Our mission is to offer a welcoming and safe community that reaches out to and receives spiritual seekers. We provide a voice for religious diversity and encourage personal transformation as we strive toward a better world.

    Our covenant is to be a loving, joyful community that nurtures spiritual growth and promotes compassion, social responsibility, and service in an atmosphere of mutual respect.

This is our annual celebration of art and religion as well as our Flower Communion Sunday. Please bring a flower to share with someone, and listen for a poem that may speak to your faithful spirit. A special collection will be taken for our Sunday flower budget. Carolyn Chase is the pulpit assistant.

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We are celebrating and honoring our youth this morning as we hold our annual Bridging Ceremony. The graduating seniors will be welcomed into young adulthood, and the graduating junior high students will be welcomed into the senior youth group. Kate will take a look at sexuality and religion. Lee Ann Wester is the pulpit assistant.

    It was just two weeks ago that I was writing about Mark and I adopting a baby from China. And now I’m reflecting on the recent death of my mother. The cycle of life has a way of turning me around sometimes in a dizzying emotional kaleidoscope.

    As many of you know my mom was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis 30 years ago. My two older brothers and I have been helping care for her ever since. While we always knew her health would continue to decline, we were never able to envision what the future would be like for her or us.

    Four years ago my mother moved to Meadville so I could continue the care my brothers had begun. From the beginning, my mother readily accepted her fate of an ever failing body, but she never lost her grace. She held on to just enough pride so pity never fell on her tired shoulders.

    She was an intelligent and well read woman, who when married at 18 taught herself to cook and sew and care for her new born son all in the first year of marriage. She stood by my father’s side as he ministered to several churches, packing the family each time we moved.

    She encouraged my brothers and I to be who we are by letting our hearts and minds be authentic and creative. She also taught us to care for others and develop deep compassion for all in need.

    My mother will be missed by many as observed at her memorial service.

    Several people noticed the school bell I had with me at the pulpit during her memorial service. That bell belonged to my great aunt Kate who was my namesake. My mother used the bell to call my brothers and I home when we were scattered about the neighborhood. When my own child is running through the neighborhood, I shall ring that same bell to call her home.

    Thank you to all of you for your love and support during my time of sorrow and for helping me celebrate my mother’s life. Your love for me and my family has helped us enormously.

(For my mother, Sandy)

The robin is building her nest just outside the window,

you lie dying inside this temporary home.

We both knew you wouldn’t last here,

this nest of linoleum, disinfectant and wheelchairs.

Fellow temporary travelers traverse the halls,

feeding at their appointed hour what their body will still tolerate.

They yell to aides who bustle from one need to the next,

never finished with their work.

Bodies slowly, ever so slowly come to a full stop.

Death lives here, all know it.

The robin is working so hard,

building her nest for her babies yet to come.

You are working so hard,

breathing your last for death yet to come.

Your babies will be okay, I whisper.

You built a nest for us,

it withstood the many tests of a struggled life.

You showed us how to breathe,

how to stand up to life and never let the pain rule.

You showed us the presence of death

amidst the wonder and stunning beauty of life.

Life is precious, you said, all know it.

Disease set into your body so many years ago,

yet you choose the precious path of life.

Thank you for your grace, acceptance and strength,

while life kicked, punched and bit with ugly teeth.

Thank you for holding me together,

while your body continued to fail you.

Thank you for being there for so many nights,

bandaged knees, adolescent anguish, adult confusion.

Thank you for allowing me to care for you, as you cared for me.

Love that is freely given, comes around again.

This is why life is precious, all should know it.

Slowly, ever so slowly, your breath comes to a full stop.

The robin is still building her nest, for life is yet to come,

amidst the death a mother prepares.

Thank you for the nest you built,

ever so tenderly and lovingly.

You are my mother, for ever more.

Fly now, fly away into the arms of death.

Fly away mother, fly away from your nest.

