Lyndon Harris will be sharing “And who is my Neighbor?” The Biblical Ethic of Concern and Care for the Refugee.” The plight of immigrants and refugees has become a central issue in the political wars of the present national context, and an ongoing topic for discussion and action by communities of faith and humanistic good will. What is our ethical obligation to the refugee, the immigrant, those fleeing persecution? Join us December 1st, for an exploration of the biblical ethical code of care for the refugee, and why this commitment of love is an important foundation of civil society.

Speaking of refugees…

Over the past few years, our UU fellowship has been supporting political refugees and immigrants by sending aid to the Mastaki family who fled to our country from Goma in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

(see https://robinaedgar.wordpress.com/). Some of the family members will be visiting for the Thanksgiving weekend, and will be able to join us at fellowship this coming Sunday.

 

Home Trust Bank recently joined the list of sponsors for the CommUnity Coffee House of the Carolina Foothills concert “Deeper Than The Skin: A Musical Presentation on Race in America” with Reggie Harris and Greg Greenway. Also sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Carolina Foothills (UUFCF) and the Thermal Belt Friendship Council, the concert will be held on Wednesday November 13 at the Sunnydale Cabin at 334 S. Trade Street in Tryon at 7pm.

Greg Greenway and Reggie Harris, use the power of music and storytelling to take audiences on a journey that follows their divergent backgrounds. Along the way, audience members are united through music and dialogue with the musicians and each other about their own experiences of race to encourage ongoing conversations across America’s racial divide.

“These sponsors help us with ur goal of building community by making it more affordable for all of the residents of our community, especially students and seniors in the Eastside Community to attend.the generous sponsorship enables us to make it more affordable to attend,” says Robin Edgar, President of the UUFCF board.

For more information about the availability of the subsidized tickets, contact Robin Edgar at 864-457-7557 or email 2robinedgar@gmail.com.

 

November 3, 2019

A Commemoration of Krystalnacht, the “Night of Broken Glass”

By Lyndon Harris

The night of November 9, 1938, witnessed the explosion of terror that inaugurated Hitler’s “Final Solution to the Jewish Question.” In response to the assassination of Nazi German diplomat, Ernst vom Rath by a Polish Jewish teenager, Herschel Grynszpan in Paris that same day, Jewish businesses, homes and synagogues were razed and burned to the ground. The Holocaust, in which six million Jews were killed has become the archetypal face of evil in the 20^th century.

In spite the depravity of Nazism, we will consider what inspiring things we might learn from the courageous leaders of the resistance, like pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and pediatrician Janusz Korczak, who fought to the end to protect the 200 children in his orphanage.

Come join us as we remember this day, and as we look to the future.

 

November 13, 2019

CommUnity Coffee House of the Carolina Foothills presents

 Reggie Harris and Greg Greenway in an unforgettable concert that explores friendship, race, and community through music, storytelling, and the spoken word.

Wednesday November 13, 2019 at 7 pm

At the Historic Sunnydale Cabin

334 S. Trade Street in Tryon

Tickets $20.00 for general seating

https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4295519

 

November 17, 2019

 Becoming Thankful People: How the Spiritual Practice of Gratitude is the Secret to a Well Lived Life

By Lyndon Harris

Looking for a life hack to increase peace and fulfillment, and decrease anxiety, anger and depression? – try gratitude! Each year in the US, we celebrate Thanksgiving as a national holiday, but it doesn’t seem to take root. Why is that? Come join us for a conversation about gratitude, and explore spiritual practices for increasing it in your life!

 

 

For this week’s service at Sunnydale 334 S. Trade Street at 10:30 am on Sunday, October 6, Lyndon Harris will be sharing “The Exuberance of Francis: What a 12th Century Saint Can Teach Us Today.” Please join us as for this reflection and dialogue about the life and work of Saint Francis of Assisi who worked on behalf of the poor and was grounded in a spirituality that honored all living and non-living things.

