Recent Newsletters

"Where's that email newsletter???"

I started sending out emails about a year ago, usually every other week, mostly to promote Thought Exchange. As time went on, I kept adding--events too good to miss, reminders, and the like. I get so sad when I hear people say "ooh, I wanted to attend that, but I forgot"! I confess, I know the feeling.

This is not the official newsletter. Our multitasking President Darlene Feskun makes that available on paper in church, and on our website (https://firstspiritualisttemple.com, chock full of information). Rather, it's my small effort to use electronic resources to keep as many people as possible in the loop. There are others who post on Facebook, Threads, Insta, MeetUp--we cover as many bases as we can with the human resources we have.

I will try to send "the email" during the coming year about twice a month. I can promise the material will be shorter in future efforts. If I forget, or get backlogged due to other life-events, you're welcome to check other social media, or email me. Finally, I send to people I believe are interested; if you'd like me to take you off the list, just let me know.

Happy autumn to all! Jeanne Laurel (jeannelaurel@gmail.com)

Sunday, September 15

· Student medium practice after service (about 12:20). We have several students who have been working toward the goal of serving our church as student message workers. They need practice with a variety of people as they bring messages. Please consider sticking around after service to support our educational efforts and our hardworking student mediums.

· Ways & Means Committee meeting after student medium practice (about 12:40). Our church building turns 113 years old this year. To keep the lights on (and the photocopier running, the A/C and heat working, the insurance bill paid, the masonry from crumbling, etc.), we have an insanely talented crew of people developing and running fundraising (emphasis on "fun"). 

Monday, September 16

· Thought Exchange. While this is a "class," it's more of a freewheeling discussion. At the end of each meeting, participants pick a topic for the upcoming meeting. We do include discussion of Spiritualist perspectives, but happily entertain (almost) any line of thought. There are some core "regulars," but anyone is welcome. Continuing attendance is warmly welcomed, but not expected.

Meets 7 to 8:30 pm on the first and third Monday of each month. (Coming meetings: Oct. 7 and 21; Nov. 4 and 18; Dec. 2 and 16.) We're restarting after a summer hiatus, so the topic is "What I did on my summer vacation"--a traditional fall semester cliché, but let's focus on "What's one thing I experienced and learned from, or a realization I had."

Currently Zoom only (although if there's enough interest, we can discuss having in-person meetings). Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/98908343264. If you have a non-smart phone, you can join by voice only; dial 929-205-6099, enter ID 989 0834 3264.

Freewill donation, $5 (via PayPal, or in church).

Wednesday, September 18

· Principles: Making a Mobile. Lynette Lex will lead this in-person class at church on three consecutive Wednesdays: Sept. 18 and 25, Oct. 2 at 6:30pm. NSAC Spiritualists have adopted nine principles, brief succinct statements about what we teach. From time to time, different FST teachers offer a forum to discuss and expand this list. If you've taken a class on the principles once, you may learn something new when a different group of people convenes.

Lynette is a member of the Pastoral Committee, a gifted student medium and healer, and an art therapist. Participants will build mobiles which allow them to capture what each principle means to them as they discuss.

Donation of $5 per meeting requested to cover the materials Lynette will supply. Specific time (early evenings) will be announced.

Sunday, September 29

· Meditation. Members have asked how to meditate--we've set aside 1 pm on the last Sunday of each month for those who wish to join a group, ask questions, or have a specific "how do I…?" or "what does it mean when…?" questions. Meetings last about 30-45 minutes.

Jeanne Laurel, a member of Pastoral Committee, has been leading this group for about half a year, although others with experience meditating and teaching meditation are welcome to step forward as group leaders. Attendance has fallen off during summer; if there is lack of interest for several more months, we'll likely mothball the idea for a while.

Sunday, October 6

· Healers Meeting. Student healers will meet briefly after service (about 12:20) to discuss what's working well, and what's not working.

Sunday, October 13

· Board meeting. Our board meetings are usually held on the second Sunday of each month. Members of the Board of Trustees (the business end of running the church) meet in person; some join by Zoom. Any member or friend of FST is welcome to join (in person or by Zoom; https://zoom.us/j/98423834708; or dial 929-205-6099, enter ID 984 2383 4708 for audio only). The agenda includes an opportunity for members to raise church business for discussion; we follow Robert's Rules of Order, so after that opportunity we ask that you sit quietly.

· Report on NSAC Convention. The annual business meeting of our chartering organization, the National Spiritualist Association of Churches, is being held in Orlando, FL this year, Sept. 22-27. Lyn Batt, our Vice President, is attending, and has promised a quick run-down of the convention at this board meeting.

