Read the full issue of this week’s newsletter here: The Weekly Liberal November 14

Rev. Justin writes: I believe that one of the central tasks of a faith community is to invite us to reimagine who we are, who we might be, and how we are in relationship with life itself.

Cultural messages inform us that our worth and value is dependent on how much money we make, or the kind of work we do. A faith community invites us into a different paradigm, proclaiming that we are already loved, and that we have inherent worth and dignity, regardless of profession or the amount of money we have. 

Cultural messages inform us that if we’re suffering, struggling, or barely getting by, that there must be something wrong with us and that we’re not trying hard enough. A faith community invites us to consider that suffering and struggle are part of being human, and that some suffering and struggle is created by unjust systems and structures.

Cultural messages of the Holiday Season push us to consume, consume, consume. They tell us that joy is in finding the best deal, or getting the newest gadgets, no matter the cost to our wallets or the planet. Yet we know in our hearts (and research has confirmed) that there is no true joy or justice in heeding those messages. 

Given this reality, the First Universalist multi-generational Holiday Giving Team is inviting you to reimagine what joy and justice might look like in your life during this Holiday Season. Starting November 17, and running through December 15, we’re inviting the congregation:  

• To reimagine what truly brings us joy (and creates a more just world) during the season, and to put in motion new practices and ways of being that might live with us throughout the entire year.
• To reduce our holiday spending, so that collectively, as a congregation, we can pool these savings and make a substantial gift to the black-led organization, Black Lives of Unitarian Universalism (BLUU), this year’s Holiday Giving recipient.
• To engage with our Holiday Giving Social Hall display, to learn more about Black Lives of Unitarian Universalism, to learn new ways to engage the holidays, and to reflect on how joy and justice-making can be intimately connected. 
• To participate in our December 15 service, when we’ll give and receive our special offering to support the incredible work of Black Lives of Unitarian Universalism. 

We are living in times when the old ways of being, the old patterns and habits, no longer serve us, or the planet we inhabit. Beginning this Sunday, we’re inviting you into a new way of being this Holiday Season and beyond! 

We’ll see you in church,
Rev. Justin (and the Holiday Giving Team)