Death comes amidst a precious life, all know it.

    Already friends and family are asking me the question. "So, your kids will be in school all day next year. What are you going to do?"

    Everyone seems to expect me to get full time employment and, at first, I considered returning to teaching. I began to read the help wanted ads in the local papers, but when the teaching positions began to appear I hesitated. It didn’t feel right. Truth be told, I wasn’t even sure if I wanted to continue a teaching career in public education. But the question kept coming back to me. "What are you going to do?"

    For weeks I tossed and turned and struggled to make some sort of a decision. I listened to advice from others and saw other moms "doing it all". I contemplated returning to college to begin a path toward a different career. And then one evening my husband asked me a very simple question that stopped me in my tracks. "What do you want?"

    "What do I want?" I asked. I took a deep breath and finally got honest with myself. I want to be home when the kids get off the school bus. I want to greet them with a smile and lots of energy. I want to have fun with homework and play games with them in the evenings. I want to finally have time for myself and be creative. I want to stay at the church and continue my ministry with the children.

    He smiled at me. "See, you had the answer all along." How true he was. I knew all along what I really wanted, but it took me awhile to get past all of those societal demands. So often we look outside ourselves to find answers. Peace eludes us, and we are continually dissatisfied with life. Sometimes we need to stop and look into our hearts. What is really important here? What do I really want? As Joseph Campbell says, "Follow your bliss."   

    Hmmm, it makes a good answer to the question, "So, what are you going to do?" "Follow my bliss," I exclaim. I love the look on their faces!

    For the last month our children have been reading and collecting sponsors to raise money for Heifer International. They are now tallying up their reading time and collecting money from their sponsors. On Sunday, June 4, the children will vote on the animal they would like to purchase. All money needs to be turned in to Lee Ann Wester by Sunday, June 11. A special thank you to everyone involved in this social action project: the children, parents, teachers, and sponsors.

    Sunday, June 11, is a very important day at our church! Please make every effort to attend and show support for the future of our faith!

    On Sunday, June 11, our 8th graders celebrate their move into youth group and our graduating seniors celebrate their move into young adulthood. During the service there will be a very special ceremony in which we as a congregation will bless our young people and they in turn voice their commitment to the Unitarian Universalist tradition.

    Also during the service on Sunday, June 11, we will honor our youth group advisor of 15+ years. Laura Parker has given of her time, talents, energy, and faith for many, many years and will now be stepping down as our youth group advisor. We will honor her dedicated service with a special presentation during the service and a follow up potluck brunch in the Parish House. (There will be a sign up sheet for the potluck brunch at the front desk in the Parish House.)

    And, finally, on Sunday, June 11, we will be leading the youth conversation following the potluck brunch. During this meeting there will be an opportunity for listening, dialogue, visioning, and strategizing about our youth program. Everyone is invited! The effectiveness of this conversation will depend on the participation of our congregation.

    This year our children’s summer program is scheduled for July 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30. There will be a sign up sheet at the front desk of the parish house. Parents are asked to register their children and check off which Sundays their children will be able to attend. This will help me plan for materials and supplies. Thanks!

June 5: Worship, 7 p.m.

June 6: Fellowship, 5 p.m.

June 11: RE, 9:30 a.m.

June 12: Board, 6:30 p.m.

June 14: Social Action, 8 a.m.

    The delegates to the 2005 UUA General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to pass the Statement of Conscience "Criminal Justice and Prison Reform" which advocates sweeping reforms of the US criminal justice system. Our own congregation voted this issue as one of our top concerns. In the coming months, the Social Action Committee plans to offer a variety of opportunities for church members and friends to apply their UU principals and beliefs to advocate for change in our prison system.

    Do you want to put your faith into action on this issue?

    If so, we invite you to participate in the Social Action Committee’s "Ministry Behind Bars": a chance to reach out to inmates with a message of each individual’s inherent worth & dignity.

