by Kitty Merrill | Nov 4, 2018 | Justice Actions
Back in 2006 at a retreat, Board of Trustees did a visioning exercise asking: If the church were a person, how old would s/he be? What kind of person, what stage of life? They gave the church-as-person the gender neutral name Robin.
Twelve years ago, they thought Robin was a teenager on the cusp of becoming an adult, poised to do great things, but not yet launched.
S/he is:
- A kid, just moved out of the house. (The church had just moved down the hill from the Terry House.)
- On a journey, full of inquiry, authentic, caring, vulnerable.
- Someone who had a good upbringing, yet was at a bit of an awkward stage. Still asking, “What’s my place in the world? What’s my work? Who’s in charge and what are the limits?”
- Someone with lots of friends to bring home and many choices.
- Going in 15 directions at once.
- Dynamic, like unset Jello, (my personal favorite).
In 2013, Robin was resurrected at a Board and Congregation visioning session. Now Robin is a bit older, “about to be booted out of young adult camp.”
S/he is:
- Healthy, self-aware, still well-adjusted, focused, realistic, competent.
- Perhaps a little weary of growth, still dreaming but realizing some dreams are harder to achieve and are different than expected.
- Yet also rewarded by risks taken and ready to risk more.
- Has fewer authority issues, becoming a better team member.
- Knows more what s/he knows and how much s/he doesn’t know.
- Ready to lead from a place of greater experience.
We brought Robin back for Big Vision Saturday in October. The 30-plus people in Berg Hall realized Robin’s pronoun has become the singular “they” per our deeper understanding of the gender continuum. Most thought Robin is older, though still in transition. And Robin is busier than ever as a program-style church.
They are:
- More mature and stable, even gray at the temples, yet still with youthful energy.
- Experiencing some internal and external conflict.
- Values-driven and re-evaluating priorities. On the brink of a renaissance? A mid-life crisis?
- More nurturing, making more connections.
- Still going in 15 directions at once (both positively and negatively), feeling compartmentalized/stratified.
- Maybe bored or complacent, yet enough energy to make a shift.
- Seeking a sense of sanctuary.
- Becoming an extended family with children and grandchildren.
The world is a different place than it was 12 or even 5 years ago and we are a different church. There is both a sense we know who we are and we want to be more. We can be a strongly connected group caring for each other (even not knowing everyone). We can still bring our experienced-still-learning voice to the world.
I invite everyone to continue this visioning journey with the Five- Four-Five team and me over the next year.
Blessings and love, Rev. Dana
by Admin | Nov 4, 2018 | Justice Actions
In September, the Board held a congregational conversation on the issue of our long-term financial stability. This initial meeting was not intended to provide solutions. What we did was ask some questions. The Board wanted to learn the thoughts of our members to our challenge. Over 75 people attended the conversation and there were 129 out of 264 replies (49%) to the Survey Monkey that was emailed to the congregation. The Board has begun to discern the feelings and ideas from the responses which range from “scary” to “no problem” for our church.
At the September conversation we reported our membership as 239. That is what we certified with the UUA last February. We should have said that our current roll is 244. What gets lost in these numbers is that these are gains after making up for losses in membership most often due to folks moving or passing away. The issue is one of Static versus Dynamic growth. Ours is an upward trending graph that has seen us go from 184 members in 2004 to where we are today. Our first membership class of the year is in process and may bring 10-15 new members. It is important to know that we also have 28 pledging friends that help support this congregation.
Last year we learned as hard as it is to talk about money, the congregation wanted more opportunities to learn about our financial condition. In addition to the monthly Finance Committee meetings that are open to everyone, and the Finance articles in the newsletter, the next discussion with the congregation will be on January 27. That’s when we will have a first ever mid-year budget review. In January we will be a little more than halfway through the year. More will be known about the effect on the UUCV of not having a Congregational Life Coordinator. We will know the results of our Auction and there will be updated information on our membership growth and pledging as of December 31, 2018.
In January we will talk about the open staff position, cost of living adjustments (COLA), the Sunday Plate, pledging options, and volunteering. In early March we have plans for a Stewardship “Celebration Sunday” event. On March 31 there will be a presentation by the budget sub-committee on the proposed budget. Please attend, ask questions, and provide your input to the process. These events will inform the Finance Committee and Budget Sub-Committee on a recommendation to the Board for the 2019-2020 year. All to be completed and approved by the Board in time for your vote at our Annual meeting on June 9!
