On Sunday, November 4^th,The Facility Planning Committee Invites You To Celebrate With Us Our First Glimpse Into UUCNH’s FUUture As We UUnveil

THE PROMISED LAND

Usually when a church starts a renovation plan for a community building, there is a big ground-breaking ceremony and party afterwards.  But since, with the Promised Land, there wasn’t any actual ground to break, we have had to find another way of celebrating our construction.  So…

On November 4th, following the Sunday service, we invite all of you to help us remove the covering tarp from the opening between the two floors of our barn.  Everyone is invited to participate in this unveiling of UUCNH's Promised Land -for the first time, we will be able to stand on the first floor and see into The Promised Land above us.  Please come participate in this festive first event.

It’s getting to be that time of the year again.  Even though it felt like summer with temperatures in the upper eighties just a few days ago, the holidays are fast approaching–beginning with Thanksgiving, my personal favorite holiday of the year.

I remember so well as a child getting out of school at noon on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and spending the afternoon in the kitchen with my mother helping to make the stuffing.  It took hours, as all the veggies and innards had to be cut up and then pushed through the hand-cranked grinder.  Cranking the liver through was gross, and we all cried as the onions were ground, but the aromas were wonderful once my mother started browning the puree and adding thyme. Then there was stuffing bread to soak and squeeze out, cranberry sauce to make, pie to bake, and silverware to polish.

We always got up early on Thanksgiving morning to stuff the bird (25 pounds or so) and get it in the oven.  After breakfast my father would say he was going out to get a paper and ask me if I wanted to go along.  It was his way of saying, “Let’s go get your mother some flowers.”  So we would head out to Sam’s corner store to get the paper, and then go on to the florist, where I’d get to pick the chrysanthemums for Mom’s “surprise” bouquet–usually some mix of dark red, bronze, gold, and yellow.  Mom always acted surprised when we returned with the flowers, but I knew she wasn’t.  While Mom turned the flowers into a gorgeous centerpiece, I began helping to set the dinner table using the good china, silver and crystal.  Setting the table with these beautiful things was rather like creating a work of art.  For me, it was a joy, never a chore.

      Company came in the early afternoon, after the high-school football games were over.  My town of Plainfield always played nearby Westfield on Thanksgiving Day.  I didn’t much care about the game, even when I was in high school.  It was family coming, smelling dinner cooking, snacking on hors d’oeuvres, tasting the turkey as my father or grandfather carved, talking over dinner, savoring all the wonderful tastes, and lingering at the table that I loved.  Most years I ate too much, and felt over-stuffed for hours.  But somehow there was always room by late evening for that first turkey sandwich with stuffing and cranberry sauce on white toast lathered with Hellmann’s mayo.

Growing up, I didn’t fully appreciate just how blessed I was to have loving family and participate in such wonderful family traditions.  We always said grace before dinner, of course, thanking God for everyone present, the food and other blessings.  Our Thanksgiving grace was typically different and longer than our rote daily repetition of  “Thank you for the food we eat...”   Still, it always felt a tad perfunctory and forced.

In retrospect, I realize that I actually took a lot for granted before I left home and began hearing friends talk about not wanting to be with their families at the holidays because people always ended up getting drunk, fighting, screaming, shouting, or worse.  Likewise, I had to witness first-hand the pain of poverty and homelessness before I could wholly appreciate the economic blessings of growing up in middle-class America where my father liked to remind us kids that we never went to bed hungry.

Now the invitation to fill up on gratitude is what I most love about Thanksgiving.  Gratitude has such spiritual power.  It gladdens the heart, opens us to joy, and transforms suffering.  Painful feelings such as fear, anger, grief and despair cannot co-exist with heartfelt gratitude.  As gratitude swells within us, such painful feelings fade away, and we come to experience the blessings of gratitude itself. 

