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Memorial for Chris Stephens
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 The memorial service for Christene Stephens, former member of AUUF, will be Saturday, November 21 at the Fellowship at 2:30 pm. (The time listed in last Sunday's order of service was inadvertently listed as 2:00 pm.) Chris and her husband John and their three children were active members for many years, with Chris working as the Childrren's RE chair for several years, and John serving two years as treasurer and two years as congregation president. James Doores will lead the service.
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The congregational meeting that was originally scheduled for Sunday, November 22 has been postponed until after the holidays. More information to follow ASAP.
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| Children's Religious Education Update |
Our Children's Religious Education (CRE) program is divided into two groups by age. In CRE, which meets each Sunday at 11 AM, we challenge our children with interactive studies about religion and science.
The older children will be focusing on the following history topics during November:
November 22: Visitors from OUTER SPACE
November 29: A Bible Story
The nursery group will be focusing on the following topics during November:
November 22: Thanksgiving: the Pilgrims and the Indians
November 29: How do Animals Prepare for Winter?
Lesson plans are subject to change, but this is the plan.
Contact: Wes Phillips and Sarah Brown
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2015-2016 Common Read for UUs
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 Bryan Stevenson, Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption (2015). A powerful true story about the potential for mercy to redeem us, and a clarion call to fix our broken system of justice-from one of the most brilliant and influential lawyers of our time. One reviewer compared its power and eloquence to that of To Kill a Mockingbird. Available at UUA Bookstore or Kindle edition.
From UUA: "Bryan Stevenson was a young lawyer when he founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system. One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a young man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn't commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination, and legal brinksmanship-and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever."
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WTAMU Jazz Band Concert "Swingin' In the Holidays"
Tuesday, November 24, 7:30 to 9:30 PM
Directed by Mr. Doug Storey and Dr. Nick Scales, the WTAMU Jazz Band performs in Mary Moody Northen Recital Hall. For further questions, please contact Monica Little in the School of Music office at 806-651-2840 or by email at mlittle@wtamu.edu.
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In addition to the events described in this newsletter, you can find a complete listing by clicking on the Calendar icon above.
Want more detail? Check both the News and the Events sections of our website, uuamarillo.orgAlso on our website, you can learn more about our Fellowship and our faith, Unitarian Universalism.
All events are held at the Fellowship, 4901 Cornell St., unless otherwise noted.
If you are unsure how to reach any of the individuals named as contacts, please email the AUUF office or call our Office Administrator, April Myers, at 806.355.9351 and leave a message. She will return your call during her office hours, which are Tuesday - Friday from 9 AM to noon.
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Sunday Worship - 9:30 and 11 AM
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November 22, 2015
Minnie Venable speaks on The Psychology of Religious Belief, discussing the individual and societal reasons why people adopt faith.
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November 29, 2015
Nina Stein speaks on Congregational Mourning.
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December 6, 2015
Linda Jackson speaks on Third Grade and Poverty Rates
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Adult Religious Education
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Please join us at 10 AM each Sunday.
We are rotating three subjects. Each covers a different aspect of Adult Religious Education. All are welcome. No advance reading is necessary and no test will be given.
Nov. 22: In a return to Natural Law and Human Nature series this week we discuss lecture six: "Aristotle's Clarification of 'Nature.'"
Nov. 29: Returning to The New Testament series, we discuss lecture seven: "Luke's Gospel."
Contact: John Gay |
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Friday, November 20 - 6:30 PM
 "Sociable" UUs will gather between 6:15 and 6:30 p.m., bringing ingredients for Mexican pile-on, and begin eating around 6:30. When the meal is over, probably around 7 or so, we'll play games until around 9:30 or 10. If you have a favorite game, bring it to share. We'll post on the bulletin board by the kitchen a signup sheet for the dinner ingredients. If you prefer to come for just the meal or just the games, of course you're welcome. We hope to have a lively group to share in the festivities.
(For those with young kids, let's just include them in the fun rather than arrange for a nursery. There'll be games easy enough for them to play, with a little adult guidance. Some grandparent-types have already volunteered.) Contact:
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Annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Lunch and Service
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Sunday, November 22, 12:30 PM
Temple B'Nai Israel, 4316 Albert Ave.
