Reception of Associate Members: Lawrence V. Brookes & Nina P. Dodonova

Nina P. Dodonova

Nina was born April 16, 1951, in Holm Russia, a very small town about half way between Moscow and St. Petersburg. Her father and mother were both soldiers in the Red Army during The Great Patriotic War, to Americans World War II. Her father was a nomenclatura, a Communist Party official, and he served in various communities around western Russia before settling in Pskov in 1972.

Nina was raised as an atheist. She attended the St. Petersburg Pharmacy Academy and graduated in 1974. Afterwards, she worked for the Ministry of Interior as a chemist and was an officer, with rank of Lieutenant Colonel when she retired in 2003.

She met Larry in Pskov June 1, 1999 and they were married April 2, 2005. While with Larry she was baptized and has become a practicing Christian. She attended and was a member of the First Congregational Church Berkeley, where they were married, and has decided with Larry to transfer to Arlington Community Church, where she has found a warm and comforting community.

Nina has one daughter, Nadya Nikolenko, she is married to Nikita Nikolenko, and they live in Irkutsk, Siberia, but plan to move to Pskov next year. Nadya, who is 33, is now in the US on a tour visiting National and regional parks around the country, furthering her career in Russia as an administrator of Russian National Parks. Nina and Larry will pick up Nadya tonight and she will stay with them for ten days before returning to Russia.

Lawrence V. Brookes

Larry was born March 30, 1942, in the darkest days of World War II, at Alta Bates Hospital in Berkeley. He lived his first three years in Washington, DC, where his father worked for the federal government. He grew up in Orinda, California, at a time where there were more cows than people. His father was agnostic and mother an atheist, so he did not attend Church while young, but when 12 he and his sister made a secret visit to the closest Protestant Church to be baptized.

Larry attended Menlo School, then the California Institute of Technology but transferred to UC Berkeley from which he graduated in 1964, and from it law school Boalt Hall in 1967. He remembers wandering down to Sproul Plaza in 1964 to see Mario Savio perched on top of a police car at the beginning of the Free Speech Movement.

While in Law School Larry married Katherine Thomas and over the subsequent ten years had three children, Gwendolyn, James and Amy. Larry practiced law for 36 years in Los Angeles and then San Francisco, and has lived in the same house in Berkeley since 1973.

Larry and katherine parted ways and Larry met Nina in Pskov, Russia, on June 1, 1999. The two pursued a romantic relationship that culminated in their marriage April 2, 2005. They both are members of First  Congregational Church, Berkeley, where they were married but find that Arlington Community Church is more compatible with their spiritual and social life. Larry and Nina spend part of each year in Pskov, Russia, where he has his other family, that of Nina's family.

Faith is a Verb... Musings by Pastor Tony- October 27, 2017

This month in worship we have looked at Difficult Words of our Faith: Atonement—breaking the chain between sin and punishment, Redemption—(re)purchasing something that has been lost, Justice—equalizing power, Righteousness—being vindicated or being found in the right, and Sacrifice—making something holy. Each of these deals with loss: loss of relationship through sin, loss of property (including freedom in the case of slavery), loss of power, loss of validation and respect, loss of something of value for an altruistic purpose. Each of these ideas of our faith seeks a theological answer to the main question, “What is God’s best intention for our broken world?” and the answer is always, “Healing.”

There is much loss in the world around us: Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria have soaked places that were already wet, and the Northern California and Pacific Northwest wildfires have scorched earth that has been too dry for too long. The losses are immense, tragic, devastating—jobs, homes, lives, normalcy—and the healing is just beginning for many.

We are nearest to the wine country fires, so they are on many of our minds, and yet it has barely been a few months since Harvey destroyed the east coast of Texas, Irma devastated south Florida and the Caribbean, and Maria gave a second blow to the Caribbean. I am hearing of lots of ways to help our nearby neighbors; in fact, Darrell and I are planning on attending a Fire Relief fund-raising concert tonight. And let us not forget Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico.

