1970 - in unity - october

8/14/2019 1970 - In Unity - October

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A M ET ROP OL ITAN C OM MUNIT Y C HURC H PUBLI CATION

IN N I T Y o C : ~ ~ ~

I w a s h u n g r y a nd yo u fo rm e d a h u ma n i t i e sc lu b to di s c u ss my hu n ge r.

I wa s i mp r i so n ed an d yo u c r e p t of fqu i e t l y a n d pr ay e d fo r my re l e a s e .

I w a s n ak e d a n d i n yo ur mi n d yo u d e b at e dt h e mo ra l i t y o f my a p p e a ra n c

I wa s s i c k a n d y o u k n I t a n d L h an k d G dfo r y o u r h e a l th .

I wa s h o m e l es s a n d y o u p r a c h d to mt h e s p ir i ru a l s h e lt e r o f Go d ' s lo v

I was l on e l y a n d y o u l ef t me al o np r a y f o r me.

Yo u s e e m s o h o l y , so c l os et o Go d.

Bu ~, I a m s t i l l v e r y h u n g r y a n d l o n e lya n d c o l d .

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TH E OFF It ; IAL V OIC E OF TH E UN IV ERS ALIN F L LO WSH IP OF M T ROP O LITANN ITV C OM MU N ITY C H U RC H ES

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S om e t hin g unusu a l h as happ e ne d i nthe U ni v er s al F e l l o ws hi p. A t r e n dh as b e e n b uc k e d and a n at i o nal p u b -l i ca ti on ha s move d awa y f r o m h om eb ase. Th e s t a t us which mi g h t de-vo l v e u po n the Mot her Chur c h b yt he pub l ica t ion o f a den o mina l i o n a lo r g an h as b ee n sca t t e r e d to a ll th ech ur c h e s a n d mi s si o n s o f t h e Un i v e r-s al F e ll ows hi p . Wi th Ed i t o ri a 1 st a ffin S a n Di e g o , c o rr e sp o n d e n t s i n eachc o ngre g a tio n it can b e a Uni ve rsalexperienc e. W e n e ed yo ur h e lp . Weneed p eo p le in e v e r y con g r e ga t ion

Just a notebuy i t , t o s u bsc r ib e t o i t. We n ee dpe opl e in ev e r y congr e gat ion t oc o n t r i bu te t o i t. W e n e ed yo urpati e nc e . This is s u e i s l a te . Weh o p e e a c h mo n th to co me o ut o n ewee k e arli e r u n t il we pu b li s h a tt he beg i n n in g of t h e mo nt h and n ott he e nd . \-li th n e w b e g i nn i n g s w eh o p e t o g r o w i n s i z e . Onl y y o u cand o i t. Yo ur Ed i to r

a chun c h he nowhat th e y me an b y ge n e r at i o n g ap ,y o u n e v e r l e r m e f e e 1 t h e r e wa s a n yd i f fe r e n ce , yo u r a sca l s , " f ee l s

t h e r e i s a g e n e rat io n g a p. T h e s i mpl ejo y of s e e i n g o n e o f t h e Lo r d ' smi ni s te r s g i v e co mmu n i o n to o n e o fhi s o wn c h ildr e n f o r t h e fi r s t tim ei n t h e l if e of e it h e r , t h e g r e a tbo o mi n g ( sl i g h t l y r a s p y ) v o i ce , t h eg r and co r on a of t uft e d w hit e h a ira ll p r o vid e t h os e who k n o w o r me thi m a n i n d e l i b l e me mo r y of u np r e -

te nt io u s s a intlin e ss .VVe h o p e t ha t Mi ss Rob b Wi l li s an da l l t h e o t h e r n e w MCC f am i l y i nDa l l as wi l l l e a r n f r o m t h is w i sey o u n g ma n. T a k e ca r e o f hi m. We l o v eh im a s we kn ow yo u w i l l .

Re p r i ntp d f r om Th e P r odiga l

VVe h a v e n 't r u n a "Ch ur c h He r o "co l u mn f o r awh i l e . But whi l e wewe r e i n L os An g e l e s we me t o n e .And Da ll as i s luck y e n o u g h t o h a vehi m. Re v . Va n H e e k e , ( wh o ' s so ni n c i d e n t l y wi l l b e o n t h e s taff )i s a s yo ung a s y o u a nd me a nd ma yb ea s o l d a s t ime .. . a n d j u st a s wi s e ."Oh : " h e ~ aid . "I' m s o h o me si c k Imi s s yo u a l r e a d y ." An d , o f co u r seh e h a dn ' t e v en l e f t ye t . He s h a r e do f hi s w i s do m t hr o u g h o u t t h e t h r eed ay s o f Fe n e r a l Co nf e r e nc e . Fath e ro f t hr e e s o n s , h e m a n ag e d to mak eu s a l l f e e l lik e s ons in t h e s a mefam i l y . I d o n ' t s upp o s e t h at an yo n ewh o h ea r d hi m s a y : "I d o n' t k n ow

