 There's no one here. I just have to be too much. Really? Oh my god. You're too late. You're too late. That's insane. I don't have any money. I don't think so. I just have to be moved. Okay. I have something on my mind. I did it in the middle of the night. Okay. All right. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Excuse me. Good morning. Welcome to the First Unitarian Society on what looks again like a spring day, thank you. We survived a snowstorm. This is a community where curious seekers gather to explore spiritual, ethical, and social issues in an accepting and nurturing environment. Unitarian Universalism supports the freedom of conscience of each individual as together we seek to be a force for good in the world. My name is Karen Rose Gredler, and on behalf of the entire congregation, I want to extend a special welcome to any visitors who are with us this morning. We are a welcoming congregation, so whoever you are, excuse me, and wherever you are on your life's journey, we welcome you to be among us. This would be a great time to silence cell phones as we gather in a few moments of silence for contemplation, meditation, prayer, as we become fully present with ourselves and with one another. In a moment we'll rise to sing hymn number 1003, but first a couple of logistics. We will sing each of the four lines twice before moving on to the next, and secondly we will sing it as a round. So we'll sing it all together once, then we'll go back in group one. It's on my left. We'll go first, group two on my right. We'll go second, and Karen will be leading you, so you can either look at her mouth if you get lost, or you can contemplate these theological questions. That's rising all the ways that we do to sing together hymn number 1003. Where do we come from? All together? Where do we come from? Where are we? Where are we going? Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? Life is a riddle and a mystery, mystery, mystery. Life is a riddle and a mystery. Where, where are we going? Where are, group one we'll start. Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? Where do we come from? What are we? Where are, to the beginning. Where do we come from? Where are mystery? Life is a riddle and a mystery. Let's sing that last line again. Where do we come from? This amazing, glorious, and heartbreaking day when we, a people coming from so many places and representing an array of ages and identities, we gather together to be renewed, reignited, refreshed. On this heartbreaking, glorious, and amazing day when we, a people ever mindful of the mysteries of life, we gather together to seek companionship on this journey of our life, feeling that we may indeed be on the brink of all that we have ever loved. And together we join in reading the words in the Order of Worship for our chalice lighting. As together we say, all that we have ever loved and all that we have ever been, filled with us on the brink of all that we aspire to create, a deeper peace, a larger love, a more and embracing hope, a greater generosity of spirit, a deeper joy in this life we share. I invite you to turn and exchange friendly greetings with your neighbors. We invite all the young and young at heart to come forward. We will be doing our joys and sorrows candles later, but right now the young people get to hear a special presentation with Leslie, our Director of Religious Education for Children. And you all are actually a very important part of this story because without you, we would have no story to tell. And that's because today's story is about some of our amazing teachers here at First Unitarian Society. Every year we have about 100 teachers, a lot of people, teaching over 350 kids. And we have started acknowledging their five year, 10 year, 15 year and more anniversaries of teaching. In your Order of Service you'll see a list of all of the teachers who have taught this year who were very thrilled to have on board, but we wanted to specially acknowledge the people who have taught for many years. And I'm curious to know from you guys, so we have these teachers who come here on Sunday mornings to teach you, and they could be home sleeping, or they could be home reading a book, or they could be home walking, going for a walk or something, but they're here with you. I'm wondering, what do you think? Why do they come and teach you each week? Any idea? Really? I know there's ideas out there. Any idea? Because we pay them so well. Because we don't pay them at all. They're volunteers. Really why they come here every week is because they care a lot about your learning and your curiosity, and you having fun here each time and be a part of that. And we're very grateful to them for that. We have 12 teachers this year who have hit anniversary marks. And we love that they teach year after year because they serve as mentors to our new teachers, and because they spend so much time in the class with you all, they have great ideas for us about things that we can do to make your classes more interesting and exciting and fun, and they help us to improve our classes from year to year. So they're really very valuable to our community. I am going to call up the one teacher out of our 12 who was available to be here during the 11 o'clock service. We had more at nine and others yesterday. But I'm going to call up Sherry Simmons, who's with us today. Come on up. Can you give us three words about