Public awareness of the threat posed by global climate change has increased greatly. But it is easy for this awareness to lead to a sense of despair about the future. Is it already too late? Is there any reason to hope that humans can reverse the disastrous course we are on?

Is global warming a religious issue? An ethical issue? A moral issue?

What is our obligation as people of faith to care for the earth? What is our responsibility to future generations? What can we look to in our faith tradition to give us the strength and the hope to address this serious threat to humankind? How can we alter our worldview to empower ourselves to treat the earth as sacred, rather than simply as a resource to be exploited?

The Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry California is forming a statewide team to focus on global warming and water resources. Ramon Urbano, incoming president of the board of that organization, will be present after the service to talk with interested members and visitors about this Unitarian Universalist project.

Two weeks ago, over 6,000 Unitarian Universalists from across the United States and beyond gathered in Portland to meet and transact the business of the denomination and to participate in hundreds of workshops, lectures, programs, and worship over a five-day period.

Forty members of the Congregation participated in the General Assembly. The Forum will screen some of the most notable presentations and get a good report on the drama, policy debates, and the excitement that occurs at General Assembly.

The program will start at 9:45. Come at 9:30 for conversation, coffee, and (for a slight charge) a light breakfast.

The San Francisco Society's banner pictured above made its public debut at General Assembly. Posters of the banner are now available for purchase in the church office.

from Natalie Freeburg, Acting Director of Religious Education

Children are invited to attend Sunday's 11 am worship service on global warming with their parents. Idea boxes and relevant books will be available from the ushers for the children.

Childcare for infants through age 5 will be provided.

The next all-ages Playshop will be Sunday, July 15, with a walking tour of the houses of worship in the neighborhood. Participants will meet in the chapel at 11:00 and return at 12:15.

Last Sunday, the first Summer Playshop gathered to hand-make journals, pop-up books, and scrapbooks in which to record summer adventures. The photograph above shows the in-progress creation of one of the pieces of art! Woven pages, patterned covers, and pop-up portfolios were some of the clever creations.

from Beth Pewther

A free public reception for the artists will be held after the worship service Sunday. The art will be on display through July.

CALL TO ARTISTS --The Annual Unitarian Universalists Members and Friends Open Group Show comes to the Kings Gallery in August. The show has no media or age restrictions and is only for wall-hung art: painting, photo, fiber, mixed media, etc.

Artists are asked to think about getting their work ready to bring in on Sunday, August 19. Entry forms are now available on the Art bulletin board near Martin Luther King Room.

The trailer includes shots of the Stewarts in Grand Rapids, Reno, and at the church here in San Francisco. Both the clip and the film's website provide views of the family that are both realistic and arresting.

"This is the cinema verité story of five irrepressible but troubled boys - pulled from the train wreck of foster care - the two articulate men who are now their fathers, and their moving metamorphosis into a solid family unit," says C.

"The Stewarts are an unconventional family, with surprisingly conventional values," she continues. "Their odyssey is intimate and moving; but it exists within a wider context of the national debate over same-sex marriage and adoption."

See the YouTube trailer by clicking below. And be sure to check out the documentary's site, too.

Incoming Ministerial Intern Jeremy D. Nickel (pictured at right) is spending time this summer conducting a campaign to restore endangered wild salmon and steelhead to the Columbia and Snake Rivers. Working with Save Our Wild Salmon, Jeremy is on a five-state public outreach tour.

Today (July 5) and tomorrow the road show is visiting San Francisco's Aquarium of the Bay . Jeremy is posting regular messages about the public outreach tour on the Save our Wild Salmon blog.

Our condolences to Lori Lai and Shulee Ong on the death of Lori's mother in Hawaii last month.

We wish Rev. Greg Stewart a productive July. As part of his study month, Rev. Stewart will attend a large church conference in Dallas and spend the remainder of July preparing for the coming church year. Rev. Stewart will be on vacation in August and will return to the pulpit September 9.

Last weekend the Young Adult Group escaped the urban life and retreated to Big Basin Redwoods State Park, a beautiful park filled with giant coastal redwoods, sparkling streams and cascading waterfalls.

The group went for an impressive 12-mile hike, splashed in the waterfalls, and sat around the campfire and roasted s'mores.

Amy reports that they had a great time and returned home renewed and refreshed.

Up On Top announced this week that recording artist and show woman Wesla Whitfield will be performing a benefit concert for the group September 22nd.

Wesla Whitfield inhabits that indeterminate zone where jazz and cabaret meet. Trained in classical music and opera, Whitfield has worked for more than three decades to become one of the most gifted performers breathing life into that exquisite body of Broadway tunes, movie songs and Hit Parade numbers known collectively as the Great American Songbook.

Tickets will go on sale in August. More information is available from Sandi Pilon.