We all have so much to be grateful for.  Think about it, and I’m sure we could all make a virtually endless list of blessings.  Some are primary and come readily to mind–blessings like being alive, people to love and people who love us, good food to eat, pleasant homes to live in, medical care, meaningful work, leisure time and household pets.  Others are easily taken for granted and overlooked–blessings like intelligence, our five senses and all the pleasures they bring, the earth and all of nature, religious freedom, the right to vote, education, transportation, summer-like days in fall, and an infinite array of little things like a soft bed for sleeping, flowers blooming indoors, smiles and laughter, books and music and art to enjoy, telephones, and access to the web.  Indeed, you might try making a joint gratitude list at the dinner table this Thanksgiving.  See how long you can keep going, and discover for yourself just how energizing and fun naming the many blessings we enjoy and cultivating an attitude of gratitude can be. 

I hope UUCNH appears on everyone’s gratitude list, along with the many blessings we enjoy as a church.  Blessings like a community of wonderful people to know and love, work with, grow with, and enjoy; our rich UU religious heritage and ongoing commitment to religious freedom; our beautiful facility and all the improvements soon to be completed; our gorgeous grounds; our dedicated staff and volunteers; all the programs we offer for children, youth, and adults of all ages; our UU Principles and support to live them; an abundance of incredible cooks and amazingly talented people; and that’s just the beginning.

So, where better to get a jump-start on celebrating Thanksgiving than in our West Room?  Come to church on Sunday, November 18, and you’ll have an opportunity to gather around tables, talk and sing, share family traditions, express your gratitude, and relish the blessings of just being part of our church.  Please come if you possibly can - it won’t be the same without you!

            Happy Thanksgiving,

                        Carol

Upcoming Services

Faith in Action New Orleans

Rev. Carol Meyer leading worship

Justice, Equity and Compassion

Rev. Carol Meyer preaching

November 18:

Thanksgiving Celebration

Rev. Carol Meyer leading worship

November 25:

Meeting Faith: An Inward Odyssey

Susan Cox, Service Coordinator

Faith Adiele, Guest Speaker

CLUSTER  PEACEMAKING  PALOOZA

COMING NOVEMBER 2 & 3

FIRST UNITARIAN, SHADYSIDE

Reserve Friday evening, November 2 to attend a concert of peace music presented by Emily Pinkerton, Director of the Folk Orchestra at First Unitarian in Shadyside.  Plan on spending Saturday, November 3 at First Unitarian engaging issues related to peacemaking with three dynamic guests.  

• 9:00     Gathering
• 9:30     Opening Worship
• 10:00   Keynote Address given by The Rev. Paul Rasor, UU theologian and Director of the Center for the Study of Religious Freedom at Virginia Wesleyan College
• Noon - Lunch
• 1:00: Panels and Workshops featuring:

1. Paul Rasor
2. Scilla Wahrhaftig, community organizer and activist, head of the PA state office of the    American Friends Service Committee's state office
3. Art Gish, civil rights advocate for 40 years, leader of Christian Peacemaker Teams in Hebron

• 3:45      Closing

COFFEE HOUR AMID CONSTRUCTION

Dear Coffee Hour Hosts, and the Congregation,

As the dust flies while our church is remodeled, coffee hour must be adjusted because we are not certain when we'll have access to the kitchen, Friendship Hall, refrigeration or running water.  To offer coffee hour in a safe and sanitary manner during renovations, it will be held in the back of the West Room, the main room where service is held.  Two tables will be set up in the back.

Biodegradable paper cups, small paper plates, napkins and heavy paper plates for serving will be stored in the closet at the back of the West Room (to the right as you enter the room), where extra chairs are stored.  We will not use tablecloths during this time.  Instead of serving coffee and hot tea, coffee hour hosts are asked to provide beverages that can either be mixed at home or require no preparation, such as iced tea and juices.  Food also should be items that can be carried from your car to the table, requiring no preparation.

We realize that, in some ways, this will be more difficult than our traditional coffee hour and we certainly realize it will not be as grand, but we believe it's the safest way to handle food and beverage service during the remodeling.

We invite you to view this as PENNDOT would: "Temporary inconvenience for permanent improvement."  Thank you for your cooperation,

Diana Hull and Patrice Giancola Noel

COFFEE HOUR HOSTS NEEDED FOR:

      Dec. 30 -- One household needed

      May 25 -- Two households needed

      June 15 -- One household needed

DRIVER NEEDED!

Why be a UU?  For me the answer is easy - Imagine a world that lives by the 7 principles!

