Calendar
Next Issue: April 30
Deadline: 9am Wed, April 24
Wednesday, April 24
7:00pm MemberDatabase. CR.
7:30pm FCBook Gr. Library.
7:30pm MinProgCte. cl5.
Thursday, April 25
6:45pm Nova Choir. Sanct.
7:30pm Grandparenting. Lib.
Friday, April 26
Women's Retreat. Senexet CT.
4:00pm SGM. Library.
6:00pm Men's Potluck. UH.
7:30pm Coffeehouse. PH.
Saturday, April 27
Women's Retreat. Senexet CT.
9:30am New UU. cl5.
4:00pm YG reh. Sanctuary.
6:00pm YG/Parent Potluck. PH.
Sunday, April 28
Women's Retreat. Senexet CT.
9:25am Sr. Choir. Parish Hall.
12:00pm Rummage Sale setup.
4:30pm OWL. Library.
Monday, April 29
Rummage Sale setup. PH.
6:30pm Jr; 7 Chan; 7:45Youth
8:00pm Meditation. Library.
Tuesday, April 30
Rummage Sale setup. PH.
4:00pm Jobseekers. Library.
7:30pm Fiber Arts. cl4.
Wednesday, May 1
Rummage Sale setup. PH.
7:00pm Communications. cl5.
7:30pm Finance Cte. cl7.
7:30pm Lay Pastoral Training.
7:30pm Women's Gr. Lib.
Looking Ahead
May 4: Rummage Sale
May 10: Coffeehouse
Link to church calendar |
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This Sunday
Music: April 28
Youth Group Services
Prelude: Vocalise
-S. Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
Valentin Frank, oboe
Songs & Stories - TBA
Members of the Youth Group
Offertory Solo: Psalm 23
-A. Dvorak (1841-1904)
The flowers this Sunday are given by Tony Fitzpatrick, Rachel Bruno-Fitzpatrick, James Fitzpatrick and Luke Fitzpatrick in loving memory of Jim Fitzpatrick, who died on July 31, 2012 and who would have turned 73 on April 27 of this year.
Ushers: Members of the New Connections Ministry
Welcome & Announcements:
Marilyn Yee & Ed Bing |
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Caring Connection
The Caring Connection is a group of Church members and friends who provide support to members of our community who find themselves in some difficulty and need short-term help. Please let us know if you could use some assistance, or know of someone who would benefit from our support. Contact: Laurie Graham at caring@uubelmont.org or Susan at the Church, 617.484.1054 x 201. |
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Save the Date!
Annual Meeting
May 19, 2013 |
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Social Action Corner
ACTION IS OUR PRAYER |
Grow Clinic! Grow Clinic!
Springtime means growing. Please remember to help the malnourished infants and toddlers served by the Grow Clinic by buying Flintstone Chewable Vitamins and Polysol with Iron Liquid Vitamins. Thanks for helping the Grow Clinic children bloom! |
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Behind the Kitchen Door
April 30, 6:30pm, First Parish in Cambridge Meetinghouse
1446 Mass Ave, Cambridge
Do you eat ethically? Do you care about the rights of people who prepare and serve your food? You are invited to a book discussion and signing with Saru Jayaraman, cofounder and codirector of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United and author of Behind the Kitchen Door: What Every Diner Should Know About the People Who Feed You. Saru's groundbreaking book provides an inside look into the personal experiences of restaurant workers around the country and she will be in Cambridge during her national book tour. Books will be available for purchase. This event is free and open to the public, sponsored by the First Parish in Cambridge Immigration Taskforce, the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, Massachusetts Jobs with Justice, Interfaith Worker Justice, Unite HERE New England Joint Board, the Harvard Book Store, and the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. If you plan to join us, please let UUSC know at mobilization@uusc.org so they can best prepare. But feel free to just show up as well! |
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Adult Programs Reminder
To receive a weekly reminder of the latest Adult Programs, email Lillian Anderson at landerson@uubelmont.org
Click here for the AP Spring brochure |
Classified
Reiki Level I Class
Monday evenings this spring
7-9pm, Fee: $150
Reiki is a Japanese form of energy healing that promotes deep relaxation, stress reduction and healing by clearing and balancing a person's energy field. In this four-session class, participants learn how to channel universal life force energy, how to perform a self-treatment, and how to provide a full-body Reiki treatment on another person (always on fully-clothed clients.) Catherine Stalberg, MSW, was first attuned to Reiki in 1985. She is a Reiki Master Teacher in the Usui tradition and also a Karuna Reiki Master. Call 617.484.9931. |
