Dear Unitarian and Unitarian Universalist friends around the globe,
Looking back at 2010 I can only reflect on what a turbulent place this planet of ours is. Our climate has brought remarkable disruptions what with earthquakes and mudslides, piles of snow covering much of Europe, volcanoes erupting, droughts and floods in different parts of the world.
And then of course there are the human created problems of war and poverty and the like.
In times like these it is easy to sink into despair and wonder why we bother to even try.
And then Christmas comes with all of its promise and hope. For some of us it is the renewal of a divine covenant marked by God's promise fulfilled. For some of us it is the simple miracle of birth. As American Religious Educator Sophia Lyon Fahs once wrote, "Each night a child is born is a holy night - a time for singing, a time for wondering, a time for worshipping."
However you understand the promise of Christmas, I invite you to embrace it this year. Set aside your differences. Make peace when and where you can. Pray for the blessings of the divine and hold your families and friends close.
I have been reminded to celebrate what we have instead of worrying about what we want. This past weekend, four different families in my congregation were touched by death. I am spending this week before Christmas preparing both holiday services and funerals. Each of these services reminds me to approach Christmas with reverence and to celebrate the blessings of the people in my life.
This seems to be a year when the world needs Christmas and all of its blessings. May yours be filled with the warmth and laughter that comes from recognizing the real gifts in your life.
Rev. Brian Kiely
Unitarian Church of Edmonton
President, International Council of Unitarians and Universalists
Wednesday, 22 December 2010
Tuesday, 14 December 2010
Next ICUU Council Meeting Makes History
History will be made when the next ICUU Council Meeting is held in February 2012 in the Philippines –for the first time outside of Europe and North America!
The Council Meeting will take place from 7 to 12 February 2012 at the headquarters of the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Philippines (UUCP) and at the Southsea Resort in Dumagute City on Negros Island, Philippines.
An optional Pre-Council Meeting Tour in Manila from 3 to 6 February 2012 will include the opportunity to attend services at the two UUCP Fellowships in Manila. Visits to rural UUCP congregations will be a highlight of the Post-Council Meeting Tour on Negros Island from 12 to 15 February 2012.
Further details including pricing and registration information will be available by June 2011. For more information, please contact Executive Secretary Steve Dick at execsec@icuu.net
The Council Meeting will take place from 7 to 12 February 2012 at the headquarters of the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Philippines (UUCP) and at the Southsea Resort in Dumagute City on Negros Island, Philippines.
An optional Pre-Council Meeting Tour in Manila from 3 to 6 February 2012 will include the opportunity to attend services at the two UUCP Fellowships in Manila. Visits to rural UUCP congregations will be a highlight of the Post-Council Meeting Tour on Negros Island from 12 to 15 February 2012.
Further details including pricing and registration information will be available by June 2011. For more information, please contact Executive Secretary Steve Dick at execsec@icuu.net
Tuesday, 30 November 2010
Global Chalice Lighting for December 2010
The International Council of Unitarians and Universalists announces the 88th in its monthly series of global chalice lighting readings. Congregations worldwide are invited to participate.
All ICUU-affiliated groups have been asked to submit brief chalice lightings for the project. Every month, a reading will be distributed to Unitarian and Universalist congregations around the world. We ask each congregation to use the reading for at least one worship service in the designated month, identifying it as the “Global Chalice Lighting” for that month and naming the group which submitted it. Readings will be circulated in English and, where different, in their original language.
It is hoped that the ICUU Global Chalice Lighting Project will enhance the worship experience in our congregations and raise awareness of the international dimensions of our religious movement.
This Global Chalice Lighting is submitted in by the British General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches. It is to be used during December 2010.
As we light our chalice
at the ending of one year
and the beginning of another year,
we affirm…
The radiant joy and beauty
of the world in which we live
The unity of all life and our interdependence
with the rest of creation
Our responsibility to care for and sustain
all forms of life on the planet for future generations
The uniqueness and equal dignity of every person
The power of unconditional love to transform lives
The importance of constantly seeking truth and wisdom
Our commitment to support each other
in the task of building the Kingdom of Heaven,
based on peace, justice and love
The divine ground of our being
that connects us with each other and the infinite
and which replenishes and heals us
-Roger Courtney
All Souls Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church, Belfast, N. Ireland
In faith,
-Lorella
Lorella Thomas Hess
editor, The Global Chalice
ICUU newsletter
www.icuu.net
All ICUU-affiliated groups have been asked to submit brief chalice lightings for the project. Every month, a reading will be distributed to Unitarian and Universalist congregations around the world. We ask each congregation to use the reading for at least one worship service in the designated month, identifying it as the “Global Chalice Lighting” for that month and naming the group which submitted it. Readings will be circulated in English and, where different, in their original language.