It's the best chance the world has.  As technology and travel increase the world is struggling with increased diversity.  My children are growing up in a world that is radically different from the one I knew.  Our children need religious literacy to understand the great variety of people and cultures they will encounter.

I believe there are millions of UU's out there – they just don't know it yet.  I think of these people as spiritually hungry and religiously homeless.  Isn't it our responsibility to care for the hungry and homeless?  In a 2004 survey 25% of the Americans polled said they have no one to confide in, pretty ironic in a world where cell phones are ubiquitous.  Many of the people coming through our doors are seeking connection.  To quote Peter Morales "And what do we do when they arrive at our door?  All too often, we treat these seekers very badly.  How many of you have visited one or more UU congregations other than your own?  How many of you have had the experience of being ignored?  Now imagine what it is like for people who are brand new!  For you and me to ignore a visitor is the moral equivalent of not feeding the hungry and not housing the homeless."

I've noticed when I'm greeting that the folks visiting us know a great deal about UUism – they've already checked us out on the web.  I don't need to explain what we're about quite as much; the well-crafted elevator speech is not that necessary.  Visitors are trying to see if they fit in here.  How does our church feel?  Will they find a friend? 

UUism needs to grow, how else can we spread our good news?  Since the merger of the Unitarians and the Universalists in 1961 the denomination either has not grown, or has grown only 1% per year, depending on which source you use.  In either case we are becoming smaller in proportion to the U.S. population which has increased by ~ 50% during that time.  The UUA, our national organization has heard the plea from congregations that we want to grow.  They have field-tested a marketing strategy that created growth in 4 different areas in the county.  Take a look at the ad in Time magazine.  Rumor has is that they found billboards to be quite effective too.  Don't drive off the road in surprise!

Our church, UUCNH, was founded at the time of the merger.  We had  ~40 founders and we now have  ~180 members and many friends.  Clearly we have grown!  But there are still many more spiritually hungry folks out there waiting to hear the good news, our wonderful 7 principles.  Let's invite them in and share our wonderful community. 

In faith,

A CULTURE OF WELCOMING.

What Does This Mean, And Why Is It Important?

Carol Ballance has presented some sobering statistics about the loneliness that so many of our fellow Americans are experiencing these days.  Our UU church can truly be the spiritual home that they need, but only if our visitors are welcomed warmly as soon as they approach our doors and with every step they take within them.

Many of us come to church to see familiar faces, to feel as if we are part of a community.  So we naturally gravitate towards those familiar faces.  But imagine yourself walking into the building for the first time.  Everyone else is a stranger.  They all seem to know each other.  You see them hugging each other and having conversations about things you know nothing about.  How does this feel to you?

A recent study of churches nationwide asked members how they felt about their churches.  Those churches that felt like a "close-knit family" were found to be in decline.  Think about it: how does an outsider even hope to become part of a "close-knit family?" 

Let us take on this challenge: make an effort to speak with at least one unfamiliar person every time you come to church.  Say hello to your old friends only after you have welcomed a new friend.

Visitors come through our doors seeking what we have.  Let us offer it to them with open hearts and outstretched hands.

A DIFFERENT PIIN MEETING

For the past several years in the fall, the Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact network (PIIN) has held a "public meeting" at which local officials were asked to commit to specific actions that advance PIIN's agenda for systemic social change.  This year, PIIN is doing something different.  After being in existence for 7 years, PIIN would like its member congregations to consider the questions: "Is PIIN still needed and is our congregation still interested in being part of PIIN?"

On November 11, PIIN is holding a re-covenanting event for member congregations whose answer is that they wish to continue participation.  The event will also be an introduction for seven new congregations expected to join PIIN.  It is to be smaller than previous fall events with an emphasis on attendance from member congregations, not the general public.  The goal is about 300 people.  PIIN would like UUCNH to send at least 10 people.  If we are still interested in being involved in PIIN, that number should be much easier to achieve than the 20-25 we've been trying to get for previous public meetings.  We will also need our banner and a designated banner carrier.  I am interested in remaining in PIIN, but to do so we need a few other members to also participate.  To express an interest, see me at coffee hour, or send an email to Sue Broughton.

“Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence” 
~ John Adams, Dec. 1770

OMD Chalice Lighter Program

Letting Our Light Shine

Our OMD Chalice Lighter Program has been dormant for the last couple of years, but now we are seeing a resurgence of interest on the part of congregations and individuals alike who are willing to step up and put their money where it truly counts: towards the immediate health and well being of our district congregations.

A Chalice Lighter is an individual or couple who pledge to respond with a contribution of at least $10 when a call comes from the OMD Board that it's time to light a chalice for a congregation within the Ohio Meadville District.  Chalice Lighter calls are made to support specific growth initiatives in individual OMD congregations.

Four times a year, people will receive a letter explaining which congregation has applied for a Chalice Lighter call and what the funds will be used for.  Chalice Lighters commit to respond to four calls each year and will be asked to contribute each year until they notify the Ohio-Meadville District Office that they no longer wish to participate. 

Chalice Lighter grants are intended to help congregations by providing funds to implement new growth initiatives.  Some congregations have used their grants to improve their buildings and grounds, to help provide professional leadership, including religious education leadership, or engage in new forms of outreach into their communities.  New and existing congregations have received grants to fund publicity campaigns, signs, hymnals, chairs and religious education materials. 

Information about the Chalice Lighters Grant Program as well as a pledge form can be found on the Ohio Meadville District's website: www.ohiomeadville.org.  Or, people can pick up the Chalice Lighter brochure in their congregational pamphlet rack, fill out the form and mail it to the OMD Office.  On select Sundays, there might even be a Chalice Lighter representative with an information table in your congregation.  Becoming a Chalice Lighter is as easy as filling out that form.  Once the district office receives your form, your name will be added to the rolls.

Grant applications are available on our district website, www.ohiomeadville.org.  Grant proposals must clearly outline how the funds will help further congregational growth or outreach.  Groups that wish to apply for a grant to initiate a new congregation should meet with the district executive before applying for a grant.

Contact the district office for more information by calling 330-948-2600, or sending an email to: office@ohiomeadville.org.

We have hidden our light under the proverbial bushel for too long.  The time is now to share our message of religious freedom, hope and acceptance with friends and neighbors.  We need to advance the light, spread the word and share the faith of hope and courage.  Accept the invitation to become an OMD Chalice Lighter and help spread the light of our liberal faith. 

So You (or a family member) Want to Be a Vegetarian - What Do You Eat?"

Come to an informational session at UUCNH on vegetarian eating on Thursday, November 15 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Carol Juergemeier, Registered Dietetic Technician, will provide some tips on balanced diets for children and adults.  Vegetarians  (or parents with vegetarian children) are invited to share Internet links, favorite recipes, etc, Youth and adults are welcome to the discussion, and childcare will be available for younger children, if there is a need.  Bring your favorite vegetarian dish and we will begin the evening with a vegetarian potluck!

Contact Patrice Noel (facilitator) to register and to let her know if you will need childcare.  Don’t forget to also bring your Internet links and favorite vegetarian recipes (typed or neatly written), or even better, e-mailed to Patrice, so that a booklet can be compiled for attendees (and other interested church members).  If you can't attend the discussion, please feel free to forward your recipes to Patrice or contact her to request a copy of the booklet

SOCIAL ACTION CORNER-

• DONATE YOUR OLD CAR

North Hills Community Outreach has a program for distribution of donated cars to people of low income.  NHCO will accept cars in any condition.  Those that are drivable are sold to clients for a purchase price typically between $1500-$2200.  If you have a car you wish to donate (and receive a tax credit for charitable donation), please contact Randy Murchak at Community Auto in Gibsonia at 724-443-8300.  See Diane Hutchins if you have any questions.

• GLOBAL WARMING - HELP COOL IT

As we all recognize, it's one thing to acknowledge the reality of global warming, but it's something else again to do something about it!  Most of the current discussion of solutions focuses on large-scale initiatives, but the real hope for long-term progress rests with us as individuals - the day-to-day actions that we take, in addition to the way we vote.

What are the most effective actions that an individual or a family can take?  As a part of its annual meeting, the North Area Environmental Council is hosting a presentation based on "The Low Carbon Diet - A 30-Day Program to Lose 5,000 Pounds" that will identify actions we can take in our homes and our neighborhoods.  This presentation is similar to one at Allegheny UU a few weeks ago.

