What

What’s going on.... December 2001

Sat	Dec. 1	4:00 PM	UU’s parade in the Valdosta Christmas Parade
Sun	Dec. 2	10:45 AM 1-4:00 PM	Service – "Caring for South Georgia's Children: Public Programs, Private Programs and Unitarian Univeralists," Diane Holliman Holiday Shower (Bring donation gifts for children)
Sat	Dec. 8	4:00 PM	Jack Ford’s Ordination
Sun	Dec. 9	9:30 AM 10:45 AM 12:30 PM TBA	Youth and Adult R.E. Service – Jack Ford Potluck Party for Molly Scholz and Doug Fraser at Betty Derrick’s home Board meeting
Mon	Dec. 10	11:00 AM	Break Bread delivery
Sun	Dec. 16	10:45 AM	Service - --"The Light of Life, a December Holiday Pageant," The Youth R.E. Class and Virginia Branan
Sun	Dec. 23	9:30 AM 10:45 AM	Youth and Adult R.E Service – "The Mythologies of the Christmas Child: Jesus in Context." Theresa Thompson
Sun	Dec. 30	10:45 AM	Service –“ 'Making All Things New' by Rev. Jack Donovan of UU Gainesville, FL dated Jan. 2, 2000,” read by Charles Green.

December ……. Although our beliefs and practices are as diverse and individual as we are, our UU history is Christian and many of us have roots in traditional Judeo-Christian churches. Our services this month focus on giving to those less fortunate than ourselves, new beginnings for our friend and former minister, Jack Ford, welcoming friends for a visit, a holiday pageant with our young people, and the ancient celebration of the winter solstice. Come as you are able and join in these celebrations. The message of rebirth and peace that comes with the traditional Christian celebration of Christmas will be especially on our minds and hearts this season.

BEST WISHES THIS HOLIDAY SEASON AND PEACE BE WITH YOU

President’s Column

This is the holiday season for many of us and a time for giving. I want to share this reading from Richard Carlson's (1997) DON'T SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF AND IT IS ALL SMALL STUFF.

“There is a bumper sticker that has been out for sometime now. You see it on cars across the nation. It says, "Practice Random Acts of Kindness and Senseless Acts of Beauty." I have no idea who thought of this idea, but I've never seen a more important message on a car in front of me. Practicing random kindness is an effective way to get in touch with the joy of giving without expecting anything in return. It is best practiced without letting anyone know what you are doing.

“There are five toll bridges in the San Francisco area. A while back, some people began paying the tolls of the cars immediately behind them. The drivers would drive to the toll window, and pull out their dollar bill, only to be informed, ‘Your toll has been paid by the car ahead of you.’ This is an example of a spontaneous, random gift, something given without expectation of or demand for anything in return. You can imagine the impact that tiny gift had on the driver in the car! Perhaps it encouraged him to be a nicer person that day. Often a single act of kindness sets a series of kind acts in motion.

“There is no prescription for how to practice random kindness. It comes from the heart. Your gift might be to pick up litter in your neighborhood, make an anonymous contribution to a charity, send some cash in an unmarked envelope to make someone experiencing financial stress breathe a little easier, save an animal by bringing it to an animal rescue agency, or get a volunteer position feeding hungry people at a church or shelter. You may want to do all these things and more. The point is, giving is fun and it doesn't have to be expensive.

“Perhaps the greatest reason to practice random acts of kindness is that it brings great contentment into your life. Each act of kindness rewards you with positive feelings and reminds you of the important aspects of life--service, kindness, and love. If we all do our own part, pretty soon we will live in a nicer world.” (Used without permission.)

Thank You! Thank You!

For regular upkeep of our grounds and enumerable other contributions to our community: Jim Ingram

For delivering meals in November: Diane Holliman, Sonya Yeager

For buying supplies and caring for our church : Jim Ingram, Julie Halter, Bobbie Dixon, Sharon McKenzie, Betty Derrick, William Atkinson, Virginia Branan, Charles Green, Holly Smith

For organizing and coordinating Jack Ford’s ordination: Virginia Branan, Joan Cline

For a super kitchen clean up: an anonymous “UU angel”

Social Opportunities

UU’s Parade

The church will have an entry in the Valdosta Christmas parade although at press time decisions are still being made on the nature of the entry. Be at the Oak Street lot at the VSU campus ready to walk or ride when the parade starts at 4:00 PM on Saturday, December 1. Any decorating will be done earlier on Saturday. Let René Kerr know if you can help out.

Visit with Molly Scholz and Doug Fraser, our much missed musicians who moved to the west coast this past summer, at a potluck lunch and party at Betty Derrick’s home after church on the 9^th. Call Betty for directions.

Religious Education

Youth R.E.: Youth meet on second and fourth Sundays, 9:30-10:30 a.m., which is the same schedule as Adult R.E. Lead teacher: Virginia Branan.

Adult R.E.: Adults meet on the second and fourth Sundays of each month. A discussion of world religions began in September. The group plans also to view and discuss the videotape“, "The Power of Myth," by Bill Moyers and Joseph Campbell. Joan Cline is coordinating the Adult R.E.

