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Tributaries
Just before I left Vancouver, Washington to move to
Sonoma a colleague of mine, a hospital chaplain,
suggested that I might like the work of Francis Weller.
Little did I know at the time how much I would come to
appreciate his work and wisdom.
Francis Weller is a psychotherapist, author, and retreat
leader who specializes in grief work. He has written
two books: Entering the Healing Ground: Grief, Ritual
and the Soul of the World, and his most recent book,
The Wild Edge of Sorrow: Rituals of Renewal and the
Sacred Work of Grief. He lives nearby in Forestville
and does presentations at Commonweal in Bolinas
and at the Point Reyes Bookstore.
In his first book, Entering the Healing Ground, Francis
Weller says that if we are willing to undertake “an
apprenticeship with sorrow,” grief can become a
gateway to our authentic self, to becoming fully alive.
He describes Five Gates of Grief that we pass through
in our apprenticeship with sorrow, not just once, but
like a tollbooth on the Golden Gate Bridge we go
through these gates every time we cross over to the
other side of the bay.
Identifying these gates of grief and knowing how to
navigate our way through them creates the opportunity
to honor and heal the times of loss that we will
inevitably face, instead of greeting them in isolation
with denial or fear.
In reading Francis Weller I quickly discovered that he is
a great collector of quotations and poetry such as
these two examples:
“Grief dares us to love once more.” Terry Tempest
Williams
“Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,
you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.”
Naomi Shihab Nye
Volume 35 Issue 3 March 2016 Rev. Alan Claassen, Interim Minister
The Grapevine
Newsletter of the First Congregational Church of Sonoma
United Church of Christ
In the preface of his book, The Wild Edge of Sorrow,
Francis Weller writes “An apprenticeship with sorrow
offers us the chance to build our capacity to stay
present when intense feelings of grief arise. Through
meaningful rituals, a community of friends, and some
time in benevolent solitude, we are offered the
opportunity to develop living relations with loss. In so
doing, our hearts are ripened and made available for
the great work of loving our lives and this astonishing
world.”
It seems to me that this apprenticeship with sorrow is
another way of describing the journey of Lent into and
through Holy Week, Good Friday, Maundy Thursday,
and Easter.
In my sermon on February 21 I shared a Facebook
article written by the musician Barbara McAfee. In the
article she responds to a poem often read at memorial
services:
“Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep.” The response
actually came to Barbara in a voice from someone
speaking to her from heaven that said,
Now, Honey. You just go ahead and stand at
my grave and weep. Please, please…weep!
It’s bizarre to be where I am now — in this lovely
though totally indescribable place – and see you
expending such precious energy on NOT
weeping, NOT breathing, NOT living this
experience. Sweetheart, you are still alive.
So be…alive!
May we walk through the remaining weeks of the
Lenten journey trusting that our Scriptures, our
friendships, our prayers, our tears and laughter, our
faith, our times of worship that occur in so many ways
and places throughout the week, will be for us a holy
Sanctuary, tried and true.
-- Pastor Alan
Earth Care
The ECC is now organized into three subcommittees:
(1) Education, Films, Speakers, Field Trips;
(2) Healthy/Local Food and Purchasing Choices;
(3) FCC Sonoma Advocates for Earth Care
A spring schedule of films, speakers, and field trips is
being planned. A community-wide “Earth Day Festival”
may be hosted in April by the ECC on our FCC
campus, including local farmers’ market vendors, solar
and landscaping workshops, films, etc.
The next ECC Nature Walk is Monday, March 14, from
9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. at Sugarloaf. This walk will
feature an introduction to “Shinrin-yoku” led by Virginia
Bertelsen -- http://www.shinrin-yoku.org/. For this walk,
sign up at donnellyj63@gmail.com. The ECC
welcomes your suggestions and invites your
participation. Next ECC meeting is Tuesday, March 8,
at 5:00 p.m. in the Community Room.
-- John Donnelly
We Have a New Treasurer!
I’m extremely happy to announce Bill Hutchinson has
volunteered to be our new Treasurer! Our former
treasurer, Candi Horton, has begun training our
recently hired bookkeeper, Deborah Droubay, and we
are delighted that Bill will be working with Deborah to
handle our financial affairs. We are in very good hands,
indeed! As a side note, Bill will be stepping down from
the Stewardship Committee.
I wish to say a special thank you
t to Candi Horton for her
incredible dedication, hard work
and cheerfulness throughout this
transition. Well done, Candi!
Thanks also to Ray Snipes, Judy Weiner, and Alan
Claassen for their teamwork and support.
