Unitics is for all those fun-loving, interested and interesting people who like to do things with other fun-loving interested and interesting people. Is it a singles group? No. Is it a seniors group? No. Are children welcome at the activities? Yes. How do I join? Send your email address to Unitics@q.com or phone 292.6579. Please fill out the form that I send so I can see what the are. No email? Phone me at 292.6579 and pick up a form in the bookstore.

Every week I send a schedule of what is happening by email, the activities are also listed on the calendar, the Sunday bulletin and the web-site (unitytucson.com, click on latest news.) The ongoing activities are listed below. If you want to add a new activity, call me at 292.6579.

Our on-going schedule for May and June is as follows (subject to change):
Beginning Bridge: 1st and 3rd Sundays, 12:30 pm,Harmony Hall.
Potluck and Program: 2nd Sunday, 12:30 pm, Harmony Hall, May 11th & June 8th, Spiritual Cinama Movies.
Abraham-Hicks Discussion Group: 4th Sunday 12:30 pm Annex Room 2.
Yoga, Every Tuesday: 9:00 am, Annex Room 3.
Northwest Dinner and Dessert: May 6th, June 17th, 7:00 pm.*
East Side Dinner: Tuesday, May 6th, 6:00 pm.*
Fun and Games: One Tuesday a month, time and location to be announced.
Crafts: First Wednesday of the Month, Annex Room 1.
Lunch and Movie: Every Wednesday, time and location to be announced in the Sunday Bulletin, by email or on the website.
Drumming and Chanting: 2nd and 4th Thursdays 6:30 pm Ramada.
Yoga: Every Thursday 6:00 pm, Annex Room 3.
First Friday Dinner: May 2nd, Vivace, 4310 N Campbell,5:30 pm. June 6th, to be announced.
Dancing at Eddies: Fridays and Saturdays, 8510 E Broadway, 7:30 pm.
EFT: 3rd Saturday at 10:00 am, Annex Room 3. May 24th (changed) and June 21st. $10 donation.
Dancing With Peggy: Sundays, 6:30 pm, Lariat in Catalina; Tuesdays, 7:30 pm, Maverick on Tanque Verde; Thursdays, 7:00 pm, Tucson Swing and Dance Club on Bellevue. Please call Peggy, 203.4141 for more information.
Bears in the Chairs: See article on page 3.
Possibilities: Trip to Boyce Thompson Arboretum, day camping up the mountain, and any suggestions that fun-loving, interested and interesting people can make.

*See Sunday Bulletin, Unitics@q.com or 292.6579
vrepresents adventures at Unity of Tucson
zrepresents Tucson area adventures

The Board of Directors had their Spring Training event on March 15, 2008, in the Annex. We do this every year to allow the Board to step back and look at where we have been and where we want to go. Our Agenda included, a) list of past year accomplishments, b) facilities tour, c) AED training/emergency policies and procedures, d) leadership training ideas, and e) update of the organizational chart.

The accomplishments we noted included but were not limited to classes in Unity principles held on a consistent basis, ongoing Unitics activities, SOFIA activities, Prayer Chaplains program, expanded Health Ministry offerings, increased use of the Annex, the entry “welcome” rock and sculpture decorations, site signage upgrade, Peace Festival, Team Unity, the Labyrinth use, and a new copy/fax/scanner for the office. Also of note is the school appears to be on track again and is in the black. Of course many people are responsible for whatever success we achieve and if I tried to list them I would unintentionally leave someone out and so I will not attempt it.

The facilities tour is conducted to familiarize Board members where power and water controls are in case of emergency, where things are stored, etc. It is a “back of house” tour that new Board members especially appreciate. The AED and emergency training is self-explanatory, e.g. how to use the AED machine, what procedures are used in case of fire, medical emergency, etc. The organizational chart is probably of no particular interest but is available from the CEO (Larry). We may even get it on the church’s web site.