In each of these natural disasters, I wonder what Atonement would look like. (First, we need to identify the sin in the situation—the sin in Puerto Rico appears to be delayed decisions on restoring power and water, and the punishment is death). What would Redemption look like? (What property that has been lost—how many people will lose property because of being under-insured and not having the money from job loss to keep up the mortgage payments?) What about Justice? (Who has lost power, who had little power to begin with—undocumented workers are afraid to apply for assistance from FEMA because their information is potentially shared with ICE). Righteousness? (Who will God vindicate or validate in these situations—Jesus suggests it is the meek, the poor, the poor in spirit, the faithful, and those who love their neighbor as themselves). Sacrifice? (What of value could we offer that would become holy in its giving—this week my spiritual director, rather than lighting candle to start our session, had a water altar and she offered that I pour some holy water into a bowl to remember the salvific, healing power of water where there is fire.)

These last few months, I have been moved by connections across the devastated areas. A seminary friend of mine who pastors in Naples, Florida, which sustained much damage from Irma, has reached out to me to see how we are doing. I in turn asked what he needs, now a few months later, and his reply was very specific: $460 to complete a goal of $3000 to supply 150 families with Christmas baskets of food. (My friend tells me that since Irma and Maria their food pantry has seen an increase in family size as those who lost homes in the storms move in with other family members). Perhaps we could raise that $460 and connect ourselves with some of the destruction that is all the way across our country.

As well, Puerto Rico has been deeply on my mind because my 50th birthday is coming up in February, and I have wanted to celebrate on the island where I celebrated my 5th birthday. My family lived there for a year when I was that age, and I have wanted to return as an adult. The destruction of the island has brought lots of discussion in our house about where else we might go. And I keep coming back to what I know deep within me; I still want to go there, and now I intend on bring supplies with for their recovery, as well as maybe offering a day or two of work. If that truly happens, the best gift I could imagine from Arlington Community Church would be to donate supplies that we could take along.

There is much to do. We have much to offer. I pray we can offer what we have not just in our region but wherever the world needs healing. If you want to reach out in these ways, please let me know.

Peace,

Pastor Tony

Bob Epstein's Talk at ACC

You could probably hear a pin drop, as 22 people sat in the sanctuary last night, listening to Bob Epstein, a renowned climate expert  and political strategist, explain the delicate balancing act of survival on earth and enacting public policy to combat the rise of global temperatures. We all know it’s already started…..1 degree rise, 2 degrees,  and wait bingo! … somewhere after 2 degrees  the tundras melt releasing the stored methane and civilization ends as we know it due to the toxic air and a hostile environment ….. for humans.   Ah but did you know planting bamboo and mangroves  cleans the air by absorbing 500% more carbon from the atmosphere than temerate forests?  Yes, a glimmer of light.

Dr. Epstein has help shepherd the passage of several California laws that have targeted dates - 10, 20, 30 year goals to help combat  the "three legged stool"  1.  Emissions, 2. Sequestering  carbon from entering atmosphere, and 3. avoiding natural emissions.   These CA bills are

2002:  AB1493 - Clean Cars Bill,

2006:  AB32 - Global Warming Solutions Act

2016:   SB 32 - Emission standards extended to 2030

2017: AB398 - Carbon market extended to 2030

Remember the poor air a couple of weeks ago due to the fires?   That is a common day in Beijing China.  China has adopted many of the California initiatives to address their pollution problems and meet their commitments to counter climate change.  California leads the way......and we all know WHO is trying to undermine this progress.   

We thank Dr. Epstein for a most enlightening evening.  Are we listening?

Person of the Planet: I'm Dreaming of a Green Christmas

These days store owners think about Christmas at an earlier and earlier time, while the rest of us bemoan how commercial our holy day has become. But for a Person of The Planet, thinking early could actually be a wonderful opportunity to plan for a higher way of celebrating Christmas, a way to give to all who inhabit this very special planet. By planning now, we have an opportunity to celebrate Christmas in a way that benefits, rather than harms our Earth. What if this year we ask our POP question, "Is this good for the planet?" while making our plans for how to carry out this year's gift-giving and decorating, card-sending and gatherings. In our plans we could include the well being of God's creation - our Earth and all the creatures for which our planet provides.

I've come up with a few ideas for "greening up" the various ways we celebrate Christmas. I'm

sure you can think of many more!