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Musica Sacra
...directed by Mary Beekman, presents a very special concert, A new birth of freedom in commemoration of the 150th anniversaries of the Emancipation Proclamation and the Gettysburg Address, on Sat, May 12, at 8pm at the 1st Church in Cambridge, 11 Garden St. This concert represents a collaboration between Musica Sacra, singing choral arrangements of songs contemporaneous to the time of the Civil War, and 1st Church's own Jacqueline Schwab, the celebrated pianist in Ken Burns' documentary The Civil War, who will perform her piano arrangements of songs from that era. Tickets are available at www.musicasacra.org or by contacting Mary Beekman. Free parking comes with ticket purchase, and Upstairs on the Square is offering a prix fixe dinner before the concert. Don't miss this exciting event! |
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The Unitarian Newsletter
Submission Guidelines
Please submit articles for the newsletter to Susan Street in the following format:
- Times New Roman font, 10 point.
- jpeg for photos
- pdf for attached documents
- sample@uubelmont.org for e-mails.
- avoid phone numbers unless their owners don't mind them being published on the FCB website. |
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First Church Office
:: 617-484-1054 |
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5 Things To Know This Week
- First Church Book Group, April 24
- Men's Potluck, April 26
- Berklee Night at the Coffeehouse, April 26
- New UU Class, April 27
- Save the Date! Annual Meeting, May 19
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Sunday, April 28
Youth Sunday
9:00 & 11:00 Church Service
Childcare for infants and young children
Please join our high school Youth Group for the annual Youth Service at 9am and 11am. Reflections by the graduating seniors, a tribute by the junior class and a Story for All Ages by the sophomores will come together to create a meaningful Sunday morning service. We hope you'll join us!
** Next Sunday, May 5**
Rev. David M. Bryce preaching
Sermons in text and audio format can be found at uubelmont.org/sermons |
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Guest Column
Bishop Bálint-Benczédi used to be the minister of our partner church in Désfalva. He is a kind and gentle man and those of us who have traveled to Transylvania over the years have been honored to meet him.
The UUPCC Office received the following message from the Unitarian bishop of Transylvania the morning of Tuesday, April 16, 2013:
Dear Friends,
We were shocked and saddened to hear about the bombs at the Boston Marathon. It is unthinkable that sound people would consider and prepare in cold blood the killing of their fellow beings. It is unthinkable, yet it happened, maiming and killing not just those present but in a way hurting all of us: it shattered once again our sense of safety and freedom, our ideals about human beings and our life.
Please know that our prayers are with all of you and especially with the families of the victims and the wounded on their hospital bed. We pray for all of you to bear this tragedy with fortitude and be present with your love and compassion for those in need.
At times like these it is very hard for the word of reason to be heard, yet our Unitarian and Unitarian Universalist legacy compels us to do so. We are reminded of Kipling`s poem If:
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating?
We believe that those values for which we stand cannot be wiped away by bombs, we cannot be frightened into silence and we will not give way to hating. We wish you courage and determination for the days to come in being the voice of reason, love and compassion in the congregations and your society. May God's blessing be with us to give us strength to uphold our values and live by them!
With brotherly love, Bálint Benczédi Ferenc
Kolozsvár, the 16th of April, 2013 |
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Music Notes from Alfa Radford
BRILLIANT DAFFODILS to our wonderful Choirs for especially beautiful anthems last Sunday.
And ROSES to Bruce Kozuma and Livia Racz for their delightful duet.
