Author Archives: magicvalleyuu

Sunday, July 17, 2016: “The Path of Mysticism”

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Presenter: Julie Merrick

Mysticism is defined as the spiritual apprehension of truths which are beyond the intellect. Always subjective, mystical experiences are personal and often include a sense of unity, timelessness, and a marked shift in perception. The path of mysticism is simple yet profound and does not require us to exit ‘normal’ living but rather be present enough to feel and come to know the beauty and love underlying all existence.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on these journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.UA GNBathrm

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is available. Please park in the rear of the building and use the entrance on the west side of the building.

Sunday, July 10, 2016: “Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You”

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Presenter: Mary McGinnis

Most of us have heard some form of “The Golden Rule” since we were children. “Treat others as you want to be treated” is a guiding philosophy in Christian communities and in our culture.

St._Matthew_and_the_Angel

Karel van der Pluym, Google Art Project

Maybe what is less known is just how global that philosophy is in other cultures and other religions.

The Golden Rule Project states: “The Golden Rule is inclusive of all different traditions, philosophies, and religions. Different versions or formulations of the Golden Rule can be found everywhere: in religious and secular texts, works of art, song lyrics and in the words of world leaders and more.”

Please join us as a member of our congregation shares a compilation of some of these formulations from the , Golden Rule Project and encourages personal reflection on how this may be present in daily living- rather than merely becoming empty rhetoric.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on these journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is available. Please park in the rear of the building and use the entrance on the west side of the building.

Goodbye to Rev. Suzanne Marsh

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Suzanne Marsh

We mourn the sudden recent death of our previous minister, Rev. Suzanne Marsh. We lost a great advocate for peace and justice, and we will miss her. Below is a letter from Janine Larsen of the Pacific West Region to our congregation:

Date: Mon, 27 Jun 2016 21:36:19 +0000

Dear leaders of Pocatello UU Fellowship and Magic Valley UU Fellowship,
 
Though with great sadness, I wanted to let you and your congregations know of the death of the Rev. Suzanne Marsh, on June 24. While traveling with her spouse of nearly 30 years, Rev. Marsh took a sudden fall, hitting her head on a countertop, and did not regain consciousness.
 
Although Rev. Marsh’s time with the Pocatello and Twin Falls congregations was brief, I know you will feel the depth of loss of her family and friends. As the Rev. Nancy Palmer Jones reminded her congregation, which ordained Rev. Marsh in 2010, events like this cause us to recall that “life is fragile, that the unexpected happens, and that we must love each other truly, madly, deeply every moment that we have.”
 
At the time of her death, Rev. Marsh was serving the UU Church of the Desert in California. The UU Trauma Ministry team and local ministers are helping to care for the stunned congregation, which is also supporting the grieving family. If you wish to send a message of sympathy, you may reach the congregation at Unitarian Universalist Church of the Desert, PO Box 2853, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270.
 
My very best to you and your congregation.
 
Yours in faith,
Janine Larsen
 
 
Janine Larsen  |  Congregational Life Staff, Pacific Western Region

 

Here is a link to an article about Rev. Marsh from the Desert Sun, a local newspaper:

http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/2016/06/27/gay-pastor-and-activist-dies-apparent-heart-attack/86451808/

Sunday, July 3, 2016: “How Do We All Crave Happiness?”

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Host/Presenter: Michael Johnson

It’s interesting how we all crave after happiness; how all of our choices seem to be tied by ropes or threads to our obtaining happiness.

It’s interesting also when we consider how we participate in that life-long quest. Do we get the level of happiness we want? What do you think?” Please come prepared to discuss.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on these journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is available. Please park in the rear of the building and use the entrance on the west side of the building.

Sunday, June 26, 2016: “When Freedom and Responsibility Meet”

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Host/Presenter: Ray Cross

Based on the writings of Rev. Thom Belote and Rev. Jane Rzepka, uur message Sunday will center on how Unitarian Universalists handle the freedom and responsibility that being part of a free, liberal religion gives them. We like to break rules. Do we always act in good taste and good judgment or does the fact that we have no creed to live up to and no church fathers to answer to go to our heads from time to time?

Does being a member of a liberal religion make us better, or tempt us to act irresponsibly? Do we break rules that our religious neighbors take for granted? Please come prepared to discuss . . .

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on these journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.UA GNBathrm

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is available. Please park in the rear of the building and use the entrance on the west side of the building.

