She’s an icon. A queen of country music, an author, entrepreneur, a voice for working class women, and a philanthropist. She’s Dolly Parton, seemingly beloved by folks of all stripes in our increasingly factionalized country. How does she do it and what can we learn from her “Dolitics,” about reaching across the cultural and ideological … Continue reading Dolly, Indivisible: Reaching Across the Cultural Divide in America
We’ll take a break from in-person services this week by presenting a virtual service, revisiting the sermon provided a year ago by Reverend Robin Zucker. This will be a week earlier than the celebrations which fall at the end of October. We will again present an ancestors’ “virtual altar” to honor Día de los Muertos, … Continue reading A Sermon for All Souls
In our society, and especially in the political sphere, we hear subtle and not so subtle claims to being “Godly.” In this morning’s service, will explore a provocative theological question posed by a 14-year-old UU some years ago in his Coming of Age Credo statement: “Are we dreaming God during our waking hours or is … Continue reading Dreaming God or God Dreaming
In the words of liberal Christian minister, John Pavlovitz: “The Church of Not Being Horrible will gather every week to celebrate the inherent goodness of people. We’ll share stories of the ways we succeeded in being less than horrible to our families, coworkers, and strangers, and we’ll challenge ourselves to be even less horrible in … Continue reading The Church of Not Being Horrible
A sage once remarked that “you can never step into the same river twice,” meaning that life, like a river, is ever-changing and forever flowing downstream from its Source. In this service, we’ll launch our boat down the rushing river, lean in to some rocks, and find strategies to let go into the flow. View … Continue reading We’ve Known Rivers: On the Constancy of Change
He has been called a philosopher, a dark poet, and a troubadour of truth for generations. Leonard Cohen, who died in 2016 at age 82, expressed a progressive theology with both Jewish and Christian dimensions in his sharply perceptive and heartfelt songs and poems about religion, politics, isolation, relationships, and community. In this service of … Continue reading Broken Hallelujah: The Theology of Leonard Cohen
In this service, we’ll take a closer look at three distinct and interconnected faces of the Bible’s first acknowledged cis-gender female. They are the face of the temptress, the face of the wise woman goddess, and the face of the homemaker and mother – each offering us something valuable about women, even if we need … Continue reading Mother’s Day: The Three Faces of Eve
All across the planet, human beings are experiencing what some have called “The Great Pause.” As we’ve sheltered indoors this past year, we’ve read reports that skies are clear in Los Angeles, fish are visible in the canals of Venice, and wildlife are roaming freely in high-traffic National Parks (and in urbans areas, too!). Even … Continue reading We Are The Blue Boat Home: A Service for Earth Day
In the Parable of the Widow’s Mite, an impoverished woman tosses two copper coins into the Treasury. Is this meager or substantial? Can we applaud her contribution or do we view it as insufficient? Is it enough to create a feeling of abundance and gratitude? This morning, as we launch our annual Stewardship campaign, we … Continue reading Stewardship Sunday: Two Copper Coins: The Effort Is The Standard
Jazz is a different drummer’s kind of music and Unitarian Universalism is a different drummer’s kind of religion. In fact, the parallels between the two are quite remarkable. Both have evolved from more strident and orthodox forms, and both have been shaped by numerous sources. More than anything, though, Jazz and UUism are each deeply … Continue reading Unitarian Universalism as Jazz!