ATTENTION ALL CHOIR PARENTS!
May 12: Chancel Choir (Gr.5-6) sings at 9am. Arrive 8:15
May 12: Youth Choir (Gr.7-up) sings at 11am. Arrive 10:15
June 9: Multigenerational Services:
9am Jr Choir (K-Gr.4) Arrive 8:30.
11am Chancel Choir (Gr.5-6) Arr. 10:15.
IMPORTANT DATES for FUTURE PLANNING:
November 7, 8, 9, 10 are the dates for the Youth/Children's Choirs Fall Musical! It's THE MIKADO by Gilbert & Sullivan!
Coming Soon! CHAMBER MUSIC BENEFIT CONCERT: Sunday, June 2, at 8:00pm
Save the date! On the program will be a wonderful array of music for harpsichord, flutes, voice, and bassoon. Proceeds will support the very important work of SPARK (Supporting Parents and Resilient Kids -formerly Pediatric AIDS Program) at the Boston Medical Ctr.
QUOTABLE: "Probably the most marvelous fugue was the one between the Hatfields and the McCoys." -from the Missouri School kids' musical bloopers.
Joyful blessings, Alfa |
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Youth Programs
Working with Youth
Back in August I had no idea what I was getting myself into, when I began working as the Youth Assistant at First Church. I was excited and somewhat nervous when I first met the Youth Leaders at this church. I had those same feelings when I met the larger group and before I accompanied them to New Orleans. But, lucky for me, there has never been any hesitation in their acceptance of me.
This very special group of 10th through 12th graders have a way of making everyone feel welcome. They will share their Sunday night snacks and teenage humor, if you look more closely, they will even share themselves. At the end of every youth group, a pair of teens take the lead in creating a worship experience. They provide readings and ask the group to reflect--sometimes urging us to share with our neighbor something that is stressing us out, or something we feel good about. Then, what ultimately turns this time into a sacred time, is the lighting of candles. Lasting anywhere from 10 minutes to a half hour or more, the youth light their own candles of joy and concern. Many share from a deeply vulnerable place--and encourage others to do the same. The air in the room is thick with everyone holding each candle in support and love.
When we traveled to New Orleans, we had worship and candles almost every night. Youth shared a range of emotions, soaking up all that we were learning about the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. They poured out their compassion that week and showed me what it truly means to put our UU faith into action. Of course they ate delicious southern comfort food and spent time in the French Quarter as well. And while I arrived home tired from the trip, it was a type of holy exhaustion, because I felt like I had witnessed the learning and growth of this group and myself.
And now as our year together begins to close, the youth are pouring themselves into the Youth Service (this Sunday, April 28th)--a time when this special group will let you all see what I get to see every week--lived faith. Be prepared to feel inspired as I have over the last eight months, when you watch these teens worship in song, in story, and in spoken word about this church, the place they call home.
I may not have known what I was getting myself into last August when I took on the role as Youth Assistant, but I now know the gift that it has been, and the privilege I have had in working with these incredible youth. They are a blessing to this church, and to my ministry as it continues to develop.
In faith, Sarah Gillespie |
Ushers Still Needed for the Spring Term
We still have openings (listed below) for ushering for spring term services. Please consider volunteering for one of these openings. If you prefer not to sign up for specific dates but are willing to be on a list of people who might be available for a Sunday now and then, please add your name to the list for that kind of commitment (called "occasional"). Here are the time slots for the spring term that are still open:
Team 1A 9:00 service on May 5, May 26
Team 1C 9:00 service on Apr 28, May 19, June 9
Team 2A 11:00 service on May 5, May 26
Team 2C 11:00 serv on Apr 28, May 19, June 9 (one person needed)
To volunteer, see the sign-up board at community hour or contact David Warner (617.484.2002 or dwarner@uubelmont.org). |
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FIRST CHURCH BOOK GROUP
The Book Group will meet on Wednesday, April 24, at 7:30pm in The First Church Library to discuss Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner. Crossing to Safety is a beautifully written story of two young couples who meet in 1937 in Madison, Wisconsin, when the husbands are professors in the English Department at the university. The story traces the stresses and strains of their marriages and their friendship over the following decades, always circling back to Battell Pond, site of Charity Lang's rustic family compound in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom. Wallace Stegner tells this story from the perspective of Larry Morgan, a successful writer, looking back over the years and their lives from the vantage point of retirement in 1971. Stegner's sensitive and luminous prose is a delight, and the story has a power that keeps the reader turning pages, hungry for more.
