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This Week
William Ellery Channing
whose 1811 sermon Unitarian Christianity
was the topic of Bert Steeves's sermon on October 31
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
FRS Partner Church Village of Ujszekely
Partner Church Sunday
Rev. Harold Babcock
"The Partner Church Experience"
This morning I will be joined in the pulpit by members of our youth contingent to Romania this past summer, sharing a few of their experiences on the UU Partner Church Youth Tour of Transylvania. Their four-day visit in our Partner Church village of Ujszekely as part of that tour coincided with the visit of Michael Fosburg, Barbara Owen, Max Russell, Sabrina Babcock, Russell and Rochelle Perry-Platine, and me. Together we attended the tenth anniversary of our Partner Church minister Zsolt Jakab's ministry in Ujszekely, and the rededication of the church's renovated organ, a project spearheaded by Barbara Owen. The Teen Choir will sing this morning. There will be no young church classes today, but there will be childcare provided in the nursery.
Flowers: The flowers for this morning's service are donated by Anne Laurence Dodge in loving memory of her mother, Anne Laurence Green and her grandfather, L. P. Dodge.
Steeple Lighting: The steeple lighting for this week has been donated by Coddie Fraser in loving memory of her husband, Robert W. Fraser.
Coffee Hour: Members of the Religious Education Committee.
FRS Current Events Forum: 9:30 - 10:15 a.m. in Lower Meetinghouse Conference Room - "Does Jane Need Tarzan? Part II - More on Sorting out Relationships between Men and Women."
New Member Recognition Sunday
Rev. Harold Babcock
"Belonging"
This morning we will once again welcome new members, those who have decided to become legal voting members of our congregation and who have submitted an Application for Membership-into the fellowship of the First Religious Society in a Ceremony of New Member Recognition. The sermon will investigate the various ways that church membership and participation can provide a sense of belonging. I look forward to seeing you in church!
Flowers: The flowers for today's service are donated by Mary Wilkins Haslinger in memory of her grandparents, Mayor Gayden W. Morrill and Margaret Dodge Morrill.
Steeple Lighting: The steeple lighting for this week has been donated by Nancy and Jim Kidd in memory of their parents, Mary and Arthur Hower and Fred and Eveline Kidd.
Coffee Hour: Karen Young and Allyson Lawless.
New Member Recognition Ceremony: During the worship service on Sunday, November 13, 2005, we will again welcome new members at a New Member Recognition Ceremony. If you have questions about becoming a member of the First Religious Society, please speak to Harold Babcock or call John Mercer, Administrator, at (978) 465-0602, ext. 404, or send him an e-mail at frsuu@netway.com.
Things are off to a great start this fall with the youth music program at the First Religious Society! All three of our youth choirs (Cherub, Young Church Choir, and Teen Choir) have welcomed new members this year. It's good to welcome the newcomers and to see our old friends again as well.
The Cherub Choir consists of all children in kindergarten through second grade. We rehearse each week during the first few minutes of the Sunday School hour.
Our Young Church Choir is open to children in grades two through six. The Young Church Choir rehearses on Sunday mornings from 9:40-10:20 in the upper parish hall. If your child has ever considered joining choir, now would be a great time to do so. We are preparing a Choral Call to Worship, which we will be singing in church on November 20. We're also happy to report that we've starting learning our Christmas music already. This group will be singing "Go Tell It on the Mountain" at the annual Candlelight service on December 18.
The Teen Choir is a wonderful group of youth in grades 7 through 12. This group boasts over twenty members, and rehearses every Sunday morning from 9:00-9:40 in the upper parish hall. The Teen Choir will be singing in church on November 6, and will also be singing at Candlelight, December 18.
The Young Church Choir and the Teen Choir will be singing a combined anthem for the Candlelight service. Beginning November 13 and continuing every Sunday through December 18, ALL TEEN CHOIR members are asked to stay for the first half of Young Church Choir rehearsal (until about 10:00) so that both groups can rehearse together.
Please note this very important schedule change: All Young Church Choir and Teen Choir members must attend our annual Candlelight rehearsal on Saturday morning, December 17. The time of the rehearsal has been changed. We will be practicing from 8:30 - 9:30 a.m. in the church. (The rehearsal time has been changed in order to accommodate the schedule of the adult choir.) Thank you for marking this important schedule change on your calendar.
Join Edson Worden's band of merry revelers! Pull out your old (or new!) clarinet (or whatever) and play holiday carols for the Young Church Holiday Pageant on December 11. Rehearsals will be on Sundays right after church starting on November 6 up in the choir room. This intergenerational group had waaaaay too much fun last year!
The church office has openings for weeks of steeple lightings at $50.00 a week, flowers at Sunday services usually at $25.00, and a need for ushers all through the Christmas season. If you'd like to take advantage of any of these opportunities, please call Vicki Dyer at (978) 465-0602, ext. 401.
