From the email announcements sent Thursday, June 11.
Join us online again this Sunday as we co-create beloved community together in the midst of a global pandemic. We are suspending congregational worship gatherings until further notice to protect vulnerable members of our congregation and the larger community. You can watch our special live-streamed service on the church’s Facebook page at 10 am on Sunday morning, June 14. Our services are now reaching hundreds of people and are inviting us to be interactive in worship in new ways. In addition to sharing joys, sorrows, and milestones, you may want to light a chalice and sing along with our worship leaders in your home sanctuary. You do not need a Facebook account to watch the service live. Just visit the Facebook website or watch the livestream here at news.uusm.org or at uusm.org. The services will remain available on our UU Santa Monica Facebook page and on our YouTube channel. They are also archived on the uusm.org website and here on the newsletter site. If you need help getting online, please contact board member Eileen McCormack for assistance.
“Playmate”
(Online Worship Service)
Rev. Kikanza Nuri-Robins, preaching
Leon Henderson-MacLennan, Worship Associate
Are you having fun yet? This spring has been a time of high anxiety — and crisis management. We have experienced the Flight, Fight, Freeze response to the unknown and unwelcome, and now we are moving into a different mode of interaction. We didn’t celebrate Pride Sunday, the last two weeks in the world has been extraordinary, summer is coming. Most of us are still cloistered, we all need a break, and I don’t think any of us is going on vacation. How are you caring for your spirit? Even if it means just taking small moments to breathe, we need to find ways to laugh and play as we work to change the world.
Church Facilities are Closed
Please note that church buildings and offices are now closed for business and services until further notice, and church staff members are working remotely. See above for online Sunday service information.
Children, Youth, and Adult Programming
During this time of social distancing and uncertainty, the Adult Programs Committee is working hard to transition many of our groups and programs for personal and spiritual exploration to an online format, mainly via Zoom (but other platforms are a possibility). We’ll also be providing assistance to those unfamiliar with how to use Zoom – just let us know you’d like help by emailing AdultRE@UUSM.org at least a few days before the program you’d like to take part in.
Click here for instructions for scheduling and attending Zoom meetings at UUSM.
Expanded descriptions of groups and programs for adults are in the monthly Personal and Spiritual Exploration for Adults article.
Expanded descriptions for youth religious exploration can be found in the Children and Youth Religious Exploration article.
Check out the information and links below for UUSM online programs. We look forward to connecting with you!
Upcoming Online Events
ONLINE>> Finance Townhall Meeting, Sunday, June 14, 2020, 11:30 am – 1:30 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please contact Vilma at treasurer@uusm.org for the Zoom link. Join us for an information meeting about our church’s finances and next year’s budget. Vilma Ortiz, church treasurer, will present an overview of the financial situation and budget. There will be time to address questions and have a discussion.
ONLINE>> Adult Programs – An Enjoyable Dive into Who and What We Are, Monday, June 15, 2020, 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please contact: AdultRE@UUSM.org to get the Zoom link and instructions for logging on. Bill Blake will help participants master specific meditation skills. We endeavor to answer the questions Who am I? (attitudes and beliefs) and What am I? (essence or true nature). This class will include meditations that explore participants’ spiritual goals. It is expected that participants will develop and enjoy a regular meditation practice.
ONLINE RE>> Pre-School Check-In, Tuesday, June 16, 2020, 11:00 am – 11:30 am, Zoom Meeting. Please contact Teri Lucas at uusmREassist@uusm.org or Cleo Anderson at dre@uusm.org with any questions.
ONLINE>> Open Meditation Wellsprings, Tuesday, June 16, 2020, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please email Meditation@uusm.org for the Zoom link and directions. We listen to brief readings, sit together quietly for twenty minutes, journal and share with each other what’s on our hearts. You are welcome to join us when it feels right to you. If you come in late or need to leave early, just do so quietly. These are exceptional times, and we trust each person to use the group in a way that fits their need. Taking this time for quiet meditation and sharing in the intimacy of having sat in silence together can help sustain and ground us during these difficult days. We meet every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon from 12:00 to 1:00 pm, AND every 2nd and 4th Monday evenings, from 7:30 to 9:00 pm.
ONLINE>> Science Non-fiction Book Group, Tuesday, June 16, 2020, 7:30 pm -9:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. To receive the link, you will want to be on the group email list. Contact: Rebecca Crawford, sci-nonfiction@uusm.org We will discuss “Pandemic: Tracking Contagions, from Cholera to Ebola and Beyond,” by Sonia Shah. The author, a science journalist, concentrates on the viruses and how their infectivity and pathogenicity change over time and circumstance, with particular emphasis on cholera. Politics and preparation are woven in. The book was published in 2016. All are welcome.
ONLINE RE>> Middle School Logic Puzzles, Wednesday, June 17, 2020, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please contact Teri Lucas at uusmREassist@uusm.org or Cleo Anderson at dre@uusm.org with any questions.
