PDF CN Issue 12-2 & 9 orks.com

December Worship Calendar

December 2 Rev. Craig Schwalenberg "Thanks Receiving"

December 9 Rev. Rosemary Bray McNatt "The Once and Future Community"

December 16 Beethoven Sunday Rev. Carlos R. Martinez with Mr. Eric Coleman and Mr. Joel Mandelbaum

December 23 Reflections on Christmas Lay Led Worship Service will be held in the Assembly Hall

December 30 ? Kwanzaa Michael J. Crumpler Worship Service will be held in the Assembly Hall

Rev. Carlos R. Martinez, Interim Minister Esther Rosado, Director of Lifespan Religious Education Gerald A. Brown, Director of Music Valerie Lynch, Membership Coordinator Jeff Loveland, Church Administrator Rev. Bruce Southworth, Minister Emeritus

BOARD OF TRUSTEES George Garland, Board Chair Heidi Siegfried, Board Vice Chair Jody Leight, Council Chair George Duckett, Treasurer Theresa Bowman Sandy Brooks Fred Corden Nafisa Degani Eve Hazel Sam Kerns Gisela Schilling-Chlanda Melinda Schroeder, Clerk

The Community Church of New York An Independent Congregation Affiliated with the Unitarian Universalist Association 40 E. 35th Street, New York, N.Y. 10016 Telephone: (212) 683-4988 ? Fax: (212) 683-4998 email: info@

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Minister's Corner

December 2 and 9, 2018 Issue

"In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer." ~ Albert Camus

December is a month of expectation. It is a month which beckons us to contemplate the ending of the year and a new one to come. With the approaching Winter Solstice it bids us to contemplate the enveloping darkness and the importance of us to gather around the beckoning light for warmth, comfort and closeness.

As we approach the threshold of winter our expectation of what is to come is shaped by the loss of what we had. The trees and flowers once full and resplendent are bereft of their bloom as the portends of winter will be hard upon us. The trees now sitting in lonely vigil against the harsh winter make the buds and the sprouts of its branches seem like a distant and miraculous possibility. It is hope and experience that tells us the season of life and the vitality of spring will return again. It is hope and the profound desire for change which helps us engage the darkness and embrace the coming of the light.

As human beings we easily forget we share a common existence on an island of stars called the Milky Way. We are located on a minor spur of our Galaxy called the Orion Arm. The vastness of space surrounds us, our galaxy is about 100,000 light-years wide. It is clear to me that there is nowhere else for us to go except where we are. We are home. The home we inhabit is home to other species and civilizations ancient and modern. While we may believe we are mutually exclusive of each other it is clear to me as residents of this lonely planet we share one common destiny and fate as human beings.

Perhaps this is why this time of year has import for many of us. For Christians December brings the season of Advent. It is a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the coming of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas. The Christians are in good expectant company. The lighting of the Hanukkah menorah will soon harken the Jewish Festival of Lights.

The Eid Milad ul-Nabi (Mawlid, Milad-un-Nabi) which celebrates the Prophet Muhammad's life falls on the 12th or 17th day of the Islamic month of Rabi' alawwal. These dates are based on astronomical charts and vary when it falls on our calendar. Last year Mawlid was celebrated December 1st, this year it falls on November 20th. In the United States some Muslims mark this occasion by fasting or holding communal meals, special prayers or outdoor celebrations.

Our Buddhist brethren will begin preparation for Bodhi Day which falls on January 13th. Bodhi Day is the day when Siddhartha Gautama, on seeing the morning star at dawn, attained enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree and became the Buddha, the "Awakened One."

Kwanzaa for our African American brothers and sisters is rich in tradition and honoring of seven Nguzo Saba ? The Seven (7) Principles of Kwanzaa. Kwanzaa strives for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race. To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves and speak for ourselves. Kwanzaa is celebrated from December 26th to January 1st.

As the winter sets in I invite you to step closer into the light of Community. Allow it to embrace you, and, dare I say, to love you if you are open and welcoming of the possibility.

With love for all that our life in community brings, Rev. Carlos

[This column appeared in its original form in December 2017]

Church Events

Holiday Crafts Fair Sun., Dec. 2, 12:30 pm

Worship Meeting Tue., Dec. 4, 10:00 am

Yoga with Nafisa Tue., Dec. 4, 6:00 pm

Minister's Holiday Party Thrs., Dec., 6, 6:00 ppm

Secular Humanist Society Thrs., Dec. 6, 7:00 pm

Breathing Exercises with Nafisa

Fri., Dec. 7, 1:15 pm.

