UUCSJS Midweek Message

• Minister's Midweek Meditation
• Explore Our Monthly Theme
• Notes from the Board
• Announcements
• This Sunday
• Last Sunday
• Events This Week
• Connect to Our Faith

Unitarian Universalists strive to uphold the inherent worth and dignity of every person. What then do we do with evil? Join Rev. Dawn as we look to our shared religious history for an answer to this question.

Rev. Dawn is available for pastoral care appointments Wednesday through Friday 10am-3pm. Please email minister@uucsjs.org to schedule an appointment.

Contact a member of the Caring Team

Team members can provide you with support during/after an illness, a death in the family, or other loss or hardship. They can find you resources, run errands, or provide meals in time of need.

Reach out to:

• Tracey Catino at (609) 674-8721 email: Traceysnaps@msn.com
• Denise O'Meara at (610) 316-7495 email: denome53@gmail.com
• Helen Utts at (609) 338-3391 email: HelenUtts@aol.com
• MaryLou DeMaria-Berhang at (201) 247-5635 email: MLberhang@gmail.com
• Tony Zitelli at (201) 463-2800 email: happy85a@aol.com

Holding history can sound passive, as if we are holding it in place, protecting it from running away, making sure it stays alive in our memory. But we don’t just keep memories alive, they keep us alive! They enliven us. They push and prod us to action. They don’t just comfort us with warm thoughts of the past, they light a fire underneath us, calling us to make changes in the present.

That’s what these two podcasts witness to. They tell two stories about holding history in a way that gets under our skin and forces us to alter our futures. Take a listen:

• Black Wall Street
• DIY Reparations

Your task this month is to listen to them and identify the single sentence or two from them that gets under your skin. In other words, find the sentences that speak to you personally and seem to ask something of you. Maybe they make you think differently, but hopefully they invite you to act differently.

Audio / Visual / Internet Improvements

In October, the Board approved purchase and installation of audio / visual and Internet improvements. Some members worry that this effort would harm the aesthetics of the sanctuary. The Board welcomes all members and friends to a talk-back on the subject of these changes. Please, remain in the sanctuary after the service on Sunday, November 14th.

Fundraising

You may have heard of our grand plan to raffle off an electric vehicle in 2022. It was a really clever way to reflect our seventh principle while raising funds. Unfortunately, car dealers are not willing to negotiate this year: Not on price and not on delivery schedule. This idea will have to wait for a year when more cars are on the market.

Service Auction

Although the auction is mentioned elsewhere in this Announcement, I want to personally ask you to buy everything you can afford.

Congregational Meeting in February

Many of you would like to change the signs and flags we display on Pomona Road. I propose to hold a Congregational Meeting on the subject some time in February. If you like that idea, or dislike it, please write to me at krismarlowe@verizon.net. You can also let me know about any other business that you think we should transact at the meeting.

Kit Marlowe

UUCSJS Board President

Bidding is now open for the 16th annual UUCSJS Auction!

Catalogs were emailed out Friday, November 5, 2021 and are available on our website, as a hard copy in the lobby, or by clicking on the links below.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD CATALOG part I

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD CATALOG part II

To bid, use the interactive forms sent to you electronically, via email, or click on the links below. These forms are due by Noon on Saturday, November 13, 2021.

CLICK BELOW FOR:

• Events (Small Dinners & Other Events);
• Fixed Price Items;
• Chance Items;
• Live Auction opening bids

Auction week culminates on Saturday, November 13, on Zoom, beginning at 7:00 p.m. The Live Auction will be featured that evening with auctioneer Heather Swenson Brilla. You can enjoy all the UU Center action from the comfort of your home – and still participate – on Zoom!

Check out the video above for a short walk through of some of the items up for auction.

The UUCSJS auction has been a vital fundraiser for some 15 years and, along with your pledges, underpins our budget. It was cancelled last year due to the pandemic, and this year’s novel format has been a challenge. Please take part and help make the auction successful.

We look forward to your generous support!

~ The Auction Steering Committee

To have your announcement placed in the Midweek Message, please send an email to admin@uucsjs.org by Noon on Wednesday.

Planning a special event? The Communications Team can help. Visit https://uucsjs.breezechms.com/form/42685e for more information.

If you brought squares home with you NOW is the time to bring them back in and place them in the basket at the back of the sanctuary. We will begin the process of sewing the strips together to form a quilt!

Email religiouseducation@uucsjs.org if you would like to help with assembly or quilting.

Thanks to all who sewed squares! You are awesome!

Worship associates are needed for the fall calendar. Sheila Stoner is calling people to enlist their help. When she calls, please say yes!