ONLINE>> Online Coffee & Teahouse Conversation with the Minister, Wednesday, June 17, 2020, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Email minister@uusm.org for the Zoom link.
ONLINE RE>> Elementary Check-In, Thursday, June 18, 2020, 11:00 am – 11:45 am, Zoom Meeting.Please contact Teri Lucas at uusmREassist@uusm.org or Cleo Anderson at dre@uusm.org with any questions.
ONLINE>> Open Meditation Wellsprings, Thursday, June 18, 2020, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please email Meditation@uusm.org for the Zoom link and directions for using Zoom.
ONLINE>> UU Men’s Group,Thursday, June 18, 2020, 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please email AdultRE@UUSM.org for information. The Men’s Group offers a special opportunity to the men of the congregation and other like-minded men to join our welcoming group in provocative and stimulating discussion and to get to know others with UU perspectives in a more meaningful way. These topics were gratefully suggested by Jim. The previously announced topic is being postponed until July, and because of the significance of the widespread national protests after George Floyd’s killing we will discuss the June 6th Washington Post article: “America Convulses Amid a Week of Protests, But can it Change?”
ONLINE>> Nature Journaling with Dorothy Steinicke, Sunday, June 21, 2020, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please contact Teri Lucas at uusmreassist@uusm.org for the Zoom link information. A lifelong lover of the outdoors, Dorothy has more than twenty years experience leading hikes for children and adults and introducing people to different aspects of nature in Topanga Canyon, Ballona Wetlands, and Dockweiler Beach. During the workshop, Dorothy will facilitate a brief discussion of how important natural places have been to us. We will engage in exercises using writing and drawing to observe natural items. Dorothy will address the anxiety many people feel about drawing. We will take time to work individually and then share, not necessarily what we have done, but what insights we’ve gained from making our observations. The workshop has been designed for people who do not currently have access to the outdoors.
ONLINE>> Open Meditation Wellsprings, Monday, June 22, 2020, 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please email Meditation@uusm.org for the Zoom link and directions for using Zoom.
ONLINE RE>> Pre-School Check-In,Tuesday, June 23, 2020, 11:00 am – 11:30 am, Zoom Meeting. Please contact Teri Lucas at uusmREassist@uusm.org or Cleo Anderson at dre@uusm.org with any questions.
ONLINE>> Open Meditation Wellsprings, Tuesday, June 23, 2020, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please email Meditation@uusm.org for the Zoom link and directions for using Zoom.
ONLINE RE>> Middle School Logic Puzzles, Wednesday, June 24, 2020, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please contact Teri Lucas at uusmREassist@uusm.org or Cleo Anderson at dre@uusm.org with any questions.
ONLINE>> Online Coffee & Teahouse Conversation with the Minister, Wednesday, June 24, 2020, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Email minister@uusm.org for the Zoom link.
ONLINE RE>> Elementary Check-In, Thursday, June 25, 2020, 11:00 am – 11:45 am, Zoom Meeting.Please contact Teri Lucas at uusmREassist@uusm.org or Cleo Anderson at dre@uusm.org with any questions.
ONLINE>> Open Meditation Wellsprings, Thursday, June 25, 2020, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please email Meditation@uusm.org for the Zoom link and directions for using Zoom.
ONLINE>> CommUUnity Connection Meeting, Thursday, June 25, 2020, 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm, Zoom Meeting. Please email CommUUnity@uusm.org for the Zoom link. Denise Helton and Bettye Barclay will facilitate. We will connect with others and share experiences during this time of isolation. Bettye Barclay and Denise Helton will be conducting the meeting.
Canceled Events
CANCELED>> Collage Group with Stan Bemis, Saturday, June 13, 2020, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm, Cottage NE. The goal of this group is to help foster personal worth and empowerment, entering into that holy place within and having sacred fun. The objectives are to create works of art and to create cards for events or celebrations.
CANCELED>> Second Sunday Supper, Sunday, June 14, 2020, 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm, Forbes Hall. Second Sunday Suppers are informal social events for all ages held in Forbes Hall on the second Sunday of each month at 6:00 p.m.
CANCELED>> Ukulele Strum and Sing A-Long, Saturday, June 20, 2020, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm, Forbes Hall. Please contact Kim Kalmanson for questions.
CANCELED>> Children and Youth RE Committee Meeting, Sunday, June 21, 2020, 11:30 am – 1:30 pm, Cottage NW.
CANCELED>> FIA: Peace and Social Justice, Sunday, June 21, 2020, 11:45 am – 1:00 pm, Warren Mathews Conference Room. The Peace & Social Justice Committee (PSJ) focuses on many activities in the areas of labor and economic issues; racism, police brutality, and mass incarceration; immigration and immigrant detention; and peace and alternatives to war.