These discussions are about listening to the membership of the UUCV. They are about gathering information so that when it comes time to make recommendations and finalize decisions we will have the best sense of how to move forward in “right sizing” our congregation. We have been staffing a position from special funding for 6 years to support growth in size and in spirit. Transitioning to something less, or growing into something more, is the challenge for a church that seeks to share our love, joy and optimism about the future with as many people as we can.
Living in Paradise,
Bryan Buck, UUCV Board President
by Kitty Merrill | Oct 4, 2018 | Justice Actions
A Word About Applause
This is a question that cycles around again and again:
When is it appropriate to applaud the music in a worship service?
At UUCV applause is becoming more routine. Some people do wave their hands in the American Sign Language sign for applause (though others also find that distracting). Applause is problematic when it becomes routine as for most performances and is not an authentic response to the music itself.
Music in worship is not a performance, it is a spiritual offering, a meditation, a gift of holy sound. For some it feels awkward not to applaud. Yet for others applause intrudes jarringly into a meditative experience.
There is yet another layer of cultural expectations in this discussion. An expectation of silence comes, at least in part, from a Eurocentric Western ethos. In many cultures, music in worship is almost a conversation between musician and congregation, a shared holy experience. This is a consideration for us as we speak of being a community welcoming of many cultures, races and backgrounds.
There is no right or wrong here, no hard and fast rule. Here are a few things to consider.
Often the most appropriate response to music is a hushed, reverent silence, especially if it is quiet and tender.
Remember for some, applause after music that is heart-rendingly beautiful can be a shock to the system.
Alternatives include:
- Smiling gratefully at the musicians,
- Clasping your hands over your hearts,
- Thanking the musicians after the service.
Please do applaud when a piece of music is so uplifting and inspiring, it joyously carries your energy up and out your hands before you think about it.
Remember that for some, a dead silence after music is played can feel oppressive and constrained.
When we have musicians singing a familiar folk or rock song, or the choir sings a rollicking, foot-stomping gospel number, the impulse to applaud is wonderfully spontaneous.
Sometimes it is completely appropriate to:
- Sing along,
- Clap in time (though try to clap on beats 2 and 4, not 1 and 3),
- Call out a joyous answer to a question the lyrics pose.
Applause is worse when it is polite and perfunctory.
When in doubt, you can follow the lead of the Music Director or the Minister.
There is no clear bright line about when to applaud or not. (We can almost rest assured that our favorite response to music will drive someone else crazy.)
This is one of the places we may need to be uncomfortable some of the time as we work at embracing a wider realm of human and cultural expression.
It is an area to practice kindness and curiosity with one another.
Loving the conversation and all of you,
Rev. Dana
by Admin | Oct 4, 2018 | Justice Actions
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about the history of the UUCV and our record of accomplishments since we began 60 years ago on November 2, 1958. Over the years we have overcome many obstacles to achieve the forward motion that has brought us to where we are today. A handful of people had a vision for liberal religion in Ventura. They met in homes and worked together to provide a meaningful spiritual experience with other like-minded folks. They rented small commercial spaces to hold services. After many years a home, the Terry House, was purchased which became a permanent place to worship. Time passed, new members joined, families grew, friends passed away. When the time came a new home on Ralston was acquired. The cycle continues with new families joining and old friends saying goodbye. Between the bookends is the thread of what it means to experience a fully lived life as part of a religious/spiritual community. You can get a measure of that experience on Sunday mornings during coffee hour. Berg Hall just seems to be alive following the service. There is a buzz in the room that is electric and affirming of the journey that has seen the growth of the UUCV.
And why shouldn’t there be? We have grown into a vital home of people in community with each other, each on their own spiritual path. Our website www.uuventura.org has a section on our history at https://www.uuventura.org/about-us/our-stories/church-history/ and is worth a review by everyone. You will learn just how far we’ve come and how it is that we stand on the shoulders of others. Folks largely unknown to most of us made a place at the table for people they would never meet. They were paying it forward. The generational charge being to “pass it on.” I think that by “it” is meant the generosity that comes in the form of acceptance, friendship, sharing, and journeying together as we each seek our way. For me, the result is a deep feeling of gratitude for those who came before and for those who are here now.
This year we are to be engaged in the serious business of discerning who we are and what we want for ourselves and future generations. In September, the Board held a Congregational Conversation around the issue of our long-term financial stability. This was not intended as a meeting to provide solutions. That will come later in the year. What we did was ask some questions. It’s in the revelations from the answers that we find our way. One of those questions was: How is the Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura my legacy? This work we are doing together involves deep sharing with one another. It is about the longings of our hearts and what we want for ourselves and others. However we do it, the time has arrived for each of us to decide how we shall move the UUCV forward and what the legacy will be for those who are yet to come.