why you teach? It's the kids. It's the kids. It's for you guys. That's right. We're coming in. So maybe you all can help me on the column three. Shout a big thank you to Sherry. And maybe you all can help too. I sent out my things six. I sort of do it every other year. I give myself a year of teaching and a year of going to church because, you know, not having to worry about everything. So six times. She was off last year, so we didn't get a technology event for doing it. So anyway, one, two, three. Thank you. You are welcome. And thank you. All right. Great. Thank you. We had all the amazing talented adults we've had involved in our Children's R.E. program making it all happen. But we're also very much looking forward to the next year and how we're going to stack all of those classes. And we have a little Dr. Seuss inspired skit for you because we know it's going to move you to sign up to teach. So Val is going to come help me. It's brief. We have to get our passings on. How's that? Am I looking, Dr. Seussie? Yep. Would you like to teach you use? Tell me, tell me which you choose. Would you like fifth grade or the first? Choosing none would be the worst. I would not, could not teach you use. That is not something that I would choose. I can't imagine where I'd start. What great knowledge could I impart? Could you, would you with support? You'll have co-teachers, a grand cohort. And Ari's staff in curriculum two supplies and support to guide you through. Well, possibly with such support, it does sound fun, I must report. And you, your values pass to a young? How could that possibly go wrong? Would you like it if I say that you will come to church one day. A smiling kid will wave and that you'll be the one she's waving at. You'll watch kids learn and smile and play and connect with parents along the way. They'll thank you for the job you've done in working hard to teach for young. And if those reasons aren't ideal, here's one that will likely appeal. When you teach, you just might find your beliefs and spirit will feel sublime. That does sound rich, as you say, with kids and waving and smiling and busy at play. I love the thought of nurturing their minds. Their spirits and hearts have grown unbound. But it's important you know I've never taught before, not even a toad. Would you, could you if you knew that there are trainings and resources too? The time it takes is not that long. Only about six hours, all month long. Well, alrighty, yes, I'll sign up now. I have heard good things from near and far. I'll jump right in and become a part of you learning and you new heart. But where, but how, but how do I know to seal the deal to take my bow? That's great, that's grand. Welcome aboard to the commons, you must go. There you'll find teachers to find you up, to chat and snooze and gladly erupt. We're grateful, we're proud, we're glowing inside to have so many adults caring for our young proud. It takes a village, as you know. If we all pitch in, our movement will grow. Our kids will know they're loved and revered for all their free thinking and growing done here. And if there are others wanting to join out there, well now, you know too, we're to adjourn. The commons, the commons, all must go. Let's make this work, let's rock the show. Let's sing hymn number 1023 as our children go to their classes. Building bridges will sing it one time through together and then as we did before group one and group two. Let's rise in all the ways that we do. Building bridges between our divisions. I reach out to you, will you reach out to me? With all of our voices, friends we could make such sweet. Group one. Building bridges between our divisions. One more time, beginning and building bridges between our divisions. Building bridges between our divisions. Let's sing that last line again. Friends we could make such sweet harmony. We do indeed make sweet harmony when we raise our voices together. Today's worship service is focused on the ways in which this congregation serves people of all ages. And specifically we're exploring the stories and dreams of young adults. So I want to let you know that two Unitarian Universalist students from UW Madison were instrumental in planning this service. And though they couldn't be with us here today, one of them graciously agreed to record the readings for today. So that if they are not here in body they are certainly here with their voices and their spirits. The first reading is by Unitarian Universalist minister, the Reverend Dr. Jennifer Kwong. And is entitled From Ally to Advocate. This is Carly Wilson. And today's second reading is adapted from the work of Unitarian Universalist Dr. Janice Marie Johnson. And is entitled Theology of Accompaniment. A Unitarian Universalist religious professional in Spanish differs in complexity, texture and weight from the English to Accompaniment. Which can be used for something as mundane as when the verses are sung. The Spanish word can want something deeper. It's like being joined in a hip set upon the hip retreat. When I am in a partnership, I am striving to empower the community in a building business. I think of working collaboratively with various organizations and individuals. Especially those who understand the difference between providing services to the disadvantaged and breaking private disciplines. A theology of accompaniment calls us to move beyond othering, beyond tolerating, beyond