To help with Sunday morning hospitality, click here.

The news has been filled with harrowing violence. From the wars in Ukraine and in Gaza to more mass shooting events in our own country, we are being bombarded with the trauma of mass murder, hatred, and mass destruction. At this moment it is possible to take a stand against anti-semitism and the horror of terrorism proliferated by Hamas and to call for a cease-fire in a situation in which thousands of civilians are being killed and dislocated as homes are destroyed beyond repair. 

As Unitarian Universalists who value our relationships in the interfaith world sometimes it is hard to stand in the breach and have any clarity about what we might call for. We can’t forget the millions of Jews murdered in the genocide of WWII nor the history of centuries of anti-semitic violence and political oppression which have real reverberations and continuity in our contemporary world. We also can’t pretend that the current violence we are witnessing will do anything other than further deeply traumatize and polarize those involved. I think it’s important to remember that the people of a country are not synonymous with the governments of those countries–governments can act in ways that harm their own people just as they can act in ways that protect them.  

Don’t we know that ourselves? We know that the gun lobby regularly works against the actual desires of a majority of Americans who want to see a decrease in access to firearms and to interrupt access to them in situations of domestic violence, mental health challenges, and past history of violence/criminal activity. This is why it matters who we elect to state legislatures and to Congress and also why it matters that we organize to make our voices heard around the issues that matter to us. No leader is perfect, and in a democracy it is our responsibility to redirect elected leaders through our own citizen lobbying and through ballots that prioritize money, policies and elected leaders that are responsive to us instead of to Big Money. 

Locally we are working with Valley Interfaith Project to leverage local leadership around the twin crises of mental health and access to affordable housing in our communities. Our young people in particular are in crisis and need us to show up with them to demand that our schools and communities have a better plan for resourcing their needs and addressing the underlying complexities of mental health challenges (bullying, poverty, racism and homo/transphobia, lack of access to health care, social isolation and so many more!).  

In addition our immigration team is working together, and with partner organizations, to meet the humanitarian aid needs of immigrants showing up in our country looking for safety from violence, jobs that will sustain their families, and access to opportunities to live full and productive lives with dignity and joy. None of us gets free until all of us are free.  

We need to be talking to each other and to our friends and family about these issues and all of the ways that our capacity to be fully human are challenged. My spiritual journey is impacted when the world around me is a place of brutal violence, hatred, misunderstanding and oppression where war wins over diplomacy. I can’t separate my own spiritual needs from the reality around me. Peace is not peace if it doesn’t extend outside of my own body and experiences. Unitarian Universalism isn’t a faith that promotes spiritual ignorance or spiritual self-centeredness. Our journeys are always intertwined, so it matters to me if your path is being blocked by systemic racism or economic disparity, by gun violence or war..Justice is an aspect of spiritual deepening, not a path away or distinct from it. May we stand in the breach and repair what we can or demand the resources necessary to repair our communities.  

Isaiah 58:12 NRSV: “Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.”  

Save the Dates!

The next weekend Rev. Sam will be with us is January 26-28. Details TBA but count on an event on Saturday and Rev. Sam at the helm of the Sunday service on January 28.

Borderlinks and Arizona Leaders

I am joining a delegation next week of local folks learning from Borderlinks about the issues of immigration in our country and needs of folks crossing the borders to arrive in the United States.  I am excited to deepen my knowledge and my relationships in order to better the support the immigration team at VUU and to continue my own commitment to activism around these issues. I’ll be in Tucson and at the border for four days.  I look forward to sharing with all of you about this experience and the ideas that result from it.  –Rev. Sarah

Special Funds 2023 Recognition Sunday Honoree Announced

The Special Funds Committee is pleased to announce our 2023 Recognition Sunday Honoree, Ken St. John!

Ken has served VUU in many capacities over the past 26 years including the Board of Trustees, the Leadership Development Committee, the Ministerial Search Committee, the Usher Committee, the Green Sanctuary garden, the Facilities Committee, the Music Program (singing in choir and leading our Cabaret performances), and most recently the Worship Associates team. Ken has most consistently volunteered in the Faith Formation program, having taught or assisted with every class other than the infants, which his daughters often covered. He co-led the YRUU high school age social group for a couple of years and now serves as a facilitator in the youth’s Our Whole Lives sexuality education program.

Please watch for a Special Funds Committee letter regarding Recognition Sunday with a form for a special donation to the VUU Endowment Fund in honor of Ken St. John. This letter has an extended bio of Ken. Read it here and/or you should be receiving it this week in your USPS mailbox. Come join us on Recognition Sunday, December 3 at VUU.

Thank you, Ken, for all you have done (and continue to do) for VUU!

