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Alki UCC Weekly Messenger September 16, 2021
From Rev. Louis

Greetings beloved ones! It may seem to you that each week is the lifting up of one who joined the ancestors. This week is no exception. 

On Sunday, September 12, 2021, we lost one of the most amazing theologians in our time!

John Shelby "Jack" Spong (June 16, 1931 – September 12, 2021) was an American bishop of the Episcopal Church. From 1979 to 2000, he was the Bishop of Newark, New Jersey. A liberal Christian theologian, religion commentator and author, he called for a fundamental rethinking of Christian belief away from theism and traditional doctrines.
 
Some of his publications include:
• 1974 – This Hebrew Lord
• 1975 – Christpower
• 1975 – Dialogue: In Search of Jewish-Christian Understanding
(co-authored with Rabbi Jack Daniel Spiro)
• 1976 – Life Approaches Death:
A Dialogue on Ethics in Medicine
• 1977 – The Living Commandments
• 1988 – Living in Sin? A Bishop Rethinks Human Sexuality
• 1991 – Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism:
A Bishop Rethinks the Meaning of Scripture
• 1994 – Resurrection: Myth or Reality?
A Bishop's Search for the Origins of Christianity
• 1996 – Liberating the Gospels: Reading the Bible with Jewish Eyes
• 1999 – Why Christianity Must Change or Die:
A Bishop Speaks to Believers In Exile
• 2001 – Here I Stand:
My Struggle for a Christianity of Integrity, Love and Equality
• 2002 – A New Christianity for a New World: Why Traditional Faith Is Dying and How a New Faith Is Being Born
• 2005 – The Sins of Scripture: Exposing the Bible's Texts of Hate to Reveal the God of Love
• 2007 – Jesus for the Non-Religious
• 2009 – Eternal Life: A New Vision:
Beyond Religion, Beyond Theism, Beyond Heaven and Hell
• 2013 – The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic
• 2016 – Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy
• 2018 – Unbelievable: Why Neither Ancient Creeds Nor the Reformation Can Produce a Living Faith Today
 
He was a profound thinker, a thoughtful theologian and a humanitarian in the most general sense. 
 
I encourage you to read some of his work. I am still building my full library of his books and I want them all!  
 
May his memory be a blessing, as his life was to so many!
 
Toiling in the work of Spirit, mining for truth and meaning of ancient texts is made so much easier by the great thinkers that have come before us. Bishop Spong was a great guide and shepherd for those of us who know that we can’t know God fully, ever. But who yearn to grow more intimate in our relationship with God and more knowing in how best to utilize the translations of our ancestors of faith. 
I am forever grateful for him and his work.
 
May the grace of God, the teachings of Christ and the fire of the Holy Spirit surround, inform and infuse us as we go!
 
Blessings,
Rev. Louis
Outreach Events this Weekend
Call for Cooks!
Westside Interfaith Network (WIN) Lunch
Saturday, September 18
We're teaming up again with cooks from Admiral UCC to provide a hot lunch for some of our neighbors in need at the Westside Interfaith Network's (WIN) "Welcome Table."
 
About a dozen cooks are needed to each prepare a hot nutritious dish in a 13 x 9" or large aluminum roasting pan (preferred). Suggestions are rice and beans, roasted veggies, mac and cheese, rice and chicken, burritos, roasted potatoes, tossed salad, etc.
 
Either contact Cinda to have your dish picked up on Saturday OR deliver it by 11:15 am to
Body of Christ Church, 1320 SW 102nd
White Center (two blocks east of McClendon's).
 
You are welcome to stay for the lunch to meet our neighbors and Westside Interfaith Network volunteers.

Extras: Bring men's work clothing, socks, toiletries, TP, non-perishable food to donate to our neighbors in need.

Contact me to sign up. Thank you, Cinda
 
Community Food/Clothing Donations Drive
Sunday, September 19
11:00 am to 3:00 pm
Front Courtyard
 
Alki UCC has joined St. Vincent de Paul and the Westside Interfaith Network (WIN) to support 13 Nicaraguan families resettling in White Center as recent immigrés to the United States! We welcome them to our larger community and hope to be instrumental in helping them thrive in their new homes.

New or gently used children's clothing donations are critically needed, in addition to donations of men's casual/work clothes and non-perishable food and hygiene items to be distributed through the White Center Food Bank. 
 
Cinda can always use some extra help, especially around 3:00 pm to help bring the donations inside.
Faith Formation Team Field Trip October 29
Kinsey African American Art & History Collection
Tacoma Art Museum
Friday, October 29, noon to 1:00 pm
$12.00 per person/group rate discount
Carpool leaves from the church at 10:00 am;
$2.00 per hour parking fee
Exhibit preview here.
 