    Sister Natalie Rossi, Director of the chaplaincy program at the State Correctional Institute for Women in Cambridge Springs, will be here to speak to anyone interested in serving as a spiritual advisor to female inmates in the prison. No special qualifications are needed, simply a desire to listen and to provide compassionate support to incarcerated women. Sister Rossi will be providing information during the Social Action Committee’s next meeting, Wednesday, June 14^th at 8 a.m. in the Arthur Room. If you are interested, please plan to attend the meeting. All are welcome. A sign up sheet will be available in the parish house. For additional information, see Tracy Smock.

    The Social Action Committee recognizes the struggle that low income people face in providing household and personal care products for themselves and their families. In response to that need in our community, we are establishing a "sundry pantry." Like a food pantry, members and friends of the congregation can donate sundries to be provided to people in need. A box to collect donations will be available in the parish house (next to our food pantry box). Items that are needed include:

    The Fellowship Committee is loving the beautiful weather and we have picnic fever. The annual UU picnic has been scheduled for July 9 after the regular Sunday service. We will meet at Roche Park, pavilion #2. Bring your table setting (plate and utensils), a dish to share, the whole family, friends and a desire to have fun! The Fellowship Committee will provide the main course (fried chicken anyone?), lemonade and coffee. Mark your calendars – come picnic and play.

    The Fellowship Committee is sponsoring Circle Suppers again in June. The date is Friday, June 9, 2006. There is a sign-up sheet in the Parish House for those who wish to participate as well as for those who would like to host. This is a great way to get to know your UU members and friends in a more social and relaxed setting. We encourage you to sign up as soon as possible and enjoy a very special evening.

    Michelle lives in Meadville with her husband, Rob Sharp, and great dane,"Abracadabra Thunderfire". Michelle spends much time at their store, "Everybody’s Store" but is a spiritual medium and energy healer and has interest in the paranormal. She enjoys traveling, reading, walking and hiking, going new places, and meeting new people. Her concerns are for world peace, preservation of cultures and humanity.

    Rob also spends time in their store and also has several interests. He enjoys teaching, music, photography, sight seeing, travel, and studying the paranormal. He recently completed a course in Life Force Healing through Quantum Touch and is now certified in the field. Rob’s social concern is for this country not looking after its own people. He expresses interest in a religious education program about where "life" fits in the journey of the soul.

    We are glad Michelle and Rob have joined our church – welcome to them!

    We noted with some disappointment the article in the last Oracle in which someone (presumably a Cooler Camper, but we won’t cast aspersions) tried to explain the timing of the annual church camping event at Forked Lake in the beautiful Adirondacks by tying the event to the code hidden deep within the recesses of the term "6:59er". Lady and I spent several wonderful years traveling with Kate and Mark up to Forked Lake with other human and canine fellow-campers, and we want to clear the record on behalf of the rest of the canine world. Lady is dictating this, as I, Dobie, type, since she is the brains of the Gorman-Walker household, and I am the only dog around with an opposable thumb.

    Put simply, the "6:59er" code is no code at all. It’s a fabrication published by the Cooler Campers solely in the hopes of parlaying the so-called secret into a lackluster movie starring Tom Hanks and Lassie the Wonder Dog. What follows is the true code that underlies the early August (first full week in August) annual assemblage of campers. I call it "da Dobie Code" (please note that Lady dictated "da Lady Code," but since she can’t read, I’ve taken editorial license with her ramblings).

