June 25 - Pride Sunday & Fourth Sunday after Pentecost ~~ Beauty Beyond the Binary 

Samantha and Sarah Sanchez French will provide the congregation with some background on their religious journeys that ultimately led them to RUCC, marriage and newfound spirituality. They will detail their healing processes as queer women of faith, as they have unlearned, learned, and continue to learn of the beauties that God has for us beyond the binaries. Sarah will focus on her experience of growing up as a masculine-presenting lesbian in a traditional home. Sam will focus on her experience of growing up in Christianity and fighting the binary boxes that were forced on her.

Sunday's Scripture

 John 13: 34-35

June 25 - Pride Sunday

CLICK HERE FOR THE BULLETIN

FOR JUNE 25

Reflection of the week from the Racial Justice Team

On “Freedom’s Eve,” or the eve of January 1, 1863, the first Watch Night services took place. On that night, enslaved and free African Americans gathered in churches and private homes all across the country awaiting news that the Emancipation Proclamation had taken effect. At the stroke of midnight, prayers were answered as all enslaved people in Confederate States were declared legally free. Union soldiers, many of whom were black, marched onto plantations and across cities in the south reading small copies of the Emancipation Proclamation spreading the news of freedom in Confederate States. Only through the Thirteenth Amendment did emancipation end slavery throughout the United States.

But not everyone in Confederate territory would immediately be free. Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. As a result, in the westernmost Confederate state of Texas, enslaved people would not be free until much later. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state, were free by executive decree. This day came to be known as "Juneteenth," by the newly freed people in Texas.

Juneteenth marks our country’s second independence day. Although it has long been celebrated in the African American community, this monumental event remains largely unknown to most Americans.

Source: https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/historical-legacy-juneteenth

From the Environmental Justice Team

By 2025, California’s communities are required to divert 75% of organic waste, which releases the potent greenhouse gas methane when it rots, from landfills, sending it to facilities with the capacity to compost it and prevent the release of methane into the atmosphere. But California is falling behind on this goal and a bipartisan commission has called for the implementation of the law to be paused while the state reconsiders its methods for meeting its goals.

In response to this suggestion, the L.A. Times says: “[I]f the method of implementation can be improved upon, we’re all for it. But stopping the organics recycling law now after cities and private industry have invested so much time and money into compliance would be a huge mistake. If California is lagging in carrying out this crucial climate change policy, the response should be to try harder, not to give up. … State regulators should embrace the commission’s ideas for improvement — and forge full speed ahead to reach the 2025 goal.”

Source: “Editorial: Don’t stop composting. California can’t afford to abandon its methane-busting law now.” Los Angeles Times, 6/20/23: https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2023-06-20/editorial-dont-stop-composting-california-cant-afford-to-slow-down-its-methane-busting-law-now

Sunday, June 25, Social Justice focuses on immigrant issues

On June 25, at 1 pm, the Social Justice Shepherd Group will have Lizbeth Abeln, from the Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice (ICIJ) give a presentation on the status of the more than a million immigrants in the Inland Empire. She is on the staff of the ICIJ, which is composed of over 35 organizations that serve our IE immigrant community.

The coalition focuses on changing the narrative of our immigrant kin who live in and are a foundational part of the fabric of the IE. ICIJ brings together these organizations to collectively advocate for and work to improve the lives of immigrant communities while also working toward a just solution to the immigration system.

Lizbeth is a friend of RUCC. She helped coordinate some of our racial justice team, pre-pandemic, in visiting the Adelanto Detention Center to support vulnerable immigrants and their families facing detention and deportation. She'll give us some history of the coalition, some of the issues it addresses, and help us to focus our own efforts in serving and advocating for our refugee kin as they strive to achieve a just and decent life here. (For more information on ICIJ, go to ic4ij.org)

Members of the Social Justice Shepherd Group are invited to bring their own lunch around noon. Anyone in the congregation interested in attending the presentation are welcome to join us at 1 p.m. We will meet at: 1368 Prospect Dr., Redlands. Please let Dianne Landeros know if you plan to attend - 909-792-4839 or ddlanderos@gmail.com

Organ update

The Organ committee is excited to announce that the contract with Ryan Ballantyne has been signed by all parties and we are underway! RUCC made the initial payment of 40,000 and co-chairs Mark Sternberg and Richard Steffen met with Ryan Ballantyne (builder) and Steuart Goodwin (designer) to discuss what to expect in the coming months. The next milestone will be the completion of the windchest and pipe sourcing and at that time Ryan will invite Mark and Richard to the shop to check on the progress. We will keep you posted as we progress!

Summer Series begins Saturday, July 8

The Education Area will host this year’s Summer Series at RUCC starting Saturday 8th of July from 5-7pm! The Series title this year is: Widening Our Welcome.

We will hold each session on the grounds of RUCC and begin at 5pm with Games Night for all, then enjoy a potluck dinner together before moving into our Intergenerational activity focused around these four subjects

• Welcoming All Persons with Disabilities - Saturday, July 8th, 
• Welcoming All Genders - Saturday, July 15th, 
• Welcoming All Races and Cultures - Saturday, July 22nd
• Welcoming All Worshipers - Saturday, July 29th 

...................... Save the dates for summertime fun and learning, we look forward to seeing you there!

Caring for Kin continues with Youth Hope

For the month of June, we will be collecting food for Youth Hope, which supports at-risk youth. Youth Hope would like us to focus our efforts on collecting peanut butter, jelly, cereal, granola bars, and pasta and pasta sauce. Let's keep up the good work!

Raise Right - Gift Cards make shopping and fundraising easy

Bonuses – Some brands will offer higher than normal rebates periodically. You can always see the current bonuses in the RaiseRight shop at https://www.raiseright.com/shop. Current bonuses include Vons/Albertsons, Red Robin, AutoZone, Delta Airlines, and H&M. 

New Brands – Just added:

             Victoria’s Secret (5.5%)

             Hanna Anderson (8%)

About RaiseRight: When you purchase gift cards through the RaiseRight program to pay for your day-to-day expenses or provide as gifts, RUCC receives a rebate that helps fund our missions. It’s an effortless way to raise some money for RUCC. Hundreds of retailers participate, including grocery stores, gas stations, home improvement stores, department stores, online retailers, and much more. Please contact Jennifer and Pam at giftcards@redlandsucc.org if you need an enrollment link, need help setting up/accessing your online account or placing an order, have any questions, or want to learn more about the program.  This video will give you an overview of how to get started: https://youtu.be/c-v65F0xr2c

UPCOMING DATES TO REMEMBER

June is Pride Month!

• June 21-27 - Church office closed. Veronica will return from her vacation and be back in the office June 28
• June 25 - LGBTQIAFG Pride Sunday Celebration 12:00 p.m. - see article above
• July 1 - Sacred Saturday
• July 4 - Independence Day Holiday
• July 8 - Summer Series begins - 5-7 p.m. See article above
• July 9 - Pastor Elaine will join us as a part of the congregation for the Sunday Service. Please take time to greet and welcome her during Fellowship Time after the service.
• July 10 - Church Growth Area Meeting - 7 p.m.
• July 11 - Stewards Meeting - 7 p.m.
• July 18 - Board Meeting - Virtual - 7:00 p.m.



The church calendars for June and July are found at uccredlands.org

Click on "calendar" in the red banner near the top of the page