Congregation established 1836

Newsletter of the

First Unitarian Church, Alton, Illinois

www.firstuualton.org

Rev. Khleber Van Zandt, Minister

December 7^th

“Everyday Use”

Rev. Khleber Van Zandt

Alice Walker’s short story, “Everyday Use,” challenges our ideas about family, refinement, and our own identities as well as the identity of God.  Through Walker’s riff on the meaning given to quilts, we look beyond the superficial names we like to call ourselves and consider our real connections to the past in order to understand our present more deeply.  If you’d like to read “Everyday Use” before this sermon, it can be purchased in any bookstore or found for free by searching for it on books.google.com.  We will also have a few copies available at church.

December 14^th

“Yuletide”

 Jamie Gross, Director of Religious Education

This is an inter-generational worship service in story and song to celebrate the Shortest Night of the Year, the Winter Solstice.

December 21^st

~ Hanukkah, Advent, Winter Solstice ~

“Gift Cards from the Universe”

Rev. Khleber Van Zandt

Gift cards are the newest craze in gift-giving but in an economic climate like this one, they can be a gamble – if the stores go bankrupt, the gift cards they’ve issued might become worthless.  During this season of the longest night of the year, what other sorts of gifts from the universe should we be using quickly in order to maximize their value?

December 24^th

~ Christmas Eve, 7:30 in the evening ~

~ an intergenerational worship service ~ 

“Silent Witness”

Rev. Khleber Van Zandt

The ancient legends tell of the surprise and wonder of those who are said to have witnessed the miraculous events around one birth in one part of the world on one silent night so long ago.  Join us as we celebrate hope and mystery in this traditional candlelight service.

December 28th

“Jazz and Spirituality”

Dr. Greg Kehl Moore and Tanya Moore

The relationship between jazz music and the spiritual realm is explored with an emphasis on the role of spirituality and religion in the history of jazz.  Greg and his wife, vocalist Tanya Moore, will perform.  Greg is an Associate Professor and directs the jazz program at the University of Wisconsin-Superior.  Tanya teaches voice at the UW-Superior Conservatory and is the Youth Program coordinator at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth.  Songs to be performed:  “Corcovado” by Antonio Carlos Jobim;  “Heaven” by Duke Ellington;  and “Naima” by John Coltrane.

December   7^th – UU World magazine discussion with John Herndon.

December 14^th – Non-Theist/Humanist Roundtable with John Herndon.

December 21^st – Peacemaking with Ron Glossop.

December 28^th – No program – holiday break.

Mark Your Calendars:

       A Quick Guide to this Month’s Happenings

A First Glance

I received a phone call in mid-November that I’m still thinking about.  That’s not so unusual:  I receive a lot of ‘interesting’ calls and I usually have to mull them over for awhile before making complete – if that’s ever possible - sense of them.

This latest one came from an area code I’m not familiar with, but as I would learn is in the Bay Area of Northern California.  Because the number was a mystery, I was hesitant to answer, but now I’m glad I did.

A man with a humorless voice said seriously that he needed to speak to the pastor of our church.  When I told him he’d found me, he began telling me he knew that a woman had recently visited our congregation to do a presentation for Adult RE.  He called the woman some derogatory names and used inflammatory language to tell me about her involvement in “international terrorist activities.”  “This woman portrays herself as a Holocaust survivor when in fact she spent the war tucked safely away in Britain.  Instead, it was her parents who were killed in the camps,” he scoffingly said.  “She was never in the camps, so it’s a lie when she calls herself a Holocaust victim!”  I winced, but didn’t argue.

He went on at length about Hamas and Palestinian terrorists and Arab rocket attacks on innocent Israeli citizens.  In some of these opinions, I might possibly find myself in some minor agreement with him, though I was already too skeptical of the initial premise of his call to accept his invitation to debate how wonderful the Israelis have been to the people of Gaza.

As supporting evidence for his positions, he told me he’d done almost two hundred radio shows around the country.  He also mentioned he’d been featured on Fox News - which he seemed to take as affirmation of the rightness of his cause.  I take it as affirmation of my civility that I didn’t scream back or hang up on him.  My mother taught me better ways of behaving.

The elation over the recent elections was bittersweet, for many of us, tempered by the failure of Proposition 8 in California and by the success of several state initiatives against civil marriage laws.   As I said in a pre-election sermon, I wanted the election season to finally be over and done with so we could get on with something else, but now I see the futility of thinking any simple election will ever be the end of evil - at least four people were murdered in my part of town in the week following Nov. 4.

