On Sunday, September 10, all the church boards & committees will have tables or booths inviting you into ministry. Sunday School Open House/Registration &Youth groups information! Opportunities for service: Habitat for Humanity, Inter-Faith Council, Alternative Gift Market, Refugee resettlement, and more. Involvement in the life of this community: ushering, greeting, reading scripture, pastoral care, retreats, fellowship, preparing our buildings & grounds for service Looking ahead at upcoming programs and activities: Adult programs, Wednesdays Together (4-part Wednesday evening series), Children, youth and young adult activities How to get involved in our music program or one of the choirs Information about United Church of Chapel Hill and our denomination, the United Church of Christ Come, learn more and invite friends, colleagues, neighbors, newcomers to join you on this Sunday.
Xtreme Park Adventures in Durham (Carpool from UCCH). Sign up at Celebration of Ministries on September 10! See weekly youth email for further details!
Nurturing both faith and fellowship, United Church will resume our fall Wednesdays Together Fellowship Dinner and Program Series, a time to welcome everyone back from their summer break and newcomers to our community. SUPPER - 5:45 to 6:30 pm - Groups providing fundraising meals: Sept 13 - Open and Affirming Group Sept 20 - Refugee Support Center Sept 27 -Sacred Conversation On Race Oct. 4 - UC Preschool “Spaghetti Dinner” While a donation of $7 per adult and $3 per child (not to exceed $20 per family) is asked, please remember that these dinners are fundraisers for a cause – please be generous. THIS YEAR’S PROGRAMS - 6:30 to 7:30 pm A Conversation with the Sacred Conversation on Race class: As part of our ongoing Sacred Conversations on Race, and implementation of our Racial Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Covenant, we will be discussing sections of Michael Eric Dyson's book, Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America. Dyson argues that if we are to make real racial progress we must face difficult truths, including being honest about how black grievance has been ignored, dismissed, or discounted. Environmental Advocacy - How can we turn our awe & wonder about God’s creation into action to protect it? This 4-week series aims to provide insights about how we can most effectively advocate for environmental policies. Through examples, we will learn about the legislative process and about legal strategies to support the environment. We will learn how to make our faith voice for “Creation Care” strong, and how to multiply our impact by partnering with other organizations, e.g. the new UCC/350.orgpartnership. Finally, we will have time to brainstorm together about how we can best engage ourselves as a community. Sessions: Sept. 13 – “How does the Legislative Process Work?” – Veronica Shingleton, Harmonizing Strategies Sept. 20 – “Strategies for Environmental Advocacy” – Lauren Bowen, Southern Environmental Law Center Sept. 27 – “Faith Voice for Creation Care” – Rev. Karen Richardson-Dunn, UCC Southern Conference, Creation Justice Network Oct. 4– “Partnering to multiply our Advocacy impact” – Karen Bearden, 350.org Discussion on the Reformation with Rev. Rollin Russell - In honor of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, we will review the movement’s history, it’s connection to the UCC, and its importance for today’s church. Art classes for all ages in the Sacred Space Studios - Cely Chicural and Diane Whitney will teach classes including pottery leaf bowls, pillows, and scarves. See page 7 for complete list of art classes and how to register. CHILD CARE ON DEMAND We are happy to provide child care for these programs. If you need child care during these programs, please contact the church office.
A Conversation with the Sacred Conversation on Race class: As part of our ongoing Sacred Conversations on Race, and implementation of our Racial Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Covenant, we will be discussing sections of Michael Eric Dyson's book, Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America. Dyson argues that if we are to make real racial progress we must face difficult truths, including being honest about how black grievance has been ignored, dismissed, or discounted. In a NYT Book Review (Jan 12, 2017) Patrick Phillips writes about the “experience of Dyson’s sermon, in which a black preacher speaks to his white congregants in the most tender, intimate terms, even as he preaches against a culture of 'whiteness' that 'grows more shameless, more cruel, more uncaring by the day.’”
Environmental Advocacy How can we turn our awe & wonder about God’s creation into action to protect it? This 4-week series aims to provide insights about how we can most effectively advocate for environmental policies. Through examples, we will learn about the legislative process and about legal strategies to support the environment. We will learn how to make our faith voice for “Creation Care” strong, and how to multiply our impact by partnering with other organizations. Finally, we will have time to brainstorm together about how we can best engage ourselves as a community. Sessions: Sept. 13 – “How does the Legislative Process Work?” – Veronica Shingleton, Harmonizing Strategies Sept. 20 – “Strategies for Environmental Advocacy” – Lauren Bowen, Southern Environmental Law Center Sept. 27 – “Faith Voice for Creation Care” – Rev. Karen Richardson-Dunn, UCC Southern Conference, Creation Justice Network Oct. 4– “Partnering to multiply our Advocacy impact” – Karen Bearden, 350.org
In honor of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, we will review the movement’s history, it’s connection to the UCC, and its importance for today’s church.