Yoga with Nafisa Sat., Dec. 8, 10:30 am

Camp Art Project Sun., Dec. 9, 11:30 pm

Conversation with Rev. Rosemary Bray McNatt "There's No Place Like Home"

Sun., Dec. 9, 1:00 pm

Worship Meeting Tue., Dec. 11, 10:00 am

Yoga with Nafisa Tue., Dec. 11, 6:00 pm

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Gifts can be boxed and held, others are intangibles such as compassion, hope, joy, imagination, reverence.....love. In speaking to children about intangible gifts I like to compare it to "shadow play". I mention that they are going to play with something that is real, possibly their fingers and hands with light, and they will cast shadows. These shadows are created from something that is real, but these shadows cannot be held in their hands. Some of the tangibles of justice work at Community this year have been: Galllery35 partnering with Community Service Society's "Full Participation as a Human Right", UNGA team and the forum on Yemen and Shelter Committee's Thanksgiving service. These activities are as real as a homemade gift that you can see, but the real gift is the kindness and love with which it was made. These are the gifts that make us mindful of how much we can be grateful for during the holidays.

Paz, Esther

COMMUNITY CALENDAR SUNDAY?December 2 9:30 am Choir Rehearsal 11:00 am Worship Service 11:00 am Religious Education 12:15 pm Fellowship Hour 12:45 pm Messiah Rehearsal SATURDAY?December 8 12:45 pm Messiah Rehearsal SUNDAY?December 9 9:30 am Choir Rehearsal 9:30 am Shelter Meeting 11:00 am Worship Service 11:00 am Religious Education 12:15 pm Fellowship Hour 12:45 pm Messiah Rehearsal 1:00 am UNGA Meeting

Ceremony

Sunday School ~ Join us in the RE Room downstairs at 11 am. Fellowship Hour ~ Assembly Hall, 12:15 p.m. Please join us after worship.

SUNDAY?December 16 Rev. Carlos R. Martinez with Mr. Eric Coleman and Mr. Joel Mandelbaum

SUNDAY?December 23 Rev. Rosemary Bray McNatt will preach.

THOSE WHO ALSO MINISTER--DECEMBER 2

Pulpit Art?Chalice Art by Onna Johnson, West Valley UU in Arizona

Usher/Greeter?Joe and Martha Wagner

Welcome Table?Louise Brown Nancy Jennings

Hospitality?Helene Summa

Bookstall?Kenneth Wachtell

THOSE WHO ALSO MINISTER--DECEMBER 9

Pulpit Plowers?Given by Delores Browne in loving memory of my mother, Harriet Green and my father Samuel Brown

Welcome Table?Lisa Gluck Hospitality?Board of Trustees Bookstall?Ken Wachtell

Usher/Greeter?Elektra Birchall, Leslie McKenzie

December Coordinator Helene & BJ's Homeless Shelter?Kevin Cope?646-664-6574 Shelter volunteers always welcome.

FROM OUR COMMISSIONED LAY MINISTER CANDIDATE

Iam so grateful that this beloved congregation is multicultural writ large with members and friends from diverse backgrounds along many diverse lines! We bring a strong breadth and depth as regards whom we are and whom we wish to be.

allows us the space to examine our commitment to the religious community that we choose to be a part of. It encourages us to dig deeply, and deeper still, reflecting on being clear -- crystal clear --about why we choose to be members and friends of the Community Church of New York UU and beyond. His words sustain me as I strive to reach my goal of helping to build the Beloved Community. This lofty goal requires hard work, climbing up a steep incline.

The Reverend Dr. Mark Morrison-Reed offers compelling words that encourage our faith community to move towards being our best selves:

To move forward as a denomination, we need first to ask ourselves why. I think there is only one authentic answer. For yourself. For yourself because you will feel more comfortable in a multicultural, multiracial congregation. For yourself because being part of an inclusive movement is more consonant with the selfimage you hold of yourself as a religious liberal. For yourself so that the piece of you that feels guilty or angry about what "we aren't" can stop feeling guilty and let go of the anger. For yourself because you want the whole world to know about liberal religion. For yourself because you want a style of worship that strikes deeper spiritual chords. For yourself, not because you should, but because you yearn to be different. Not for them but for yourself ? ourselves.

I believe that being in religious community is important, very important. I also believe that by taking the time for self-reflection, our religious, faith-filled, and spiritual lives can only be stronger. Rev. Dr. Morrison-Reed invites us to slow down, pause, and take the time to ask ourselves, "Why?" This invitation

Why this call for us to engage in this manner? We are, I believe, enriched as a community by each other's companions. We are strengthened by answering the call to honor our needs, hopes, hunger, and thirst for strength to build a holistic community that can and will carry each other with sensitivity, thoughtfulness, care, and love. These values are central to whom we are. They are also central to us as we move towards whom we strive to be.

The Rev. Robin Tanner invokes prayer with these words,

May we be called out into the fields of our longing and belonging. Open our souls this day to being human together.

Our religious leaders remind us to allow ourselves to recognize the humanness of both longing and belonging... May we, in turn, take the time to recognize, reflect on, and embrace both.

Masakhane, Janice Dr. Janice Marie Johnson

"Masakhane" is a rich and resonant word from the Nguni family of languages of South Africa, of which Zulu and Xhosa are two. Loosely translated into English it means, "Let us build together."

The Community Church of New York Unitarian Universalist

Web: Visit our website at ? Visit in person at 40 East 35th Street

Our Mission: TO GROW AS A CARING, JUSTICE-MAKING, ANTI-RACIST, DIVERSE, SPIRITUAL COMMUNITY

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