embracing. It calls us to honor our siblings as the unique and precious beings that we have brought. Here ends the readings. Thank you, choir. A couple of weeks ago, I had the great privilege and joy of participating in the first chalice ceremonies here at First Unitarian Society. During these rituals, second and third graders got to stand bravely in front of their peers and families. As one of us ministers read the words written by their families about them. Words simply overflowing with love and admiration. The seven, eight and nine year olds then also received a gift of their very own chalice. It was a way to remember this moment in their lives when we acknowledged they are indeed growing out of being young children. And today we got to experience the joy of the larger religious education program here by honoring the life-giving work of our teachers and facilitators. Those adults who have guided our young people through their classrooms, through their developmental stages, through their questions and their answers. These adults have accompanied our young people on their learning journeys for years. And that is a blessing and a gift for everyone involved. And in a couple more weeks from now, we will likely be in awe of the coming of age ninth graders as they share with us the culmination of their year of introspection and participation in a year of rigorous spiritual course. They will articulate their belief systems as they currently understand them to exist and we will join them in proudly recognizing their accomplishments. On that same weekend, which happens to be Mother's Day, there will also be a bridging ceremony. Now this ritual will acknowledge some of our high school seniors who are moving on from their secondary education and into the next chapter of their lives. Like other bridging ceremonies in Unitarian Universalist congregations across the country, this ceremony will mark a significant moment in the lives of these teenagers. A similar, though much larger ceremony will occur in the middle of June at the General Assembly of Congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association. This year it's happening in Spokane, Washington. During many bridging ceremonies, the teenagers will move, literally and or figuratively, across a bridge. A bridge that represents the transition from one known experience into a life that is largely filled with unknown, filled with questions. Now, if you're like me, you may be wondering, what are these young Unitarian Universalists actually bridging into? The bridge must go somewhere. Where exactly will that bridge land them? Well, lucky for me, for the next year and a bit more, while I am the intern minister here, those are the questions I intend to spend the rest of my internship exploring. With you. You see, as part of my seminary education, I have been asked to lead this congregation in a single, focused ministry. The first question posed to me when considering what area I should focus on was, what is a currently underserved population here at FUS? What is a population that could benefit from my leadership, my attention, and my intention? In conversation with my teaching pastor, the Reverend Kelly Crocker, and with other key players on the staff team and the larger congregation, we decided that I should focus on campus ministry. I may rephrase that to say we get to focus on campus ministry. Now, some of you may know that a precedent has been set for a focus on campus ministry. Numerous interns, staff members, ministers before me have lovingly and with dedication shared their unique ministries with many young adults, both on campus and elsewhere. And I am here to assure you that those efforts have made a difference in the lives of young people and in the life of our larger denomination. In fact, I have two personal examples even. Right now, for example, I'm in seminary with a person with one of the people who attended weekly campus ministry sessions with the Reverend Mary Ann Macklin a couple of decades ago. And second, I'm good friends with another person who was similarly engaged in campus ministry, and he is about to celebrate his 10th anniversary as a UU minister. Now, my point is that FUS has an important history of supporting and ministering to Unitarian Universalists who are in their late teens and early 20s. And that tradition has saved lives that in turn are saving lives. Through this, your tradition here at FUS of supporting campus ministry has made a difference. And through this focused initiative, I hope I can help to renew our collective commitment to that campus ministry tradition. Now, to support this renewal, I have started to imagine campus ministry as having two main goals. The first goal may not surprise you. It is to build a Unitarian Universalist community on the UW Madison campus through experiences that are developed in conjunction with UU and UU. Curious students, young adults will be empowered to collectively enrich, embody, and embolden their spiritual lives. The second goal, which may sound a little bit more new, is to engage committed congregants who will act as an enthusiastic group of campus ministry flame tenders. Now, these flame tenders are folks who will support the campus ministry in any number of to be determined ways. But I envision it including shepherding the campus ministry between student leaders as well as between intern ministers. Now, I am humbly aware that these