The lighter side of spirituality: Humor and Unitarian Universalism.
In this evensong service, we’ll laugh together and reflect on the role of humor in spiritual life.
This will be a short article. I am knee-deep in the history of early Christianity at school and we are talking about the first arguments in the early Church on the nature of sin and the Trinity! I definitely hold a dissenting view from the early Church fathers. It is heartening to see that there are others who share my views, except that most of them were burned at the stake! Laugh out Loud, or cry.
I encourage you all to sign up for the Pride weekend, booth, and parade, as it is always a fun get-together, where we can spread the word about Unitarian Universalism. If you are not physically at the meeting house, then call me at 519 859 1640 to discuss.
We will be open the rest of the summer, except the August long weekend having some more informal evensong services. We explore quotations about a subject and discuss our thoughts, if we are willing. On July 16, the people from PFlag and Trans London will be assisting Bill Ratcliffe with the Pride service, and I hope we have a great showing of people out for this. On July 23rd we will have a shortened service and head out to the parade!
On September 10th, the Sunday after labour day we hope to have a celebration of our 70th anniversary and dedication of our gardens.
I hope everyone has a great summer! Please contact me with questions or concerns.
519-859-1640
lorisotte@gmail.com
Join the Pride Celebrations Committee (PCC), Reid Howard, Ann Klinck, Dilyn Muzzerall, Bill Ratcliffe, Karen Rhebergen and Lori Turner-Otte in continuing the 2023 UU Pride Celebrations. The June 11` PFLAG bbq and Drag Queen Story Time was a big success. Pride, Trans and Progressive flags adorn the walls of the Sanctuary. Plan to share the joy with fellow Unitarian Universalists and the general public, some of who are UU, but do not know yet. Dare to be Unitarian Universalist!
This year there will be two hybrid Pride Worship Services. There will be a fulsome Pride Service on Sunday, July 16 with a briefer Service on Sunday, July 23. The July 16 Pride Worship Service, will be led by Bill Ratcliffe, Service Leader, and Christa Duvall, of PFLAG, Worship Leader. Bill Ratcliffe, will be the Worship Leader of the briefer July 23 Pride Worship Service featuring a Ted Talk video by transwoman, Paula Jones Williams, chosen by Dilyn Muzzerall.
The traditional UU Pride booth at the Annual 3 Day Outdoor Festival returns to Victoria Park, Friday, July 21 – Sunday, July 23. Informational materials. children/adult crafts and candy handouts will be some of the features of this year’s UU Pride booth. Be a part of this major outreach activity for our Unitarian Universalist Congregation. Experience the joy of connecting with other LGBTQ+ supporters. Contact Bill Ratcliffe, wjratcliffe68@gmail.com, tel. 519-471-7500 about volunteering or sign up for a shift in the booth, on the signup sheet, on Sundays. Remember, that there is no Worship Service on the long weekend, Sunday, June 30.
March in the Pride Parade, after the Worship Service, Sunday, July 23. The Pride Parade will start at the Western Fair District. Be there before 12:00 pm/ Plan to be a part of this longstanding tradition for our Unitarian Universalist Congregation. Please bring your own drink, a brown bag lunch, as desired, sensible footwear, a hat and umbrella, as necessary. There will be muffins, cheese and water at the Western Fair parking lot gathering area. Catch the Pride spirit. Contact Bill Ratcliffe, wjratcliffe68@gmail.com, tel. 519-471-7500 about marching or sign up as a Pride Parade marcher, on the signup sheet, on Sundays.
As the PCC is striving to have a record number of marchers for the Pride Parade and to have two people in the Booth for each morning, afternoon and evening slot, please sign up. This will save phoning for the PCC team.
In closing, be mindful that joy is in the details. Remember the words from Anonymous, “When you reduce life to black and white, you never see the rainbows.” Come out to the Pride events and answer the Call of Love.
Bill Ratcliffe,
Chair,
Pride Celebrations Committee
UFL Caring Team members have recently received scam text messages about CRA grocery rebates. We are concerned for our members and friends as it is so easy to get caught up by these scams. Scammers will call as well. The Caring Team would like to remind the congregation members and friends of the following ways to protect themselves and others:
Cybercrimes, including scams, rose significantly during and post COVID. Scammers can come across as very professional, preying on our trust and politeness. They can spoof phone numbers and email addresses, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) making it worse for scamming victims. Already scammers have been able to copy people’s voices so, for example, it actually sounds exactly like a grandson asking for money over the phone. This actually happened to a friend’s mother who luckily phoned her daughter, mother of her grandson, who then contacted her son and found out that he was ‘not in jail’ and ‘not in need of money to get out.’
A good source of current scams can be found at www.scamicide.com. You can sign up for a free daily email outlining new or trending scams.
We have provided links to the Government of Canada sites offering information about scams. If you are uncomfortable about going straight to these sites from these links, type in Government of Canada Scams into the search bar to get to these Sites.
Please stay aware and always speak to a trusted relative or friend or reach out to a member of the Caring Team by phone before responding to one of these emails, texts or phone calls.
The UFL Caring Team
In this evensong service, we’ll laugh together and reflect on the role of humor in spiritual life.
Worship Leader: Judith Warren
We meet on the third Monday of the month. A reservation is made each month, so please email Tom Orchardtomjoyorchard@gmail.com if you plan to attend.Contact Tom or Bill Ratcliffe wratcliffe@sympatico.ca if you have any questions.Hope to see you at the next lunch.
This Month Will be at Edgar & Joe’s, Goodwill on Horton Street