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This Week
Rochelle and Russell Perry-Platine enroute by train
from Budapest to the FRS Partner Church in Ujszekely, Romania
a member of the Unitarian Universalist Association,
26 Pleasant Street, Newburyport, MA 01950
Office Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Monday through Friday
Church Phone: (978) 465-0602 - Minister's Line: (978) 465-6504 - Fax: (978) 462-0384
Web Page: www.frsuu.org - e-mail: frsuu@netway.com
The Rev. Harold E. Babcock, Minister The Rev. Bertrand H. Steeves, Minister Emeritus
Community Worship Service and Flower Procession
Rev. Harold Babcock
"Coming Home"
Author and poet Alice Walker has written in a poem ("When We Let Spirit Lead Us"), "All we can hope / Is that / We are going / Home / That wherever / Spirit / Takes us / Is where / We / Live." The sermon will investigate that hope as we re-gather our worshipping community from the summer hiatus with an intergenerational family service. There will be a procession of flowers, so please bring a flower to share during the service. There will also be an opportunity to register children for Young Church classes, and Young Church choirs begin today. I look forward to welcoming you back to church!
Ushers: Cynthia and Manfred Raschke
Flowers: The flowers for this morning's service are donated by Betty Gillette in memory of her parents, Russell W. and Rachel Gillette.
Steeple Lighting:
- for the week of September 4 - from Carol Young in appreciation of Rev. Harold E. Babcock.
- for the week of September 11 - in loving memory of Josephine P. and Robert W. Driver by their daughters Susan and Henrietta and family.
Rev. Harold Babcock
"The View from the Heartland"
This summer my son Ben and I took a road trip out to the Badlands and Black Hills of South Dakota, where we camped and hiked. Along the way, we visited friends and spent part of a day exploring around my first church in Minnesota, where Ben was born. This fall Ben is starting his teaching and coaching career at a private school in Connecticut, so this was an opportunity for us to spend some time together before he headed off to his new life. The sermon will reflect upon those experiences, as well as upon some of my thoughts about the "heart" of America. Young Church classes begin today. After the service, we will once again "caravan" to Maudslay Park for a picnic (see below for more information).
Ushers: Pam Girardi and Barbara Moynahan
Flowers: The flowers for this morning's service are donated by Betty and Scott Pike.
Steeple Lighting: The steeple lighting for this week has been donated in loving memory of Bob Smart from his wife, Joan, and their family.
Joys and Sorrows: Our condolences to Anne Madden on the death of her mother and to Tom Stites on the death of his stepfather.
A Message from the Rev. William G. Sinkford
(Boston, August 31, 2005) The assault of Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast reminds us once again of the awesome power of natural forces. Like so many others, I was shocked and saddened by the tragic loss of life and the massive devastation left in the wake of the hurricane. My prayers go out to those grieving for lost loved ones, and my hopes are with the thousands who face the daunting task of rebuilding their lives and communities. I am especially mindful that those unable to evacuate from the affected areas, the poor and the elderly, have suffered disproportionately from the ferocity of this hurricane.
I know that many Unitarian Universalists are eager to find a way to help. Over the past two days we have received information from both the UUA's Southwest District (for Louisiana UU churches) and Mid-South District (for UU churches in Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle) about extensive damage to our churches in the path of the hurricane, and we have established the UUA Gulf Coast Relief Fund to assist Gulf Coast UUs in the monumental tasks they will face in the coming weeks and months. I urge you to be as generous as possible in support of our faith community. You can find information on how to contribute to this relief fund on the web.
All funds received will be distributed under the auspices of the Southwest and Mid-South Districts and will be used entirely for hurricane relief. As decisions are made and more information becomes available, we will update this website to keep you informed.
May this sorrowful event be an opportunity for us to exercise our compassion and provide what comfort we can.
I hope everyone has had a great summer and is looking forward to choir again!!!! Our Young Church Choir is open to children in grades 2 - 6, and our Teen Choir is for singers in grades 7 - 12. Rehearsals will resume on Sunday, September 11. The rehearsal schedule is as follows:
9:00 - 9:40 - Teen Choir rehearsalBoth groups meet in the upper parish hall. New singers are always welcome. No previous musical experience is necessary. Looking forward to seeing you!
