Fiscal agent kills himself after funds loss

Steven E. Clapp, the head of Christian Community Inc., was found dead on May 15 in what has now been ruled a suicide. Clapp and his nonprofit were recently in the news following the disappearance of funds belonging to the Rev. Debra Haffner’s Religious Institute and other organizations for which Christian Community Inc. served as fiscal agent. (Journal Gazette – 5.18.12, uuworld.org – 3.5.12)

For more back story:
Reverend who lost money has criminal past (Journal Gazette – 4.1.12)
Question: Where’s our cash? (Journal Gazette – 3.18.12)

UUs continue push for marriage equality

Susan Caldwell, a member of the UU Church of Shreveport, La., is interviewed in a news segment about local reactions to President Obama’s endorsement of same-sex marriage. (KTBS – 5.13.12)

Three members of the Olympic UU Fellowship in Port Angeles, Wash., are mentioned in an article about protesters asking people not to sign a petition that would help overturn recent state legislation supporting same-sex marriage. (Peninsula Daily – 5.13.12)

About 100 people gathered for a rally at the All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church in Colorado Springs, Colo., to support a proposed civil union bill. (KRDO – 5.12.12)

UUs raise thousands for charity, call for corporate accountability, and more

The Rev. Scott Alexander, minister of the UU Fellowship of Vero Beach, Fla., has raised almost $50,000 on his cross-country bicycle journey, the Ride to Beat Hunger. To coincide with the final part of his journey, about 350 volunteers will prepare 100,000 meal packages for the hungry. (TCPalm – 5.16.12)

See also: Pedaling for hope (uuworld.org – 3.19.12)

The annual rummage sale at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Princeton, N.J., raised more than $24,000 that will benefit area nonprofits. (The Princeton Packet – 5.14.12)

The Unitarian Universalist Association is leading a group of Chevron Corp. shareholders who want the Securities and Exchange Commission to determine whether the company is violating disclosure obligations relating to an environmental case in Ecuador. (International Business Times – 5.14.12)

The Rev. Dr. Stanley Sears, minister of the UU Society of Auburn, N.Y., writes that Unitarian Universalism offers “real-world religion.“(Auburn Citizen – 5.12.12)

An immigrant who took refuge in the First Unitarian Church of Ottawa, Canada, for 18 months to avoid deportation has opened his own restaurant. (CBC.ca – 5.15.12)

The Rev. Jeff Liebmann, minister of the UU Fellowship of Midland, Mich., participated in an Occupy the Tri protest. (Midland Daily News – 5.13.12)

Environmental activist Tim DeChristopher speaks from prison

The San Jose Mercury News talks to Tim DeChristopher, the environmental activist and UU who submitted false bids on oil and gas leases, as he serves his two-year prison sentence and looks forward to a future career in ministry. (San Jose Mercury News – 5.4.12, uuworld.org – 3.7.11)

Preaching the gospel of ‘the Boss’

The Boston Globe explores the rock-inspired ministry of the Rev. Jeffrey B. Symynkywicz, minister of the First Parish Universalist Church in Stoughton, Mass., and author of The Gospel According to Bruce Springsteen. (Boston Globe – 5.7.12)

Read an excerpt from Symynkywicz’s book that appeared in the Winter 2008 issue of UU World.

UUs on same-sex marriage wins, losses

E.J. Graff, author of the Beacon Press book What Is Marriage For?, wrote about her great surprise and joy at President Obama’s announcement that he supports same-sex marriage. (The American Prospect – 5.9.12)

Though North Carolina voters ultimately passed Amendment One, which prohibits same-sex marriage in the state, UUs led a vocal opposition to the proposed amendment. (WSOC Charlotte – 5.7.12)

See also:
Local churches make final push for Amendment One (WCNC – 5.7.12)
Church leaders run the gamut when it comes to Amendment One (WNCT – 5.6.12)

A group of about 40 people gathered at an event sponsored by the North Kitsap UU Church in Poulsbo, Wash., to discuss strategies for supporting same-sex couples who want to marry. (Kitsap Sun – 5.8.12)

The UUA in the news, inspirational ministers, and more

The Unitarian Universalist Association wants to relocate its headquarters from its historic Beacon Hill location. (Boston.com – 5.9.12)

See also: Board OKs search for new Boston headquarters (uuworld.org – 4.30.12)

The UUA plans to put forth a proposal at the upcoming Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc.’s annual shareholder meeting that calls for the board to create a recycling strategy for its beverage bottles and cans and publicly report on its plan by September 1. (Rochester Democrat and Chronicle – 5.6.12)