 

Please also mark your calendars for Wednesday, November 13 at 7pm for the upcoming inaugural CommUnity Coffee House of the Carolina Foothills with Reggie Harris and Greg Greenway and “Deeper Than The Skin” (CommUnity Coffee House page on our web site). After the two very talented, award-winning musicians sing gospel and folk songs about racism and prejudice, they share how their friendship overcame the racial divide, and then the audience gets to share their experiences.

CommUnity Conversations Continue

This Wednesday, September 11, from 2:00 – 4:00 pm at The Tryon Depot at 22 Depot Street, Robin Edgar will be facilitating Conversations about Compassion & Forgiveness.  In response to the feelings hate and retribution after the 9/11 attacks, The Fetzer Institute initiated a national campaign, “Conversations about Love & Forgiveness,” one of which Robin Edgar facilitated in Charlotte, NC. After four years of conversations, The Fetzer Institute recognized that compassion was a key to forgiveness and initiated “Conversations about Compassion.”

All of our CommUnity Converastions are free and open to the public so I hope you can join any or all of the remaining conversations:

• Weds Sept 11from 2:00 – 4:00 pm: Compassion & Forgiveness with Robin Edgar
• Weds Sept 18from 2:00 – 4:00 pm: Forgiveness for Good with Lyndon Harris and Robin Edgar
• Weds Sept 25from 2:00 to 5:00 pm: Better Angels Depolarization Skills workshop with Del Kimbler will teach the discipline of non-polarizing attitudes and words about the political “other”. (Note: this is a three-hour workshop.)

 

Our Next Fellowship on Sunday, September 15, 2019

Lyndon Harris will be sharing about “Four Little Girls.” On September 15, 1963, following the forced desegregation of schools in Alabama, four African American girls were killed in the cruel bombing, by the KKK, of the 16^th Street Baptist Church. 56 years have passed and we’ve come a long way. But we still have a way to go. In this reflection we will consider developments in civil rights, from the early sixties to the rise of Black Lives Matter and the amazing work of Bryan Stevenson and the Equal Justice Initiative.

 

Best regards,
Robin Edgar

President of the UUFCF Board

 

 

Join Pam and Charley Rogers Weds, Sept. 4 for Moments Of Truth, a workshop that teaches listening skills and word strategies to repair relationships and build community. Free and open to the public from 2:00 to 4:00 pm at the Tryon Depot at 22 Depot Street, the session is one of the CommUnity Conversations sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Carolina Foothills. For additional information, call 828-513-0570.

Tickets are also now on sale for Deeper Than The Skin with Reggie Harris and Greg Greenway. You will not want to miss this unforgettable concert that explores friendship, race, and community through music, storytelling, and the spoken word. The first concert in our CommUnity Coffee House series, it will be held on Wednesday November 13, 2019 at 7 pm at the Historic Sunnydale Cabin at 334 S. Trade Street in Tryon. To purchase $20.00 tickets for general seating go to www.brownpapertickets.com.

Peacemaking in the Nuclear Age On August 6, 1945, in response to provocation, the U.S. bombed the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and, three days later, Nagasaki killing over 200,000 people. That was 74 years ago yet, every August, we still commemorate those who died, renewing our commitment to world peace and our call to work for a world free of nuclear weapons. On July 11, 2017 the United Nations passed an historic resolution banning nuclear weapons (the vote was 122 – 1), with one nation (Singapore) abstaining. This sounds encouraging — except for the fact that the nine nations owning nuclear weapons chose not to participate. Join us as Lyndon Harris will offer a reflection and encourage dialogue on peace making and solidarity in the nuclear age.

This coming Sunday, July 21 at 10:30, our service will be about Science and Faith in the 21st Century:

 

The fourth principle of Unitarian Universalism declares a commitment to “A free and responsible search for truth and meaning.” The history of human progress is born from the emergence of science and reason from the mists of superstition and dogma. But is there a conflict between faith and reason, science and religion? Come join us for a thoughtful investigation of the relationship between science and faith, and share your thoughts about why this is important, and what it means for today.

 

NOTE: There will be a brief UUFCF Board meeting after the service. All are welcome to attend. Only members can vote.