Six Nations work opposing Hydrofracking

The work of honoring the Two Row continues. Here is a recent video that includes Onondaga Hickory Edwards, whom many of us met padding on the Mohawk and Hudson Rivers this past summer. It reminds again that Native peoples are not gone. They are here today. Their cosmology has something to offer all of us; we do not to be a Native person to respect, understand and maybe even embrace the message here.

Neighboring Faiths starts tomorrow!

Tomorrow, Feb. 9, the Neighboring Faiths class for 6th and 7th graders will kick-off with a presentation and slide show about the ancient civilizations and religions that developed and overlapped in the land that is now modern Turkey. Marta Ozisik will share slides and anecdotes from her family's travels to Istanbul, Ankara, Cappadocia and Ephesus.

These slides show some of the famous "fairy chimneys" and cave churches in Cappadocia where early Christians, fleeing Roman persecution, lived and hid.

Great Love: Stories of Buddha and Jesus

Rev. Priscilla Richter and I have planned together Sunday's multigenerational worship service. We are excited to share teachings of Buddha and teachings of Jesus that can inform our Unitarian Universalist faith!  In the same way we say we "stand on the side of love." Jesus and Buddha stories offer practices and expressions of great love even in the face of hardship and suffering. Our stories will span all ages.

And we will be paying tribute to Pete Seeger. So come Sunday prepared to sing "If I Had a Hammer." and "We Shall Overcome."

The Warmth of Community: Church Fair and Camping too!

Tomorrow it will still be cold outside, but join us in building warmth in community in Religious Education at Unitarian Universalist Society Schenectady (UUSS.)

All RE classes meet this Sunday. Come check out the RE table during the Church Fair this Sunday too!

Children in Grades 1-5 will finish a three-week focus on Peacemakers and Peacemaking.  They played games to build community. They enacted a local story of the Peacemaker of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois.) They learned about Martin Luther King Jr and his great contribution to the Civil Rights movement of the practices of non-violence. They learned a personal practice, "SA-TA-NA-MA,"  to help when feeling overcome emotionally.

Grades 6/7 are busy writing and filming their next movie a UU version of  The Lorax. They will also be out exploring our community with the Neighboring Faiths, late-winter/early spring.

Coming of Age meets in their classroom and finishes at the Church Life Fair with a scavenger hunt. Everyone will have an opportunity to participate in a scavenger hunt!

Senior youth, grades 10-12, meets. Senior youth planning to participate in the mission trip to NOLA meet after worship.

Hope you can join us at our RE/APC Winter Outing and Indoor Camping next Sat/Sun,  Feb 1-2, 2014! Play outside during the day, join together for a dinner, games, music, conversation, Vespers and sleep overnight in the Great Hall! Finish with breakfast early Sunday morning. Join us for all or part!

Transitions

By now, people know that Rev. Priscilla Richter is leaving UUSS and moving on this coming summer. We will miss her! As the Director of Religious Education, I will miss her. We have worked well and grown so much together these past 6 years! But I understand her leaving. And in her leaving she is also giving us a gift. Our programs and our leadership are in a good place right now. There is work to be done and lots of willing hands to participate.

We have the gift of creating a transition with Priscilla's leave- taking that affirms all of us on towards the next steps in our journey. We will be creating a ceremony this spring, bringing our best intentions together and seeing Priscilla off!

Herbal Book Group forming

Because of our connection with Roots and Wisdom, I started volunteering at their Fehr Ave garden this past spring. As the season was drawing to a close Jenny Hudman, the head grower, and I discovered a shared interest in herbal medicine and talked about how we might learn together during the winter months. From there the idea for an herbal book group was born.

I have shared my love of herbs and herbal medicine -making with children in religious education during our summer programming. 

I have also had lots of conversations with adults from the congregation interested in learning more about herbs

It also seemed a natural fit to have Green Sanctuary and RE co- sponsor an Herbal Book book group that was open to the community.

SO......we will have an Herbal Book Group planing meeting Thursday, December 12 at 7 PM in the Fireplace Room! Bring any and all ideas for meetings, herbs you want to learn about, book reading ideas, projects you'd like to try.

HOMEMADE HOLIDAYS this Saturday 3-6PM

Homemade Holidays is a fun, all-ages event. Slow down for a few hours in the company of friends and enjoying some time crafting gifts. Come for an hour or three! 







Below are pictures from Homemade Holidays past. This has been an all ages fun event!