Attendance at the First Parish Church in Taunton, Mass., has reportedly more than quadrupled since the arrival of its new minister, the Rev. Christana Wille McKnight, in April. (Taunton Daily Gazette – 5.6.12)

The Rev. Tim Kutzmark, minister of the UU Church of Reading, Mass., was part of a recent delegation that visited Afghanistan to study human rights and the state of U.S. and Afghan relations. (Wicked Local – 5.5.12)

The Rev. Fred Hammond, of the UU Congregation in Tuscaloosa, Ala., was one of six protesters handcuffed but not charged by police during a demonstration protesting the state’s stringent immigration law. (NECN – 5.3.12)

The Nashua Telegraph profiles the Rev. Steve Edington, who is retiring from his position as minister of the UU Church of Nashua after 24 years. (Nashua Telegraph – 5.6.12)

After a two-year search, the Unitarian Universalist Church in Meriden, Conn., has called the Rev. Dr. Jan Carlsson-Bull as its new minister. (Meriden Record-Journal – 5.9.12)

Members of the UU Church of Brunswick, Maine, which was destroyed in an electrical fire last June, are launching a capital campaign to raise $850,000 for a new building. (uuworld.org – 6.10.11, WCSH-TV – 5.4.12)

The UU Society in Stamford, Conn., reinstalled stained-glass windows of St. Peter and St. Paul, which were damaged during an organ tune-up two years ago. (Stamford Advocate – 5.8.12)

Zach Wahls on The Daily Show

Zach Wahls, every UU parent’s dream, was a guest on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, where he discussed his new book, My Two Moms, and a new project he is working on called Out to Dinner. The 20-year-old Iowa UU gained internet fame in 2011 after a video of his testimony before the Iowa House Judiciary Committee about the normalcy of his two-mom family went viral. (The Daily Show – 4.30.12)

Read an essay by Wahls from the Winter 2011 issue of UU World: How my testimony went viral (uuworld.org)

Green congregations, inside the lives of clergy, and more

A $500,000 high-tech solar array is being constructed at the First Unitarian Church of Cleveland, Ohio. (Plain Dealer – 4.26.12)

The UUs of Southern Delaware in Lewes, a UUA-certified Green Sanctuary, is a sustainability leader in its community. (Delmarva Now – 5.1.12)

The Rev. Richard Davis, of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in East Salem, Ore., is one of two longtime local ministers featured in an article about the lives of professional clergy. (Statesman Journal – 4.27.12)*

A banner opposing Amendment One, a constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage in North Carolina, was stolen from outside the UU Fellowship of Winston-Salem. Members of the congregation say they will replace the banner. (xwii12.com – 5.1.12, Winston-Salem Journal – 4.30.12)

Youth from the UU Church of Winchester, Mass., worked to beautify a park that was damaged during Tropical Storm Irene last August. (Brattleboro Reformer – 4.30.12)

A photo gallery of a Trayvon Martin prayer vigil features a photo of the Rev. Alison Eskildsen, of the UU Fellowship of Athens, Ga., leading a prayer in front of the Athens-Clarke County courthouse. (redandblack.com – 5.1.12)

The UU Congregation at Montclair, N.J., and the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship will jointly ordain Barnaby Feder. Feder wrote an article in the Fall 2010 issue of UU World on “The gift of playing God.” (NorthJersey.com – 4.27.12)

Correction 5.5.12: An earlier version of this post mistakenly said that a newspaper story reported that the Rev. Richard Davis is retiring. Davis is not retiring. We regret the error. Click here to return to the corrected paragraph.

Zach Wahls discusses new book with Letterman, Morgan

Zach Wahls is in the media spotlight once again. The 20-year-old Iowa UU who gained internet fame after
a video of his testimony before the Iowa House Judiciary Committee about the normalcy of his two-mom family went viral, recently appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman to talk about marriage equality, being raised by two mothers, and his new book My Two Moms. You can watch the 8-minute interview on YouTube or watch a shorter segment on CBS.com. Wahls also spoke with CNN’s Piers Morgan about his book and explains why there are bigger threats to worry about than his mothers being married. (YouTube, CBS.com – 4.23.12, CNN.com – 4.27.12)

The UU Society of Iowa City, Iowa, recently presented Wahls with its inaugural Courageous Love award. (Iowa City Press Citizen – 4.22.12)

Read an essay by Wahls from the Winter 2011 issue of UU World: How my testimony went viral (uuworld.org)

