This edition of iNews is dedicated to the memory of recently departed Rev. Dr. Árpád Szabó (1935-2010), retired Bishop of the Transylvania Unitarian Church.
October 8, 2010
Contents:
I. In Memoriam: Rev. Dr. Árpád Szabó
The Rev. Dr. Árpád Szabó, former Bishop of the Unitarian Church of Transylvania and first Vice President of the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU), passed away on September 30, 2010 at the age of 76.
Rev. Szabó was a significant figure on the international scene who touched the lives of many members of liberal religious communities around the world. His leadership in both the ICUU and the Transylvania Church during the formative years of the ICUU helped to provide inspiration, resources, and stability for the growth of our global connections.
UUA President Rev. Peter Morales sent a heartfelt letter of condolence to Rev. Bálint Benczédi, current Bishop of the Transylvania Unitarian Church, upon hearing the news.
The ICUU has created an online tribute page where groups and individuals can post reflections, recollections and images in tribute to the life and work of Rev. Szabó.
Photos from the funeral procession, which took place October 4th, are viewable online.
Rev. Szabó's essay, "Theological Foundations of the Transylvanian Unitarian Faith," from The Home We Share: Globalization, Post-Modernism and Unitarian / Universalist Theology has been made available online.
II. UN Sunday
Celebrating United Nations Sunday is an excellent opportunity for Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations to express their commitment to our Sixth Principle: We Covenant to Affirm and Promote the Goal of World Community with Peace, Liberty and Justice for All.
The UU-United Nations Office's (UU-UNO's) theme for UN Sunday 2010 is:
Ethical Aspects of Climate Change
The UU-UNO recommends that congregations schedule a UN Sunday service on October 24, 2010, (or another convenient date) in recognition of the birth of the United Nations on October 24th, 1945.
The UU-UNO has also recently announced the 2011 Intergenerational Spring Seminar's theme: Women's Rights
The seminar will take place April 28-30, 2011 (Youth arrival on April 27).
Further details will become available online in the coming months.
Learn more about UN Sunday and the Intergenerational Spring Seminar!
III. Rev. Mark Kiyimba Visits the UUA
Rev. Mark Kiyimba, minister of the UU Church of Kampala, Uganda, paid a special visit to the UUA this week. UUA staff joined with President Rev. Peter Morales in welcoming Rev. Kiyimba during a reception held in his honor. During his time in Boston, Rev. Kiyimba visited King's Chapel and Arlington Street Church.
Read more about Rev. Kiyimba's visit and view photos of the special occasion!
IV. "Welcome to Our Global Faith" Video Resource
The UUA's International Resources Office has released a new video resource, providing an introduction to and overview of the global aspects of our Unitarian Universalism.
The "Welcome to Our Global Faith" video is designed to introduce the global nature of Unitarian Universalism to new members of Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations. Leaders of new member classes or orientation sessions can include it as part of their curricula. Congregations may find it useful in other contexts as well.
View "Welcome to Our Global Faith"
V. Church of the Larger Fellowship: RE Express
Small congregations with age-combined groups, large congregations with a mixed-age program during one service, educators looking for extra ideas—the Church of the Larger Fellowship's (CLF's) RE Express has something for everyone!
The centerpiece of RE Express is CLiF Notes, a complete curriculum for mixed-age groups which is delivered monthly via email. This year’s curriculum is centered on the world’s religions. Subscribers to RE Express also receive access to the RE Index of Online Resources, an index which links to over 1,000 online RE resources from the CLF.
Additionally, each month subscribers receive links to the KidTalk monthly web page for children, parents and religious educators, and to the REsources for Living column from the CLF Quest. All this is available for an annual subscription of $129.
Groups can purchase RE Express for an annual subscription rate of 129 from the CLF website. RE Express is available for free to those who become group members of the CLF, otherwise known as Church OnLine. A one-year subscription to Church OnLine (which includes RE Express) is $299.
For further information, view the RE Express webpage and/or contact CLF at bmurray@uua.org.
VI. Sacred Places - A Pilgrimage to India
UUs are invited to join Rev. Abhi Janamanchi on a tour of sacred places in India in February 2011.
Please view this powerpoint video for further information!
VII. Budrus: Peacemaking in Israel/Palestine
Budrus is an award winning documentary about a Palestinian community organizer, Ayed Morrar, who unites local Fatah and Hamas members along with Israeli supporters in an unarmed movement to save his village of Budrus from destruction by Israel’s Separation Barrier.
The work of the organization that produced Budrus, Just Vision, is to engage audiences everywhere with Palestinians and Israelis working together in nonviolent ways for a peaceful equitable resolution of the conflict.
Read more about Budrus!
VIII. ICUU Global Chalice Lighting October 2010
The International Council of Unitarians and Universalists announces the 86th in its monthly series of global chalice lighting readings. Congregations worldwide are invited to participate.
All ICUU-affiliated groups have been asked to submit brief chalice lightings for the project. Every month, a reading will be distributed to Unitarian and Universalist congregations around the world. We ask each congregation to use the reading for at least one worship service in the designated month, identifying it as the “Global Chalice Lighting” for that month and naming the group which submitted it. Readings will be circulated in English and, where different, in their original language.
It is hoped that the ICUU Global Chalice Lighting Project will enhance the worship experience in our congregations and raise awareness of the international dimensions of our religious movement.
This Global Chalice Lighting is submitted in Czech and English by the Religious Society of Czech Unitarians. It is to be used during October 2010.
Czech
Vše, co mělo svůj počátek, má i svůj konec.
Tak jako den přechází do noci,
tak jako noc přechází do dne,
tak i jedna epocha přechází do epochy další.
Začal život tvůj, začal život můj;
jednoho dne skončí život tvůj,
skončí život můj.
Vše končí, vše se mění,
vše z jedné podoby
do jiné podoby přechází.
V průběhu změn, které jsou tak příznačné pro život světa, je přece něco stálého.
Je něco, co se nemění,
co zůstává nedotčeno všemi změnami
a všemi zvraty vesmírných dějů.
Je to Bytí, Jsoucno,
je to nehybný, netčený Zdroj toho, co je.
Vprostřed změti změn,
když se cítíme nejisti,
ohroženi nebo osamoceni,
ztišme svou mysl a useberme se,
a ponořme se v duchu
do Zdroje toho, co je, kde pramení Bytí.
Zůstaňme v tichu v tom místě.
To je naše zázemí, pevný bod.
Plamen kalicha, který teď zapalujeme,
v sobě odráží tento proces usebrání,
a také sdílený posvátný prostor
tohoto našeho společenství.
Pohlédni do plamene
a vnímej tichou radost ve svém srdci.
English
Everything that has begun will end.
Like the day changes into night,
Like the night changes into day,
In the same way,
One stage changes into another.
Your life began
And so did mine;
One day your life will end
And so will mine.
Everything will end,
Everything changes,
Everything transforms
From one shape into another.
In the course of changes so characteristic of life in this world,
There is, however, Something constant:
Something which remains untouched
By all the changes and twists.
We may call it Being, Existence;
It is the untouched Source of all that is.
In the midst of changes,
When we feel insecure,
Threatened or isolated,
Let us calm our minds and
Move deep into our hearts
Into the Source of all that is,
Where the Being rises.
Let us stay in that place
For a moment.
It is our foundation,
It is our stable point.
The flame of the chalice we light now
Reflects this process of centering,
As well as the shared sacred space of
Our community.
Look into the flame and
Feel this quiet joy in your heart.
Rev. Dr. Petr Samojsky
Religious Society of Czech Unitarians
IX. Events
