 Nina Stein delivered a powerful message last Sunday! If you were unable to attend, I encourage you to take a few minutes to read it. You will learn some of our AUUF heritage, gain some wonderful information on the grieving process, and receive some sound advice and insight on our upcoming ministerial search. Many thanks and much love to Nina for being a strong leader and elder for our Beloved Community. ~Keralee Clay
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 Our thoughts and prayers go to Lyle and Janda Raker and their extended family on the tragic loss of their grand-daughter and her husband on Monday, November 30. The service is to be held at Pinnacle Community Church (Arden Rd and Coulter) on Friday, December 4 at 2 PM
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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.
During December, the students will be watching brief videos and discussing their content.
Dec. 6: Corn dancers - The Pueblos - Laguna, Weaving, Water for Farming
Dec. 13: The Desert People - The Papago
Dec. 20: Do We Want Us to ? - Pacific Northwest - Totem Poles, Clans, History, Potlatch
Dec. 27: Earth Shapers - The Mound Builders
The nursery group will be focusing on the following topics during December:
Dec. 6: Hanukkah (and other Jewish holidays)
Dec. 13: Winter Brings Changes to our Earth (snow and cold)
Dec. 20: Yule: Winter Solstice
Dec. 27: Christmas, a Christian Tradition
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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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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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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December 6, 2015
Linda Jackson speaks on Poverty, Reading, and What You Can Do About It. Improving one child's chances for a good life does not take an education degree. Learn how volunteers can do amazing things, one child at a time right here in Amarillo.
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December 13, 2015
Mary Kay Wells speaks on The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, discussing the development and legacy of the landmark document.
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December 20, 2015
Holiday Music Service
with various artists - including a congregational sing-along led by Jason Hudson and performances by other musicians, including Mike Fuller and Those Guys and more, in lieu of a sermon.
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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.
Dec. 6: Returning to The New Testament series, we discuss lecture seven: "Luke's Gospel."
Dec. 13: Science and Religion lesson # 8 explores "Natural Theology and Arguments from Design."
Dec. 20: In Natural Law and Human Nature we will continue our discussion of Aristotle by watching/discussing "Aristotle on Justice and Politics."
Dec. 27: The New Testament subject this week will be "John-Jesus the man from Heaven," based on the book of John.
Jan. 3: Lecture # 9 of Science and Religion examines "Geology, Cosmology, and Biblical Chronology."
Contact: John Gay |
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Community Relations Meeting
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 Saturday, December 5, 10-11 AM
The Amarillo and NAACP Community Relations Committee will be meeting on Saturday from 10:00 to 11:00 at Wesley Community Center, 1615 S. Roberts. The topics for the meeting will be Hispanics in Higher Education and Immigration Facts and Myths. Dr. Lisa Garza and Dr. Elsa Diego Medrano will present the information on Hispanics in Higher Education and Shilpa Shah will present the information on Immigration. Dr. Garza teaches Sociology at WTAMU and Dr. Diego-Medrano teaches Educaton. Shilpa Shah is an Immigration Attorney. The meeting is open to the public and anyone who wishes may attend.
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 Sunday, December 6, 12:15 PM
Bring your potluck dishes and join other members of the congregation to share in the camaraderie and dining pleasures this first Sunday in December in Chandler Hall. If you don't have a dish to bring, join us anyway for good food and great friendships.
Contact: Rosemarie & Bill Kirkland
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 Monday, December 7 from 6 - 7:30 PM
The Women's Covenant Group will be watching and discussing Pray the Devil Back to Hell at the December 7 meeting. Pray the Devil Back to Hell chronicles the remarkable story of the courageous Liberian women who came together to end a bloody civil war and bring
 peace to their shattered country. Thousands of women ordinary mothers, grandmothers, aunts and daughters, both Christian and Muslim came together to pray for peace and then staged a silent protest outside of the Presidential Palace.Armed only with white T-shirts and the courage of their convictions, they demanded a resolution to the country's civil war. Their actions were a critical element in bringing about an agreement during the stalled peace talks. A story of sacrifice, unity and transcendence, Pray the Devil Back to Hell honors the strength and perseverance of the women of Liberia. Inspiring, uplifting, and most of all motivating, it is a compelling testimony of how grassroots activism can alter the history of nations. Contact: Keralee Clay
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Women's Simply Salad & Soup Fellowship
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 Wednesday, December 9 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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 Saturday, December 12, 3-5 PM
The Amarillo Feminists group holds monthly meetings at AUUF.