    The fact is, our human companions decided some time ago (nearly eight years ago), when planning the first trip to Forked Lake to hold it during the "dog days" of summer. This was for two reasons: first, they all love dogs, and, second, when at Forked Lake, the night sky is pitch dark and crystal clear, and you can see millions and millions of stars with the naked eye (even a naked dog eye!). One of those stars is Sirius, the brightest of the stars in Canis Major (the big dog constellation), which also happens to be the brightest star in the night sky. In fact, it is so bright that the ancient Romans thought that the earth received heat from it. In the summer, Sirius, the "dog star", rises and sets with the sun. During late July Sirius is in conjunction with the sun, and the ancients believed that its heat added to the heat of the sun, creating a stretch of hot and sultry weather. They named this period of time, from 20 days before the conjunction to 20 days after, "dog days" after the dog star. The conjunction of Sirius with the sun varies somewhat with latitude. And the "precession of the equinoxes" (a gradual drifting of the constellations over time) means that the constellations today are not in exactly the same place in the sky as they were in ancient Rome. Today, dog days occur during the period between July 3 and August 11.

    There you have it! The annual church camping trip is timed for August not for some reason connected with "6:59ers", but to celebrate the end of the dog days of summer in the cool, refreshing Forked Lake waters and breezes (and to pay homage to Sirius, the dog star). I (Dobie) and Lady won’t be joining you in Forked Lake this summer, as our backpacking days are winding down. But while all of you people (and dogs, too) are up there howling at Sirius, rest assured that we’ll be somewhere looking up at the stars and howling right along with you.

    Inner Voices is the only surviving member of the Covenant Group program. As we move into our 7^th year, we still have an earnest group of writers. However, job changes, school boards, committees and families have made it difficult to find a time when we can all meet together. A letter in the current UU World speaks of the hard work involved in maintaining a covenant group. Like any family, there comes a time when one has to face the pain of letting go.

    We decided on a trial separation just for the summer, with perhaps a picnic somewhere along the way. Then at the end of summer, we can reevaluate and see if there’s enough commitment to keep going. Because the hardest part of letting go is not hearing the writings of the others – Bab’s science fiction masterpieces, Deanna’s Civil War epic, Stu’s and Caroline’s poetic struggles with life and family, Mary-Lib’s twists and surprises and the poetry and reminiscences of the less frequent members – we will have a Round Robin of writing throughout the summer. A "library" will be started with the current "prompt from the jar". This will be sent to the first person on the mailing list, who will add their own work (the same prompt or something else) and send it on. When it returns to the originator, that person will remove her work, complete with any comments others have added, and replace it with another piece. Hopefully there can be at least two, if not three rounds over the summer. More specific instructions will be in the Round Robin envelope. If you wish to be on the list, notify Carolyn or Mary-Lib or leave a message at the church. The first round will go out about mid June.

    58 meals were served at the Soup Kitchen on Friday May 12. Seven UUs and one guest helped with the preparation and clean-up.

    We will not be serving at Soup Kitchen during the summer but will meet again in September. Many thanks to all who have helped in the past and to those who will continue this worthy cause in the future.

    Harm Jan Huidekoper is alive and well, working as a doctor in Holland. His brother Pieter is a judge. I know this because I answered a call from their cousin, Elizabeth Huidekoper Clark from Fort Lauderdale. They are interested in writing a book about their great-grandfather and need details of his life in America.

    Thanks to a conversation with this delightful lady, I know much more about Harm Jan and his older brother Jan. When their father died, Jan, just out of the university and working in the family business, told Harm Jan that there wasn’t enough work for two of them. He was willing to send him to the university to help him make his own career choice, or to pay his way to America. Harm Jan decided on America, where the history that we know begins. Elizabeth Clark believes that America was the choice that the family would have approved, too, as it seems he was embarrassing them and the other villagers with his religious ideas. As Ms. Clark says, "big brother might have been relieved to see the ship sail west-ward over the horizon."

    Until her trip to Holland, she knew only that he was the first of the ancestors to come to this country. After the trip, when she had acquired more of the pieces, she became excited, and it was in conjunction with her cousins that the idea for the book was born. Not only can we provide her with de-tails from this side of the pond, she can fill in the blanks for us of his life in Holland.