-- Margie Mitchell
COMMITTEE NEWS
Church Council
At our leadership retreat on February 6 all our
committee chairs and council members met and
discussed plans to more fully “live our bylaws” this
year. We are focused on:
1) What the bylaws say about each committee’s responsibilities.
2) What each committee is actually doing (or not doing) and why.
3) What, if anything, needs to be changed in the bylaws to better reflect our current needs and practices?
We also talked about improving communication
between council and all the committees. A few years
back we changed the structure of our council to
include five members-at-large in lieu of the committee
chairs. While this structure has its advantages
(committee chairs do not need to attend two meetings
every month), the disadvantage is communication
between groups is not always what it should be. To
compensate for this disadvantage, it was stated in the
bylaws that each committee would report to council at
least two times a year and each committee would have
a council member liaison.
Council plans to “live the bylaws” more fully this year
by doing two things:
1) Strengthening the liaison roles between council members and committees.
2) Inviting all committee chairs to attend council meetings on June 2 and October 6
At the October meeting we will share our “live the
bylaws” experiences and recommendations for the
bylaws revision committee in 2017. I’m looking forward
to a lively discussion!
-- Margie Mitchell, Moderator
Hospitality
Our thanks to everyone who has helped with coffee
hour. It's a wonderful time of friendship and
fellowship after the worship service, and we
appreciate those who make it happen each Sunday.
If you haven't helped with set-up, clean-up, or
bringing food, we hope each of you will take a look
at our Coffee Hour sign-up chart, and fill in with your
energy and talents when you can. It isn't difficult,
and it's a wonderful way to contribute to our
community.
If you're bringing food, we suggest keeping it fairly
simple; Hospitality Committee members can offer
suggestions if you're not sure what to bring. We
want the emphasis to be on fellowship rather than
food. As an Earth Care church we encourage
healthy local snacks, if possible, and we welcome
any food you are willing to share.
-- Patricia Henley
Worship Committee
Points of interest from the Worship Committee:
1. Mary Evelyn has agreed to chair the Sanctuary Renovation Committee.
2. Following our change of scheduling, Communion will be held on Maundy Thursday, and the first Sundays in March, May, July, September and November.
3. The Earth Care Committee will organize a
special Sunday Service to celebrate Earth
Day on Sunday, April 17.
-- Joan Howarth
Sanctuary Renovation Committee
The committee continues to work very hard to
develop recommendations to fulfill the hopes and
dreams of the congregation for our sanctuary. At the
same time we are updating cost estimates. We look
forward to presenting a plan soon.
I will be leaving for a brief trip north, then over 4
months to the Dominican Republic, so I am leaving
the committee at the end of February. Mary Evelyn
Arnold is the new chairperson.
-- Brian Smucker
West Spain Thrift Shop
The shop has been quite busy the last few months. We
always are in need of clean, high-quality, usable items
of all kinds – clothing, accessories, house wares, linens,
jewelry, tools, artwork, and collectibles – and right now
we would especially welcome donations of jewelry.
We were only open for half the month of January, but
our sales were brisk once we opened, and our January
numbers look good:
$2,345.43 in sales
$205.22 in sales tax collected
$12.77 from eBay sales
$27.59 in cash donations
January Total = $2,591.01
A Thrift Shop business meeting is set for 11:30 a.m. on
Tuesday, March 22: all Thrift Shop volunteers are
welcome to attend.
Our thanks to everyone who supports the shop with
donations, purchases, and volunteer work.
-- Patricia Henley
Pastoral Search Committee
As the "Camino" map in the Community Room conveys,
the Search Committee is continuing to receive and
review candidate profiles. As of this writing, we each will
have read and evaluated 41 profiles, each being 15-20
pages in length. We have begun interviewing intriguing
candidates, mostly through pre-arranged Skype.
To gain further insight into candidates with whom we
feel a possible connection, we listen to, observe and
read their sermons. Seeing and hearing the candidate
adds another level of evaluation. Many of these
technical aids were not available during the last
selection process.
We have some excellent candidates. Their voices bode
well for the depth and breadth of leadership in the
UCC. We know how critical our task is, and we accept it
with reverence and enthusiasm. Please continue to
remember the Pastoral Search Committee in your
prayers that we may discern the best possible candidate
for our church, and prayers that the candidate feels
called to journey with us.
-- Jan Edwards
Education Committee
Members of the Education Committee, formerly known
as Spiritual Formation Committee, met recently to
reorganize supplies that are kept in the sliding door
cabinet on the left as you enter the West Wing of Old
Adobe School. While most of these materials are used
for Sunday School, there are a variety of supplies such
as votives, other candles, copy paper in white and a
variety of colors, poster board, and craft supplies that
might be used for committee projects.