9:40 - 10:20 - Young Church Choir rehearsal
Youth Choirs Director
Claudia@claudiamusic.com
of South Church
in Portsmouth, New Hampshire
requests the honor of your presence at
the ordination of
Francis Osborne Clarkson, III
to the
Unitarian Universalist Ministry
Saturday, September 10, 2005
Five o'clock in the afternoon
Reception immediately following
The Adult Choir requests the pleasure of your company
on Thursday evenings from 7:15 to 8:30.
An exciting season is planned
with an opening potluck supper on
Thursday, September 8, at 6:00 o'clock p.m.
in the Lower Meetinghouse.
Spouses and partners (whatever) are invited. Join us!
October 30
If Sunday morning singing is not for you, come on Thursday evenings from 8:30 - 9:30 p.m. starting on September 15 to sing the Solemn Mass of early 20th century French composer Louis Vierne. The choir will sing down at the front of the sanctuary with a small portative organ, and organist Robert Littlefield will answer antiphonally on the FRS's Alley great organ. The performance is Sunday evening October 30 at 7:00. It's great, grand music.
I hope that your summer has been enjoyable and renewing! My own has included both a trip to the Badlands and Black Hills of South Dakota with my son Ben, who will be starting his teaching career this fall, and a trip via Vienna and Budapest to visit our Partner Church in Transylvania with church members Russell and Rochelle Perry-Platine.
Once in Transylvania we met up with church members Max Russell, Barbara Owen, Michael Fosburg, and eight of our church's youth who were also visiting our Partner Church village as part of a youth tour of Transylvania led by the Unitarian Universalist Partner Church Council. This was a very special year not only because of the visit by so many of our young people, but also because there was a special service held to recognize the tenth anniversary of our Partner Church minister Zsolt Jakab's ministry in Ujszekely, and also to rededicate the church's almost 200 year old organ. The organ has been completely restored thanks to the efforts of our former Music Director and organist, Barbara Owen, and it was a pleasure to hear Barbara play it. The service was made more special by the presence of the Bishop of the Transylvanian Unitarian Church, Arpad Szabo, who was the preacher for the day, and of the District Dean, the Rev. Josef Szombatfalvi. Also present at the service were Dr. Judit Gellerd, Honorary President of the UUPCC and a native Transylvanian, and her husband Dr. George Williams, and UUPCC networker Roger Matledge, a member of the First Parish UU Church in Concord.
During the service I offered the following brief remarks on behalf of our congregation:
I bring you greetings on behalf of the congregation in Newburyport and those of us from Newburyport who are present here today. These include the young people from our church who are enjoying your hospitality. Among them are the granddaughters of our former minister, Bertrand Steeves, who initiated the partnershp between our two churches more than fifteen years ago.At the ensuing celebratory dinner (which lasted well into the night--a story for another time!), I was asked by Bishop Szabo to bring greetings on behalf of the UUA and the Unitarian Universalist Partner Church Council to the World Gathering of Unitarians (the Transylvanian equivalent of the UUA General Assembly) to be held the following Saturday in the nearby city of Szekelyudvarhely. Below is the text of my remarks at that most interesting gathering:My heart is full on this special day in the life of your congregation. It has been a great joy in my life to experience the growth of feeling between the people of our congregations! Thank you to all of you for the generosity and kindness of your welcome! I can say with truth that the friendships I have made here in Ujszekely are among the most important in my life. I feel tremendous pride this morning in our friend Barbara Owen for all of her work in making the restoration of your organ a reality. I know that for her it has been a labor of love.
My greatest hope is that this partnership will continue to grow and flourish. I am grateful to my friend and colleague Zsolt Jakab and to Bishop Szabo for this celebration and for the opportunity to share this time together. And I am grateful for the Unitarian faith we share!
It is an honor to represent the Newburyport congregation on this special day, and I look forward to many more such occasions in the future. May God bless you all!
Brother and sister Unitarians, Bishop Szabo, special guests and representatives, ministerial colleagues, it is a pleasure and an honor to bring greetings to this gathering on behalf of the Unitarian Universalist Association and the Unitarian Universalist Partner Church Council.There were many memorable moments in my travels this summer which will provide inspiration for many days to come. I look forward to sharing some of them with you in my sermons this year. It will be good to regather our community on September 11, and I look forward to seeing you in church. Welcome back!This is my fifth visit to Transylvania but only my first to this gathering. I thank Biship Szabo for the invitation to speak to you today. It gives me great joy to stand together with my Transylvanian Unitarian colleagues.