Living in Paradise,
Bryan Buck, UUCV Board President
by Kitty Merrill | Sep 4, 2018 | Justice Actions
Our theme for September is Vision, fitting for us right now as we embark on a process to create and vision for UUCV for the next five years. Yet I confess that I am struggling to find an inspiring way to express our vision in our present context. Back in my Berkeley days I remember the bumpersticker, “Think globally, act locally.” It still has power, yet now thinking globally feels harder – especially in the realms of politics and economics – and can lead easily to an unhelpful sense of despair. It feels more manageable to think locally and act locally.
Luckily, we are all responsible for creating a vision for the church. I am grateful that we have such thoughtful, committed and caring people to dream together. I can envision many possibilities, yet perhaps my most significant role is holding the spiritual questions. What are you called to bring into the world – in your life and in the church? What inspires you? What spiritual connection will sustain you in that calling?
Together, over the next weeks and months we will be asking, “What is our story at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura? What is the story that we tell? What is the story we hope that others will tell about us?”
We ask those questions in the context of significant transitions.
- The irreplaceable Beverly Jordan will leave us – sometime between November and March – after nearly 5 years of service to UUCV. We are a better people, a stronger community because of her presence among us. She has helped us discover gifts we might not otherwise have seen. As sad as we are at her departure, we now have an opportunity to keep blossoming and living into what Beverly taught us we are.
- We are facing a significant budget deficit in the coming years. Deficits definitely produce their share of anxiety, yet once more we have an opportunity to evaluate what we need and want as a congregation and consider how and what we have resources for. My own anixiety is lessened by knowing that – even in the face of a deficit – the church is in strong financial shape. We have greater reserve funds than in any church I have experience with.
At least two more questions arise: What will we do with our gifts? As a generous people, what can we create in the world?
There are two opportunities to begin asking these questions.
- The board is hosting a Congregational Conversation to begin planning for addressing our deficit on Sept. 16 after church at 11:30
- The 5-for-5 Visioning (task) Force* will be holding a BIG Vision Saturday on Oct. 6 from 9-12. It’s only the beginning of a process that will need your participation and input in many formats. I hope many of you will be able to attend one or both of these events.
We’ll find our way through these transitions together.
In times like these – within the church and beyond – I have never been gladder that we share the ministry of the church.
With love, Rev. Dana
* George Owens has stepped down from our 5-For-5
by Admin | Sep 4, 2018 | Justice Actions
Sometimes it is a little challenging to write a regular monthly column. That means I am always on the lookout for inspiration. Here is what I found for this month. Back in 1738 “Poor Richard’s Almanac” contained these words from Benjamin Franklin: “If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing.” Franklin was known for his intellect and wit. He was also a Unitarian.
Then there is this gem that I found from Kahlil Gibran (1883-1931) a writer, poet, artist and philosopher who wrote: “I slept, and I dreamed that life is all joy. I woke, and I saw that life is all service. I served and saw that service is joy.”
My musing will never be confused with great literature. Which leaves me with writing about the wonderful things that happen here at the UUCV. This community we share is growing. The challenge is to find ways to be in relationship with each other. That’s everyone’s responsibility, to reach out to each other, and introduce yourself to people you haven’t met before. The making of connections, having friends who accept us as we are, is a spiritual quest for belonging and community.
In my case the past month brought opportunities to begin new relationships and deepen existing ones. There was time spent participating at Building & Grounds Day (3rd Saturday of every month); went on a hike with the UU Hikers led by Mike Sixbey (1st Saturday of every month); and enjoyed the camaraderie of the UUniques 50+ Potluck organized by Pat and Merle Oberg (4th Thursday of every month). There was also church work on a couple of projects. One involved research on the RE/Multipurpose room with Will Devine. The other project is with Neal Ortenberg and concerns the possibility of partnering with another non-profit organization to offer a shower service for the Safe Sleep participants on our property.
By reading the newsletter, or checking your email for the weekly church announcements, reading the back of the Order-of-Service, perusing the bulletin boards in Berg Hall, or stopping by the Connecting Table on Sundays you can learn of the many, many activities we have at the UUCV. I strongly encourage everyone to try new things. That would encourage adventure and exploration benefitting your spiritual well-being. By actively participating in the life of the church you will find your place at the table and you will be building a legacy of giving and receiving.
Living in Paradise,
Bryan Buck, UUCV Board President
