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Love with No ExceptionsNo matter what you call it – sestercentennial, semiquincentennial, bicenquinquagenary, or just plain 250th – 2020 is a big year for Universalism. It will be the 250th anniversary of John Murray’s famous 1770 sermon in Thomas Potter’s chapel in Good Luck, New Jersey. We celebrate 2 and ½ centuries of Universalist contributions.
The full array of Sestercentennial Universalist Celebrations will be in 2020.
An endearing performance based on the reading of love letters written by Judith Sargent Murray to her husband Rev. John Murray has been commissioned. The performance provides a touching insight into the lives of Rev. Murray and his wife Judith, as well as tell tells the larger story of the birth of Universalism in America.
The Universalist Convocation will begin the celebration with a kick-off event at Murray Grove (May 17 – 19, 2019). Dynamic speakers, including Rev. John Buehrens, former UUA President, will provide the background on the arrival of Universalism in America. And . . . there will be a performance of Love Notes.
The Unitarian Universalist History Convocation (October 17 – 20, 2019) to be held in Baltimore will celebrate TWO significant events in UU history. The first celebration is the 200th anniversary of Rev. William Ellery Channing’s delivery of his “Unitarian Christianity” sermon that is better known as the Baltimore Sermon. The next celebration is the 205th anniversary of Rev. John Murray preaching his first Universalist sermon in Murray Grove in 1770. Murray Grove is a sponsor of this History Convocation.
Rev. John Murray
Plans are evolving to celebrate the 250th anniversary of John Murray’s epic sermon in Thomas Potter’s chapel in Good Luck, New Jersey September 30, 1770. This was the beginning of the thread of Universalist History in “the new world.” And the place where it happened is our oldest historic site. The full array of Sestercentennial Universalist Celebrations will be in 2020.
If you would like to contribute to the planning of the celebration, please use our Contact Us page to express your interest and talents.
We enjoyed a wonderful soft re-opening of the church on Sunday, July 4, 2021.
Welcome Friends! The Church remains open in many ways during the pandemic. We remain together in our hearts and minds, as we carry on in a community of compassion and inquiry. However, the church building remains closed until further notice, and our meetings are virtual.
We need to do our part in caring for our community, especially the most vulnerable, and all signs point to strict adherence to social distancing to be the most effective possible step in preventing an overload on our health care system at this time. No one else should be in the building for any reason until further notice. The only exceptions at this point are staff, essential volunteers for worship, board members with check-signing authority, and any strictly necessary grounds care in groups of five or less.
Rev. John will hold open gathering time in the Memorial Garden circle every Tuesday afternoon starting at 2PM. Stop by and say hello, sit down for a chat. This time will be held open for drop-in visits now through the end of May.
“Take what you need, share what you can spare”
Gaia’s Pantry is a bear-proof metal box in the parking lot of the Unitarian Church of Los Alamos, 1738 N. Sage St., Los Alamos, NM 87544. The pantry exists for the community to share non-perishable food and toiletry items. The NMDH has provided a set of recommendations on what can and should not be shared from the Pantry. Fresh garden produce without modification can be shared from the cooler inside the pantry. No fresh meats are allowed. Preserved and factory-produced meats and dairy products with good seals are allowed with proper and regular monitoring. Overflows from the pantry are delivered by volunteers to surrounding communities. Members are asked to post regularly updated pictures of the contents.
Monday, March 8, 6 – 8:30 PM on Zoom (contact Tina DeYoe for Zoom link)
(Last two episodes) We will have a discussion of the 1966 Martin Luther King Jr. speech titled, “Don’t Sleep Through the Revolution.”
You can find the speech here. Please read the speech beforehand. We will discuss how this speech relates to our current context of how we can create a truly equitable society for all!
When: Sunday 3/7/2021 from Noon to 4pm
Where: Los Alamos Cooperative Market, 95 Entrada Dr., Los Alamos
Participation is FREE. For more information, please text or call KokHeong McNaughton at 920-6808, or email her at kokheong@comcast.net
Announcing Gaia’s Pantry, a new free pantry to share food and produce in Los Alamos.
This is a bear-proofed storage box that the Forest Service uses in campgrounds to enable campers to store their food. As such, it can be used to store non-perishable food and toiletry items. Right now, while awaiting shelves to be built, we can start stocking it. The pantry is situated in the parking lot of the Unitarian Church. 1738 North Sage St.
View the online service at 10 am, Sunday on our YouTube Channel. You may also access the service from our Live! or Facebook pages.
Presented by Rev. John Cullinan, Tina DeYoe, and Nylea Butler-Moore
by Tyler Taylor
Having heard an impressive talk in our Fellowship Hall this Spring about the proposed Pathways Homeless Shelter, I decided to attend the Espanola Planning and Zoning Commission meeting on September 12 to catch up on the project’s status. The 5-hour meeting turned out to be much more than I expected: a first-class civics lesson re: how a community ought to publicly handle big, complex and charged issues.
