Autumn and October Guided Meditation by Kojun

Come join our Service this Sunday, October 23rd, 11am by Zoom or in person wearing an N95 or KN95 mask. We recommend in-person attendance if that’s possible for you.

Join Kojun (Nate Hayes) as he introduces the healing and restorative vibrations of crystal singing bowls along with a guided meditation focusing on the incredibly powerful season of autumn and how it relates to our own seasons of life. Kojun has begun a sound healing business called Sacred Waves Sound Work (https://sacredwavessoundwork.com & https://www.facebook.com/SacredWavesSoundWork) and he’s excited to share some of his explorations with all of you.

MASK NOTES: Our board is still requiring KN95 or N95 masks (NO FABRIC MASKS, and no surgical masks, either) of folks entering the building for Sunday services or to use the restroom when we have outdoor events.We have many folks who truly appreciate us flipping the “usual narrative.” Usually Zoom is for those who are at risk where in-person places are not safe for them. At the fellowship, we’re doing Zoom for anyone who doesn’t want to wear a nk95 or n95 mask thus keeping the fellowship safe for the most vulnerable.We do, however, allow our presenters to unmask when speaking in the front of the fellowship. Some choose to stay masked.

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*****Our Sunday October 30th Samhain Service will be IN THE EVENING. Stay tuned for more information. Service Leader: Patrick McGee with Alyssa & Robert.

 

NEWS FROM THE Unitarian Universalist Association

Please share this information with those who may be interested in your congregation. You can learn more at the IARF US website at https://www.iarfus.org/October 27, 2022   |   4 pm PDT – 7 pm EDT

Please join the U.S. Chapter of the International Association for Religious Freedom as we explore this timely issue in a Zoom forum on October 27th at 7 pm Eastern. (Those interested in attending should email their request to schwichs@gmail.com with their name and congregation – the zoom link will be emailed before the event).

The Constitutions of both India and the United States guarantee their citizens’ rights to religious liberty and freedom of conscience and defend the rights of all denominations to equal treatment within their laws. However, our two largest democracies are confronting the rise of religious nationalisms that would privilege Hindus in India and Christians in the United States over other religions and philosophies.

Our two presenters are both involved in confronting the rise of religious nationalism in their home countries. They will discuss how religious nationalism is manifesting itself, how those policies are affecting practitioners of other religions or philosophies, and how these forms of religious authoritarianism are being countered within Indian and American societies.

Speaking to the religious nationalism in India will be Nikhil Mandalaparthy, the Deputy Executive Director at Hindus for Human Rights, a US-based organization that provides an inclusive Hindu American public voice and advocates for pluralism, civil and human rights in South Asia and North America. He also serves on the executive board of Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive Hindus.

Addressing the rise of religious nationalism in the United States will be the Rev. Will McGarvey, serving the Community Presbyterian Church of Pittsburg, CA, and as the Executive Director of the Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County (Bay Area, CA) which helps with the advocacy and programs of the Interfaith Climate Action Network of the Interfaith Council.

Essentials for Lay-Led Congregations

image of spice jars with labels - Worship, pastoral care leadership, families, staffing

Is your congregation operating without a professionally-trained minister? Your UUA Congregational Life Staff is offering a program this Fall just for you: Essentials for Lay-Led Congregations.

The program includes an email subscription to a newsletter (full of helpful tips, tools, training opportunities, and other resources), and admission to the December 10, 2022 Lay Led Congregation Convergence. There you will get to connect with leaders from other lay-led congregations.

Cost is sliding scale – $20-30-40 if you are part of a congregational team; $30-40-50 if you are the only person participating from your congregation. Registration fees are on a sliding scale, based on your assessment of your ability to pay. Those who pay at the highest level are making a donation to help those in financial need for this event. Please remember that for a sliding scale to work, we need the same number of people with means to generously pay more to balance the needs of those who can afford less.
Register Now.
Registration deadline is December 2.

 

JOHN SPOFFORTH OBITUARY AND SERVICE

Thanks to Sam Spofforth for sharing the following obituary of his father, and for planning a service for him for next month, November 27, 1:30 pm:

John Spofforth, age 91, of Athens, Ohio, Artist, Bricklayer, Activist, and Veteran, passed away on September 24, 2022.

John was born June 6, 1931 in White Bear Lake, MN. His family lived in Minnesota, California, Kansas City, and Iowa through John’s childhood. After high school, he served in the Navy Seabees four years in Korea and the Far East. Following honorable discharge, he received his bachelor’s degree from Ohio University, then later earned a Masters of Fine Arts from OU in 1968.

There, he began to combine skills learned while serving with his imaginative artistic vision to build the large brick sculptures, interior/exterior walls, chimneys, and even whole buildings for which he became renown in Athens, Ohio, and far beyond. One of John’s creations was the one-of-a-kind Unitarian Universalist Fellowship on the south end of Athens, built in the early 1970s. In a feature story, the Cleveland Plain Dealer dubbed him, the “mad bricklayer of Athens.” John’s numerous works included commissioned pieces at the Ohio Governor’s mansion, Blossom Music Center, several colleges, city parks, private residences, and more. He conceived and constructed a large exterior sculpture at the National Museum of American Art in Washington, DC, as part of an exhibition on Appalachian artists, “More than Land and Sky,” in 1981. Spofforth’s unique work, career, and perspectives were regularly featured in arts, masonry, other publications, and video productions over his long career.

John excelled in other visual media, including painting, wood, etching, and photography. He often invited community members to participate. His shared community meditative “rock coils” and wood lath note board at Casa Nueva restaurant on West State Street are examples.

Spofforth expressed strong opinions on controversial topics within the community and beyond. Over 60+ years living in Athens, he wrote numerous letters to the editor arguing for strict separation of church and state, legalization of marijuana, and other issues. Spofforth even sued the City, and won the right to not be automatically billed for trash removal after he recycled and composted, leaving nothing at the curbside.

In 1992, a group of community members formed a non-profit corporation and won the contract to operate public cable access television. John was one of the first employees and worked tirelessly to help “community producers” express themselves through the system. He also was a prolific producer, always pushing the limits.

His surviving family include his son, Sam Spofforth, Sam’s wife, Betsy, and grandsons, Joe and Peter.

A memorial service will be held on November 27, 1:30 pm, at Athens Unitarian Universalist Fellowship.

In lieu of flowers, the family invites donations to Americans United for Separation of Church and State, American Civil Liberties Union, and/or NORML or NORML Foundation (National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws. 

 

UUFA BOARD MEETING

The next UUFA board meeting will be SATURDAY November 12th at 10:30am by Zoom. All members are welcome to attend.

 

UUFA PROGRAMMING MEETING

The next UUFA programming meeting will be Sunday, November 13th at 1pm by Zoom. More people, more music, more ideas all welcome! All members and friends are welcome to attend.