Community United Church of Christ is an open and affirming church that now permits serving alcoholic beverages and rents its Hayden Hall for weddings and receptions.
You are invited to call about having your wedding event at Community UCC. Call 559.435.2690. We are centrally located at 5550 N. Fresno St., Fresno, CA 93710.
Living the Question returns on Nov. 5 for five weeks, at 9:15 a.m. in the CUCC Conference Room.
Session 1: Islam 101 — In Which We Tell You Some of What You Need to Know About Islam.
In this session, we look the basic tenants of Islam. We live in an era in which much of what passes as information about Islam is weed-like disinformation rooted in stereotype and watered by fear.
We decided to weed out the tares of ignorance by doing what, for Christians, apparently is radical: We spoke to some actual Muslims and to Christian scholars whose intellectual garden-sheds are filled with the tools of fact-based knowledge. The product of these conversations is a harvest of reliable information about what your Muslim neighbors and coworkers believe and about how they live out their faith.
Session 2: “Misconceptions about Islam — In Which We Help You Adjust Your Malarky Filter.”
Again, we took the radical step of getting to know actual Muslims, and in our conversations, we asked them to tell us about how American public discourse tends to misrepresent Islam. We are confident that you will like the people you meet as you join in this conversation.
Session 3: “Islam in America — In Which We Introduce You to People Who Love America and Pray Toward Mecca.”
Chief among the popular anti-Muslim stereotypes is the idea that Muslims are plotting to overthrow American society. In fact, most Muslims love the United States. This is true of Muslims living in countries where Islam is the predominant religion, and it is especially is true in the United States, where Muslims, as a demographic, are among the most patriotic American citizens.
Session 4: “Making Connections, Part 1 — We asked Non-Muslims and Muslims to talk to us about building relationships across the lines of faith, and while the answers were compatible-and even complementary-it was interesting to observe the ways in which Muslims and Christians spoke differently about interfaith cooperation. Christians tended to take an intellectual approach starting with the mind; Muslims were more likely to approach the issue relationally, starting with the heart.
Session 5: “Making Connections, Part 2: Continued — The Participant Reader was written by Rev. Ben Daniel, author of The Search for Truth about Islam: A Christian Pastor Separates Fact from Fiction.
The Jesus Fatwah was conceived and produced by Rev. David Felten and Rev. Jeff Procter-Murphy, authors and co-creators of Living the Questions.
The Women’s Book Discussion Group will read “Lunch with Buddha” by Roland Merullo. Our first meeting to discuss this book will be at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 9, in the Conference Room.
Heartbreaking in places, hilarious in others, “Lunch with Buddha” takes its readers on a quintessentially American road trip across the Northwest. That outer journey, complete with good and bad meals, various outdoor adventures, and an amusing cast of quirky characters, mirrors a more interior journey — a quest for meaning in the hectic routine of modern life.
The reading schedule for “Lunch with Buddha” is as follows:
Please mark your personal and congregational calendars for our upcoming Interfaith Scholar Weekend on Jan. 19-21.
Interfaith Scholar Weekend will feature scholar Dr. Christiana Peppard, assistant professor of theology, science and ethics at Fordham University in New York.
Dr. Peppard’s scholarship focuses on global environmental ethics and religion and science in a pluralistic era. She is the author of “Just Water” (Orbis Books, 2014) and co-editor of “Just Sustainability: Technology, Ecology and Resource Extraction” (Orbis, 2015). Dr. Peppard is from Fresno, CA.
Dr. Peppard’s engagements during the weekend will be:
For more information, visit Interfaith Scholar website.
Join us for Journey into Advent, our annual deeper exploration into our faith as we enter the Advent season of our spiritual calendar.
In a period of great anxiety and massive disruption, what is our role as communities of faith? What do we have to offer that our hurting world needs?
This year’s featured speaker will be Nicole Lamarche, a minister in the United Church of Christ and a spiritual entrepreneur. She is pastor and founder of Silicon Valley Progressive Faith Community, a congregation of progressive Christians, agnostics, spiritual independents and other people of conscience.
Nicole is a clergy leader with PACT, a PICO affiliate and has been a part of the work to improve community and police relations with accountability and oversight as part of the Black Lives Matter Movement, and is currently involved in the Solidarity Network, supporting local community members facing deportation.
Nicole has appeared on CBS’s The Early Show, CNN’s Larry King Live and has been a featured writer and speaker on matters of faith, life and politics. As a spiritual leader, she is committed to experimentation and fresh expressions of faith community for this time.
Schedule of Events
| 7-9 p.m. Friday, Nov. 17 — We will gather for inspiration and visioning as we explore what it means to be an innovative church in a time such as this. (dessert & coffee will be served) | Hayden Hall |
| 8-11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 18 — Workshop on being a provocative church, channeling righteous indignation and building a just world for all. (breakfast from 8-9 a.m. will be served in Hayden Hall) | Sanctuary |
Cost is $25 per person for this event. Full and partial scholarships available upon request. Or if you are able, please fund a scholarship.
For more information, call CUCC at 559.435.2690.
Supporters of CUCC had a wonderful lunch and tour of Fresno’s little known wonder of the world. From left to right (above photo): Sib White, Eileen White, Tim Jones, Bonita Earl, Danielle Jones, Ruth Reynolds, John Donaldson, Laurie Tidyman-Jones, Lynn Samuelian, and Ruben Fernandez.
Let’s help Boone Watkins and Al Evans raises funds to help people in the local area and around the world who suffer from hunger. Please take part in the walk on Oct. 15, or if you can’t walk, consider sponsoring a walker.
Boone and Al have envelopes for walkers. Boone Watkins participates every year and would welcome sponsors. This event is coming soon so get ready to walk to end hunger.
Memorial United Methodist 1726 Pollasky Ave.,
Sunday, Oct. 15
Registration at 1:30 p.m.
Walk at 2:30 p.m.
On Sunday, Nov. 5, during our All Saint’s Day/Day of the Dead Worship Service, we will recognize all of our loved ones who have passed.
During this sacred time, you are invited to offer an item that represents someone who has passed and place it on a special table.
If you would like someone’s name to be lifted up during this service please call Marilyn at 559-435-2690, or send an email to office@communityucc.com. The deadline for names to be contributed is Oct. 29.
Community UCC Fresno 
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