In many ways, what I was fortunate to witness was a drama with five actors playing key roles:
At about 11:15 pm, the Commission wrestled with whether to bring forth a proposal, and there was a long stretch of silence. Finally, Commissioner Ed Hunter proposed allowing the shelter to open at the proposed Calle Delgado location. He added, though, three requirements, each aimed at monitoring the project very closely to ensure that the neighbors will be reasonably protected. The vote of 5 to 1 in favor of this plan triggered applause and cheers from the 1 to 2 dozen shelter supporters still present. The opponents looked crestfallen, but not shocked.
In recent days, an alternate Espanola site at 628 N. Riverside Drive has been approved for this shelter by the P & Z Commission at their October meeting. That property is zoned for commercial use and gives the facility more room for parking and future expansion. Also, several significant local funders have now stepped forward.
So, making use of the $225,000 allocated by the State for one year of operational costs, it’s expected that shelter staff will soon be hired and trained, supplies bought, and coordination with many local service agencies ramped up. Espanola will thus begin to more proactively address its homelessness and to help those on the streets with untreated mental and physical illnesses, and addictions. Many broken lives and traumatized families can start to slowly heal. In turn, the survival-driven and drug-fueled crimes, and the other negative economic consequences of all these issues, will likely move in far more hopeful directions over coming years.
In summary, Espanola’s leaders and community have dreamed, brainstormed, prayed and studied, … and then pulled together to take a giant first step. And they’ve done it all in less than one year!
What does this mean for us? Might our church explore with the Pathways Shelter leadership what help they need? If it were to entail assistance with sheet-rocking, painting, etc., could we form a UCLA or Los Alamos team to dive in this fall? That might not fit their top needs, though, so flexibility on our end would be paramount. But what an opportunity for us to partner with many people in Espanola on a great humanitarian project! Our Social Justice Committee is now supporting this, and we anticipate having a Pathways Shelter speaker give a forum presentation at the church this Fall. Please attend if you can, to learn more.
by Margie Stockton
Passing along information from Indivisible Nob Hill — As many may have heard, large numbers of asylum seekers are arriving in Albuquerque daily. Donations, translation assistance, transportation, and help with meals are needed. The City has stated that as many as 800 migrants could be traveling through Albuquerque over the next month. The support of these efforts is made up entirely from the good will and caring hearts of our great community. If you should feel compelled to offer your time or assistance, below is a list of contacts that should make getting involved a bit easier.
Donation drop off is at St. Therese Church (Parish Hall), 300 Mildred Ave. (off 4th Street), 505-344-4479, between 9:00 and 5:00. These donations will be redistributed to all organizations that are helping to house and process Asylum Seekers.
Volunteer coordinator for Albuquerque Interfaith is Eleanor at 505-269-6085. (Needs help on the ground and assistance with transportation. Spanish speaking a plus, but not required.)
Volunteer Coordinator for Catholic Charities is Carolina at carolaberomero@yahoo.com. Team leader for food donations is Deb, 505-514-3730 or deborahgolden35@gmail.com. (Food donations and monetary donations sought to help feed the migrants while traveling. Contact Deb for help with meals.)
You can still donate on indivisiblenobhill.com. 100% of donations received will go directly to assisting migrants. (Please note in comments that donation is for Asylum Seekers.)
Thank you for your support! Email any questions to indivisiblenobhill@gmail.com and they will answer as quickly as possible.
Salute! Chances are, either you or someone close to you has the sniffles, a cough, or something symptomatic of one of the ‘bugs’ going around. Most of the Board and Council members at our meeting in February, including myself, were in some stage of illness recovery. I thank each and every one for showing up to conduct church business that night, and appreciate their service.
The Board and Council met on February 19. Andrea Determan (Secretary) had invited Chris Ross, from the Los Alamos Police Department, to tour our building and review our operations with an eye towards intruder security. In the context of an uptick in violent acts committed at places of worship over the last few years, protecting our congregants has been a point of Board discussion. Chris passed along some tips for operations. This included some simple ones – such as being more vigilant about locking doors during services and events. So, please be patient as we’ll be locking more doors, especially at the far ends of the building, in an effort to control access a bit.
Most of our business discussion focused on fiscal matters: 1) this year’s budget shortfall, partially due to the loss of the Triad match; 2) a fundraiser to bridge the gap; 3) development of next year’s draft budget; and 4) the Pledge Campaign.
You will hear more from Felicia Orth about the fundraiser, which is sure to be a super-fun bash! Save the date: Saturday, April 27!
You will hear more from Robyn Schultz (Steward) and Rev. John about the Pledge Campaign, the work of the church, and the support necessary for upholding our mission through the great work that we do together.
We also have set the date for our annual Congregational Meeting – where we vote in new leadership and vote on the FY20 budget – Sunday, May 5! We’re thinking a festive taco bar will be great to share together before the business meeting.
To your good health,
Jamie Civitello
2018-2019 Church President
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