her work through the lens of Hosea Ballou’s theology of happiness and consider what we might learn from both for our own time.
23 June A Tired Puppy is a Happy Puppy
Kristina Spaude and Worship Associate Lori McGee – My partner has said this phrase dozens of times in the last few years, and it’s become a mantra of sorts for me. During this service we are going to use this phrase as a lens through which we can understand sources of happiness and explore how we can invite happiness into our lives. While there is no key to happiness, there are many opportunities for it if we are open to them.
Lessons from the Life of Malcolm X – May 19, 2013
Led by the Rev. Melissa Carvill-Ziemer and Worship Associate Kristina Spaude – If Malcolm X were still alive, he would have been turning 88 years old on this day. Over the course of his life cut too short, Malcolm X made an incredible journey from an exclusivist affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood to an expan-sive embrace of what he called “the family of man.” This morning we will tell his story and listen for the inspiration it holds for our own lives.
Family Matters – Sunday, May 12, 2013
Led by the Rev. Melissa Carvill-Ziemer and Worship Associate John Marfy – We often say that families come in all shapes and sizes and that love is what makes a family. This morning we will again affirm the many ways in which families are formed and nurtured as we reflect upon why it is that families still matter.
Three Mortalities – Sunday, May 5, 2013
Led by the Rev. Melissa Carvill-Ziemer and Worship Associate Elaine Bowen
The poet Wendell Berry writes, “No, no, there is no going back. / Less and less you are / that possibility you were. / More and more you have become / those lives and deaths / that have belonged to you.” This morning we will explore what it means to become the lives and death that have belonged to us through three particular mortalities selected by last fall’s service auction sermon winner, Gene Wenninger.
Spiritual Cinema this Friday, May 10 – Glory
Please join us for Spiritual Cinema this Friday, May 10 at 7:00 PM. We will watch the motion picture, “Glory” (1998). The movie is 122 minutes and will be followed by a short discussion of some of the topics raised by the movie. This month we will be screening the movie at the church. Please RSVP to Dan at [email protected].
Comments by Dan
Robert Gould Shaw came from a strong Unitarian family and is a strong example of a man who lived his ideals. He was an abolitionist who volunteered to lead an all african-american military unit, the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment, during the US Civil War. He gave his life to his country to secure equal rights for all people regardless of race. The movie is very moving and inspiring.
Recommended Reading from UUWorld
Movie Trailer:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWGt9Yr2bCw]
Amazon.com Description
One of the finest films ever made about the American Civil War, Glory also has the honor of being the first major Hollywood film to acknowledge the vital contribution of African American soldiers to the country’s historic struggle. Based on the books Lay This Laurel, by Lincoln Kirstein, and One Gallant Rush, by Peter Burchard, and the wartime letters of Robert Gould Shaw, the film tells the story of the 54th Regiment of the Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, an all-black unit comprising Northern freemen and escaped slaves. Under the command of Shaw (played by Matthew Broderick), the 54th served admirably in battle until they made their ultimate demonstration of bravery during the almost suicidal assault on the Confederate Fort Wagner in Charleston, South Carolina, on July 18, 1863. Glory achieves its powerful impact by meticulously setting up the terrible conditions under which these neglected soldiers fought, and by illuminating the tenacity of the human spirit from the oppression of slavery to the hard-won recognition of battlefield heroism. Although Denzel Washington deservedly won an Oscar for his supporting role as a runaway-slave-turned-soldier, Glory faced some tough competition at the 1989 Academy Awards (against popular hits like Driving Miss Daisy and Dead Poets Society) and was shut out of nearly all the major categories. Since then, it’s been duly recognized by historians and critics as a classic film of its genre. –Jeff Shannon
Everything You Wanted to Know About Memory Loss, But Forgot to Ask! – May 5, 2013 @ 1 PM
Supporting Our Loved Ones Living With Memory Loss
Please join us for a discussion of memory loss, an introduction to the different kinds of dementia and how it effects the brain, and how we can support and care for the people in our life who have memory loss. The workshop is presented by Rev. Katie Norris and sponsored by our Care Team. Rev. Katie is a caregiver for her mother who was diagnosed with Lewy Body Dementia seven years ago. Through this experience and her work as the Executive Director the Carolyn L. Farrell Foundation for Brain Health (farrellfoundation.com), she has been helping to raise awareness about dementia and help communities and families communicate and care for their loved ones with memory loss. We will engage in discussion, discover local resources, and even try a few dementia-friendly activities.
This event will take place on Sunday, May 5 from 1 to 3 pm. A light lunch will be offered immediately following the second service in Fessenden Hall. Please RSVP to the church office so that we can be sure to have enough food available. This event is open to the public so please feel free to invite family and friends to join us.
What are you passionate about?
Would you like to lead a Sunday service about it? The Sunday Program Committee meets on May 24th, and is seeking proposals for lay-led services for Summer and Fall. We believe that that the Sunday Service is best reflected in a variety of voices and experiences. Lay-led services allow us to share our individual spiritual journeys, experiences and diverse world views — an important part of our rich Unitarian Universalist heritage. If you might be interested in presenting a service, please complete a proposal, which may be downloaded from our web site at: //kentuu.org/docs/spc/sunday-proposal-e-form.pdf, and send it to Lois Weir.
Not sure about how to put together a complete service? Members of the committee can provide you with the help you need, so don’t be shy! General information about proposal preparation may be found at //kentuu.org/ministry/sunday-program/. Still have questions? Contact Lois through the Church office.