It is hoped that the ICUU Global Chalice Lighting Project will enhance the worship experience in our congregations and raise awareness of the international dimensions of our religious movement.
This Global Chalice Lighting is submitted in by the British General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches. It is to be used during December 2010.
As we light our chalice
at the ending of one year
and the beginning of another year,
we affirm…
The radiant joy and beauty
of the world in which we live
The unity of all life and our interdependence
with the rest of creation
Our responsibility to care for and sustain
all forms of life on the planet for future generations
The uniqueness and equal dignity of every person
The power of unconditional love to transform lives
The importance of constantly seeking truth and wisdom
Our commitment to support each other
in the task of building the Kingdom of Heaven,
based on peace, justice and love
The divine ground of our being
that connects us with each other and the infinite
and which replenishes and heals us
-Roger Courtney
All Souls Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church, Belfast, N. Ireland
In faith,
-Lorella
Lorella Thomas Hess
editor, The Global Chalice
ICUU newsletter
www.icuu.net
Thursday, 18 November 2010
Contribute to the Szabó Árpád Memorial Fund
The Consistory of the Transylvanian Unitarian Church announces with gratitude the establishment of the Szabó Árpád Memorial Fund for PhD Scholarships in Unitarian Theology. Following Bishop Szabó’s recent passing to eternity, the intention of the church leadership is to immortalize his legacy by creating a motivational source of support and inspiration in a field that was most dear to him.
Bishop Szabó himself was a recipient of a PhD degree in Unitarian theology, from the Protestant Theological Institute in Kolozsvár; also, he was granted an honorary doctorate from both the Protestant Theological Faculty in Montpellier, France, as well as the Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago, USA. Later, as he became a theological professor, he had led the PhD training of some of his spiritual successors, acting as a model for a theologian of dedicated research and prolific writing.
The creation of the memorial fund aims to provide financial and professional support for those choosing to enter a PhD training in Unitarian theology. The fund will act as an endowment, sharing its annual benefits among those enrolled in such a program. The coordination will be done by the executive committee of the Consistory; for inquiries on the fund, please write to ekt@unitarius.com.
Contributions in US dollars should be sent to the Unitarian Universalist Partner Church Council, PO Box 88, Bedford, MA 01730-0088. Please make the check payable to UUPCC and note Szabó Árpád Memorial Fund on the memo line.
Contributions can also be made in other currencies or using credit cards via PayPal through the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU). To arrange this, please contact Treasurer David Shaw at treasurer@icuu.net.
Bishop Szabó himself was a recipient of a PhD degree in Unitarian theology, from the Protestant Theological Institute in Kolozsvár; also, he was granted an honorary doctorate from both the Protestant Theological Faculty in Montpellier, France, as well as the Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago, USA. Later, as he became a theological professor, he had led the PhD training of some of his spiritual successors, acting as a model for a theologian of dedicated research and prolific writing.
The creation of the memorial fund aims to provide financial and professional support for those choosing to enter a PhD training in Unitarian theology. The fund will act as an endowment, sharing its annual benefits among those enrolled in such a program. The coordination will be done by the executive committee of the Consistory; for inquiries on the fund, please write to ekt@unitarius.com.
Contributions in US dollars should be sent to the Unitarian Universalist Partner Church Council, PO Box 88, Bedford, MA 01730-0088. Please make the check payable to UUPCC and note Szabó Árpád Memorial Fund on the memo line.
Contributions can also be made in other currencies or using credit cards via PayPal through the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU). To arrange this, please contact Treasurer David Shaw at treasurer@icuu.net.
Friday, 5 November 2010
Pray For Indonesia
Dear UU friends world wide,
I would like to share information and request of prayer from Indonesia.
Recently, Indonesia was beaten by several numerous disasters - started with Mud Flood at Wasior, Papua; then Tsunami Flood at Mentawai, West Sumatera; and the biggest Merapi Mountain Eruption at Central Java and Jogja. There was also a land slide at Toraja, Southern Celebes. We inform you that all of our church members - especially in Jogja, Klaten (central java), and Toraja - are safe from this disaster, not to neglect that this serial disasters create a deep wound and lost for a lot of people in our country.
