OakLeaf_February2009.. - the Unitarian Universalist Church of Oak

The Oak Leaf
NEWSLETTER OF THE UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CHURCH OF OAK CLIFF
February 2009
SEE THE CALENDAR
FOR MORE
The next phase of our demo
garden will be occurring this
month with new dirt and
plantings for the spring season.
ing
m
o
c
p
U
Events
February 12
Sunday Services – 10 am
February 1st – What’s In Your Bible? – We all laugh when
Capital One asks “What’s in your wallet?” but would we still be
laughing if someone asked “What’s in your Bible?” Rev. Mark
Walz, with discussion to follow in the Sanctuary.
February 8th – Phil Jones Returns – Our favorite Australian
Musical Mystic returns to take the pulpit and share his spiritual
journey through the music of his homeland and the instruments
that bring that music to life. Phil will hold another workshop
with his didgeridoos after the service.
February 15th – Evolution Sunday – Today we partner with
Unitarian Universalist congregations across the nation and the
Texas Faith Network in a celebration of Science and Faith.
Rev. Mark Walz will preach the sermon.
February 22nd – Annual Stardust Communion – Rev. Mark
Walz and Rev. Marcia Shannon will preach the sermon and
share communion with the congregation. You won’t want to
miss this!
Welcome Visitors!
We hope you find our services, programs, and groups stimulating and
interesting. We extend a warm invitation to you to come often, and
hope you will help us get acquainted with you!
Please feel free to contact our minister, Mark Walz at
(214) 337-2429 with any questions you may have.
The Oak Leaf • February 2009
Roy Zimmerman in concert
8-9:30PM
see page 7
February 16
Coordinating Council
Meeting 7PM
February 22
UUCOC Pot Luck Lunch
and Pretty Good Raffle
see page 5
February 24
UUCOC Board Meeting
7PM
February 28
Labryinth Walk Coffee House
Headliner: The Texas Gypsies
Opener: Joel Sprayberry
See page 7
March 3
First Tuesday Social Action
Film Festival
7-10PM
see page 7 and our website
for details
Page 1
Mark’s Trail
Please join me on the journey...
Many of you asked me to share
the prayer I wrote for the Dallas
Interfaith Service for Peace held
earlier this month. Thank you for
caring about our efforts. Here
it is.
A Prayer for Peace in Gaza
As I consider deeply in human
terms the God I worship, the
consistent image that comes to
me is that of the perfect parent;
the perfect parent who loves
and cherishes all its children
with a passionate and palpable
constancy; the perfect parent
who wishes the very best for us;
who laughs with us as we celebrate the life we have been
given, and who weeps with us
when life is destroyed. I believe
in a perfect parent who would
never hold one of us above another or sanction the hubris and
arrogance with which we negotiate what passes for brotherhood and sisterhood here on
earth. This is a God that I, as a
parent and grandparent, can try
to emulate.
There lives, it seems to me, in
our vast human village, a
scourge that far exceeds racism. A scourge that far exceeds
religious intolerance. It is the
scourge of nativism. Nativism is
a scourge that fills us with the
profound misconception that we,
and not God, own the land beneath our feet; that we are
something other than temporary
tenants in this Garden of Eden.
It is a scourge that allows us to
The Oak Leaf • February 2009
mistakenly believe that we are
entitled to play at God and deny
other children of God their rightful place at the table of life.
In our pain and confusion we
seem to hold on to a naive idea
of perfect justice, as if some
form of a perfect justice could
ever come from the centuries of
pain we have inflicted on each
other. In our self-righteous attempts to justify the great havoc
we visit upon each other, we are
all guilty of pointing to arbitrary
and convenient beginnings to
the conflicts that inspire our
hateful and despicable retaliations. Not much is available for
humans to know with certainty.
But this we do know: Vengeance
will never create the peace we
say we seek.
It is my fervent hope and constant prayer that we will, someday soon, find the courage and
maturity to walk in the sandals of
Mother Teresa and Mohamed; of
Jesus and the Buddha; of
Ghandi, Mandela and Martin Luther King, Jr.; to walk like all our
great prophets, with our arms
out-stretched in radical hospitality to all, with love in our hearts
and peace on our lips.
We are our brother’s keeper; we
are our sister’s keeper; and together we must parent, in God’s
perfect example, to all the children of the world; that they, too,
may laugh and dance and sing
the sheer joy of being alive, all
over this planet, and in this mo-
ment of God’s magnificent universe.