For Gift-giving, here are a few thoughts:

Let the money you spend on gifts do some extra work for the earth by buying gifts from charitable organizations that work for the environment, such as the Sierra Club, Friends of The Earth and Global Exchange. To use less carbon-creating energy and less pollution, we can give gifts of service and time, gifts that are hand-crafted or baked by us, or that others in our community make and sell, rather than giving unnecessary mass-produced "stuff" made of environment-harming materials in harmful ways involving harmful transportation. To buy ecofriendly gifts, you can find several websites with many products for sale. Here is one: https://eartheasy.com/gifts ("Eco-friendly gifts for adults and children alike")

Gathering and Exchanging of Gifts

For the actual gift exchange, here are two ideas: a white elephant party, where people exchange a desirable item they already have; or a secret pal gathering, where family members and/or friends bring only one gift and each person selects one gift from the offerings.

As for Feasting:

What if no animals were eaten on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day?

Card-Sending

Do some of your card-sending as e-cards, and when sending paper cards use recycled paper

products. Also (if you can find it) use recycled gift wrap, or create your own imaginative, beautiful ecological wrapping.

Decorating:

Turning off the tree lights when no one is around to see (unless you have a solar powered home,

of course!)

Make a tradition of using and keeping a potted living tree instead of buying a newly cut tree

every year.

And speaking of tradition, wouldn't it be great if we started now to dream of a Green Christmas based on Green choices , a life-giving kind of Christmas, that would eventually become the tradition for our children, our grand-children and all the great-grand children in the future beyond our own time?

The Best & the Worst- By Shanti Moorjani October 20, 2017

Sometimes it's the little things that matter and make a difference.  As a "Person of the Planet" we daily make individual decisions that collectively help the environment.  There is one area, however, that is difficult to know about and gets into murky waters.  That is, "which corporations provide us with products that are produced sustainably?" I asked my friend Shirley in Oakland to help with research.  Here are the "Best and the Worst" companies in America.

The coal company Peabody Energy (BTU) came out on the top as the worst US polluter according to a Newsweek study.  Remember this when you are investing.....avoid!     On the same list coming in at #4 of worst companies, is Conagra. Conagra Brands, Inc. is a North American packaged food company that sells to supermarkets and restaurants.  Their empire of food brand names is far reaching.  It has had many major violations against the environment and has paid nearly $73,000,000 in fines.  Michael Pollen, writer of the Omnivores Dilemma and other books, portrays Conagra as a major villain with bad practices and misleading food labeling.

Conagra's list of companies is vast.  As I look over 60+ names of companies under its umbrella,  several names stood out. Here are a few: PAM and Wesson oils, Reddi-Whip-whippped cream,  PeterPan peanut butter, Bertoli Italian olive oil,  Chiffon margarine,  Jiffy Pop popcorn (also Act II),  Marie Callender frozen foods,  Van Camps and Rosario beans, and even Swiss Miss cocoa.  Sorry if I mentioned some of your favorite brands, but if you'd like the whole list, googleConagra brands on line.

As consumers, we do consume, and money does talk.  Perhaps if we boycott or write letters, someone will listen to our concerns.  

To end on a more positive note, Cisco Systems, Inc.  is the number one (#3 on the International list)  American company for the BEST eco-friendly business practices. For consumers, Seventh Generation company puts the safety of their customers first and is willing to take the time and resources to develop quality household products with environmentally friendly practices. Othernotable companies with products we might use are:  The Hershey Company,  Patagonia and Go-Lite outdoor clothing and equipment, New Belgium Brewing company (Flat Tire beer),  IKEA,  Sungevity, and Johnson and Johnson.

If you have more information on food companies with excellent environmental practices, let me know at lshantiom@gmail.com. In the meantime, do your unique part to help transform the planet.  Be sure to show up on Thursday night, October 26 at 7:00pmto be informed about "Why Public Policy Matters".    Dr. Robert "Bob" Epstein will discuss the major global warming bills he help write and get passed in California and more.   See you there.

Visit our Official Page by Clicking Here!

Person of the Planet October 6 & 13, 2017 by Shanti Moorjani

As addictive as TV can be, if watched unchecked, it does serve as a bridge to what's going on outside our insular world.  Our mild climate in California is like living in paradise with its availability to a large slice of the earth's resources.  We have a good life here.   It's hard to put ourselves in the shoes of a refugee, or in the middle of a war.  One such chilling TV segment simulated a nuclear winter.  That was especially chilling, the ultimate game changer.    Closer to home, the recent fires here in Northern California reminds us of how vulnerable we all are.

