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Newsletter of 2nd Unitarian Church of Chicago
Jan 1, 2013
In This Issue
Coming Up at 2U
    
Sunday, January 6
Service at 10:30
Preacher: Rev. Adam Robersmith

Sunday, January 13
Service at 10:30
Guest Preacher: Rev. Brent Smith
"Affection and Brian Urlacher"

Sunday, January 20
Service at 10:30
Lay Preacher: Tom Clowes
'Engaging With People Who Believe Differently'

Sunday, January 27
Service at 10:30
Preacher: Rev. Adam Robersmith
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Church Office Information & Staff

Minister
773-549-0260, ext. 13
Office Hours:
Wed-Thurs 1:00-9:00 pm
 
 
Dir. of Faith Development
773-549-0260, ext. 12
Office Hours:
Wed 1:00-6:00, Sun 9:00-1:00

Office Administrator
773-549-0260, ext. 10
Office Hours: 
Mon-Thurs 10:00-4:00 
 
Community Minister
773-593-7500
 
Music Director
                                  
2U Ministry Leaders

Board of Trustees

Bookstore

Building & Grounds

Committee on Ministry

Finance Committee

Green Sanctuary

Hospitality 

Lifespan Faith Dev.

Membership

Music

Newsletter

Night Ministry

Pastoral Care

Sunday Services

Safe Congregations 

Small Group Ministry

Social Justice

Transylvania Church

Webmaster

Young Adult Group
Erin Rusmi
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Board of Trustees 
 


 






                                  
From the Minister

 

Welcome to 2013, everyone!

 

This holiday season has been filled with blessings great and small for me and our congregation - I pray it has been the same for each of you as well. I have been touched by the generosity of the people who have come through our doors. One person so lovingly lived out the story of the mitten tree, using a last ball of yarn to make a hat that will keep a child's head warm in our chilly winter. Someone else gave us an extraordinarily generous donation to boost the Minister's Discretionary Fund. And one of you (I couldn't tell who from the voicemail) gave me a package of paper bags and lights to use as luminaria - which decorated our entryway on Christmas Eve.

 

Such generosity, even to the last ball of yarn, means so much to me and brings home the reason why we mark this season, regardless of our theologies or the holidays we choose to celebrate. You all make me profoundly grateful to serve this congregation and to be a part of what we are creating together. Thank you for all you give, and do, and love, and save in this world. Thank you for being willing to change and grow and become something new. You are a great blessing!

 

May this New Year be the happiest of years so far, with blessings of joy, peace, justice, and comfort for us all!

 

Faithfully,

Rev. Adam

Marriage Equality Action Needed Immediately

Marriage Equality BannerRemember that big banner hanging above the church's front door?

Want to live out that value in the world?

State lawmakers are expected to vote on a same-sex marriage bill (House Bill 5170, the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act) between January 3 and January 8, the end of the current legislative session. The text of the bill is here.

Unfortunately, passage in the Illinois House and Senate is balanced on the edge of a knife, and marriage equality supporters need your help.

If you live in Lakeview, Representative Feigenholtz and Senator Cullerton are already firm supporters of the bill, so what we need is for you contact your family, your friends, and the distant acquaintances you call only on alternate leap years, particularly those residing in suburban and downstate areas, and ask them to do as many of the following as they can.  If you yourself live outside Lakeview, I beg you to do as many of the following as you can, ideally within the next 48 hours:

  • Call your state representative and senator. You can discover who they are and get their Springfield office contact information here. If you've never called a legislator's office before, here's a quick guide: A staffer or even a machine will likely answer the telephone, but don't be discouraged. Representatives' staffers generally track the number of calls they receive on each side of an issue, so your call matters. Give the representative:
    • Your name, address, and confirmation that you reside in the representative's district
    • What you want in one sentence, including the bill name and number (i.e., "I would like you to support House Bill 5170, the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act.")
    • An explanation of your reasons. Make it personal and only one or two sentences. As most of the opposition is ostensibly religion-based, if religious conviction is the source of your own support, mentioning that is not a terrible idea.
    • Ask if the representative plans to support the bill. Be polite, even (especially!) if the representative is undecided or against the bill.
    • If you want to meet or speak with the legislator personally, feel free to ask for an appointment or to leave your telephone number.
  • Fax a signed letter to your state representative and senator including all the elements of the call listed above. Make it a page or less.
  • Write an email to your state representative and senator including all the elements of the call listed above. Keep it brief.
  • Write a letter to the editor TODAY (since publication times lag) stating why marriage equality matters to you in 200 to 250 words, signed with your name, daytime telephone and email address, and email or fax it to the editor of your local newspaper and/or news website. You can find a list of local papers compiled by Equality Illinois here. Legislators tend to pay very close attention to local media.
If you have any questions, feel free to call me at (630) 779-5424, or email me at [email protected]. Let's make that banner over the door obsolete, shall we?
 
Thank you for all you do.
 
In love, 
Katie (Katherine Wolf)
Night Ministry Outreach
Thursday, January 3, 2013
5:00pm - 10:30pm

Due to the holiday, the January outreach will move from its usual Tuesday night to Thursday, January 3rd. Volunteers are still needed! Please consider spending a few hours either prepping, from around 5pm-8pm, or serving, from around 8pm-10:30pm. Contact David Gutowsky with questions, or sign up here.
2U Swap Sunday
January 6, 2013
11:30am

Please bring books, CDs, toys, decorations, kitchen utensils, jewelry, baby stuff, dinnerware, and other household goods that you would like to swap. (No clothing, please.) It's like a 2U re-gifting celebration!