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Every Sunday at 7 :3 0 p.m. at theUnitarian Chu rch, 2 5 0 0 pali Hw y . the

Ha w aiian M issi o n o f the M etro po litanCommu n ity Church m eet s f or Chris tianwor ship with th e ir d e acon, R o nHanson.Fl on H an s on , w h o rep re se n te d hi scongregation so we ll at G e neralConference, trie d to come to termswith himse l f a b o ut b e ing a homo -sexual . That soul sea rc h ing we nton fo r ten y e ars, a ll du r in g hi sa tte ndance at a mfe s t onar -y s ch oo l.B ut af te r R o n had h ea rd Tr oy P e rryin L o a An g e les gi ve h is sermo ntit le d " I'm Not Afraid An ymo re " hefe lt h e had r .eceived a pe rsona lm essa ge from that se rm on ." I' v c o m e to realize tha t Go dlo ok s a t th e inw ard m a n, n o t th eou tw a rd man . We as Ch ris tia n s ar ehu ng up in o u r ~ Jri tan ica l b eliefssb o ut wha t our bod ie s do o utw ardly'.T he isl a nd gro u p had it 's f i rstm ee tin g at the ho me o f Dea con Hanson ,at which ther e w e re ten people.Since the n he ha s b een able to usethe faci li ties o f the U n itarianChur c h." I'm ha p py," he said. "Peoplesomehow think that a homosexualcannot be happ y . i' t s ta k e n me y earsto accept myse lf and what I am I even 'ried to c h ange once . M o s t

of the problems homosexuals faceare surprisingly similar to those

face d by straight people."Hawaii's D e acon has said he b e lieveshe c a n help o the r homose xu a lsa chieve a s ense of self worth toacc ept the fact of their ho mo sexu-a lity."E veryone who goe s to this kind o fserv ice f o r the firs t tim e wonde rsw hat thi s is all a bou t. Th ey w a nt' 0 shr ink in to a c o rner unn o tic e d .I w a s that w ay t h e first t im e I went.B u t w hen t h e se r iv ce star ted , Ires l ly fe 1 t as tho u g h I wa s wo rship-ing Go d wHh fellow C h risti ans."C h ri sti anit y .. n o t h om o sex ual ity ..is t he basi s o f th e M et rop o lit anCo mmunit y C hurch.

I a r e c ent in te rv iew w ith theRelig ion Write r fo r the H o n ol ul uAdvertiser, D eacon Hanson said:'VV e want to off er something thatbenefits homos exuals . But an yo ne

can bene fit from it. W e, wh o kn o wbenefits homosexuals. But any o necan benefit from it. We, who knowwhat it's like to be ostracized,want to open o ur doors to all ."

LJ;F E IN THE STATE SDALLAS re ce ntly o rde red fou r mar-

In MI AM I the M CCBe n efi t Per form - riage certific a te s. Congratulationsance of ''N e w Gi r l in Town " at the to someone. These have no assignmentU p stage Theat re wa s one of the best of " roles" and are approved lor useb a rgains in town. in this denomination.

Jerry Wil son from the SAN DIEGO Thursday evening in CHICAGOis a l,cong reg a tio n h a d the opportunity to ternately Bible st u d y and discussionw o rship recently w ith the HAWAII group-all in the B roadway Methodi s t

missi on . '. Church.

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T h e Good S h epherd M e trop o lit a nCommun it y Church of Chi cag o, i n vite dRev. Jo h n Hose o f MCCLAto be the irgue s t for Charte r Day and the fol-low i ng S u nday, O c t obe r 17 a n d 18 .Fle v. Hose , in a less - than-e x c lusiveintervi e w (give n to his s em inaryS ':uden ts) s ta ted his im pressionso f Go od Sh ep h er d b y saying,"Exhil-er a ting w as an in suff icient wor d ."H e co mpla ined t hat Ch ic ago is "theseco n d larges t c i ty in th e U. S. anda ll r h ey ( Chica goa ns ) can ta lk a b outa re e he p ro bl ems o f th e Na ti o n alDemo cra t ic Con v en t io n, an d abo u tbe in g t h e 'Hog But ch er J .ng C apitalo f the Worl d '." B utin fact , o ne o fthe nat - io n ' s la rg e s t hom op h ile co mm-unit ies also exists i n C h icag o an dth ey are o bviou s ly read y t o s tart achu rch .O n Chart e r D ay, Saturd ay evenin g,Re v. Hose spoke to forty five p ers onsth irt y o f wh o m becam e memb er s and

