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“We dance toward the star and the stable,
ever closer to the stillness and the light
that reshape and transform us”.
Marilyn Oden Brown
Dear Friends,
As you read this, we are once again welcoming homeless families from the First Place Family Shelter into our church building, offering them a place of warmth during a difficult time in their lives. Thank you for volunteering to make meals and play with children. Thank you for driving the van and spending the night. Thank you for leading activities and supporting the giving tree. Thank you for the many ways you are making this place a home for families in need. You are the best. You are living the Christmas story with your love.
It has become our tradition to share a holiday meal with these families on the first Sunday of their stay. This Sunday, December 12th at 6:00 pm we will gather for a wonderful dinner, sharing around tables with our guests. It is a potluck and I know you know about potlucks. If everyone brings a main dish to share and then a salad or dessert to go along with it, we will have plenty of food for everyone. What a wonderful way to bring the Christmas spirit to life. Please come and join in the fun.
On a totally different note, I want to invite you to be a part of the Blue Christmas Service on Sunday,
December 19th at 5:00 pm. This contemplative service is designed especially for those who might be experiencing pain or loss or loneliness this holiday season. Maybe you are longing for a quiet moment to reflect on God’s gracious gift. I want to invite you to think about someone in your life whose life has been touched with sadness and encourage them to join you in this time of quiet reflection. Offer them a ride or arrange to meet them here. Grab a cup of coffee together before the service or a bite to eat after. In the midst of the overwhelming busyness of the holidays, I guarantee you that this service will offer you a moment or two to breath and center your heart for the birth of Jesus.
Again, you are the best. You are living the Christmas story with your love. Debbie
Sunday, December 12, 2010
10 to 10 Songs and Celebration
10 AM Worship—Mary’s Sunday
Christmas Choral Sunday
11:15 AM Cookie Walk
6 PM All-Church Potluck Christmas Dinner
Sunday, December 19, 2010
10 to 10 Songs and Celebration
10 AM Worship—Joseph’s Sunday
11:30-2:30 PM Christmas Caroling by Horse-drawn Wagon
3 PM Concerts at First
5 PM A Blue Christmas Service
Please see the Nov. 23rd Messenger or website for more details.
Sunday morning 8:30 a.m. classes, will not meet on Dec. 12, 19, & 26.
Interfaith Shelter Dates: Dec. 6 to Dec. 20
Thursday, December 24th, Worship Services
4 PM Children & Families (with candle light)
7 PM & 10 PM Candlelight Services
M&M’s Christmas Party!
December 20th, 5 PM—8:30 PM
We’ll meet at FUMC to have a potluck, gift exchange game, make a gift for people we love and watch a movie. Parents can have a little time to do any emergency wrapping or shopping! Please bring a potluck item to share for dinner, a small gift to exchange with another child of the same gender. Something of theirs they’d like to give away or from the $1 store would be great! We will have extra gifts for those who may forget. Friends are always welcome!!
Everyone is invited!
December UMW Unit Meeting
Tuesday, December 14, 4 to 6 PM in FUMC Chapel
4 PM Christmas Tea and Song! Tea and Quiche ($5) followed by short business meeting & installation of 2011 Officers.
5:15 PM Songs of the Season by Oregon Children’s Boy Choir and Girl Choir.
RSVP for Tea & Quiche by Dec.10 to circle chair or the office
Cancer Support Group meets Tuesday, Dec. 21st at the Original Pancake House on Franklin Blvd. for a no-host brunch at 10:30 am. You are welcome if you or a loved one is living with or has been touched by cancer. Contact Ronnie Egger or JoAnn Zinniker if you have questions.
Stewardship Thanks
Our 2011 Stewardship Information Campaign was a success because over 50 people helped make it so. Special thanks go to our Finance volunteers and staff for getting budget numbers to us, to those who gave us Stewardship Moments during our worship services, to our Stewardship Committee, to the CGroup who helped set up and clean up Sunday following the brunch, and to the many, many bakers, food arrangers, and servers who also helped with Sunday’s brunch. My heartfelt thanks go to all who worked hard to make Stewardship a special, meaningful responsibility. For those who have not pledged yet, it’s always the right time to turn in your 2011 pledge card to the office. Sheila Sundahl, Stewardship Chair
Concerts at First-Sunday, December 19 at 3:00 PM
Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s Christmas Mass will be performed by the Unitarian Universalist Chamber Choir and orchestra of original instruments, directed by Toms Sears. This delightful Messe de Minuit pour Noël dates from around 1690 and is based on popular carols of the time. A cappella madrigals and instrumental Noëls also will be featured in the program. Tickets $5.00. Please bring canned goods for Food for Lane Co.