This "rude" awakening to the reality of our fragile planet, makes me more determined to bring Person of the Planet to the community, the country and the world.  When many individuals unite by sharing their knowledge of thoughtful environmental practices and daily asking the question, “Is this good for the planet?"  For every decision or action, we come closer to making a difference.  There is no other planet option for us out there......let's restore this one.

There is an  Eco-Challenge going on right now for two weeks.  A small group has sign up through the Northwest Institute (www.nwei.org) to make a small change our own behavior.  It is a good chance to make a personal difference.   Here are the categories people could choose from:

·        Health - regular exercise, eat healthy sustainable produce food, quit smoking, etc.........

·        Water - take shorter showers,   use a re-usable bottle for water, drought tolerant landscaping ...

·        Transportation - Use public transportation, walk or bike instead, drive less, etc........

·        Energy - choose LED bulbs, power down the computer, turn off lights, etc........

·        Community - Write letters or emails, attend an environmental lecture, sign a petition, etc....          

The North West Earth Institute (www.nwei.org) is sponsoring this Eco-Challenge from October 11 -25.  We are team Person of the Planet (# 148).  They encourage you to choose one or two things to do.  The key is to "Keep it simple" so you actually do it. 

 If you really hate signing up on line, but would like to do a challenge,  just do it!  As a Person of the Planet you are already asking yourself    "Is this good for the Planet?" when it comes making daily decisions.   With that in mind, do your own personal "eco-challenge"... a little addition to what you already do.  Let us know what you did and what you learned.   You can let us know through my POP email:    lshantiom@gmail.com.

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Faith is a Verb... Musings by Pastor Tony Clark September 29, 2017

These days, there seems to be more anxiety, worry, concern about our present and our future than normal, and I am recognizing that many people seems distracted in day-to-day work. The question for me is, “How do we as people of faith acknowledge this and still go about doing the work of the church?”  We cannot ignore the world we live in, especially when our news is filled with white supremacy riots and the responses from sports stars, stagnating wages, the increasing frequency and destruction of natural disasters, the threat of nuclear war not felt for some 30 years in our country, unstable health care markets, the rising cost of housing in our region, and the uncertainty of our federal government.

We could simply turn off the news and ignore the plight of humans near and far.

However, our faith calls us to do more than turn away from the world around us. In fact, we have discerned from our New Beginnings process this last year and a half that our faith is calling ACC specifically to study and service in the issues of environmental and racial justice. There are lots of places where these two issues intersect; in fact, in worship a few weeks ago we put together 107 hygiene kits for Church World Service to give to people affected by the recent hurricanes, recognizing that in most natural disasters racial minorities are typically more affected. This was a concrete way to deal with the feeling of helplessness in the face of powerful natural and human-made forces in our world.

What else do we as people of faith do to bring peace and calm to an anxious world? We pray and sing, and here at ACC we design gardens. I have wondered whether in these times of extreme uncertainty it makes sense to build a garden and a labyrinth. Couldn’t our energy and money go toward something better? And my answer to myself is, “Well, no actually, it couldn’t.” We have stated that we are called to work on behalf of our planet, we are called to offer some sanctuary and respite from the weary world, so perhaps the best thing we could do when a nuclear show-down looms is to pray and build gardens.

We also have a unique place in our society of open listening to our concerns, and holding the concerns in prayer. To that end, after church, I will invite you to grab a cup of coffee and join me in the Fireside Room to discuss what’s going on in the world and how we interpret that through our progressive Christian faith. What in the Bible, the tradition, or our experience of the faith can guide us? I hope you will join me in those conversations, with the first one starting this Sunday, Oct 1.

Our faith calls us to respond to the world, and, knowing that, the New Beginnings small groups developed an unofficial vision statement that I think speaks to our call as a congregation: “Building a Just Society from the Inspiration of our Faith” (Thanks, Linda Young, for developing this into words for us!!!). 

So even in these tough times, and maybe especially in these tough times, we are called as people of faith to serve, to pray, to bring peace, and to hear others into calm. That is what we do best!

May you know the peace that passes understanding in these days.  