We will be meeting November 19th at 7:00 pm on ZOOM (www.tinyurl.com/uucsjszoom)

All are welcome to join the meeting!

Betsy Searight will be leading the group. Questions: morellb@msn.com

November's Book Selection:

Beloved by Toni Morrison

A 1987 novel set after the American Civil War explores the physical, emotional, and spiritual devastation wrought by slavery, a devastation that continues to haunt those characters who are former slaves.

December's Book selection is AND THEN THERE WERE NONE by Agatha Christie.

Eastern Service Workers Association

53 E Washington Ave

Pleasantville

This organization is planning on delivering Thanksgiving food items to 150 families in need in the Pleasantville area and they do need some help with food and also delivery to families on Nov 23rd (placed outside of living area).

Asking for Thanksgiving food donations – canned veggies and fruit, stuffing and the usual dinner needs. We are asking people to bring in food from Sunday, Nov 13th thru Sunday, Nov 21st and there will be a bin inside the UUCSJS building to place food in. Also plan to leave a covered bin outside by UUCSJS front door where items can be left if you are not there on Sundays.

Items will be transported to ESWA both Sundays – and on Nov 21st FRESH and FROZEN FOOD can be donated at the UU as it can be stored at ESWA until delivered to families.

If you can help with delivering food on Tuesday, Nov 23rd, please call ESWA at 609 646 9814 and ask to speak to JOHN.

Thank you for helping !!!!

The Caring Committee

Rev. Dawn Fortune

Lessons in idealism from UU History: James Luther Adams and Dorothy Day - each struggled in their own way the the idealism of a liberal faith in a world filled with imperfection and occasionally, outright evil. What does it mean to be liberal in the time of rising fascism? How do we understand our faith in the human capacity for good when humans seem so bent on doing evil? Their considerations and musings are as potent today as they were nearly 100 years ago. Join us as we explore a history that is not nearly as distant as we might think.

This service will be held inside the sanctuary at UUCSJS (masking and social distancing required). The service will also be livestreamed on our Facebook page.

If you were unable to join us, you can watch the video of last week's service below.

Click on the graphic below or visit the calendar at uucsjs.org for more information on events and meetings.

CLICK HERE to reserve the Zoom Room or to add your event to the calendar.

Here you will find ways to learn about and connect with our faith and opportunities to connect with other UU's from outside our congregation.

Click on the images for more information.

Have you been asking yourself lately, "Are locally caught shellfish sustainable?" It's a timely question as many of us are choosing to limit our meat intake and relying on seafood as a more sustainable source of protein. The quick answer is that oysters and clams are both farmed in NJ and are given a Best Choice rating by the Monterey Bay Seafood Watch. (See link below) So, oysters and clams would both be good choices. It might also help your decision making to know that bivalves help clean and filter the water, so they are important contributors to a healthy marine ecosystem.

Small quantities of lobsters are trapped off the coast of New Jersey, but for the most part only Maine lobsters are available for purchase in NJ. Scallops are dredged at the moment, but scallop farming is in the infant stage and holds promise for the future. (See link below.) Shrimp farmed in waters off the southern US get a Best Choice rating, wild-caught US shrimp from southern waters gets a Good Alternative Rating.

Here is the downloadable link to the excellent Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch for the NE:

https://www.seafoodwatch.org/globalassets/sfw/pdf/guides/seafood-watch-northeast-guide.pdf

Here is a link to an article about scallop farming in NJ:

https://sebsnjaesnews.rutgers.edu/2020/09/rutgers-led-research-further-enhances-shellfish-aquaculture-in-new-jersey/

And lastly, if you are looking for a cookbook with lots of excellent recipes and info on fish and shellfish, I highly recommend:

Foolproof Fish: Modern Recipes For Everyone Everywhere by America's Test Kitchen

Here's to more sustainable eating choices for us all!

Jesse Connor

Click on the image above to learn more about:

• The UUA Common Read
• COMPASS: Navigating the Paths to Liberation Together
• Attend the 8th Principle Presentation
  
• Jubilee 3 Anti-Racism Training
  
• Learn about the Fall Chalice Lighter call
  
• How to watch & host a community screening of The Condor & The Eagle
  
• CER Calendar of Events
  

Sunday Services 10 am in person and livestreamed on Facebook.

Email: admin@uucsjs.org
Website: www.uucsjs.org
Location: 75 S Pomona Rd, Egg Harbor City, NJ, USA
Phone: (609) 965-9400
Facebook: facebook.com/uucsjs
Twitter: @UUCSJS