From Rev. Susan Frances: August 14, 2020

Dear Friends, 

I was so pleased that so many of you could join my ordination ceremony via Zoom on August 2, 2020. The accompanying photo is of me in the robe that I bought with the gift certificate to WomenSpirit Vestaments that UCE gave me at the end of my internship and the exquisite stole that Carol Nielsen created as my gift from UCE upon my ordination. Thank you! The other gift from UCE upon my ordination was the wonderful O Love piece by the joint UCE and 2U Choir! Thank you to everyone who sang, to Vickie Hellyer for the rehearsals and for conducting, to Gregory Shifrin for the accompaniment, and to Adam Gough for editing it all together.  

I have been thinking about the start of the new church year and how to express the tone and live into the culture shifting challenge set at the 2020 Virtual GA. The speakers I heard and the Actions of Immediate Witness that were passed reflected the calls I hear locally and nationally for a new social and economic order in conjunction with a revitalized democracy.  

So many of our principles support this cultural and political transformation: justice, equity, and compassion in human relations – a free and responsible search for truth and meaning – the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large – the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.  

When you have a moment this week, think about which one of these principles resonates most with you right now? Life ebbs and flows and it might be a different principle next week, but this week, what resonates with you. And then think about how you might put that principle into practice. Reach out to me if you have an idea. Now is the time to be creative in our compassion and our action. 

In faith, 

Rev. Susan