UUFSMA: “Taking the Long View”

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Online Service

“Taking the Long View”

Speaker: Reverend Tom Rosiello

Sunday, October 18, 2020

10:30 am

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/414604040 

Password: 294513

By Joseph Plummer

UUF Secretary

In this Sunday´s UUFSMA Online Service, the Reverend Tom Rosiello discusses why it is important to take the long view and look beyond today. Most if not all public and private organizations go through regular reviews of past years’ performance. They assess potential opportunities and constraints and then prioritize future objectives. Nonetheless, this exercise can overlook significant questions. Why does the organization exist? Does anyone care about its work? Will it have necessary resources? So too the UUFSMA must evaluate its mission. This Sunday Rev. Rosiello invites participants to consider what we can do to help sustain the Fellowship into the future.

Almost 200 current members of the Fellowship and many former members during the preceding 33 years have developed the UUFSMA into an active, creative partner in the community life of San Miguel de Allende. The Fellowship now asks its members questions about the future. What will work today and in coming years to remain relevant and vital to the future of the Fellowship and the community of San Miguel de Allende?  We are the legacy of those who came before us. We are stewards for those who come after us. Will that future be haphazard or purposeful? What can the Fellowship do to shape its future purpose? What do we wish to say to members of the Fellowship and the SMA community who follow us? What do we wish that community in the future to say about us? Join in this Sunday’s reflection on legacy and stewardship and its accompanying music and words to underscore the need for such insights.

Rev. Tom Rosiello has been Minister of the lay-led UUFSMA since January 2019. Previously he was Minister of the First Parish of Stow and Acton, Massachusetts, where he is now Minister Emeritus. A graduate of Harvard Divinity School and Suffolk University Law School, Rev. Rosiello is active in many causes for social justice, including AIDS, gay rights, poverty, and prison reform. He taught at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts. Before entering the ministry, Rev. Rosiello was a trial lawyer for nearly twenty years.

To participate in our online Sunday Service from wherever you are located, visit the Fellowship’s website at www.uufsma.org and click on the Zoom Service button displayed on the home page. If requested, enter password: 294513. Sign-in between 10:15-10:25 am, CDT time.

Through grants and awards, UUFSMA donates at least fifty percent of its budget to support nonprofit organizations that provide health, educational, and environmental services for underserved communities in the San Miguel region. Please support this work by clicking on the website home page Donate button. Now more than ever, your support is essential.

Due to the coronavirus, UUFSMA has suspended in-person Sunday services and other gatherings. Previous online services can be found on the UUFSMA’s YouTube channel. Go to https://www.youtube.com/ and enter UUFSMA in the search box. The UU Fellowship welcomes people of all ages, races, religions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.