Thank you to all who were able to contribute to the special collection on January 2, 2005.

We raised $854.00 to send to the Red Cross for the Tsunami Relief Fund. Thank you for your generosity.

    Jody Richards wrote as a holiday greeting these words: "In a torn world may we know new hope and be transformed – winter into spring, hurt into whole, strife into peace." What think we? What are our chances?

    We’ll take a look at one of our favorite hymns and seek the meaning it holds in our lives. The choir is singing.

    Listening to the news this week I found myself shocked over a quote from Condoleezza Rice during her senate hearing for her nomination as Secretary of State. One of the senators asked her about a unanimous senate bill on torture introduced after the Abu Ghraib nightmare was revealed. The bill was intended to banish torture for everyone. Rice intervened to have language removed which in effect allowed that not everyone would be protected from torture. Her response to the question on her actions was to say that not everyone should be protected, particularly those marked as terrorists.

    I’m aware that I’ve been criticized for being too political. I’ve also been criticized for not being political enough, but on this subject I find myself pushed hard into action. Not because it is political, which it is, but because it is a fundamentally religious issue. If religion is the key institutional method by which humanity safeguards our morality, then this is as surely a religious issue as any.

    By allowing anyone to be tortured, as Rice insists, then everyone has the potential to be tortured. Once this door is opened, it can be pushed open wide by the whims of any political party or individual. It is a slippery slope to allow torture for even one person, particularly when dealing with a vague word, such as terrorist, which is tossed around with barely any sense of what is means.

    Beyond this objection, there is a greater moral argument which Unitarian Universalism stands strong upon: Every human being has inherent worth and dignity. Which means, no one, NO ONE, should be subject to humiliation, threats, physical, mental or emotional abuse. To enter into this realm is to regress into a murky world of brutality and chaos. I like to think humanity has risen above such behavior, even in the worst of circumstances such as being con-fronted by terrorists. Abu Ghraib showed how wrong I am.

    By the time you read this, Rice will probably be confirmed as our new Secretary of State. My action is to stay alert and educated through such organizations as Amnesty International on torture and abuse of prisoners, particularly those held by the U.S. And then to stay in contact with my congress people and senators. I feel it is a religious response to a profoundly religious issue. I believe the only way humanity will mature is if we recognize our moral obligation for the protection of all citizens of this planet from brutal governments, including our own. It is a high ideal, but one I’m not willing to give up on.

    Several months before Christmas we had a tragic accident in our house. My daughter, Analee, was playing with her hamster in our study. As she gingerly positioned him on her shoulder, she lowered herself onto her knees to grab a toy. The hamster lost his footing and came crashing down onto the carpet falling directly underneath the on-coming knee. Well, the scene that followed was not a pretty one. Of course, we had a funeral service and burial. Analee was in shock then denial for about a month. A few weeks before Christmas she really began mourning the loss of her pet. Finally, she came up with the perfect solution ... Santa Claus! Santa could bring her a new hamster!

    "Wait a minute," I cautioned her. "I think you need to learn how to be gentle with small creatures before Santa can trust you with another hamster."

    So, we talked at great lengths about being gentle. She practiced the art of compassion on two young kittens which had been dropped off at my in-laws’ dairy farm. And then one day, as she sat at the kitchen table eating breakfast, she announced that she needed two hamsters.

    "Oh, really, why is that? I asked.

    "Well, in case I kill one, I’ll have another!" she exclaimed.

    "Analee! That isn’t how it works!" I stammered. It took me a few minutes to compose myself before I could continue the conversation.

    Needless to say, she did get ONE hamster for Christmas. Over-all, she is being much more gentle with this one, and she frequently informs me that she is not going to kill this one.

    As I think back over the last several months I realize I could have easily told her no, and that she needed to be older before taking care of small animals. However, I offered her a second chance. This hamster episode has reminded me how much we all deserve second chances. I’ve made mistakes, some bigger than others. And, yet, I’ve been given second chances from family and friends and especially my husband. But, perhaps most importantly, I have allowed myself to accept the second chance, to forgive myself, to move on. Their offer of trust combined with a dose of self forgiveness has given me the freedom to continue growing, learning, and loving.

    Our January program on global warming is wrapping up this Sunday, January 30. The students have learned a lot and exhibited much enthusiasm for this topic. Recently, they created inventions that use alternative sources of energy (e.g. sun, wind, water ... ) which can help reduce global warming. These inventions will be on display during coffee hour. The final class will be devoted to communicating to the larger community about global warming. Thanks to all of our January teachers, Lisbet Searle-White, Tracy Smock, Mark Gorman, and Mary-Lib Whitney, for their inspiring guidance during this program!

    Before RE classes resume in February, the RE teachers are encouraged to check their classrooms. Please make sure classes are organized and ready to go. There are extra shelves, cabinets, and areas carpets in the hallway upstairs. If you would like any of these items in your classroom please tell Lee Ann by Sunday, January 30.