The Volcano activity that pushes the merapi eruption seems to wake several other active mountains around Java - Krakatoa, Semeru and Bromo.
The Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia - as a body - will send a donation through the Red Cross or a social organization named Jalinan Informasi Lingkar Merapi (Merapi Circle Information Network). We will also soon organize a volunteer among the youth to go to Jogja and join the national volunteer.
Please pray for Indonesia, especially for the victims of the disaster and their family, with hope that they can recover soon.
Regards,
Aryanto Nugroho
Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia
(ary.nugroho@yahoo.com)
I would like to share information and request of prayer from Indonesia.
Recently, Indonesia was beaten by several numerous disasters - started with Mud Flood at Wasior, Papua; then Tsunami Flood at Mentawai, West Sumatera; and the biggest Merapi Mountain Eruption at Central Java and Jogja. There was also a land slide at Toraja, Southern Celebes. We inform you that all of our church members - especially in Jogja, Klaten (central java), and Toraja - are safe from this disaster, not to neglect that this serial disasters create a deep wound and lost for a lot of people in our country.
The Volcano activity that pushes the merapi eruption seems to wake several other active mountains around Java - Krakatoa, Semeru and Bromo.
The Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia - as a body - will send a donation through the Red Cross or a social organization named Jalinan Informasi Lingkar Merapi (Merapi Circle Information Network). We will also soon organize a volunteer among the youth to go to Jogja and join the national volunteer.
Please pray for Indonesia, especially for the victims of the disaster and their family, with hope that they can recover soon.
Regards,
Aryanto Nugroho
Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia
(ary.nugroho@yahoo.com)
Saturday, 2 October 2010
Tribute Website for Rev Dr Arpad Szabo
The late Rev. Dr. Árpád Szabó , former Bishop of the Unitarian Church of Transylvania and first Vice President of the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU), was a significant figure on the international scene and he touched the lives of many members of liberal religious communities around the world. He will be missed and fondly remembered by both leaders and laity.
ICUU has launched a Tribute Website (www.szabo.icuu.net) as an opportunity for groups and individuals to post reflections, recollections and images in tribute to the life and work of Árpád Szabó. Shorter contributions can be posted directly as comments to this page or one of the other pages as appropriate. Longer submissions and images can be emailed to execsec@icuu.net with the subject: Szabo Tribute. Comments, images and other submissions will be posted to this online “Tribute Book” as soon as possible.
At a later date, copies of all the items from this Memorial Tribute website will be printed and copies will be presented to his family and to the Consistory of the Transylvanian Unitarian Church.
Please honor our absent friend and colleague by reading and reflecting on the contributions to be found at www.szabo.icuu.net — and consider sharing with us your own memories and reflections of this special man.
For Árpád walks gently among us in our minds and hearts as long as we remember him and celebrate the truth that this world was a better place because of his presence and work among us.
Please let anyone know who may be interested.
Kind Regards,
Steve
ICUU has launched a Tribute Website (www.szabo.icuu.net) as an opportunity for groups and individuals to post reflections, recollections and images in tribute to the life and work of Árpád Szabó. Shorter contributions can be posted directly as comments to this page or one of the other pages as appropriate. Longer submissions and images can be emailed to execsec@icuu.net with the subject: Szabo Tribute. Comments, images and other submissions will be posted to this online “Tribute Book” as soon as possible.
At a later date, copies of all the items from this Memorial Tribute website will be printed and copies will be presented to his family and to the Consistory of the Transylvanian Unitarian Church.
Please honor our absent friend and colleague by reading and reflecting on the contributions to be found at www.szabo.icuu.net — and consider sharing with us your own memories and reflections of this special man.
For Árpád walks gently among us in our minds and hearts as long as we remember him and celebrate the truth that this world was a better place because of his presence and work among us.
Please let anyone know who may be interested.
Kind Regards,
Steve
Thursday, 30 September 2010
Passing of International Unitarian Leader
Dear Friends,
It is with unspeakable sadness to inform you that the Bishop Árpád Szabó has passed away early this morning. May he rest in peace!
Rev. Sándor Máthé
Brassó, Transylvania
It is with unspeakable sadness to inform you that the Bishop Árpád Szabó has passed away early this morning. May he rest in peace!
Rev. Sándor Máthé
Brassó, Transylvania
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