Do you believe in equal rights and opportunities for women? Congratulations! You're a feminist! Come meet like-minded feminists of both genders at our monthly meeting on Saturday, December 12.
This meeting we agreed to do a cookie exchange, discuss the plans for the Eve Ensler play in February, and continue getting to know each other through games. So, everybody needs to bring a dozen of her or his favorite cookies.
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SouthWest Unitarian Universalist Women Conference 2016
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 February 26-28, 2016
Lawton, Oklahoma
Registration opened December 1, 2015
A non-profit organization that supports women through worship, learning, leadership, community and social justice, SWUUW addresses women's issues, explores feminist theology, promotes friendships and celebrates the diversities that make us unique women on our individual spiritual paths.  SWUUW is an organization open to all UU women, particularly those women in the Southwest District of the Southern Region of the UUA.
Keynote speaker, Lauren Zuniga, is an internationally touring poet, activist and teaching artist. She is the author of two poetry collections. Her work has been featured in Upworthy, MoveOn.Org, BoingBoing, Autostraddle & Everyday Feminism.
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Kayla Parker, ed. Becoming: A Spiritual Guide for Navigating Adulthood (2014).
Parker organizes this collection of prose reflections, prayers, hymns, and poems into ten topic groupings: Growth and Change; Passion and Purpose; Community; Roots; Family, Friends, and Loves' Identity; Lost and Found; Spirit of Life; Justice and Creation; and Hope and Praise. Contributors include many Unitarian Universalist voices, some contemporary and others historical. Although this short book has been widely distributed to youth ministries, the act of becoming an adult is a process that applies to people of any generation, not just to adolescents. This is a great resource for daily short readings to bolster one's spiritual growth and give comfort during life's challenges.
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 Chalice Abbey, opened since April 2013, is a garnet among river rocks, a unique retail store based on the fundamental belief of fair trade. A volunteer staff buys merchandise from a federation of merchants that insure and assure a fair wage is paid to the artisans in an attempt to pull them from the abyss of poverty.
All merchandise is distinctly hand crafted, affirming that each gift will be one of a kind, a rarity in today's homogeneous McDonald word of convention, that will appeal to every sense.
Along side, but still unrepeated, pieces of local art are also being made available. Artisans are invited to submit pieces to sell in the store and showcase their work in Amarillo's most amiable and conducive environment. So please put on your list to frequent this store, gallery and spiritual center at 2717 Stanley, just across from Hastings.
Store hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00 AM - 5:30 PM
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Center City's Electric Light Parade
 Friday, December 4, 6:00 PM
Center City's Electric Light Parade has as its theme "Hollywood Holidays." The parade starts at 11th and Polk and goes to Fourth and Buchanan.The parade continues to the Amarillo Civic Center Area for the lighting of the city of Amarillo Christmas Tree, a musical program and an appearance from Santa Claus.
FireSongs Songwriter Series
Wednesday, December 2, 6:30-8:30 PM
 FireSongs Songwriter Series is a new, weekly series that is unique in Amarillo, in that each Wednesday night, a different area songwriter or combo will perform entirely original material---no covers. We have a wealth of creative energy here in the Panhandle and this series aims to celebrate those who express this energy through songwriting.
The shows are at Fire Slice Pizzeria (7301 SW 34th Space 10, Summit Shopping Center) on Wednesdays from 6:30 - 8:30 PM. It's a listening environment, so talking is discouraged in the concert room while the show is going on, but this makes it a much nicer environment, and of course Fire Slice has wonderful food which may be enjoyed throughout the show. There is no cover, but reservations are suggested to guarantee seating in the listening room. Call (806) 331-2232. The songwriter performing on December 9 is Tennessee Tuckness. Mark your calendar for December 16 performances by Mike Fuller and the Repeat Offenders.
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