    Regular RE classes will resume on Sunday, February 6. Also, the RE schedule has changed. Please mark your calendars for the intergenerational service (no RE classes) on Sunday, February 20, and regular RE classes on Sunday, February 27.

    I will be attending a Worship Renaissance Module from February 4-6 at Loyola of the Lakes Jesuit Retreat House near Akron, Ohio. The weekend will be devoted to sharing worship ideas for specific age groups. I am really looking forward to connecting to other area UU Directors of Religious Education. It will be a time for me to reflect, recharge, and gather new ideas for our RE program. I will look forward to sharing these ideas upon my return, especially with our Worship Committee.

Fellowship is having February Fun Day on February 12, 2005.

We are planning an all-ages afternoon of Tubing at Avalanche Express.

Call Peggy Bell at 333-1378 or stop by the Parish House for details.

    A few of you may be aware, most are not, of a friend in our church community, who is in need. Francesca De Grandis moved to Meadville in August. She called our church and spoke to Mary-Lib Whitney. Since then, Kate and Mary-Lib have visited her and helped her in several ways. Francesca had a letter in the Oracle in August. She is planning to join our church, but you won’t see her on Sundays because she is house-bound with physical disabilities.

    Francesca left California and a support system of friends and colleagues who were helping her cope with her physical limitations and also with day-to-day house chores which she had become increasingly unable to do. They felt they were repaying her for the many ways she had come to their aid when she had been able.

    Francesca needs help setting up her home and with day-to-day common chores. She welcomes visitors and is easy to talk with. If you would like to meet this interesting and cheerful woman, or bop by and do a chore or two, give her a call. Your visit can be fifteen minutes, or longer, depending on Francesca’s and your schedule.

    I have dibs on knife sharpening so you might have to settle for a visit and a cup of tea. On the other hand, there are boxes that need unpacked, Christmas decorations that need taken down and stored, trash that needs emptied, a wet basement, and . . .

    Okay, maybe we’ll do something more staid. Who knows? Religious services take many forms.

    A monthly moon circle will meet for the first time on Saturday, February 26, 7 p.m. People of all faith journeys are welcome.

    Please RSVP by February 23. Call Francesca at 337-2490.

    In response to local needs, Social Concerns has set up a box in the entryway of the Parish House for non-perishable food donations. Kate says that people stop by the church quite often in need of food. Please consider bringing a box or can when you come to church on Sundays or during the week. Thank you.

    Bumper stickers are now available in the church office proclaiming our liberal UU faith! These attractive blue bumper stickers have the UUA’s website and our chalice symbol, along with snappy statements about our faith:

• The Uncommon Denomination.
• Different People. Different Beliefs. One Faith.
• Searching for a Liberal Religious Home?
• A Different Trinity: Respect. Freedom. Justice.
• Room for Different Beliefs. Yours.

Available for $1. See Venessa in the office.

    We will explore the "mystical": What is it anyway? How can we get some? Where do we find it? Do I have to abandon reason? How might I be a Mystical Man? This is the 14^th annual men’s retreat organized by the OMD. It will be held at the Sandscrest Retreat Center near Wheeling, WV.

    Participants are asked to hunt down a copy of The Soul is Here for Its Own Joy, an anthology edited by Robert Bly and distributed by the Ecco Press. Also, if you have one, bring a book that you use for meditation/prayer/quiet time alone.

    For registration materials and further information please inquire at our church office in the parish house.

    This relaxing and "schedule and stress free" weekend is an intimate gathering for UUs of all ages. There are frosty outdoor and cozy indoor activities, fellow UUs, great conversations and community worship services.

    Winter Institute will be at Salt Fork State Park, Cambridge, Ohio. More information is available in our parish house.

    The UU Church of Kent will host this Youth Spirituality Development Conference, a weekend workshop bringing youth and adults together in worship. In a SDC (spirituality development conference), learn to design effective, creative, and meaningful worship experiences that integrate spirituality more deeply into youth programming and the lives of the participants. SDCs bring youth and adults together to share common spiritual growth experiences.

    The conference, for junior-senior HS youth, advisors (25 years old minimum) and ministers, will be held at the UU Church of Kent. Please ask at the church office for further information.

    Cheryl moved to Meadville with her husband David and daughter Elaine. They came to us from sunny California but Cheryl finds this area "beautiful."

    Cheryl is Secretary to the Associate Dean of Allegheny College. She knows German and can design websites. She likes to cross-stitch and is interested in politics. She also enjoys reading, sewing, and watching sports. Her social concerns are the feeding of the hungry and the caring of the poor and elderly. She has already found her way to Soup Kitchen to help out.

    Welcome to our church community, Cheryl.

<mthaeler@zoominternet.net>; or leave items in the folder on Venessa’s desk in the parish house. It would be helpful, when you email material, to write "oracle" in the subject line (helps me find it more easily). Thank you.