It is my constant prayer that we
– Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Pagan, Christian, Jew, agnostic –
all find the grace to lift up our
unique and individual spiritual
journeys and to hold them sacred. This is the peace we
must seek.
I often remind my congregation
that one of the reasons we
seek religious community is
that we really do want to
change the world for the better;
but to change the world we
must first change ourselves;
we must become the people
with whom others wish to partner. We cannot change the behavior of others, we can only
change our own. So we must
transform ourselves that we
might model the change we
seek. We must love our neighbor as ourselves.
So let us pray for the love that
calms our fears and hatreds,
and startles and inspires our
neighbors. Let us pray that we
will always be the instruments
of that lasting peace we cry for
in our souls. Then and only
then will true peace be possible.
Shalom, Aloha, Salaam, Namaste, Blessed be. Amen.
See you Sunday.
Mark
Page 2
Dee’s Green Tip
Many articles on various environmental subjects caught my attention
this month. Here are just a few:
On the recycling front, in the Dallas Morning News on January 13th
there was an article stating that many cities are experiencing a decline in demand for recycled materials because of the economic
downturn. Because people are buying and using fewer products,
they’re recycling fewer products. With recycling revenues plummeting, cities may decide to suspend their programs until demand increases. Hopefully, this won’t happen. Chreritta Johnson, Assistant
Sanitation Director for Dallas, stated in the article, “What is our main
objective—to make money or to be good environmental stewards?
It’s to be good environmental stewards.”
Regarding auto emissions, Neil Young, rock legend and Activist,
posted an online article on January 4th. He wrote about “The Automotive X Prize”, a contest to produce a 100 mpg car by 2010 sponsored by the Progressive Insurance Company. There are already
many entries. Lincvolt, an X Prize contestant converted from a 1959
Lincoln Continental Mark IV, already gets 65 mpg by using an electric
power and domestic fuels with very low emissions. The Lincvolt
team is inviting other innovators and contestants to Washington during this administration’s first 100 days to demonstrate their progress
to the new Car Czar.
Regarding the city of Dallas’ current plans, the city is currently considering a voluntary program to reduce the use of plastic bags. I noticed yesterday when I was picking up a prescription at Walgreens
that the chain is promoting a “bring your own bag” campaign. Their
slogan is “skip the plastic”. A city representative from
www.greendallas.com also told me that all of the traffic and signal
lights in Dallas have been replaced with LED lights. Next the city will
tackle its street lamps. What prompted me to learn more about the
city’s efforts was a recent trip to NYC where I learned that skyscrapers there were dimming their lights in an effort to conserve. NYC
also has a fantastic everywhere-you-look recycling program. I wish
we had something like that in Dallas.
Lastly, Vivian Walz brought the “National Teach-In on Global Warming” to my attention. Schools and faith communities can schedule a
viewing of the webcast, “100 Days of Action” on February 5th. It is
even possible to schedule an online half hour of dialogue for your
group with your Washington Representative by coordination through
Speaker Pelosi’s office. Interested parties can view the webcast at
http://www.nationalteachin.org/ after January 30th. There will be a
special edition for faith communities.
The Oak Leaf • February 2009
ng
i
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O
ies
Activit
Covenant and Activity
Groups are a great way to meet
people who share a common
interest.
Study of Sacred Writings
Meets every Wednesday
7-8:30PM. Led by Rev. Mark Walz
and Marcia Shannon.
Women's Birthday Dinner
Out - Second Tuesday of every
month at 6:30PM. Toshio’s in
Duncanville is this month’s
location. RSVP to Mary K. at
(972) 891-2830.
Out to Lunch Bunch
Everyone is invited to gather for
lunch at a local restaurant following Sunday service.
Games Night - Second
Saturday of each month. 6:30PM,
Barbara Kalley’s home. Bring
healthy snacks. RSVP to (972)
572-7445.
A Course in Miracles - Meets
every Monday at 7:30PM in the
Faith lobby. Contact Dee Lewis at
(214) 337-3946 for information.
UUCOC Singers - All are wel-
come. Will practice alternating
Wednesdays and Thursdays at
7PM. Next practice will be
Wednesday, Feb. 11th. For more
information, call Glorian at (214)
372-2892.