Habitat desperately needs donations for the Christmas gift wrap fundraiser starting December 16th through the 24th. We need boxes of all sizes, bows, ribbon and paper. We wrap gifts in the Gateway Mall for donations. You can drop the donations at our office (1210 Oakpatch Rd. Eugene) 9 to 4 daily or Saturday at the ReStore. If there are questions, please call Vikki at 741-1707.
The flower calendar for 2011 is up in the back of the Sanctuary. Please sign up if you are interested in providing flowers for Sunday morning. Remember to call the office if you have any special instructions to go in the worship folder.
Sock it to Missions
The Sock it to Missions Special Offering taken on Sunday, December 12th AND Sunday, December 19th will have three recipients. Unless you specify otherwise, your offering will be divided equally as follows:
The Cambodia Mission
No More Deaths
Guatemala Mission Team in May of 2011
Coming January 9th!!!!!
Experiencing the Heart of Christianity
12 Sessions-Sundays 3:00 to 5:00 PM
By Marcus Borg and Tim Scorer
Facilitated by John and Debbie Pitney
This is a 12 session series based on Marcus Borg’s book, “The Heart of Christianity”. It is a group experience where we can dig deeper and discover more together than we can alone.
Many of us were raised in an “early” Christianity grounded in a set of beliefs, a literal approach to the Bible and a call to personal morality. This tradition gets most attention in public discourse, making it hard for many of us to claim our faith. There is another way. It is an “emerging” Christianity grounded in our response to God in the present, an approach to the Bible which is beyond literal and a call to be transformed and bring God’s kingdom of justice and compassion to reality.
Whether or not you have already read the book, if you want to engage with others to discover this emerging faith and what it calls us to in this time, this course is for you. Sign up now on the back of the friendship card or by contacting the office. We will order a book for you .
Understanding Islam
What is it like to be a Muslim in 2010 America?
Adult Transformations At FUMC
January 9, 16, 23 & 30
Mosque-bombings, threatened Qur’an burnings and growing suspicion of Islam and hatred of our Muslim neighbors cloud the Advent of peace, compassion and hope. In such a time, what could be more important than Christians taking time and creating safe spaces to better understand Islam? What could be more essential than learning the importance of the Qur’an and what it’s like for Muslims living in the United States, in Eugene today, especially after 9-11? Some of us don’t really do classes on Sunday mornings, but this is more than just a class. This discussion is for the future of the world God loves.
Starting with the Symposium on January 9, a diverse group of Muslim people from our community will be our guests every Sunday of the month. We ask that every single person in our congregation prayerfully consider making a commitment to be present. It is this important! Let’s fill the room and show the neighbors in our sister faith that we care and we stand with them!
January 9 Symposium
“Islam 101” Guest: Imam Khalid Alfallatah of the Eugene Mosque
January 16
“The Importance of Qur’an” Guests: Ibrahim Hamide of Cafe Soriah,
Rick Colby, University of Oregon
January 23
“Being A Woman and Being Muslim” Guests: Women’s panel possibly including Nargus Oskui, Susan Norris and others of Muslim faith community
January 30
“What It’s Like To Be A U.S. Muslim Since 9-11” Guests: Ib Hamide and Friends
We give God thanks for the lives of:
Robert “Clark” McKay
September 3, 1920 ~ November 23, 2010
Loraine Parker
November 24, 2010
Celebration of Life Service: Sunday, Dec. 12 at 2:00 PM
Elsie Hall
November 29, 2010
A service will be held in the spring
“Night of the Father’s Love”
A Christmas Musical, presented by Ebbert Memorial Choir
Sunday, December 19, 3 PM at Ebbert (Free Admission)
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