UU pushes for schoolyard gardens, a bike blessing, and more

The L.A. Times profiles Matthew Anthony Baron, a UU known as “Mud Baron,” who is a major advocate for schoolyard gardens. (L.A. Times – 4.19.12)

Members of the Unitarian Universalist Church of West Lafayette, Ind., find spirituality in nature. (Journal and Courier – 4.21.12)

UUA President the Rev. Peter Morales writes about returning to Phoenix for the Justice General Assembly two years after he was arrested while participating in the SB 1070 protests. (Huffington Post – 4.24.12)

The Rev. Lisa Bovee Kemper, of the Unitarian Universalists of Asheville, N.C., joined other UUs and members of the community in a march to oppose Amendment One, a constitutional amendment that would define marriage between one man and one woman as “the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized” in the state. (Asheville Citizen-Times – 4.21.12)

See also: Faith leaders in Asheville on both sides of Amendment One (Asheville Citizen-Times – 4.20.12)

The Rev. David McFarland, minister of the Allegheny UU Church in Pittsburgh, Pa., will perform a public blessing for bicycles and cyclists. (Pittsburgh Post Gazette – 4.21.12)

A group gathered for a workshop at the First UU Church of Berks County in Reading, Pa., to sculpt clay bones in support of the anti-genocide group One Million Bones. (Reading Eagle – 4.23.12)

A tree planted at the Tennessee Valley UU Church in Knoxville honors the victims of violent crimes, including the 2008 church shooting. (KnoxNews.com – 4.24.12)

See also: Tree planted for victims of Knoxville church shooting (WVLT – 4.23.12)

Members of the Unitarian Church of Staten Island, N.Y., celebrated Earth Day by pledging to take part in a 40-day environmental commitment. (SILive.com – 4.21.12)

Congressman presents UU minister with Capitol flag

U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern visited First Parish UU in Northborough, Mass., to honor the Rev. Judith Wright. At the event, McGovern presented Wright with the flag that flew over the Capitol in Washington, D.C., when she delivered the opening prayer at the U.S. House of Representatives as guest chaplain in September 2011. (The Daily Northborough – 4.3.12, The Community Advocate – 10.21.11)

Film explores life of Unitarian Titanic victim

Watch a news segment about Edward Austin Kent, a prominent architect and Unitarian who died aboard the Titanic. Two students have made a short film about Kent to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the Titanic sinking. (WGRZ-TV – 4.16.12)

See also: A Titanic victim’s architectural legacy (uuworld.org – 4.9.12)

Ministers in the news, a dairy barn church, and more

The Center for American Progress interviews the Rev. Darcy Baxter, a UU minister who counsels women on abortion and other reproductive justice issues. (Center for American Progress – 4.17.12)

The Rev. Sheldon Bennett is retiring as minister of United First Parish Church, Unitarian, in Quincy, Mass., which is also known as the Church of the Presidents. (The Patriot Ledger – 4.17.12)

The Unitarian Universalist Church of the North Hills in Pittsburgh, Pa., which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, is located in an old dairy barn. (Pittsburgh Post Gazette – 4.12.12)

Sara Lamb, of the First UU Society of Marietta, Ga., helped coordinate a hike to fight hunger that attracted more than 130 participants. (Parkersburg News – 4.16.12)

Volunteers from the Universalist Church of West Hartford, Conn., helped Athens, Pa., flood victims with yard work and cleanup. (Elmira Star-Gazette – 4.16.12)

Unitarian Universalist Church of Akron, Ohio, which was just designated a Green Sanctuary, hosted its third annual Green Festival and seventh annual Green Faire. (Akron Beacon Journal – 4.14.12)

The Rev. Dr. William F. Schulz, former director of Amnesty International USA and current executive director of the UU Service Committee, will give the keynote address at the UUA’s Mid-South District meeting. (The Huntsville Times – 4.19.12)

The Social Outreach Committee of the UU Congregation of Princeton, N.J., awarded the Crisis Ministry of Princeton and Trenton a $2,000 grant to buy locally grown produce for food pantries and free farmers markets. (Planet Princeton – 4.16.12)

UUs work to raise awareness of homelessness

Beginning in late April, the Woodinville, Wash., UU Church will host the homeless encampment Tent City 4 for 90 days. (CBS Local – 4.9.12)

Tawnya Safer reflects on participating in the Spectrum Sleep Out, where she and 44 others slept outside of the First UU Society of Burlington, Vt., to raise awareness of youth homelessness. (Burlington Free Press – 4.11.12)

