Skip to main content

What difference does First Unitarian make in your life?

By

There are many diverse perspectives, opinions, political views and experiences within our community.  I value the opportunity to engage with new ideas and I appreciate the trust and acceptance we share that allows us to speak honestly about our convictions.  Seth Popinchalk 


  I feel very fortunate to be part of the First Unitarian Church community.  Sue and I joined the church in 2009 after we registered Kate and Lauren for the Religious Education program.  Both Sue and I grew up going to church, and I think we were looking for a place where our children could gain the valuable experience of having a faith community.

At First U, I feel we share intentionality in our relationships with each other that we don't always find in the rest of our life. I see an emphasis on living the covenant that defines our UU faith.  Specifically the first three principles:

We affirm and promote:
  • The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
  • Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
  • Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth.

Our children have made friends through the church from all over the city; children and adults who look out for them and care for them.  I value the opportunity for my girls to have friends from outside their school community; disconnected from the classroom social dynamics that naturally form as children grow up together.

I even see signs that my girls are freely choosing to be part of this community.  When Kate received her invitation to join the middle school youth group BYKOTA she told me she was looking forward to it and had already made special plans to get a purple octopus...(it must be a BYKOTA thing)!

I enjoy building relationships with other members and friends of First U.  There are many diverse perspectives, opinions, political views and experiences within our community.  I value the opportunity to engage with new ideas and I appreciate the trust and acceptance we share that allows us to speak honestly about our convictions.

What difference does First Unitarian make in my life?  First U is the community where I can make connections that cross beliefs and experience and enrich my family's life.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

An Outstanding Day One for the Annual Pledge Drive

By
" It is rare indeed that people give.  Most people guard and keep. "  If this observation from James Baldwin, one of our contry's most respected philosophers and novelists, is true, then the opening Sunday of our Annual Stewardship Pledge Drive was a rare one indeed.  Consider these day one  statistics : Total amound pledged: $96,628 (32% of our $300,000 goal !) Number of pledges: 62 (6 of these were first time pledges !) A whopping 56% increased their pledge over last year ! Let us keep the momentum going!  If you have not yet sent in your pledge, do so today.   This is truly a wonderful beginning, and it was made even more special by our interim minister's homily.  If you missed Tracey's message, what follows are a few of her memorable and moving insights.  We come through these doors in search, in need, in hope, in prayer. We come looking for something to make our lives better; to make the lives of our family, our friends, our neigh
2 comments
Read more

This Community Surrounds My Life

By
I am always inspired and touched by the efforts to build a better world. Seth Popinchalk, Vice-Moderator Last week Scott Hayman told me about a 5K road race to benefit Abby’s house. Abby’s House is a family shelter for women and children and provides them with “a safe place to stay, regroup, and rebuild.” I am in fair shape, so when I woke up Saturday morning I laced up my shoes and drove out to West Boylston to find the starting line. I found Scott and Maddie at the registration area. I also ran into a handful of other familiar First U members wearing race bibs and supporting the event. There was no plan among members to connect with our First Unitarian community this Saturday morning, but we found each other among the crowd of about 300. I was reminded that I am surrounded by our special community. What brings us together? We are a community because we choose to be one. We find a connection with something the church offers: the Sunday services, the sermons, the holi
1 comment
Read more

Hearing the Call: Rudy Cepko, YRU2 Mentor and Advisor

By
“I believed that my day job as an RN in the Pediatric ICU at UMass would make it easy for me to handle a bunch of teenagers.  However, I was surprised to encounter teens willing to gain more knowledge in their spiritual quest and to learn how to use this in their everyday lives.”   Rudy Cepko   For many years I had not stepped into a church except for weddings and funerals.  In the mid-1990s, my wife, Alesia, started attending church to sing with UU choir.  She was impressed by the message that she heard from Barbara Merritt and suggested that I try the church.  I felt I was in a place that spoke to me, and our son Stefan was enrolled in the Sunday school programs. I had some involvement with church stewardship as a volunteer in the Garden committee.  Mowing the lawn, pulling weeds, planting and laying yards of mulch were part of my contribution to the church. Then when my son, Stefan, was in YRU2, he asked if I would be interested in becoming an assistant during the Sunday m
2 comments
Read more