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You're invited to worship with us in-person or online this Sunday, March 19th at 10:30 a.m. Gather in our Sanctuary at UU Meriden; or participate by joining our Zoom meeting. Followed by March's Congregational Conversation.
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Worship associate Elaine Donovan considers "Our Response to a Polarized Society" — how we can "practice loving community" while advancing justice in the face of an increasing polarization. Musical accompaniment from the UU performing group Meetinghouse! Please join us for March's Congregational Conversation following worship.
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SATURDAY: GAME NIGHT @ UU MERIDEN
Starts at 6:30 tonight — Come when you can!
Saturday, March 18th at UU Meriden
All are welcome! All you need is yourself but we invite you to bring a few of your favorite games, snacks or beverages if you'd like, and friends/family to join the fun! We’ll also do a group game all together.
Questions? Talk to Liz! Text: 860-978-9534 Email: lizhallyoga@gmail.com
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In Memorium, Jen Stark
Remember and celebrate the life of Jen Stark at 11:00 AM on Saturday, March 25, 2023 at The Center Congregational Church in Meriden.
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UU Meriden member Jen Stark passed from this life on February 27 after a long battle with leukemia. We will help her family remember and celebrate her life with Rev. Tony at 11:00 AM on Saturday, March 25, 2023 at The Center Congregational Church in Meriden, which can accommodate a larger gathering. Click here for directions. Jen requested face masks be worn during her memorial service, please, for those who may need protection (as she did.)
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Jen will be remembered for her depth of kindness and strength of spirit. Her work leaves an indelible impact those who benefit from medical treatments she helped research. Read about Jen's remarkable life here. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in her honor and memory to the Sjogren's Foundation, The Leukemia And Lymphoma Society, or the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, as well as donating blood or platelets if you're able, and doing an act of kindness for someone else.
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Challenge Fund Update: WE DID IT!
We made our goal of $20k pledged — Thank you UUCM Family!! 💙
Your generosity has allowed us to reach our goal of maintaining our part-time minister. If you have made a commitment, it would be helpful if you could send the funds as soon as you are able to. You can give online via PayPal, select "Challenge Fund" in the drop down menu, or send us a check with "FY 24 Challenge Fund" in the memo line. Thank you to everyone for participating in this special winter campaign to support the future of our community. We are grateful for your dedication to UU Meriden!
Trish Schneider, Treasurer
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Church News
TOMORROW: Congregational Conversation — March 19 after worship
The next congregational conversation will take place on March 19. This conversation will be led by the Board of Trustees and Rev. Tony will not be present. The topic of this conversation will be Rev, Tony's relationship to our congregation and whether we want to look at ways to make his tenure with us more permanent. We can discuss our options and people's thoughts and feelings about how we want to proceed. We hope to see you there!
Next Board Meeting: this Wednesday March 22 @ 10AM
Due to scheduling conflicts, the next Board of Trustees meeting will take place at 10AM (instead of our usual 6:30 time). That will be Wednesday March 22. These meetings are open to all members of the UUCM family. To attend, March 22 on Zoom please contact trustees@uumeriden.org to request a Zoom invitation.
Changes coming to our Bylaws
The Board of Trustees and Rev. Tony, along with valuable help from Anita Sanders, are working on a major revision of our Bylaws. We plan to have a suggested draft out to everyone by early April. April's Congregational Conversation will be about our Bylaws. After input is received and incorporated, the new Bylaws will be put to a vote at May's annual meeting.
Narcan and CPR/AED Training
Please email Nancy Burton if you are interested in having this training, or if you have interest in donating to a scholarship fund to assist others in meeting the fee. Narcan training can be done at the church for free. However, for CPR/AED training the charge is in the range of about $80-85 dollars per person. With one of the local agencies there is a minimum number of attendees of 12 people. If there are fewer than 12 people we would still be charged the rate for 12. I am looking at Saturday, June 17th as a possible date. Email Nancy at trustees@uumeriden.org.
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THANK YOU to our UU UN-CONFERENCE attendees last Saturday! You created a welcoming environment, a refreshing, open space for ideas & connections to grow! Where will those inspirations lead our state's UUs?
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Did you know?
This week in holidays, holy days, & remembrances
Ostara, the Vernal Equinox – March 20 🐣🌷
Ramadan — March 22 to April 21, 2023 ☪
World Water Day – March 22 💧
Climate Justice Month — March 22 to April 22 🌎
Selma–Montgomery march – March 21-25, 1965 ✊🏾
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Meriden Secular AA Group from Steve Volpini
For those alcoholics who seek a practical approach to long-term recovery, beginning on Saturday, April 1st at 7 p.m. there will be a new, non-religious AA meeting.
The Meriden Secular AA group will promote a healthy lifestyle through social support and consistent self-improvement without a religious focus. The first meeting will be Saturday, April 1, at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary of the Unitarian Universalist Church at 328 Paddock Avenue, Meriden. This will be a smoke-free meeting. In order to promote polite attention, there will be no use of cell phones during the meeting.