And if some of us take the outcome of the election as a mandate for change, others will take it as a mandate to keep spreading hate, as my recent phone call shows.  In the face of that fact, I hold fast to the audacity of hope, knowing that as long as we seek salvation in other human beings or through the systems they set up, we are doomed to be, at the very least, disappointed … which I must say, will never keep me from proudly voting.

See you in church,

Dear Friends –

We are truly fortunate to keep faith with the denomination of Unitarian Universalists. Not only do our elected leaders in Boston follow contemporary society and act upon issues that cry out for attention, they call each of us to act in our own conscience and decide what our faith is. We have a decision to make soon about how we shall stand as a denomination on the issue of peace. A small number of Christian churches, such as the Mennonites, have placed themselves completely on the side of peace at all costs. Since the General Assembly meeting in St. Louis in 2006 meetings have been held in order to draft a statement of conscience on peacemaking, and this will establish how the Unitarian Universalist Church will stand on the issue. Individual churches have been holding meetings to discuss how to proceed. Our church is certainly no exception. We are very fortunate to have Dr. Ron Glossop, a noted expert on Peace Studies, as a member of this church who has been conducting meetings to prepare us to enter into the ongoing discussion. For those of you who have attended these sessions you know how informative and critical they are to the discussion. For those who have not had the chance, please try to make some of the up-coming meetings. We are now entering a very important phase because the draft statement is ready for comment.

Go to:

http://www.uua.org/documents/csw/pm_soc_0811_draft.pdf to read the statement and be prepared to discuss the issues at the Semi-annual meeting coming up this month. All of our voices are critical to this very important issue of faith and hope. Stay tuned for more on peace in the coming months.

Peace and Love, John Herndon

Community Women’s Drum Circle

Sunday, December 21^th from 6 to 8 pm. All women in the church are invited to come.  You may bring any kind of drum (even children’s plastic drums, maracas, any percussion instrument will do.)  No experience in drumming is necessary.  Drum whatever comes through you, carefree, easy going.  For further information contact Layne Simpson layne3030@hotmail.com.

Green Sky Sangha

Note new DAY & TIME  of meeting.

The newly formed Buddhist Group meets every Sunday at 6 pm and invites anyone interested in Buddhist forms of meditation to join them.

No prior knowledge of Buddhism or meditation is required.  We have developed a format for the hour long meeting.  We do Kum Nye Yoga for ten minutes, sitting meditation for ten minutes, walking meditation for ten minutes, another sitting meditation, and then a Dharma talk and discussion for the rest of the time.

Dee Evans

“Grappling with a Luminous Doom”

Reprinted from the November 6, 2008, newsletter of the Central Midwest District
of the UUA .   Written by Ian Evison, Congregational Services Director:

Like the title?  I think it might be just about the ideal UU sermon title.  The word “Grapple” is a strong word suggesting something is going to happen here.  It suggests a possible Biblical allusion to Jacob grappling with the angel at the river and receiving a blessing and a name.  The word “Luminous” suggests we are going to get something deeper than an update on the state legislative agenda.  And the nice paradox between the words “Luminous” and “Doom” promises some interesting twists before matters are resolved and we sing the final hymn. 

Unfortunately, the title is not mine.  I stole it from Khleber Van Zandt’s sermon last week

(http://www.firstuualton.org/Sermons_2008-2009.htm).  And, he stole it, or nearly so, from the favorite UU poet of the moment, Mary Oliver (1,780 google hits for “Mary Oliver,” “Unitarian” and “sermon” against 581 for the closest competitor, May Sarton).  

Khleber’s point - and I find the point of many of the sermons preached across this district in the last month - is that the spiritual work that awaits us in the coming months or even years is going to be to unpack the luminous lessons from the seeming economic doom.   The sermons I am hearing preached across the district point to how there is underway a larger cultural shift that will place before our UU faith new demands and new opportunities. 

The most interesting part of these sermons - something I doubt any of us yet see clearly - is that the spiritual challenge will be for us as a faith to be different, not just to do different things.  There is one obvious dimension to this that is suggested by the recent election of Obama.  Our congregations, like our country, have been largely led by baby boomers for the last two decades.  We are going to need to figure out what it means to be led by a new generation of leaders. 

