by Kitty Merrill | Apr 1, 2019 | Minister, News (home), Services Upcoming
I am writing to you a day after a wonderful Celebration Sunday. There was laughter and spirit and commitment flowing through the sanctuary and Berg Hall. It was a fabulous kick-off to a successful stewardship drive for our 2019-2020 fiscal year. I am so grateful for the multi-faceted generosity of this amazing congregation.
If you have not yet made your pledge for the year, your pledge increases can still be matched by the $30,000 fund which we received (from UUA funds matching legacy gifts from our members).
I am continually amazed that all of us together essentially create this church out of nothing – nothing but goodwill, love, and commitment. You make this church come into being through your service – through your time, talent, and treasure, your wisdom, work, and wealth.
We often talk about all of the volunteer time and work it takes to bring this community into being. Yet this blog post (from Rev. Erin Wathen, a Christian colleague) has a different taking on volunteering that really resonated with me. She says it is essentially impossible to be a volunteer at church.
“You cannot volunteer at your own church, in the same way you cannot babysit your own [children].
Because the church belongs to you in the same way your family does. It’s your own place, your own people. So of course you help take care of it.
Of course you do yard work and make coffee and teach the kids and sing in the choir and whatever all else it is you do for the home and the people you love.
A volunteer, in most cases, is just visiting. A fly-by. [It may be helpful], but it’s not the same as belonging to something. It’s not the same as contributing to something bigger than you, something that’s part of who you are.”
Rev. Erin Wathen
We volunteer, she goes on, for outside organizations in need, “a place that is important to you, but not in a place that belongs to you.”
What we do at our church is serve. “We bring our gifts of love and service to the altar of humanity,” as the famously wise author anonymous tells us. This makes me all the more grateful for all the gifts – of time, talent, and treasure, of love and service – that our dear members and friends bring forth all the time.
We are creating a Beloved Community every day with every breath. It takes all our gifts, our strengths, our foibles, our dreams, our clear heads, our open hearts, our fullest presence.
So thank you, thank you, thank you
Rev. Dana
by Kitty Merrill | Feb 7, 2019 | Minister, Services Past
I love the image of the Hindu god Indra’s net, stretching out in all directions, weaving the universe in place. At each intersection where the strands cross each other sits a glittering jewel, and each jewel reflects the light of every other jewel. So what happens to one jewel, happens to all.
A net or web is a good metaphor for a congregation the size we have become. There is no longer a center around which everything revolves. We remain as connected as ever, though it can feel a bit disconcerting because no one knows everything or everything that is going on. Not even – perhaps especially not even – the minister.
The many cross currents and groups and new initiatives in the church these days are varied and exciting. We have even found that our financial situation, while still a concern, is nowhere near as serious as we thought
last fall. A combination of staffing changes, new members and growing generosity is helping.
Our commitment to our homeless neighbors and to environmental justice remains strong.
The newest Action Team for Immigrant Rights has lit a fire in many hearts about the treatment of migrants at our borders. And meanwhile our Five For Five Force – the five-year vision task force made up of five dedicated souls – has been hard at work. At this phase much of that work has been a bit in the background. We’ve been compiling input from three congregational gatherings – two led by the Board of Trustees in September and January, and one led by 545 Force in October.
With all that input, we have come up with a very draft-y, working vision statement.
The Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura gathers to:
• Invite connections and diversity
• Spark and nurture free journeys of spiritual growth
• Reach out to create a more just and loving community, in harmony with nature.
We do not intend this to be a final statement, just a guide for our visioning work, a framework around which we can build our vision for the next five years. These days are a fascinating time to be doing visioning work. We are as a congregation still living into the bold visions of the last decade. All the work we do – gathering together in worship, small groups, religious education classes and more, reaching out to heal the world beyond our
walls – all of it is adding to the sum total of love and justice in the world.
We are being the church in profound ways, and the world needs us now more than ever. Let us remember, too, the words of Howard Thurman. “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what brings you alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”Let us think big, dream together, and come alive. For as we do, our aliveness will reflect in everyone else’s in Indra’s net and together we will bring forth more life and love.
With Love, Rev. Dana
by Kitty Merrill | Jan 1, 2019 | Minister, Services Past
With the New Year I offer this refresher on my schedule, how
best to reach me, and other (hopefully) useful info.