Incremental local changes may be drops in a very large bucket, but they are also part of something much greater in scope and potential impact.  As discussed in a December 2006 article in the Christian Science Monitor, the growing interest in measurably reducing one's carbon footprint is a textbook case of how new ideas spread throughout society, and how new movements are born.

If a problem is to be acted upon, it must first be recognized as a problem.  That recognition begins at the grassroots level and works its way up, until it impacts the leaders of communities and institutions.  When those leaders recognize the problem, the recognition rapidly spreads through traditional social networks, and action becomes possible.  Sociologists have traced this process for the civil rights movement and, more recently, for the opposition to smoking.

The grassroots movement to reduce carbon emissions is in its infancy.  Please join us to learn how we can contribute to the growth of the movement!

Monday November 5, 2007 at 7:00 PM in the Ryan Room of Zappala Hall (student union) at La Roche College.  For any questions call 412-364-7006.

For a printable map of the La Roche campus, go to this address:

http://www.laroche.edu/pr/campus-virtual-tour/virtual-tour.htm

Directions:  North on Route 19 or McKnight Road to Cumberland Road.  Turn east (right) on Cumberland to Babcock Boulevard.  Turn south (right) on Babcock to La Roche main entrance on left (last road before Duncan Avenue).  Follow the entrance road to the parking lots.  Zappala Hall (the student union) is located between the Wright Library and the Palumbo Science Center.

SUNNYHILL TO GO!  CAFÉ & ARTISAN GIFT SHOP

The DownUnder Coffeehouse

OH, WHERE DID OUR OLD KITCHEN GO?

WE'D LOVE TO HAVE YOU BRING A SUNDAY BOUQUET!  HERE'S HOW:

* Call Janine Brobst to be sure no one else has offered flowers for that Sunday.  Otherwise she will provide them.

* Call the church secretary (412-366-0244) by the preceding Thursday morning so that your name can be printed in the Order of Service.  If your flowers are in memory of a loved one or a special event, tell the secretary.

* Flowers may be home-grown, or purchased or wildflowers from nature’s bounty or artificial arrangements.  Branches trimmed from blooming shrubs are nice, too.  Large vases are available at the church.

Facilitator: Tony Palermo
When: 1st Sunday after service
Date: November 4, see Tony for Room.

How'd We Get Here - A discussion in several sessions of the way Evolution made us the way we are.  We'll start with the basics of Natural Selection and the philosophy it implies [Does Intelligence evolve or must it be there at the Beginning?] and then thru the development of moral rudiments of society to the everlasting, and everlastingly interesting, tensions of male-female relationships. 

Interested participants can register by calling or e-mailing Chris with your name, telephone number and e-mail address. 

The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels is a landmark study of the long-buried roots of Christianity.  In 1945 an Egyptian peasant unearthed what proved to be the Gnostic Gospels, thirteen papyrus volumes that expounded a radically different view of the life and teachings of Jesus.  Pagels explores this range of gospels, including the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Mary Magdalene, to show how a variety of “Christianities” emerged at a time of extraordinary spiritual upheaval.  Some Christians questioned the need for clergy and church doctrine, and taught that the divine could be discovered through spiritual search.  Many others sought enlightenment within.  Such explorations raised questions:  Was the resurrection to be understood symbolically and not literally?  Was God to be envisioned only in masculine form, or feminine, as well?  These early Christians dared to ask questions that orthodox Christians later suppressed – and their explorations led to profoundly different visions of Jesus and his message.  The Gnostic Gospels is a radical, eloquent reconsideration of the origins of the Christian faith. 

Simplicity Circle will meet at the church on Monday, November 5th from 7 – 8:30 p.m.  We will discuss Chapter 8 “Vision of Sustainability” in Choices for Sustainable Living.  Barbara Brock will facilitate.  Anyone is welcome to join our discussion, if you have questions please contact Peggy Trevanion.

     *     BOOK DISCUSSION 

Jacob Jankowski is a man now in his nineties who is reliving his memories from life in the Circus during the early part of the great depression.  The orphaned penniless boy who had no direction until he joins the circus recalls Marlena, the star of the show, Rosie the Elephant and himself in a tale about life in a circus and how they survived together.