goals represent a working draft of a vision for campus ministry. Much of what will actually occur depends on the young adults themselves. And it depends on the congregants who feel called to get engaged in this life transforming initiative. Clearly, this initiative requires collaboration. Now, in an effort to lay the foundation for this ministry, my first priority has been in listening to the young adults themselves. As I mentioned earlier when introducing today's readings, there are two young adults in particular who are instrumental in planning this worship service. Both Carly Wilson and Riley Octamire are UW Madison undergraduate students who are active. That's why they're not here today. Studious, delightful and giving, very generous with their time. They are both white women who were raised as unitary universalists. They have brothers and roommates, weekly quizzes and soccer games, classes and jobs, social lives and summer plans. Last week, Carly and Riley took time out of their busy schedules to sit down with me. And together we chose the hymns to sing, the readings to explore today and the messages to underscore in this service. Well, neither of them could be here with us physically today. I assure you that their fingerprints are all over this service. Take, for example, that first reading that Carly shared entitled From Ally to Advocate. Now, this is a poem that came to our attention when we were flipping through books I had brought to our brunch meeting. We were trying to find pieces that spoke to us when out of the blue Riley pulled out her phone and took a picture of the paper with a poem on it, that page. That's how much she wanted, that's how much she was moved by that poem, is that she wanted to take it with her. Now, if you'll recall, it's a poem that calls us out of our places of privilege and into perspectives that may not be all that flattering. For example, I thought I was so liberal till my good intentions produced the opposite results. This poem takes courage to engage with, and both Carly and Riley seem eager to do exactly that. This From Ally to Advocate poem seems relevant when they mention being shocked to hear disparaging comments from a white dormit about an African-American resident assistant, simply because that peer leader was black. This From Ally to Advocate poem seems relevant when they mention being surprised to hear a classmate say incredulously, you mean being gay isn't a choice? This From Ally to Advocate poem seems relevant when they mention wanting time with fellow Unitarian Universalists so that they could together unpack these social situations and figure out in community how to best respond to such comments in the future, given our UU principles and shared values. How do we as Unitarian Universalists move from being allies to advocates? When they boiled it down, Carly and Riley expressed the importance of campus ministry in this way. While college offers them an academic education, what they are lacking on campus is a spiritual education, a place to wrestle with the big questions of life. How might FUS be a support to young adults asking the big questions of life? Now as we begin to wrestle with ourselves the options of how best to support college-age people through a campus ministry initiative, I invite you to get in touch with your inner young adult. For those of you who are under 18, feel free to just imagine yourself in the present. For those of you who are older than 25, 26, think back now to that time in your life when you were 18, or 20, or 22. What were you doing? How were you feeling? What were you thinking about? Who were you trying to be? Now whenever that time in your life happened for you, there were likely big questions you were facing. Some of the big questions that Riley and Carly mentioned about relationships certainly resonated for me. How do we make new friendships? How do we negotiate romantic interests? How do we interact with roommates and classmates with our integrity intact? I remember the first night in my dorm room thinking about friendships and thinking to myself, oh my God, I'm trying to sleep in a room with a stranger in it. Carly and Riley also raised questions about choosing majors and envisioning careers. What is required of us as we move into adulthood? And what kind of lives do we want to live? What happens next? And who can accompany us on this journey? Now lucky for us, these two young women offer up some ideas of how a unitarian, universalist congregation like FUS might be able to support college-age people. The first idea involves one-on-one relationships. What if there was a program, for example, something along the lines of adopt an adult? In this idea, young adults and congregants would be matched so that congregants could offer extra emotional and spiritual support to young people who were undergoing huge transitions in their lives. I can't imagine, for example, just inviting a student over for a home-cooked meal. Nothing like having a break from dorm food. Or I could email, you know, quickly text them about how did your final go last week? Or maybe offering them a ride to worship service here at FUS. Because young adults may be away from their families of origin for the first time, having trusted and established adults who can provide a listening ear would be helpful as they ask big questions and make big decisions. A second idea is to have a regular campus ministry