Each year, members and friends of our Fellowship participate in Amarillo's Interfaith Thanksgiving Lunch and Service. All are invited to this opportunity to share food and give thanks with members of other Amarillo faith traditions. Mark your calendar now!
We need eight AUUF representatives to sign up to bring a crockpot of vegetarian soup each for the lunch; please look for the sign-up sheet.
Contact: April Myers
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Nothing Much Buddhist Covenant Group
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Monday, November 23 7:30 - 8:30 PM
(2nd and 4th Monday of every month)
Meditators take notice!
 The Nothing Much Buddhist Covenant Group has selected as its new reading Dr. Mark Epstein's Going to Pieces Without Falling Apart: A Buddhist Perspective on Wholeness.
This national bestseller explores the similarities between Buddhist or Zen meditation techniques and those used in psychotherapy. Epstein has been a practicing Buddhist since his early twenties, when he traveled to Ajahn Chah's forest Buddhist monastery near Bangkok, Thailand, together with his American Buddhist teachers Joseph Goldstein, Jack Kornfield, and Richard Alpert.
Publishers Weekly had this to say about the book: "Epstein shows through sparkling prose and effervescent wit how spiritual practice can transform our everyday lives."
If you have been curious about the Nothing Much Buddhist Covenant Group or wondering when would be a great time to begin meditation with the group, NOW is your time to jump in. Get yourself a book and start reading!
We shall be discussing Chapter 1: Emptiness at the November 23 meeting at the Fellowship.
Keep your meditation practice consistent and persistent to train the brain to find its focus.
Contact: Rick Todd
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Women's Simply Salad & Soup Fellowship
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 Wednesday, November 25 at 6:30 PM
Our women's group meets every 2nd and 4th Wednesday for good food and great conversation. The meetings on 2nd Wednesdays are at the Fellowship-potluck style. On the 4th Wednesdays, the women meet at a different restaurant each month.
Contact: Ann Benedetti
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 Wednesday, November 25 at 6:30 PM
Every 4th Wednesday of each month the Men's Brotherhood meets from 6:30-8:00 PM in Chandler Hall. This covenant group provides men a private place for discussing feelings, for developing the trust to share without judgment in a confidential and safe environment, for permitting open discussion of concerns and receipt of the collective wisdom of others who have dealt with similar problems, and for finding ways to use new insights to improve one's everyday life.
Contact: Rick Todd
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Thanksgiving Lunch at the Fellowship
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Thanksgiving Day
Thursday, November 26
12:30 PM
We will have our traditional Thanksgiving lunch at the Fellowship on Thanksgiving Day, Guests are welcome!
Set up will begin at 12:00. There is a sign-up sheet on the kitchen bulletin board. Along with traditional dishes, we will need some gluten free, lactose free, and vegan dishes. We will need people to stay and help clean up afterwards.
Please email Janda Raker, Nina Stein, or April Myers with questions.
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Thich Nhat Hanh, How to Love (2014).
The Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh presents numerous meditations on love under the heading "Nature of Love" followed by brief descriptions of meditation techniques under the heading "Practices for Nourishing True Love." These brief meditations may be read for individual enlightenment or shared between partners in a loving relationship. With the Thanksgiving- Hanukkah-Christmas-Milad an-Nabi-Bodhi Day-Kwanzaa season upon us, this collection of insights on love would make an ideal gift for oneself or a loved one.
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Newsletter and Website Submissions
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As always, we are eager to publish information regarding committees, boards, Adult RE, CRE, events, and services, but we need your help. The website and Facebook page can be updated daily, but the newsletter cannot. New information needs to be submitted (submissions@uuamarillo.org) by noon Wednesday if you want it to appear in the Friday morning newsletter. If you need an event placed on the website calendar, you may submit that request with description, image (or we can provide one), starting and approximate ending time, specific location, date (or dates for a recurring event), and name of contact person. Help us help you get your message out in a timely manner.
PLEASE, EVERYONE CAN MAKE ALL THESE COMMUNICATIONS MORE EFFECTIVE BY READING THEM EACH WEEK--ESPECIALLY THE WEBSITE AND NEWSLETTER!
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