Join us for a group tour of the heralded Kinsey African American Art & History Collection,
a celebration of the achievements and contributions of Black Americans from 1595 to present times.
 
Considered one of the most comprehensive surveys of African American history and culture outside the Smithsonian Institution, the exhibition features masterful paintings and sculpture, photographs, rare books, letters, manuscripts and more that offer new perspectives on the nation’s history and culture.
 
We need a final count by October 22 so check your calendars and contact Julia P for details.
 
If you prefer to go on your own, check out exhibit details at tacomaartmuseum.org. If there's interest, we'll schedule a follow-up discussion.
High Holy Days Services at KHN
Jews around the world welcomed in a New Year Monday night, September 6 the beginning of a 10-day period of intense reflection, introspection and teshuvah (atonement and forgiveness).

The period culminates at the conclusion of Yom Kippur when the sun sets tonight, September 16. During this time, Jews reflect on their actions and interactions of the past year, taking a "fearless moral accounting"... asking forgiveness from those whom they may have hurt, and forgiving those who may have hurt them.
 
It is an intense and powerful period of renewal. The High Holy Days are then followed by two joyous holidays, Succot and Simchat Torah. During Succot, Jews build temporary huts in which to eat (and sometimes to sleep!), celebrating the bounty of our lives, as well as reminding ourselves of the fragility of life itself. — adapted from an article by Rabbi Zari Weiss, ret.
 
* * *
Kol HaNeshamah (KHN), Alki UCC's partner synagogue, is hosting both in-person and virtual services to mark this year's High Holy Days. For information, visit the KHN website.
UCC Neighbors in Need Special Offering
Sunday, October 3
Neighbors in Need (NIN), a UCC special mission offering, supports ministries of justice and compassion throughout the United States.
 
This year's NIN “Unfailing Love” offering is focused on supporting organizations and projects that serve homeless and immigrant neighbors or communities. One-third of NIN funds support the Council for American Indian Ministry (CAIM). Two-thirds of this offering is used by the UCC’s Justice and Witness Ministries (JWM) to provide funding grants to UCC churches and organizations leading justice initiatives, advocacy efforts, and direct service projects in their communities.
 
The NIN Offering will be taken during worship on Sunday, October 3, but you can contribute any time here.
In Our Circle of Prayer
Prayers for Lowell P, in recovery from gall bladder surgery.
 
Emily H asks for special prayers of recovery for Donna (a former neighbor and friend of daughter Amy) who was in a head-on collision when riding with Uber to the LA airport. She is recovering in ICU with broken ribs and pelvis and anticipates a long recovery.
 
Special Prayers of Restoration and Comfort for the many people affected by Hurricane Ida, for the residents of Haiti and and for victims of extreme climate across the world.
 
Continuing Prayers of Protection and Support for the people of Afghanistan.
 
As the school year opens, Special Prayers of Support and Safety for Kirstin, Jeff, and all the educators and students in our community and beyond ... and for all who work in the school environment.
 
Special Prayers for the family, friends and communities of Ronald Greene, Andrew Brown Jr, Adam Toledo, Ma'hia Bryant, Andrew Brown Jr, Daunte Wright, Walter Wallace, Jonathan PriceJacob Blake, Rayshard Brooks, Manuel Elllis, George Floyd, Elijah McClain, Dreasjon (Sean) Reed, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and the heart-breaking list of African-Americans and other people of color murdered or wounded by police or self-declared vigilantes in our nation over many decades. We mourn with you and we stand for justice and healing.
 
Special Prayers for all those on the front lines of working to protect us, keep us healthy, sane, grounded, informed, fed and comfortable during the current COVID 19 outbreak: our faith leaders, front-line health care workers, EMTs, police, firefighters, educators, transit bus and rail drivers, farmers, therapists, social workers, shelter operators, engineers, grocery/drug store personnel, caregivers, childcare specialists, pharmacists, custodians, organizations caring for the most vulnerable, sanitation workers, dispatchers and others keeping our supply chains operational, truth-telling journalists and all the many public servants who are so vital to our community.
 
For those grieving the recent death of a loved one:
Friends and family of Jim and Sandy's good friend Jim; friends and family of Bev C; Charlie H and family; Candace G and family; Ed B and family; Jeff D's cousin Jerry Elder and his wife Tami Elder; Todd S and family; Patty M, family and friends of Bob J, family and friends of Jim C, Kirstin and family; Larry G

Recent hospitalization, illness and other concerns:
Jim and Sandy's friends Jim S and Mary Jane as they deal with health issues, Dan's brother Bill and Bill's wife Helaina, Larry G, Dan K, Cinda's sister-in-law, Sue B's friends Mary and Louise, CindyJulia P, Jeff and Kirstin's sister-in-law Sue, Sandy and Jim's friend Al, his mom, Sue and friend Kay; Penny M; Kirstin D; Shannon P's father, Rev. Dr. BillVerona's younger brother Eric; Julia C's long-time friend Megan; Bonita C; Claire F; Dayle B; Imy P; Kirstin D's father; Don P

