UUFSMA: “What Is Your Place of Sanctuary?”

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Online Service

“What Is Your Place of Sanctuary?”

Paula Peace presents Voices of the Fellowship

Sunday, November 22, 2020

10:30 am

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

Password: 294513

By Joseph Plummer

UUF Secretary

Departing from the customary format featuring a single guest speaker, this Sunday’s Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Thanksgiving Service will feature twenty members of the fellowship who will reflect on the question, “What is your place of sanctuary?” This will be the second annual Voices of the Fellowship in which thoughtful and adventurous members of the UU Fellowship share discoveries of refuge and renewal.

Alongside traditional concepts of “sanctuary,” a physical place of protection or a mental space for refocusing emotion, the service will explore the Spanish concept of “querencia” – a place where a person draws strength and expresses his or her most authentic self. Members will share their personal wellsprings of sanctuary and joy – in nature and the colorful kaleidoscope of the outdoors, in peaceful walks and breaths of refreshing air, as well as from family, inspiring ancestors, and curious students in their classrooms.

Near the end of historically challenging 2020, Thanksgiving offers a chance to quiet fearful minds, put aside this year’s prolonged isolation, and share feelings of health and abundance. Many types of spiritual practice invite us during this pandemic to renew a sense of peace and gratitude and reflect on life’s daily gifts. This Sunday’s service will affirm ways to find sanctuaries, at once simple and profound, in the beauty of blue skies, snuggles with pets, the creativity of painting and writing, baking cookies, cultivating gardens, and tuning one’s soul to the exuberance of songbirds.

Amid these reflections, composers Felix Mendelssohn, Billy Joel, Ralph Vaughn Williams, and Bobby McFerrin will offer music from the heart — and hymns of community celebration.

Pianist Paula Peace, chair of the Sunday Service Committee and active Unitarian Universalist of five decades, will coordinate the presentations. A former professional pianist and artistic director of the acclaimed Atlanta Chamber Players, Peace has performed hundreds of concerts, radio broadcasts, soirées, and educational programs for students and underserved audiences.

To participate in our online Sunday Service, 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.

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. A growing collection of 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.