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In this week's Minister's Midweek Meditation, Rev. Dawn shares "The Seven of Pentacles" by Marge Piercy. This poem is a reminder for us to slow down and reconnect with each other and with nature.

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

Greetings,

I’ve been thinking lately about how we nurture relationships in the 21st century. After a very stressful period of time (2016-2020) plus a pandemic, and the increasingly polarized culture in the United States, how we “do” relationships is vastly different than we did, say, in 2000 at the turn of the century.

Today, we communicate electronically more than ever, and talk less, even on the phone. I know that I rarely talk socially on the phone these days; my friends and I tend to text or use a messaging app to stay in touch. Talking in person feels like a lost art now, after 16 months of pandemic. Its hard to remember how to converse with another human being in front of us. I take a turn, they take a turn, then I take a turn, and we stay on one topic at a time … while in text, we can leapfrog back and forth over one another, chatting about multiple topics at the same time. Talking in person reminds us to slow down and take turns again. Communicating via written word, on paper and through the mail, forces us to think about each word and what we mean to convey.

I learned about Worthy Now (https://worthynow.org/) a UU prison outreach ministry during a recent episode of the weekly on-line talk program The Voice of Unitarian Universalism (The VUU, Thursdays at noon Eastern Time https://www.questformeaning.org/vuu/) where I am a regular host. The program offers printed UU materials and written correspondence to people who are incarcerated in the US, at present some 1,300 members, out of a total population of incarcerated individuals of 2.2 Million in the US.

I had heard about the program before but didn’t know a whole lot about it. In conversation with Prison Ministry Manager Cir L’Bert, Jr. and Prison Ministry Administrator Beth Murray, I decided to answer their call to be a pen pal correspondent with an incarcerated person. I filled out the online application form and was shortly matched with a person incarcerated in Texas. Their name is David, and we have begun our correspondence this week. Which is to say, I write and mail a letter to David, via the Worthy Now offices at UUA headquarters in Boston, and they will forward it along to the facility where David is. They do this so free world correspondents do not have to expose their last names or home addresses, and to give the letters a better chance of getting through to the prisoners. Prison systems use all kinds of rules and regulations to prevent prisoners from getting mail. There is a limit on the number of pages. There are restrictions about whether things can be printed on both sides. No color ink, no card stock paper … it goes on and on.

I must address the letter to David using is prisoner ID number on the envelope, and the first time I wrote it out, it struck me how dehumanizing the prison system is in the United States. David is not a person to his keepers, he is a number, a body in a bed in a cell that earns money for the private prison contractors that operate the facility and get paid based on the number of prisoners they keep. I expect that I will learn a great deal about how the prison-industrial complex treats its product in the months to come.

In these never-ending months of pandemic and isolation, I invite you to join me in reaching out to the incarcerated members of our sibling church. Go to the links I shared above to learn about the program, and volunteer to be a pen pal if you are able. It only asks that you write one letter per month, and share a little connection and hope with the incarcerated person you get as a match. I am looking forward to learning from this experience and hope you will join me.

-Rev. Dawn

Click the link below for a free playlist of music to help you dive deeper in cultivating relationships.

Join us in building community and cultivating relationships as we work together to create the first ever UUCSJS All-Together Quilt! UUCSJS is embarking on a project of relationship building through quilt-making! And we need YOUR help!

Throughout the month of October you will have the opportunity to sew quilt blocks for our quilt. These blocks will be sewn together into a beautiful patchwork quilt that will symbolize the community we are rebuilding here at UUCSJS. We will learn together, sew together, talk together, and grow together. We will get to know one another again and in new ways. (No sewing skills or knowledge required. Come learn something new!)

Will you be represented in our all-together quilt?

