Jo Porterfield was one happy UFL Board President when she had the opportunity to welcome FIVE new members to our Fellowship on Sunday, July 15th. During the induction ceremony she reminded them that becoming a member of a UU fellowship does not convert one into some religion, rather it supports each person's search for truth and understanding on their spiritual journey

From left to right: Jo (behind speaker's stand), Amanda Koepke, Chip Koepke, Cyndy Self, Lisa Sanders, and Melissa Bowen

I asked each of them to write about their spiritual journey and received the following. I would like to invite everyone in the Fellowship to reflect upon their spiritual path and practices and share their thoughts in upcoming newsletters. (email them to me at skysong@etex.net)

First, from Melissa:

My father always said that he didn’t believe in God. I have come to believe that he just wasn’t willing to accept the fact that there was someone in the world who knew more than he did. My mother was raised a Wesleyan Methodist, what she described as a, "get drink on Saturday, go to Church on Sunday, and beat your kids on Monday," kind of religion. For these reasons, I was not taught about God as a child. When I asked for a Bible at the age of 8, my parents stared at me in wonder, but still put it under the tree with my skateboard and Walkman for Christmas morning. I read it like a young boy pouring over his first comic book. It was fascinating! At age 10, I began attending a Catholic Church with a neighbor, sitting through two hours of a Spanish sermon just to attend the English Speaking Sunday School. As I got older, I listened to what people said about God. "Homosexuality is an abomination," they said. "Not my God," I thought. "Suicide is an unforgivable sin," they said. Not my God. "Sex before marriage is unacceptable," they said. Definitely not my God. As I began college, I started studying religion. I learned not only about God and Jesus, but Allah, Mohammed, Moses, Ganesh, Buddha, and Mother Earth. I wondered if there was a group of people out there that saw the divinity in all of these things. I pondered, "Could it be, that the path to enlightenment is not on one path but on all paths?" Years passed, and one day, I met a couple shopping in the store I managed. She was dressed in black, with platform heels,

and fishnet stockings. He wore a tie-dye t-shirt, a crystal around his neck, and Birkenstocks on his feet. Through conversation, he began to tell me how, in church that morning, he asked the congregation to pray for all the innocent creatures in the world. He simply thought it was the best thing to pray about at that given moment. I asked with interest, "What kind of church is this?" It was at this moment that I was introduced to the Unitarian Universalist faith. Unfortunately, I worked on Sundays, and thus filed the information in the back of my mind where I put other things I want to do before I die. More years passed, and I found a job where I had Sundays off, so my family came here. It was here that Sky showed me serenity…Jay showed me brilliance…Durren showed me tranquility…Jessica showed me kindness…Marolen showed me unconditional love and acceptance…Bob showed me music…Jo Porterfield showed me tolerance…Emily showed me adolescence…Hollis showed me that Goddess is sometimes spelled D-I-V-A, and so on and so forth and so on. It is now that I have finally found that my God exists here within all of you.

Next, from Chip and Amanda:

I guess the path that brought Amanda and I to UU started long before we realized what that path was and where we were heading. Neither of us liked the "Organized Religion" that we had been exposed to. I was brought up being told that I was Lutheran but was really never told what exactly that was. It was just expected that I would be Lutheran because that is what my parents and grandparents were. I don't remember any good experiences at the Lutheran Church. My only memory of the church is how everything revolved around money- no fellowship, no discussion, no debating different views or beliefs. We were told what to believe and what to worship and that was the way it was. When I was about 10 or 12, I guess my Dad got tired of it too and we never went back. (Ask me and I'll tell you the story sometime).

Amanda discovered UU about five years ago via the internet while searching for a place where she could take Zoe and expose her to religion without bias, prejudice, hypocrisy- you know, all those things that the big three religions stand for.... After attending a few services we realized that we had found what we were looking for. Unfortunately we did not attend the Orlando UU service as much as we would have liked due to the long drive and my varying schedule.

When we moved to Longview one of the first things we did was to seek out the UU Fellowship. The first service that we attended we were welcomed and made to feel at home. Prior to that day we knew all of about three people in Texas. In less than six months our circle of friends has grown tremendously. We enjoy the fellowship, the open-mindedness, ability and opportunity to discuss various beliefs and being able to live our life how we choose without being judged and most of all, being associated with others that hold the same values.

And just in time for this month's newsletter, from Lisa:

Your request gave me pause. I have never actually taken the time to stop and look back over my shoulder at the spiritual road I have traveled.

continued on Page 4 ..... see Lisa