two becam e fri end s . On S und ay e ve ningat 7 :0 0 P M, n inety fi ve p eople at-

ended ehe wo rship se rv ice a t t heBroadway Methodi st C h u rch (3 342N or th B road way ).Fle v. John Hos e note d th e d efer enc eC h icagoans sh ow for R ev . A rth er Greenth ei r pastor . H ose fe lt tha t thi s

w a s ob vious l y d u e t o Rev . Gr ee n 'sab il ity and sk ill in de al in g wi thp eopl e. O f his tw o d a y v isit, Rev.Ho se h ad on ly o ne " c om p lai n t"--"T h ey u se d w h it e w in e fo r Co mmu nio n "and it is not hard to f ee l R ev. Hose'sprob lem in identifyi n g the wine w It hthe Blood of C h r ist .Ftev. H ose h ad a s ug gestion to t h eC h ica g o f amily tha t is well to passon to th e o the r c h urche s and me mbe rso f th e Uni versal Fel lows h ip . H ere m ind ed C h ic ag o (and u s) th at theearly Chris ti a n C h u rch lived t o ge th eryet sep a ra ted by dist an ce t h ro u ghepist o lary cor omun t c a t i.o n . " P apaJo hn" , as Rev. H o se i s fon d ly know ntho u g h t t ha t MC C o u g ht t o co n si d eres tab lis h ing "pen p als" thr o u ghoutal l the c hurche s an d th e ir memb ers ."B eca u se ," h e said, " th e re a re som an y bea u tif ul pe opl e i n o u r ch ur-ch e s ." And he mu st hav e h a d in mi nd,a t l eas t i n part, the many b e auti-fu l peopl e h e met in Chi cago th a tCha r ter D a y w e e k end .

SANFR AN CISC O h as or g aniz e d a mi d-morn ing Club for thos e who work inth e e vening . One recen t Thursda yA. M . saw Bicycling in Golden Gatepark .

PHOEN IXnow ope rates an answer- linese rvice in ''The Nomad". It's c al le d''Hope'' . It's conf ident ial a nd als oinfo rmative.

T h e Cool -Aids , the youth gro up atMCCLAhas been h av ing dan ces n earl yever y othe r F ri aay. T h e g ro u p i t-self is fo r th ose b et we en 13 and 20 .

COSTAMESA points out th a t w e n ee dto p u blis h lis ts of o ur chu rc he s

. with rea l addresses and n ot jus tPost Off ice Bo x es. Co rrespo nd e n ts ?

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M.C.C.L.A.

home !

We do n o t have tim e to w o rr y a b outtriv ial theological points s uch ashow man y angels can sit on the h e ado f a pin when y o ung me n are se ll in gth e ir b odies o n S elma A v e nu e inH o ll y wo o d.We do no t have the Luxur y of de b ati n gwh et her a pers o n sh ou ld b e a d min-istered baptism by sprin k lin g o rim me rsi o n when y oung h o m o sex ua ltee nagers, boys and girls, ar efinding the mse lve s caugh t i n alo n e ly world with no reali s tic m o ralguidance.We canno t: be so flippant as t o g etup tight about howcommunion . is ad-ministered or wha t h y mns are sunga t worship services w h e n ol d hom o-se xual me n can gage how much lovethe y can obtain by de te rmi ning ho wthick their wallets are.We cannot afford the complace ncyinherent in achieving institutionismand re spe ctabil ity as a church whe nour brothers and sisters ar e b e ingfired from their jobs, thr o wn i ntojail, and bea t up in the s tre etsbecause of ~ he ir se xual pr o cl ivities

TiME?

We c a nn ot indu lge in th e l u x ur y ofse lf ri g h teo usness wh e n o ur he te ro -sex u al br ot her s and sisters ar ebound in sm all w o rlds of bigo t ry ;h a "e , pr e judi ce , and ign o rance, w henparen ts w o rry th e nselves sick byasking o v e r and o v e r, ' 'Wher e did w ego w ro ng ? " and y oun g h o mose x ua lslearn t o ha te t h e ms e lves , t h e irpar e n ts , a nd G o d "f o r makin g m eth is wa y !"

