Rice Lake’s Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalist Fellowship again welcomes Chaplain Dennis Peters of Menomonie to conduct the Sunday Service, February 7th. Continuing with the theme “The World and What it Means” he began at his last visit, Peters will consider “the meaning of life”on a societal level. What does life mean to the individual as defined by the social group she or he is a part of? Peters will lead the fellowship to consider what the intrinsic meaning of our world is, which promises to generate a lively discussion.
Chaplain Dennis Peters
Blue Hills UU continues to hold Sunday services on Zoom at 10 a.m. The internet link will be sent to members, although all interested are invited to take part. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org < for the link needed. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation may meet in the fellowship building located at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
As we wrap up January, we’ll celebrate BOOK SUNDAY during our Blue Hills UU Service on the 31st. Each of us attending will be encouraged to share our thoughts in suggesting a book others might find interesting. During this long, restricted winter and year of the pandemic, the seclusion and solitude has brought many of us to find many excellent titles as we’ve spent more time with our noses in books. Time to share the bounty and your discoveries with others!
Members of the Hidalgo Valley UU congregation of San Juan, Texas will be joining us on Zoom for this discussion, adding the grace of new faces and perspectives to our circle.
Blue Hills UU fellowship continues to meet via Zoom – the link will be sent to members, although all interested in these Services are invited to attend. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org < for the link needed to join the service. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation and want to attend service are invited to meet IN the fellowship building located at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalist’s Sunday January 24th 10 a.m. Service will engage members in a consideration of how the processes of science intersect with our view on “What is Right?,” in the context of being part of the natural world surrounding us. The discussion stems from a dialogue that took place between six persons over several months, when BHUU member Jim Bradley posed questions about the relationship between humans and nature.
Jim Bradley
The dialogue focuses on the questions “Do humans have a moral obligation to care for the Earth, given they, and therefore their actions, are a part of Nature, not separate from it? What basis is there for calling some human actions that affect the rest of Nature moral and others immoral?”
Four of those who took part in the original discussion will participate in the Service: Kent Shifferd, Mark Van Etten, Jim Bradley, members of BHUU, and Bill Deutsch of Auburn University. Robert Hasman and Waldo Asp as participants in the original dialogue will have their positions represented.
Mark Van Etten Kent Shifferd Bob Hasman Waldo Asp
Blue Hills UU fellowship continues to meet via Zoom – the link will be sent to members, although all interested in these Services are invited to attend. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org < for the link needed to join the service. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation and want to attend service are invited to meet IN the fellowship building located at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
Blue Hills Unitarian Universalists welcome back to Rice Lake an old friend and fellow UU Arthur Thexton of the Milwaukee area, to lead us at Service this coming Sunday, January 17th. 10:00 a.m.
Arthur describes himself as an “upraised UU,” having grown up at the Unitarian Church in Summit (NJ); later attending Meadville/Lombard Theological School, he received his M.A. in Religious Studies from the University of Chicago Divinity School in 1974 after graduating cum laude from Beloit College in 1972. Then earning a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1977, he spent the majority of his career in Madison, Wisconsin, but for a short time he served as our Family Support counselor at Barron County in the 1980’s.
Mr Thexton speaks regularly at UU congregations in Wisconsin, calling himself “a part-time, itinerant, circuit-riding, lay preacher in the UU tradition.” He served as a part-time night chaplain at Meriter Hospital in Madison for two years, and was active in community affairs, serving on the boards of the Wisconsin Coalition Against the Death Penalty, the Unemployment Compensation Appeals Clinic, the Williamson Street Grocery Coop, the James Reeb Unitarian-Universalist Congregation (which he helped found) and the North Madison Youth Soccer Club.
On January 17th. Arthur will explore with our Blue Hills UUs the question of what it means to be spiritual for a UU – why it’s a good thing, and how we do it.
Arthur Thexton
Blue Hills UU fellowship continues to meet via Zoom – the link will be sent to members, although all interested in these Services are invited to attend. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org < for the link needed to join the service. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation and want to attend service are invited to meet IN the fellowship building located at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalists kick off their annual fund-raising for the work of the federated U-U Service Committee at service this Sunday, January 10 at 10:00 am. The Rice Lake fellowship generously supports UUSC’s work for social and environmental justice, and welcomes the theme of this year’s project: The Meaning of Home.
Our relationships with “home” intensified during 2020 as the pandemic brought many of us new appreciation, as well as concern for the places we live and their centrality to our lives. As the past Lay Leader of BHUU, April Nielsen of Chetek will explain the importance of UUSC’s work, and how it partners around the world in efforts to make homes for others.
Blue Hills UU fellowship continues to meet via Zoom – the link will be sent to members, although all interested in these Services are invited to attend. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org < for the link needed to join the service. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation and want to attend service are invited to meet IN the fellowship building located at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
How can we heal the divide in our nation? How can we build a society and a politic in which people come together for their common interest, rather than being divided by bitter partisanship? On Sunday, January 3rd, Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalist Fellowship of Rice Lake hosts Ken Hood, who will share his experiences practicing “Deep Canvassing” over the past year.