Sunday, June 19, 2016: “Bathroom Battles: What’s at Stake?”

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Host/Presenter: Chad Minteer

We are a welcoming faith. Unitarian Universalism doesn’t just open its doors to people of all sexual orientations and gender identities—we value diversity of sexuality and gender and see this diversity as a profound spiritual gift.spork

Join us as we discuss some of the recent controversies surrounding gender neutral bathrooms and why increasing our awareness matters to all of us.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on these journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.UA GNBathrm

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is available. Please park in the rear of the building and use the entrance on the west side of the building.

Sunday, June 12, 2016: “For What the Soul Hungers”

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Host/Presenter: Karen Fothergill

We will examine a sermon by Rev. Josh Pawelek of the Unitarian Universalist Society (East Manchester, Connecticut) entitled “For What the Soul Hungers.” Rev. Pawelek suggests human beings share an innate “soul hunger” for reconciliation, a “circle unbroken.”

While we don’t always feel it, there comes those times when we are shaken up, awakened, called. In these moments perhaps we produce a work of art to mend a broken society; perhaps we forgive one who has wronged us; perhaps we feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, free the prisoner, welcome the stranger. Perhaps we work for a more just society. Perhaps we sing. Perhaps we dance. Perhaps we build the beloved community.Pawelek_FWTSH

However and whenever the possibility for reconciliation presents itself to us, may we hear this ancient call: “May we do what we can to make the circle whole.”

Karen Fothergill will share a photography and a calligraphy project that has been used to create healing between groups that have been involved in fighting and war.

A presentation by local refugees and a performance by the choir will also be a part of our service.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on these journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.
Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is available. Please park in the rear of the building and use the entrance on the west side of the building.

Sunday, June 5, 2016: “Flower Communion: Connecting at the Roots”

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Host: Don Morishita

Presenter: Rev. Elizabeth Greene

In June, Unitarian Universalists honor the ritual of Flower Communion, introduced into our religious tradition by Rev. Norbert Capek, in the 1930s. Capek was a Czech Unitarian minister who spoke passionately for human dignity and the right to worship freely, in the face of Nazi oppression. Capek died in a concentration camp, but he was an inspiration to his fellow prisoners, writing hymns and speaking words of comfort. We celebrate our freedom and connections with each other by bringing a flower to worship service, exchanging with each other these symbols of life and love.

uuscflowerUnitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on these journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is available. Please park in the rear of the building and use the entrance on the west side of the building.

Sunday, May 29, 2016: “Exploring Our Spiritual Paths”

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Host/Presenter: Don Morishita

Everyone who accepts spirituality in their lives have experienced interesting paths worthy of sharing with others.thinkdifferent

The third principle of Unitarian Universalism is acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.

Our fourth principle is a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.

One important aspect of our spiritual growth as a congregation is that our spiritual paths include a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. Sharing our spiritual paths provides insight of what each of us experiences as we find truth and meaning in all aspects of our lives. Join us to hear the stories of some members of our Fellowship as they share their spiritual paths that have led them to this point in their lives.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on these journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is available. Please park in the rear of the building and use the entrance on the west side of the building.

Sunday, May 22, 2016: “Latent Racism and the Black Lives Matter Movement”

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Host/Presenter: Chad Minteer

What can we do for racial justice? Why does supporting or even understanding a movement like Black Lives Matter matter to you?

Sometimes problems like the kind this movement shines a light on can seem far away and like they’re not really our problem. We can take for granted that being able to ignore ‘far away problems’ is a condition of class privilege – if it doesn’t affect us, then it doesn’t exist.

BLM

Much has been made in the media of some of the radical and disruptive action that some supporters of the movement have taken. By focusing on such violations of “respectability”, it’s easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. Those for whom the system more or less works can find it easy to ignore the problems of those for whom the system has failed. Peace, liberty, and justice for all – that’s what we want.

How do we lift up those values for the most disenfranchised among us? For ourselves?

Unitarian Universalism supports the Black Lives Matter movement. We work to end racial discrimination and injustice, starting within ourselves and moving out into the world around us. We support multiracial, multiethnic congregations and advocate for stopping racist policies like mass imprisonment and attacks on voting rights.

Join us as we explore these topics.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on these journeys.

Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is available. Please park in the rear of the building and use the entrance on the west side of the building.