     *     AGING WITH GRACE      

• Aging as a Spiritual Journey by Eugene Bianchi
• The Fountain of Age by Betty Friedan
• Successful Aging by Mary O'Brien, M.D.
• From Age-ing to Sage-ing by Zalman Schachter-Shalomi and Ronald Miller
• Wisdom of the Elders by David Suzuki and Peter Knudtson
• The Crone  - Woman of Age, Wisdom, and Power by Barbara Walker
• Wise Women, A Celebration of Their Insights, Courage, and Beauty
      by Joyce Tenneson
• If I Had My Life To Live Over, I Would Pick More Daisies and
• When I Am An Old Woman, I Shall Wear Purple, anthologies
  
    edited by Sandra Martz

Facilitator:  Jeff Hutchins
When: Friday or Saturday nights
Where: The Hutchins' home (see Jeff)
Dates: First Film on October 27 at 7:00pm

Film: Battleship Potemkin

UUCNH member Jeff Hutchins, who received his B.S. degree in Broadcasting & Film, will be teaching a Film Appreciation Course as part of the UUCNH Adult R.E. program this fall.

The course will consist of eight three-hour classes on an irregular basis, at Jeff's home on either Friday or Saturday nights depending on students' preferences.  The class size is strictly limited to EIGHT participants.  Sign up is on a first-come, first-served basis.  Once the class is full, people on a waiting list will be contacted if a "regular" attendee drops out or cannot make one of the classes.  Notify Jeff directly of your interest by email.  There is no fee for the class, and participation is limited to age 16 and older.  The first class will be Saturday, October 27, at 7:00 p.m. with the silent Russian classic "Battleship Potemkin."

• EQUAL EXCHANGE PRODUCTS

While we're under construction and not serving coffee, I expected to see a large increase in folks buying Equal Exchange Fair Trade coffee to make at home.  But we haven't, so maybe people don't see the display rack between the refrigerator and the Women's Room.  We still have our usual assortment of French Roast, Breakfast Blend, Mind Body & Soul, plus Decaf in whole bean and drip grind.  Plus the Hazelnut Crème, Toffee Caramel and French Vanilla, all in drip grind.  Only $8 per bag.

Glad we can get back into the office again-to get your chocolate bars! We have six flavors of fair trade bars for only $ each, 2 for  $7 and 3 for $10!

Equal Exchange Tea-Big Discounts & Closeout Sale.  It seems that we either don't have many tea drinkers here at UUCNH, or they don't like or want to buy the Equal Exchange tea.  So, if you would like some, it’s now on sale for $1 per box-a 75% savings.  Choose from English Breakfast or Green.  Hurry-Sale ends soon!

You can pay cash, or check made out to UUCNH (write Coffee Fund on the memo line) and leave it in the black lockbox by the chocolate in the office.  Thanks for supporting small farmers while you enjoy great products!

• PAPER RECYCLING UPDATE

Great News!  We now have both of our recycling dumpsters together, by the entrance to the overflow parking lot.  That also means we now have two (2!)  Trash dumpsters-no more overflowing trash Yeah!!  Many thanks to Kurt Kuntz, John Brobst and Craig Thomson for getting this change made and the corrugated bin moved.  We can recycle almost all types of paper products, as long as they go in the proper locations:

• Corrugated Cardboard-Flatten the box and put it in the red dumpster.

• Paper-all kinds, like newspaper, magazines, ad inserts, soft-bound books, etc., can go in our PaperRetriever bin (green and yellow) in the parking lot.
  
  
•  Paperboard (non-hollow cardboard, like cereal boxes, etc) goes in the plastic bins in Friendship Hall-check toward the RE hallway during construction.  Luckily we have several folks who regularly go down and drop it off at Construction Junction.  If you travel that way, consider taking a bin occasionally.

• Telephone books-Please use the special dumpsters put out by the phone companies during the distribution of new ones.  They can also be taken to Construction Junction.  Please DON'T mix them in with the paper, paperboard or cardboard.  These are the lowest form of paper, so there are limited uses for it after becoming a phone book.

If you have any questions, please contact Chris Hill.