W e ha ve o nl y o n e c o mmi ssi o n f romo ur Lo rd to a c kn o wl e dg e H is L o ve

for e ach o f u s a nd t o pr o claim tha tLov e thr ou gh o ut the land.I f each of us w ill thr o w o u t hi s

o wn net of Chris ti an compassi o n t oour breth e rn, th o se i ndividualeffor t s will b e c o m b ine d i nt o o n emigh ty fo rc e , e man at ing f ro m th isfell o wship, dra w in g t h o s e p e rs onswho ar e Los r , to rme n ted, lonel y, an dfru st ra ted in to t h e a rm s o f the Lo rd.Soo n , th e wate rs o f l i fe sur ro un d in gthis f el lowshi p w ill b eco m e a sto rm yfro 'h o f s pi r it ual a ct ivity as ou rnumbers m u ltip ly a nd ou r individualand c o ng reg a tio nal e ffor ts to d oGod's wi11 increas e in ef fec tiv enes s .As Christian ho mo sexuals, we havethe unl imite d capac ity to le t theHoly Spi ri t dwe1 r and thrive in eachof us by encouraging a child-lik efai ': h in the boundless Love of Godandby devel o ping amature Christianphilosophy grounded in responsiblebrothe rl y l ove .

I f we c o nscious ly strive for sucha life style, each of us shal lsurely to u ch the face of God.

II A Se rm o n g iven at General'\'\ Co nfe re nce by Ho w ard Wells


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C o n gr a t u la t i o n s o n a j o b wc ll d o n e .I n a c o mmun i t y wi t h mu c h n ee d .

Mr. D ic k Mar t i nfo r me r l y [ r o m Ch i ca g o , I ll .

Co n g r a t ul a ti o n s o n t h e f in e wo r k t h a t i sha p p e n i n g i n M .C. C. a n d "I n Uni t y " .

So c k it t o t h e m. Th e wo r ld n ee d s th i s wo r k .

fr om: Th l' h c t e r o s e x ua l p ar t o f t h eVan Hec k e fa m i l y - La s Ve g as

Mr . & Mr s . E . D . Va n He ck eMr. V. G. Va n He c k e

eantn Iooo Inn98 0 417 811 26 2 V E NTU R A

BOUL E VAR D

NOR TH H OLLYWOO DCA liFom lA

:w hat is rt>Wo u ld a mas o ch i s t dr e ss e d in l e a th e rr eg al i a si ng in g in t he c hu r c h c h o iru p se t y ou r n e r v e s ? I f it wo ul d , yo uh a v e a l o n g wa y t o g o to g e t whe r ey ou r e al l y sh o ul d b e. Af t e r a l l ,r eg ar d l e ss o f a t ti r e , a b e l i e v e r i s

a be l ie v e r . Th e e s s e n c e o f M. C .C .is fo u n d e d o n t h i s p r in c i p l e . I the rd s a l l mem be rs o f t h e c o mmu ni t yt o t h e al t a r r a i d an d s a y s : " Yo uar e Min e . " - Ce r t ai n l y a memb e r oft h e l e a ~h e r s e t c a n b e li e v e i n hi sGo d j u s t a s s t r o ng l y as a n e l d e rl ywi d o w g r i ps h e r G od t o h e r b o s o m.Th u s, i f a d ra g qu e e n co me s f l i t ti n gd o vg I t h e a i sl e s o me S un da y yo u s h o ul dbe mu c h more t h a n c i rc u ms p e ct

y ou s ho ul d sa y t o y o ur s e - l f, ' 'W e lc o meBr ot h e r . " I t is t h e d ra g qu e e n, t h el e a t h er m emb e r, t h e b u t c h dy ke , t h et ra n s e x u al t ha t ma ke s u p p a r t of

: h e c o mmu n i t y t he y a r e al l membe rsan d sh o ul d b e war ml y we lc o me d.Th e co mmu ni t y, at l a r g~ , i s r e a ll ya p e rp l e x i ng t h in g . I t i s r i d d l e dwi - - hap a t h y , c oa r e d w i t h f ru s t ra t i o n,a n d c h ar g e d wi ' : h f e ar . Su r e l y itr e ac c s mo r e li k e a g r o up ' o f sh ee pth a n th e l i o n i t c a n be . Do no t . g etme wr on g ! I ' m no t k no c k i n g i t ! Ho wca n I k n o c k wh a t I a m p a r t o f, wh a tI he lp e d c r e a t e , wha t I am? Bu t, Imu s t c omme nt a n d c ri t i c i z e i f e ve rI ca n e x p e c t ch a n ge t o o c c ur .