Special Funds Committee: Rick Hinrichs (chair), Anne Schneider (secretary), Joanne McGrath (treasurer), Carl Anderson, and Kama White.

Thank you!

Thanks to ALL members and friends of VUU who helped make Rev. Sarah’s Installation Reception such a yummy success!

Special shout outs to Nick Carr, Laura Rohlfing, Janet & Garry Cantley, Nancy and Michael Woomer, Kathy Melamed, JoAnne Smith, Beatriz Arias, Jodi Cicirello, Linda Stenholm, David Sheh, Debi and David Grande, Carl Anderson, and Frank Quijada.

And to all who brought food, helped set up, and stayed to clean up—we couldn’t have done it without YOU!

Thank You!

—Barb Quijada, Reception Hospitality Coordinator

NOVEMBER 9 - MONTHLY ZOOM MEETING, 6:30PM

Rev. Dr. Samantha Wilson has begun VUU work on the Spirituality of Conflict.  She will be our guest speaker. A quote on her approach:  

“This is not about fixing a specific thing, or getting ‘rid’ of conflict. The hope is that there is a deeper capacity for engaging conflict in ways that are generative – conflicts grow us and deepen us rather than stop us. This is about tending our congregational culture”  - Rev Sam

Join Zoom Meeting

PIE - Art Masterpiece Program

This week we added 3 new volunteers to our Art Masterpiece team! Welcome Beverly McCormick, Peggy Richardson, and Linda Rand. Thank you to our returning volunteers, Jen Hofmann, Adrienne O'Donnell, Shari Melton, and Perii Skolnick. Adams has requested that we provide the program to 9 classrooms, an expansion from 7 classes last year!

The Happenings Team

Your Happenings Team compiles the news and calendar each week to make sure you receive all the information you need every Thursday at noon. Most of the work is done on Wednesdays, and each team member takes the lead every second or third week (about three hours), while the others pitch in to edit (30-60 minutes) on their off weeks. To join the team or find out more, contact The Happenings Team here.

Welcome Sasha Joy Cantley!

Sasha Joy couldn’t wait, and was born three weeks early, on October 8, 2023 to Nicholas and Allison Cantley. Big sister, Freya (21 months) was ready to greet the new baby with lots of kisses. Nicholas and Allison were part of the middle school group (MUUGS) and Coming of Age program at VUU in the early 2000s.

Their parents—Julia Allison and Janet and Garry Cantley—are still active members of VUU. Allison’s father, Marty Brickner (who was an active member at VUU and Nick’s mentor in the Coming of Age program), has moved to Flagstaff. We are all overjoyed to welcome Sasha!

The Page Turners' Book Club

The Page Turners Book Club is open to all members, visitors, and friends of VUU who enjoy reading and discussing a variety of books. The next meeting is November 16 at 7:00 PM. The book is The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende. More information to come.

Paz de Cristo - Volunteers needed this month!

Continuing the Tradition… Keeping the Commitment… Living our Principles

November date: 2nd Friday, November 10th, 4pm - 7pm

Location: 424 W Broadway Rd, Mesa, AZ

Click here for the sign up link

Families welcome!

Volunteers are urgently needed this month as we are a bit short of the number of helpers needed. Please consider joining us so we can easily meet VUU’s commitment at Paz de Cristo in November.

Please join us as we keep VUU’s 34-year tradition with Paz de Cristo on the second Friday of each month to serve the evening meal to Paz guests. Volunteers gather at the Paz kitchen/dining room from 4 pm to 7 pm to prepare then serve the evening meal. Additional tasks include cleanup of dishes, sweeping and mopping of floors. If you are joining us for the first time, don’t worry, Paz staff and experienced VUU

volunteers make the work easy and the evening goes fast. Paz de Cristo keeps all Covid-19 protocols in place to make the experience safe for all guests and volunteers.

Seventeen volunteers are needed and can range in age from 12 on up. (As of this writing, we need nine more folks!) Volunteers must be able to stand and participate in all tasks during the entire evening.

Have questions? Contact Joanne at 602-620-3100. Please sign up for this rewarding experience at www.vuu.org/paz.

Job Announcement

Unitarian Universalist Justice Arizona (UUJAZ) is excited to announce that we are currently searching for a new Co-Director of Finance + Operations and a Co-Director of Programming and Partnerships. We welcome all applications and invite you to apply to one or both of these positions. Our organization's mission is to engage Unitarian Universalists in justice-making through strengthening congregational social justice ministries, connecting UU activists and congregations across the state, partnering with like-minded justice organizations, and empowering UUs to work for socially-just public policy. View the full job descriptions by clicking on the images below. Resumes and/or questions should be directed to board@uujaz.org

Application Link: https://www.uujaz.org/job-postings.html