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UUA Joins Lawsuit Against Immigration Enforcement in Churches

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A note to UU congregations from UUA President Rev. Dr. Sofia Betancourt, February 12, 2025:

“I am proud to share with you that the Unitarian Universalist Association has joined with a multifaith coalition and the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection to bring a lawsuit challenging Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s (ICE) “sensitive locations policy.”

The case, Mennonite Church USA et al. v. United States Department of Homeland Security et al., was filed in federal district court in Washington, DC. Churches, as well as schools and hospitals, had previously been protected from ICE enforcement actions, but a Department of Homeland Security memo rescinded that protection on January 20.

We join this multifaith coalition, representing millions of Americans across dozens of denominations, to challenge the ending of ICE’s sensitive locations policy and oppose any interpretation of law which would allow immigration raids in houses of worship and religious ceremonies.

We believe, and the lawsuit asserts, that subjecting places of worship to ICE enforcement actions without a judicial warrant substantially burdens our religious exercise in violation of the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

We know that many of our congregations include members who are immigrants, both documented and undocumented, and many of you carry out important ministries that serve immigrant communities in church spaces.

The UUA is committed to supporting and protecting your ability to continue this vital and life-saving work. Learn more about the lawsuit in the UUA World magazine (uuworld.org)”

New UUFC Communication Coordinator

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We welcome Cameron McGrath as the Fellowship’s new Communication Coordinator. In this role, Cameron will be managing multiple forms of communication within the Fellowship, such as the Weekly Announcements, Monthly Journal, and updates to the content of the UUFC website. Cameron’s background is in engineering and technology development. He has built his communication skills through college courses, corporate experience, and ad-hoc engineering project management. He is grateful to have the opportunity to apply these skills in service to the Fellowship, and is looking forward to learning the intricacies of communication within a religious community. Cameron can be reached via email at comms@uucorvallis.org. If you have questions, concerns, or suggestions about how we communicate within the Fellowship, Cameron would love to hear them.

Justice Council Gathering, 2/16

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All justice team leaders, any and all team justice team members, and any /all other Fellowship members and friends are invited to the Justice Council gathering, Sunday Feb. 16 following the service, in the Sanctuary, to share information, perspectives and needs. How is our justice work being affected by changes in the country? Does our work need to expand, or change? Are there new projects we need to take on? All who are interested in the ongoing living of our mission to “ACT: We inspire action toward a better world for all” are invited to join this gathering.

Blaise Ntakarutimana at the Fellowship, 2/16

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Join us at the Sunday Service on Feb. 16 to hear Blaise Ntakarutimana tell about his journey from being a UU refugee from Burundi, to his life as a new US citizen, to his hopes for what his experience can offer to others. Blaise is a member of the Fellowship. He and his wife Gisele live in Portland with their three children.

Kirtan on Zoom, 2/7

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Please join us for a relaxing set of Kirtan music on Zoom first and third Fridays at 7-8:30 PM.

A Zoom kirtan allows us to gather, share conversations about the good and bad happenings in our lives, and then listen to a relaxing set of kirtan music, usually ending with a meditation. It’s an opportunity to snooze, sing, or listen as you do other things. We gather at the end for a prayer and good wishes for the week ahead. I look forward to every Zoom kirtan, as it ends my week on a positive note.

We hope you’ll join us on the 1st and 3rd Friday of the month from 7-8:30 PM on Zoom.

Join the Zoom Meeting

“It’s about letting go and feeling your own heart’s connection to a deeper place of belonging and to love. I lose myself and then find myself at the same time.” — Caren Fine

Queerly Beloved, 2/9

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Join us on Sunday afternoon, February 9, 4:00-6:00 in the Social Hall to paint rocks and create our own “I am from” poems. All Queerly Beloveds and allies welcome. See you there!

LEGATO potluck, 2/12

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NOTE the new time: 5:45 PM

Let’s create and nurture sustainable relations by enjoying a meal together. Join the choir and band for the potluck supper on Wednesday February 12 at 5:45 PM. Come early if you can help set up tables. Bring a dish to share (please identify all ingredients).

This is a Connect Up Event with the purpose of building community within the UUFC congregation.

Your UUFC Lawn Mowing Team Needs You!

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The UUFC lawn mowing team has lost half of its eight members. WE NEED YOU! We have a state-of-the-art set of electric lawn mowers,lawn trimmers and blowers. Mowing takes 1-2 hours, once per month on your own schedule, and is a pleasant workout experience (1.5 to 2 mi of walking). The UUFC lawns are divided into front and back sections. We need mowers for both sections.

To learn more about this opportunity, please contact Russ Karow.

Thanks for your consideration!

Bhakti Heart Kirtan, 3/7

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Friday, March 7, 7-8:30 PM

Bhakti Heart Kirtan is heart-opening joyous chanting with Eugene’s award winning singer songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Laura Kemp and Len Seligman. Please join us for a joyous, uplifting gathering, chanting sacred sounds from diverse traditions. All are welcome, regardless of musical experience or spiritual background. We look forward to singing with you!

2945 Circle Blvd

$20 at the door; No one turned away for lack of funds.

Daily Practice – a Weekly Reminder

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We enter into February, a month dedicated to love and to Black History, both of which are beautiful opportunities for daily practice. We enter into this particular February, in which both love and Black History are in danger, and at stake.

For Black History month, I begin by choosing two or three books to read, and I receive a daily lesson in Black history from an online newsletter called Anti-Racism Daily. For a month dedicated to love, I begin with a framework provided by Cornel West – his phrase that “Justice is what love looks like in public,” and I review my justice –related commitments and activities, aiming to help myself be accountable to my ideals, by reviewing and renewing those commitments, or making changes. These activities are closely related. I ask myself whether or not, and how, what I learn helps me change the way I live.

The religious life is not merely an intellectual exercise, not limited to discussion of religious, theological or political ideas. It is not simply a way to be with other people in a shallow or pseudo community. It is a daily practice of turning ever-more closely to living in right relations, which requires learning more about the truths of our own minds and thoughts, more about the truths of our relatedness to all others, more about the truths of how we are part of Life. It begins again each and every day, with awareness of the gifts of life and breath. It begins again each and every day as we undertake to learn one more thing than we know, which could move us closer to peace, to compassion, to justice. It begins every morning, as sunlight unfolds and spreads. As each day is given may we choose to be present, intentional and committed to learning and growing, that our lives may be a blessing.