· Date change, November and December board meetings. The board meeting for November has been moved to Nov. 17 (third Sunday). The board meeting for December has been moved to Dec. 15 (third Sunday). The board voted to make this change so we don't have a calendar jammed up with too many obligations.

Monday, October 14 (Columbus Day/Indigenous Peoples' Day)

· Marc Stuart, the Scottish Medium. We will be hosting a medium who works in the tradition of Scottish mediumship--a little different from NSAC teachings, but still closely related. Marc will be offering ideas and discussion about how to contact those in spirit more easily, with the goal of bringing evidential messages.

· Starts at 7 pm, roughly 2 hours. $30 registration by cash or check; $35 by PayPal. Everyone is welcome to attend, whether seeking to fine-tune mediumship skills or completely new to the practice.

Saturday, October 26

· Mediums Day. We usually hold two of these events each year as a fundraiser, and a way to serve our community. Message workers offer 20 minute readings (longer than the brief messages given during Sunday services). Prebooking will start soon. Even if you don't wish to book a reading, we can always use help from members--greeting visitors, keeping schedules running smoothly, answering questions. We're also having a bake sale (home-baked goodies only, please) to augment our fundraising muscle--so if you can't show up on the day of the event, consider whipping up something yummy.

Sunday, November 10

· Dinner. Our church was built for Spiritualists, by Spiritualists, and has been in continuous operation since 11/11/1911. To celebrate, the Kitchen Committee will be doing a little extra, beyond bagels and donuts, for our fellowship hour following service. We're not sure what's on the menu, but that may depend partly on who is interested in stepping up to plan and cook. (Hint, hint!)

Sunday, November 17

· Board Meeting. Remember, the November board meeting will be held Nov. 17 (third Sunday). It was moved to make room for the anniversary dinner Nov. 10.

Monday, November 11 (Veteran's Day)

· Table Tipping. Our busy President Darlene Feskun will be offering a class on how to do table tipping, a Spiritualist practice that harks back to the 19th century. Those who have worked with table tipping are especially invited, as a mix of new and experienced people is helpful. Time and details to be announced. (It's our church's 113th anniversary, so there should be an ample number of spirits wanting to connect.)

Saturday, December 7

· Christmas Bazaar. You'll be hearing more about this event in the next few months. The star of the event is the basket raffle; our generous members, friends and community businesses donate theme baskets. There's also a bake sale, crafts sale, dinner, special raffles… and most of all, a gathering of friends. Not to be missed.

Many hands make light work, this is truly an event where "all hands on deck" helps make the event a success. If you're looking for a place to jump in, this is a great opportunity.

Sunday, December 15

· Board Meeting. Remember, the December board meeting will be held Dec. 15 (third Sunday). It was moved because everyone will be wrung dry from the excitement of the Christmas Bazaar.

Tuesday, December 24

· Christmas Eve Service. We're not Christian, of course, but we do celebrate the holiday season with a special service at 7 pm, sharing the good cheer and best wishes with our FST family.

Additional notes

· Home circle. Our busy Vice President will be starting a Home Circle, another venerable Spiritualist practice that dates back to our beginnings in the 19th century. A signup sheet is posted downstairs for those interested. Rather than announcing a date that may or may not fit everyone's schedule, Lyn says she would prefer to gather information first, and then fit the date and time to meet folks' needs. Participants do not need to have had any mediumship training, although they should have experience observing message work.

· Homiletics. This odd word means "how to prepare and deliver a sermon." After years observing Spiritualist sermons, and more years having taught college-level English classes, Jeanne Laurel developed a course for Spiritualists interested in giving the lecture on Sundays. 

Those who just want to peek under the hood and see how it's done are welcome too. Participants should be FST or NSAC-affiliate members; should understand what Spiritualism teaches, doesn't teach, and why; and must be willing to prepare and deliver practice sermons. There hasn't been any interest in a class for several years; that's fine. But I'm noting the possibility of a class if there's interest.

· Spiritualist Philosophy. Darlene Feskun's philosophy class has been on hiatus through summer. If there is interest, she says she'll be willing to start the class again in early 2025, although she would like to avoid the "book club" model.

Upcoming Sunday Speakers

Please note that this list is tentative, as individuals' plans and availability may change.

· September 15: Beverly Burke

· September 22: Bonnie Woods

· September 29: Ron Skowronski

· October 06: Robert Lowell Goller

· October 13: Bonnie Woods

· October 20: Andrew Bozeman

· October 27: Celeste Elliott

· November 03: Brenda Hawkins

· November 10: Robert Lowell Goller

· November 17: Andrew Bozeman

· November 24: Barbara Kellerman

· December 01: Lynette Lex

· December 08: Lyn Batt

· December 15: Robert Lowell Goller

· December 22: Jeanne Phoenix Laurel

· December 29: Andrew Bozeman