Using this method to connect with others across the political spectrum on issues of healthcare, immigration brought Mr Hood a new awareness in how successful this can be, as well as what is at stake for our country. Some brief exercises in listening with compassion and curiosity will be part of the morning, which begins at 10:00 a.m.
Ken Hood, Jr.
Blue Hills UU fellowship continues to meet via Zoom – the link will be sent to members, although all interested in these Services are invited to attend. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org < for the link needed to join the service. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation and want to attend service are invited to meet IN the fellowship building located at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
On Christmas Eve, our Blue Hills UU’s will join the service of our sister congregation in Auburn, Alabama via Zoom at 6:00 p.m. Auburn’s Rev Chris Rothbauer will lead the joint fellowships as we explore hope for tomorrow. “Those seeking Jesus in Bethlehem on the first Christmas ever were looking for a sign of the fulfillment of God’s promise.” Be with us as Rev Rothbauer helps us search for our own personal Bethlehem as we seek hope in times of trouble.
Rev Chris Rothbauer
Sunday’s Dec 27th’s 10 a.m. Service will feature stories, music and the spirit of love and community as our Blue Hills fellowship gathers again to celebrate Christmas for our kids and all of us. Members of the fellowship with tell a story or two, some may sing a song or perhaps share a treasured memory, and all are encouraged to request a favorite Christmas hymn. There may even be some “post” haste gift giving!
Blue Hills UU fellowship continues to meet via Zoom – the link will be sent to members, although all interested in these Services are invited to attend. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org < for the link needed to join the service. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation and want to attend service are invited to meet IN the fellowship building located at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
The Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalists gather by way of Zoom Sunday, December 20th to celebrate this “Season of Light.” In a time of darkness we turn toward the light – Hanukkah, Solstice, Christmas, candlelight and starlight, seeking to recognize the light inside each of us. All are invited to meet Reverend Suzanne Wasilczuk of Minnesota as our BHUU fellowship welcomes her return to Rice Lake to explore a bit of the darkness – and a lot of the light.
A graduate of Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago, Rev Wasilczuk’s previous career was as a registered nurse; she now resides in Duluth, Minnesota with her husband, and preaches at the Mesabi UU Church in Virginia, Minnesota. She also serves as a part-time consultant to the Lakehead Unitarian Fellowship in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Blue Hills UU’s continue to meet at 10:00 a.m. on Sundays via Zoom – the link will be sent to members on Saturday, although all interested are invited to sign in. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org for the link needed to join the service. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation and want to attend service are invited to meet IN the fellowship building located at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
“Baby, We Need a Barn-Raising!” Rev. Erin J. Walter declares as we seek to protect our physical health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Knowing “social isolation can take a dangerous toll on our spirits and our mental health” UU Rev. Walter seeks to break down the stigma surrounding mental illness by drawing on the historic practice of barn raising. The Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalists welcome her on Zoom from Austin, Texas this Sunday December 13th to share spiritual resources for mental health through original song and the innate wisdom of Mr. Rogers.
UU minister and musician, Rev Walter is the winner of the UU Women’s Federation Sermon Award and leads the indie group Parker Woodland, whose music will be included in the service. A former YMCA director, she serves as a board member for the Texas UU Justice Ministry and as the Affiliated Community Minister of Wildflower (Unitarian Universalist) Church in Austin. More can be found about Rev. Erin’s music and ministry at ErinWalter.com.
The Blue Hills UU fellowship continues to meet at 10:00 a.m. on Sundays via Zoom – the link will be sent to members on Saturday, although all interested are invited to sign in. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org for the link needed to join the service. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation and want to attend service are invited to meet IN the fellowship building located at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
We welcome Chaplain Dennis Peters to BHUU Fellowship Sunday December 6th, to share with us an introduction to the “Garden of the Righteous”. Noted as an important performance by a Jewish ensemble of Minneapolis, Peters describes it as “celebrating the Righteous among the Nations. People who have risked everything – their lives and the lives of their families to rescue Jews and others from the Nazis, hiding them and helping them to escape”
This gripping program also serves also as a fund fundraiser for Doctors Without Borders, and is interspersed with klezmer music from Noyes Strunes – Yiddish for “New Strings.” Many of us won’t be surprised to discover a Unitarian connection to this effort.
The Blue Hills UU fellowship continues to meet at 10:00 a.m. on Sundays via Zoom – the link will be sent to members on Saturday, although all interested are invited to sign in. Visitors may contact Ken Hood > ken@bluehillsuu.org for the link needed to join the service. Those lacking cyberlink connection or equipment to enable participation and want to attend service are invited to meet IN the church at 230 W Messenger, masked and distanced, to watch the presentation on large screen ZOOM.
