We'll be hearing from John Walsh this Sunday

Sunday, June 11 ~ Second Sunday after Pentecost ~ "Learning how to make the stranger welcome"

Have you ever felt like a stranger? Has someone reached out to you, to make you feel welcome? What happened? At some point in our lives, we have been the stranger, the person who is out of his or her comfort zone and whose presence challenges the comfort zone of others. In those moments, only two choices remain: welcome or alienation. The warm bridge or the cold shoulder can come from either side. But the situation only requires one person to move, toward or away from the other.

In those awkward moments, Jesus always took the initiative. He always made others feel welcome, no matter how much they stood on the outside. This was his way to bring the Kindom alive!

Who are our teachers for discovering this truth? Jonathan Kozol writing about the savage inequality of public education in America or the stories of the Amazing Grace of children living in the Bronx. Robert Coles, a Harvard Professor writing about the call of service especially in the Appalachian communities and teaching us from a new classroom. Dorothy Day of the Catholic Worker Movement sitting on the sidewalks of NYC beside homeless men and women and offering them hope. Will Campbell sitting on the front porch of his cabin in Mt. Juliet, TN teaching us to speak truth to power. Clarence Jordan creating Koinonia Farm in Georgia showing how black and white can live together as kin.

Learning how to make the stranger welcome. In the words of Walker Percy, ‘…we hand one another along.’

Sunday's Scripture

Matthew 9:9-13, 17-26

June 11 - Seconday Sunday after Pentecost

CLICK HERE FOR THE BULLETIN

FOR JUNE 11

Profile Committee is hard at work

Are you wondering what your Profile Committee is hard at work doing? Profiles should be updated every three to five years (RUCC's last profile was in 2014). Profiles include historical information, current demographic information, reflections on who we are now as a congregation, and also hopes and plans for the future. Potential ministerial candidates will review this profile. We are reviewing the old profile, church historical information, and developing discussion and survey questions. Once all the information is gathered, we will be rewriting the new profile.   

There will be several opportunities to have your voice heard. First, on Super Shepherd Sunday - JUNE 11 - members of the Profile Committee will be present at each group to facilitate and record discussions related to the profile. Second, the online survey is coming in the next few weeks. After that, there will be a meeting after church for those unable to attend the shepherd groups or who need assistance once the online survey is live. Stay tuned for more details!  

The Profile Committee: Chuck Zamaria (Chair), Jessica Morgan (Board), Larry Rose (Board), Paul Welsh, Beth Welsh, Diana Steele, Dan Wacks, and Mary Fung.

Here's the schedule for Shepherd Group meetings:

• Group #1 - Fiske-Phillips: Will meet on June 25th.
• Group #2 - Mong: Will meet on the church patio
• Group #3 - Breyer/Root: Will meet at Nan Root's home.
• Group #4 - Ballard/Hill: Will meet on the church patio.
• Group #5 - Abushanab/Turian: Will meet at the Dunn's home.
• Group #6 - Landeros: Will meet at Dianne Landeros' home

Reflection of the week from the Racial Justice Team

“This [Redlands] City Council acknowledges that systemic racism was manifested throughout the history and development of our community and region resulting in the forced dislocation of local Native American settlements in its earliest forms,” the resolution reads in part, “and in a latter form by the implied geographic segregation of communities of color, known to them as the North and South sides of town, causing disparities of access and service to be felt by these residents due to their race, color, level of education or income, educational and recreational disparities, and other such deficiencies consistent with systemic racism.”

 - Redlands declares racism a public health crisis, vows to take action, July 2020. Source: https://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/2020/07/22/redlands-declares-racism-a-public-health-crisis-vows-to-take-action/

From the Environmental Justice Team

The international group Earth Commission recently completed a study looking at climate, air pollution, water quality and availability, and both the natural and the human-built environments. The group studied measures of environmental justice as well as threats to the overall planetary ecosystem. The conclusion: “Earth has pushed past seven out of eight scientifically established safety limits and into the danger zone, not just for an overheating planet that’s losing its natural areas, but for the well-being of people living on it… ‘[Earth’s] doctor would say that the Earth is really quite sick right now…’” said Professor Joyeeta Gupta, co-chair of Earth Commission.

