Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan
Minister’s Column
 
It was the end of the Christmas parade in downtown Mount Pleasant: the vehicles and floats, firetrucks and sirens, the churches and the community groups had all finished parading by. The crowd was going home. In the cold winter air and the rapidly emptying downtown, my wife and I noticed a new shop on Broadway that I hadn’t seen before, with a sign saying they were now open for business. The name of the store was catchy: Life Unplugged. Even better was the provocative question painted on the storefront window: What if you recharged yourself as much as you recharge your phone?
 
The owners of the business were charming, a young couple both recently graduated from Central Michigan University. And the items they were selling were delightful: mostly T-shirts with inventive designs, all variations on the theme of unplugging. You can see them for yourself on their website: https://www.lifeunplugged.com/collections.
 
I thought of this today because I saw that there is a day this week called the Global Day of Unplugging. On their website, they advocate for unplugging from our devices to improve human connections, enjoy better sleep, and have more time to accomplish goals. I know that I sometimes spend too much time on my phone, and that a walk in the woods is more refreshing than watching videos on Facebook or YouTube. Maybe this is true for you as well. A deliberate holiday from electronic devices seems like a healthy idea--I have heard this called a “social media Sabbath.” Here is what the organizers of the Global Day of Unplugging suggest for March 3-4:

• Make a plan with a friend or two ahead of time.
• Turn off smartphones, computers, personal assistants, gaming systems, and televisions.
• Start your day by singing in the shower.
• Read the newspaper.
• Meet a friend for breakfast.
• Go to the library and use the Dewy Decimal System.
• Have a conversation uninterrupted by a notification.
• Leave your mobile tech at home. 

 
https://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/international/global-day-of-unplugging-sundown-to-sundown-march-3-4
 
May we all find ways to balance the benefits that come with being electronically connected, versus the need to put down our devices and take a break.
 
PRAYER:
God, we hear your voice in the call of the bird and the sound of the river. We feel your presence in our quiet moments of rest. May we cultivate moments of serenity and awareness. May we be fully alive to each moment.
Blessed be.
 
Rev. Drew Frantz
February 27, 2024

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan
Minister’s Column

Last week was an unusual coincidence where Valentine’s Day and Ash Wednesday fell on the same day. Here’s what a clever poet said in a social media post:

These two holidays, religious and secular, have meanings that seem opposite at first but may have something in common. Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent, the season where Christians often forego something they enjoy for 40 days. This practice is a way for the Christian to connect with the story of Jesus, who spent 40 days fasting and praying in the desert. The ashes on the forehead represent a connection with death and grief as Christians reflect on the eventual death of Jesus.
 
This brings me to Valentine’s Day. My colleague in ministry wrote this on her Facebook page: “It's a made up holiday...like most...But I think this life is too full of heartbreak to pass up any opportunity to celebrate and center Love.” And then she went on to express love—agape love—to all, to everyone on the whole internet. In popular culture Valentine’s Day seems to represent happiness, pleasure, and delight: the surface emotions of romantic love. But love has deeper meanings. Agape love, the love of all people unconditionally, is worth invoking on Valentine’s Day.
 
Finally, I see a connection between Lent and Valentine’s Day in the idea of sacrifice. Lent is all about giving up something you desire for a higher spiritual purpose: connection with the divine. Romantic love, celebrated on Valentine’s Day, has an element of sacrifice as well. When people get married they often talk about sacrificing for their partner in times of need. Love is deeper than red paper hearts and a box of chocolates. Commitment to a person you love (romantic), and commitment to the idea of loving all people (agape), both involve a spiritual discipline. As Unitarian Universalists, we say that Love is at the center of our faith. What would it look like for UU’s to wear a visible mark of our commitment to Love, the way Christians smudge ashes on their foreheads?
 
PRAYER:
May the season of Lent bring meaning and a closer connection to Jesus to all who practice this spiritual discipline.
May Love bless all of us: the love of a partner if we want to have one; the love of family and friends; self-love above all; and transcendent divine love,  as abundant and unending as sunshine.
Amen.
 
