From the Standing Committe Chair
Dear Members and Friends,
In her write-up about her sermon last week Sarah asked, “With the economy in shambles and a presidential election right around the corner, tension and insecurity loom large. What can we do with all this anxiety? What can help sustain us in uncertain times?” We know we will need all the resilience we can muster in the weeks and months ahead, as we grapple with these complex issues. We will need supportive friends, peaceful places, and reassuring rituals, all things that can be found at the Winchester Unitarian Society.
As I have listened to you express your hopes and dreams for our church over the past few years, I’ve heard how you believe our faith offers hope to a needy world; how transformative and good it feels to give of your time, talents and resources. Many have expressed a desire and yearning for greater spirituality and connection with each other. In the months ahead opportunities abound for us to be a sustaining, reassuring place for one another, and to deepen our lives together as a religious community, and shine a beacon of hope for others. If this newsletter reaches you in time, I encourage you to take advantage of one such opportunity: the Ministerial Startup Workshop, which is designed to establish and deepen our relationship in shared ministry with our new ministers.
On November 16th we will be installing the Reverends Sarah and John Gibb Millspaugh as the 15th ministers of the Society. The installation solemnizes and affirms the covenant between the congregation and our new ministers. It is both a solemn and celebratory occasion that can be quite moving, with a processional of ministerial colleagues and friends of the congregation and Sarah and John. The invited ministers and guests from the larger community serve to remind us of the connection between our church with wider affiliations. Your presence at the Installation is important to celebrate and demonstrate our individual and collective commitment to our new ministers.
Planning has begun for the Annual Budget Drive with hopes of a multi-year program for successful and meaningful stewardship, which makes the connection between spiritual growth and stewardship -- a road map for this congregation to fulfill its mission and increase its capacity to address significant initiatives. The foundation of this plan will be personal stewardship conversations, which done well can build and enhance our community through personal contacts. These conversations will also provide feedback on how well the congregation is meeting spiritual expectations, giving us an opportunity for questions, answers and feedback. This multi-year program will take commitment and willingness to give of our time and energy, but as it is said, “many hands make light work.” May it be so!
Now, more than ever our time together as a community of faith and fellowship is essential; more than ever we need sustained commitment to one another, to the well being of this church and to the wider world.
With warmth,
Deb Seymour
