The UUCW Nugget
December 21, 2016
 
Office Hours
(Sept 6, 2016 - 
June 29, 2017):
Mon, Tues, Wed: 
9 am - 3 pm
Thur. 9 am - 2 pm


REMINDER 
The Church Office is closed from December 23 - January 1. We will reopen on January 2. 
 
Congregational Mission Statement
"The members and friends of the Unitarian Universalist 
Church of Worcester covenant to be a congregation of love, hope and justice inspiring people to take on the challenges of a changing world."
  
Welcoming Church 
Mission Statement 

The LGBTQI and Allies of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester strives to further the affirmation and celebration of LGBTQI individuals in all aspects of the church community. We also seek to increase the visibility of UUCW as a Welcoming Congregation within the greater community.
 
Four Ways of Looking at a Season  
 
 1. December Moon by May Sarton

Before going to bed
After a fall of snow
I look out on the field
Shining there in the moonlight
So calm, untouched and white
Snow silence fills my head
After I leave the window.

Hours later near dawn
When I look down again
The whole landscape has changed
The perfect surface gone
Criss-crossed and written on
Where the wild creatures ranged
While the moon rose and shone.

Why did my dog not bark?
Why did I hear no sound
There on the snow-locked ground
In the tumultuous dark?

How much can come, how much can go
When the December moon is bright,
What worlds of play we'll never know
Sleeping away the cold white night
After a fall of snow.

2. "The Pagan Origin of Christmas"

Sir James Frazer says, "The largest pagan religious cult which fostered the celebration of December 25 as a holiday . . . was the pagan sun- worship, Mithraism . . . This winter festival was called . . . 'the Nativity of the SUN.'   Franz Cumont, perhaps the greatest scholar of Mithraism, wrote, quoting Minucius Felix, "The Mithraists also observed Sun-day and kept sacred the 25th of December as the birthday of the Sun. Many scholars have pointed out how the Sun- worshipping Mithraists, the Sun-worshipping Manicheans and the Christians were all syncretised and reconciled when Constantine led the take-over by Christianity."

However, other Sun-worshipping groups were included too, because of the general importance and popularity of Sol Invictus, the Invincible Sun-deity. Mario Righetti, a renowned Catholic liturgist, writes, "the Church of Rome, to facilitate the acceptance of the faith by the pagan masses, found it convenient to institute the 25th December as the feast of the temporal birth of Christ, to divert them from the pagan feast, celebrated on the same day in honour of the 'Invincible Sun', Mithras. [...] The mixing of pagan Sun-worship and Christianity is exemplified by the testimony of a Syrian scholiast on Bar Salibi, who said, "It was a custom of the heathen to celebrate on the same 25th of December the birthday of the Sun, at which they kindled lights in token of festivity. In these solemnities and festivities the Christians also took part." Practically all the known Sun-deities were born on the 25th December. In S.E. Titcomb, Aryan Sun myths, the Origin of Religions, we find it cited, quoted from primary sources, that the following Sun-deities were all born on 25 December, according to their legends: Crishna (Vishnu), Mithra (Mithras), Osiris, Horus, Hercules, Dionysus (Bacchus), Tammuz, Indra, Buddha. Therein we also read of the Scandinavian goddess Frigga in whose honour a "Mother-night" festival was held at the winter solstice (+ - 25 December), as well as a similar great feast of Yule, where a boar was offered at the winter solstice in honour of Frey." (from the website humanreligions.info)          

3. "The Tradition of Yule"

Yule, (pronounced EWE-elle) is when the dark half of the year relinquishes to the light half. Starting the next morning at sunrise, the sun climbs just a little higher and stays a little longer in the sky each day. Known as Solstice Night, or the longest night of the year, the sun's "rebirth" was celebrated with much joy. On this night, our ancestors celebrated the rebirth of the Oak King, the Sun King, the Giver of Life that warmed the frozen Earth. From this day forward, the days would become longer.