An FRS member needs a sitter for two-month-old baby in her home three hours a day from 9:00 am to noon, three or more days per week. Please call the FRS office for details.
from the FRS Adult Education Committee
Flight from Death: The Quest for Immortality
DVD viewing - free
Saturday, November 5, 7:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Lower Parish Hall
Though the title is daunting, this turns out to be a very entertaining and thought-provoking film. Three sociologists set out to test the theories of Ernest Becker, who said that death anxiety can cause people to turn against outsiders and even resort to violence. Filmed all over the world, this documentary examines death anxiety on spiritual, cultural and psychological levels, leaving the viewer with a heightened awareness of how this plays out in our everyday lives. One of the best films in the 2004 Newburyport Film Festival, this is a must-see experience. Munchies & drinks provided. All are welcome. Knitting Workshop - Every other Saturday in the Lower Meetinghouse Conference Room, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Next workshop is November 5.
from the FRS Building and Grounds Committee
We have a list of small maintenance tasks around the church buildings, we have supplies to carry out the tasks, but we don't have you! To volunteer to be part of this DIY church, call the FRS office.
Generous parishioners are using giving envelopes #487 and #594 from a series issued long ago, a series for which we no longer have a listing. So all contributions in the collection under giving envelope #487 and #594 are being credited to Unidentified. To prevent the aforementioned Unidentified from receiving credit for your giving, please call the church office if you are using one of these giving envelopes
Retired Ladies Lunch: next on Wed, Nov. 9 at Ten Center Street at 12:15 p.m. Reserve with Peggy Mays by phone or by e-mail (pegmays@comcast.net).
- Drop off items at the church office, starting Monday October 31 and through the week from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
- Clothes sorting will be on Thursday and Friday from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- The sale will be on Friday from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and on Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
For anyone interested in a firsthand look at what's going on with disaster relief in Louisiana, check out this Web Log (blog). Lynn and I sent a donation directly to the church a few weeks back so I check in once in awhile to see how they're doing.
We have received donations for twenty new hymnals but are seeking donations for ten more. The choir is often in need of hymnals on a Sunday; with the church ever more full, the supply is running short. Hymnals are available, with bookplate for memorial statement, for $28.00 apiece. To purchase one or more, call the FRS office at (978) 465-0602, ext. 401.
People come to our churches to be lifted out of the ordinary, to be drawn up from the mundane, and to seek relief from the rampant materialism of our culture. People come into religious communities to wrestle with life's ultimate questions, looking for a place to seek meaning about living and dying and the time in between. Shared Ministry Groups provide a way to nurture deep relationships between members as they share their lives and their faith together. Since its inception at our church last year, this program has grown to include 35 members in five active groups. This year we'd like to expand it even further. If you'd like to know more about our Shared Ministry Program please pick up a flyer in the church office or send Rick Anderson e-mail at Rick.Anderson@ca.com.
During November 50% of the loose plate collection will be donated to the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Larger Fellowship (CLF). The CLF, a church without walls, is the largest Unitarian Universalist congregation. In addition to providing a spiritual home for about 3,000 isolated religious liberals around the world, the CLF is committed to serving the wider UU movement in the following ways; Church on Loan program for small congregations; Church OnLine website; lending library; religious education materials; worship resources; UU military email list; prison ministry, including the Prison Pen Pal program; and Between Sundays RE website. CLF publishes Quest monthly, as well as uu&me!, an insert for children in the UU World magazine. Perhaps the most exciting development at CLF is the new Church of the Younger Fellowship, an online ministry by and for Young Adults and college students. For more information about these programs, see the CLF website: www.clfuu.org.
As part of October's Collection for Cause, the FRS sent a $519.50 contribution to Pettengill House of Salisbury.
Remarks from Sunday, October 30, Service
by members of the 1994 Ministerial Search Committee
John Harwood: My role on the Ministerial Search Committee was to communicate with the congregation. I am reprising that role today. It occurred to me after our recent celebration for the first ten years of Harold's ministry here that although our minister emeritus, the Rev. Bertrand Steeves, had thanked the Search Committee that recommended Harold to the congregation, and while the focus was appropriately on Harold, another individual who deserved recognition had not been thanked. I am thinking of the chairman of our committee, John Mercer, who contributed his leadership, developed from a lifetime of membership of this First Religious Society and contributed a home office where we could meet privately as the search process required until we recommended a single candidate to you.
Forrest Speck: In my experience, group leaders are of two kinds, either gentle or tyrannical. John Mercer, however, was not an "either-or"; he was a "both-and": a gentle tyrant.
Libby Michaud (committee member who attended the celebration for Harold from her home on the South Shore): With John's leadership, we were able to accomplish beyond our own expectations and those of our congregation. John's ongoing, gentle prodding kept us questioning, exploring, and ultimately gave us the confidence to come to the unified selection of Harold. Thank you, John, I love you.
John Harwood then noted that the committee worked as a team of equals who reached a unanimous decision, reflecting how this congregation functions as a committee of the whole, working out its differences and moving on, united. Nevertheless, they still needed the wit and eloquence, experience and wisdom that John Mercer provided, long before he became Administrator to the FRS.
