September 2 ~ Franklin Abbott:  “Love’s Labor’s Lost”:  

Franklin Abbott has been a practicing psychotherapist in Atlanta for nearly forty years. He is also a poet, musician, community organizer and amateur oral historian. His connection to the Congregation and Old Stone Church goes back more than 40 years to early urban radical faery gatherings held in the sanctuary before First E became its steward. He has spoken at First E many times, performed music and poetry there, and coordinated events and memorials. He and First E founding minister Lanier Clance were close friends and co-hosted an ecclectic existential radio program on WRFG for over five years in the mid ’80’s. His current project is a double CD of 44 original poems and 14 original songs titled Don’t Go Back to Sleep. He will be performing some of the songs with Ken Gregory and Vlamir Abbud at the Ponce Library on Wednesday 9/12 at 7:30. The event is free and open to all. He will also facilitate another Circle of Healing at the Congregation on the Fall Equinox on Sunday, 9/23 from 3:00-4:30.

Facilitator – Dr. Pauline Rose Clance
Musician – Bill Chelton

Marti Keller: Life Lessons from Middle School

Rev. Marti Keller will be the featured speaker at First E’s Celebration of Life this Sunday, presenting on “Life Lessons from Middle School”. Back to school comes early here, for many kids as early as August 1 this year, inspiring nostalgia for that very first day ever, with new shoes and crayon boxes. Or perhaps dread, most especially for what school can feel like at 12 or 13. “Eighth Grade,” a summer critical hit movie, took on one girl’s honest experiences and what they taught her. What were yours and how do they continue to inform your life in these times?

Rev. Marti Keller graduated from David Starr Jordan Junior High in Palo Alto, California, and went on to degrees in journalism and theology. This is her 20th year as a Unitarian Universalist parish and social justice minister.

She is the consulting minister for the UU Fellowship of Auburn, Alabama and the minister with the Unitarian Universalist Women’s Federation for whom she carries the gender equity and justice portfolio.

Marti is also a published poet and creative non fiction author, and the project director for Decatur Haiku, a year of focus on this Japanese micro verse form.

Facilitator- Robert Stewart
Musician- Jez Graham

Social Period before and after the service – come have Pastries & Coffee with Friends.

My Word is My Creation Power

Mona Reeves will speak at the First Existentialist Congregation’s Celebration of Life this Sunday on “My Word is My Creation Power”.

Due to the many spirit-filled connections she has at First E, Mona claims First E as one of her spiritual homes. For instance, she participated in the year long anti-racist and multicultural pilot curriculum entitled “Building The World We Dream About” (BTTWDA), a joint effort between First E and Universalist Unitarian Church of Atlanta (UUCA).

Mona Reeves is currently being developed in the Landmark
Introduction Leaders Program. She believes that people engaging with each other across communities is the key to creating a world that works for everyone.

Mona studied at California State at Dominquez Hills, and Tuskegee Universitie where she earned a Mechanical Engineering degree in 1990 and worked in that field for several years.

She is also a professional Artist Model at Universities and various Art Centers and and enjoys singing jazz standards at open mics around town, and is a New Thought Examiner. Check her out on-line at “Internet Fabulous TV”, and “Tune Into Connections” on MOSA Radio Network.

Facilitator: Ted Pettus Musician/Accompanist: Alan Dynin

Social Period before and after the service – come have Pastries & Coffee with Friends.

Gandhi, Present Day and Existentialist Reflections

Sanjay Lal’s full title, for his presentation at First E’s Celebration of Life this Sunday, is “Gandhi, our Present Day Society, and some Existentialist Reflections”.

Sanjay Lal is a long time UU and he, his wife Bhawna, and son Shrey have been members of 1st E since 2011. He is a senior lecturer of philosophy at Clayton State University in Morrow. He is currently working on a book (under contract with Rowman & Littlefield publishers) on Gandhi’s political thought. His presentation today is largely based on this work.

Facilitator- Jan Lister

Musician- Kathy McGuire

Social Period before and after the service – come have Pastries & Coffee with Friends.

On Being Human

Rev. Mitchiner will be our speaker tor Sunday’s Celebration of Life at the First E Sanctuary.

Rev. Marsha Mitchiner grew up in middle Georgia and was an active member of her church. In her teen years, she
became disillusioned with organized religion but felt a need to find a community of individuals seeking answers without
dogma. She found her spiritual home when she came to First E in 1980 and joined Rev. Lanier Clance’s ministerial training
program.

