The Unitarian Church of Edmonton
is a Welcoming
Congregation, which
means our community is open to all, without regard to sexual orientation,
race,
gender,
age,
ability, or income. It's nice to have you with us.
The Edmonton Unitarian
Vol 45. No. 4
Published Monthly by the
Unitarian Church Of Edmonton
12530 - 110 Avenue
Edmonton AB T5M 2L5
Tel (780) 454-8073
Fax (780) 452-1641
Email chadmin@uce.ca
Web Site www.uce.ca
Sunday Services at the Unitarian Church of Edmonton — Services
begin at 10:30 a.m.
May 2 Rev. Brian J. Kiely
“Bullying”
This week the provincial government will be releasing its report on “Family
Violence and Bullying”. It seems like a good week to look at these difficult
and frightening subjects.
Note: There will be a special information on the planning and progress of our
new church home following the service.
May 9 Rev. Brian J. Kiely
“The Theology of Robert Munsch”
Robert Munsch is a much beloved teller of tales to Canadian children, and one
with a UU connection. Today I’ll look at his life and approach to story. The Annual Meeting of the Congregation will follow the service at 11:45 a.m.
May 16 Rev. Brian J. Kiely
“The Pagan Christ”
Tom Harpur, Canada’s premier journalist of religion is in the news again.
This time he seems to have left behind his roots in Christian ministry by authoring
a book demonstrating how every element of the Christ story comes from much
older Egyptian religion. It has stirred up great controversy. So let’s
take a look at both at his claims, and his personal journey. Today we will also welcome new members.
The teddy bears are having a picnic right after service today.
May 23
NOTE: There will be no service at UCE today. Instead you are
invited to join Unitarians and Universalists from across Canada
for the Canadian Unitarian
Council Sunday service at the Delta Edmonton South Hotel, between Gateway
and Calgary Trail on the north side of the Whitemud. The service will be at 11 a.m. Rev. Charles Eddis, the first minister of
the then new UCE of 50 years ago will be preaching. Our building will be home to the CANUUDLE youth conference this weekend.
May 30 Danielle Gerrior
"Our Universalist Heritage"
The Westwood Intern Minister will explore ways that Universalism has helped
create and balance Unitarian Universalism, and how its historical roots offer
much for us to be proud of today.
Come to Services at The Church of the Renovation — Services
begin at 9:30 a.m.
Come to our new building at 10804 119 Street on Saturdays at
9:30 a.m. for a 20 minute service before work begins. Everyone
is most welcome whether you are part of the Sweat Equity team
or not.
May 1 "May Day” Brian Kiely
May 8 “Signs” Brian Kiely
May 15 “Departures and Arrivals” John Pater
May 22 NO SERVICE CUC WEEKEND
May 29 “Deconstruction”
Karen Mills recently tended her resignation. The Board accepted with regret
and thanks for her service to UCE.
The Unitarian Church of Edmonton is looking
for a Director of Religious Education. Duties include administering and training
for the Children’s Program, organizing
children’s worship, and working with the Minister as part of a team.
This is a half time position with flexible hours and a good benefit package.
Applicants should submit their resumes in confidence to the Chair of the
Personnel Committee by May 9th at 12530 110 Avenue NW, Edmonton, Alberta,
T5M 2L5.
To mark UCE’s 50th anniversary, the
Canadian Unitarian Council is coming to town, May 21 to 24. The
last time we hosted such a meeting was about a decade ago. With
a month to go we have already
surpassed the registration totals from last time. When the dust settles we
expect to have about 350 attendees including a very strong youth
contingent.
If you have never been to a
denominational meeting, this is a great way to start. There are
a couple events that are free…like the opening ceremonies on Friday night, featuring the
choirs of UCE and Westwood and many of our other talented people. And there is
the Sunday service at 11 a.m. led by myself and Intern Minister Danielle Gerrior.
UCE’s minister from 50 years ago, Charles Eddis, will preach a sermon on
looking back and looking forward. Both events are at the Delta Edmonton South
Hotel. If you have never sung and worshipped in a big crowd of UU’s,
you are in for a treat.
On the weekend there are workshops on a variety of
topics, plenary sessions for carrying out CUC business, worship events
and networking
sessions.
There is also
a display area with information as well as books and UU items for sale.
If you don’t feel up to a whole weekend, you can drop by and register
for a one day rate. Childcare is also available, but you have to book
that in advance.