Social Action/Social Justice
Ministry - Meets the 2nd Sunday
of the month after RE. Will meet
February 15th this month.
Page 3
UUCOC BOARD NEWS by Kathy Grey, Secretary
We joke about the challenge of working with people who by definition like thinking for themselves:
“Get six UUs together and you’ll have ten different opinions.” “Getting UUs to agree is like herding kittens.”
And my personal favorite: “…like stacking eggs.” Despite the truth in these axioms, we do get real work done
in board meetings, often with lots of laughter amid the differences of opinion. In an effort to keep everyone informed about this work, we plan to include a brief synopsis of the board meeting in the newsletter. The entire
minutes will be available in the member area of the website: www.OakCliffUU.org.
Synopsis of
UUCOC Board of Trustees
January Meeting
All newly elected officers
were present (bold):
President: Gene Dailey
VP: Stephen Betzen
Treasurer: Kimberlyn Crowe
Secretary: Kathy Grey
Trustees: Claudia Klipp
Nancy Johnstone
Ed Stofko
Past Pres: Connie Fountain*
Also attending: Rev. Mark Walz,
Glorian Mulligan-Stratton (Music
Director), Marcia Shannon (DRE),
Barbara Kalley (Caring Committee), and Scott Grey (Property).
Your new secretary was pleased
to be given a copy of the Complete
Idiot’s Guide to Robert’s Rules of
Order. [Thanks, Kimberlyn—I’m
not taking it personally!] We were
also assured that Gene’s Rules of
Order are remarkably similar to
Robert’s.
Highlights from the officers’ and
ministry chairs’ reports follow:
Mark reported on the amazing
evening of Jan. 6th. The Social Justice Ministry showed At the
Death House Door, with the subject of the film, Pastor Carroll
Pickett, his daughter, Anne Ellis,
and human rights activist Rick
Halperin present. It was sobering
and moving. 43 people attended
the showing. Mark also reported
that attendance is up for Sunday
services, with several families
joining over the last few weeks.
Gene asked that we establish
definite goals for 2009, prioritize,
and develop strategies to accomplish them, with special attention
to completing in-progress projects
The Oak Leaf • February 2009
and working on the church infrastructure.
Stephen reported on the Coordinating Council meeting of the
previous week, and reminded us
several times to save “committee
work” for the CC. Two ministries
still need to be filled: Social
Events and Communications. Interested? See Stephen.
Kimberlyn reported that we finished 2008 in the black, but lean
times loom ahead. We will be
making applications for several
grants, but cannot count on a
NTAUUS grant as in years past.
Scott has been working with the
NTAUUS Communications
Committee, and offered to officially serve as UUCOC NTAUUS
representative. The board happily
accepted.
Marcia reported on efforts to keep
up with the recent influx of young
folks. In progress: teacher’s manual, parent info and consent
forms, and dealing with safety
and privacy issues. Note publication of “Where do my children go
during the service?”
In addition to her fabulous musical talent, Glorian also has expertise in team-building, and has offered to facilitate a workshop for
the board. Examples of topics:
working as a cohesive group,
identifying strengths and weaknesses, dealing with different
management styles, conflict management, expressing yourself, etc.
The board responded favorably,
and considered making the workshop a board retreat in the spring.
OLD BUSINESS at this board
meeting included taking care of
some UUA paperwork and setting
deadlines for unfinished projects.
The “church brochure” will be finished by April 1. Green Sanctuary
will be revitalized. We’ll look for
someone to take ownership of the
50th Anniversary Video. We know
we have a lot of talent within the
congregation—we just need to get
organized!
NEW BUSINESS
Gene asked for our Goals for 2009.
Highest on his list: we have only
one chance to make a good impression—we must work on the
appearance of the lobby! Mark:
Start EVERYTHING on time. Marcia: Let’s end each service with a
reminder about the Wish Tree.
All agreed we need a Communications Ministry. Watch for info.
We recognized some confusion
over the purpose of the Building
Fund, and its purpose was clarified (see article on page 5).
Community outreach: Gene suggested a pancake breakfast for
firefighters and police in May. We
liked the idea; Gene will pursue it.
To ensure transparency of the
workings of the board, in addition
to the written minutes being available online (member area of
church website), we agreed to publish a brief synopsis in the newsletter. (Oh, look, here it is! Not very
brief, though, is it??) We adjourned
with a vow to keep the next meeting (Feb. 24) shorter.