For further information, please contact Steve Volpini at (203) 238-0008.
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Rev. Tony's Spiritual Challenge
Take Two: Enter into Silence with Welcoming Prayer.
My spiritual challenge for you this month is to practice being silent for at least two minutes every day. Neurobiological research shows that the brain requires AT LEAST two minutes to shift mood, disengage from stressful input or stimulus and begin the chemical process of neuroplasticity. Two minutes – minimum! To give it a better change, give your brain FIVE minutes of silence. FIVE Minutes begins to be enough to improve the functionality of the right superior colliculus. Silence enhances our brain’s ability to feel empathy and excitement.
If you can get to five minutes, great! If you can get to 10, 20, 30 or 60, wonderful. But start with two and consider it a major victory if you can make this a daily practice for a few weeks. You can use this as a way to start a meditation practice, but that’s not required. You can stand up; you sit at your desk at work or lie down on your bed. However you do it, just be quiet. Experience silence.
What’s this got to do with vulnerability? Being quiet is scary. Many of us aren’t scared of anything or anyone as much as ourselves – our true, honest, vulnerable self. For those new to silence or meditation, when things go quiet in the mind, the first things that tend to surface are difficult emotions and anxieties. Just letting them be – letting those thoughts rise and pass, without clinging to them or following them down rabbit holes is what meditation practice and encountering silence is about.
To help you I offer this version of a Welcoming Prayer based on a model by my UU ministerial colleague, the Dr. Kelly Murphy Mason. You can use this prayer as words of invitation to begin silence. Welcoming Prayer was developed by the late Mary Mrozowski, a founding member of the Contemplative Outreach spiritual network, based on a prayer from Jesuit spiritual director Jean-Pierre de Caussade titled Abandonment. Rev. Dr. Mason’s version begins with a preparation, which is also good preparation for being silent.
This Rev. Dr. Mason’s version of the prayer:
Focusing on and sinking into whatever is experienced in the body. Notice any sensations, cognitions, and emotions you may be having. Are these feelings strange or familiar to you?
Welcoming whatever is experienced. Accept that your feelings and thoughts are real and deserve your full recognition.
Letting go. Allow yourself to release your fixed opinions about whatever is most challenging or difficult or uncomfortable in your experience.
Welcome, welcome, welcome! I welcome everything that comes to me in this moment… I welcome all thoughts, feelings, persons, situations, and conditions coming to mind. I let go of my desire for security and survival. I let go of my desire for esteem and affection. I let go of my desire for power and control. I let go of my desire for change… I open myself to the love and the presence of God/Spirit and healing action and grace within… I let go of my desire for security, affection, control, and I embrace this moment as it is.
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After reading or speaking this or reciting in your mind, try to be silent for a minimum of two minutes. Note what happens and what happens after days or weeks of practicing this every day.
As always, I’d love to hear about your experiences with this challenge. Call or text me at 508-344-3668 or send me an email at revtony@pm.me.
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Member of the Month, appreciating each other
Continuing our tradition of recognizing people who contribute to the life of the UUCM community by naming a month after them, March is Kathy Lindberg month. Kathy works quietly in the background for us. She heads up our Caring and Concern efforts by sending out cards to our members and friends who may be going through an illness or other difficult times. Kathy also runs a small group ministry every month which helps people get to know each other and have community support on a more personal level. Kathy consistently participates in various fund raising and other UUCM events. Thank you Kathy for all you do for our church community!
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Worship this Month
Note: Sunday worship services at UU Meriden begin at 10:30 A.M. We are located at 328 Paddock Ave. Unless otherwise indicated, our Sundays worship will also be offered via Zoom aka "Hybrid." You can check if a service is in-person, online, or hybrid on the schedule below:
- March 19 at 10:30 a.m. . . . "Our Response to a Polarized Society" Worship Associate Elaine Donovan considers how we can practice loving community while advancing justice in the face of an increasingly polarized society. Musical accompaniment from the UU performing group Meetinghouse! Please join us for March's Congregational Conversation following worship. In-person at UUCM & online via Zoom. Join us virtually by clicking here.
- March 26 at 10:30 a.m. . . . "Split Level Vulnerability" Steve Volpini leads us in a consideration of the differences between online vulnerability via social media and vulnerability as experienced in person, face to face. In-person at UUCM & online via Zoom. Join us virtually by clicking here.
- April 02 at 10:30 a.m. . . . "Radicals, Resistance, Rebellion, and Revolution at the heart of the Judeo-Christian Tradition" Rev. Tony Lorenzen leads an all ages service and reflects on spirit of resistance inherent in the prophetic tradition of Judaism and Christianity. Accompaniment by Kevin Wyman. In-person at UUCM & online via Zoom. Join us virtually by clicking here.
