April 9, 2009 – Free Congregation Newsletter
Dear Members and Friends, April 9, 2009
It’s burn season-and we’re not just talking about prairies and savannas. We’re burnin’ to get the new website up, burnin’ CDs and DVDs to get stuff UP on the website, burnin’ to get outside and play, and itchin’ – a kind of burn – to put Old Man Winter to bed for good. I will dare a prognostication: we’re about to break the streak of weekend winter storms! ‘Nuf’s enuf, already!
Easter Sunday at the Free Congregation
For some of us, all we need to do is hear the words “Easter Sunday” and we start curling into a fetal position. If that happens to you, just remember who your friends and compatriots are, and where you can find them: at the Free Congregation, where we free creatures are able to shrug off the old, heavy mantle of negative associations and celebrate the beauty and hopefulness of the present moment.
Andrew Kerr, Speaker of the Free Congregation, will lead the UU order of service and offer a Reflection on Embracing Easter: the Perpetual Revelation of Spring:
Christians celebrate Easter to remember the revelatory event at the core of their religion: the resurrection of Jesus. But restricting revelation to a single authoritative event, and basing salvation upon the knowing of it, can cause problems. What about people who don’t know about Jesus’ resurrection? What about people who accept Jesus’ message of love but don’t accept his divinity? What about people who deny God’s existence yet seek and find meaning in the wider world? Join us as we explore a more inclusive meaning for revelation and Easter.
Judging by the last few Easter Sundays, we can expect at least a couple new visitors to be joining us for the program. That doesn’t mean you have to dress up, but it might be nice to help decorate the Hall or contribute a morning delicacy to the food table. It would be greatly appreciated! Marita Kelter will be our musician; she will play Schumann and Pachelbel, and sing “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” from Jesus Christ Superstar.
Next Saturday It’s Our Turn at the Food Pantry: Volunteers Needed!
Our annual work-service day at the Sauk Prairie Food Pantry is upon us, this coming Saturday, April 18. (Each of the congregations in the area does one Saturday each year.) We will need at least six volunteers, two or three of whom will help load items into patrons’ vehicles; the rest will help patrons inside the Pantry. Middle and high school students are welcome, especially when accompanied by a responsible adult. Volunteers are needed from 9:00am to 11:15am. The Pantry is located in a small office building at 1906 North Street in Prairie du Sac, a stone’s throw south-and-west from the St. Vincent DePaul Thrift Store. The pantry itself is on the lower level, around the back of the building.
Please sign up this Sunday at the Hall, or contact Michael as soon as possible. Thank you!
Congregation Dinner on April 18th – Lend a Hand, Take the Pledge!
Those who don’t help out at the Food Pantry next Saturday morning may want to think about lending a hand with setup or cleanup at Saturday night’s dinner and dance. If so, please give Erin or Scott Raasch a call or drop them an email: (767-2649; sraasch@chorus.net)
Dinner numbers have already been called in, so if you’ve changed your mind about not coming, you may want to let Scott know that, too. You can always drop in after dinner (7-ish) to join us for the Pledge Sweepstakes and Square Dance.
Staff Office Hours
Andrew Kerr, Speaker, will have office hours from 3:00 to 6:00 this coming Wednesday, April 15. Michael Whaley, Administrator, will be in from 1:00 to 6:00 that same day, as he is most every Wednesday. He will be away the week of April 20th. (Working, not playing, in the Arizona desert.)
125th Anniversary Celebration Begins with… Dancing, May 22nd
This being the 125th Anniversary of Park Hall (built 1884), and because Park Hall was built to a scale and purpose greater than the needs of the congregation itself – that is, it was conceived as a community cultural center, as well – we’ve decided to celebrate its birthday in a special way: by offering a series of diverse and FREE events. These will include talks by notable persons, e.g. the newly re-elected Chief Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, the Honorable Shirley Abrahamson, debates (Andrew Kerr will spar with a redoubtable adversary on a topic having to do with God), we’re flirting with the idea of an historical reenactment, and… dances! The first dance date will take place on Saturday night, May 22nd. Dance instructor Matt Baumgartner will put on his DJ hat and spin a rich variety of dance tunes: numbers suited to waltz, swing, fox trot, country and night club two-steps, Latin dances, and more. RuthAnn Corrao and Matt will offer free dance instruction before the show begins. Price of admission: bring an item for the food & snack table. The public is welcome. Mark your calendar and stay tuned for more details!
Upcoming Programs, Meetings
Sunday, April 12, 10:00am – 2nd Sunday *Easter* Program – We’ll follow our UU order of service, with Andrew Kerr presiding and offering the Reflection (see above).
Saturday, April 18, 9:00-11:15am – Free Congregation volunteers at the Food Pantry (see above).
Saturday, April 18, 5:30pm to ?? – Free Congregation Pledge Dinner & Dance at Park Hall!
Sunday, April 19, 10:00am – Free Thought Forum - Barbara Perkins, owner and operator of Vermont Valley Community Farm, will speak on “Community Supported Agriculture: Towards More Local Eating and Living.”
Sunday, April 26, 10:00am – 4th Sunday UU Program – Andrew Kerr will preside and speak on the topic of “Monotheism: Is God Necessarily Disturbing?”
Sunday, May 3, 10:00am – 1st Sunday Spiritual Reflection Hour – Mary Ann McKenna will lead the roundtable discussion on the topic of “COMPASSION: Where Do We Encounter It in our Lives?” Based on the book On the Day Everybody Ate: One Woman’s Story of Hope and Possibility in Haiti by Margaret Trost.
Sunday, May 10, 10:00am – 2nd Sunday UU Service & Mother’s Day Breakfast - It’s our tradition to do a Mother’s Day Breakfast in the community room downstairs. Breakfast is served (by the guys) at 9:00am sharp. At about 9:45 we’ll have a special presentation by our R.E. youth. Then we’ll go upstairs at 10:00 for the regular Sunday program. Scott Prinster will lead the service and provide the Reflection.
Community News and Events
Tuesday, April 21, 7:00pm - Guatemalan Human Rights Activist, Domingo Tum Mejía. The Shed Restaurant (upstairs), 256 N. Lexington Street, Spring Green. Domingo will speak about the importance of historical memory in informing our understanding of ongoing repression against marginalized peoples. Domingo Tum Mejía was born in a small village near Sacapulas, Quiché, in the northwestern highlands of Guatemala. (The Quiché area was particularly hard-hit by the civil war that ravaged Guatemala for 36 years; over half of the 629 wartime massacres committed by the Army took place in that one region.) Today, at the age of 35, Domingo has reconstructed his memories as a child, as well as the history of his family, his community, his region, and his country. He is currently fighting nationally and internationally to achieve justice for the genocide that took the lives of his parents and wiped out entire Maya communities. Contact info: Melinda Van Slyke 608-588-5223.
Sunday, April 26, First Unitarian Society, Madison - Rev. Peter Morales, one of the two candidates for President of the Unitarian Universalist Association, will be available during the forum time slot between the 9am and 11am services at FUS. After the second service, there will be a light lunch followed by a more formal presentation with time for questions. A video provided by Rev. Laurel Hallman, the other candidate for President, will also be shown. All area UU congregations are invited to attend this event. For more information, contact FUS Denominational Affairs committee member Gordon Olson (olson99@tds.net, 836-1779) or FUS staff person Alice Delaquess (aliced@fusmadison.org, 233-9774).
