Domes - Our Monthly Newsletter
I’m writing this letter to introduce you to me and to the church on the
corner of Dunbar Hill Road and Benham street. I’ve been the pastor here since
February, 1994. This church started in the late 1940’s with a group of people
from the neighborhood that got together to worship each Sunday at the Fire
House. In a few years, they bought the land across the street, which was a farm
then, and the church building was completed in 1957. This church is part of the
protestant denomination called The United Church of Christ. You can find out
more about this denomination on the internet at www.ucc.org.
I have a daughter who is 14, Maria, from a previous marriage. She’s a
freshman at Hamden High School. My second daughter is 5 months (as of September
28, 2007). and her name is Annie. My wife Janet teaches first grade at Dunbar
Hill Elementary School, just down the hill from the church.
Dunbar UCC (United Church of Christ) started as a community church. Most of
the first members lived a short distance away, and some walked. But wherever
you live, I’m inviting you to join us for Saturday evening (5:00pm, beginning
October 6th, 2007) or Sunday morning worship service (10:00am, all year). This
church is here to serve the community. If you already attend a church, that’s
great. I hope you go regularly. But if church isn’t part of your life now,
then consider coming to Dunbar. It doesn’t matter where you worshipped in the
past. We have members who were Baptist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Roman
Catholic. I was raised Greek Orthodox. Or if you never attended a church,
fine. This is a good time to start, or to return.
We just became an Open and Affirming congregation. That means that we honor
the image of God in every person, regardless of race, color, age, ability, or
sexual orientation. We hope that each person who enters our church feels
welcomed. My work as pastor is to keep the focus always on Jesus Christ. This
is his church and his life, teaching, and continuing spirit are what we
proclaim, and what guides us. Our goal is to practice the love he lived and
taught. This is a love with no limits or conditions. There’s nothing
mysterious about the spiritual work we do here. It’s simply the practice,
moment by moment, day by day, of showing compassion to all: friends, family,
strangers, and even our enemies. This is the lesson we were put on this earth
to learn. It’s so easy to hate, or to be indifferent to other’s suffering, but
to love each person, every animal, plant and stone -- every part of creation --
moment by moment and day by day -- is a practice that requires all of the
spiritual resources we have. This is our life’s work.
So consider joining us for an hour or 45 minutes each week. Think of all
the garbage we swallow every day in our media-saturated lives. The TV and radio
programming that’s driven by advertising to sell us so many things that we don’t
need. And we are so exposed to violence and anger and disrespectful ways that
people talk to and treat each other. Look at the time wasted on the computer
and at shopping malls. And here, on the corner of Dunbar Hill Road and Benham
Street, is a place to leave this mad world, for 45 minutes to an hour, and
listen to the ancient wisdom of the Hebrew Scriptures, and the New Testament.
Maybe some of that wisdom will sink in. Maybe we still can learn to walk in
“the valley of the shadow of death,” and fear no evil, knowing that God goes
with us everywhere. Maybe we can consider the prophet Micah’s words about “what
the Lord requires of us” and we can be amazed or shocked that the answer is so
simple: “to love kindness, to seek justice, and to walk humbly with God.” Or
maybe Jesus’ words will move us to “not worry about tomorrow,” but to direct our
attention to each day’s problems, and leave it at that, leaving the rest in
God’s hands.
Call me if you’d like to discuss any of this in more detail. My telephone
number is 287-8106.
Sincerely,
George Manukas, pastor