“My spiritual life began as a Christian in middle Georgia . During my teen years I began to question the concept of “one truth”. Through personal exploration and with three years of guided study by Rev. R. Lanier Clance, I have come to believe that there are many paths to truth, each valid to the believer. Our journey through life is a unique, subjective experience that is enhanced and supported as we share with others our authentic self. It is a joy to serve the First Existentialist Congregation and the greater community.”

Facilitator: Carla DeRosa (more about her at https://rawxit.wordpress.com/about/)

Musician/Accompanist: Alan Dynin (more about him at http://alandynin.com/)

Social Period before and after the service – come have Pastries & Coffee with Friends.

Somebody Broke the Moon

This Sunday’s Celebration of Life will feature Rev. Maressa Pendermon, speaking about “Somebody Broke the Moon: When Normal Shifts”, a discussion about the reoccurrence of the loss of innocence throughout our lives and how we manage it.

Rev. Maressa Pendermon is an ordained minister at Unity Fellowship Church. She holds a J.D. from Florida College of
Law and a M.Div. from Candler School of Theology. She is a community strategist and a trained facilitator, and she works
with traditionally marginalized individuals and communities from a human rights perspective and through a womanist
theological lens.

Her spiritual care interests include providing care to individuals who have experienced trauma or violence, including spiritual violence; those who have a diagnosis of mental illness; seniors and other marginalized individuals.

As pastor of UFC, Greater Atlanta, Reverend Pendermon sees her primary role as modeling the tenets of the UFCM and ensuring that everyone who encounters the church understands that they are included in the “Everyone” when the Movement declares that “God is Love and Love is for Everyone! A native of Boston, Massachusetts where she was raised in public housing, Reverend Pendermon has been involved in ministry, advocacy and coalition building since her teen years. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Albany State University Albany, GA; a Juris Doctorate from the University of Florida, College of Law in Gainesville, FL; and a Master of Divinity from Candler School of Theology at Emory University. She is also certified as a master trainer and facilitator by the Interaction Institute for Social Change, Cambridge, MA.

Facilitator for the service is D. Patton White.

Musical accompanist is Aviva Vuvuzela of Aviva and the Flying Penguins (see http://www.avivaandtheflyingpenguins.com/)

Social Period before and after the service, come have Pastries & Coffee with Friends.

We Ain’t New at This

Reverend Angela Denise Davis, Speaker

Libby Ware- Facilitator, Charli Vogt- Music

Angela Denice Davis will speak at First E’s Celebration of Life about the continuing struggle for human freedom and thriving under oppressive forces and how each passing generation has the option to stand against injustice.

Angela Denise Davis, M.Div., M.S., CRC is a skilled workshop facilitator, public speaker, and preacher. Her preaching engagements have included a variety of settings from small congregations to large denominational gatherings. She speaks to educational institutions, communities of faith, conferences, and organizations on topics ranging from art as a means of spiritual reflection, spiritual activism, social justice, LGBT and religion, Black lesbian health and well-being, and disability awareness and advocacy. In addition, she will wax poetically on all things related to the ukulele if given the chance.

She is an effective trainer and conversation partner with a keen sense of how intersectionality affects conversational space. This capacity supported her creation and facilitation of the “Them, Us, & We” workshop, which presents opportunities for individuals and congregations to assess their position as voyeur, celebrant, or coalition builder.

She is a graduate of Clark Atlanta University where she earned a B.A. in Art. She also holds a master of divinity from Vanderbilt University Divinity School, and a master of science in rehabilitation counseling from Georgia State University.

She lives in East Point, Georgia, with her partner, Mary Anne Adams, and their canine dog, Kasi.

Social Period 10:30-11, come have Pastries & Coffee with Friends.

First E is building its new web-site & wants photos to show who we were, are, and plan to be. If you have pictures you’d would like to share, please send them to Edith Covington, office@firstexistentialist.org . If you have a large number of pix or big files, please put them on a thumb drive and drop them off by June 30.

Coming Events at First Existentialist

1. Art Opening on Saturday evening 6 to 8 PM, the Art of Filiz Durmaz, with music from George Trotter and Glenn Anthony Music. Free, Refreshments available
2. Next Sunday, July 8, the Celebration of Life will feature Reverend Kim Sorrells, “Practicing a Life of Love”. Please join us!
3. The Book & Bake Sale will be on Saturday, July 14, from 9:00–2:00. We need donations of all kinds of books, music, videos, puzzles, and baked goods.
4. On July 15 there will be a Circle of Healing at 1st E, 3-4:30, with musical and guided meditation, led by Franklin Abbott. Please see attached flyer.
5. Looking farther ahead to September, we’re planning a Congregational Retreat at The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center, Highlands, NC, September 7-9, Friday evening thru Sunday midday. Total cost is $199/ per person, based on double occupancy and includes all meals. Please put on your calendar.