Connie is not our IMMEDIATE
*PastWhilePresident,
she is next in line:
PAST PRESIDENTS:
2009 - Gene Dailey
2008 - Sandy McFeeley
2007 - Connie Fountain
08-09 Board Trustee Rex Fountain has
resigned his position. The board will
appoint someone to finish out his term.
Page 4
So What IS the Building Fund?
From a discussion at the
January 2009 Board Meeting
There has been some confusion
over the purpose of the UUCOC
Building Fund. While there were
differing recollections about how
the idea was originally presented, current board members
were in agreement that the intention was for the fund to grow
slowly over time, and be available for major expenses down
the road, whether a new air conditioner, structural improvements, new classrooms, or a
whole new building. It would be
restricted to use for the infrastructure of the church. While
not available for operating expenses, some of the money
could be used in the meantime
for a microlending project (in
conjunction with the Social Action Ministry and RE). Microfinancing is not about gifts of
charity—it's about loans to individuals in other parts of the
world who can make small
amounts of money go a lot farther than we can. Not only is the
Adult RE
The Study of Sacred Writings
First Text: The Bible
Date/Time: Wednesday
Evenings 7:00-8:30 PM
Leaders: Rev. Mark Walz &
Marcia Shannon
Sign-Up: Sign-up sheet will be
posted on the bulletin board.
The Oak Leaf • February 2009
Pot Luck Lunch and
“Pretty Good” Raffle
Sunday, February 22nd
right after services
Building Fund Box
We will need:
More “pretty good” items
for the raffle
Your favorite food to
share!
A crew to help set-up
before and clean up
afterwards!
See Peggy Hookey or
Mary Leggitt to sign on
and get more information.
Questions? Call Mary at
(972) 617-9837
agreement that the loans will be
repaid, but generous souls in the
church have offered to guarantee
the loans. (See Kiva.org for more
information.)
The request to contribute no
more than a dollar per week to
the Building Fund is also a way for
all church members to have ownership in the church regardless of
their financial circumstances.
The Building Fund box itself was
constructed by Marjorie Flowers,
and decorated by the Teen Class.
Music Ministry News
The UUCOC Singers encourage your participation this year in our
singing efforts. In order to facilitate that participation, we are scheduling practices on a rotating basis, Wednesday/Thursday nights. Hopefully those who have other commitments may be able to attend every
other week. We have a core group working on music, but added
voices augments the sound, and we really need to strive for excellent
sound if we are to make a successful CD of holiday songs. Every
voice counts!
We will begin fine tuning our CD music NOW, in preparation for
cutting in late spring.
Please call Glorian for further info. She is looking forward to hearing from you! 214-372-2892.
Page 5
Local (& Not So Local) UU News
WhaleCoast Alaska 2009: Five Alaskan UU fellowships
invite you to experience our eco-cultural and spiritual
program this summer in our 13th year! See REAL
Alaska, with UU homestays in Anchorage, Fairbanks,
Seward, Juneau, and Sitka. UU’s host events and lead
tours. We visit Tlingit and Inupiat Native Alaskans, see
lots of wildlife like bears, moose, caribou, whales, sea
otters and bald eagles and visit Denali and other National Parks. Dave Frey, a 28-year Alaska resident, leads
the programs. Visit www.whalecoastak.org
<http://www.whalecoastak.org>. Reservation deadline is
March 21 but tours usually fill early. Email
[email protected]
<mailto:[email protected]> for information, or call
907-322-4966. Alaska UUs would love to share our great
state with you!
Rocking Chairs Needed
We know you have some stashed
away, collecting dust in your garages
and back rooms!
Please let us put them back into productive motion!
We still need Rocking or other comfortable Chairs of any variety in safe,
working condition, to form a large circle in the Hope Chapel and help
create an inviting, welcoming space.
Tom teaching children’s RE
watercolor last year
Update on Tom Wellman
Tom has been moved from ICU
to room 502 at Harris Methodist
HEB, located at 1600 Hospital
Parkway, Bedford,TX 76022.
His brother, Ed, and his wife,
Midge are keeping an eye on
him. Their number is 817-5402386. Tom would love to see
some of his old friends.
BIRTHDAYS
Fe b r u a r y
01-Missy Willingham
03-Lelan d Ammons
07-Wilbur Roberts
09-Ran de Wagner
10 -Jim Calhoun
17-Justin Grey
19-Anita Edgmon
21-Laurin LaTour
28-Cameron Hopson
28-David Brock
Sorry for the
delay of the
Oak Leaf.