Bonfires were lit in the fields, and crops and trees were "wassailed" with toasts of spiced cider.  Children were escorted from house to house with gifts of clove spiked apples and oranges which were laid in baskets of evergreen boughs and wheat stalks dusted with flour. The apples and oranges represented the sun.  The boughs were symbolic of immortality (evergreens were sacred to the Celts because they did not "die" thereby representing the eternal aspect of the Divine). The wheat stalks portrayed the harvest, and the flour was accomplishment of triumph, light, and life. Holly and ivy not only decorated the outside, but also the inside of homes, in hopes Nature Sprites would come and join the celebration. A sprig of Holly was kept near the door all year long as a constant invitation for good fortune to visit tthe residents. Mistletoe was also hung as decoration.  It represented the seed of the Divine, and at Midwinter, the Druids would travel deep into the forest to harvest it.

The ceremonial Yule log was the highlight of the Solstice festival. In accordance to tradition, the log must either have been harvested from the householder's land, or given as a gift... it must never have been bought. Once dragged into the house and placed in the fireplace it was decorated in seasonal greenery, doused with cider or ale, and dusted with flour before set ablaze by a piece of last years log, (held onto for just this purpose). The log would burn throughout the night, then smolder for 12 days after before being ceremonially put out. Ash is the traditional wood of the Yule log. It is the sacred world tree of the Teutons, known as Yggdrasil. An herb of the Sun, Ash brings light into the hearth at the Solstice.(from the website wicca.com, an article titled Yule by Akasha)

4. Orion by Ron Yazinski

It's a cold December night,
But for a change, the stars are out,
Sparkling as if recently polished because company is coming.
Orion reclines on the horizon
As if he really were a god tired of the rut.

The wind bullies the trees.
I like to think it's caused by the confusion of angels,
Their wings beating at the speed of hummingbirds,
Flitting from those who pray for their own needs
Towards those who pray for others, then back again,
Never getting anything done.

But I know there are neither pagan gods
Nor confused messengers of light.
At the soul of this most beautiful universe
There is only the elemental elegance of vibrating strings.
And I know it's true, because, on nights like this,
I can feel the sympathetic reverberations in my heart.

Yes, I know a wise man would go back inside his house
To the warmth of his family and friends
And explain these oscillations in terms they might understand,
Like the vibrations of the guitar strings he plays
As they sing Christmas carols;

And failing that,
Point to the tinsel which hangs from the Christmas tree
With the angel impaled on top,
And how the strands tremble as the model train encircles it.
To which someone says that it sounds like "Cat's Cradle,"
And everyone laughs and drinks and feels better.

But this is not a wise man shivering out here,
Watching Orion get to his feet. 

Shovels, Cards, Baklava, and Cards 
Dianne Mann, Loaves & Fishes Food Pantry
 
 
 
What do these things have in common?  They all describe part of the "magic" that happened on Saturday at the Food Pantry.  It's the Holiday Season and gifts were all around on Saturday!

While you may have been snuggled in due to the cold and snow, forty folks braved the cold to get their monthly food distribution.   

I received the first gift at 8:30 when I showed up at the Church.  The plow operator was there doing the lot.  Then, Huberto and Kevin picked up shovels and took care of the sidewalk into Fellowship Hall.  Kevin just couldn't get that shovel out of my hand fast enough.  I remember meeting him about six months ago for the first time at the Church.  Then, he was wearing a bandana on his head and he had a suitcase with which he was going to use as a way to carry his food home.  All of our early clients marveled at his full head of hair on Saturday while he announced that he is now cancer-free.

Our next gift occurs every year, clients hand us Christmas cards with hand-written notes.  It is amazing what cheer a holiday card can bring to our Pantry volunteers and me!  

Then, Theresa was there with homemade baklava.  I suppose she used some of the walnuts we had distributed several months ago.  She loves to watch us taste it when she brings it in for us.  It was delightful!

Finally, Elaine came in and very proudly distributed homemade knitted scarves for each of our Pantry volunteers.  I'm so sorry I didn't get a picture of her face as she handed over each package or a picture of us each of us wearing our new scarves.

While our clients don't have many things, they make sure we are cared for just as we care for them.  They are, indeed, beloved community.

I want to pass these gifts along to you today in the only way I can. Their gifts are for each of you as well.  Without your continued commitment to the Food Pantry, we would not be able to provide these basic necessities of life for Huberto, Kevin, Theresa, Elaine and the many others whom we see. 

