News (Page 39)
Elgin CROP Walk
This month’s Share the Plate recipient is: Elgin CROP Walk Hunger is one of the greatest injustices facing our world, but it doesn’t have to be this way. Ending hunger is possible, and it is possible in our lifetime. You can help make it happen! For nearly half a century, CROP Hunger Walks have ensured that more people worldwide have access to nutritious sustainable food sources. Stand with neighbors in our community who rely on food assistance programs. Partner with…
Fall Music Sunday
We’re still on Zoom every Sunday, but our plans for Fall Music Sunday are going ahead! It’s scheduled for November 15th this year, which gives us plenty of time to plan and prepare for this virtual concert. If you want to participate you have two options: Record a video of yourself performing your song and submit it by November 11th Perform your son live on Zoom during the service. There will be a rehearsal/sound check on November 15th before the…
UUCE is on Facebook?
Did you know that UUCE has two completely different areas on Facebook? UUCE Facebook Page The Unitarian Universalist Church of Elgin has a Facebook page, which is the public face of our organization. This is where staff and volunteers post information geared toward visitors, potential members, and our wider Elgin community. Each week, the Worship Team posts an event for the upcoming Sunday’s service in an effort to keep our services welcoming and available to the public while we meet…
Building Policy
For everyone’s health and safety, the UUCE building is closed to the public. Employees and leaders who have a key to the building are permitted to enter given they abide by the following rules. All members, employees, and visitors entering UUCE must sign in at the visitor table outside the church offices. Face masks covering your nose and mouth are required for all inside the building. If you forgot your mask, disposable masks are available at the sign in table.…
Minister’s Discretionary Fund
This month’s Share the Plate Recipient is: The Minister’s Discretionary Fund The is a special fund here at UUCE that is used to support our members and friends who are facing emergency financial need. It’s a separate checking account that the minister uses at their discretion to provide confidential assistance. Records are kept of all the money that’s given out, but those records remain anonymous to assure confidentiality. Contributions to the Minister’s Discretionary Fund are accepted periodically to replenish the…
UUs and Free Speech
We are swiftly approaching the start of a new church year, and I am looking forward to participating in ever-better coping with COVID-19 and the political season. I have been asked by the leaders of a dissident group of UU congregants and Ministers to write a cover letter to regional UU Ministers to accompany this group’s rebuttal to some decisions made by our Denomination and by the UU Minister’s Association; decisions that many see as undemocratic and illiberal. There is…
August Board Update
Visit our Board of Trustees page to meet the current BOT Leadership. Board Business Reopening the Building The Board reviewed the Executive Team’s procedures for reopening the building to small groups. The Board unanimously voted to allow the building to reopen to small groups based on the procedures. Survey Results This past month, the Board sent out a survey to UUCE members to measure the community comfort with reopening the building, or resuming some amount of activities in person. The…
UU Prison Ministry of IL
This month’s Share the Plate recipient is: The UU Prison Ministry of Illinois UUMPI is dedicated to addressing the gross injustices in our criminal justice system: mass incarceration, dehumanizing treatment, lack of restorative justice, and barriers to housing and employment for inmates upon release. They focus on two main functions: Working with those who are victims of the system while they are in prison, and after release. Leading the advocacy effort to change the broken system itself. UUMPI’s most recent…
Actions We Can Take for Black Lives
Running simultaneously with the tumultuous electoral and pandemic news, we are witnessing the remarkably persistent determination by all people of good will to end the evil of racism. This is wonderful good news, and a wonderful opportunity to root out (at last!) our cursed inheritances from the enslavement of Black people, and the racism that targeted dark-skinned people as existed in ancient Greece and Rome. The last several weeks have seen long-standing monuments to the military and political defenders of…
The 8th Principle
I want to start a discussion of the proposed UUA 8th Principle.
Elgin Cooperative Ministry
This month’s Share the Plate recipient is: Elgin Cooperative Ministry As persons of many faiths, we are united by our call to care for the holistic well-being of our neighbors. Elgin Cooperative Ministry The Elgin Cooperative Ministry is a coalition of religious and secular organizations in Elgin, focused on serving the community and relieving food insecurity. Its member organizations include the All People’s Interfaith Food Pantry and the Community Crisis Center, both of which we support with donations of goods.…
Learning from the Pandemic
Some say the pandemic has revealed inequality; some say we knew this all along. Evidence across the nation shows us that more Black Americans have gotten COVID-19 and die from it than White Americans. Gig workers struggle to see how they can get any the funds for bare subsistence. Essential workers are risking their safety, sometimes regardless of their own higher risk status. How do we feel about this? What do our UU souls do with this? How do our…