U2, Social Activism and Human Rights

Sunday April 13 Class Barb Hauck-Mah Teacher Attendance 4 Junior High group

We listened to the U2 Best of CD ( early years 1980-1990) as we cleaned up from another successful pancake breakfast.

We shared what we knew about U2 as musicians who choose to write music with political and religious messages. The Stanley group was split on whether they liked U2 music or if it was too old school for their tastes. But there was agreement that U2 was doing a good thing by using their popularity to advance human rights projects like amnesty international, RED, and DATA (to reduce Debt, Aids, Trade imbalance and African poverty).

At the U2 3D concert, the COEXIST sign was prominently displayed and Bono wore a bandana emblazoned with it as he sang “Love and Peace”. COEXIST blends symbols of 3 world religions -Muslim, Jew, Christian-to encourage different faiths to embrace their similarities and work as ONE. As Bono sang during the U2 3D concert “Jesus, Jew, Mohammed, It’s true. All sons of Abraham”.

We had time to briefly talk about the lyrics to one of U2′s best known songs: Pride (In the name of love). The group saw the references to nonviolent protest and Martin Luther King Jr (“free at last, they took your life ,they could not take your pride”). Some of the lyrics allude to another black activist who chose violence over peaceful protest (” one man to overthrow”)–No one in the group had heard of Malcolm X before. I shared the little I knew.

For a link to the lyrics of this and other U2 songs, go to the group’s official website. http://www.u2.com
Their website includes a monthly calendar of their social activism projects.

What is U2′s involvement with the ONE organization? More about this in late April.

Have a great spring break week. No class April 20 and Mrs. Woodward will be teaching April 27.

Peace, Barb Hauck-Mah

U2 3D @LSC Field Trip

On Saturday evening, April 12th, a group of about 15 youths and adults from Stanley Church attended the “U2 in 3D” IMAX video at Liberty Science Center. The 2007 video features highlights from U2′s Vertigo tour to Agentina, Brazil, Chile, Australia, and Mexico. The tour theme was “It’s time for Human Rights”.

For me, the video was the ultimate rock concert experience. It was thought-provoking, energizing, inventive. Bono’s performance especially is not to be missed. I was also impressed by the genuine affection and respect each of the U2 band members had for one another.
The 83 minute concert video included Vertigo, New Year’s Day, Love & Peace, Miss Sarajevo, Pride (In the Name of Love), Where the Streets Have No Name, The Fly, Bullet the Blue Sky and Yahweh. I encourage others who attended the show to post their reactions to the U2 video.

Peace, Barb Hauck-Mah

Easter Sunday March 23

Thanks to Alex, Rebecca and the Junior High group for their help with Stanley’s Easter egg hunt. We hid more than 315 eggs around the church grounds. The group showed admirable restraint by hiding the eggs, vs. inhaling their candy contents. The younger kids had a great time finding the Easter eggs, especially the ones in more creative locations. The grounds were swept clear and we even have left over cartons and empty eggs for next year.

There will be Junior High church school on Sunday March 30, following the junior high’s musical performance. Mrs. Woodward will be leading the class. See you on April 13.

Peace and joy, Barb Hauck-Mah

Seder gathering at Stanley

On Thursday, March 20, the Christian Education Department sponsored a Passover Seder to precede our Maundy Thursday service. Children, parents, and adult volunteers from Christian Education prepared the traditional Seder Plate elements, Haroset (chopped apples and walnuts), Maror (bitter herbs), Karpas (greens) and salt water, Matzoh (unleavened bread) etc., for use in the service. During our prep time, we snacked on gefilte fish, matzoh ball soup, macaroons and chocolate covered matzoh. Sometimes it pays to volunteer! Reverend Shawn prepared a brief and meaningful Seder service that connected this traditional Exodus story to our Lenten journey. The children took turns reading aloud and explaining the elements of the Seder plate. The Junior High youth had studied Passover and made a Seder Plate with Barb Hauck-Mah, their church school teacher, so they already had a pretty good working knowledge to share with the adults. The service also included singing the African-American spiritual “Go Down, Moses,” which Reverend Shawn played on guitar. (written by LM)