presence that allows unitarian, universalist students to gather in a safe and brave space to have discussions on current events, whether those are in our personal lives or locally or nationally or globally. Carly and Riley are interested in bringing an explicitly UU perspective to issues that are present and relevant in their lives. Now in the past, given the fact that they were being exposed to new and usually more conservative perspectives, the campus ministry gatherings were a place for Carly and Riley to sort through their thoughts and feelings with UU peers. A third and final idea offered up by Riley and Carly speaks to the deep desire to have time for contemplation and spiritual development. Through group meditation practice and time to reflect on readings, young adults could have the opportunity to slow down and reflect, time outside of their usually busy lives, because they spend so much time thinking of their past and where they came from and considering their future and where they're going next. Spiritual sustenance can help young adults practice making time that is intentional and to practice living in this present moment. So just to recap, young adults are suggesting that congregants of FUS can provide support and help by giving them support, offering exploration and offering renewal. As I reflect on these three suggestions, I realize that all of them are examples of the theology of accompaniment that was underscored in the Janice Marie Johnson reading. We are embodying a theology of accompaniment when people are supported by one another over something so simple as a home-cooked meal. We are embodying a theology of accompaniment when young adults explore current events together with a UU lens. We are embodying a theology of accompaniment when a campus ministry program offers mindfulness walks that help young adults feel spiritually renewed while being in community. There are many more ways we can engage with a theology of accompaniment. As Johnson writes, when I think of partnership, I think of striving to empower the community and building bridges. I have to agree with her. We can partner together to create a vibrant campus ministry. We can empower the young adult community that is clearly ready for more. And we can build bridges to where young adults are at. And we can build bridges that actually lead to somewhere. As all young people need the time to transition into the next stage of their development, whether they are getting their first chalices, articulating their this-I-believe statements or bridging beyond high school, wherever we human beings are on our journeys, knowing that our fellow Unitarian Universalists will be there to accompany us on the way makes all the difference. What a gift for me has been to learn from Carly and Riley several ways that we might renew this congregation's commitment to our tradition of a strong and vibrant campus ministry. Now, if you're interested in getting involved or curious about more information, I hope you speak with me after service or send me an email when it's convenient for you. And in the meantime, may we all continue to consider the ways we can move from being allies to being advocates. And may we all know the deep satisfaction of embodying a theology of accompaniment. Blessed be an amen. We like to embody abundance and generosity every week. We have this opportunity when our offering comes to share with a group in the community that is doing good work. And this week, our 50-50 outreach offering recipient is the Sierra Club Four Lakes Group. So I encourage you to give as generously as you are able. And if you would like more information about them, please see your red floors insert. We'll now take the offering. I sincerely appreciate your generous contributions to today's offering. We also appreciate the gifts of time from those who helped our services run smoothly today. For this service, our greeter was Joan Heitman. Our ushers group grew as it went along. There were no ushers who signed up for today's service. So if anyone is interested, you might volunteer for the training and help out. But Gail Bliss and Pamela McMullen jumped right in. Then I noticed that Mike Lanau and Elizabeth Barrett also joined in. And I know that Joyce Carey had volunteered to help with transporting the money back up. Because we need two people to do that. So thanks to everyone who jumped in to help. Yay. And to all the people who are now going to be inspired to go out and sign up to become ushers. Our sound person today is Mark Schultz. Thank you, Mark. Our welcome and information table I have on the list is Mary Bergen. But I know she was here for the first one. So boy, if she's working both of them, thanks to Mary, I'm not sure. Hospitality, the coffee and all is being provided by Richard DeVita and Jeannie Hills. And our lay minister, I guess, is me. See isn't this tricky? It has two sides to it. So we have three opportunities to let you know about today. Today, after the service, a member of the Board of Trustees, Mark Schweitzer, will be available to answer your frequently asked questions regarding the current transition between called ministers. This will take place right here in the Atrium Auditorium for about 20 minutes after the service. The annual Wartman lecture is happening today, this afternoon at 2 p.m. over in the landmark. Our featured lecture is Dr. Kate Ott. And then also at 5 p.m., Dr. Ott will