The Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Santa Monica

Featured Articles - September, 2006

Getting Involved Sunday

Have you heard about or noticed groups and committees at the church but know nothing about them? How many of the approximately 50 groups and committees at UUCCSM can you name? To help match interests and opportunities, the Membership and Leadership Committee has scheduled Sunday, October 15, as “Getting Involved Sunday.” On that day, after both services, a significant number of groups and committees will have a representative at a table in the courtyard or in Forbes Hall. Ideally, this will become an annual event at which newer members in particular can meet others who are involved in a specific area or areas, expand their knowledge of people and activities, and maybe find a new niche in our community. If you want to start a new group or committee, contact the coordinator of this event, Rob Briner, to reserve a spot at “Getting Involved Sunday.”

Highlight Sunday, October 15, on your calendar and allow some extra time for conversation and making new friends.

— Rob Briner

Taking Stock, Looking Forward

In September it’s hard to discount the “back to school” excitement or ignore the changing of the seasons. As the days begin to shorten, I find it hard not to look at my life, my family, my community, the larger world…and take stock. I acknowledge my seemingly insignificant position in the larger, tumultuous universe. But I don’t let hopelessness overtake me. I still have visions for the future.

It turns out it’s not just “back-to-school” time. We’re also entering the season for our annual pledge drive at the church. As we do, it’s important to take stock of our congregation and look forward.

But first, a look back: we had a fantastic pledge drive last fall. With your increased commitments and the approval of our new fiscal-year budget, we’ve become a stronger congregation. In an effort to become more welcoming, newcomers and members are now treated to coffee and tea after service. Sermons are distributed free so we can more broadly share the good news of our faith. Lifetime Religious Education offerings are being expanded to support our free and responsible search for truth and meaning. We’re now distributing 25% of our weekly offering to community organizations working for human rights, social justice, the environment and other values that reflect our principles. And we’ve begun paying our own staff the “living wage” we’ve clamored for over the years for Santa Monica hotel and hospitality workers. Good for the people in our community for advocating these important changes, and good for the congregation for supporting them.

Now, let’s look forward. Across the congregation I hear rallying cries for increased investment in our spiritual development. We are here because we want to learn how to live our lives caring for one another, to practice compassion in community, to band together with others to make our calls for social justice heard. But we don’t develop our skills in a vacuum. We need programs and people to support us.

Leadership is now considering how best to institutionally support these desires. A group of people interested in long range planning are trying to help guide the process and figure out the resources we need to get there from here. In the coming months, many specific ideas will bubble up. We’ll consider them democratically. We’ll plan strategically. We’ll be asked to support some…financially and otherwise.

You’ll be asked to commit to the community again with a pledge for the coming year. Hopefully, you’ll take one step closer to 5% of your income—that most meaningful number that surpasses your budget for entertainment but doesn’t quite match your rent—to support your (and our) continued transformation.

I hope you will participate in the process. When you do, you cannot help but be changed for the better.

In faith,
Jacki Weber

What I Did on My Summer Vacation...or Adventures at GA

This year I had a chance to go to my third General Assembly (GA) in St Louis. For those who haven’t been, they are enormous fun—full of worship services with thousands of UUs, lots of great music, a staggering number of workshops to choose from, and an exhibit hall full of UU stuff. Next June will be in Portland, OR, and I really recommend attending. More information can be found on the UUA website (uua.org) and in our UU World magazine.

At GA we also conduct the business of our national body at plenary sessions. It often feels we UUs are a small voice in some very troubling times both nationally and internationally. We do have ways to be heard collectively through our offices at the UN, in Washington DC and Sacramento. It is decided at the plenary sessions, through our delegates, what directions we want to take together on these larger stages. Much important work has begun and here is what is already happening at our SM congregation:

Ministry to and with Youth: Did you know over 90% of our youth leave our faith once they graduate from high school, and do not return? Most of our current youth identify themselves as UUs but do not consider the church their spiritual home. This is not a problem for the future of our faith alone, but it shows we are failing our youth. What can be done? Congregations throughout the country are looking at this important issue. Our RE program will be 8 SEPTEMBER working on this problem now, and more will be forthcoming. We hope the entire congregation can get involved—we are all stakeholders.

Anti Discrimination/Oppression is an important topic that the YRUU teens have been studying for many years. The truth is, people of color do not feel at home in our churches. Are we really as welcoming as we say we are? We still have a lot to learn and a long way to go. The plenary body made a pledge to our youth that every congregation will do something this year on this subject. Our Adult RE program will be offering workshops on this to help everyone better understand. (As Stephen Colbert said to Jessie Jackson, “So what are you doing now that racism has ended?”)

Statement of Conscience (Global Warming), Study/Action Issue (Moral Values in a Pluralistic Society), and Actions of Immediate Witness were discussed and voted on by the GA delegates in the plenary sessions. We now take these issues to our congregations to work on. Our Faith in Action committee will be looking at GA results and setting a course of action. (The committee can also explain the somewhat complex categories and what they mean, too.) Everyone is welcome to participate in the September 24 Faith in Action Issues Election. Before the next GA we will need to review the next set of issues, so our delegates can represent us and vote on them.

Follow your passion. Get involved. Together we can bend the world toward justice.

-- Karen Patch

FUUsion Forms Again at UUCCSM!

On July 9, FUUsion officially (re)launched as the group for 18-to35-year-olds at UUCCSM. Longtime members and first-time visitors alike gathered at Clover Park for an afternoon picnic. We enjoyed the summer sun, met each other, and shared great vegetarian food.

FUUsion formed again in response to the many new members in the church who fall into that nebulous category between high school and middle age. I personally have found myself looking for other people like me: students and young professionals who want to be social and share my commitment to UU principles. If you fall into that category, this group is for you.

The FUUsion picnic kicked off with 11 people and our e-mail discussion group has quickly grown to 17 members. We're looking for more people to join our group. We'd like to get to know you and welcome new ideas for activities. As fall approaches, look for our events on the second Sunday of each month. On September 10, we're going hiking in Will Rogers State Park. On September 26, we'll attend the Santa Monica Drive-In screening of "An Inconvenient Truth."

If the group of these activities interest you, contact us. To keep everyone in the know, we've launched a Yahoo group. To join, go to http://groups.yahoo.com/grou/uuccsmya where you'll find upcoming events, other FUUsion members, and pictures of our activities. We hope you'll join us.

-- Robin Lowney Lankton, FUUsion Coordinator

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