As part of St. Paul UCC’s 50th Anniversary fun, “Flat Paul” has been seen all over the country. Here he is celebrating Pride month.
In celebration of Pride Month, Shepherd of the Hills is especially excited to resume hosting blood drives now that the Red Cross welcomes donations from the LGBTQ+ community. Your generous donation can help save lives and support those in critical need. To participate, please sign up in advance using the following link: Sign Up Here.
Sunday, July 21, 2024, 9 AM - 2 PM; Fellowship Hall at Shepherd of the Hills UCC
And you Southern AZ folks, Church of the Painted Hills is also holding a Red Cross Blood Drive on Wednesday, July 17th from 9 am - 2 pm. To make an appointment, call: 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or at Red Cross Online
The Creation Care team at Rincon will no longer be composting due to the composter being stolen and the large one broken. They encourage people to use the city’s composting system. What a shame.
Beginning July 1, 2024, ICS (Interfaith Community Services) will begin their annual Peanut Butter Drive. Rincon is challenging its members to collect even more jars this year than last. ICS has set a goal of collecting 10,000 14 - 16 oz. jars of peanut butter between July 1 and August 1, 2024. ICS distributes approximately 2,000 jars per month. (If I recall, the Tucson UCC churches have an internal contest going on, too! Church of the Painted Hills and Casas Adobes are revving up to compete according to their newsletters!)
For more than 20 years, the Good Shepherd UCC in Sahuarita has taken groups of people to Antigua Guatemala to live with families, study Spanish at Probigua, and get to know the spectacular culture and history of this beautiful country. In addition, they have developed many friends and have supported hundreds of Guatemalan children in their education through Probigua. This year they’ll be taking another group there beginning March 29th. If you have questions, please contact Randy Mayer bienshphrd@aol.com
Desert Palm’s Pastor Tom is in the midst of a summer sermon series touching on a different film each Sunday. He began with Field of Dreams, followed by The Book Thief, Yesterday, On Golden Pond, and The Trial of the Chicago 7. You can view the related sermons on YouTube. Link is on the Desert Palm website, www.desertpalmucc.org. Coming up:
August 4 Antwone Fisher
August 11 The Mission
August 18 Lawrence of Arabia
August 25 Defending Your Life
June 30 Wonder
July 7 Terms of Endearment
July 14 The Big Chill
July 21 The Scarlet Letter
July 28 Jesus of Montreal
In a recent conversation with Justa Center, Black Mountain UCC learned that Justa can purchase pallets of water and pick them up for a nearly 50% discount. So Black Mountain sent them a check for $420 to purchase water rather than ordering it themselves! Justa is one of the Arizona Faith Network’s Heat Relief Centers so this donation will reach many in need.
On a Zoom call with city officials in Roswell, NM this week, Church of the Good Shepherd and First Congregational in Albuquerque agreed to become donation sites for those dropping off supplies for firefighters, evacuees, and volunteers.
The week before a new government policy limiting the number of persons seeking asylum in the U.S., eight United Church of Santa Fe youth and adults visited La Casa de la Misercordia (The House of Mercy), an ecumenical center in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico and met with people of all ages, waiting for their “credible threat” appointments. The next day, guided by Rev. Randy Mayer, they drove 20 miles along the border wall and saw first-hand its humanitarian and environmental cost (plus the $43 million/mile price tag). They saw crosses marking the graves of those who have died from dehydration and heat stroke. They welcomed refugees from the violence in Mexico, Congo, Mail, and Mauritania. Most of all, they learned first-hand the humanity of those seeking asylum.
Arizona Faith Network is offering an Active Shooter Preparedness Webinar on Wednesday, July 10, 8:00 am - online. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) will hold a two-hour security webinar to enhance your organization’s resilience in case of an active shooter incident. Preparing employees or volunteers for a potential active shooter event is an integral component of an organization’s incident response planning. Because active shooter incidents are unpredictable and evolve quickly, preparing for and knowing what to do in an active shooter situation can be the difference between life and death. Every second counts. For information and resources, visit this link.
Pride Month Prayer
Here is a prayer that pre-MID Christopher Schouten wrote for the July 16th service at First Church Phoenix. He said, "At First Church UCC Phoenix last Sunday [July 16] we asked for forgiveness from the LGBTQIA+ community for the harm done by churches and religious people in the name of God. It was a unique and special service where we acknowledged past sins and recommitted to being a place of love and inclusion for ALL people. The harm is real. Let the healing begin. I feel so blessed that this congregation is doing this work together."
Here is the prayer of confession/transformation we shared.
Beloved Community, as we stand together in the light of God's truth and grace, we acknowledge the journey of many among us who have been wounded by exclusion and judgment, abuse and abandonment. By our families, by society, and indeed by religious institutions, leaders and their followers. Today, we seek to heal the harm caused by the failure to demonstrate Your love to all Your children and affirm our commitment to love and inclusivity. In this Prayer of Transformation, we not only recognize the pain inflicted by historical injustices within the broader church but also embrace our role in healing and moving forward in unity as one body of Christ.
One: For times when the church has turned away from the love and acceptance commanded by Christ, and in doing so, has caused deep hurt and division,
Many: We seek forgiveness and commit to walking a new path of inclusion and compassion.
One: For every word spoken, every action taken, and every silence maintained that has contributed to the feelings of rejection and alienation experienced by LGBTQ+ individuals,
Many: We ask for forgiveness and the courage to speak and act with love and truth.
One: For the times we have failed to listen, to understand, and to protect those in need of our support and advocacy,
Many: We ask for forgiveness and pledge to be listeners, allies, and defenders of all who come seeking a spiritual community where they can be embraced.
One: And though we at First Church have long welcomed our LGBTQ+ siblings into this, Your house, we pledge to expand that welcome beyond these walls into our communities, bringing your
message of radical love and healing through your grace to all those who need it.
Many: Together, we affirm our commitment to be a community of love, where every person is recognized as a reflection of the divine, where every voice is heard, and every story is honored. Help us, O God, to live out this truth in our actions and relationships, each day, more fully than the last.
Words of Promise
Beloved community, God empowers our hearts and our mouths to take God’s love into the world. Be assured that our confessions are heard, and our intentions are blessed by God’s unending grace. Let us walk together in peace, enriched by the infinite, beautiful diversity of all God's children.