Our final vespers service of this program year will be this coming Tuesday, May 16th at 6 p.m. in the First UU Sanctuary. The theme will be a reflection on the season past and contemplation on the future of a weekday worship offering at First UU. 

If you’ve attended any of the vespers services, or meant to, we’d love to have you join us and share your thoughts and support. All of our Vespers coordinators will be collaborating on this final episode: Bis Thornton, Nancy Mohn Barnard, AJ Juraska, and Eric Hepburn. We hope to see you there!

Artist, June Gormin, at the Texas State Capitol protest, opposing the passing of Senate Bill 14. A bill banning
access to transition-related medical treatments for transgender youth. Photo by Reverend Erin Walter 

Rev. Jonalu will lead an in-person Caring Workshop on Visiting on Saturday, May 20th, at 1 p.m., in Room 13. The workshop should be about 90 minutes.

Our First UU Cares volunteers will attend, and everyone is invited. Even if you’re not interested in volunteering to visit church members, you may find some useful pointers for visiting your own friends who are sick or in need.

The focus will primarily be hospital, and it’s broadly applicable. If you’re uncomfortable with hospitals and sickness, it may give you some confidence. If you’re more experienced, it’s a chance to brush up on skills, maybe get some new ideas, and to share your experience!

If you would like to participate on-line instead of in person, please contact Rev. Jonalu at jonalu.johnstone@austinuu.org.

If you are heartsick about the rancor tearing our country apart,

If you believe that your opponents should not be your enemies,

If you believe that America’s best days can lie ahead,

Join for our FREE workshop, DEPOLARIZING FROM WITHIN. Saturday, May 13^th from 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. in Howson Hall.

This workshop is for everyone who is interested in learning strategies to disagree without condemning or ridiculing others. Real change is an “inside job.” Trained moderators will walk participants through the steps: to recognize and counteract their inner polarizer; to learn how to talk about the other side in a non-polarizing way; and to learn how to depolarize conversations with like-minded people. 

Please go to Braver Angels of Central Texas to learn more and register.

For more information, contact Laraine Altun at laltun@braverangels.org.

Whether you came from a different religious tradition or grew up purely UU, you have probably encountered religious concepts, phrases, and words that rub you wrong. Here’s a chance to explore them!

Maybe “prayer” carries bad connotations for you, or “sacrifice” or “duty.” I’m looking for the religious – and spiritual – words that you love to hate. They may make an appearance in the Sunday, May 14th sermon, “Religious Words We Love to Hate”. Tell me just the words, or tell my your story. You can contact me at jonalu.johnstone@austinuu.org.

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“Purple Theology: The Music & Message of Prince”

– Simone Monique Barnes and Rev Erin Walter

Seven years after his death, Prince’s work continues to influence and inspire the world. With religiously themed music and lyrics, combined with an ongoing exploration of identity, self-expression, truth-telling, joy, injustice, grief, and of course, love, Prince’s deeply spiritual music offers a theology of liberation. 

As we look inside, look around, and look beyond ourselves, we begin to ask questions like, “How do we perceive and define our individual selves?” “What role do we play in our collective healing?” “How can we survive and thrive in times of heartache and oppression?”  “How do we imagine the next chapter of our lives, our church, our world?”

Come as you are, whether you are seeking healing for your own spirit or healing for the wider world, invite friends, and prepare to take in moving music from the First UU band, soloists, and instrumentalists. The church’s important pre-congregational meeting will follow the worship service.

Simone Monique Barnes: Informed by the arts, prayer, meditation, and yoga, Simone Monique Barnes is an interdisciplinary artist, writer, educator, and lay minister. Simone was born and raised in New York City, and has called Austin, Texas, home for over ten years. Simone enjoys joy practices such as Laughter Yoga Teacher and Afro Flow Yoga. She holds a master’s degree in Arts in Education from Harvard Graduate School of Education.

“Talking about Money,” co-led by Karen Neeley and Hannah Meehan:

Money: we can’t live without it but our culture tells us that the love of it is the root of all evil.  So, how do we truly understand our attitudes toward this “necessary evil”?

TXUUJM NEWS – TIME TO SING! Texas UU Justice Ministry April 27th update. Call your legislators and SING in support of LGBTQIA+ rights. Subscribe Here. 

REMINDER: Thursday night Action Hours are a place to take action together in community every week on Zoom, with UUs around the state! Plus the final Friday of the month (April 28, May 26) at 12 p.m. noon on Zoom. Details here.