Welcome to the Fourth Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Westchester in Mohegan Lake, New York. 
We are a liberal religious community where members and friends gather to support each other in spiritual journeys
and to give service to the wider world of which we are a part.
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Enter, Rejoice, and Come In!

 
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Our Mission:
We are a caring and inclusive spiritual community of children, youth, and adults who honor differences and support open-minded spiritual exploration and ethical development.

We celebrate life, nurture each other, and provide support in loving and open-hearted acceptance.

We commit ourselves to social justice through action in our local community and the larger world.

New to 4th UU? Click Here!

Online and In-Person Worship

We are holding hybrid services, in person and also livestreamed on Zoom to join from home, generally every two weeks, with virtual coffee hours between. Our services may be led by our minister, a guest speaker, or our members. On our weeks off, we invite you to visit worship at other UU congregations virtually. Learn more in the weekly 4th Word newsletter. To subscribe, contact 4th Word newsletter.  ​​

Sunday, November 26
11:30 am - ZOOM Coffee Hour
We invite you to virtually visit another UU worship this morning, then join us for our online coffee hour, to reconnect.

Sunday, December 3, 10:30am
Open Arms for Refugees
Hybrid Service (In Person & On Zoom)
Join us for a service with Ted Buerger and Zia Gulestani of Open Arms for Refugees, a community sponsorship organization bringing together neighbors, houses of worship, community organizations, and key service providers in Ossining, Cold Spring, and surrounding towns, with the shared mission of welcoming and integrating federally-sponsored refugees into our communities. 

Ted Buerger is the co-founder of Open Arms and lead coordinator of the roughly 100 Open Arms volunteers who have helped resettle 11 households and 35 persons to America since January 2022. Open Arms helped these new neighbors find food and shelter, healthcare, education and ESL classes, jobs, and community. While most households resettled have been Afghanistan, two families are from Colombia and one is from Ukraine.

Zia Gulestani is the Operations Director for Afghanistan and Pakistan with Too Young to Wed, an organization that seeks to protect young girls from child marriage. When Kabul fell, Zia stayed to secretly maintain a network of safe houses for Afghan women hiding from the Taliban. Once discovered by the Taliban, he and his family of five fled to Pakistan. Open Arms welcomed the family at JFK Airport in June 2023, the ninth household that Open Arms has helped resettle. 

Sunday, December 10
11:30 am - ZOOM Coffee Hour
We invite you to virtually visit another UU worship this morning, then join us for our online coffee hour, to reconnect.

Sunday, December 17, 10:30am
Rev. Lane Cobb
Hybrid Service (In Person & On Zoom)
Join us in person or online for our bi-weekly worship service.

Sunday, December 24, 6:00pm
Rev. Lane Cobb
Christmas Eve Service (In Person & On Zoom)
Join us for our annual gathering for the holiday. 
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Our 4th UU worship services and virtual coffee hours may be joined online from your device (computer, iPad, smart phone), or landline phone. Click here to join by device: bit.ly/4thUU-Online​. Phone (audio only): 646-558-8656. Meeting ID 922 824 2044, Passcode 529167.

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Events

​​​Online Fourth UU Biweekly Fellowship with Rev. Cobb 
Meeting every other Monday, 12:30-1:30pm
Next meeting Monday, November 27
Beloveds, as we prepare to enter this season of thanksgiving, we give thanks for the beauty of autumn and the comfort of a caring community. I pray that you are taking time to enjoy the changing of the leaves, and that you will join me when you can for a new fellowship opportunity every other Monday on Zoom.
Log in: us02web.zoom.us/j/84803477155

​​​​Online Fourth UU Journey Group Meetup
Thursday, November 30, 7:00 - 8:30pm
Our Journey Group meets online each week to discuss a common topic as a way to help deepen our understanding and strengthen our connections. Marc Bernstein will facilitate the next discussion on the subject of THE NEED FOR BEAUTY. Download the packet to read beforehand. New participants are always welcome!
Log in: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/93305159526. Or call (audio only) 646-558-8656. Meeting ID 933 0515 9526, Passcode 371728

Online Fourth UU First Friday Meditation Group
Friday, December 8, 7:00-8:30pm
on Zoom 
We will have a check-in followed by a 20-minute silent meditation. Virginia Fair will be giving a talk, Signs from Pets in the Afterlife: Identifying Messages from Pets in Heaven, based on the book by Lyn Ragan. RSVP to Janet Alona (catalina.janet@gmail.com), David Thwaite (dhthwaite@optonline.net) or Bob Do Shin Schavrien (schavrien@optonline.net).
Log in: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/98737158672, or phone (audio only) 646-558-8656. Meeting ID 987 3715 8672, Passcode 529167

Online Fourth UU Book Club
All the Beauty in the World
Date: TBD, 7:30 - 9:00pm
The Fourth UU Book Club is reading All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me, by Patrick Bringley, a former New Yorker magazine staffer who spent a decade as a Met Museum guard. Pick up a copy from the library (available in Westchester as a book, CD audiobook, or digital audiobook), or your local bookstore, or online at bookshop.org, whose sales support local bookstores. Then join us for our next discussion (and potentially a field trip to a nearby museum). All are welcome - even if you haven’t finished the book!

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Message from the Minister,
​Rev. Lane Cobb

A Prayer for Healing

In the aftermath of yet another mass shooting, we look for a solution to the pain that leads to violence. We look for healing as we continue to work for peace within our communities.

May we hold the pain, confusion, anger, and sadness in our hearts, and in our prayers, as we support one another. May we see this as an invitation to move outward from ourselves and not inward. May we trust in the knowledge that love in action is the way to end hatred and be moved to love better and more.

We pray for eternal rest for those who have died. We pray for consolation for their families and friends. We pray for healing and peace in our world. We pray for the courage to act for meaningful, lasting change.

Amen
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From the Pastoral Care Team

​The 4th UU Pastoral Care Team is here to help and support members of the congregation, reaching out during times of hardship, illness, or bereavement. We can arrange food deliveries, transportation, make a phone call, send a card, offer a candle lighting, and more. If you need assistance or know of of another member who does, please let us know. Details can be kept confidential. 

Judy Schavrien (914-962-3737, schavrien@optonline.net)
Carole Ellis (914-260-9182, carole.ellis14@gmail.com)

Rev. Paul Tesshin Silverman is a resource for the 4th UU Pastoral Care Team and our congregation. Members can reach out to him directly at pjsilverman@gmail.com.

In the Community

Yorktown Zen Meditation
Saturday mornings, 9:00 - 11:30am
4th UU Congregation Building, and via Zoom
Join us in creating a community of Zen practitioners in Northern Westchester and Putnam County, NY. We meet every Saturday at 9am for authentic Zen training including two meditation sessions, Dharma talk, and tea ceremony. All meetings are free and open to everyone. We also offer a 30-minute Zoom-only practice session every Wednesday at 8pm. More information can be found on the Yorktown Zen website.

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Rent our facilities for your event!
Donate your time, energy, money
Can't make it to a service? Don't miss a thing! Listen to our podcasts on your computer or phone.

Visit http://daviesjo.podbean.com or search for Fourth Unitarian Society of Westchester under Podcasts on your smart phone.