The
Forum on Sunday April 28th at the Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalist
Fellowship in Rice Lake springs from a TED talk video entitled “How
Poachers Became Caretakers”, in honor of Earth Week.
In his home of Namibia, John Kasaona shares with us innovative ways he’s
found to
protect endangered animal species by giving nearby villagers (including
former poachers) responsibility for caring for the animals. And it’s
working.
A discussion of the presentation will follow the video.
Andrew Frantz
Guest
speaker Andrew Frantz, a student of Meadville-Lombard Seminary conducts
the Service at 10:30. His message will address the men’s movement in
UU and ways this may have changed and enhanced the lives of both the
individual and the congregation. Frantz has been a member of Oberlin
UUF since 2002, and is a full-time
graduate student with the goal
of being ordained as a Unitarian Universalist minister.
Nourishment for body
and soul always follows the service with fellowship and light
refreshments; all are invited.
Hope-A 4-Letter-Word (MP3 file) – Recorded and edited on 4/21/2019. Please note that some of the audience responses had to be cut due to poor audio quality
Credit: Flickr User “Viv Lynch“, CC-BY-NC-ND 2.0 License
Order of Service for 4/21/2019
Prelude Music – Tam Kjer Murke Cveto
Lighting the Chalice
Opening words # 652 – Call and
response
words by William Ellery
Channing (Unitarian preacher)
Welcome & Greeting
Song # 1007 There’s a River
Flowin’ in My Soul
Opportunity to Speak for
Social Action
Joys & Concerns
Reading our Principles(front of hymnal)
HOPE—a “4-letter-word” (presented by BHUU member Ken Hood)
Introduction
Parts 1 and 2
Reflection/Audience Feedback
Part 3
Song # 344 A Promise through
the Ages Rings
Opportunity for Sharing Gifts
Music: Beautiful Dreamer, written by Stephen
Foster
Extinguishing the Chalice
Closing Words # 691 (all
recite)
Help us to be the always hopeful gardeners of the spirit who know that without darkness nothing comes to birth as without light nothing flowers.
May Sarton (Unitarian poet)
Circle of Peace and Friendship (words written on the back wall say “Go well into life now, and when you need us, always remember that here you will find the hands of friends”)
Sources and Related Media
Danielle Muscato: “Humanism and social justice activism are inseparable. I do activism because I care about human welfare and meaning and health and happiness. I believe that humans are responsible for our own lives and welfare and that positive change comes about through human action. That’s the definition of humanism. Doing social justice activism is a foundational, integral aspect of being a humanist.”
HG Wells (quoting from near the end of The Time Machine): “The darkness grew apace; a cold wind began to blow in freshening gusts from the east, and the showering white flakes in the air increased in number. From the edge of the sea came a ripple and whisper. Beyond these lifeless sounds the world was silent. Silent? It would be hard to convey the stillness of it. All the sounds of man, the bleating of sheep, the cries of birds, the hum of insects, the stir that makes the background of our lives—all that was over.”
Ryan Bell reflecting on his interview with Prof. John Gray, a noted critic of Humanism (transcript typed by Ken Hood): “I don’t think we need to decide between the optimist and the pessimist. The real challenge of post-theism is to be a realist. Sometimes reality gives us reason to hope and sometimes it does not.” Relevant audio begins at 50:53 in the video.
Sincere Kirabo: “I don’t think it’s possible to fully realize my ambitions for social transformation. At least not in the US. I don’t consider acknowledging this as being pessimistic. I’m a realist. I may think or dream big, but I’m grounded enough to accept that the legacies of oppression that shape our world, and the conditions that perpetuate these legacies, are extraordinarily difficult to dismantle. Regardless, the fight is necessary. All of the battles waged and little victories won along the way towards those seemingly unattainable end goals help inch marginalized communities that much closer to a freer tomorrow. This in and of itself makes the fight worthwhile.”
Recommended listening: “Broken and Really Broken,” by David Breeden, Humanist minister at First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis.
Always a favorite Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalist happening is “Soapbox Sunday!” As topics, concerns and frustrations bubble & brew in your consciousness, make a note to bring them to our attention this coming Sunday, April 21st at the 9:15 forum.
Former Board Chair
Ken Hood will conduct the Service at 10:30. Noting that “HOPE is a
Four–letter Word”, Ken will share with us stories from his time student
teaching and working with secondary school students. Together we will
reflect on the role of Hope–a sometimes helpful, sometimes dangerous
quality–within a non-theistic framework.
Nourishment for body
and soul always follows the service with fellowship and light
refreshments; it being third Sunday of the month, the congregation will
enjoy pot luck together. All are invited.
Our Forum tomorrow morning, April 14th brings our fellowship Treasurer Pat Shifferd to the foreground to review and explore the proposed budget for 2019-2020. Input from the membership is sought as we plan the coming year’s projects and events; we begin at 9:15 a.m.
