Due to popular demand, the Welcoming Congregation Committee will be continuing their monthly Friday night film/discussions during the summer months of July and August. Start time is 7:30 PM in the Stevens Room. Free popcorn and drinks provided and childcare is available if you call Valerie Meade at 732-247-2628 the Wednesday before.

On August 22 we will be showing "Imagine Me & You", a story of what happens when a woman, in the midst of her own wedding, finds herself unexpectedly attracted to another woman. Explain that one to the relatives.

FALL PROGRAM:

September 26th Twilight of the Golds

October 24th Freehold - the Laurel Hester Story

December 12th For the Bible Tells Me So

January 30th The Brandon Teena Story

February: Brother Outsider

Later films TBD.

Program starts at 7 p.m. in the Stevens Room; childcare and refreshments provided.  

After a long tenure at coordinating the Bring-a-Dish events, Bonnie Rowan has retired and Dan Zucker has taken over. As you may know, Bring-a-Dish events take place in members/friends homes on the fourth Saturday of the month (with the exception of this September 20) so, if you would like to host such an event, call or e-mail Dan (908-889-5894 or danielzucker@comcast.net) and tell him which month is best for you. So far, September, December and May are already spoken for.  

The Urban Disciples is a collective of lay and ordained ministers who have thought and written about the theological basis of Unitarian Universalism in urban settings and led successful and innovative ministries in cities in California, the District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, Oregon, and Pennsylvania. Rev. Tony Johnson is one of the Urban Disciples and the editor of Urban Discipleship, 2nd edition, published by the Urban Disciples.  

Join us if you are interested in becoming a member, in learning more about Unitarian Universalism and our congregation, or if you are an existing member who wants to meet newcomers and talk about the meaning of membership in our congregation. Sessions will be scheduled soon for the rest of the year. Please stop by the Welcome Table in the Parish Hall after Sunday services or contact our Membership Committee chair if you would like to attend one of them. We look forward to seeing you!  

Please fill out both sides of the 2008-2009 student registration form and return it to the R.E. office as soon as possible. We require that all students, including the nursery children and youth group members have a current registration form on file.

Registration forms will be sent to you in the mail or you can fill one out after church in the Parish Hall. Thank you for your swift and deliberate attention concerning the R.E. registration forms.  

FUSP earned $700 this summer for working two times at the Fanwood Recycling Center. Thanks go to the following people who helped recycle material:

Heather Brown; August and Forest Hinds-Brown; Steve and Ian Cauley; Cam, Becki and Sarah Douglas; Martha Haviland; Fred Lange; Charles Neiss; Allan, Annie, Carolyn, Emma, Matthew and Robert Reading; Jack, Issac and Nicolaus Schrum; Denise Soppas; and Daniel, Guenevere and Rachel Zucker.

We plan to work two Saturdays during the summer of 2009.  

Do you have a personal or family milestone you would like to celebrate? or is there someone you would like to honor or remember? There are two easy ways to accomplish this and, at the same time, make it part of the FUSP family: you could provide a flower arrangement for a particular Sunday service or you could light up the Robinson window for a month. Either alternative can be arranged by contacting Doris Lange at 908-889-6289. The cost of the flowers is $32.50 and the Robinson window lighting is $45.  

Congratulations to our youthful members celebrating a birthday in September:

Joanna L. Carroll

Maxwell Mellies

August Hinds-Brown

Thomas Leistikow

Maya Sutterlin

Christopher Walsh  

The Bring-a-Dish Welcome Dinner for Rev. Tony on September 20 in the Parish Hall is being coordinated by Barbara Van Savage and Karin Harris. Barbara needs a few volunteers to help with the set up of tables and particularly with the clean-up. Please let Barbara know that you can help. Karin will be keeping track of who is bringing what dish so give her a call soon. It is important that we have an idea of how many people will be coming.  

FUSP was just one of the five local buildings designed by the fascinating Mr. Oscar Teale, who was renown not only for his architecture, but also for his magical talents and association with the great Houdini. On Saturday, September 27 these five buildings will be open for a tour from 9 AM to 1 PM. You will drive to four churches and one home Teale designed and lived in. Tour guides will meet you at each building. Lunch will be served back at FUSP at 1 PM and you'll learn more about the unexpected twists and turns of Teale's life.

