Facebook Live
May 14, 2020
Good afternoon, I hope you’re doing well
Importance of staying connected
Live message Tuesday through Saturday at 1pm
If you miss a message you can watch the recording on facebook,
if you have a facebook account.
Or you can read my message (in outline form) at my personal website: rhmcd.com
Here’s what you need to know
Budget
Finance Committee will present to the Board,
Board will review and approve, Tuesday, May 19
Approved budget will be presented to congregation, May 31 for final vote
Town Hall Council, Thursday, May 28
Finance Committee will present to proposals included in budget
Drawing from two funds
Wider Wuurld
Staff salaries for outreach
Opportunity Fund
Plant and programs
Very important that the Town Hall Council approve these requests
Worship this Sunday
Shea Winterburger, preaching
Happy Trails to Reverend Rick! June 21,
Please send a photo to Laura Scully at lbscully1@gmail.com.
and a 1-2 sentence reflection or quote that captures your feelings about the last couple years.
Deadline is May 31st for your submission
Giving to the church
Re-start the paused Stewardship Campaign
And if you haven’t tried text-to-give yet – give it a try
Info is on the front page of the church website.
Saying Goodbye
Lissa and I will speak later today
I’ve prepared a draft covenant
The UUA Settlement Handbook (page 90)
“The candidate and interim minister should talk about how things will be handed off, and ideally the interim minister and Search Committee will keep requests from overloading the candidate between the end of candidating week and the start date. It is important for the newly- called candidate to finish their own ministry and for the congregation to work at ending well with the interim minister.”
2) Message
We not me.
I’ve been thinking about the difference in
How various countries responded to this crisis
A large difference has to do with how we see the relationship
between the self and the community
In some cultures
The primary sense of identity is with the community as a whole
In other cultures, the primary sense of identity is with the self.
The U.S. culture is very much a self-oriented culture.
Individuals
And individual freedom
The right of an individual to guide their own life and make their own decisions.
And that’s good
But this has become a problem
When facing a crisis that demands a community response.
If I want to go sky diving.
I can make my own choice
I can accept the risk
And my decision impacts no one else but me.
But if I choice not to wear a mask
Or stand too close to someone in line at the supermarket
Or choose to join a crowd at a beach
My individual choice puts the community at risk
If the government allows shops and restaurants (and churches) to open
And that feels too risky for me.
I can choose to stay home anyway
And you could say that if other folks want to go to those places
Well they can choose for themselves what level of risk they want to accept
But in this case
Unlike sky-diving
Their choice to accept risk (or not to admit the risk)
Also puts me at risk
As their choice keeps the virus spreading
As they get sick, and spread the virus to me or people I love
And overwhelm the health care capacity
Which we all depend on
So the spiritual principle here
Is balancing the sense of identity
Somewhere between me and we
This is something we all have to do
As spiritually health people
And because we are culturally already heavily weighted to the me side
That means for most of us
Intentionally emphasizing the we.
How can I be more fully part of a community?
How can I be less self-oriented, and more community-oriented?
How can I let the needs of the community guide my choices
Rather than my own preferences and desires?
The basis of spirituality:
What larger need can I serve?
What personal sacrifice can I offer?
How can I align my life with the goals and purposes of the thing larger than myself?
How can I make my life a gift to that larger thing?
One of the principles we learn in church
Is that human beings are naturally, and truly
Individuals, and members of a larger community
We have needs and responsibilities to both.
You and I, and everyone are interdependent
The inherent worth and dignity of every person
World community, with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
See you tomorrow at 1pm