Connections
 Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fairfax                  Jan. 27, 2014                          Volume 54, Number 4  
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In This Issue 

FMMay the end of violence begin with us
 Parish Minister
Rev. Mary Katherine Morn 
 
The customer in the store suffered no harm, police said.

 

Here I am again, with today's newspaper, reading the details of tragic violence. It's become a little too routine. Almost expected.

 

This time, I was a little more alert. A dear friend of mine and her family live in Columbia. I learned shortly after the news broke that they were at a movie in the mall theatre when the shootings happened. They were held in place for some time before being allowed to leave. But, fortunately, according to the official reports, they suffered no harm.

 

I was first struck by this notion of suffering no harm in reports of the shooting at the Navy Yard. One of the stories I read described one of the witnesses, a person in the room hiding under a desk when her co-worker was shot and killed. The news article attested that she suffered no harm.

 

The article didn't address the harm that might or might not have come to the person who was in the next room and heard the shots. Or the person arriving to work a little late, never making it into the building that day. Or the families of any of those people. Or the neighbors. Or the victims of previous attacks who were transported back to their own personal terror upon hearing of the shooting. Or the first responders. Or you. Or me.

 

Whether we say it or not, whether we even know it or not, we suffer harm when such violence occurs. All of us. It changes us. And if we're not careful, we can come to accept this as normal.

 

As people of faith, it is my prayer that these tragic events will change us in another way. That we will be moved to make a personal commitment to non-violence. And that we will find ways to work for peace in our families, our communities and the world.

 

There are countless ways we can work for peace: advocating for stricter gun laws; educating our children on alternatives to violence; working for economic justice; protecting the earth's diminishing resources, to name just a few.

 

May it begin with us.

 

Yours,

Mary Katherine

Weekend of Service
WOSPeople coming together
to put faith into action

 

UUCF's first-ever Weekend of Service was a big success. More than 218 members and friends participated, including many teens and children, devoting more than 718 hours over the three days to serving others. The hour totals include people who gave blood during the blood drive Jan. 19, as well as 15 individuals who worked on other projects and reported their hours for the weekend. Participants collected 567 pounds of food.

 

The Weekend of Service, held Jan. 18-20, was an opportunity for UUCFers to serve others - "a day on, not a day off" - and to honor the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Since not all workplaces grant employees a day off on MLK Day, UUCF Social Justice leaders expanded the Day of Service idea to a Weekend of Service, allowing more people to participate. A grant from the Endowment Fund helped make the event possible.

 

All project ideas were suggested by UUCF members and considered and selected by the UUCF Social Justice Council. Council members considered whether projects met needs that were not currently being adequately met and whether they could be broken down into small tasks and completed by teams within a few hours' time. Another key consideration was a project's ability to maximize participation by adults, teens and school-age children. Committee members selected six projects, the majority of which supported local organizations, including:

  • Providing nutritious, ready-packed meals to those in need, in partnership with international relief organization Stop Hunger Now;
  • Painting apartments for Shelter House, Fairfax County's only emergency shelter for individuals fleeing domestic and sexual violence;
  • Holding a children's party in honor of Dr. King at Embry Rucker Community Shelter in Reston;
  • Making fleece blankets for the homeless guests we will shelter at UUCF, Feb. 23-Mar. 1, as part of our participation in FACETS' Hypothermia Prevention Program;
  • Cleaning up the UUCF grounds; and
  • Collecting non-perishable food to help stock the Food for Others pantry.

Mia and Chris French participated in Stop Hunger Now with their children, 12-year-old Hayden and 7-year-old Chloe. Before selecting a project, the family discussed the different options. "They had a good experience working with Stop Hunger Now once before so the idea of doing it again excited them," said Mia. The family watched a Stop Hunger Now video and Hayden learned about the project when a teenage congregant visited his RE class to tell students about the project. The family also discussed how many children around the world do not have enough food or access to education.

 

On the day designated for the Stop Hunger Now project, the family spent two hours measuring, weighing and sealing bags of dried food to be distributed to schools around the world. "It was delightful to see Hayden talking with adults he previously didn't know as he worked and to see Chloe standing on a step stool, measuring out food alongside the other church members," she said.

 

Mia and Chris liked that the project allowed them to work as a family and that the meals were going to schools in Africa, thus encouraging parents to send their kids to school. As Mia put it, "We were helping to feed body and mind!"

 

Hayden and Chloe were equally enthusiastic. "It was good knowing that you helped other people." He also liked being able to see the results of their work almost immediately, said Hayden. Chloe said, "It was fun, but it was also important because we were helping people not starve."

 

Kären Rasmussen, UUCF Minister for Social Justice, liked how easy it was for families to participate in many of the projects offered. "We had so many families get involved, people who don't normally participate, but because we organized one time, [and offered] well-planned, easy-to-do projects that only lasted a couple hours, many more families and their kids participated"

 

Lay Minister for Social Justice Martha Ades sums up the impact of the weekend: "By participating in the Weekend of Service, members and friends put their faith into action."

 

If you'd like to see more photos from the Weekend of Service, click here.
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fairfax
We are a liberal religious congregation whose mission is to transform
ourselves, our community and the world through acts of love and justice. 
 
(703) 281-4230