Sunday Worship at 10:15 a.m.
No RE classes. Children and youth are always welcome to join us in the Sanctuary. Nursery & toddler care available during worship.
Social Hour:Â Fuller Hall after the service.
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Claus & Effect: Christmas Eve Services
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Come one! Come all! to our annual Christmas Eve services at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. on December 24 where we will lift one anotherâs spirits with a message of hope, carols and other music of the season, and a special retelling of âTwas the Night Before Christmas. Let us share in good cheer in a year where joy has been an act of resistance, resilience, and respite for all who are weary. Our 5 p.m. service will be geared more towards families, and our 8 p.m. service is open to all ages.
Offerings to our plate will be going to our Congregant Care Fund.
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This Sunday, December 28, at our usual 10:15 a.m. service time.
We are crossing thresholds all the time, some small, some large, but they come and they go. The new year offers us a kind of threshold. Where have we been and where are we going? What meaning might there be as we make this crossing?
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Ministerial Blog
Bless the Pageant Makers
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We are a community that takes turns stepping up and pitching in. The holiday events and services here provide great examples. Our facilities staff team and volunteers led by Jason Chapman work hard so our church buildings are festive, bright, and warm. Our hospitality staff team and volunteers led by Jen Thomas show up to create an atmosphere of welcome and good cheer. Our worship staff and volunteers plan rituals, music, and messages to lift all our spirits. Our admin & operations staff and volunteers make sure our communications and tech support all the above. We are blessed by the many gifts seen and unseen that we exchange with one another to create this community.Â
Our pageant last Sunday provided us with a multigenerational event and worship, which involved the passion, skill, and hard work of many staff and volunteers. We want to lift up the names of all those who made it happen...MORE
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Did you take any pictures at last week's Pageant, or any other First U events? We'd love to see them!
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| Click the image below to view in full, then click each event title for more details:
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NEW! â The Alliance Presents "Weaving Community with Ukrainians"
Wednesday, January 7, 10:30 a.m.
Location: Eliot Chapel
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Join Rick and Maxine Lathrop, Global Service Corps Ukraine Program founders and 1st U members, for a community gathering with other Alliance members and virtually with their friends in Ukraine who participate in their Drop-in CafĂŠ Conversation Clubs. Hear their story of the Ukraine Program, listen as Alliance and Ukrainian participants share their experiences, and enjoy a chance to connect directly with Ukrainians. What began as wartime support has grown into a vibrant community of friendship across the miles.
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Grief Group
Wednesdays, January 14 and 28, and February 11 and 25, 2 - 3:30 p.m.
Location: Channing Room
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If you are grieving the death of a person in your life, you are invited to join a new Grief Group offered by Lay Ministry. The group will meet in person on Wednesday, January 14 and 28, February 11 and 25 in the Channing Room from 2 - 3:30 p.m.Â
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First Steps Class on January 4
Sunday, January 4, 11:45 a.m.
Location: Channing Room
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Please join us for the next First Steps tour and orientation to First Unitarian Portland on January 4 at 11:45 a.m. We will meet in Channing Room A101 to get to know each other, learn a little about First Unitarian Portland, and take a tour of the campus.
Session will conclude by 1 p.m.
If you need directions on location of the room, stop by the Welcome Desk or First Connections table or ask anyone wearing a rainbow lanyard. They will happily guide you.
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NEW! â Neighbor-to-Neighbor Interfaith Witness at ICE
Wednesday, January 7, 2 - 2:45 p.m.
Location:Â Next to the ICE building, at the intersection of SW Moody & SW Bancroft
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Neighbor-to-Neighbor Interfaith Witness at ICE is an opportunity for faith communities to be in solidarity, declaring our moral outrage at the cruel practices of abducting community members, terrorizing communities, and separating families, in the name of an inhumane political agenda. We will be shoulder-to-shoulder to bear witness to our outrage, deepen our relationships, and build solidarity among our interfaith communities.Â
The bi-monthly witness rituals will be held on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of each month, sponsored by a neighborhood or geographic region. This series is supported by Together Lab, which has been organizing interfaith clergy to be a daily moral presence at the ICE facility on Macadam and at the Federal Courthouse downtown, as well as organizing neighbor-to-neighbor solidarity with teachers and families around Portland. We hope that in addition to attending on January 7, you will mark your calendars through March for this steady stream of neighbors showing up for neighbors.
Please dress accordingly for the weather. We ask that you not bring signs. We will provide whatever is needed for the ritual.
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Around the Church
Enjoyed coming to gatherings at First Unitarian Portland? Consider contributing to sustaining our community. Your support goes a long way in fostering meaningful connections. Thank you!
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NEW! â Your Beacon Bookstore
Location: Fuller Hall
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Thank you to all of you who purchased some of your holiday gifts in our store these last few weeks! Last Sunday was our largest sales day since before the pandemic â with 40% of the receipts going to the Churchâs bottom line. Hundreds of dollars this fall.
We have new dark green First UU t-shirts in stock now. Weâve added an XS size. Between the new green ones and the old navy ones, we now have XS through XXL. Shirts are $25.00 each. We purchase them from New Avenues for Youthâs work training center.
To help you begin 2026 with some ritual: Our $2.00 little blank notebooks come in a rainbow of colors â just right for your New Yearâs Resolutions writing.
We appreciate your support!
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Our K-1st grade RE class is creating a village of designed and decorated cardboard boxes big enough for children to play in. Appliance sized or similar is perfect. If you have one or more to donate, please bring to room A200 on Sunday mornings.
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December 21 & 28 Newsletter
Rev. Leah Ongiri, Acting Director of Lifespan Faith Formation and Family Ministries
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Dear Learning Community,
Welcome to the last LC e-news of 2025.