But What’s Really Important are the people coming from across
the country. We are not a large association, but we do have congregations
all the way from
Newfoundland to Vancouver Island and all points in between. We have
large churches and tiny fellowships, all sharing similar values and
reading from the same
hymn book. These are good folks. Many are passionate about social justice
issues. Others are deeply
involved in worship. Quite a few love the stuff of business and governance
of the Council.
I know my favorite aspect of the CUC
gatherings are the people I meet. You know,
we attract a nice crowd of folks.
There are gatherings for international
bodies, for the historical society, for women and more. There are
training sessions –some
short and some long- on a variety of topics. Take a look at the brochure
in the recent CanU (copies outside the office door) or check it out
at www.cuc.ca.
There
is lots to do and lots to celebrate.
We met new people
Ada Nanning and Sylvia Krogh visited as snack time guests. We have
enjoyed hearing about different childhood adventures and learning
interesting facts about people
in our congregation.
We solved mysteries
Mystery Buddy identities were revealed
on April 4 amidst a wonderful lunch of 50's-style food, fact sheet
fill-ins, photos, and games. Pairs seemed particularly compatible
this year and everyone
seemed to have a great time with their newly-identified buddies. Thanks to
all the buddies who were such great participants over the last weeks. Thanks
also
to all the people who made sandwiches and fruit trays, helped set up and
clean up, and chipped in to make the event such a success.
We examined
our environment
In our last four sessions, we have looked at different types of
environments and how our actions affect the Earth. We have compared
natural and human-made
materials, learned about the Prairies and woodlands, and made vegetable
print cards for Earth Day.
What’s happening in May?
We’re exploring UU Principles
We are finishing the year with a review of our seven Principles.
Through songs, stories, activities, and projects, we’ll find out some answers to the question “What
do Unitarian Universalists believe?”
We’re making a gift for Canadian UU’s
With the help of Linda Stolee, we’re making a quilt. It’s
a spider web design symbolizing the interconnected web of
which we are all
a part. We
will spin the web across the country by giving each congregation
in Canada a block to take with them from the CUC conference.
The teddy bears are having a picnic
(Sunday, May 16, 11:45 a.m.)
We’ll have our annual Teddy Bears picnic after the May 16 service. Bring
a bag lunch to be “auctioned”, your favourite
teddy bear, and join in teddy bear games. This is an event
for all ages.
We’re planning for next
year
(Sunday, May 30, at 11:45 a.m.) EVERYONE is invited to discuss the
direction of the children’s program
for next year. 2004-05 promises to be a year of great transition - we’ll
have a new building and a new DRE. Are there also new directions we would like
our children’s program to take?
There are lots of questions we need to answer as a congregation:
What are the most important things for our children to experience
in our church and in the children’s program?
• Do we want to integrate all ages in our activities and
services? If so, how?
•
How do we want decisions about the children’s program
made? By committee, by the DRE, or in some other way?
• What teaching styles do we want to use with children?
A vibrant RE program is the result of a committed congregation,
not just parents and caregivers. We have such a wealth of experience
and knowledge in this congregation.
Let’s use it to support the next generation of UU’s!
On Sunday, May 16 we will welcome new members who
have joined the church over the past several months. We have a brief
ceremony where we introduce you to the welcoming crowd, read a short
responsive reading and present small gifts.
If you are willing to
be part of this ceremony, please let Jolien Pauw of the Membership
Committee know at 460-7737.
Phase I (Design 21 Renovation) is complete with the exception of a few minor
details. This involved 82 volunteers and over 1514.25 on-site volunteer hours.
Quite the contribution! This number does NOT include all the planning, organizing,
phone calls, shopping, cooking, travelling, and the creation
of the Special Commendation certificates (of Appreciation). We have also had
tools lent and transported to the site, and some wonderful services on Saturday
mornings.
We had a large turnout at the bar-b-que in celebration of this accomplishment.
We showed off our achievements as a community. Design 21
looks great! Thank you to all involved in the effort and to all that were cheering
us on. Hope everyone had a good time. Thanks to Marg Roche for the idea, and
to Stella Clarke, Jolien Pauw and Beth Jenkins for all their work in organizing
the event. Also, huge thanks to Mike Beraha for making the certificates, and
everyone who brought food.
