A Social Justice Opportunity:

Pedal for Peace

October 2, 2010, 4-10 pm,
Major Tayor Velodrome,
3649 Cold Springs Road, Indpls

anyone 8^th grade or older can participate

50% of proceeds goes to AWAKEN

Interested in biking on a team?
Contact Emily, captain of Ball State Peace Center team, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
More information: pedalforpeace.org or 317-443-2632

For a number of years our congregation has supported AWAKEN (Afghan Women's & Kids' Education & Necessities), which is receiving half of the proceeds; we donate the use of our building for their annual fund raising dinner.

For more information about AWAKEN and their work, visit their website.

This is the best time of year in this part of the world. The nights and mornings are cool, but the afternoons are filled with sun and the rich green of late summer. Speaking of green, I was recently told that our church has been talking far too much about money. It has been a bigger topic of concern than usual. Last fall we faced a serious accounting crisis that had dropped our reserves to near zero, and we asked everyone to help Fill the Gap. Last winter we had our usual annual pledge campaign, and then in the spring we had another drive to increase those pledges. This fall we are engaged in the SOS capital fund drive, to repair and improve our building. Then, in six months, we will be facing our annual pledge campaign yet again. This is certainly out of the ordinary, but necessary to make sure we continue to transform individual lives and in the community around us.

I am pleased you found the web site that tells about our Muncie Unitarian Universalist Church community. As President of the Board, I could give a formal welcome, but instead I will share what I found when my family and I were looking for a church community. We were new to Muncie, many miles from friends and family, and we had two children, one of whom was seriously ill. I was a religious skeptic with little experience of organized religion but a deep interest in life’s questions and issues. Here I found a place where I could say what I believed (or didn’t believe) and ask embarrassing questions and still be accepted and respected. My children found a religious education program that encouraged them to think for themselves and respect all others. My wife found a church community different from that of her upbringing, but even more affirming, challenging and stimulating.

If you are interested in free religious inquiry and are in search of a supportive community that welcomes all, I encourage you to attend several services and please stay for fair-trade coffee and conversation with members and friends of our congregation. You will find our members and friends to be people who are caring, interesting and multifaceted, active in improving the Muncie community, interested in discussing ideas and concerns, and are committed to providing a supportive non-creedal, pluralistic religious home for all. Our church has been doing that in Muncie for 151 years.

Lynn Sousa,
Congregational President, 2010-11

Here it is … a chance to engage UUs in the power of collective gathering … an opportunity to share the unconditional love and acceptance of our faith with a broader community ... and enjoy a spirited celebration for all ages. Its Huusier Paluuza! On Saturday, September 18, UU congregants will gather on the campus of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Indianapolis (UUI; 615 W. 43rd St.) for a camp-meeting style extravaganza will celebrate the "big tent" philosophy of our faith with hands-on family activities, youth/young adult worship, and a rock band, followed by a community meal. An exciting evening of dynamic music and worship will follow, featuring the preaching talents of three "firebrands:" Rev. Meg Barnhouse (www.megbarnhouse.com), Rev. Bill Breeden (UU Bloomington), and Rev. Stephen Sinclair (UUI). Music will be provided by the Celebration Choir (composed of singers from UU congregations and UUI neighbors), the UU Blues Gospel Band from UU Bloomington, and Thin Air (www.myspace.com/thinairindy5).

All youth will begin in the sanctuary with their parents. Following the hymn, Spirit of Life, classes will begin.  On special occasions, children will begin in their classrooms so that we may hold “children’s chapel” in the fellowship hall.  Please check the “RE Welcome Board” in the RE wing (east entrance) to find out what is happening in RE each Sunday morning.

Decades ago our church established a Caring Fund. The money of this fund is to be used, at the discretion of the Minister, to help members and friends of our church in times of emergency or one time need. Most often this money is used to pay overdue utilities, but it has also been used to help a single parent family keep their car running, to cover a small medical expense, to help an elderly person buy a warm shawl and blanket in winter, and even to help with one mortgage payment in a time of trouble. People who receive help from this fund can choose to pay back the money or not. The Caring Fund is not a part of our church budget; it is supported exclusively through the generosity of our church members and the collection we take during the Solstice/Christmas Eve service. Our desire is to keep about two thousand dollars in the fund. As of the first of August the fund had dropped to less than five hundred and now needs to be replenished. If you would like to “pay it forward” or be generous or make sure that our community can help individuals in times of trouble, please send your donations to the UU Church Office, marked Caring Fund.