Sunday March 16 recap The Seder Plate

Teacher Barb H-M Attendance 5

Our class met in the Stanley Church kitchen this week. After filling about 300 eggs for the Easter egg hunt next Sunday, we talked about the meaning of the six foods that comprise the Seder Plate for Passover. To the left is a photo of a filled plate. (Clockwise from the top)
Chazeret(romaine lettuce) symbolizes the bitterness of slavery the Jews suffered in Egypt.
Z’roa (a roasted lamb or chicken bone) symbolizes the Pesach sacrifice of a lamb in the Temple of Jerusalem. A beet can be substituted for vegetarians.
Haroset (fruit& nut mixture)has a pebbly texture symbolizing the mortar used by Israelite slaves to build Egyptian houses.
Maror (bitter herbs or the pungent horseradish condiment chrein) to taste the strong bitterness of suffering.
Karpas (green vegetable like celery stalks) is dipped into salt water and eaten at the start of the Seder to spark the 4 questions.
Beitzah (roasted egg) symbolizes both the festival sacrifice and the hope for a fresh start or rebirth.

For more information, and to see a Seder table laid out with matzoh and the Haggadah books, click on this link
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passover_Seder_Plate

Here’s the Ashkenazic Haroset recipe we made for the plate

Mix together 2 large apples (peeled, chopped fine), 1/2 cup walnuts (chopped fine) , 1/2 cup raisins, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 3 tablespoons Kosher grape juice (subbed for sweet red wine). It tasted okay but the cinnamon flavor was strong.

Next, Barb hid a piece of matzah in a napkin and the group had to look for it. This tradition is called Tzafun (Find and Eat the Afikoman ) This happens after the meal, but before the end of the Seder. Barb hid the afikoman in a tricky place, but it was found, with some hints. Finally, the group filmed their explanations of the Seder plate foods. They will try to shoot some video at the church Seder dinner this Thursday March 20.

March 23, Easter, there won’t be a class, but the group will help hide the Easter eggs during the service.

Have a blessed holiday, Barb Hauck-Mah

Sunday School March 9: Passover and Hametz

Teacher Barb Hauck-Mah Attendance: 1 Junior High and 3 Elementary kids

On Thursday evening March 20, the Junior High group will be hosting a Seder at Stanley, with a service led by Rev. Shawn. To prepare for this experience, we talked about the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt (Old Testament,Book 2). As I descrbed the ten plagues, each person spilled a drop of water(wine) from his or her cup onto a plate–one drop per plague. The drops symbolize sorrow and regret that any of God’s creatures had to be harmed for the Jewish people to become free. This is one of the rituals enacted as part of the Seder Haggadah.

Next, we talked about the significance of unleavened bread, or matzah, in the Passover celebration. There is a tradition of removing hametz (leavened dough products and their crumbs) from the house to prepare for Passover. “As we sweep the crumbs from the corners of our rooms, we brush away the outside hametz and the hametz or crummy thoughts within us” (From Rahel Muselah’s Why on this Night? A Passover Haggadah for Family Celebration, 2000). We then cleared out some inside crumminess by secretly writing down a few regretful thoughts or acts from the past year. We placed our folded up regrets into a pan and safely set it aflame.

Next Sunday, we will be discussing the Seder plate and other parts of the Seder service–whilst we fill Easter eggs for Stanley’s egg hunt on March 23.

Trinity video on YouTube

In fall 2007, the Stanley Church Junior high group shot and edited a short video explaining their understanding of the Trinity concept–God the father, son and holy spirit. The video is about 5 minutes long and features interview clips with Stanley church members as well as many members of the Junior high group. The background music on the opening is the amazing Stanley choir. Here’s the link to the stanley ucc channel and this video called “What is the Trinity”.

http://www.youtube.com/user/stanleyucc

This video is also featured on the Stanley Church website on a new media page. It’s the first of hopefully many entries under the heading of “Video Clips”.

 http://www.stanleychurch.org/media.htm

Christian Ed office unearthed

Thanks to all who helped start the clean up of the Christian Ed office the weekend of March 2. I hauled out a carful of bulk pickup stuff when I stopped in Sunday. Special thanks to Libby Lennox and all for sorting through stuff to pitch. For those of you who missed out, fear not. We moved boxes of craft supplies up to the supply room/costume room. That room will be a project for another time.

Working Together as the Body of Christ

Lesson 7 1+1+1+1 Adds Up ”But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior member…If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it” (Corinthians 12:24b, 26)
Each person is just as important as another, and God has given us the gifts that we need to work together as the body of Christ.

In My Own Backyard

Lesson 6 In My Own Backyard “But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works’. Show me your faith apart from your works and I by my works will show you my faith’” (James 2:18)

The topic is mission and service opportunities in our community. We are called to bear the fruit of good works in the world.