Unitarian Day Lilies
When it comes to flowers, berries and gardens it seems like everything is ahead of schedule this summer. Cherries are already ripe on our church cherry tree and the day lilies in today’s photo are also approximately two weeks early. We have Canadian day lilies on our property in Monticello and they are a month early! Even potato fields were in blossom two weeks before July 4th.
It makes everything feel like the timing is slightly off this summer. I guess that’s where we take note and make the adjustments. You may want to bring a container with you on Sunday and pick cherries off our tree during coffee hour. Yummy, yet tart…
We have an open pulpit service this Sunday so we invite you to bring a reading, poem, a show and tell object or a personal observation to share with the group. There is no specific theme or topic for the service, we’ll consider it “summer reflections.” Oftentimes a theme develops on its own as people share and the service unfolds. You just never know. We have double content this week on our YouTube Channel. Last week Fen (Bored Barista Productions) was on his way back to New Orleans after being in Houlton for July 4th so this week we’re doubling up. You will find the link for the first service listed below and it is already active. The second service includes special music guest Janice Santos and a “summer reflection” message by the minister on impermanence. That link will be active on Sunday morning at 10AM.
We hope you can join us for one of the services online or in-person.
Enjoy summer.
In Ministry,
Dave
LGBTQ+ LUNCHEON July 13, Saturday at Noon
LGBTQ+ luncheon is at 12 noon on Saturday, July 13 in the UUHoulton church basement. Food is provided, but please bring a potluck item to add to the event. It’s always fun to see what delicious fare shows up. The Cup Cafe will also have the espresso machine turned on for those interested in a caffeinated treat. Friends and allies welcome!
HOULTON COFFEEHOUSE
July 13, Saturday Evening 7-9 PMThe Cup Cafe, 61 Military Street
OPEN-MIC NIGHT
If you’re looking for something to do this Saturday night, it’s open-mic night at the Houlton Coffeehouse. Musicians, poets and stand up are all welcome on the coffeehouse stage (now in our 30th year) and our natural air conditioned space is especially inviting on these hot summer days. We also have plenty of refreshing drink specials to help cool you off. Electric blue raspberry spritzer is our feature this weekend at the fizz bar. On the menu we have vegan or chicken curry and vegan or beef chili. Our classic Almond Joy Latte is also back after a long layoff. Former cafe manager Tony Clark was visiting during the July 4th holidays and reminded us what a great latte it is. So it’s back!
Come early for supper and hang out before the show. Cafe doors open at 5:30PM.
See you at the Cup!
Feel the buzz…
Menu
Vegan or Chicken CurryVegan or Beef Chili
Electric Blue Raspberry Spritzer
Almond Joy Latte
THIS WEEK’S YOUTUBE SERVICE:
HERE IS THE SERVICE LINK FOR THIS WEEK’S YOUTUBE SERVICE
(Please note it won’t be active until 10AM on Sunday morning)LINK WILL BE SENT OUT LATER IN THE DAY
LAST WEEK’S YOUTUBE SERVICE LINK:
(active now)
HERE IS THE ZOOM LINK FOR SUNDAY COFFEE HOUR:
Topic: UUHoulton zoom coffee hour
Time: Jul 14, 2024 11:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us06web.zoom.us/j/87201599041?pwd=hon9Fb9YanmSn66Ya6thubiGDFdU9R.1
Meeting ID: 872 0159 9041
Passcode: 066387
Calendar of Events @UUHoulton
July 13 LGBTQ+ Luncheon 12 Noon
July 13 Houlton Coffeehouse Open-Mic Night
July 14 Sunday Service: Open-Pulpit Service
July 20 Nirvana Tribute Night 7PM (Cup Cafe)
July 21 Sunday Service: Bill White
July 28 Sunday Service: David Hutchinson
Aug 4 Sunday Service: Stephen Kinney
Aug 11 Sunday Service: David Hutchinson
Aug 17 LGBTQ+ luncheon 12 Noon
Aug 17 Summer Concert at Cafe 7-9PM Mark Mandeville and Raiaane Richards
Aug 18 Sunday Service: Open Pulpit
Aug 20 Meditation Group 4PM (online)Aug 25 Sunday Service: David Hutchinson
Virtual Offering Plate
If you would like to send in your pledge or donation simply drop an envelope in the mail. The address is listed below. You can also send your donation electronically with our new payment system on the church website. Simply go to uuhoulton.org and click “Donate” on the menu and it will explain how the system works. You can set up a regular monthly payment plan or donate in single transactions. Thank you for your generous support!
UU Church of Houlton, 61 Military Street, Houlton ME 04730
Since the Dalai Lama just celebrated his 89th birthday (July 8), we are including a special reflection by his friend and colleague Roshi Joan Halifax.
The Dalai Lama: A Long Life Lived for All
Why is the Dalai Lama an inspiration to so many people of such diverse backgrounds? Roshi Joan Halifax explains.
JOAN HALIFAX 4 JUNE 2024
In 1979, for His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s first-ever visit to the United States, the Episcopal priest James Morton invited him to the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in New York City. The cathedral that day was full, not just with Westerners, but also with Tibetans who had fled their country, escaping the violence of the invasion by the Chinese Red Guard. They, like His Holiness, had survived. They’d made their way to relative safety, and they were hungry for the teachings of the religious leader of their country, a fellow refugee.
