Dear Friends,
Our Earth Mother, Gaia, was asleep to me, but now I am awakened and awake with her and it makes me want to DANCE! A wooden statue of Mother Mary came to life for me as a child in a vision. She has guided and loved me and now I am a grandmother called to protect all children and grandchildren. Now I must give up childish ways and as an adult treat her as someone with flesh and blood feelings that has given me life! She is our common Mother Earth, Gaia. As a human family we have forgotten how to be in real loving relationship with her. Now science and all the ancient wisdom traditions teach us that she is a feeling being. Our Earth Mother has been treated as if she was dead but she has come to life for many of us and our human consciousness is RISING about our ecologic crisis and creative new ways to embody an ecologic civilization. We must learn this in our own bodies. One class room for a crash course to learn embodiment is the dance floor. It is time to celebrate and dance with her, to dance and celebrate our own bodies, to dance with one another in joy that we are still alive. One Billion of us will Rise this next week to dance with you, on you, in you, all around you. Thank you for your holy body, for our holy bodies, for all of our bodies moving and swaying in and out in miraculous relationship with one another. We will dance in the interconnected intertwining movement of love to heal you, to heal ourselves, to heal one another and every creature.
Please join us for a worship of dancing this Sunday, Feb 10th 5 pm as we dance with Gaia and One Billion Rising! Eve Ensler who wrote the brilliant play, Vagina Monologues began One Billion Rising as a global movement, to end rape and sexual violence against women. It was started in 2012 as part of the V-Day movement. The "billion" refers to the UN statistic that one in three women will be raped or beaten in her lifetime, or about one billion."1 in 3 women across the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. That’s ONE BILLION WOMEN AND GIRLS. Every February, we rise – in countries across the world – to show our local communities and the world what one billion looks like and shine a light on the rampant impunity and injustice that survivors most often face. We rise through dance to express joy and community and celebrate the fact that we have not been defeated by this violence. We rise to show we are determined to create a new kind of consciousness – one where violence will be resisted until it is unthinkable." We rise dancing for dancing heals our bodies and together when we dance we are doing a prayer of movement and music for our Mother Earths body. What we have done to women's bodies we have done to the earth's body for we are one.
Join us for a vegetarian potluck dinner immediately following. We need you to continue strengthening our vision with conversation about how to find and live on gifted land, build an ecologic artistic church to pray for the earth, grow our own organic food and to love one another in intentional intergenerational community. As elders we must create loving sanctuary for our children and grandchildren and all children and grandchildren and great grandchildren for they are all our own.
Sending love always,
Bonnie
P.S. Special thanks to the artist Sherri Dimmick who gave me this painting of Our Lady dancing with Mother Earth many years ago with these words written on the back. "You are the caretaker of the generations. You are the birth giver," the sun told the woman, "You will be the carrier of this universe." Brule Sioux, Sun Creation Myth
Upcoming invitations:
Lectio Divina and Centering Prayer Contemplation of scriptures for Sunday and Centering Prayer, an ancient Christian contemplative prayer practice, every Wednesday 10 am.
Monthly Taize Chanting service first Sunday of every month
Beach candle light worship every second Sunday at Torrey Pines State Park at 5 pm. It gets cold and dark so please dress warmly.
Prayer and Healing Service third Sunday worship at 5 pm.
Dream Circle every first and third Sunday before worship 3-5 pm.
Committee on Ministry meeting every third Sunday evening after church and pot luck
Webinar with Environmental Justice Practitioners Network co-sponsored by First UU Church and Church for Our Common Home, once a month call Jamie Long (619) 436-9435.
New live stream worship on church web site, some Sunday’s 5 pm (PST) Churchforourcommonhome.com More info call (858) 248-5123
www.churchforourcommonhome.com
Our Common Home Counseling Center’s services: Addiction Issues, PTSD, Individual and Group Therapy, Spiritual Direction, Pastoral Counseling, Dream Honoring, Creative Art Therapies etc.
www.ourcommonhomecounselingcenter.com
You are invited to the Gaia Dance! Please bring all those who you love, human and non-human creatures for Valentines Day this year!