Rev. Drew Frantz
February 20, 2024

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan
Minister’s Column
 
I’m writing this week’s column with a heavy heart because my mother passed away on Monday morning. She was 86 years old and had been suffering a long decline from Alzheimer’s disease. I’m very grateful that she died peacefully in her sleep.
 
Since her death I have had a swirl of emotions, including relief: my mom’s quality of life seemed very low for the past several years as she lost all language. The spark of her true self was buried deep within her, but less and less visible from the surface. During my visits to Wisconsin where she lived, I would try to connect with her non-verbally through singing and prayer. Her death has released a wave of sadness that I have been anticipating for all these years of her illness. And the chance to remember her by connecting with my kids and my siblings, and by writing her obituary earlier today, has brought joy as well. I am re-connecting to the memories of my mother in her prime as a loving mom and grandmother; as a marriage and family therapist; as a deeply spiritual lay-leader in her church; as a life-long peace activist and more.
 
And I had a new thought today that surprised me: a sense of new maturity in myself, of growing up or reaching a milestone in life due to the first loss of one of my parents. I’m still sitting with that thought.
 
I’m aware that this moment comes when so many members of our congregation have just completed four weeks of reading and discussing Being Mortal by Atul Gawande. Questions of aging and death are all too often seen as taboo in our culture, and I’m glad that so many of you engaged with that book. We would all benefit from doing the important and difficult work of confronting the mortality of our loved ones and of ourselves. Truly life is finite and precious, and we should remember to embrace every day as a gift.
 
This week I am traveling to Wisconsin for three days to make funeral arrangements and to offer comfort and love to my stepfather who just lost his wife. I will be back for the Sunday service on February 18. Next month, however, I will be gone for the weekend of March 16-17 when we hold the memorial service for my mother. I welcome your prayers and good wishes.
 
PRAYER:
Mother Father God, be present in your love and mercy and look on my family with love and compassion. May the spirit of Anne Marie Finnell Frantz-Cook, free now from the confines of an earthly body, be present in light and love. May she live on in the memory of those who love her.
 
May love and mercy fall upon every human everywhere today who is grieving the loss of a loved one. This experience makes us human: the sadness, the remembered joy, the consciousness of mortality, the mystery of death. May we grapple with these things as best we can, and may we support one another when grief and death appear in our lives.
 
May Love bless us all. Amen.
 
Rev. Drew Frantz
February 13, 2024

​Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan
Minister’s Column
 
Last weekend I traveled to Texas with my wife for a family celebration: my brother-in-law Don and his wife Pam were celebrating 50 years of marriage. Twenty-nine of us gathered for the party, traveling from Michigan, Ohio, California, Florida and Texas. Most of the people were new to me—I felt like I gained three new brothers and three new sisters. It was also my first visit to Texas, so I experienced new foods, a different culture, new geography and warmer weather.
 
A highlight of the trip was a visit to Enchanted Rock. A friend from Ohio had told me about this place and said that it was a must-see. In this part of Texas, the hill country near Fredericksburg, pine trees and cacti grow in the arid landscape. Among the cattle ranches, Enchanted Rock rises as a hill of stone, unique in the surrounding landscape. Climbing to the summit with my new-found family in the bright sunshine, it felt a lot like the rocky hills that I’m used to climbing in Maine. The difference was that the pools of water near the summit are populated with local vegetation such as cacti--in Maine the same high-altitude islands of vegetation would include wild blueberries. As my friend in Ohio had told me, the place had a sacred feel. Being grounded on the solid rock and being high above the parking lot where we started, I felt alive and connected.
 
Descending from the hike, we went back to the house for a feast of beef enchiladas, pico de gallo, and guacamole—followed by Girl Scout cookies that my grand-niece was selling to everyone there. May God bless Don and Pam, their long-lasting union, and their family and friends.
 
PRAYER:
Spirit of the earth, visible at Enchanted Rock, ground us and remind us that we are connected and safe.
Spirit of the sky, boundless above us, bless us with freedom and limitless possibility.
May all families and all couples be blessed. May all cultures and all peoples be blessed. May everyone celebrate love, wherever it may be found.
Amen.
 
Rev. Drew Frantz
February 6, 2024