Pastor Tony

Gardening if a Changing Climate

Published:  5 weeks 5 days ago

http://www.cornellbotanicgardens.org/news/gardening.warmer.planet
The rising level of greenhouse gases is warming the earth’s temperature, creating change in our environments. Specifically, in the Finger Lakes region, climate change has resulted in warmer winters, summer droughts, extreme weather events, longer growing seasons, and variable temperatures. All of these related effects change the way plants grow, says Donna Levy, environmental educator responsible for our Climate Change Garden. Levy recently presented “Gardening in a Changing Climate” to Master Gardeners and shared these insights on how gardeners can adapt their gardening to respond to changing environmental conditions.

Plant Selection

Strategically choosing plants to put in your garden can help address changing conditions due to climate change. Trying new plants from warmer hardiness zones, growing several varieties of a vegetables that range in days to maturity, choosing more drought-resistant plants, as well as those that tolerate standing water, are some of the ways to ensure that your garden thrives.

Diversifying and choosing your plants wisely is also a great way to attract pollinators and beneficial insects that keep pests under control.

Cultural practices

Healthy, well-drained soil is key to battling droughts and extreme events. Adding organic matter to soil should always be considered. This can be achieved by incorporating organic materials, such as manure, into the soil or growing cover crops or green manures.

During summer droughts, proper watering techniques and retaining soil moisture are critical. Constructing rain barrels, watering during the cool part of the day to avoid evaporation, and using drip irrigation are ways to conserve water.

Organic mulches such as straw will not only control weeds, but also moderate soil temperatures, retain much needed water, and will in time, breakdown and add important organic matter to the soil, which is the foundation to successful gardens.

Design or Redesign

Can you build a rain garden or a bioswale? Can you add some shade to an area of high water intensity and design an outdoor living space? Layer your garden; use vertical space.

Reduce your Carbon Footprint

Some things you can do:

•    plant trees

•    change your mowing patterns or schedules

•    recycle, reduce, and reuse your gardening materials

•    teach others to do the same

More resources on gardening in a changing climate can be found on Cornell Botanic Garden’s website. Learn more about the Climate Change Demonstration Garden online or visit in person. The garden is located across the street from the Nevin Welcome Center. The garden demonstrates how a variety of plants are effected by projected temperatures in 2050.

Person of the Planet October Speaker Series

Robert Epstein, PhD, co-founder, Environmental Entrepreneurs, co-founder and former EVP, Sybase.  Bob Epstein is an entrepreneur and holds a PhD from UC Berkeley in electrical engineering and computer science, specializing in distributed database systems.

He is Chairman of the NRDC (National Resources Defense Council) Action Fund.  Bob has been heavily involved in founding the Berkeley Food Institute that works to catalyze and support transformative change in food systems, to promote diversity, justice resilience, and health from the local to the global.

Since 2002, California has used its economic power and considerable policy and scientific resources to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while continuing to grow its economy.  This talk will present the various policies and explain why they have been effective and how this leadership has worked in conjunction with cities, states, sub-nations and nations who have also reduced their emissions despite inaction by the Bush administration and hostility by the Trump Administration.

Bob's knowledge of public policy is extensive and proven with successes.  Come and hear from a subject matter expert about this critical topic.

Person of the Planet: It's the Little Things by Shanti Moorjani

One of the beauties of Person of the Planet is the empowerment of the individual.  You can do as much or as little as YOU choose to do. The bottom line is you are in charge and you care about the health of the planet.

There are some interesting ways people I've talked to choose to help the planet:

*Mary in Santa Rosa only buys used clothing or takes friends give away clothes, rather than consuming     more.                                                                                                                            

* My husband uses a "Green World" bio-degradable spray to "wash" his electric car, after reading about the Green Auto Car Wash in Redwood City.  It uses under a cup of water and cars come out looking like they just drove off the lot. 

*Amy in Berkeley only uses her electric appliances before 10 am in the morning and after 9 pm at night.  

*We all re-cycle.  Susan and Stephanie go one step further by checking to make sure everything is in the right bin and the land fill garbage is less.

*John in Berkeley says he has an on and off switch on the shower so he can turn off the flow while lathering up.

*Shirley has taken her Person of the Planet commitment one step further by researching companies that do or do not have sustainable practices.  You would be surprised how many common brand names are from companies that have the worst track record. (more on this next week).

Green habits are good habits.   Be sure you sign up for your own personal eco-challenge, a two week commitment starting in October. See Ruth Robinson's detailed information on how to easily sign up.   Remember, we can individually expand our collective knowledge.

-        Shanti Moorjani