Here's how you can participate:

1. Sew along during Sunday service. There is a basket of materials available in the back of the sanctuary.
2. Meet out front at the sewing circle table AFTER Sunday service. Come sit, chat, and sew each Sunday afternoon.
3. Volunteer in Children's RE and help the children and youth add their presence to the quilt during RE Learning Lab.
4. Attend a sewing circle event: Saturday, October 30th 12-2 pm. RSVP to these events by emailing religiouseducation@uucsjs.org.

Help us make the UUCSJS all-together quilt a reality!

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.

Fall Greetings from the pandemic response team!

Please bear with us as we continue to evaluate and update our worship guidelines.

Our goal is to keep everyone safe in our worship spaces as we continue to navigate the twists and turns of the COVID 19 pandemic. COVID cases are still high in South Jersey, but the rate of infections is going down, and vaccination rates are high so that is encouraging.

Below are some gentle reminders for all UU staff/members/friends/visitors:

• Please continue to sign a health and safety pledge prior to attending each Sunday AM worship or other in person events at the UU Center. You can still use the QR code or online link for this. Updated paper copies with a line for Name/Signature/ Date will be available.
• We are still advising mask wearing and social distancing for all congregants both inside and outside the UU facility.
• Congregational singing (with masks on) inside the worship space is allowed per UUMN and National Choral Directors guidelines.
• We are still working out some of the AV issues that have been brought to our attention. This includes the AV experience for in person worship and for persons attending on Facebook live. Many thanks to music director Gina Roche and her partner John Rosenberg for optimizing the sound system in the sanctuary. Thanks also to Rev Dawn for constructing barriers for the speaker and musician(s) up front. Please note that these are temporary structures to allow for the minister/ lay leader/ speaker to not have to wear masks when they are up front, which will help with audio quality, and also to help people who are lip readers to understand the speaker. This is a work in progress, and we will continue to evaluate the best options for the speakers and musicians.
• Old habits die hard! We are still asking participants in Sunday worship to please use the East facing (back deck) doors to exit the sanctuary. Those with handicapped needs may still use the West (front portico) doors to exit. This is to prevent a bottleneck of people in the foyer.
• You may still socialize with friends and newcomers in the main sanctuary after services. Coffee service is still on hold for now…
• The kids are all right! Kudos to Jess for keeping the kids safe in the RE space. Most of the kids are used to masking and distancing routines from school, so they are sometimes better behaved than the adults :)

Please direct other questions/comments/suggestions to anyone on the pandemic response team: Melissa Hutchison, Karen York, Jeff Taylor ,or Janet Longo. Many Thanks!

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

• Bring thy donations to UUCSJS by this Sunday, Oct. 24th

• Log in and start bidding on Sat., Nov. 6th

• Log into Zoom on Sat., Nov. 13th at 6:30 pm

UUCSJS is sponsoring a Rainbow Library in South Jersey! GLSEN's Rainbow Library is a program that sends LGBTQ+ affirming K-12 text sets to schools for free!

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation reports that children feel more welcome classrooms and schools that ensure all kinds of families are portrayed in the books that are available in the classroom and in the library.

It is important for children to see their reality reflected to them through the literature that is available and used in classrooms.

You can help make that a reality here in South Jersey!

Our goal is to raise $1,500! Visit our donation page at http://uucsjs.org/online-giving/ to get this campaign started! Keep an eye out here for more information and updates!

Contact Betsy Erbaugh or email admin@uucsjs.org for more information.

Guest Speakers - Meredith Massey & Jason Simmons

Where and when are you your most essential self? What makes you feel most connected to the Earth and to others? Join Meredith Massey and Jason Simmons of Thin Place Farm as they explore the relationships formed when we choose to cultivate our connection to the land.

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 opportunities to connect with our larger faith and other UU's from outside our congregation.

Click on the images for more information.

Murray Grove Retreat and Renewal Center

Women's Retreat

November 5-7, 2021

Healing from a Traumatic Time: Rest - Recognize - Renew. This annual women’s retreat brings women from far and wide to explore common issues, build community and have fun.

Visit murraygrove.org for more information.

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