Sabbatical Exchange and Pastoral Care at A2U2

I had a chance to lead worship at the UU Congregation in Brunswick on January 24^th. This was a part of our sabbatical exchange, in which Maine UU ministers lead worship for other congregations when their ministers are on sabbatical. So just as several area ministers came to preach at A2U2 while I was on sabbatical, this year I was in Brunswick while Rev. Sylvia Stocker in on sabbatical, and later in the spring, I will preach at First Parish in Portland while Rev. Christina Sillari is on sabbatical. Our social action committee also participated by bringing their excellent service on health care to Sanford, while Rev. Sue Gabrielson was on sabbatical in the fall. (Thanks also to the Worship Committee, who took on extra so that it might all work out.) This is just one of the ways we can be in collaboration with our UU neighbors.

The Brunswick church was burned down in a fire several years ago, but they've built a lovely new sanctuary with solar panels on the roof. You might be interested to know that they have three video screens in their sanctuary, and a tech team that works the audio-video system each Sunday. On the screens they post all the words to the hymns, and before the service starts, they post their announcements on a repeating loop. (New possibilities for A2U2?) Our IT folks might wonder, but even with a new system, they still have glitches that turn up every so often. All of the people were quite welcoming and friendly.

Several weeks ago, a newer person at A2U2 asked me about our Pastoral Care Team. Who are they and what do they do? That question leads into our congregation's philosophy of shared ministry, so this month, I thought it would be nice to devote a worship service to pastoral care at our church. The Pastoral Care Team is one part of that. There are currently six active members. A brief definition of pastoral care is “compassionate listening,” and the role of the Team is to be a listening ear when our A2U2 members might be needing to talk. For example, a PCT member listens during Joys and Concerns, and makes a note of what is shared, and collects the written joys and concerns, and then another team member reaches out to those who have shared with a phone call or email. We are interested in a few new members who might want to be a part of the team.

But Pastoral Care and compassionate listening at A2U2 also include our Caring Connection, our Pastoral Visitors, Spiritual Enrichment groups, Member Connections, Religious Education, the minister, and every member. This month I will be leading our “basic training” for shared ministry, LAMP 101, on February 20-21, Saturday and Sunday, from 1 to 5 each day. If you think you might be interested in taking a more active role in compassionate listening at our church, or just want to learn better listening skills in your personal life, please join us for LAMP 101.        All the best to you, Rev. Myke

NAACP Portland

Warmest wishes to everyone for the new year! Despite the troubles that have beset the Portland Branch of the NAACP this autumn, the indefatigable Rachel Talbot Ross and many allies and friends have come together to create a series of events to celebrate the birthday and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Now more than ever, we can support the work of racial justice and the dignity and worth of all people, by supporting this organization that has been on the front lines for so long. One of the issues faced by the branch was declining membership. Margy and I just renewed our memberships. This is one simple way to support the national and local work for justice. It costs $30 for a regular membership and you can join or renew online at http://www.naacp.org/pages/membership. When you are prompted, indicate that your local branch is #2038, the Portland Branch. Thank you!

Rev. Myke

The theme of this years activities is the Global Struggle for Freedom. You can find out about the events at http://naacp.me/2016/#MLK.

Projections from the Shadow of History

I am writing on the day Americans celebrate Thanksgiving, a holiday that always fills me with mixed feelings. Gratitude is wonderful, and getting together with family and friends can be a blessing. But I know that the stories we celebrate are white-washed versions of a history that has brought devastation to so many. I always remember that many Indigenous people call this the Day of Mourning.

The only time that foreign immigrants actually brought disease and destruction to this continent was when the English, Spanish, and French came to settle on its shores. Millions of Indigenous peoples died from diseases to which they had no resistance, or were killed in ongoing campaigns by the newcomers to destroy them and their way of life.

So while I give many thanks for my life, it feels sacrilegious to give thanks for prosperity that was built on the suffering and death of so many others. But it does illuminate for me, in a social psychological way, the possible roots of our American fear and hatred of foreign immigrants. I wonder if perhaps these feelings are a form of projection from this unacknowledged shadow side of American history. People imagine that new immigrants will bring destruction because the first settlers were the immigrants who did bring destruction.
This fear of the foreigner never proved realistic with later immigrants—with the Irish, the Italian, the Chinese, the German, the Jewish, the Puerto Rican, and so many others. Despite being hated and derided, they eventually became a part of the fabric of American life. Perhaps there is a link between facing more honestly our own shadowed and genocidal history, and letting go of our fear of the other.

