This Week at UBC
Updated every Monday
"Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice, and justice at its best is power correcting everything that stands against love." -Martin Luther King Jr.
Hello Friends:
Today is Transgender Visibility Day. Throughout the day there are rallies and events planned—all to remind ourselves that our transgender friends and family have always been here and will always be here. Our task as faithful followers of the One who created great diversity is to not only recognize, affirm and welcome our trans friends, but to advocate for and defend their place at school, work and even our religious communities. Our transgender friends add nuance, flavor, bravery and joy to our cultural landscape. https://awab.org/viewed-and-voiced/
On Sunday, we’ll shift our focus on the Sermon on the Mount to the 6th chapter, specifically Matthew 6:19-24. It’s interesting in pre capitalist times Jesus talked about wealth and how focus on its accumulation can lead to all kinds of problems. It’s almost like it becomes your master. We all need to pay our rent and put food win the table, but how much does getting money consume the best parts of ourselves? Jesus gives us this poignant truism in Sunday’s scripture reading:
“You cannot serve God and wealth.” It seems an appropriate thing to think about as we finish up our taxes. My sermon is entitled “Treasure”. Betty Shaw will be the worship leader. The Ubc Chorale will sing and we’ll celebrate communion.
Appropriately, this is also pledge season. Please complete your pledge of time, talent and treasure by Palm Sunday (April 13th). Your responses will help the council finalize a budget for the new year that starts on July 1st. It’s also an opportunity to imagine together the good work of UBC and how we might want to be involved in the coming year. We’ll vote on officers, ministry team leaders and a budget at our June 8th annual meeting. Here are links to the commitment forms:
Sunday’s forum is a chance to meet our new Marketing and Communications manager Maura Dunst. In addition to hearing about her life and work, we’ll get a chance to hear about her ideas for marketing UBC to the wider community. We’re so glad to have here here.
Join members of the Antiracism Group for a tour of local Native American Sacred Sites, led by Jim Bear Jacobs, on Sunday June 1, 1-5 pm. To register, follow this link and scroll to the form at the bottom of the page: https://www.mnchurches.org/what-we-do/healing-minnesota-stories. If you are able to register, please let me or Denise Roy know so we can maintain a list for carpooling purposes. If you are not available on June 1, or if you are unable to register because the tour is full, consider alternative tours on Saturdays May 3 and October 18, both 10 am to 2 pm. Tours fill fast, so register soon!
Blessings and Peace,
Doug Donley
This week's schedule:
Tuesday-5:30pm Sacred Harp
Tuesday—7pm Memoirs Group
Meeting ID: 517 697 6753 Passcode: 602794 https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5176976753?pwd=NG15ZlNlbDcwUElzTWFmLzRyZm5OQT09
Wednesday—11am UBC/FCC handcraft group at First Congregational church
Wednesday—6pm UBC Chorale, 7:30pm UBC Carillon Bell Choir.
Thursday—6:30pm Caregivers Support Group.
Meeting ID 829 0006 6861 Passcode 942930 https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82900066861?pwd=RUQ1eGhYN1RzWTJCR0VTNG1JNFVsUT09
Saturday—9am Bible Study
Meeting ID: 517 697 6753 Passcode: 602794 https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5176976753?pwd=NG15ZlNlbDcwUElzTWFmLzRyZm5OQT09
Sunday—10am worship
11am or so Refreshments
11:30am Bible Study, Forum
Meeting ID 839 4725 7444 passcode 257750 https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83947257444?pwd=cFZCWEdqUkR0RDgwT0JwT3hrQ3FpUT09_
1:30pm UBC Council