Many of you I know personally already, but I look forward to becoming acquainted with more of you in the future. This is especially true as we work together in partnership to spread the good news of our free faith to a world struggling with religious and political fundamentalism. Is there a more important ministry today? It gives me strength and hope to carry on this work, knowing that I have so many dear friends here in Europe who share my Unitarian faith.
Now, more than ever before, there is a need for all of us to become not just national, but global citizens. We must do so if the human race is to survive on this small planet. This is why it is so important to me personally to have an international connection.
I cannot even begin to say how important the Partner Church Council's work has been for me. I can tell you that it has changed my life! My heart is full from the love that I have found here in Transylvania.
Now I cannot imagine my life without the experiences that I have had in this beautiful place. To have dear friends here in the Unitarian "holy land" has deepened my faith and brightened my life beyond measure. It has given me hope that our free faith will survive and thrive because we are working together for a common goal.
That goal is and always has been to uphold our common humanity in a sometimes tragic but also a beautiful world. It is God's world that we are called to serve. Jesus sent out his disciples into that world to share his good news. It is the dream of every one of us on the Partner Church Council that every Unitarian Universalist Church and every individual Unitarian or Universalist might have an international connection like the ones we have shared and treasured here, and that it might become an integral part of each and everyone's religious practice.
For it is up to us to create a more loving and a kinder world, where truth, justice, freedom, reason, tolerance, and compassion will finally prevail.
Dear brothers and sisters, this is the work that lies before us! To change the world one partnership and even one relationship at a time.
It is said that if a person saves even one life, he saves the whole world. That is my hope and my dream and my prayer, on this day and in all the days still to come. May God bless you all! Amen.
from the FRS Adult Education Committee
Knitting Workshop
Every other Saturday in the Lower Meetinghouse Conference Room
10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Workshops will begin Sept. 10.
All including beginners are welcome. No registration is necessary, just show up. Bring your knitting projects and our master knitters will troubleshoot problems. We are encouraging people to knit comfort shawls to add to our supply for people in crisis. Join this ongoing group for knitting and companionship.
The FRS Current Events Forum
First and third Sundays of each month before church, 9:30 - 10:15 a.m.
Lower Meetinghouse Conference Room
Facilitated by Richard Nocera
Starting Sept. 18
The first topic will be the proposed garage behind our church. For future Current Events Forum topics, call the church's information line at (978) 465-0602 x 125.
This forum provides our community a platform for free discussion of events occurring in the larger world which are of burning concern to us. It creates an environment in which ideas are respected and may be expressed in an atmosphere of openness and honesty and are met with support and safety - if not always agreement! Each meeting will have a Focus Topic, announced in advance. An occasional outside expert on a chosen topic may be invited to lead the discussion. All welcome.
Our American Roots
Facilitated by Alex Mezey and Julie Parker-Amery
Tuesdays from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., starting October 4
If you're interested in knowing more about the history of Unitarianism and Universalism, you'll want to take part in this video-based discussion group. Each meeting will feature a video clip on the significant issues and people in our faith history including commentary by contemporary UU ministers. The videos and companion book of readings will be our springboard for discussion. The ten-part series will begin with five meetings in the fall, and resume after the holidays. This course will give you a unique perspective on the significant role our religious forebears had on the development of our nation. It will be facilitated by Julie Parker Amery, FRS Director of Religious Education, and Alex Mezey. The five Fall sessions will be held on Tuesdays October 4 thru Nov. 1 from 7:00 until 9:00 p.m. To register and order your workbook ($10), call 978 465 0602 x401. The deadline to sign up is October 27.
Fall Birding on Plum Island
Sunday, Oct. 2, 2005; 7:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.
Leaders: Bill Gette, Audubon Sanctuary Director, Marsha Gette, & volunteers
Meeting Place: Joppa Flats Education Center
Program Fee: $10 (pay 10/2)
Register by calling 978 465 0602 x401. Deadline to sign up is September 26.
Birding with Bill and Marsha Gette is a joyful experience. You won't believe the number of birds you will see: egrets, herons, many species of ducks, and colorful warblers stopping at Plum Island on their northward migration. Bring your binoculars.
