All are welcome!

Have you ever wondered, what is religion for, anyway? That will be out topic for this Sunday, January 22 and — what a coincidence! — Rev. Lara Hoke’s sermon title will be “What Is Religion for, Anyway?”

The service will include a congregational reflection (formerly known as “talk back”). This is a very special Sunday, as it will be “Friends and Family Day”. We have arranged a special day for all of us to share what we have found at the UUCiA with our friends and family. Perhaps you know a person or of a family who has been searching for a congregation to call their own. Or perhaps you can think of a family member you’ve been meaning to bring along on a Sunday morning. Here is your chance to bring someone along, knowing that others will do so too.

After the service, we will have a simple lunch potluck, so if you can bring a finger food, that would be wonderful! Come and enjoy the fellowship, and please bring a friend!

Hello, all my friends and family IRL!

When social media first gained attention, I heard many people scoff that these online connections couldn’t possibly be real friends. Some even used “Facebook friend” as a synonym for shallowness, fearing people might trade face-to-face interaction for a virtual life online.

But many years, re-tweets, meet-ups, event invitations and birthday wishes later, the majority of the people I know now consider at least some of their online friends to be extended family. Which made me wonder — does social media actually encourage people to connect IRL, or “in real life”?

A Pew Internet and American Life Project report recently found that Facebook users have more close relationships and receive more support than others. They’re also more likely to revive dormant relationships and use social networking to keep up with close social ties.

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