August 5
“Who is My Neighbor?” Lessons from Mr. Rogers, the Good Samaritan, and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.   Rev. Connie Grant speaking.
 

Children's Religious Education - "Summer Fun" Extended Nursery care (through Kindergarten age) will be located downstairs in the Nursery Room LL101. Older children will be in the Youth Room LL104.

August 12
"On ‘Not Enough Celebrations’" Reflections on the Patagonia National Parks of Chile and Argentina, established through the work of Douglas Tompkins, founder of The North Face outfitters.  The 10-million acre network of parks is intended to guarantee long-term biodiversity conservation while offering a unique set of ecological attributes, cultural values, ​​and economic benefits to local communities. 

Our guest speaker, the Rev. Ronald Nuss-Warren, Sarah Nuss-Warren’s father, is a retired Presbyterian pastor.  He received his M.Div. from the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California, where his education included courses at Starr King School for the Ministry, a Unitarian Universalist theological school.  He served in four settled pastorates, as a spiritual care coordinator for a hospice, and finally in two interim pastorates.  He has had a lifelong interest in Lakota spirituality and currently volunteers much time with the Lakota Lutheran Center in Scottsbluff, Nebraska.  He is also a member of the Order of Ecumenical Franciscans, following ideals of Francis of Assisi.  Ron and his wife Carolyn frequently visit Sarah's sister Dora, who lives in Argentina near the Patagonia National Park project.

 August 19
“How to Be Happy” What is happiness, and what really makes us happy?  Rev. Connie Grant speaking.
 
August 26
“Spirituality in Technology” How can we use technology as a tool to enhance our spiritual lives rather than detract from them?  Rev. Connie Grant speaking.
 

 

Do you enjoy throwing parties? Do you like organizing events? If you answered yes to either of these questions, then you may be interested in the new team for social events here at UUFoM.

We are looking for people who are enthusiastic about bringing people together for community and fun. Perhaps you can plan a game night or a barbecue or a fancy tea party. The possibilities are endless. If this sounds like a group you would like to be a part of, please reach out to Reverend Connie, Shannon Sonoras, or another member of the Engagement Team! 

Do you enjoy listening to Public Radio, specifically Delta Public Radio and CMU Public Radio?

• This is your opportunity to support our Fellowship as well as Public Radio by making a contribution through our annual “Bundling” program.
• You write a contribution check to either or both stations, then we send the checks to the radio stations.
• In return Delta and CMU Public Radio stations advertise the Fellowship on air.
• It’s a win/win opportunity as you’re supporting both the Fellowship and our community radio programs!

Please give checks to Linda Rector by August 20. 

Join us for lunch, program building and idea sharing!

The UUFoM Religious Education Team invites parents, volunteers, and interested members to get a preview into the coming year's program and to share ideas about religious education programming. We will answer initial questions about this year's theme and discuss new programming directions. 

We are also seeking feedback from you: what do you particularly enjoy and would like to see more of? This is a chance to share your ideas! 

Lunch and Childcare will be Provided. Questions: see Heather Cleland-Host, Director of Religious Education

Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/events/206654406673723/

2018-19 Religious Education Theme: journey toward meaning

Each component of this year’s program will focus on developing personal and community religious journeys as Unitarian Universalists: who am I? who are we? How do we connect to each other and the world?  Children and adults will explore how they and their community answer the questions of how to live and grow together.  We will be focused on two types of curricula: #1 those with a focus on journeying or welcoming – seeking or making meaning together (Credo Formation) and #2 those with a focus on the formation of a loving, supportive community – love.  (Community Building & Vision)

What do you believe?
One of the hallmarks and defining characteristics of Unitarian Universalism is that we have no creed.  This does not mean that we do not have beliefs; nor does it mean, as is sometimes said, that “we can believe anything we want.”  In our non-creedal religious movement, we have individual beliefs, not collective beliefs. 

As Unitarian Universalists, we formulate our belief statements in terms of credo, which is the first person singular (“I believe”); not creed, which is a doctrinal set of beliefs (“we believe”).

It’s not that we can believe anything we want to, it’s that we can—and do—believe what we believe.  We believe what we have to believe, not because anyone else or any written text tell us we “have to believe,” but because “…our senses, our learning, our Earth, our communities, and our wise people” (as Unitarian Universalist minister Barbara Wells lists some of the sources of wisdom from which we draw) give us reason to believe. Our own stories are among our sacred texts.

We are responsible for developing our own beliefs in light of our own experience and conscience.  A participant in an introductory session on Unitarian Universalism asked me whether this means that we are “required” to develop our own beliefs, and I found this an intriguing question.  For Unitarian Universalists, there is very little that is required by external authority!  Yet my hope is that each of us does feel ourselves “required” to develop our beliefs; that we will feel called to do so, to enrich our own spiritual lives and our conversation in community.  No one else will do it for us!

 “Our need is not to ‘find something to believe,’” Unitarian Universalist religious educator Edith Hunter reminds us, “but rather to discover that our lives indicate what we believe right now."

As James Luther Adams noted in his pragmatic theory of meaning, belief is “meaningful” insofar as it affects actual practice: “what difference to our practice and to our expectations … will [it] make to believe this rather than that.”

It matters what we believe; it matters even more how we live our beliefs.

One way we engage in articulating our beliefs is through workshops designed to help participants figure out what they believe about some theological questions (such as the meaning of life and death; the nature of human beings and our place in the universe).  I’ll be offering a Credo Workshop in October and November, and the schedule will be available soon.

-In faith and hope, Connie

Would you like to strengthen your connections with others at UUFoM and enhance your participation in the Fellowship, while deepening your own spiritual life? Join a Covenant Group!

A Covenant Group consists of up to ten people who gather around an interest, affinity, or activity to meet regularly over time for spiritual growth, community building, and congregational participation.  Group members practice deep listening as they share what’s going on in their lives, getting to know each other and themselves.  Group meetings follow a specified format, and each group is led by a trained facilitator who also participates in an ongoing facilitators’ group.  Each group establishes covenants including ground rules for the group’s relationship and interaction, commitment to welcome new members to the group, and service to the Fellowship and the community. 

More information about current Covenant Groups can be found on our website. 

You're invited to attend the 50th Annual Saginaw African Cultural Festival from August 10 - 12, 2018! It will be held from 12:00pm to 9:00pm each day, and will feature vendors, entertainment and children's activities.

To celebrate, King Osageyefuo Ofori Panin, the 35th king of one of the eastern regions in Ghana, West Africa, will be in attendance on Saturday, August 11 and will lead a discussion on the importance of elders in the community at 1:00 pm. Later that evening, Grammy-nominated singer Angie Stone will perform.

The festival is free admission and will be held at 2601 Lapeer Avenue (the Morley school grounds) in Saginaw (48601).

For more information, please contact Connie Ofori-Dankwa at [email protected].

 

 

Hospitality Groups
Sunday morning hospitality in August is provided by the Willow Group.
Organized by the Engagement Team, hospitality groups are made up of UUFoM members and friends who are asked to help with such tasks as making coffee, bringing snacks, and cleaning up the kitchen; ushering (including passing out orders of ervice and receiving and counting the offering); and helping the Welcome Team greet people as they come in the door, with special attention to visitors.

Current Hospitality Group listings are on the website. Don’t see your name and would like to be in a Hospitality Group? Contact Shannon Sonoras, at [email protected] or 989-708-5348.