JULY 2026

Dear Kind and Gentle People,

Oh, My Soul! Pride Month has gently drawn to a close, and my heart now turns toward the upcoming UCCMA National Biennial Conference in Columbus, Ohio. This year's theme, "Unified in Spirit: Diverse in Sound," is more than a conference slogan—it is a vision of the Kingdom of God. It reminds us that while our voices, traditions, cultures, and musical languages may differ, we are gathered into one great chorus by the Holy Spirit. Every choir loft, every organ bench, every handbell table, every praise band, every congregation becomes another instrument in God's magnificent symphony of grace.

What a privilege it is to belong to the United Church of Christ Musicians Association. I remain profoundly grateful for a fellowship that believes excellent music and extravagant welcome belong together.

Here at The Mill, preparations are underway for our annual Independence Day celebration. This year's observance carries special significance as our nation marks the Semiquincentennial of the Declaration of Independence.

Music has always been a balm for knitting together hearts that might otherwise remain strangers. "Cocoa," my beloved pipe organ, is already clearing her metaphorical throat. She will thunder forth with The Star-Spangled Banner and Lift Every Voice and Sing. Next, the Steinway and Chickering dueling pianos will lead us through a joyful procession of beloved American hymns and patriotic songs. Our singing will culminate with the breathtaking Wilhousky arrangement of The Battle Hymn of the Republic, complete with dueling grand pianos, jubilant crash cymbals, and those glorious soaring sopranos (yes there will be AWESOME sopranos soaring above the stave).

Here is a link to the Wilhousky for sheer listening pleasure.

There are two family heirlooms that never fail to remind me that history is most alive when it is held in our hands, they will be displayed. There is Samuel Stickney's Revolutionary War fife, (perhaps a guest will try to toot out “Yankee Doodle”), lovingly treated each year with its customary dollop of Vaseline. And there is Park Williams' short sword. Park served as a drummer during the Revolution; however, the sword's last official duty was cutting my grandparents' twenty-fifth wedding anniversary cake in 1941. Remarkably, both remain in extraordinary condition after nearly two and a half centuries. These objects tell stories far greater than my own family.

Samuel Stickney and Park Williams descended from families who crossed the Atlantic during the Great Migration of the 1630s. They came because conscience demanded it. They sought the freedom to worship God according to the light they had received. Their journey reminds me that the search for liberty has always been, at its heart, a spiritual pilgrimage.

Our recently concluded Pride Month tells another chapter of that same story. From the courageous witnesses at Compton's Cafeteria, to the Julius' Bar Sip-In, to the Stonewall uprising, generations have dared to challenge injustice so that more of God's beloved children might live openly and freely. Though separated by centuries, these stories are united by a common thread: faithful people refusing to allow fear or oppression to have the final word. Divine Love has always called ordinary people to extraordinary courage.

As we enter a new month—and celebrate an especially meaningful Independence Day—I invite you to ponder a quieter kind of freedom. Where is Christ inviting you to leave the comfortable places within yourself? What assumptions, resentments, fears, or certainties might you lay gently at the foot of the Cross so that you may become more fully unified in spirit with our Creator and more deeply connected with the peoples of Gaia?

May the God of boundless love bless you with the courage of those who came before us not so that we would cling to the past, but so that we would continue their holy journey toward greater freedom, deeper compassion, and wider welcome. May Jesus the Christ lead you beyond fear into love, beyond certainty into wonder, and beyond division into beloved community. And may the Holy Spirit give you the grace to lay down whatever keeps you from embracing your neighbor, honoring the sacredness of all creation, and walking humbly with all the peoples of Gaia.

As we celebrate our nation's independence, may we also celebrate the deeper liberty that comes from living in truth, extending mercy, seeking justice, and allowing our lives to become songs of

God's extravagant love. Do remember—the finest music is never merely performed. It is lived.

As Always,

Gobs of Blessings and Heaps of Happiness,

Petah

Petah with Clergy at a Pride Event — Rainbow cowboy hats et all! - Photo by Rev. Melissa 

Newfield Community Church embraces Pride Night - Photo by Petah

Revolutionary Fife and Sword still strutting their stuff after 250 years. - Photo by Petah