Source: “Earth is ‘really quite sick now’ and in danger zone in nearly all ecological ways, study says,” by Seth Borenstein (Associated Press), Los Angeles Times, 5/31/23: https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2023-05-31/earth-is-really-quite-sick-now-and-in-danger-zone-in-nearly-all-ecological-ways-study-says

Book Group news - next meeting is June 18

The next RUCC Book Group meeting will be on June 18, 2023, at noon, in the Founders’ Room (off of Covenant Hall). The group will discuss the month’s selection, The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult, and the facilitator will be Janet Chandler. After this meeting, there will not be a meeting in July, but the group will resume meeting on August 6. Everyone is welcome!

......

"Jodi Picoult's poignant number one New York Times best-selling novels about family and love ..... tackle hot-button issues head on. In The Storyteller, Sage Singer befriends Josef Weber, a .......beloved Little League coach and retired teacher. But then Josef asks Sage for a favor she never ...... could have imagined - to kill him. After Josef reveals the heinous act he committed, Sage feels ...... he may deserve that fate. But would his death be murder or justice?” (Amazon Review)

• June 18, 2023- Selection: The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult; Presenter: Janet Chandler
• July 2023- no meeting in July
• August 6, 2023- Selection: All That She Carried by Tiya Miles; Presenter: Susan Matthews. The group will also choose books to read for the rest of the year at this meeting.

Hygiene kit assembly was a success!

A huge thank you to all who participated and provided supplies for hygiene kit assembly! We had a ton of supplies and a great group of people working together to assemble more than 75 hygiene kits that can be passed out to our unsheltered neighbors. Participants each took a few bags to keep in our cars to hand out, and we still have some left if you weren't able to make it and would like to have a couple on hand. The extras are being stored in Covenant Hall - please contact Diana Steele, Kathie Blakely, or Sue Hammond for more info on where to find them.

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!

Youth Group news

The RUCC Youth Group is open to kids in 6th through 12th Grade. 

This past Sunday we helped with the Hygiene Kit project in the Founders Room.

How gratifying to know that these items will help the unhoused people in our community!

Afterwards we had a fun meeting to catch up and chat about school, summer plans, etcetera! Due to everyone’s varying summer schedules, Youth Group is officially on hiatus for the summer—which means we will not be holding weekly meetings after church. We may have occasional outings if our schedules allow.

Stay tuned for information in the Fall regarding the resumption of regular Youth Group meetings.

Raise Right - Gift Cards make shopping and fundraising easy

Bulk eGifting – Available exclusively on RaiseRight.com (desktop

only), now you can earn by eGifting in bulk. Select “Send as a gift” on any eGift card product page, then choose the “Bulk Order” gift type to get started. Simply follow the prompts to schedule delivery, add a custom message, upload recipient information, then add to cart and check out. eGift cards are the most convenient way to earn on all your gifting—whether for a birthday, holiday, or even gifting in bulk for teachers, graduates, or your team at the office. With the “Send as a gift by email” feature, learn how you can send eGift cards to as

many as 125 recipients all at once. https://www.raiseright.com/m/how-to-send-egift-cards

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 easy 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 8 - Office will be closed
• June 10 - Celebration of Life for Nancy Doss 11:00 a.m.
• June 11- Super Shepherd Sunday
• June 12 - Church Growth Area Meeting - 7:00 p.m.
• June 13 - Stewards Meeting - 7:00 p.m.
• June 20 - Board Meeting - Virtual - 7:00 p.m.
• July 1 - Sacred Saturday
• July 4 - Independence Day Holiday
• 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