Yet this shift, even when we achieve it, does not get to the substance of what we will be challenged to be or become.  What will this be?  I take one more hint from the sermons I have been scanning.  I have observed that our preaching on this has been oddly hopeful.  While there are economic changes occurring that may feel like doom, they are fundamentally a spiritual opportunity.  In his sermon, Khleber arrives at this by an extended analogy to a family of hapless squirrels who have been devastating his tomato patch.  He is trapping and relocating these squirrels to what he assures us will be a much nicer home in a nearby city park. Though the squirrels may feel trapped - and doomed - they are actually on their way to “a better place.”

What immediately comes to mind are the dubious promises of a certain sort of minister that the deceased at the funeral is in a better place. Yet I do take the point and it is an important one.  We have the opportunity to read the challenges before us as a luminous opportunity.

Come to WYM …

Walk, Yoga, Meditation.

This weekly gathering now meets each Friday morning in the Wuerker room at 8 am.  Paula Tarbell is the facilitator.  We walk briskly for a half hour near the church; do yoga for another half hour; then meditate for about 20 minutes.  We are finished by 9:30 am.  Rain or shine or cold … dress for the weather, and bring a yoga mat or a large beach towel.

In Our Church Family

Our sympathy to Brynda and Willis McCoy at the death of Brynda’s mother, Loette Buckner.  Services for Mrs. Buckner were held on Friday, November 14^th in Seminole, Oklahoma.

Brynda and Willis want to thank everyone for their kind words and cards of condolence. 

CRISIS FOOD CENTER DONATIONS

Please give generously during this season when many are having a hard time making it though a week without help from agencies like the Alton Food Pantry.

Jen Politsch

Join the Choir!   We’d like to expand the choir and we encourage all who enjoy singing to come to a rehearsal and see how much fun we have.
All voices and ages are welcome.   Rehearsals begin at 7 pm on the 1^st and 3^rd Thursdays of each month and around noon on the 2^nd and 4^th Sundays.

Thurs., Dec. 4 – Sun., Dec. 14 – Thurs., Dec. 18 – Sun., Dec. 28

Contact Willis McCoy for further information.

Decorating the Church for the Holidays

Join us after services on Sunday, December 7^th to decorate the church for the holidays.  There will be a tree for the children to decorate as well as decorating in the sanctuary by the adults.  Please plan to stay and join in one of the fun activities of the holiday season.

Since we UUs don’t have many get-togethers that don’t include food, please bring finger foods, munchies and snacks that don’t require utensils.  Items such ahs cheese trays, dips and chips, fruit and veggie platters, and (of course) cookies are welcome.

A few emergency repairs have been undertaken this fall.  First, there was a leak in the ceiling of the RE wing, which required repairs by our roofer.  Next, we had a big leak in the ceiling of the basement hall, which required emergency plumbing work to the drain of the nursery sink.  We are also getting some more work done on plumbing, hopefully by volunteers, to replace some of the leaky old drains in some of our sinks and to install new faucets in all restrooms. Thanks to Rev. Van Zandt, Bing Gibbs, and Tom Sakalauski for their help in solving the plumbing problems.

Our mowing contractor Kenny Stewart has taken on the job of removing leaves, cutting out some brush and weeds, applying gravel or mulch in several areas, and digging underground drainage to solve some problems out back.

Jennifer Politsch has volunteered to keep our kitchen organized and do routine cleaning, in addition to her task of keeping kitchen supplies stocked.  This does not mean she will do the kitchen cleanup after coffee and potlucks!!!! We will still need you to volunteer for that.

I will be planning an indoor workday soon, so watch your newsletter and emails.  Some things needing volunteers are: Purchase and restock soda in the frig;  Painting: Electrical repairs.

Pat Moore, Chairman

Treasury Note

Jerry Johnson, Treasurer

  CHALICE CIRCLES

Renegade Women Chalice Circle

Saturday, December 20 –   2 to 4 pm. 

Contact Marcia Custer for more information.

Third Sunday Chalice Circle

December 21^st – 11:45 am to 1 pm at church.

Contact Sandy Shaner.

This is a “general” chalice circle welcoming all.

Parents Seeking Peace Chalice Circle

Sunday, December 21 ^st – 12:00 to 1:30 pm in Emerson Place at church.  
Contact: Diane Thompson or Cheryle Tucker-Loewe .

Men's Chalice Circle

Tuesday, December 23^rd – 7 pm at church.

Contact: Khleber Van Zandt .