Remember to pass along the gifts you have and know that you are loved.
This Church Years Goals for the Board
Bill Derr, President, Board of Management

 
As part of the Policy Governance System, the board and the Minister/Chief Executive (Aaron) attend a yearly retreat where goals are set for the Chief Executive and the board. In the Policy Governance System the board is responsible for writing policy to guide the church in articulating its mission and visions, ensuring responsible stewardship of church resources and for evaluating the chief executive's success at achieving his/her annual goals. In a previous Nugget, I outlined this church year's goals for Aaron as chief executive. Below are the goals the board set for itself at the August 2016 retreat for this church year.
 
Goals for the Board for the 2016-2017 Church Year (Approved at the 8/11/16 Retreat)
  1. The board will determine if a 360 survey style of evaluation would be useful in evaluating the CEO's progress in accomplishing this church years goals.
  2. The board will update the UUCW's HR policies.
  3. The Policy Governance experiment is scheduled to end in June 2017, so the board will come up with a plan to determine in which ways the Policy Governance system is working and where it is failing. Once these facts have been discerned, the board will need to request from the congregation an extended governance experiment, make permanent bylaw changes, or begin to move to a different governance system.
  4. The board will develop a closer relationship with the Committee on Ministry (COM) by having a committee member start regularly submitting a report of the effectiveness of the committee to the board.
  5. The board will decide if the COM should continue evaluating the ministerial aspect of the minister's work.\, while the board focuses on the executive duties of the minister.
Happy New Year!
HolidayGive
As the Holiday Season approaches, we are mindful that we have a history of offering a variety of ways to give and to gift here at UUCW. In an effort to invite participation in these efforts, without overwhelming each other, we are offering this list to you in hopes that you will participate in any of the ways that feel best to you and assist you in celebrating the holidays in ways that are most meaningful.  This list will grow over the next two weeks so watch for your favorite ways to give and gift!

Special Collection at Holiday Services 
During the special holiday services December 18 through January 1, members and friends of the congregation are invited to participate in our special offering project in support of the Minister's Discretionary, Emergency Fund.  This fund serves families both within our congregation and the community at large by providing needed resources such as heating oil, gas, clothing, medicine, partial rent, school supplies, etc. for those in need.  During 2016 over $1800.00 was distributed from this fund. Please consider your contribution to this important ministry.  Envelopes will be handed out with Orders of Service and extras will be available in the foyer.  Thank you in advance for your generosity and compassion.
 
 

Purchase Tickets Now! CLICK HERE.
Tickets will also be available for purchase on Sunday during Coffee Hour.

Reminders about Fundraising! Fundraising 

Book & Clothing Donation Bins
Please keep in mind that one of our fundraising programs is the two bins across the street in our parking lot for books and clothing.  We actually make very good money from this endeavor!  So, as you're doing your fall cleaning or whatever, please take a minute to fill the bins as well as you can!

Amazon Smile Holiday Shopping Reminder
Just a reminder as you begin your holiday shopping - if you shop on Amazon there is an opportunity to earn money for the church.  Just go to Amazon Smile and select the church as a place where Amazon will provide a contribution based on what you buy.  We get a percentage of your total purchase.  Even if you are using Amazon Prime it will still kick in but you have to go to Amazon Smile at the outset.  Thanks - every little bit helps!  
 
End of Year 2016 Donations 

For those of you who are interested and able to make your pledge payment for the 2016-2017 fiscal year by the end of December, please note that our tax professionals are encouraging their clients to make any and all charitable donations they can before Dec. 31 in order to benefit from what will likely be a better year for deductions than what is forecast for 2017.  Please consider UUCW with your end of the year contributions.  Thank you for all the ways you support this congregation and its many ministries!  If you would like to make your pledge payment online (from the drop-down menu choose (Pledge July 2016-June 2017), please CLICK HERE.

Wishing you a Happy Holiday and a Wonderful New Year!
 
 
Contact Information

Phone:

508-853-1942

Email:

office@uucworcester.org

Fax:

508-853-2065

Website:

www.uucworcester.org

 

 

 

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