The fee for this delightful event is only $25 per person (checks to be made out to FUSP) and includes lunch. Contact the History Committee for tickets and more information: Becky Douglas, Ted Horger, Fred Lange or Sally Young.

The locations to be visited are: Seventh Day Baptist Church on 501 Central Ave., Plainfield; Church of God Prophecy on 18 Park Place, No. Plainfield; Wilson Memorial Church at 7 Valley Rd., Watchung; and Teale's own home on 67 Mercer Ave., No. Plainfield.  

In an election year, discussion about media overage of the major party candidates is centered on whether the press corps is fair to a particular candidate. But that obscures a more fundamental question: Are the media fair to the American voter? Peter Hart of the media watchdog group FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting) will discuss the general patterns of media coverage of elections past, and whether those patterns are holding true as we approach Election 2008.

Intersections and borders are themes in my ministry, especially in interim ministry. In fact, a year of interim ministry is the navigation of many intersections. You can’t turn the corner without entering the intersection.

This is our Ingathering Sunday. There will be a time for all ages in the service. There will not be a gathering of the waters in this year’s Homecoming service.

This month, Dan Zucker and Kit Marlowe will lead the men’s breakfast group in a discussion of, “How Can UU Keep the Young Men?”

UUs tend to talk about beliefs, ideas, and feelings. This focus is great for adults of both genders. Most girls enjoy such activity almost from birth. Many boys, however, would rather get up and do than sit down and talk. Even 25 year-old men have some of this preference. How can the church satisfy this need for action and keep males involved without losing what we cherish? How can the men’s group meet this challenge? Dan and Kit don’t know, but we expect to have a good time trying to figure it out.

The men’s breakfast group meets in the Stevens Room from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM on Saturday, September 13th.

Here are some web pages that give some background and some suggestions on this problem.

• What should we do with the Boys? By Neil Chethik http://www.uuworld.org/life/articles/2637.shtml

• Make your Religious Education program boy-friendly. Staff writer at UUWorld.org http://www.uuworld.org/life/articles/2645.shtml

• These two articles and more can be found at http://www.uumen.org/boy_freindly_re.htm

In a society where there are many faiths practiced, how does one person embrace persons of other faiths while living fully one’s own faith? This is an especially timely question for Unitarian Universalism, with its history of drawing from multiple faith traditions. This sermon requires me to define my faith clearly – and I will!

This Sunday’s service will include the recognition of birthdays.

The first Bring-a-Dish of the season will be a dinner at the Parish Hall to welcome our interim minister, Rev. Tony Johnson. Call Karin Harris to tell her what dish you'll be bringing and also let Barbara Van Savage know if you can help with the clean-up. It should be a lovely evening!

Our first meeting will continue our annual tradition of discussing favorite books and movies. Come prepared to recommend and discuss briefly a couple of books you have read and/or films you have seen that you enjoyed. An annotated list will be compiled on which you can base your future reading and viewing. Facilitated by Joan Sweet.

We welcome all of our regulars and new people as well. Make this your year to become part of our very enriching group! The meeting will be on Saturday, September 20th from 10 to noon in the Steven's room. Plan to arrive a little early to chat and snack so we can devote the full time to the meeting. Please notify Joan Sweet or Bonnie Rowan several days in advance if you need childcare.

William Carlos Williams (1883-1963) was one of the most important U.S. poets of the twentieth century. He was also a New Jersey native, spoke Spanish before he spoke English, and was a life-long Unitarian in his home town of Rutherford.

This is Teacher Dedication Sunday.

Members of our Racial Justice Committee will visit The Davies Memorial Unitarian Universalist Church in Camp Springs, MD. in October. This vibrant congregation, cited by UUA President, Rev. William Sinkford, as a 2007 "Breakthrough Congregation", decided to grow and diversify its membership five years ago. They are now interested in becoming a "Welcoming Congregation" as well. Together we will share our experiences in being a Welcoming Congregation while learning about becoming a multiracial/multicultural faith community. We will also attend services and participate in their social justice forum.

FUSP is one of three congregations in the Metro District chosen to pilot a UUA curriculum to promote multicultural welcome, inclusion, and affirmation, develop skills to address issues related to race, ethnicity, and cultural identity, and identify ways to become multiracial/multicultural. Our biweekly seminars will resume this month. For more information, speak with Carl Heath.