Social Action Activities

Holiday Shower

December 2, 1 pm - 4 pm

Diane Holliman invites you to a holiday shower at the church. Bring a favorite holiday treat and an unwrapped gift for an infant or child in foster care in Ben Hill and Berrien Counties. Ben Hill Department of Families and Children's gave us the following list of children and their sizes and needs. Most of these children need clothes and perhaps a toy or book or school supplies. Your donations and sharings would be very much appreciated. The gifts will be wrapped during the party for distribution during the holiday season

Break Bread Together

Our date for meal deliveries with the Break Bread Together program is the 2^nd Monday of each month. If you can deliver meals on this day beginning about 11:00 AM, please contact Virginia Branan.

Treasurer’s Report

January 10 – Renaissance module, Gainesville, FL (registration deadline, Dec.10)

Metropolitan Community Church - Sunday evenings: Choir practice at 5:00 PM. Service at 6:00 PM

Women’s Group Those who self-identify as female are invited to join this group for good food and great company, the 1^stand 3^rd Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. Bring a snack or potluck dish and other ideas for discussion, or just yourself! Contact René Kerr.

The Turning of the Year

(From Kenneth Patton, “Services and Songs for the Celebration of Life.” (Used without permission.)

“It awaits upon the renewal of its strength, to begin the climb of the slow hillside of the year ahead.

“The trees are stripped for their endurance; their juices have fled into the roots.

“Only a few flying flowers are left; do these reluctant birds mistake the snow for manna?

“Black and white are the colors of the day, with sulky tan, blue-gray of smoke, and saffron afterglow of the sun.

“Now is the mood for old mythologies, for tales of gods and heroes, for virgin mothers and shining babes, for dying huntsmen and weeping goddesses, jeweled gifts for a king’s son, and the nostalgic promises of miracles and forever.

UUSC board responds to September 11 Members of the UUSC Board of Directors discussed the devastating attacks of September 11 and their aftermath at length during their October 2001 meeting. The board developed a declaration of principles that will guide UUSC as it recommends a number of actions by its membership and by policy-makers in the coming months in response to the September11th attacks. For more about the UUSC's Board of Directors' response to September 11, visit:

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“I am reminded of the little book that Sam Keen wrote years ago entitled, Faces of the Enemy. In that book he said that in order to murder, we must construct the face of the enemy with such a threatening demeanor that we can kill that person with impunity. It is obvious to me that those who ran themselves into our buildings killing themselves and thousands of others found such a threatening demeanor in the faces they created of us.

“I, like so many of you, WANT to be able to identify such a clear enemy today as the terrorists had that fateful morning. I know, though that the enemy is a many faced hydra. The hydra bears the faces of frustration, hate and misguided leadership. That same face is one of ignorance and anger, fear and despair, injustice and marginalization. I believe strongly that if I shut myself down and give a single name to the enemy, it will be at my peril. My sense of peace may be restored if someone is killed and they have marked on their graves the names of ‘terrorist.’ The death of a few right now will not kill the beast of hate that lurks beneath the surface, though. The peace that might be restored will be a false peace for only the physical force of hydra will be gone and in its place another will be created that has the power to be much more dangerous.

“My intense desire to create this enemy is a direct reaction to my anxiety and wish to be restored to the easy nonchalance of my pre-September 11 life. This anxious time calls Unitarian Universalists to be in disturbed relationship to the complexity of our response. We proclaim that we affirm a free and responsible search for truth and meaning and couple that with the right of conscience. I believe we must hold those responsible for the mis-use of their anger and hate accountable for their egregious behaviors. Accountability is the price of the freedom we each have to use or mis-use our freedom for good or evil.

“I also believe that each of us bears a profound responsibility to search that which we do and that which is done in our name for the sources of anger in the hearts of some that grew into the tragedy that anger birthed on September 11. We are not to blame for the deaths in that event, make no mistake that I say that, for that responsibility is for those who mis-used their anger to destroy others. What I say is that in conjunction with bringing those actually responsible to justice for their acts, that we enter into a time of deep discernment between ourselves as UUs and as citizens of the world.

“One of the most powerful traditions that we have in our faith is to the right of conscience. During this time we will not agree on where that right leads us. I ask that this be a time of covenants of safety between us to express that which is troubling our hearts and minds. I ask us also to find a commitment to the maintenance of our relationships, especially when we disagree. We love our diversity. Let our actions show that face to each other and to the world. During this time our understandings of tolerance will be tested. Let this be a time for us to expand out understanding of the myriad ways we construct meaning. Let this be a time to reinforce our deepest held trust that we can be ourselves in our congregations as we wrestle with the terribly complex path that is laid before us. Our history has had us both proud and divided during times of great social stress. Let us reason together about what conditions we need to have in place in our congregations to make this a time of our greatest pride in our response rather than a time we will recall with shame. It is not only our congregations that will be the better for this but all humanity. I believe we have a faith understanding that can save lives. This is a time to demonstrate and share that tradition with the communities we live in.”

Thank you for reading our newsletter!
The Newsletter Team (click here to meet us!)

President's Column	Thank You! Thank You!	Religious Education
Social Opportunities!	Social Action	UU Activities and Announcements
Board Notes!	Special Column by Rev. Mary Higgins.... UU response to Sept. 11