Please Clean Up When You

Use the Kitchen!

We have many different activities happening at church during the week.  Often food and beverages are served, and often dirty dishes are left in the sink.  It’s not fair for the next group if they have to wash YOUR dishes before they can prepare for their gathering. 

If you just have a few dishes please hand wash them and put them away.  There’s a dishpan and drainer on the counter.  If you have a dishwasher load full, unload the clean dishes from the dishwasher and load up and run your dishes.    

December 28^th

Potluck Lunch

Bring a dish to share and plan to stay after church to join in food and fellowship!  If possible please bring a dish that serves at least 6 to 8 people. 

In an effort to be more conscious of the environment and to reduce the trash that our church might add to the ever growing area landfills, we are using the church’s china plates instead of disposable ones.

A-Mc will do Clean Up

M-Z will do Table Set Up

Everyone helps put food out.

All Men in the Church
are Invited to the Men’s Lunch Group

The Men’s Lunch Group will meet on Thursday, December 11^th at the St. Louis Buffet, 672 Wesley Dr., Wood River, IL.   Contact Nelson Shaner for further details.

“4^th Saturday Lunch” –

A New Social Justice Venture

Twelve guests came to our first lunch held on Oct. 25.  In November we expanded to 4 the number of locations we distributed flyers and also invited the congregation to join our guests for a thanksgiving meal.  We appreciate all the food brought in by church folks, and thanks to a generous monetary donation we were able to buy turkeys, and have money left for special items in future months.

In December our “4^th Saturday Lunch” will be on Dec. 27.  A signup sheet will be available at church so you can decide how you would like to help us keep this lunch program continuing.

If you have questions about this new program, contact Mary Johnson.

Winter Awakenings

Several members of the congregation would like to have a day long event they’re calling “Winter Awakenings.”  This would be held in January or February.

The day might include yoga, meditation, Tai Chi, Healing Touch, the preparation and sharing of a vegetarian meal, relaxation techniques, etc. 

They would like to see if people in the church would be willing to donate an hour of their time during this event to share their knowledge and expertise in these areas.  For example, Jamie Gross would like to teach vegetarian cooking, Cliff Carter would lead an hour of meditation.  Dee Evans would do relaxation techniques.  However, they need more people willing to volunteer their expertise.

If this sounds like a day you would enjoy participating in, please get in touch with Dee Evans

Anna Ds

Thursday, Dec. 4^th

11:30 am

Lorli Nelson is the hostess for December’s Anna Davenport Sparks Women’s Alliance gathering.  The lunch will be at

E.F. Carpenters Restaurant, 208/210 State Street, Jerseyville, IL.

Directions:  Take Route 67 (it becomes Godfrey Road) to Jerseyville.  Go through 4 traffic lights.  Carpenters is in the 2^nd block after the 4^th light.  It is a brick building with green awnings on the left side of the street.  There is plenty of parking in the rear.

If you plan to attend, please contact Lorna McElhone by Dec. 1^st.

Membership in Anna Ds is open to all women of the church.  Dues are $10 per year.

Anna Ds Hosting schedule

Jan. – June, 2009

Jan.    8  (2^nd Thursday) – Lucy McAneny and Pat Colclasure at Methodist Village.

Feb.   5 – Ginger McCall – To be decided.

March 5 – Pat Moore – At restaurant.

April    2 – Audrey Wiseman – To be decided.

May    7 – Brynda McCoy – At restaurant.

June   4 – Lorna McElhone – To be decided.

RE MINDERS

• Bring in your empty ink jet cartridges for recycling.  There is a bin for them in the foyer.

• Stop by the RE Hutch for your Beacon Press and Skinner House books.

• Dec. 7 – Children’s Holiday Gift Shop and Mitten tree goes up.

• Fri., Dec. 12, 7 p.m. – Holiday Pageant and cookie reception.

• Dec. 21 – Mitten tree sorting.

• Dec. 28 – Birthday party for the New Year.

Most people enjoy getting a card or email or phone call on their birthday.  Below is the list we have of church members and friends celebrating birthdays this month.  If you don’t think the church office has your birthday on file, please contact Becky Green (church@firstuualton.org) and give her that information.