The Book Group is always open to new members. Please contact Anne Stuart at astuart@uubelmont.org to confirm attendance if you are interested in participating. Looking ahead: the Book Group will be discuss The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers on May 22. |
GRANDPARENTING - NEAR AND FAR
Thursday, April 24, 7:30pm, Library
ML Landfried and Lillian Anderson will lead the group in discussing the joys and challenges of being a grandparent as we share strategies and pictures. |
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MEN'S SPRING POTLUCK SUPPER
Friday, April 26, 6pm, Upper Hall
First Church men and friends are invited to bring either an appetizer, main dish, salad or dessert AND a beverage of your choice to share. |
IT'S COMING! THIS FRIDAY NIGHT!
Yes! The re-incarnated, no-snow, Berklee Night at the Coffeehouse is this Friday, April 26 at 7:30 in the Parish Hall! Be sure not to miss stars of tomorrow Nikolas Metaxas and Paige Chaplin, learn about featured beneficiary Berklee City Music Boston, and have a wonderful and uplifting evening of chasing away your winter blues! Audience members of all ages find these talented young performers inspiring and engaging, and so will you! Bring your friends and relations! Check out the flyer! |
NEW UU CLASS - Saturday, April 27, 9:30-2pm, classroom 5
Led by Jim Staton, David Bryce, Sarah Gillespie and Jim Landfried
This class will provide answers to the questions you have about Unitarian Universalism (the history and current programs); also the history and current activities of First Church. Discuss the steps leading to membership and have a tour of the building. Childcare provided on request. Sign-up following Sunday Services or contact Jim at jstaton@uubelmont.org. |
ALL-CHURCH RUMMAGE SALE (MAY 4th) NEEDS YOUR HELP!
Did you know - many members of the congregation have found some of the best bargains at the volunteer pre-sale! Don't miss out - volunteer for at least 2 hours during the week and you too can shop on Friday evening, May 3 from 6:30 to 9pm. You know those bargains don't wait...
Help is especially needed Saturday, May 4, the day of the sale. Please sign up online here. Set-up is right after the second service, Sunday, April 28. Organizing and pricing happens Monday through Friday that week. The greatest need is Saturday, May 4 for cashiers, salespeople, crowd management, and then breakdown and cleanup. Working on the Rummage Sale is a great way to meet new friends and catch up with old ones. Please join in - you will have fun! Email with questions (fcb404@gmail.com) and thanks in advance! |
"LOST CHILDHOOD: GROWING UP IN AN ALCOHOLIC FAMILY"
Sunday, May 5, 12:30-2:15pm, Library - Jeanne Widmer
Film and discussion open to everyone interested in the enormous pressure on youth and adults to use drugs and alcohol. This half-hour, award-winning documentary shows young children of alcoholics who describe their experiences with honesty and wisdom, following up 17 years later with two who discuss the critical impact of the help they received in their childhood. For more information contact jwidmer@uubelmont.org. Refreshments provided. |
JOURNEY BEYOND GOD WORKSHOP
Saturday, May 18, 9:00-2:00
Rev. Peter Richardson assisted by Rev. Doris Hunter
This workshop will explore choices for a religious philosophy which addresses the human future. It will discuss common positions many adults hold based upon early childhood perceptions. The goal of the workshop will be increased clarity and articulation of one's own religious philosophy. To register contact landerson@uubelmont.org. You can read about the workshop by clicking here. |
Early Newsletter Deadline for April 30 Unitarian -
9AM, Wednesday, April 24 |
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