Pet ministry, reflections on aging, and more

The Rev. Eliza Blanchard, a UU minister who specializes in pet ministry, led a workshop for animal caregivers. (Boston.com – 4.8.12)

The names of 3,700 people who died during Northern Ireland’s conflict were read aloud in the Dublin Unitarian Church on the 14th anniversary of the peace agreement. (Daily Herald – 4.6.12)

At 64, UU Morris Goodman reflects on aging. (Dearborn Press and Guide – 4.9.12)

The Bismarck-Mandan UU Fellowship in North Dakota is exploring the possibility of becoming a Green Sanctuary. (Bismarck Tribune – 4.6.12)

The Unitarian Church of Staten Island, N.Y., celebrated Easter and Passover in one service. (SILive.com – 4.7.12)

On Easter Sunday, the Rev. Lyn Cameron, of the UU Church of Idaho Falls, Idaho, urged her congregations to “listen to your own inner voice.” (LocalNews8.com – 4.8.12)

UU ministers throughout Massachusetts urged people to speak out against the state’s “three strikes” bill, which would eliminate parole for three-time violent felons. (Milford Daily News – 4.8.12)

An article about a local shooting rampage that left three people dead includes a photo of the Rev. Marlin Lavanhar, of All Souls Unitarian Church in Tulsa, Okla., participating in a remembrance service for the victims. (The Ledger – 4.8.12)

A Unitarian cemetery, founded in 1991 in Macomb, Ill., received a new sign. (McDonough Voice – 4.9.12)

Church wins dispute over $27,000 phone bill

The phone system at the Unitarian Church of Hinsdale, Ill., was hacked in November, resulting in a $27,000 phone bill for the congregation. The church disputed the fraudulent charges, and now AT&T is crediting the account for the entire amount. Watch a short news video about the phone hacking. (Chicago Tribune – 4.2.12, 4.3.12, NBC Chicago – 3.29.12)

See also: Hinsdale Church Off The Hook For $27,000 Phone Bill (CBS Local – 4.3.12)

An interfaith LGBTQ toolkit, a call for diplomacy, and more

The Michigan UU Social Justice Network has partnered with several other organizations to publish and distribute an Interfaith LGBTQ Toolkit to Southeast Michigan religious groups. (Pride Source – 4.5.12)

About 100 people gathered at a rally co-sponsored by the Just Peace Task Force of the UU Church of Bloomington, Ind., to mark the ninth anniversary of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq and to call for diplomacy with Iran. (The Bloomington Alternative – 3.31.12)

The Rev. Scott Alexander, minister of the UU Fellowship of Vero Beach, Fla., is preparing to begin his 3,300-mile charity bike ride across America. (TCPalm – 4.3.12)

See also: Pedaling for hope (uuworld.org – 3.19.12)

The South Church in Portsmouth, N.H., is going ahead with plans to remove a 90-year-old tree that is damaging its foundation, despite protests from the community. (Seacoastonline.com – 3.24.12, 4.3.12)

The Rev. Gary Kowalski, interim minister at First Parish Sudbury, Mass., is interviewed in a story about the Sudbury Clergy Association working together to find common ground. (Sudbury Town Crier – 4.2.12)

Growing up with a transgender parent

Sabine Bartlett, a 16-year-old Somerville, Mass., resident who was raised UU, leads an ABC News story about children with transgender parents. (ABC News – 3.27.12)

Details emerge about failed nonprofit

An Indiana newspaper has published two lengthy follow-ups to UU World‘s story about the disappearance of funds belonging to the Rev. Debra Haffner’s Religious Institute when her nonprofit’s fiscal agent abruptly shut down. A March 18 story includes interviews with the Rev. Steve Clapp, whose Christian Community Inc. served as Religious Institute’s fiscal agent. An April 1 story reveals that Clapp was a convicted felon who served time for bank fraud in the 1990s, and provides additional details about Christian Community’s activities. (Journal Gazette – 3.18.12, 4.1.12)

UUs speak out for marriage equality

The Rev. Jay Leach, of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Charlotte, N.C., was part of a clergy group that held a rally to oppose a proposed constitutional amendment that would define marriage as only between one man and one woman in that state (includes a news video). (WCNC – 3.26.12)

See also: “Rally against marriage amend draws both sides” (WBTV – 3.26.12)

