Mayflower Congregational Church UCC

voices . october 2006

a word from robin coming home I have begun my 22nd year as minister of Mayflower church, and this year, as always, you welcomed us home from the summer break with open arms and loving hearts. The book tour was both exhilarating and exhausting. I was privileged to preach in some exalted pulpits (Berkeley, Claremont, New York City, and Boston), and it wasn’t just the book I was promoting, but a set of progressive religious ideas Mayflower lives by and the world desperately needs. ::: more	think on this "The United States imports two hundred million pounds of beef every year from El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Panama - while the average citizen in those countries eats less meat each year than the average American house cat." Thus, according to a study funded by the World Bank, 72 acres of rainforest are destroyed every minute to create pasturelands to grow beef for export to the United States." -- excerpted from "Diet for a New America"
whiz kids Mayflower Congregational Church and Crown Heights United Methodist Church have partnered to provide Whiz Kids literacy tutoring to Putnam Heights Academy students each Thursday from 3 - 5 pm at Crown Heights UMC, 1021 NW 37th St. ::: more	mayflower fellowship meeting The third Sunday of every month, in this case, Oct. 15, is the Mayflower fellowship meeting. We meet and have dinner (potluck) from 6 - 8 pm in Fellowship Hall. This is not a fellowship gathering geared to any particular group … ALL are welcome ... kids too. So come and join the fun and get to know fellow Mayflower-ites!
plymouth guild's bazaar is sure to surprise and delight Guild members started in August making the highly sought-after Aunt Bill’s candy, to be sold at the Fall Bazaar Sat., Oct. 28. Mayflower members are also making casseroles and other goodies to sell. In addition to the always delightful Aunt Bill's candy, the bazaar also features merchandise from Attic’s Treasures and hard-to-pass-up treasures perfect for the holidays. ::: more on the many activities of the always busy and hard-working Guild	fall study series focuses on Biblical self-defense In response to the need for “Biblical self-defense," Mayflower will be showing the Living the Questions video series “Saving Jesus” beginning soon. This will be a group study series led by Chris Moore with material from some of the top Biblical scholars of our time including John Shelby Spong, Marcus Borg, Rita Nakashima Brock and others. Look for more details in the bulletin and on the deacons’ table in the coming weeks.
A little radio goes a long way Producing the Mayflower Church radio program has been one of the highlights of my week for the better part of a decade. Robin composes and delivers sermons that are ‘out of the box’ in more ways than one. The audience is treated to rational, thought-provoking, and yes, spiritually moving rhetoric. And while it may sometimes sound as though he’s spontaneous; merely saying what occurs to his mind in the moment, it’s not that way at all. In other words, the listener doesn’t get hammered with verse by verse yelling which amounts to gravely irresponsible preaching. ::: more	simpler living, compassionate life the focus of 7 generations class The 7 Generations adult class delves into a new book, " Simpler Living, Compassionate Life: A Christian Perspective," edited by Michael Schut starting Oct. 1. With 12 chapters and a discussion guide, a forward by Bill McKibben, and an endorsement by Jim Wallis of Sojourners, the book is an engrossing collection of pieces from writers like Terry Tempest Williams, Henri Nouwen, Richard Foster, Cecile Andrews and eighteen others encouraging you to listen to your own story, and to respond in a dialogue about the fundamental issues of life: time, money, food, sustainability, spirituality, and community. ::: more
oct 21st & 22nd screenings of an inconvenient truth aim to mobilize a religious response to global warming A sign of hope in troubled times, leaders from all faiths are joining forces to mobilize a religious response to global warming. In Oklahoma City, Mayflower is one of ten churches participating in Interfaith Power & Light’s “Spotlight on Global Warming,” an unprecedented inter-religious nationwide screening of educational films about global warming, featuring Paramount’s An Inconvenient Truth. ::: more	nominate me, nominate me, nominate me Mayflower's annual meeting is just around the corner on Nov. 1. Believing the best way to run a Congregational Church is to have people volunteer to serve on boards and committees, relieving current volunteers of the need to be clairvoyant and face rejection when people are too busy to serve, Mayflower has long solicited self-nominations for it's boards and committees. ::: more
mobile meals needs volunteers Can you volunteer a couple of hours on Saturday mornings once a month? Mobile Meals is in need of a new driver to deliver meals to homebound elderly. If interested, call Kristin Harris, 733.1548. Mobile Meals also wishes to Dr. Lawrence Stream and Larry Wyatt Stream for more than 20 years of serve to the Mobile Meals program!	AIDS walk, prairie safari, bowling and more keep mayflower youth hopping Coming on the heels of one of the most successful lock-ins yet (25 youth ages 6th - 12 grades negotiated the woozy realm of all-night activities on Sept. 22), Oct. is shaping up to be another banner month for Mayflower Youth, code name MY flower power. Kicking off the month with the AIDS Walk on Oct. 1, the group is gearing up for another great fall break adventure, A Prairie Safari, Oct. 19 - 21. ::: more
of interest ... moyers on america: three-part series set to air on pbs in october Are you an informed and engaged citizen? In October, Bill Moyers returns to investigative journalism with Moyers on America, a series of three documentaries on issues affecting democracy — money in politics, the environment, and internet neutrality. You can connect, reflect, and respond to these hotly-debated topics by joining the MOYERS ON AMERICA Citizens Class. This national dialogue will take a hard look at some of today's most pressing issues and ask: What do you think? ::: more	all-church picnic was loads of fun We all had a blast! But don't take our word for it. As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words so check out the picnic photo gallery and see the fun for yourself. Many thanks to Lynn Green for great photos! ::: more
Voices The monthly newsletter of Mayflower Congregational Church, UCC 3901 N.W. 63rd Street Oklahoma City, OK 73116 405 . 842 . 8897 To unsubscribe, click here.

A special word of thanks to all our contributors: Neil Stanfield, Jana Hayes, Erma Stewart, Chris Moore, David Rucker, Lynn Green, Helen Sullivan, and Robin Meyers. For more information on how you too can contribute to Voices, explore the links below.

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