- April 09 at 10:30 a.m. . . . "Seeds of Resistance, Small Acts with Great Power" On this Easter Sunday, guest preacher Rev. Diane M. Daniels returns to UU Meriden with a reflection on the power of even small acts of resistance to evil and injustice. In-person at UUCM & online via Zoom. Join us virtually by clicking here.
- Attending via Zoom: Our hybrid services are simultaneously live online via Zoom and in-person at UUCM. The UU Meriden Zoom meeting access link is always http://go.uumeriden.org/zoom. Unless otherwise indicated, worship services will continue to be hybrid.
- Please see our current COVID Policy on our website HERE, effective 10/2022
Our March Worship Theme is Vulnerability — For recommendations, inspirations, and free resources relating to our Monthly Worship Themes visit our website. Get started on March's spiritual challenge in the news section above! You can read the Minister's Monthly Message at the end of the newsletter.
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Support UU Meriden with a Secure Online Donation
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It only takes a few clicks to support UU Meriden and the causes that matter most to you — online! The drop down menu on our PayPal allows you to select whether you are contributing to your pledge, adding to our weekly offering, donating to Social Justice Council, fulfilling your commitment to the Challenge Fund, or supporting our Pastoral Care Ministries. Thank you to everyone who contributed to our fundraisers last year and to everyone who participated in our Challenge Fund this winter! To check it out, click the PayPal icon below or follow this link: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=MWVNLAV4AHY6A
Thank you for your Generosity!
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THANK YOU for all your generous donations & contributions through these years of change and challenges. Please continue to support the congregation financially. Click the PayPal icon to donate online now!
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The Minister's Monthly Message
“Vulnerability is Scary Stuff”
Dear Beloveds,
This month’s theme is possibly the most powerful one we have yet encountered. Vulnerability is scary. It’s a monster with many heads, all bearing razor-sharp teeth and breathing fire. Each head the incarnation of something in our personal history and our culture that has caused us to be guarded, afraid, suspicious, untrusting, anxious and unsure that someone, others, the world, God, will hurt us, harm us, betray us or otherwise damage us. And yet, without vulnerability all we can ever do is interact with each other’s armor.
As courage isn’t courage if you’re not scared, neither is vulnerability. Many of us often think we’re being vulnerable, but we’re really not. We sometimes share a part of ourselves or our true thoughts and feelings, and we don’t really care what others think or how others will react. That seems like vulnerability, but it’s not. It’s either something that really isn’t a risk for us or it’s yet another mask of bravado shielding us from others’ reactions.
Being vulnerable usually means something could go wrong. Someone may not actually honor your sharing, your honesty, and your openness. Someone may take advantage of it. This is true, and that’s the risk. But the reward is great. Our vulnerability often allows others to be vulnerable, too.
Vulnerability isn’t only for individuals, it’s for groups, such as congregations, too. To be truly welcoming is to be a place where people can be vulnerable, where they can bring their true self, even if they don’t or aren’t ready to do it. A congregation becomes such a place by everyone working on being more vulnerable with each other.
Things that kill vulnerability can grow like weeds. Gossip – spreading news or information that isn’t ours to share inhibits vulnerability. Triangulation – not speaking directly to someone, but instead telling a third person and trying to rope them in to do your communicating for you murders vulnerability. Dealing in anonymous comments and feedback is the polar opposite of vulnerability, sowing seeds of mistrust instead of welcome.
May we all practice vulnerability this month in ways that not only strengthen our individual selves, but the congregation, too.
In faith,
Rev. Tony
March's worship theme is Vulnerability. You can find March's Spiritual Challenge at the top of the newsletter; you can also check out Rev. Tony's Spiritual Challenge as a video on Facebook.
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Minister's Schedule
Rev. Tony is generally available 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, & Wednesday and at any time in an emergency. The quickest way to reach Rev. Tony is to call or text him at (508) 344-3668. You can also reach him via email at revtony@pm.me. If you contact Rev. Tony via email, and do not receive a response for more than 1 business day, please call or text him at the number above for a faster response.
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Credits, Thanks, & Attributions
- Chalice Logo: UUA
- Trish Schneider for the UU UNCONFERENCE picture
- Soul Matters - thematic image
- Thanks in Advance: Future Newsletter Volunteers -- If you wish this newsletter came out earlier, you can make that happen! Volunteer! Email announcements@uumeriden.org
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PUBLICATION POLICY
Announcements for the Weekly Update, Social Media
Announcements are due no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday for that week's publication. Send your news to the below email address, say what it's for in the subject line, and if there is an attachment please write 'see attachment' in the email. Tips: be brief; pictures and links encouraged where appropriate; include a contact person and specific dates; no formatting is necessary. Announcements are subject to editing and approval; submissions will run in the Weekly Update each Friday, or Saturday – other email blasts should be explicitly requested. Items are prioritized for timeliness. Send your news to: announcements@uumeriden.org.
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How to Contact UU Meriden
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