Sunday, September 23, 2007

Offering: This is a time of such promise at South Church. A new church year begins; we celebrate the rebirth of the choir, and the Adult Spiritual Enrichment program. We ask ourselves, what gifts can we bring to this community, in gratitude for all that it brings to our lives. In a moment we will pass the basket, the common ritual of giving. In recognition of the richness of what we all have to offer, the Worship Associates are introducing a new ritual this morning. One Sunday per month, as the basket is passed, we will invite you to come forward with another offering – the offering of your joys and sorrows, your hopes and dreams. If you wish to light a silent candle of hope, memory, or gratitude, please come down the center aisle, light a candle, and return to your seats by the side aisles. The offerings, for the health and nurture of this beloved community, will now be received.

Prayer:  This basket holds the fruit of your labors, given so that our shared labors will be fruitful. (Place it on the pulpit and point to the candles) These many small flames hold our faith that sorrows shared are halved, and joys shared are doubled. In that spirit let us join together in prayer.
Spirit of life and love, we are gathered here on this glorious day, grateful for all that is given to us. Warm afternoon sunshine and crisp, chilly evenings . . . mums and asters and the final glory of the sunflowers . . . the promise of leaves turning . . . apples and pears and pumpkins . . . We consider with gratitude all that enriches our lives.
Let our gratitude give rise to an increased compassion. We hold in our hearts all that we know of sorrow and loss – of illness and injury and pain. I  speak the name of Susan Kisslinger, who is adjusting slowly to life at Edgewood, and who is learning new ways of moving and being in the world. Other names are known to each of you. We pray for them all.
We are saddened by the distressing incident of violence at Portsmouth High School this week, and pray for the safety and well-being of the students there. 

As peace makers, we continue to both work for and pray for peace – in our communities, in the Middle East, and around the world. Hear these words of prayer and petition which our Association president, Rev. Bill Sinkford, will take to Washington DC in October. “I will join protest to prayer, support ministries of compassion for victims here and in the Middle East and cast off the fear that has made many of us accept ways of violence and return again to the way of love. Thus may bloodshed end and cries be transformed to the harmonies of justice and the melodies of peace. For this I yearn, for this I petition, and toward this end I rededicate myself as a member of our human family.” Let Bill’s prayer be our prayer as we enter into the deep silence of shared meditation.

Musical Response

Covenant Group Convener Installation: Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name. At South Church, that would be your Covenant Group. The Covenant Group program is a ministry – the ministry of creating a safe place for all who wish to be known and to know each other, to be heard and to listen, to sit in shared silence and dynamic conversation, to grow and to challenge others in their growth. We are all grateful to the people who have taken on the nurture and support of our small group ministry. This includes both the Covenant Group Committee and the conveners for this year’s groups. If you are a Covenant Group veteran, you know well the richness of the experience. If you are new to this idea, please stop by the table downstairs in the parish hall. Today we begin sign-ups for this year’s Covenant groups. During the year the discussions will be about diverse topics. One common thread will be to focus on the 6 Sources of Unitarian Universalism. What are those, you are wondering? Well, sign up for a group to find out.
On behalf of the entire congregation I want to thank and honor those who give of their time, their ideas, and their talents to make this program possible. Would you please stand in your place as your name is called. Lauren Katz chairs the committee this year, and is joined by Deanna Strand, Gwen Tambling, and Dee Dee Chambers. Gwen and Dee Dee also are conveners. The other conveners are Pam Lehman, Wes Tator, Deb McDermott,  Gillian Carter, and Georgianna Ritter. For making small group ministry happen at South Church, we thank all of you.
If you stop at the sign-up table you will note that there is one group that still lacks a convener. Maybe it’s you.

Maybe It’s Me

          “I was taught,” writes Marian Wright Edelman of the Children’s Defense Fund, “that the world had a lot of problems; that I could struggle and change them; that intellectual and material gifts brought the privilege and the responsibility of sharing with others less fortunate; and that service is the rent each of us pays for living – the very purpose of life and not something you do in your spare time or after you have reached your personal goals.”  Powerful sentiment from a woman who has made it her life work to protect the most vulnerable among us. Service is the rent you pay for living – not something you do in your spare time. That is a faith statement; it reflects an ethic of generosity and even obligation. Yes, obligation. From those to whom much is given, much is also expected. Well, if service is the rent we pay for living, perhaps stewardship is the mortgage. Sure, a mortgage is a bit more intimidating than a rent payment – more permanent, probably bigger. But we are, after all, talking about our church home. We are the owners, we are the ones who seek shelter in this room, who bring our children to be dedicated and our loves and commitments to be sanctified. We expect that when we die this community will rally to take care of our loved ones and will memorialize us appropriately.
I have often thought about my financial commitment to the church in the same category with my mortgage. It is not something optional; it is not an afterthought, it is not what I give once I’ve spent all the money I want to spend on myself. It is what I pay for living in religious community. I budget my financial commitment the same way I budget other essential expenses. But not everybody shares my sense of indebtedness to this congregation. Yes, indebtedness. I owe my life and my marriage and my child and my vocation and even my sanity to the existence of this church – and the other Unitarian Universalist congregations that have welcomed me. So every year when it is time for the stewardship drive, I look for yet another novel way to convince all of you to care about your church as deeply as Marian Wright Edelman cares about children. With passion and conviction, with generosity, even with abandon.
Last June at General Assembly I attended a plenary session which featured what we call a ‘breakthrough congregation.’ These are UU congregations that have, in some dramatic way, broken through some barrier to growth and become wildly successful by their own definition. One of the breakthrough congregations was All Souls in Kansas City. They showed a video illustrating their success. The narration began with one man, who had been instrumental in leading the church through the barrier, telling his story. He told of  walking into the building and looking around. He noticed the peeling paint and the worn carpet, and the over-all shabbiness of his church home. And he thought to himself, “Somebody’s not caring for this building. Maybe it’s me.”
As soon as I heard those words I knew I was hearing the motto for this year’s Stewardship campaign at South Church. It is so simple. Maybe it’s me. Because the truth is, without every one of you, we will not flourish. We will not thrive. You cannot depend on somebody else to take care of this building, or to pay fair compensation to the staff. Or to buy the origami paper for the 1000 paper cranes we are in the midst of folding. Maybe it’s me. Another novel way to convince you to care as deeply about the church as I do. Or as Ellen Forbes does, for instance. Speaking of Ellen Forbes – a member of the Stewardship Development Committee and somebody who never looks around and expects that somebody else will take care of this place – Ellen wants to speak with you about the why of stewardship. Why should we bother, why is it so important that we exist.

Roberta’s conclusion: So, Ellen gave you the why. As in why should I participate in the Stewardship campaign. I hope that I gave you the who. Yes you. We are talking to you. The next step is the how and where and when. And all of that will become clear when your visiting steward calls. You may receive their call with some trepidation. They are asking a lot of you. They are asking you to pay the mortgage that comes due to every one of us in exchange for living our lives of faith in this church home. But please know that they are not asking any more of you than they have already asked of themselves. More than 60 South Church members have gone through an orientation that prepared them to call you. And what they ask is really quite simple. Welcome their call. Return their call if they have to leave a message. Meet with them. Invite them into your home, or suggest some place you would be comfortable talking with them. Prepare for their visit by reflecting honestly about your commitment to this church, and the value that this church brings to you and your family. Take a look in the mirror. Somebody needs to care for this building, and for these people, and for the many ministries that make up South Church. Maybe, just maybe, it’s me. And you.