Musical friends “February Sky” from da U.P. hey, Michigan, will enliven the 10:30 Service with their musical presentation “Acts of Creation -the Sacred Place of Art in Our Lives.” Phil Cooper and Susan Urban make up the folk duo, playing a number of acoustic instruments including guitar, cittern, mountain dulcimer, banjo and percussion. Always a favorite morning, their music ranges from traditional, modern and Gaelic folk to Susan’s original work.
Nourishment for body & soul always follows the service with fellowship and light refreshments, after which our BHUU Board will meet. All are invited to attend. Added delight: we actually believe it will stop snowing by then ~ as they say: Keep the Faith!
Members actively engaged with “Immigrant Advocacy” groups in Barron County, most especially as they involve the Somali families in Barron, will offer an informational Forum at the Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalist church, 9:15 a.m. April 7th. Some of the challenges confronted within the community and ways we might be of assistance will be considered.
The Service at 10:30 a.m. will feature guest speaker Dr. Jane Shoup, Professor Emerita of Biological Sciences at Purdue University, Indiana. Noting that “our most unique trait as a species, our clever brain, has gotten us into a lot of trouble,” Dr. Shoup attempts to lift our spirits in sharing thoughts on how our species might cope with the world we now live in, as we “Hitchhike Towards Sapience”–the quality of being wise.
Nourishment for body and soul always follows the service
with fellowship and light refreshments; all are invited to participate.
Planned to be held earlier this month, the Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalist
Fellowship will hold a Forum on “Climate Change & the Right to be Rescued”
at 9:15, Sunday March 31st. The topic will be addressed by Valerie Rude,
whose experience working with persons with disabilities has made her aware that
this issue is sometimes overlooked in planning for natural disaster
rescues. Time for discussion will be part of the Forum.
We expect our “little free library” to look something like this.
A “Work Day!” experience will take the place of formal service this same Sunday, as UU’s gather at 10:30 a.m. to build a “Little Free Library” which will be located on the premises as soon as the ground thaws. Member Dave Hart will supervise the construction with plans and materials. Bring your hammers, screwdrivers & saws. Those less comfortable with construction will sort through the BHUU library to select books to be offered.
Nourishment for body and soul always follows the service with fellowship and light refreshments; all are invited to participate.
On Sunday March 24th, the 9:15 Forum at Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalist
fellowship in Rice
Lake, will be hosted by
Dave Hart. The topic, yet to be determined,
promises to be engaging, topical and often provocative. Discussion rises to near art form in UU
congregations, with time for all voices to be heard.
Rev. Jane Rzepka of the Church of the Larger Fellowship will conduct the
Service at 10:30 a.m. via the magic of cyberspace. Her topic, “Salvation”, springs from an earlier gathering
of the General Assembly. A time for
fellowship and gnoshing always follows service, and all are invited to participate.
We had to change plans for our 9:15 Forum from what’s posted on Calendar — the topic will still be climate change, though our Valerie had to postpone her specific talk on how planning affects persons with disabilities. In the alternative, we will be watching and discussing a TED talk by David Kerth entitled “A critical Look at Bio-engineering Against Climate Change.” Lively discussion always follows the presentation.
Ralph Murre
We are especially pleased this week to welcome guest Ralph Murre, Door County’s 2015-2017 Poet Laureate. His poem “Dark December” has become nearly a cult classic in Door, and a favorite to our congregation as well – which laid the path to bring him to BHUU. He will share a timely collection of his work at the 10:30 Service, entitled “A Poet’s Way in America”. Murre immediately connects with his audience, and is a recognized Poet in Door County as well as throughout the state of Wisconsin.
Being the Third Sunday of the month, a Potluck will follow the service and all are invited.
The Blue Hills Unitarian-Universalist Fellowship will gather Sunday March 10th to review the book choice for the “Common Read,”an event which all UU fellowships take part in each year. 2019’s book choice is a collection of essays entitled “Justice on Earth: People of Faith Working at the Intersections of Race, Class, and the Environment.” The text considers the work and involvement of various UU congregations. Kent & Pat Shifferd will lead a discussion of the book, expected to be cover the full morning beginning at 10:00 to 11:30.
Update: Service has been cancelled for today due to the weather
Update: Due to the heavy snowfall all activities at BHUU have been cancelede for Feb 24, 2019. Please stay safe!
The 9:15 Forum will take the form of advance planning for administrative issues of the fellowship on Sunday, February 24th. Members are urged to attend and share their thoughts to help form direction and decisions for the future of our UU. Community residents interested in the UU as a viable voice in the area are welcome to attend.
One of our most looked forward to Service
hours will begin at 10:30 a.m. “Music
& Poetry Sunday” invites those attending to share favorite poems to
read, whether their own creation or beloved work of other poets, and
have opportunity to request specific hymns within the Service.
