UUCSJS Midweek Message

• Minister's Midweek Meditation
• Announcements
• Notes From the Board
• Events This Week
• This Sunday
• Last Sunday
• Call to Action
• Explore Our Monthly Theme
• Connect to Our Faith

In this week's Midweek Meditation Rev. Dawn shares "Witnessing the Miracle" by Andrea Mason. May you find joy in this season of holidays and holy days.

Rev. Dawn is available for pastoral care appointments Wednesday through Friday 10am-3pm. Please email minister@uucsjs.org to schedule an appointment.

Contact a member of the Caring Team

Team members can provide you with support during/after an illness, a death in the family, or other loss or hardship. They can find you resources, run errands, or provide meals in time of need.

Reach out to:

• Tracey Catino at (609) 674-8721 email: Traceysnaps@msn.com
• Denise O'Meara at (610) 316-7495 email: denome53@gmail.com
• Helen Utts at (609) 338-3391 email: HelenUtts@aol.com
• MaryLou DeMaria-Berhang at (201) 247-5635 email: MLberhang@gmail.com
• Tony Zitelli at (201) 463-2800 email: happy85a@aol.com

To have your announcement placed in the Midweek Message, please send an email to admin@uucsjs.org by Noon on Wednesday.

Planning a special event? The Communications Team can help. Visit https://uucsjs.breezechms.com/form/42685e for more information.

More willing workers needed. Can you help?

Our participation in “Adopt-a-Road” is in jeopardy…

To participate in the Adopt-a-Road program, UUCSJS does at least four (4) road cleanups every “Earth Day Year” (before April 22) while earning a modest stipend from Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA). The cleanups involve walking up & down Pomona Road for about one mile to bag up trash and recyclables.

You’re invited to join the cleanup crew on Sunday, January 16 at 8:15 AM at the UU Center. If it works the way it’s supposed to, you will team up with a partner as you put on a safety vest and gloves and choose your grabber.

Although it might be unexpected, volunteers often report feeling gratified they got out so early and had some exercise and time for reflection along with doing something useful.

We need eight (8) volunteers to accomplish the task in a reasonable amount of time, yet for our first cleanup in July we had five and in October, only four. That’s not enough to do the job and sustain our participation in the program.

Further, the present coordinator plans to step down as of Earth Day 2022 and someone new will be needed to schedule cleanups and report them to ACUA. Will you be the one to take on this straightforward job that improves our environment and helps the church at the same time?

We hope it’s been the pandemic that has discouraged more participation; we shall see. Please don’t hesitate because you’ve never come before – it’s that easy!

Snow/rain date is Sunday, January 23 at 8:15 AM.

Thank you and see you there,

Judy Pereira

That line from old black and white Western movies reminds me of an important message from our Building and Grounds Committee.

Please do not place stickers on cabinets and library doors. The glue damages the finish on wood and is very difficult to remove from glass.

Thanks!

-Buildings & Grounds Committee

Are you in need of a ride to Sunday services?

Are you willing to drive other people to services?

The Caring Team would like to know!

We are specifically looking for drivers in the Egg Harbor Township area right now but would like to help others connect as well. If you are interested in volunteering or you need a ride, please contact Helen Utts or any member of the Caring Team or email admin@uucsjs.org.

Click on each image for more information or to join the event.

At its monthly meeting on December 9th, the UUCSJS Board of Trustees considered a proposal to change the signage and symbols we display along Pomona Road. Discussion at several prior Board meetings has indicated an electronic sign may not be viable under Pinelands signage ordinances. The current proposal calls for a new flag pole which would fly the American flag and additional flags in rotation, and altering our roadside signage to reflect multiple UU priorities.

In accordance with the recently enacted Signage Policy and the congregational roundtables held via zoom in April, the UUCSJS Board reviewed the proposal, including design and pricing information, and decided not to move the proposal forward for a congregational vote. Key considerations in the decision included the following:

• Reactionary elements routinely use the American flag to show hostility towards oppressed groups. The Jan. 6 insurrection heightened associations between the flag and white (or hyper-) nationalism. Reputable polls indicate displaying the U.S. flag makes many members of communities of color and immigrant communities feel unsafe or unwelcome. In keeping with our UU values and empathy for our members and local communities, the Board does not want to echo nationalist hostilities.
• Proposed changes to signage might also imply disrespect for those same groups.
• Growing our membership depends upon appealing to younger generations, people of color and immigrant members of local communities, who are more likely to feel alienated by display of the U.S. flag and/or removal of the BLM sign.
• People who pass our sign at 55 miles per hour will not be able to comprehend a complex rationale for changes to our displays.
• Other congregations have found the legal requirements of flag display (lowering for inclement weather, lowering at sundown or lighting continuously) prohibitively difficult to maintain.

