United Church of Gainesville
The Gospel According to Frederick Douglass and Captain John Brown
September 17, 2023 – 10 a.m.
Our live stream begins at 10:00 a.m. Click here to join.
“The scandal is that the gospel means liberation, that this liberation comes to the poor, and that it gives them the strength and the courage to break the conditions of servitude. The gospel of liberation is bad news to all oppressors because they have defined their ’freedom’ in terms of slavery of others.”
~ James Cone
WELCOME – Rev. Bromleigh McCleneghan
TRANSITION TEAM – Daniel Webster
OPENING SONG – “Lift Every Voice and Sing”
CENTERING WORDS – Rev. Talia Raymond
“The Spirit of God is upon me, [Jesus said] through which they appointed me to bring good news to the poor. God sent me to preach release of captives and vision to those who will not see, to let the oppressed go free and to proclaim the time of God’s blessing has arrived.” – Luke 4:18-19
“Without concrete signs of divine presence in the lives of the poor, the gospel becomes simply an opiate; rather than liberating the powerless from humiliation and suffering, the gospel becomes a drug that helps them adjust to this world by looking for ’pie in the sky.’” – James Cone
May we proclaim and live as signs of divine presence, not to encourage patience with injustice, but so that all may experience the freedom and abundant life God desires.
TIME WITH THE CHILDREN – inspired by “In God’s Hands” by Lawrence Kushner and Gary Schmidt, offered by Rev. Bromleigh McCleneghan
PRAYER
BIRTHDAYS
SPECIAL MUSIC and OFFERING – “Ashokan Farewell” by Jay Ungar, offered by Larry Reimer and Phillip Herr-Klepacki
Your gifts support all facets of the UCG community. You can also give online: bit.ly/ucgplate.
“An Evening with Frederick Douglass and Captain John Brown”
From the original script “In Splendid Error” by William Branch, adapted by Carol Richardson.
Stanley Richardson – Frederick Douglass
Shamrock McShane – Captain John Brown
Pamela Koons – Anna Douglass/Narrator
Carol Richardson – Producer
TIME FOR QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Please raise your hand and wait for Doris Harvey to bring you a microphone.
BENEDICTION
“ALLELUIA”
POSTLUDE
Here are our UCG friends celebrating a birthday last week and this week!
| Remy | Bachmann | 09/18 |
| Sheila | Ginsberg | 09/18 |
| Grant | Gravlee | 09/19 |
| Elise | Lee | 09/19 |
| Allan | March | 09/20 |
| Melvin | Smith-Lopez | 09/20 |
| Barbara | Beynon | 09/21 |
| Anni | Maxwell | 09/21 |
| Marc | Smith | 09/21 |
| Stella | Bachmann | 09/22 |
| Suzi | Kaufman | 09/23 |
| Cheryl | Poe | 09/23 |
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Today at UCG
LifeSouth Blood Drive 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
10:00 a.m. – Worship – “An Evening with Frederick Douglass and Captain John Brown” – with the Racial Justice Committee
Friendship Group
10:15 a.m. United Tribes
11:00 a.m. Fellowship and Beverages
11:15 a.m. Sunday Seminar
Entr’acte
MST & YU
12:15 p.m. Lively Arts Committee
7:30 p.m. Transition Team Listening Session via Zoom
Sunday Seminar – “Supporting Immigrant Rights” – Veronica Robleto, director and legal navigator of the Human Rights Coalition of Alachua County, will share how new anti-immigrant bills are impacting local people. Hear about HRC’s ID Drive, accompaniment program, and immigrant hotline. Learn how you can help by using your own community ID. In Reimer Hall or on Zoom at 11:15 a.m. Meeting ID: 829 6457 0385, Passcode: 1624.
Transition Listening Session today at 7:30 p.m. on Zoom – Please join us for the second of three listening sessions on Zoom. We value all opinions – even if you’re new to UCG, don’t attend often, or haven’t returned to your pre-pandemic levels of involvement.
Small Group Registration Continues – Visit https://bit.ly/SGFALLWIN23 to see our current offerings and to register. If you need a reminder on how to register in ShelbyNext, please contact the office for help. A list of offerings is also available in the church office. The deadline to register is September 17.
Calling All Artists! We want you to exhibit your creations at our annual UCG Art Show on Sunday, November 12. You can sell your work, just show it, or both. We call it, “Show & Tell . . . and Sell” and welcome all ages, all kinds of creativity, and all skill levels! Applications are available online at https://bit.ly/artsapp23 or in the Foyer.
Food4Kids is our outreach program that provides weekly bags of food for food-insecure students at Rawlings Elementary. We have been feeding kids in the community for over 13 years, and last year we had 200 students to feed! We receive grants from the county, but these funds only cover about 45% of our total budget. The balance of our funding has traditionally come from the UCG congregation, and with rising food costs and more students in our program, we need you more than ever. A donation of $270 will help to provide seven modest meals, snacks, and fruit for one child for a whole year, however, any donation amount is gratefully appreciated and 100% of your donations go to help feed a child every week. You can donate by check to UCG with Food4Kids in the subject line, or at https://bit.ly/food4k23. Thank you!
In light of the fall and Christmas schedule and to allow more time for consideration, we will continue with a single 10 a.m. service through January 2024. A preliminary report will be presented at the October 15 congregational meeting, and a decision on the worship schedule will be made at the January 28, 2024 congregational meeting.
Learn about local climate change and what we can do at the Climate Summit on September 30, 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., cosponsored by the Creation Care and Climate (C3J) Task Force of UCG and the Alachua NAACP Environmental Climate Justice Committee (ECJC). Register at https://bit.ly/CSRSVP23.
Next Sunday, September 24
9:45 a.m. Child Care
10:00 a.m. Worship – “Game Plan: Bring Resilience Off the Bench” – Rev. Sandy Reimer
10:15 a.m. United Tribes
11:00 a.m. Fellowship and Beverages
Puzzle Exchange
Young Adult Lunch
11:15 a.m. Sunday Seminar
MST & YU
11:30 a.m. ID Drive
Small Group – *What’s it Like?
7:30 p.m. Transition Team Listening Session via Zoom
*pre-registered group