Hard thoughts for a quiet holiday at home. But so many are cold and hungry and desperately seeking a safe harbor. And the tide of xenophobia and racism in our country seems to be rising out of control. Let's help our friends and neighbors to keep their heads about them. I believe that when we are lucky enough to have shelter and food and clothing and safety, we are responsible for sharing what we can with those who are in need. To me, that is what thanksgiving should be all about. Rev. Myke

A Bad Day

Sometimes you have a bad day. It could be for many reasons. As a minister, I hear about many really bad days, and my heart hurts for each person who faces trouble on their journey.

And sometimes, the bad day isn't life-shattering or devastating, but it still lands like a pile of bricks. This week, I received some news that landed on my day like that. Our church administrator, Debra Madigan, who has been such a wonderful addition to our staff, gave us two weeks notice. She has not been dissatisfied at A2U2, but was sought out by head hunters who offered her another job she felt she could not refuse. Her last day will be November 11^th.

I am sure our Personnel Committee and other church volunteers are as weary of searching for and hiring new staff as I am. But here we are. We'll be meeting soon to sort out the best direction forward, and I hope there might be some of you who would be willing to pitch in while we are in transition. We had such great helpers during the last transition.

Like I said, it's good to remember that this isn't life-shattering or devastating. It's a bad day, and extra work, and we are in it together. Have I told you lately that it is good to be in this work of spiritual community together with all of you? On the good days and on the bad days? Well, I’ll tell you now.

         Rev. Myke

Happy to be back!

It has been wonderful to see everyone again, as I've come back from sabbatical and we've all come together again into our autumn church life! I have been a little overwhelmed by emails, so if you have emailed me and not heard back yet, please try again. I want to connect! I have appreciated your welcome back messages, and feel happy to be with you all again.

I am so terribly excited about our funding campaign, “Walking With Care on This Earth.” After our long process of sorting through ideas and principles and options for our building and land; after our permaculture design process in which those ideas were brought together in a plan; after hours of research by many church members about sustainability and costs and feasibility—now we are actually raising the money to do it! Our consultants say we can do this. There are great leaders involved in the work. Now they just need all of us to participate in whatever we are able, and we will be able to begin work next spring.

Thanks to Connie and Dave for co-chairing this effort. Thanks to all the members of the group working on it. If you weren't in church when they made an announcement, I will mention that they are organizing one-on-one visits for all church members, in two waves. Margy and I were visited recently by a member of the team, and he answered any questions we had about the project, we had a chance to chat, and then Margy and I made a confidential pledge for our contribution to the projects. It was really fun to connect, and I was blown away by the brochure that they created for the campaign.

The first wave of visits will conclude by mid-October, and then the second wave of visits will happen between mid-October and mid-November. So if you are a member you'll be getting more information soon. And if you don't get information, but would like to participate, contact the church to make sure your contact information is all up to date, or to pass a message along to Connie and Dave. Non-members are welcome to be involved too. This is one more way we can bring our mission alive.

I also wanted to mention that this year I will be serving as a teaching pastor for a first-year student at Meadville-Lombard Theological School. His name is Israel Buffardi, he is a member of First Parish, and is beginning to follow a call to UU ministry. This year he and I will meet once a month, for mentoring and reflection on ministry. Then, if all goes well, he may serve as a half-time intern for A2U2 during our next church year starting in Sept 2016. The Board and I were happy for our church to continue on a path of helping to teach our next generation of UU ministers.

All the best, Rev. Myke

Liminal Time

As I return to church from my four-month sabbatical, I am feeling grateful and deeply appreciative of this time. Thank you to all of you who helped to make it possible! It has been a wonderful opportunity for refreshment and renewal. But I am noticing that I haven’t actually finished the two big goals I set for myself at its beginning.