Tenth Anniversary Celebration for Rev. Harold Babcock
October 7 and 9, 2005
The tenth anniversary celebration will include an evening party on the Friday evening at Steeple Hall at the Kiwi Grille. The evening will feature music and dancing, old stories, and artful oratory, as well as plenty of opportunity to express appreciation. The $30.00 ticket price will include substantial finger food and a copy of Harold's newly published book of sermons from his first ten years at the FRS. To reserve your place, call the FRS office at (978) 465-0602 x401.
The church service and special coffee hour on Sunday, October 9, will be further testimony to our appreciation.
As part of the celebration, the congregation will present Harold with a scrapbook of its members' skits, songs, poems, stories, appreciations, and accolades. These should be sent or brought to the church before Monday, September 19.
The Community Human Services Committee will be having its first meeting of the year on Tuesday, September 13, at 7:30. If you are interested in being a member of the Committee or would like to simply sign up for a specific project, please plan on joining us. Our first project of the year will be the Salvation Army Dinner on Thursday, September 22. There will be sign-up sheets during Coffee Hour. We look forward to seeing you.
Tuesday, September 13
The Women's Alliance is going to have as its first program of the year-the youth group that visited Transylvania this summer. The Alliance usually meets at noon, but this meeting will be held later in the afternoon; call (978) 465-0602, ext. 401 for details.
Leslie Lawrence and Stan Barrett will be married in the sanctuary at the First Religious Society on Saturday, September 24th, at 3:00 p.m. (music beginning at 2:30). They invite anyone in the FRSUU community who wishes to do so, to join them for the ceremony.
Retired - or Semi-Retired - Ladies
If interested, call Peggy Mays or send her e-mail at pegmays@comcast.net.
September 24, 2005
Boston, MA
The Rev. Carl Scovel will lead worship and The Rev. Mark Harris will give the keynote address, "Hosea Ballou's Treatise at 200," at the New Massachusetts Universalist Convention's Annual Conference on Saturday, September 24, at the Parish House of King's Chapel, located across Boston Common from King's Chapel at 64 Beacon Street (near Charles). The conference will run from 8:30 to 4:30 and include food (breakfast, lunch, snack), singing, workshops, lots of good conversation, and an optional walking tour of Beacon Hill. Full information is available on line.
The FRS's Social Action Committee seems to have plenty of members and plenty of interest, but has no chairperson. A committee that has a budget, as Social Action does, needs to have a chairperson to sign check requests and make sure that the committee's commitments are met. Furthermore, without a chairperson, the Social Action Committee cannot take official action, for instance, to direct where funds raised through loose plate collections should be directed each month this year. Any volunteers?
If you're interested in being chairperson of this committee, please call John Mercer at (978) 465-0602, ex. 404.
During the Yankee Homecoming week, the FRS held a book sale, which yielded over $1,700.00. Thanks to Mindy Sheehy and Ann Chase for their leadership and hard work on this. Further, the FRS rented its front sidewalk space to Muddy River Barbecue, a rental which yielded $450.00 to the church. Since the FRS budget had assumed only $1,500.00 in Yankee Homecoming fundraising, we started the fiscal year well ahead of forecast.
Throughout the year the FRS provides space to community groups at reduced or no rent; these include three AA groups, Alanon, an Anger-Management program, and the Family-to-Family mental health support group.
Hot off the press and straight into the FRS Library: The Protected Landscape Approach -- Linking Nature, Culture and Community, published by the World Conservation Union and edited by our very own Jessica Brown, Nora Mitchell (no relation to Jessica's husband, Brent Mitchell) and Michael Beresford. Read about an approach to protected areas that is gaining increasing recognition. The protected landscape approach offers the potential to meet many conservation challenges by linking conservation of nature and culture and by fostering stewardship by people living in the landscape. "In every corner of the world can be found landscapes that have been shaped by the interactions of people and nature over time. These landscapes have been created by traditional patterns of land use that have contributed to biodiversity and other natural values, have proven sustainable over centuries, and are living examples of cultural heritage. They are rich in natural and cultural values not in spite of but because of the presence of people. Protecting these landscapes requires a conservation approach that recognizes natural as well as cultural values, sustains traditional connections to the land, and engages people in stewardship of the places where they live and work." Many of the case studies in this collection were presented at a workshop on Protected Landscapes and Seascapes at the World Parks Congress in Durban, South Africa, 2003, and at an earlier meeting of the Protected Landscapes Task Force, in the UK, 2001. Learn how this broad new approach to conservation relies on an array of processes and traditional systems to sustain people's relationship to the land.