For homebound members/friends of Alki UCC: Doris C

Wider World: Prayers for all those affected by the corona virus outbreak; all those suffering from PTSD in the military and around the world; for all those affected by misguided immigration policies; prayers for fewer guns, for all victims and those affected by gun violence; victims and survivors of extremist violence around the world; migrants seeking refuge around the world, and for those who are trying to help them. The rest of the missing schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram, who remain in our hearts as long as they remain missing. The hungry and homeless, the ill and the addicted, the lost and the lonely; the unemployed.
Worship
this Sunday
September 19
at 10:00 am
Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost
 
Rev. Louis J. Mitchell
 
 
Contemporary Voice:
"There's a way of playing safe, there's a way of using tricks and there's the way I like to play which is dangerously — where you're going to take a chance on making mistakes in order to create something you haven't created before."
— Dave Brubeck
 
Scripture Readings:
Psalm 71:1-6
Source: “A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, year W"
Dr. Wilda C. Gafney
2 Corinthians 1:8
adapted from
Gafney Lectionary
Adaptation of Matthew 6:9-13
Gafney Lectionary, credit to Rev. Yolanda M. Norton
 
Sermon:
“Dangers, Seen and Unseen”
 
Liturgist:
Cinda S
 
Moment of Ministry:
Personnel
 
Guest Accompanist:
Zachary Kellogg
 
Music Highlights:
Hymn #439 (NCH):
A Mighty Fortress
is Our God 
Hymn #299 (NCH):
For All The Saints 
Hymn #506 (NCH):
What a Friend We
Have in Jesus 
 
Sunday's Order of Worship, including the scripture text, is linked here.
Upcoming
Alki UCC/Admiral WIN Lunch Prep and Service
Saturday, September 18
Contact: Cinda S
 
Community Food/Clothing Donations Drive
Sunday, September 19
11:00 am to 3:00 pm
Front Courtyard
 
Outreach/Social Justice
Tuesday, September 28
at 7:00 pm/Place TBD
(meetings on 4th Tuesdays at 7:00 pm)
Contact: Cinda S
Celebrate Oktoberfest with Homemade Soup from the Alki UCC Kitchen ...
Order Today!
'Tis the Season...
 
 
...for soup, and also Oktoberfest. So let's combine them! On Sunday, October 3, you can have your soup and pretzel, too!
 
 
Just choose from two kinds of soup:
Hamburger Vegetable or Butternut Squash (vegetarian) and then the amount: soup for one (in a pint jar - $8) or soup for two (in a quart jar - $15). 

Don't delay! Please place your order with this handydandy online form by Wednesday, September 29.
 
Then don your Dirndl or Lederhosen and come pick it up at the church if you can between 11:30 am and 1:30 pm on Sunday, October 3. Or ask to have it delivered.
 
Either way you'll get to visit with your church people before enjoying a wonderful Oktoberfest-worthy bowl of soup and a pretzel!
 
Join us! O' Zapft is!
— Vicky S.
Invitation to Support "Skylink" Project
Submitted by Marty W, a KHN member and environmental expert/ activist, who would like you to know about West Seattle Skylink.
 
 
Let’s use an aerial gondola instead of light rail to connect West Seattle with the light rail stations in SODO and the International District.
 
Sound Transit (ST) vetted gondolas as high capacity transit options in 2014 — for connecting local areas (like West Seattle) with light rail “spine” stations (like in SODO & the I.D.). 
A gondola could carry twice as many passengers as ST expects from West Seattle in 2040 and there are many other benefits. 
 
Please sign the West Seattle SkyLink petition, and urge Sound Transit to do the gondola study for West Seattle.
 
For more information, please visit the West Seattle SkyLink website.
Zoom Registration Link  for Sunday Worship
You only need to register once for Sunday worship. 
 
 
You will receive a confirmation email with your own un ique link to join Sunday worship.
Sunday Worship Videos Posted on YouTube
 
 Check out Alki UCC's very own YouTube channel
About Alki UCC
6115 SW Hinds ♦ Seattle, WA 98116 ♦ 206/935-2661
 
Check for church news and calendar updates at www.alkiucc.org.
On-Line Giving
For secure, online giving through Give Lively,
 click the blue button at right.
 
You can also send your check, made out to "Alki UCC," to:
Alki UCC Church Office
6115 SW Hinds
Seattle, WA 98116
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Alki UCC  •  6115 SW Hinds  •  Seattle, WA 98116

http://www.alkiucc.org

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