One goal was to complete and publish my book, Finding Our Way Home: A Spiritual Journey into Earth Community. I am happy to say that I was able to finish another full revision, and I sent out several queries/proposals to publishers. In a positive development, one publisher, after seeing three chapters asked to see the full manuscript. Now I am in another period of waiting to hear back. I am learning just how long the publishing process can be. I also submitted one of the chapters to the UU Church of the Larger Fellowship's publication Quest for Meaning, and am happy to announce that an edited version of it was just published in their September edition. You can find it at http://www.questformeaning.org/quest-article/forgiving-the-broken/

Another goal was for Margy and I to align our living situation with our ecological values. We have started a process to find greener housing. We are hoping to downsize, move closer into the Portland area, and find a house we can convert to solar energy. We had a chance to outline what we want in a new home; we engaged an environmentally knowledgable realtor; we have looked at many houses that didn’t fit, and we have sorted out financing options. We’ve also begun the process of simplifying and letting go of things we no longer need. Now we are waiting for a house that will match our hopes and needs. I also began blogging about our #searchforgreenerhousing at my blog at http://findingourwayhomeblog.wordpress.com (If you are interested, you can sign up on the blog page to receive posts by email—they also appear on my Facebook page.) Blogging has been a way to share the journey with the congregation, and it also helps me to stay present to the process, rather than to get anxious about completing it.

In the midst of all of this, a new goal emerged. In July, I was able to attend an 11-day Intensive workshop with eco-philosopher Joanna Macy, on the Work that Reconnects. I found myself more passionate about helping people to make the changes that can move human beings into a more beneficial relationship with all life on earth. That in itself is not a new goal, but rediscovering the tools that Joanna Macy has created for this work has been a true blessing. I am already planning ways to bring those practices into my ministry with the congregation, and beyond, starting with the worship service on September 20^th.

I feel like I have been planting seeds and tending the soil, but the harvest time is still up ahead somewhere, as yet unknown. And for now, it is important to let it be unknown. I love that there is a word for the sacredness of being in between one time and another. It is called liminal time. It is the moment when magic can happen, when anything can happen. I am in a liminal time with each of these goals. If I want to experience the sacredness of this time, I must open to its mystery and uncertainty, I must celebrate its possibility, I must wait for its unfolding. The Holy is right here.

I look forward to seeing all of you on our re-gathering Sunday, September 13^th! I hope these months have brought each of you some form of learning or beauty or kindness.

Rev. Myke

Ministry to the World

As most of you know, I will be going on sabbatical from April 15 to August 15. One of the goals for my sabbatical is to finish the book I have been working on: Finding Our Way Home: A Spiritual Journey Into Earth Community. I feel the call of this book very strongly, and have been working on it for three years, during summers or other time off from my work at the church. But the essence of the book work is not separate from my work at the church.

Part of the ministry of our church is our ministry to the wider world. Just as I have preached to you, I have long felt a call to preach to the wider world about the spiritual journey of our times, the spiritual journey into full community with the earth. Every day in the news, we hear about horrific environmental destruction. We hear about wars and violence against people and animals. How would any of that be possible, if we really understood our connection to all beings?

For many centuries, spirituality has been considered as separate from the earth. As a child I learned that this earth didn't really count—heaven was what counted. It took many years to break through that delusion. And I am sure it will take many more for us to realize what connection to the earth might fully entail. The deeper I go into this question, the more I understand how broken we have become, and the more I am called to find healing and wholeness. I feel such hope and possibility in this.

I want to say how much gratitude I have to all of you in this community for valuing both our “internal ministry” and our “ministry to the world.” I thank you for granting this sabbatical time for me to be able to do this work, and I also thank you for pursuing an environmental journey as a congregation. I will think of you every day while I am away, and feel our bonds as a strength for the challenge I have taken on. I look forward to sharing the completed project with you when I return, may it be so!

I know that while I am away you will care for each other with love and kindness, and continue to live our mission with enthusiasm. I have witnessed your goodness first hand. We have always fostered a ministry shared by all, and that shared ministry will be the foundation for these months. There are also many resources in place for the church to be strong and healthy while I am away.

We have our very first Intern Minister, Lyn Marshall, who has grown connected to our congregation, and has shown herself trustworthy and talented. She will be coordinating worship and pastoral ministry through the end of the church year in June. We have a compassionate and gifted Pastoral Care Team. Do you remember that it was originally created during my first sabbatical six years ago in 2009?  Please call on them when you have a need to talk. You can email or call the church and choose ext. 13. We have a marvelous Worship Committee who will continue to offer lay led worship per usual and through the summer.

The Committee on Ministry will be a resource for the unexpected, in any areas of church life that might need support. Rick Grover is chair of that committee this year. And I want to honor and thank Clay Atkinson, our congregation President, who is a true leader, forward-thinking and hard-working. Help him out while I am away! I look forward to hearing the latest on our Church and Grounds Renewal Project when I return.

May you find much joy and many blessings during these next months. Please keep me in your hearts as I keep you in mine.

                                                   Gratefully, Rev. Myke