Editor Rex
20 -Claudia Klipp
The Oak Leaf • February 2009
Page 6
Special UUCOC Event
Roy Zimmerman in Concert
Thursday, February 12
Free Screening March 3rd 7PM
8-9:30PM
Tickets: $12
This Award Winning documentary is a culmination of Yellow Thunder Woman’s first
hand experience growing up as a Native
American and Robin Davey's passionate
empathy of the need to bring such truths to
a wider audience.
Concert tickets:
$12.00
(Suggested donation; no
one will be turned away please call Rev. Mark
Walz for details.)
What's funny about war, poverty,
ignorance, bigotry, neoconservatism, homophobia,
greed, lust and fear? Ask Roy
Zimmerman. He's been writing
satirical songs for twenty years
and he's coming to North Texas!
Roy is a nationally-known liberal
satirist working in the comedic
Delving deep into the often misunderstood
and frequently over- looked historic realities
if the American Indian, The Canary Effect
follows the terrifying and horrific abuses
instilled upon the Indigenous people of
North America, and details the genocidal
practices of the US government and its continuing affects on present day Indian country.
tradition of Tom Lehrer and the
folk tradition of Phil Ochs. His
song in support of marriage equality, "Defenders of Marriage" has
been played at many Unitarian
Churches across the country.
You can check it out on YouTube.
Featuring interviews with the
leading scholars and experts
on Indian issues including controversial author Ward Churchill, the film brings together
the past and present in a way
never before captured so eloquently and boldly on film.
Roy has played UU churches all
over the country, considers himself an "itinerant Unitarian," and
is currently writing an article for
UU World about his experiences
playing the network of UU
churches.
HEADLINER
OPENER
Saturday, February 28
Doors open at 7:30PM * Show starts at 8PM
The Texas Gypsies
The Texas Gypsies have an eclectic sound,
combining Gypsy jazz with Western swing,
as well as their own unique take on pop
and jazz standards, with a look evocative
of the '30s and '40s.
The Oak Leaf • February 2009
$15 Adults
$8 Students w/ ID and
UUCOC Members
Advance tickets $12.00
Purchase your ticket
now and save!
Joel Sprayberry
Critics compare him to great
acoustic guitar mavens such as
Dave Matthews and John Mayer.
Come hear for yourself!
Page 7
Unitarian Universalist
Church of Oak Cliff
3839 W. Kiest Blvd.
Dallas, TX 75233
www.oakcliffuu.org
Minister: Rev. Mark Walz
Office hours Wednesday 10am-5 pm or
call for an appointment
Office (214) 337-2429 • Cell: (214) 755-4315
Email: [email protected]
Director of Religious Education:
Marcia Shannon (214) 929-2094
Email: [email protected]
UUCOC President:
Gene Dailey (214) 475-0638
Email: [email protected]
Vice President:
Stephen Betzen (214)929-3701
Secretary:
Kathy Grey (972) 660-2443
Treasurer:
Kimberlyn Crowe (214) 339-0585
Trustees: Ed Stofko, Nancy Johnstone and
Claudia Klipp
Newsletter Editor:
Rex Fountain (469) 363-5705
Email: [email protected]
February Religious Education Theme : MUSIC
2/01/2009 • A Song of Psalms & Other Music – An Expression of Our Beliefs? The sermon for
this Sunday is entitled: What's In Your Bible? The religious education program will focus on looking at
one part of the Bible, the Psalms. Psalms are an example of how music and theology intersect. The
RE lesson will build upon this idea, but incorporate a wider variety of songs to teach this truth.
2/08/2009 • Music as Meditation: The sermon will be given by special guest Phil Jones, who will also
hold a workshop for the adults after the service, focusing on use of Aboriginal Didgeridoo music as
meditation. Children's RE will build on last week's dialog about music as practical wisdom, to include
music as meditation.
2/15/2009 • Finding Our Evolutionary Groove? Today is Evolution Sunday. In religious education we
will continue to explore music, as a reflection of our starts, stops and in-between.
2/22/2009 • Finding Our “Life-Song” The worship will include our annual Stardust Communion. The
religious education program will look at music that is sung to honor creation, mother-earth, etc.
The Oak Leaf • February 2009
Page 8