Sponsored by the Green Sanctuary Committee.
Building & Grounds Work Party
January 6, 2013 blue tool box
12:00pm

The Building and Grounds committee needs YOU to help winterize the sanctuary! We'll be putting up plastic sheeting over the drafty sanctuary windows on January 6th after the service. Munchies will be provided! If you can, bring a hair dryer (to seal the plastic) and extension cord. Please contact Don MacGregor  with questions, or to sign up to help.
Lay Preacher Training

January 10, 2011

7:00-9:15pm

 

Do you have a passion to preach? Are you curious as to what is involved in providing lay services? You are invited to explore with us: what is good worship; how do we find a topic and build on it; how to apply to preach; what help is available (lots); and what is a patchwork service.

 

Please sign up in the Palmer Room, or email Linda Marquis or Rev. Adam Robersmith for more information. You can also call Linda at (773) 857-3035.

 

We encourage your participation, as training is a requirement to provide a service or to lead a patchwork service (one that has multiple preachers). We have many openings this next year, so whether you already have a topic in mind or are just beginning to think of preaching, this is an opportunity to get started.

The UU Explorers Need Your Help!

 

Explorers The UUExplorers are talking about making a movie about the different generations at 2U. We would record on-film interviews with 2U members of different generations, telling about their lives at 2U.

 

However, we need some help. We need access to a camcorder and editing software, and someone to help us with these.

 

Can you help? Please contact Lew Harding or Sue Dunmore.

Guest Preachers in January

Rev Brent Smith Jan. 13, 2013: Reverend Brent Smith

"Affection and Brian Urlacher."

 

The word "covenant" is often used in religious circles, but rarely analyzed as to what living a life shaped by it, might mean. We will evaluate modern life using this concept to see what it calls us to do and how it invites us to live.

 

The Reverend Doctor Brent A. Smith was born in 1954 and raised in Richmond, Indiana, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in literature from Hanover College in 1976. In college Dr. Smith studied Existentialism, American literature, and the works of James Joyce, while also receiving All-American honors as a linebacker on the Hanover College football team. After several years working in the business world, he acted upon a call to the ministry by entering the Divinity School of the University of Chicago, graduating with a Masters of Arts degree in 1983, and with a Doctor of Ministry degree from Meadville/Lombard Theological School in 1984. Dr. Smith was ordained into the Unitarian Universalist ministry and began serving his first congregation in Milwaukee in 1983, and has served congregations in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Grand Rapids, Michigan. In Unitarian Universalist circles, Smith helped launch the periodical The UU Voice, helped write and produce Faith in the Free Church for the Faith and Values Network, wrote the ROOTS curricula for new members, the BRANCHES small group program, and was one of the founders of the Conference of the Free Church, which introduced the concept of "Covenant" back into the UU lexicon in the 1990's. In August 2010 he accepted an invitation to join the faculty of the Liberal Studies Department of Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan, to help in developing a Religious Studies program. His web site is at www.drbrentasmith.com. Dr. Smith lives in Grand Rapids with his wife Pat, a lawyer with Grand Valley State University. They have two grown children, Elizabeth and Josh.

 

Tom Clowes Jan. 20, 2013: Tom Clowes

"Engaging With People Who Believe Differently."

 

As Unitarian Universalists, we believe in a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. But what do we do when others' search leads them to radically different beliefs-- beliefs that may directly conflict with our own? Drawing on personal experiences in Haiti and at home, Tom Clowes will share how he believes we can meaningfully interact with people who believe differently, and be better off because of it. 

Unity Party at First Unitarian Church

January 19, 2013

5:30-9:30pm

First Unitarian Church of Chicago

5650 South Woodlawn Avenue

Chicago IL 60637

 

The goal of the Unity Party is to build and enhance Unity: Multiracial, multicultural, multigenerational and among UUs in the Chicago area.

 

There is no admission charge, but free-will donations to help with the costs are encouraged.

 

Schedule:

5:30 - Activities for children and socializing

6:00 - Opening, followed by ice-breaker activities

6:30 - Dinner: Organizers will provide the major dishes, while participants are asked to bring an ethnic or favorite food to share.

7:15 - Dancing begins, with folk and/or line dancing at the start. Game and card tables will be set up from 7:15-9:30 for those who don't wish to dance or perform/listen to poetry.

8:00 - Poetry slam. Those wishing to present their poetry should contact Finley Campbell ASAP.

8:30 - Free-style dancing to music provided by DJ.

 

For further information, contact Finley C. Campbell (773-752-4019) or Alexandra Hay.

Choir Corner
Sheet music starStart the new year with singing! Join the choir! The 2U choir is taking a break from rehearsals during the holidays, but rehearsals will resume on January 8. The choir rehearses around the piano in the sanctuary on Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. For more information, email music director Marianne Parker, catch Marianne on a Sunday morning, or just come to a rehearsal.
Money Matters
Fiscal Year 2012-13: YTD Through November

Income
Pledges & Collection Plate $       83,969
Other Income $       40,241
Total (YTD) $     124,210
Budget Projection 2012-13 $     244,725
Expenses
Collection Plate Sharing $         3,708
All other Expenses $     105,647
Total (YTD) $     109,355
Budget Projection 2012-13 $     254,958
Debt and Deficit
Projected Deficit 2012-13
 $       10,233
Long Term Debt $     235,843
Anvil Deadlines
Have a message to put in the Anvil? Plan ahead!  Please have all submissions in to Jen Duston at [email protected] by 5pm on the Wednesday before the 1st or the 15th of the month.