Click on the graphic below or visit the calendar at uucsjs.org for more information on events and meetings.

CLICK HERE to reserve the Zoom Room or to add your event to the calendar.

Meeting on Friday, December 17th at 7:00 pm by ZOOM (www.tinyurl.com/uucsjszoom).

All are invited to join !! Gail Cunningham will be leading the meeting.

AND THEN THERE WERE NONE by Agatha Christie

Considered by many to be the best mystery novel ever written, it is the story of ten strangers lured to a private island off the coast of Devon by an eccentric millionaire. Once his guests have arrived, the host accuses each person of murder. Unable to leave the island, the guests share their darkest secrets – until they begin to die.

January selection is BEHOLD THE DREAMER by Imbolo Mbue

Rev. Dawn Fortune

As the planet turns once more toward the sun, let us open our hearts to all the joy the world has to offer! The solstice is a perfect time to balance and pivot toward newness and the returning light.

This service will be held inside the sanctuary at UUCSJS (masking and social distancing required). The service will also be livestreamed on our Facebook page.

If you were unable to join us, you can watch the video of last week's service below.

Participation is needed for ESWA toy sorting in age groups and gender on Wed and Thur. Dec 15 and 16th 5pm-8 in Pleasantville for the preparation for their distribution to parents on Dec 18th.

Call Colby 609-442-0967 for more info or to volunteer your time.

This event benefits the children of low income service working members of ESWA.

Needed now are more toys for older kids, your financial contributions and donated human time!

A holiday party/meal for ESWA members is on Dec 18th,1-4, and much help is needed. Ask Colby how you can help!!

Be very merry!!!"

It has been over a year since we celebrated the New Jersey Clean Energy Equity Act pass in the Senate, yet this legislation continues to stagnate in the Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee. This “lame duck” session is our last chance to pass A4185 before a new legislature is sworn in and our progress is set back.

Please help ensure that New Jersey's communities of color are included in the move to renewable energy. Governor Murphy’s New Jersey Clean Energy Act is a first step toward a renewable energy future in New Jersey, but we must be explicit and deliberate in ensuring that all New Jerseyans benefit from a clean energy future and are not burdened by health-harming pollution.

A New Jersey Clean Energy Equity Act will help 250,000 low-income families benefit from solar and energy efficiency, install 400 megawatts of storage and create workforce development programs. It has already passed the Senate, but is waiting to be considered in the Telecommunications and Utilities Committee.

Take Action Now: Contact the Committee Chair and your own Assembly representatives.

Worship associates are needed for the fall calendar. Sheila Stoner is calling people to enlist their help. When she calls, please say yes!

Writer and activist, adrienne maree brown, reminds us that “Feeling good is not frivolous, it is freedom.”

As many of us work to dismantle and heal from the racism around us, this vision that joy is and can be an act of resistance is indispensable. So spend some time this month learning from or being held by some of those clarifying and lifting up this vision:

• Joy Is The Justice We Give Ourselves, J. Drew Lanham
• Joy As Resistance, and joy that my dignity demands, Austin Channing Brown
• What Black Joy Means, Chante Joseph
• Pleasure Activism, interview with adrienne maree brown
• Black and Jubilant: Unpacking Black Joy, video from The Root

Here you will find ways to learn about and connect with our faith and opportunities to connect with other UU's from outside our congregation.

Click on the images for more information.

Click on the image above to learn more about:

• Livestreaming & Copyright Resources
• COMPASS: Navigating the Paths to Liberation Together
• A Second Slice of Pi: An Online Conference for Smaller Congregations
• News from Our Whole Lives & Parents & Caregivers Curriculum
• CERSI Job Applications Now Being Accepted!
• New Faithify Projects
• News from the CER Advisory Council
• Better Together Blog: Are You Tired?
• CER Events Calendar
• UUA News

Sunday Services 10 am in person and livestreamed on Facebook.

Email: admin@uucsjs.org
Website: www.uucsjs.org
Location: 75 S Pomona Rd, Egg Harbor City, NJ, USA
Phone: (609) 965-9400
Facebook: facebook.com/uucsjs
Twitter: @UUCSJS