Generosity

Good afternoon, and welcome to the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fayetteville. My name is [NAME]. I am a member of this congregation, and it is my pleasure to lead the service this morning. Our speaker this morning is Lee.

Feel free to use the restroom if needed during the service. Our restroom is located to the back left. And please join us after the service for refreshments and a chat.

Whoever you are, whomever you love, you are welcome here.

You give but little when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.

Dear friends, dear friends
Let me tell you how I feel.
You have given me such treasure.
I love you so.

Ours is a welcoming community where we find connection;
…a spiritual community where we find meaning;

Ours is a sharing community where our joys are amplified;
…a caring community where our sorrows are lessened;

We take this moment to reflect on our joys and sorrows and acknowledge the mutual support of our community.

If you would like, you may come forward and release a stone in the water in silence or with a brief verbal expression of a special joy or sorrow.

Please keep comments appropriate for all ages and no longer than 1-2 minutes per person, so that there is enough time for everyone who would like to share.

……………………

Closing:
I will drop one last stone in the water for all those joys and sorrows which remain unspoken, but which nevertheless live in our hearts.

Attention if the rarest form of generosity.
- Simone Weil

--Chant--
Ecce quam bonum et quam jucundum
habitare fratres in unum.

How good and how joyful it is
when we dwell together as one.

Sicut unguentum in capite,
quod descendit in barbam, barbam Aaron.

Like precious oil upon the head,
flowing down upon Aaron’s beard.

In our world, many voices are silenced. Many truths remain unspoken because the speaker fears rejection, judgment, or worse. Our financial offerings today help sustain this congregation as a place where all voices can be heard, where truth can be spoken without fear, where vulnerability is met with compassion. We give in gratitude for this beloved community, and with hope for a world where more voices can speak their truth.

Last night I saw a host of angels
And they were all singing different songs
And it sounded like a lot of lawn mowers
Mowing down my lawn
And up above curjillions of stars
Spangled all over the sky
And they were spirals turning
Turning in the deep blue night
And suddenly for no reason
The way that angels leave the ground
They left in a kind of vortex
Traveling at the speed of sound
And just as I started to leave
Just as I turned to go
I saw a man who'd fallen
He was lying on his back in the snow
Some people walk on water
Some people walk on broken glass
Some just walk round and round in their dreams
Some just keep falling down
So when you see a man who's broken
Pick him up and carry him
And when you see a woman who's broken
Pull her all into your arms
'Cause we don't know where we come from
We don't know what we are

Go now in peace. Go now in peace.
May the light of love surround you
everywhere, everywhere you may go.