Please don't hesitate to look in the West Wing - when
Old Abode School is not in session - for materials you
might need for agendas or projects before spending
hard-to-come-by money for something we already have.
-- Mary Beth Halsey
Outreach
The Outreach Committee is grateful to the congregation
for their continued support and especially pleased that
more money was allocated in 2016 to support the
organizations we embrace. Thank you so much!
We are no longer collecting change for Pennies for
Peace as this collection has run its course and we want
to give our time and energy to other worthy causes.
Thanks to all of you for your past generosity!
One Great Hour of Sharing provides support that
changes lives and gives people a future filled with hope.
The bulk of the One Great Hour of Sharing offering goes
to support water, hunger, disaster relief, and
empowerment programs. Focusing on these four areas
allows One Great Hour of Sharing to address some of
the root causes of suffering in our world. Your gifts for
this special collection on March 13 will make hope
possible.
-- Janice Mattison
Spring Equinox Concert Love Springs Eternal!
Sunday, March 20, 2:00 p.m., FCC Sanctuary
Enjoy an eclectic acoustic music ensemble playing new arrangements of great popular songs with talented musicians: Taras Lumiere (guitar, violin, vocals); Carol Emanuel (harp, vocals); Keith Ridenhour (flute, sax); Alan Claassen (guitar, vocals); Robert Young (congas, percussion); and special guests. A free-will offering will be taken with all proceeds directed to F.I.S.H.
In Memory of the ones we love... Two beloved saints of our church passed away; Lori Hutchinson and Carol Knope. Lori was well known in this community, Carol by only a few, but both led lives worthy
of their calling and will be missed.
In Celebration of one we welcome… We are also holding in our joy-filled memory the baptism of Jack Tucker Leary, grandson of Bill and Lori, son
of their daughter, Kate, and son-in-law, Owen. Jack was baptized by Rev. Bill during our Sunday worship
service on February 14, Valentine’s Day. Love continues…
Easter Preparations
Palm Sunday Sunday, March 20
10:30 a.m., Sanctuary
Maundy Thursday
Thursday, March 24 7:00 p.m., Sanctuary
Good Friday Community Service
Friday, March 25 12:00 p.m.
Sonoma United Methodist Church 109 Patten Street, Sonoma
Easter Sunday
Sunday, March 27 10:30 a.m., Sanctuary
Daylight Savings Time
Be kind to
your new
bookkeeper
There are a few ways that each of you can help in
making the job of Deborah Droubay, our new
bookkeeper, efficient and unstressed. They include:
Use your full name. When communicating in writing
please always use your full name and make sure it is
legible. This would include offering envelopes, notes,
and invoices you are submitting for payment.
Use the in-box. Any items being submitted to the
bookkeeper should be placed in Angela’s in-box in the
office. They will then be routed appropriately.
Include account information. If you know what account
a payment is for please include a note to that effect. If
you don’t know the account, please include the
committee requesting payment and any additional
information that might help determine which account is
correct. Clues are good.
Plan ahead. It can take seven to nine days to send a
check or make a payment. There is an emergency plan
in place for items that need payment sooner but that
plan involves an extra trip to the church and
coordinating of check signers out of the established
routine.
When your committee has approved expenditure from a
specific account or will be having an event that will
involve monies coming in and/or out please make sure
this information is relayed to the bookkeeper as soon as
possible. This can be done through the green
reimbursement forms found next to the copier in the
office or via email to the church office.
Indicate where your funds are to be allocated. As
usual, it is most helpful to use the memo line on the
bottom of your check to indicate what your check is for.
Thanks for your help in making this a smooth transition.
-- Candi Horton
Next Earth Care Nature Walk
by way of "Shinrin-Yoku, Forest Therapy"
Monday, March 14, 9:00 a.m. -12:30 p.m.
Sugarloaf State Park - Rain will cancel
Meet at 9:00 a.m. at the back FCC parking lot
to arrange carpools to Sugarloaf State Park.
Parking Fee: $7.00 day use fee; bring park passes if
you have one.
Bring: Water, snacks, and tripod stools if you have
one.
The way of Forest Therapy:
A gentle walk of less than one mile lasting about
two hours. During the walk you will be given
invitations that will help you slow down, open your
senses, deepen your connection with nature and
cultivate personal well-being. Forest Therapy is
inspired by the Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku,
which translates as "bathing in the ambiance of the
forest."
