UUFSMA: “Money and Me”

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Online Service
“Money and Me”
Speaker: Rev. David Usher

Sunday, May 17, 2020
10:30 am

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/414604040 
Password: 294513

By Joseph Plummer

UUF Secretary

In this Sunday’s online sermon by the UU Fellowship of SMA, visiting speaker Rev. David Usher will turn to a topic touching almost everyone these days. Money, he will tell his audience, is a medium of power and energy. It can turn a person’s life around and upside down in an instant. Every day we deal with it in some way, and some days we worry about it more than others. In recent months, hundreds of millions of people worldwide abruptly felt this to be true.

This is a tumultuous moment for human values, and Rev. Usher will offer a fresh answer to an always compelling question about money. How do people develop a mindset about personal currency that supports healthy thinking and feeling? Every major religious tradition has something to say about a worthy relationship with money. Theologians and philosophers alike teach us that a healthy mindset toward cash flows we control is necessary for a healthy spiritual life. Why then do so many of society’s messages about money prove to be profoundly unfavorable to spiritual health?

A deft turner of social contradictions into insightful sermons, Rev. Usher began his climb into the pulpit from the Australian Outback. After experiencing life as a young “jackaroo,” not unlike a young “buckaroo” in the northern hemisphere, he went to Oxford University as a student. There he prepared for a career as a minister, afterward serving congregations in England, New Hampshire, and California. He is the founding President of the International Council of Unitarians & Universalists and author of two books.  A favorite visiting speaker, he will deliver this second talk this year to the UU Fellowship via Zoom.

To participate in our online Sunday Service, visit the Fellowship’s website at www.uufsma.org and click on the Zoom Service button displayed on the home page. If requested, enter password: 294513. Sign-in between 10:15-10:25 am. On the website, click also on the Order of Service for other details.

Through grants and awards to 11 carefully vetted local NGO’s, UUFSMA donates fifty percent of all income it receives to support nonprofit organizations that provide health, educational, and environmental services for underserved communities in the San Miguel region. Moreover, during the pandemic we are dedicating an additional ten percent of our revenues to alleviate the food crisis in Guanajuato State. Please support this work by clicking on the home page’s Donate button at www.uufsma.org. More than ever, your support is essential.

Due to the arrival of the coronavirus in San Miguel de Allende, UUFSMA has indefinitely suspended Sunday services and other gatherings. We advise members and friends to follow the advice of reputable public health authorities, such as the Centers for Disease Control, and to contact our Affiliate Minister or Care Team for assistance. The UU Fellowship welcomes people of all ages, races, religions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Our fellowship was born in 1987 when a small group of expatriate religious liberals came together to meet as Unitarian Universalists in San Miguel de Allende. The fellowship has been active and thriving ever since. Every UU church has it’s own flavor, and we are no exception. We are a combination of expats and visitors, each actively engaged and contributing to this wonderful Mexican community we love. Because there is a coming, going, and returning aspect, our spiritual community is extremely fluid.  There is a magic in San Miguel which draws us in and binds us together—both as members of the church and of the larger community. Our programming is led by visiting ministers, community leaders, and church members, so the variety is lively. We have opportunities to meet as UU’s each week at discussion groups, breakfasts, luncheons, and in various other ways. Depending on the season, attendance fluctuates between 40 and 140. Our primary focus is on funding social action within the surrounding community. We love good music, good discussion, good food, and having visitors. We invite you to join us any Sunday morning.

Members regularly post updates and information on this site. We also post meeting minutes and announcements there.

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https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/UUFSMA/info

Click on “membership”and follow the directions.

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