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Events for Wednesday, October 29
through Tuesday, November 4
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Dear <<First Name>>!
This is surely a weekend of memory at First Unitarian!
On Saturday, some of us will be building new memories by working in the Dayspring gardens. Others will join Catherine Evans in visiting the graves of Unitarians of another day at Green Mount Cemetery. See notices below for more information.
On Sunday morning, bring a memento to church of a special companion in your life being you’d like to remember during our Sunday service. A photo of a loved one, a trinket from a special place in your life, a chew-toy of a dear companion animal . . . something that you’ll place on the table and which will focus our remembering. On Celtic Samhain (and its Christian counterparts, All Hallow’s Eve, All Saints Day and All Souls Day), the veil between realities is thought to be at its thinnest. We are given power to communicate with those who have died, and to assert the notion that “what is remembered lives.”
On Sunday afternoon at 5:30, you are invited to take part in a celebration of the Lord’s Supper in the Universalist and Unitarian Christian tradition. Rev. Olson will use the communion elements given to him by his mentor in ministry Rev. Raymond H. Bradley, Jr., who died in August. Jim Houston will play contemplative music. All who participate will be welcome to share the liturgy, drawn from the hymnal published jointly by the Universalists and the Unitarians nationally just months after the merger of Second Universalist and First Unitarian in Baltimore.
“First Unitarian Church of Baltimore . . . spiritual home of a diverse and mutually supportive community.” I believe that’s who we truly are.
With affection,
“Rev”
David Carl Olson
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Green Mount Cemetery Tour
Church historian Catherine Evans will lead a walking tour of the 19th century Unitarians buried at Green Mount Cemetery, including Enoch Pratt, Rev. George Washington Burnap and Rev. Charles Richmond Weld. We will also stop by the gravesites of notable Baltimoreans, among them Johns Hopkins and Betsy Bonaparte. The tour lasts 1 1/2-2 hours.
Please contact Catherine at catherine@firstunitarian.net if you plan to attend. You may also contact Becky Brooks, DLRE, regarding this event. (While last minute attendees are welcome, it helps to know how many folks to prepare handouts for.)
Enter the main entrance of Green Mount Cemetery at 1601 Greenmount Avenue (opposite Oliver Street) and park. We will gather inside the gate before we set out on the walk. (If walking is a problem for you, you can accompany the walking group in a car for most of the tour.)
If there is any interest, at the conclusion of the tour we can go to the nearby Baltimore Cemetery to visit the Unitarian grave site there.
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The Poverty and Homelessness Ministry is kicking off a clothing drive for the women at Dayspring, which we are calling "Suits Me Just Fine". As you change your wardrobe over from summer to winter clothing, we urge you to set aside some garments that would be appropriate for women who would be going on job interviews and beginning new jobs. They don't need to be suits: we are looking for casual business-like outfits that will create a good impression. Scarves, shoes, purses and jewelry will also be welcome.
We will also be collecting clean, usable children's clothing for the children who live at Dayspring.
Please bring the clothing to the "Suits Me" table at coffee hour, starting this Sunday. We need a volunteer each week to staff the table, and others to sort and hang the clothing for the event at Dayspring when women will be able to select outfits. Questions? Volunteer to help? Email Barbara Svoboda at svob@comcast.net.
The deadline for turning in clothes will be Sunday, November 9, at 12:30. |
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From the Social Action Clearinghouse
2015 Change for Change Nominations
Do you know a nonprofit organization or program making a difference in Baltimore? If so, please nominate it as one of First Unitarian's Change for Change partners during 2015. Change for Change partner organizations receive half the undesignated funds from our Sunday collections.
Nomination forms are here or at the Social Action Clearinghouse table during coffee hour. Please e-mail your nominations to socialaction@firstunitarian.net or bring them to the SAC table by November 30.
Priority will be given to organizations and programs addressing poverty or homelessness.
Thank you for helping First Unitarian be a Beacon of Hope in Baltimore and the World! |
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Compass Update Released
Towson Unitarian Universalist Church Presents:
Lothar Schafer
Distinguished Professor of Physical Chemistry (Emeritus)
on
What Quantum Physics Reveals About the Nature of Reality and How We Should Live
Friday, November 7th, 7:00 PM
at TUUC, 1710 Dulaney Valley Rd., Lutherville, Md.
Office: 410-825-6045
“It is an unexpected fact and characteristic of quantum physics that, during the past hundred years or so, a large number of physicists, among them distinguished pioneers, were inspired by their science to speak of the presence of mind in the universe, and they weren’t afraid to conclude that consciousness is a cosmic property. This is a phenomenon that has no equivalent in the physics of the centuries prior to 1900, which is usually called classical physics. This phenomenon does in itself not prove anything, but it
gives us a choice: We can shrug it off as a sign that the pioneers of quantum physics just didn’t understand what they were dealing with -- and I have heard a number of physicists express this view. Or we can open our minds and take a look at why these people said what they said, and perhaps we can learn something.”
Lothar Schafer is a Distinguished Professor of Physical Chemistry (emeritus) at the University of Arkansas and has co-authored 250 papers on quantum chemical calculations and diffraction experiments. His research in the areas of Electron Diffraction, Applied Quantum Chemistry, and Computational Chemistry led his team to develop breakthroughs leading to the first pulse-beam, Time-Resolved Electron Diffraction studies of laser-excited molecules. Additionally, they performed the first quantum chemical geometry determinations of peptide molecules, predicting structural trends in proteins a decade before they were experimentally observed. Dr. Schafer is the author of In Search of Divine Reality: Science as a Source of Inspiration (University of Arkansas, 1997) and his most recent book Infinite Potential: What Quantum Physics Reveals About How We Should LIve (Deepak Chopra Books, 2013). |
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From the Social Action Clearinghouse & Adult Religious Education:
Join Us for Haiti Study Group to start on November 8, 2014.
Six members of First U will be joining 6 members from the Columbia UU Church for a service/ learning trip to Haiti in January 2015. There will be 5 Study Group sessions prior to the trip & other sessions scheduled after the trip. We will be following The UU College of Social Justice program that is designed to help people become more effective in working for social justice in our world. All members and friends are invited to join us for any or all of the sessions as we prepare for our work in Haiti and an ongoing relationship between Haiti and our spiritual community. First Session will be on Saturday, November 8, 2014, 9:30-11AM in the Volunteer Office. contact: Roberta, msvee505@gmail.com.
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Our Change for Change Partner for November and December
Our Change for Change partner during November and December is the Friends of Dayspring Gardens, a grassroots project transforming desolate and weed-filled vacant lots into an oasis where vegetables, herbs, trees and native plants can flourish. Growing food is a top priority as this area is part of a “food desert” in East Baltimore, where obtaining fresh healthy foods is difficult.
Friends of Dayspring Gardens is a collaboration of the families and staff of Dayspring, community residents and members of First Unitarian Church. More information is available at the Social Action Clearinghouse table during coffee hour. |
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Spread the Word
about Your
Church Event!
Here's how to submit your items to Happenings, the church calendar and Sunday announcements. Any special formatting will be changed to fit the current format standards in place.
1. CALENDAR ONLY: Click here to complete the online form. (Allow 48 hours for your event to be approved and added to the calendar.)
2. HAPPENINGS AND VOICES FROM THE COMMUNITY: Submit your announcements by emailingoffice@firstunitarian.net, by noon each Tuesday.
3. SUNDAY ANNOUNCEMENTS ONLY: For announcements that you want in the Sunday Order of Service, please email office@firstunitarian.net by 2 p.m. on Wednesday. |
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