" Go d Lo v e s Yo u ! Yo u a r e a s i mpo r t an tt o Hi m a s a s t r a ig h t p e rs o n i s !" i ft h e h o mo p h i l e c o mm un i t y wil l ta k et h a t t o h e a r t h o w s t r o ng i t w i llb ec o me . Le t ' s g e t r id o f t h e ap a t h y ,d il ut e t h e f r us t r a t io n a n d n eg at et h e f e a r. Le t 's d o it in o ur h e ar tsf ir st . . an e a s y st a r t is b y ac c ep t -i n g y o ur b r o th e r h o mop h i l e r e g a rd l e s so f w ha t s ub - c u l t u r a l ma s k h e we a r san d b ra nd i s h i n g a k i n d a n d l o v i n gh e ar t . A s mi l e i s e n o u g h . T h at ' swhat M. C. C . is a b o u t

Fr om an a r ti cl e b y Ric La c o ni ckThe Mi am i M CC Ad v a n c e

J e s u s , we ar e h e r e f o r c o mmun i o nwi th yo u.

Je s us .Je s u s , we a r e he r e i n t h e i mpe r -fe c t i o ns o f o u r s h a r e d a nd c o mm onp ri e st h o o d . We a r e h e r e i n t h ea mb ig ui t ie s of o ur s h a r e d a ndc o mmon r e s p o n s e to y o u, an d t h ef a i l u r e s we ha ve e x p e r i e n ce d i nd i s c ip l e s h i p.

J e s u s .Je su s , we wo u ld r a th e r b e s e l f i s hl yal o n e w it h y o u t ha n s ha r in g wi t ho u r b ro th e r s in yo ur li f e . We wo u l dpr e f e r t o d i c t a t e wh o may o r ma yn o t b e in th i s c i r c l e . We wou l dl ik e to c o m e h e r e ac c o rd in g t o o u ro w n w is h e s in s t e ad o f b e in g ob e d i e n tt o y o u a n d ' h~ ot h e rs .

Je s us .We ha ve a b u s e d o u r l i v e s a n d t h o s e

o f o t h e rs . We h a v e c o n t r i bu t e d t ot he br ea ki n g of o u r s o c i e t y an dt h e f r a g me n t in g of o u r w o rl d . Wh e n

we sm i l e , o ur h ea r t s a c h e . Wh e n wec r y , w e ar e a s h a me d fo r we do n o tu nd e r s t a nd ou r fe e l in g s. W e s t a ndc l o s e to o n e a no t h e r in t h is ci r c l ea n d i n li f e , y e t we do n otc o mp r e h e n d o n e a n ot h er o r o ur s e lv eso r y o u .

J e s u s .So we ha v e g a t h e r e d o nc e a g a in i nt h is c o mmu nit y. We a s k t ha t we ma yhe a r a n d r e c e iv e y o u r W ord .

J es u s.We a sk t ha t we may p ar t ic ip a te i nt h e o u t w ar d a nd v is ib l e a n d a l soi n t h e i nwa r d a n d s p i r i t ua l g ra c e ,o f co mmu ni o n wi t h y o u .

J e s u s .

11


8/8

8)0 PLACIDLY AMID THE NOISE &:HASTE, &:REMEMBER WHAT PEACE THERE MAYBE

.. IN SILENCE. AS FAR AS POSSIBLE WITHOUTsurrender be on good terms with aUpersons. Speak your t rothquietly & : clearly;and listen to others , even the dull & ignorant;they too have their story. ~ Avoid loud & aggressive persons,they are vexations to the spiri t. If you compare yourself wi thothers, you may become vain & bitter; for always there will begreater & lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievementsas well as your plans. ~ Keep interested in your own career,however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunesof time. Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the worldis full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue thereis;many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is f ull

of heroism. ~ Be yourself. Especial ly, do not feign affect ion.Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity & .disenchantment it is perennial as the grass. ~ Take kindly thecounsel of the years,gracefully surrendering the things of youth.Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.But do not dis tress yoursel f wi th imaginings. Many fears areborn of fatigue & loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, begentle with yourself. ~ You are a child of the universe , no les s

than the trees&:

the stars;you have a right to be here. Andwhether or not it is dear to you, no doubt the universe is un-folding as i t sho uld. ~ Therefore be at peace with God,whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors &aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with yoursoul . ~ With all its sham, drudgery & broken dreams, it issti ll a beautifUl world. Becareful . Strive to be happy. ~

j,

~

UNIVERSAL FEL LOW SHIP OF METROPOLITAN COMMUNITY CHU RCHES

REV. TROY D. PERRY FOUNDER

1970 - in unity - october

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