The Rev. Amy Brooks, of the UU Fellowship of Lake Norman, N.C., and the Rev. Robin Tanner of the Piedmont UU Church, both participated in a rally in Davidson against the proposed constitutional amendment. (DavidsonNews.net – 3.24.12)

Zach Wahls spoke at the GLAAD Media Awards about his two moms and about the experience of having his testimony before the Iowa House Judiciary Committee become an internet sensation. (Includes a video of his speech.) Entertainment Weekly’s PopWach blog also talks about Wahls’s GLAAD Media Awards speech, saying that it “was worthy of another 17 million views.” (Towleroad, PopWatch – 3.26.12)

See also: “How my testimony went viral” (UU World – Summer 2011)

In the congregations

Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville had 117 solar panels installed on its roof. (Knoxville News Sentinel – 3.27.12)

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Canton, N.Y., kicked off a $250,000 capital campaign to replace its roof, make improvements in the sanctuary and church kitchen, and replenish the church’s capital reserve fund. (North Country Now – 3.26.12)

A nearly 90-year-old tree is being removed from in front of the South Church in Portsmouth, N.H., because its roots are damaging the historic building’s foundation. (Seacoastonline.com – 3.24.12)

UUs focus on sustainability, community

Thanks to eco-friendly practices, the First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis, Minn., saved more than $16,000 last year and won the EPA Energy Star Battle of the Buildings competition in the House of Worship category. (TCDaily Planet – 3.22.12)

The First Universalist Society of Franklin, Mass., is using new solar panels to meet the church’s energy needs. (Attleboro Sun Chronicle – 3.17.12)

The UU Fellowship of Central Oregon in Bend is considering building a new church that would be a model of sustainability. (KTVZ – 3.16.12)

UUs are helping to maintain community gardens on unused city lots around Jacksonville, Fla. (Florida Times-Union – 3.19.12)

‘Love bus’ shuttles couples to marriage, and more

Ten same-sex couples from Missouri took the “love bus” to Iowa recently to be legally married by the Rev. Steven Protzman of the UU Society of Iowa City (includes a short video). (KCRG – 3.16.12)

Members of the Unitarian Church of Harrisburg, Pa., are feeling frightened and angry after a cab driver was shot and killed outside their church during a Sunday service. (Patriot-News – 3.18.12)

The Rev. G. Jude Geiger, minister of Lifespan Religious Education at the First Unitarian Congregational Society of Brooklyn, N.Y., writes about religious conservatives and the battle for religious freedom in America. (Huffington Post – 3.19.12)

The high school youth group of the South Valley Unitarian Universalist Society in Salt Lake City, Utah, wrote a letter calling for a veto of HB 363, which restricts public school sex-ed classes. (Salt Lake Tribune – 3.19.12)

Cross Street Unitarian Chapel leads the way

The Cross Street Unitarian Chapel in Manchester (UK) is the first religious building in England and Wales to be granted a license to perform religious civil partnership ceremonies. (BBC – 3.9.12, Guardian – 3.10.12, Pink News – 3.12.12)

(See also, “Quakers, Liberal Judaism and Unitarians welcome gay marriage consultation,” Pink Paper – 3.15.12, and “Religious groups welcome consultation on allowing gays to marry,” Pink News – 3.15.12)

Civil Rights leadership recalled

The Rev. Gordon Gibson appears in a profile of the Civil Rights Institute in Birmingham, Alabama. (The New York Times – 3.14.12)

The Rev. James Reeb is remembered as part of the history of voting rights in an essay advocating against registrictive voter identification laws. (Huffington Post – 3.9.12)

Interfaith efforts, Human Rights, and other UUs in the media

The Unitarian Universalist Church in Muncie, Indiana, hosted more than 100 people for an interfaith event on March 4. (The Star-Press – 3.15.12)

The Rev. Suzelle Lynch of the Unitarian Universalist Church West in Brookfield, Wisconsin, spoke in support of the construction of a local mosque and community center. (Journal Sentinel – 3.13.12)

Paul Revere was not only a silversmith, he also cast bells, including the one used by the First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church in Canton, Massachusetts. (Canton Citizen – 3.15.12)

The 333 Coffeehouse at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Annapolis, Maryland, is celebrating its 20th anniversary. (The Capital/Hometown Annapolis – 3.11.12)

The First Unitarian Universalist Society of Marietta, Ohio, hosted winter gardening classes and a seed exchange. (The Marietta Times – 3.16.12)

Members of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan in Mount Pleasant are behind an effort to draft and pass a Human Rights ordinance. (The Morning Sun – 3.14.12)