be facilitating a youth workshop, also in the landmark. You can find out more about the lecture in the news from the Red Forest Insert to your Order of Service. Also now, here's a third announcement that's important, so we're not all confused. Starting Memorial Day weekend, that's the May 26th weekend, and through Labor Day weekend, as we've sometimes done in the past, we will be holding one single worship service each weekend at 10 a.m. here in the Atrium. So the great thing about that is that we'll get to be together with people who aren't necessarily usually in our services. So that's a plus. I rarely see the Saturday people, and if I'm not doing announcements, I might not see the 9 o'clock people either. So let's see that as a consolidation that also gives us that extra perk of more community. Also, during this time, as is usual, we do not hold children's religious education classes. However, children aged 5 to 12 are invited to participate in summer fun activities, and I know they love those. So that's something fun coming up for them. Thank you. I just wanted to take a moment to also thank the Society Choir for a year of hard work and dedication and music making on behalf of you, the congregation. It's been a pleasure for this to be my first year here at FUS and to work with these fine people making music every week is just such a joy and honor. And Meeting House Chorus will sing one more time, and I'll make a similar speech then, but for now, would you just join me in thanking your Society Choir? We could almost light a candle of joy for that. This is the weekend. It's the fourth weekend of the month. And together in community, we share our joys and sorrows by lighting candles. So if today you bring a sorrow too heavy to bear on your own, and you would like to ask folks to hold that with you, or if you have a joy so big, can't wait to share it with the whole world. Please come forward and speak from the microphone, light a candle. If you can't come forward, raise your hand. We'll help you out. But I now open the floor for joys and sorrows. My name is Janna Snapkortas. And with great joy, I share the news that on March 22, our first granddaughter was born. Her name is Keira Caroline, 48 quarters. I'm Judy Teroya, and I'm lighting this candle for our daughter-in-law Karen Stark, who died Friday afternoon at home, surrounded by her family and friends. She's a beautiful, bright, creative person, and we surely will miss her. I want to just share a sorrow and a memory and an honor for my cousin, Robert Turner, who served our country for many years, for decades in the U.S. Army, all over the world, and to vestically raise a large family that's a loving family. And he'll be deeply missed. Hi, I'm Karen, and I have a joy that is huge, and it's that the Collins family came here. And if anyone has ever sung with Drew, you'd realize what an amazing conductor he is. And he's got such a great sense of humor. We're enjoying the rehearsals, and we're raising the bar on how we're singing. So welcome. We're really glad that you guys are here, and seeing your family here during the story for all ages is just so touching. And so thank you very much. I guess mine is a joy and a sorrow. About five years ago, my oldest brother, living brother, told me he didn't want to talk to me anymore, and I respected that. I heard from his niece a few weeks ago that he was probably dying down in Texas. He's at a curmudgeon, a redneck liberal, living on the coast. And he had to have a space as a cigarette and as whatever. So last week I emailed him, and I said, I'm very sad that you're here, that you're going through health issues. And so the joy is that he responded. And he's very happy to hear from me, and I don't think anybody should be alone in their last weeks. He was a stone hauler here in the 40s in the early 50s, so Skid Piney is doing OK down there with six different pain medications. He still hasn't shared with me what he's dying from. That's a hyena for you. Sam Bates broke his leg, and he has five more weeks on crutches. This is for Baby Dexter that was just born to my very good friend, Maggie McDonald, her wife Stephanie, was 31 weeks and went to severe preeclampsia. This was a really scary moment, but they were able to stabilize her until 32 weeks, and he's doing well, he's breathing on his own, and they're taking care of himself. Karen Rose, could you light a candle for the tragedies in Sri Lanka and San Diego and many other places all over the world that we hold in our hearts? Light one final candle for the joys and sorrows that are too tender to share, those that live on in the fullness of our beings. And with that, we get to join in song once again as we sing together hymn number 348, Guide My Feet. I invite you to rise in body and or spirit. Come this race, come this race, Come this race in vain, this race, Come this race in vain, or I don't want... As we move through life, finding ourselves always newly wise and newly foolish, we ask that our mistakes be small and not hurtful. We ask that we gain experience and that we do not forget our innocence for they are both part of the whole. And in this spirit, we extinguish the chalice of this community, remembering that we hold in our hearts and minds the fire of commitment, the warmth of love and the flame of renewal to our greater whole. Until we gather again, may we go in peace after we enjoy one last piece of music.