Newsletter
October 19, 2018
For your prayer and reflection this week sDear Soo,
For your prayer and reflection this week :
There is a healing power in simply naming what we are feeling or experiencing.
To be aware;
to acknowledge to ourselves what is weighing on our hearts-
that awareness may not change circumstances and situations,
but it adds an element of healing.
In a culture that denies, suppresses, and represses,
it is counter-cultural to slow down enough
to see and acknowledge what is happening within and outside us.
We run so fast,
that we nearly pass our whole lives by without stopping to feel.
Today’s message is:
Stop the presses!
Life’s urgent demands will always press on us.
No one else will prioritize being, awareness, and mindfulness for you.
As you cultivate this,
some things may arise in you that are not pleasant,
whether they be sadness, grief, anger, or the like.
Mindfulness is holding this paradox-
awareness and acceptance of ourselves just as we are in this moment,
while also focusing on and cultivating who we want to be.
The “darkness” and the “negative” will come up-
in our consciousness and in the consciousness of the world-
in fear disguised as racism, sexism, homophobia, classism, and on and on.
While this appears as bad news on the surface,
the good news is this-
the negative comes up both in ourselves and in the world in order to be healed and released.
The healing, transforming power- with ourselves and with the world-
is love.
Thanks to everyone who came last Sunday for the Divine Light service with special guest Mirabai Devi. This Sunday we are having a Nature/Beauty walk at 2pm at Wellesley College. Come join us as we experience the Holy in this beautiful creation during the peak of the fall season. Next weekend, we will be having our first ever Agape retreat (info about both are below). Also next weekend Agape is helping with a Halloween Party for the families at Home Suites Temporary Motel and Homeless Shelter. We are looking for individuals or families to come in costume (simple is fine), decorate their cars and bring treats in their trunks. The children will decorate their bags and fill them with candy from the trunks. More info is below.
This Sunday 10/21 I will be preaching at 10am at one of our partner churches, the Eliot Church of Newton, and leading a discussion/forum after church. We are contemplating deeper partnership between Agape and the Eliot Church of Newton, and so I would encourage you to join Sunday if you can to begin this conversation.
Lastly, many congratulations are in order to Dawn! As of yesterday afternoon, Dawn is officially a "Member-in-Discernment" in the Central Association of the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ. This means that the Church has officially recognized Dawn's intent to pursue Ordination, and has agreed to invite her into the process. How wonderful! We are so blessed to have Dawn with Agape, and are so grateful for all the gifts, wisdom, and energy she shares so generously. Thank Dawn, and congrats! If you want to share your well wishes, Dawn can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
With you today in being the church together,
Matt
Nature/Beauty Walk
October 21st at 2pm at Wellesley College
Let’s meet for a Fall Beauty Walk around Lake Waban, Wellesley. We will meet at the parking lot in green on the map (attached) at the Wellesley campus. If that lot is full, there is another across the street on Route 16. The walk is 2.8 miles from parking lot to the end of the walk which is circular walk around Lake Waban with many beautiful nature views. Afterwards, we can go nearby to a Dunkies that has tables grouped together and talk about what we saw. You might want to take pictures! Wear good walking shoes, sneakers are fine. Please see attached map to mark the correct lot. Please let Maria know who is coming. Cell is 781-249-6340.
Agape Retreat
Friday night October 26 & Saturday October 27
Congregational Church of Weston
130 Newton St, Weston, MA 02493
We will be having our first ever Agape retreat! One of our partner churches, the Congregational Church of Weston, has graciously agreed to let us use their space. Come to bond, have fun, engage in spiritual practices, and deepen our community connection. We’ll close with a potluck lunch and walking the labyrinth together.
Please let Matt know if you are attending and would like Childcare provided, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Schedule:
Friday October 26: 7:15pm-8:45pm: Opening & Connecting
Saturday October 27: Snacks and Gathering: 9:45am-10am
10am-12pm: Spiritual Practices & bonding
12pm-1:30pm: Lunch, Labyrinth walk, and closing
Halloween Party for Families at Home Suites Inn
455 Totten Pond Road, Waltham
Sunday, October 28th, 3 p.m.
We are looking for volunteers! Eliot Church, 2nd Church, and hopefully Agape Spiritual Community are planning a Halloween Party for the families at Home Suites Inn. We will have refreshments, board games, decorating Halloween bags and “Trick or Trunk!” We are looking for individuals or families to come in costume (something simple is fine), decorate their cars and bring treats in their trunks. The children will decorate their bags and fill them with candy from the trunks. There is a large parking lot so we have room for many cars. Our children and youth are invited to hand out treats or join the families in decorating a bag and collecting treats, then enjoy refreshments ad games inside. This is an opportunity for many of us to play a part in this fun outreach. We also need donations of Halloween cookies and small cupcakes. Please contact Pastor Matt at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Pastor Susan (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) if you are willing to participate, and in what capacity.
ARTChurch Dinner Church
Sunday, November 4th at 5pm
Intercultural Center (ICC), Brandeis University
Come, experience the Holy—and the holy in each other—through the images, colors, themes and creative energies of art, the artist’s perspective and that which is seen by the observer. We’ll do some of the things we always do in services—sing, pray and share—and some new creating as we discover ways that God is speaking through the experience. Come for a multi-sensory experience that will nurture the spirit and feed the soul!
Agape 2018 events and directions are at this link: http://www.agapewaltham.org/
www.agapewaltham.org
(This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 774-270-2185).
If you would like to make a love donation to support the unfoldment of Agape's vision in the world of living and spreading unconditional love, you can do so at the link below, or checks can be made out to "MACUCC" with "Agape" in the memo line (and mailed to 106 Stearns Hill Rd., Waltham, MA 02451).
https://macucc-reg.brtapp.com/