Under the soaring nave of the cathedral and with the rapt silence of his audience, His Holiness spoke of the profound value of courage and compassion in a broken world. After the talk, I made my way to a nearby brownstone where a reception was to be held. I remember waiting by the door with anticipation. Within minutes this youngish, slender man wearing maroon robes, tan leather shoes, and a good watch, bounded up the stairs of the Uptown Manhattan home. With a gleam in his eye, His Holiness grabbed my hand; he probably sensed I had a question for him. My inquiry stemmed from the fact that I’d been given a rare piece of land in the upper Ojai Valley in California to begin a practice and study center. I asked him what qualities would be important in supporting the creation of such a center. His response was immediate: “Great love, great compassion, and great determination.”
“His dharma will live on through the lives of the many whom he has touched.”
As I traveled to the West Coast, I realized that these words would be the ballast that steadied my boat through the choppy waters of fostering an institution grounded in the dharma and social action. And although I was a Zen person, I knew that His Holiness’ powerful teachings on compassion were essential to integrate more firmly into my practice of Buddhism. I think many have had this same experience. Two years later, I had a meeting in Spain with the neuroscientist and philosopher Francisco Varela whose nickname was Cisco. In the days that unfolded, we had many conversations about the importance of the encounter between science, contemplative practice, and first-person experience.
A week later, we encountered each other at yet another science meeting, this time at Stanford University where Cisco, chemist Ilya Prigogine, neuroscientist Karl Pribram, economist Kenneth Arrow, and others were exploring order and disorder in complex adaptive systems. Again, the conversation between Cisco and me focused on the relevance of cross-disciplinary exchanges, and the importance of creating a context where scientists conducting brain research and individuals with a contemplative practice could meet and learn from each other. Cisco knew I’d been creating similar meetings on the West Coast, including a six-week program called “Buddhism and Mind” in 1976. Cisco was a practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism, and I was deeply moved by His Holiness’ teachings. So, our conversation naturally moved toward exploring some way in which a meeting could happen between Cisco, his colleagues, and His Holiness. In 1983, I was invited to a small meeting on this very topic at the University of California, Santa Barbara. However, I was reluctant to go. My eyes had been bandaged following a medical procedure involving radiation; the dosage had not been sufficiently fractionated, and my eyes were burned. But Cisco encouraged me to go despite my state.
His Holiness, maybe feeling compassion for my difficult situation, invited me to have a private audience with him early the next morning. As I was driven to the home where His Holiness was staying, I felt nervous. But again, His Holiness’ warmth overcame my concerns. When I entered the house, His Holiness took my hand, led me to a chair, sat close to me, and kindly said that my eye consciousness might be afflicted but my mind consciousness was not. A smile broke across my face, as there was a touch of humor in his comment to me. I relaxed and felt I was sitting with an old friend. His Holiness had a gift for making others feel met, safe, cared for, and understood. At the end of our meeting, I humbly suggested creating a dialogue between him, philosophers, contemplatives, and neuroscientists. Laughter and a strong yes followed; His Holiness seemed very excited about this possibility. I was elated and immediately spoke to Cisco about the exchange when I returned to Ojai. A seed was planted, and its roots deepened later that year when Cisco was in Germany with His Holiness and made the same proposal. It was met with a similar response. His Holiness, after all, was a scientist at heart. In the years that followed, I participated in many Mind and Life meetings at His Holiness’ quarters in Dharamshala as he and others explored mind, life, ethics, emotions, dying, addiction, the environment, and awakening. His sharp mind—and at times, sharp tongue—kept us all on our toes. The questions deepened over time. I think His Holiness was transformed by these rich encounters, and we were as well. There were so many high points, but maybe the most touching was his bond with Cisco. They were two compassionate, brilliant, and brave men who had fled countries that were in the grips of totalitarian regimes. Two men who, in their marrow, were scientists. Two men who loved and respected each other. And then one day in 2001, Cisco left us. We carried on with His Holiness. The same, but different.The last time I saw His Holiness was in October 2022. He was older, refusing to wear his hearing aids, still full of laughter, and still teaching compassion as the salvation of our world, of ourselves. He was also still sure he would live to the venerable age of 125. And may it be so.If this should not come to pass, his dharma will live on through the lives of the many whom he has touched, the institutions that have grown up around and through him, the contemplative science that has flowered in the ground of his understanding, and the many friendships that have developed through his rare gift of magnifying the best in others.
JOAN HALIFAXJoan Halifax is the abbot and head teacher of Upaya Institute and Zen Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her most recent book Standing at the Edge: Finding Freedom Where Fear and Courage Meet explores how we can face the challenges we are facing in our current fraught political climate.
The first phase of the heat pump install is happening!!
photos by Christoph
Prayer List
For those working for social justice and societal changePray for peaceful action and democratic process in our nationThe war in Ukraine continuesPrayers for those in Palestine and Israel as the war continues into its seventh monthPrayers for the worsening humanitarian crisis in GazaPrayers for those affected by the ongoing heat waves (India, Pakistan, Middle East, Europe and North America) Prayers for those affected by the flash flooding in the Dakotas, Utah, Minnesota…Prayers for those affected by Hurricane Beryl
The Four Limitless Ones Prayer
May all sentient beings enjoy happiness and the root of happiness.
May we be free from suffering and the root of suffering.
May we not be separated from the great happiness devoid of suffering.
May we dwell in the great equanimity free from anger, aggression and delusion.
Comments are closed