The items that generated considerable interest was that of “Leadership Training.” We have long felt that leadership in the congregation needs to be supported with offering specific programs. Indeed the programs could be a source of leaders in the congregation that are needed to keep us progressive and growing. Some thoughts to date include: looking into community resources such as the Free University, sponsoring a Toastmasters club, a course in non-Violent Communication, and exploring self-awareness and the mind-body connection similar to the course Board member Gary Gottlieb offered in the past. We have the hope that these “courses” would translate into people’s everyday lives and assist them in their work as well as prepare them for leadership roles in whatever they do. We then agreed the better title for this endeavor, rather than Leadership Training, would be “Life Skills and Spirituality.”

If this sounds interesting to you, we are eager to hear from you and any thoughts you may have. Gary has agreed to be the Board liaison for this effort so please contact him at ggottlieb04@comcast.net or any Board member or the ministers with your thoughts.

Sharing memories of pets was part of the Celebrating Your Pet’s Life event held on Sunday, April 13th. Larry Swartz opened the service with a special prayer for pets now departed from this physical realm. Following, talks and discussions were held about the importance of pets in our lives, the depth of grief that can be felt with their passing, and how to deal with that grief. Some aspects of coping are: allowing the grief process to unfold, honoring feelings, and commemorating your pet’s life. Many ideas for these aspects were brought forth and will be detailed in a future article for Expanding Horizons.

The service was closed with another prayer for pets and a prayer for pet guardians thanking God for our pets and helping us to let go and move forward in life. Although the group in attendance was small, this turned out well as it allowed an opportunity for everyone to share feelings and ideas. The Pet Ministry plans to host this wonderful and special service twice a year, with the next date to be in the fall.

Initially a sect of Judaism, Christianity first organized itself in Jerusalem. However, although Jewish Christianity was dominant at first, within 20 years it had moved out into the Gentile (non-Jewish) world.” (Encyclopedia of New Religions)

The Early Christians were not one group with one set of beliefs but several groups with many different beliefs. “We know of Christian groups taking stands on Judaism that were at polar ends of the spectrum, some groups insisting that the Jewish Law was to be followed for salvation and others insisting that the Jewish Law could not be followed if one wanted salvation. All of these groups claimed to be representing the view of Jesus himself.” (Lost Christianities)

One example is the Ebionites. What is known about the Ebionite movement is that it was an early Jewish Christian sect. There are some who would distinguish them from the other Jewish Christian groups. There are others who say the term Ebionite was the common term used before the term “Christian” was popularized and is not used for a single group but rather for any group who was adhering to Jesus’ teachings as well as Jewish Law. Some link their origin with the time of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and would say that prior to that they were a part of the Jerusalem church led by Peter and Jesus’ brother James. Others would say they were always faithful to the authentic teachings of Jesus but that it was the Paulinists or the followers of the Apostle Paul who were responsible for marginalizing them. One thing most agree upon is that the Ebionites did not accept any of the writings of Paul and for them Paul was the heretic who led many people astray from the true teachings of Jesus.

Much of what has been written about the Ebionites is found in the writings of the Catholic Church Fathers. In those writings the Ebionites are described as heretical Judaizers, in other words, though they accepted the teachings of Jesus, they continued to follow Mosaic Law. They believed that Jesus was a Jewish Messiah who was sent to the Jewish people in fulfillment of the Jewish Scriptures. They believed Jesus was the son of God, not because of his divine nature or virgin birth, but because he was a human being like they were, only he was one who kept God’s law perfectly. One Church Father criticized the Ebionites, saying that they departed from some traditional Jewish principles and that they practiced excessive ritual bathing as well as having accepted an angelology which had the Christ as a great archangel which was incarnated in Jesus.

Some scholars say that the Ebionites survived much longer than the Roman Catholic Church writings would indicate and to support this view they include some 11thcentury references to surviving Ebionite communities in northwestern Arabia as well as those of a 12th century Muslim historian who wrote about Jewish Christians living in Medina and Hejaz. Some have even gone so far as to suggest that the Islamic view of Jesus might be due to the influence of the Ebionites on the early Muslims.

According to some, the mainstream Jewish view of the Ebionites is that they were Jewish heretics because they refused to see Jesus as a failed Messiah claimant and also they wanted to include their gospel into the Hebrew Bible. (To be continued.)