  2 December – Jason Dothager

  3 December – Isaac Nalick

  4 December – Matthew O’dell

  5 December – Benjamin Hoeft (2002)

  7 December  – Mary Weber

  8 December – John Dunphy

16 December – Linda Van Zandt

18 December – Layne Simpson

19 December – Virginia Russo

20 December – Mary McGowan

23 December – Britney Brunner (1986)

27 December – Kate Whitaker

30 December – Lisa Alton

RE NEWS

Dear Parents and Friends,

As Unitarian Universalists we have a strong tradition of social action in our congregations that continue today.  It is for this reason that we have several social action projects during the RE year every year, and not just on the years when social action is our focus.  We have several social action projects that happen during the month of December. 

On December 7 starting at 9:30 and continuing through our regular RE time we will have our annual Holiday Gift Shop.  The shop is stocked with donated gifts, and the children are allowed to shop by making a donation in the donation box.  When the Gift Shop is over, the donations are totaled.  The children then get to use our 5^th principle and vote on a charity to give the money to. 

The other event that is starting on December 7 is the Mitten Tree.  When the church is decorated on that Sunday after service, the Mitten Tree will go up in the foyer.  Donations of warm clothing such as mittens, gloves, hats, and scarves can then be placed on this tree.  Donations will be collected until the morning of December 21.  This is the day that the RE department will take them off of the tree and sort them to be delivered to the Oasis Women’s Center and the Salvation Army Homeless Shelter.

Our last big event for December is that we have adopted a family from the Oasis Women’s Center for Christmas.  This is the third or fourth year that we have done this, and we receive specific wish lists from each member of the family.  We also receive a general wish list from the Center.  These lists are made available and the deadline for returning the wrapped gifts will be posted at that time.  In addition to anything that is brought in the children also sort through anything that is left in the Gift Shop.  If there is something left in the Gift Shop that is on the wish list for the Center, they box it up and it gets sent in along with the other gifts.

This is a very busy and exciting time for us as we learn the joy of helping others and giving this Holiday Season.  All of these events are open and welcome adult participation. 

Thank You,

Jamie Gross

Dear Chalice Lighters:

We are asking that you consider supporting a new Leadership School for Youth that will start next summer in conjunction with the existing Midwest Leadership School at Beloit College in July.

Because the Chalice Lighter program supports growth initiatives, and because retaining our young people in Unitarian Universalist congregations would result in growth, this program will offer our high school age youth a significant learning opportunity to develop leadership skills in an intense, experiential UU environment. They are more likely to become active participants in our congregation and to bring their peers along with them.

Donations can be made online.  Go to the Chalice Lighter group under Resources at the CMwD Web Site: www.cmwd-uua.org and designate where you would like your money to go. Just write "Youth Leadership School" in the memo line or in the remarks field online. This call will end on November 30, 2008.

If you are not a Chalice Lighter, we encourage you to become one. You are asked to take up the call by making two contributions a year. The smallest donation starts at $10.00. Signing up is easy, and you can do it online at the above mentioned web site. If you can't do it online, please mail your donation to:

Central Midwest District, UUA
Chalice Lighters Program
1555 Sherman Ave., Ste 345
Evanston, Il 60201

This worthy cause will help to support our youth and the future of our congregation.

Thanks for all you do.

Beth Nalick, Meredith Nalick, Isaac Nalick

Youth Advisors

Community

Outreach Offering

One-half of the collection on the 2^nd and 4^th Sundays is given away to charitable causes. The money donated does not include pledge checks or money otherwise earmarked by the giver.  The Outreach Offering only includes “cash offerings” or checks indicating that they are to be included in the donated funds. 

Welcome to New Members

Don and Jan Allen joined the church Sunday, November 2^nd.

 Please introduce yourselves to them and make them feel at home. 

Long time friend of the church, Layne Simpson, joined the church on Sunday, November 2^nd.  Please welcome Layne as a new member!

SEMI ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING

Friday, January 16^th – 7 p.m. at the church.

All Members are invited to attend the Semi-Annual Meeting.  Please come to hear updates from committee chairs about all the wonderful programs going on at church.  Also come to exercise your rights as members and vote on two important questions.  First, the Board of Trustees is proposing to reduce the number of board members from 9 to 7, this would be accomplished through attrition by term expiration.  

Second, the UUA is asking all congregations to vote on the Draft Statement of Peacemaking, which will be finalized at the 2009 General Assembly. Copies of the Draft Statement are available at:

http://www.uua.org/documents/csw/pm_soc_0811_draft.pdf, and are actively being discussed at the 9:30 Adult Forum lead by Dr. Ron Glossop.  Please come and let your voices be heard.