The next stage will likely coincide with the spring weather. We plan to work
on the outdoors.. ie to organize the parking, to remove old fencing, and
to tackle the landscaping and signage. We may soon also be dismantling
and salvaging
from
the middle section in preparation for the contractors to
start. We can always use both new and experienced volunteers. So if you haven't
been able to join in the fun and fellowship yet, just give one of us a call
or drop by for a Saturday service.
Join other Canadian Unitarian*Universalists who are interested
in social justice issues at our Annual General Meeting May 21, 2004
(a day before the CUC Conference). We are meeting at the Coast Terrace
Inn South (next door to the CUC AGM) from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm for
workshops, special guest speaker Senator Douglas Roche, and a short
AGM. Members and non-members welcome.
Lunch will be provided and we plan to meet for dinner
to enjoy the wonderful buffet at the hotel after the meeting. Wheelchair
accessible.
Contact Sylvia Krogh at 454-6216 or Lindsay McWhirter
at 439-6484 for more information.
A Benefit Performance of Aviva Ravel's
play, " Mother Variations, will be presented by the "Company of Friends" in
support of Audrey
Brooks' granddaughter Kiernan Lang, who has a rare form of bone cancer. " Mother
Variations," is about three generations of women in one family, their transitions, nteractions, humorous situations and temper tantrums, told
with pathos and laughter. Actors in the play include Elizabeth Marsh of "Nunsense
2," and Sue Backs and Janelle Weed of "Steel Magnolias."
The Performance will take place on Friday, May 7, at the Horizon Stage in
Spruce Grove. Tickets are $20. each and can be obtained by calling Kimberly
Lang at
963-7269. All proceeds will go to defray costs of Kiernan's medications that
are not covered by Alberta Health Care.
Pioneering Pride 2004: It is a celebration of the unity and diversity of the
gay, lesbian, bisexual, trans-identified and queer community. The Edmonton
Pride Week Society, community groups, businesses and other organizations have
a shared responsibility to ensure the overall success of the capital region’s
Pride week. Volunteers from the various community organizations, as well as
volunteers at large are required to make the week’s events possible.
A substantial number of volunteers are needed. But the community will benefit
too.
In 2003 over $10,000 was distributed to 19 groups. Again this year, a
significant amount of the excess profits generated from Pride Week 2004 will
be disbursed
to the community through volunteer hours and ticket sales. Disbursement will
be determined by the total number of volunteer hours pledged to each organization.
Community businesses and organizations will again be invited to undertake Events
ticket sales. The organizations selling tickets will profit from the ticket
sales according to the number of advance tickets sold. The businesses can
specify which
organization(s) they wish their share be allocated to. (An individual or business
can have their share divided between a maximum of 2 groups.)
Businesses and
individual volunteers who DO NOT specify the organization they wish to support
will have their efforts contributed to the community pool.
You and your organization
or business are invited to participate. Please provide EPWS with a list of
volunteers, hours they will be available and
contact information
no later than May 21, 2004.
The more volunteer hours provided by, or on
behalf of, your organization, the more you will benefit from this year’s
activities. We will try to include as many groups as possible but on a first
come, first serve basis so get your
friends and members committed and get your list in early.
Send your name
or volunteer list to E-mail: info@prideedmonton.org or
Fax: 424-6885
May 22-24
Child care providers are needed for the CUC conference. If you are 18 or older
and could spend some time at the Delta South hotel with a great group of the “under
six” set, I’d love to hear from you (454-5816 or dre@uce.ca). These
are paid positions.
Sunday, May 30, at 11:45 a.m.
EVERYONE is invited to discuss the direction of the children’s program
for next year. A vibrant RE program is the result of a committed congregation,
not just parents and caregivers. We have such a wealth of experience and knowledge
in this congregation. Let’s use it to support the next generation of UU’s!
(See the RE column for more details)
Ada Nanning’s grandchildren, the London twins and parents will be in
Edmonton this summer, end of June and beginning of July. If anyone has available
for use one (or two) car seats for toddlers weight 14-15 kg (about 33 pounds),
please call Ada Nanning at 482-1489.
The Canadian ministers will be meeting in St. Albert following the CUC meeting.
Three to five volunteer drivers are needed to drive them on Monday, May 24th
to Brian’s house for the afternoon and then to St. Albert at 6:30 p.m.
To volunteer, please call Brian at 455-9797.