RSVP: Space is limited to 20 participants. Please
confirm your place with an email to John Donnelly at
donnellyj63@gmail.com as soon as possible.
-- John Donnelly
Daylight Savings begins March 13
SPRING FORWARD!
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
1 4:00 pm CR Jam Session 7:00 pm S Choir
2 7:00 pm CR Pastoral Search Committee
3 10:30 am CR Lenten Book Study 3:30/4:15 pm CR Bells 7:00 pm CR Church Council
4 8:00 am CR Meditation
5
6 F.I.S.H. Sunday 10:30 am Worship and Communion
7 4:00 pm CR Poetry Group
8 11:30 am CR Women’s Fellowship 5:00 pm CR Earth Care Committee 7:00 pm S Choir
9 12:30 pm CR Caring Friends 5:00 pm CR Outreach 7:00 pm CR Pastoral Search Committee
10 10:30 am CR Lenten Book Study 3:30/4:15 pm CR Bells 7:00 pm CR Worship Committee
11 8:00 am CR Meditation 7:00 pm BH Congregation Shir Shalom Shabbat
12 9:00 am - S and CR Congregation Shir Shalom Service
13 Daylight Savings Begins 9:00 am CR Practicing Presence 10:30 am Worship One Great Hour of Sharing offering
14 4:00 pm CR Poetry Group 7:00 pm S Sanctuary Renovation Committee 7:00 pm CR Seekers
15 1:00 pm CR Property and Finance 4:00 pm CR Jam Session 7:00 pm S Choir
16 7:00 pm CR Pastoral Search Committee
17 10:30 am CR Lenten Book Study 3:30/4:15 pm CR Bells
18 8:00 am CR Meditation
19
20 Palm Sunday 10:30 am Worship 2:00 pm S Spring Equinox Concert
21 4:00 pm CR Poetry Group
22 7:00 pm S Choir 7:00 pm S Choir
23 1:00 pm S Education Committee 7:00 pm CR Pastoral Search Committee
24 10:30 am CR Lenten Book Study 3:30/4:15 pm CR Bells 7:00 pm S Maundy Thursday service
25 8:00 am CR Meditation
12:00 pm Good Friday Service - Sonoma Methodist Church
5:00 pm BH Congregation Shir Shalom Shabbat
26 10:00 am CR Congregation Shir Shalom Torah Study
27 Easter Sunday 9:00 am CR Practicing Presence 10:30 am Worship and Potluck
28 4:00 pm CR Poetry Group 7:00 pm S Sanctuary Renovation Committee 7:00 pm CR Seekers
29 7:00 pm S Choir
30 7:00 pm CR Pastoral Search Committee
31 3:30/4:15 pm CR Bells
S = Sanctuary
CR = Community Room
BH = Burlingame Hall
March
First Congregational Church of Sonoma 252 West Spain St., Sonoma, CA 95476 707- 996-1328 · contact@sonomaucc.org · www.sonomaucc.org Office Hours: Wednesday – Friday 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Worship Service and Sunday School: 10:30 a.m., Sunday
We are an Open and Affirming Earth Care Church Interim Minister: Alan Claassen, alan@sonomaucc.org
Music Director: Terry Lezama-Jensen
Pianist: Sondra Cooper
Sunday School Teacher: Emily Webber
Childcare Providers: Anna DeSmet & Natalie Baker
Office & Event Manager: Angela Ljung
Facilities Manager: Steve Cook
Pastor Emeritus: David McCracken
West Spain Thrift Shop Store Hours: Thursday and Saturday from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Donation drop-off hours: Regular store hours, and Monday, Tuesday, and Friday from 9 a.m.-11 a.m.
Happy March Birthday!
5 - Annika Baumgarten
6 - Candi Horton
10 - Bill Hutchinson
16 - Patricia Serota
27 - Dotty Abbott
29 - Mary Cort
30 - Jan Edwards
Liturgist Deacon Ushers Flowers Coffee Hour March 9 Cathy Webber Elizabeth Palmer Mary Evelyn Arnold Barbara Naslund Mary Evelyn Arnold and David McFarland and Women’s Fellow. March 13 Dick Ridenour Tim Boeve Betsy Claassen Kit Conforti Earth Care and Janice Mattison March 20 Dotty Abbott Joan Howarth Bev Pearson Janet Engelbrecht Church Council and Judy Weiner March 24 Tim Boeve and Maundy Thursday Elizabeth Palmer March 27 Nancy Denkin Tim Boeve Taras and Diane Lumiere Easter Lilies Easter Potluck
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