    I have sent a copy of her subsequent letter to our historian, John Fox, and I got a decent biography off the net, as well as the location of a number of letters to H.J. from Ephraim Peabody, in the Andover Harvard theological library. Do you have stories to tell, or photos of places and things relating to H.J.? Get them to me and I will forward them to her (she sent me a stamped envelope). Maybe a correspondence at some time with Ms. Clark and even her cousins, would enrich our own knowledge of this man who was so important to our history.

    Guru Yogananda defines Meditation as Concentration on Unity/s, God/dess, Cosmic Self. As one concentrates on a perceived vibration: the breath, the heartbeat, the ringing in the ears or tinnitus, one’s consciousness is naturally drawn to the perception of a finer vibration. Eventually the vibrationless arises: the original Self, Spirit, Bliss-Ananda.

    Harmony YOGI

    Acclaimed acoustic guitarist Jim Scott will perform an evening of his songs of peace, and the environment on Saturday, June 3 at 7:00 p.m. With insight and more than a little humor, Scott makes his case for harmony in the world with a jazz to what’s often called world music styling and some great guitar technique in accompaniment. Donations will be taken at the door.

    Known to many as the voice on the Winter Consort’s "Common Ground", Scott's musical output runs from lyrical songs, and instrumentals, to choral compositions. He has performed in the company of luminaries of the jazz and folk worlds. Pete Seeger said of Jim’s guitar virtuosity "(Jim is) some kind of a magician." Paul Winter said of his long time collaborator, "His music sings of the life spirit."

    Although his background is varied, Scott considers himself a contemporary folk artist in the sense that folk music represents people with a positive and hopeful spirit. "Folk follows a long tradition of social commentary," Scott said. "It’s the voice of the people. That’s what I like to think I’m representing." Scott also wrote and produced a stage musical, The Tree and Me, which has been performed in New York and Michigan. He also performs for kids and has written songs with elementary school classes. His Big and Little Stuff – Songs for Kids marks his 5th recording of original songs released on CD. He’s taught at numerous colleges, including Oberlin College in Ohio, and conducted workshops throughout the country. "My messages are of ecology and social conscience, but also of optimism," Scott said. "I believe in the power of song and self-expression for change."

    For information about the concert, call 814-724-4023.

    Over the past twenty years Jim Scott has visited more than 300 UU Churches across the US, Canada and UK, leading services, providing special music for services, presenting benefit concerts, and offering workshops. Three of Jim’s songs are included in the UU hymnbook, Singing the Living Tradition and his music is sung from church choirs to campfires. His hymn Gather the Spirit has become well known across the denomination. Formerly the Co-Chair of the UU Seventh Principle Project, Jim was actively involved in the creation of the "Green Sanctuary" program.  He is now representing the UU Service Committee and spreading the word about their work for peace, justice and health they do around the world. His most recent project The Earth and Spirit Songbook is a collection of over 100 songs of earth and peace by many contemporary composers compiled and arranged by Jim.

    Years of activism are reflected in Jim’s work. His songs, poetry and short stories address issues of ecology, justice and peace with insight and gentle wit. As a member of the Paul Winter Consort, he was co-creator of the monumental choral work Missa Gaia/Earth Mass. He has gone on to create a wide repertoire of choral works, a stage musical, and many recordings of songs. 

    Jim’s musical-activist journeys have included concert collaborations with renowned Jazz, Classical, and Folk artists as well as numerous concerts with choirs. He also performs his engaging songs for children regularly in schools, libraries and family concerts.

    The concert will be preceded with a pot luck dinner at 5:59 p.m. in the Parish House. For more information call Venessa at 814/724-4023.

Unitarian Church Parish House

Enjoy music and dancing with musicians from:

    If you are unable to attend, but would like to contribute to the scholarship fund, donations can be mailed to: Creating Landscapes, Box 39, Allegheny College, Meadville, PA 16335

    Next deadline for submitting items for the newsletter is Friday, June 9, 2006, at 4:30 p.m.