Our much beloved annual Christmas Pageant is in the main sanctuary this Sunday at 10:15! If you like, bring a plate of cookies to share. Be sure to stay for a warm beverage, conversation, and a treat directly following the service.
Any child who attends is welcome to join us on the chancel for a no-rehearse role. Just listen along and we'll tell you what to do.
If you already have a role, you should have gotten an email with a 9 am call time and other information. Let me know ASAP if you didn't get it!...MORE
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As we reflect on two years of the 13 Salmon Shower Project, we are overwhelmed with gratitude for the compassion of this congregation. Together, we've provided a safe space for showers, clean clothes, and connection for more than 2,000 of our unhoused neighbors.
Winter is here, bringing a harsh reality for those without housing. These three essentials can help protect our guests from the cold:
- Beanies / knitted hats (black or gray preferred)
- Warm gloves
- Men's sweatpants (small & med)
Drop off your items in the marked cabinet in Fuller Hall during church hours or during Shower Project hours (Wednesdays and Thursdays between noon and 4 p.m. at 13th and Salmon). Thank you for your support! Starting on Sunday, November 30, these gifts can be delivered to the Giving Trees located in the Sanctuary lobby and Buchan atrium.
If youâd like to offer a financial contribution directly to the Shower Project, please donate here.
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Food Insecurity During the Holidays
Location:Â COHHO bins in Fuller Hall
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Even before the recent government shutdown, our systems were straining. When SNAP payments halted, thousands of neighbors suddenly lost the support they were told they could rely on. It was a stark reminder: federal systems can falter, but our community continues to care for one another. Each month brings new challenges for neighbors simply trying to keep food on the table.
At this year-end giving season, we invite you to consider the following... your generosity keeps food at the center for food-insecure neighbors. When you give, you're doing much more than filling a pantry shelf. You're helping to strengthen someone's health, to stabilize someone's housing, and to build someone's sense of community.
What and how can you give? First things first - go gleaning in your kitchen cupboards! You might have some shelf-stable jars, cartons or boxes that you forgot you had or donât intend to consume. Donate them to Lift UP. Just put them in the COHHO cabinets under the clock in Fuller Hall; weâll deliver them to Lift UP. Secondly, when you shop for groceries, buy extra pasta, nut butter, almond milk, or soup cartons to put in those COHHO cabinets. Lastly, consider making a financial donation to Lift UP (or the Oregon Food Bank). They can purchase in bulk and make your money go farther than you can.
However you can contribute during this especially challenging holiday season, we thank you. Every small act strengthens the foundation beneath us all.
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CHECK WEEKLY â Art for Social Justice
Curated by Ethel G., Speaking of Justice Editorial Team
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The Speaking of Justice Editorial Team offers weekly art to deepen our connection to the work for social justice and to build the Beloved Community.
In June 2020, an impromptu duet between a PSU School of Music & Theater student, Madisen Hallberg, and a professional opera singer, Emmanuel Henreid ("Onry"), captured the hearts and imaginations of millions of viewers. Shared on social media and news outlets around the world, this simple moment of beauty between two strangers was a balm for our wounded souls, reminding us that the arts have the power to bring us together and heal us. The PSU College of the Arts invited Madisen and Onry to come back together once more and sing a new duet, a call for peace in our world: Dona Nobis Pacem, or "Grant Us Peace." This contemplative round has been sung in liturgical settings for centuries. May we all find peace this holiday season and in the new year to come.
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In the Community
Member Julie Grice moved to a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility earlier this week but is now back at Providence St. Vincent Hospital for further treatment. This has been a hard season for Julie and we continue to hold her in our prayers.Â
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- Contact a Minister: Our ministers are available for pastoral support to congregants in need and to officiate at rites of passages including memorial services and weddings. Call the church office at 503-228-6389, or send an email.
- Contact a Lay Minister: Lay Ministers support the pastoral work of the ministerial staff. They are church members who offer one-to-one caring and support for folks in times of need. Call the church office at 503-228-6389, or send an email. You can learn more here.
- Friend to Friend Outreach Program: This program provides connection to seniors and individuals who may be homebound and unable to attend church regularly. It offers members up to four in-person visits per year from a Lay Minister. Send an email to Lay Minister Steve K.
- Lotsa Helping Hands Support Network: This care calendar enables volunteers to provide meals or visits for congregants going through challenging times. For support or questions, email coordinator Leslie C. To volunteer, send a request here.
- Join an Affinity or Support Group:Â Build community through our identity-based affinity groups and experience-specific support groups. Learn about them here.
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Do you have a birth in the family, a graduation, an anniversary, a memorial, or other milestones to share?
You can acknowledge it to the entire congregation by sponsoring a floral bouquet. As we connect with friends, say it with flowers on the Chancel.
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November & December Art Wall Exhibition
Biennial Congregant Art Show
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Come down to Fuller Hall to see the talented artists we have in the congregation during November and December!
IMPORTANT!! Artists participating or purchasing art in the congregant show need to pick up their art by this Sunday, December 28. If you need to make other arrangements, contact Joanne at 503-997-7751.Â
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| Front Steps Deadline Change for New Year's
All submissions for next week's Front Steps are due by this Monday, December 29, at 1 p.m. Send in your church-related submission for our weekly publication. Submit it here (preferred) or email us here with "Front Steps" as the subject line.
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Got something for Front Steps? Send in your church-related submission for our weekly publication. Submit it here (preferred) or email us here with "Front Steps" as the subject line.
If your submission is urgent and couldnât be sent before the deadline, please include âURGENTâ in the subject line.
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| Want to know what this church has to offer? Visit our Calendar by clicking above to see our list of events/classes/socials!
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