My workweek is Saturday through Thursday. Friday is my day
off, Saturday is my writing day, and Sunday is, well, Sunday. After church
comes my standing date with Barzillai the Cat. I lie on the couch and he lies
on me. I scratch his ears; he purrs; I can even nap – a good arrangement.
I’m essentially on call 24 hours and 7 days a week.
It’s daunting, and I want y’all to know I also take
advantage of a flexible schedule. If I’ve got a meeting at night, I often won’t
come in till noon or later. I work 6 days a week, though if it’s ten hours one
day, it may be four the next.
I usually work about 45-50 hours a week. It’s been 60 or
more, though that is pretty rare. After a particularly long week, I’ll ease off
a bit the next.
I attend some, though not all, church events on Fridays.
When I do, I’ll make up for it another day.
The best way to reach me is email: rev.dana.worsnop@uuventura.org,
or on my cell phone (which is in the directory). If you need me quickly,
texting is best. In general, please don’t call or text on Fridays. And if you
email me late-ish on Thursday or a Friday, you make not get a reply until
Monday.
I also prefer not to be called or texted before 9am or after
9pm.
I trust you to figure out if your issue is urgent enough to
reach out on those days and other hours.
If you have an emergency, do not hesitate. If you cannot
decide if you have an urgency or an emergency, also do not hesitate.
I don’t hold specific office hours, though I usually can
make appointments within 2-3 days. The best days are Monday, Wednesday, and
Thursday.
We hold staff meetings on Tuesdays. Because we work on the
orders of service then, it’s best if you can have information in to Jennifer by
Monday afternoon.
A final note about Sundays – and this is true for all Sunday
staff. Sunday is our biggest day of the week. We know it’s a good time for you
to be in touch with us, though we can be tired and scattered. We may not be
able to answer your questions or even remember them on Monday. And we just
can’t get with everyone. So your patience is much appreciated.
I look forward to our new year ahead – with the whole
congregation and our wonderful staff team.
Happiest of New Years.
Love,
Rev. Dana
by Admin | Jan 1, 2019 | Minister, Services Past
With the New Year I offer this refresher on my schedule, how
best to reach me, and other (hopefully) useful info.
My workweek is Saturday through Thursday. Friday is my day
off, Saturday is my writing day, and Sunday is, well, Sunday. After church
comes my standing date with Barzillai the Cat. I lie on the couch and he lies
on me. I scratch his ears; he purrs; I can even nap – a good arrangement.
I’m essentially on call 24 hours and 7 days a week.
It’s daunting, and I want y’all to know I also take
advantage of a flexible schedule. If I’ve got a meeting at night, I often won’t
come in till noon or later. I work 6 days a week, though if it’s ten hours one
day, it may be four the next.
I usually work about 45-50 hours a week. It’s been 60 or
more, though that is pretty rare. After a particularly long week, I’ll ease off
a bit the next.
I attend some, though not all, church events on Fridays.
When I do, I’ll make up for it another day.
The best way to reach me is email: rev.dana.worsnop@uuventura.org,
or on my cell phone (which is in the directory). If you need me quickly,
texting is best. In general, please don’t call or text on Fridays. And if you
email me late-ish on Thursday or a Friday, you make not get a reply until
Monday.
I also prefer not to be called or texted before 9am or after
9pm.
I trust you to figure out if your issue is urgent enough to
reach out on those days and other hours.
If you have an emergency, do not hesitate. If you cannot
decide if you have an urgency or an emergency, also do not hesitate.
I don’t hold specific office hours, though I usually can
make appointments within 2-3 days. The best days are Monday, Wednesday, and
Thursday.
We hold staff meetings on Tuesdays. Because we work on the
orders of service then, it’s best if you can have information in to Jennifer by
Monday afternoon.
A final note about Sundays – and this is true for all Sunday
staff. Sunday is our biggest day of the week. We know it’s a good time for you
to be in touch with us, though we can be tired and scattered. We may not be
able to answer your questions or even remember them on Monday. And we just
can’t get with everyone. So your patience is much appreciated.
I look forward to our new year ahead – with the whole
congregation and our wonderful staff team.
Happiest of New Years.
Love,
Rev. Dana
by Admin | Nov 4, 2018 | Minister
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 | Oct 4, 2018 | Minister
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