The Sacred Space Studio will be offering four classes at 6:30 pm for “Wednesday’s Together 2017” program series: Wednesday, September 13 We will use leaves pressed into clay to make bowls Wednesday, September 20 We will glaze the pottery leaves Wednesday, September 27 We will make a fall pillow to decorate your home Wednesday, October 4 We will make a cozy warm scarf for the chilly fall Diane Whitney will lead a children craft group each week with fun fall projects. Younger children should come with their parents! These classes are open for both older youth and adults. There will be a small material fee of $10 per person to cover the cost of each project. Please call the office at 919-942-3540 if you are interested in joining our creative fall fun!
Sanctuary Matters: Testimony and Best Practices A Weekend of Reflection & Training Saturday and Sunday, September 16 and 17 9 am to 12:30 pm with Peruvian luncheon following CLICK HERE TO REGISTER Saturday, September 16: Reflection and Training for congregations in discernment about offering sanctuary to immigrants facing deportation. Reverend Noel Andersen Keynote speaker, Rev. Noel Andersen Rev. Noel Andersen has served as Grassroots Coordinator for over three years with Church World Service out the Washington DC Advocacy Office. He became an expert on the 2014 Sanctuary Movement while serving as a national coordinator for the initiative meant to draw on the prophetic witness of congregation’s wanting to stop deportations and lift up the immigrant story of those struggling to keep their families together in midst of unjust immigration policies. Previously, he served as Assistant Pastor at the Good Shepherd United Church of Christ in Sahuarita, Arizona, just 40 miles form the U.S.- Mexico border where the congregation was very active in humanitarian aid for migrants on the border and in the struggle against anti-immigrant bill SB 1070. He has a Masters of Divinity from Pacific School of Religion where his emphasis was on theology of liberation which he studied extensively during his field study in El Salvador. He is fluent in Spanish and has worked for a number of nonprofit organizations in Central America and on the border focusing on community development, education and community organizing. North Carolina perspective offered by: Jennie Belle Jennie Belle, NC Council of Churches Director, Immigration and Farmworkers Jennie Belle was born and raised in Savannah, GA. She moved to Texas for her undergraduate education at Rice University, during which time she studied in Mexico, Peru and Argentina and participated in service projects in Central America. After graduation she moved to Spain for a year to teach English. Jennie then came to North Carolina for a dual degree M.Div./M.S.W. graduate program at Duke and UNC-Chapel Hill where her work focused on advocating for farmworkers and organizing churches for social justice. Jennie is excited to use these skills in her role at the Council of Churches as she works to help improve conditions for immigrants and farmworkers in the state. Jessica Turner Jessica Turner, Faith & Community Engagement Coordinator Jessica Turner joined the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina in August 2016 as the Faith and Community Engagement Coordinator. She works to strengthen grassroots support in local chapters and within faith communities to build relationships and coalitions around numerous justice issues with a special focus on reproductive justice. She received her bachelor’s degree from Elon University in Elon, North Carolina and worked with faith based advocacy groups in Baltimore, Maryland and Washington, DC before receiving her Master of Divinity from Candler School of Theology in Atlanta, Georgia. Prior to joining the ACLU of North Carolina, Jessica organized in faith communities to abolish the death penalty, advocated for workers’ rights, and led racial justice workshops. Reverend David Mateo Additional reflections offered by: Reverend David Mateo, Associate Pastor of Outreach and Language Ministries of United Church of Chapel Hill Rev. David Mateo is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ and earned his masters degree in Divinity at Lancaster Theological Seminary, PA. For many years, he has been doing pastoral ministry with minorities, especially among Latino LGBTQI and immigrant communities in NC. He is a writer of the book, Jesus Deported: The Illegal Gospel of the Undocumented Son of God distributed by Amazon. His blog on contemporary spirituality is read in more than 60 countries around the world. Derek Jones (not pictured), Chair of the Triangle Sanctuary Task Force. He is a lay preacher with the Episcopal Church. Sunday, September 17: Worship and Conversation Nina Marie Fernando Worship 8:45 am 11 am: guest preacher Rev. Noel Andersen, with music offered by his wife, Nina Marie Fernando, a singer-songwriter with a jazzy-folk sound from California. As a Sri-Lankan American, Nina Marie lives out her unique blend of passions by combining jazzy/folk/groove genres to movement and sacred music Adult Forum at 10 am: A Conversation on Creating Sacred Space in Social Action with Rev. Noel Andersen and Nina Marie Fernando.