This service is at Prairie Society at 10:00 am (2010 Whenona Dr.), and will be followed by a potluck meal – please bring a dish to share. Across December’s darkness, communities worldwide practice sacred waiting. Christians prepare for Christmas, Jews kindle Hanukkah lights, and Pagans follow the turning of the Wheel of the Year toward … Continue reading Waiting Together: Faith Traditions and Darkness
We got to see a brilliant show of color and light earlier this month, and now the days grow even shorter and most of the leaves have let go, and are lying on the ground, brown and crunchy. This reminds us that cycles of change are continual, and change can be ungrounding. This morning, we’ll … Continue reading Letting Go and Falling Apart
As our theme for the month implies, gratitude doesn’t just arise on its own. It’s a practice that we grow, and one of the ways we grow it is through reciprocity – the idea that giving and receiving is an exchange. This morning, we’ll explore gratitude as a relational practice of reciprocity. [Image from: commons.wikimedia.org] … Continue reading Growing Gratitude with the Three Sisters
An ancestor service No matter our relationship with our blood family/ancestors, each of us carries their hopes and actions in some way. This morning, as we begin a theme of “nurturing gratitude,” we’ll explore finding appreciation in our lineage, and what our descendants might appreciate about us as their ancestors. And we’ll honor our ancestors … Continue reading Living in the 200-Year Present
A sermon by Rev. Tess Baumberger, read by Susan Podebradsky “As human beings we are perhaps prone to fundamentalist thinking. It seems to me that this need to be right, and the need for others to be wrong, is part of human nature. Universalism calls us to counter that tendency with compassion whenever we find … Continue reading Finding the Courage to Love
Many religious traditions include compassion as one of their foundational tenets, and the word appears several times in our Unitarian Universalist statement of shared values. This morning, we’ll explore ways we might cultivate compassion individually and collectively, and what it might call us to do. [Image from Soul Matters] Worship Associate: Liz Chapa, Special Music: … Continue reading Cultivating Compassion
We’ve spent time this month exploring some of the tangible ways we build circles of belonging. This morning, inspired by Rising Appalachia singing “We are moving in wider circles / We are opening our circle” (listen to this wonderful song here), we’ll explore what it might look and feel like to build wider circles, using … Continue reading Wider Circles
September 22 marks the autumnal equinox. We’ll honor this holiday, called Mabon in some Earth-Based traditions, with song, ritual, and reflection on our relationship to the Earth. One aspect of Mabon rituals is giving thanks for the harvest, and sharing with those who are less fortunate. You are invited to bring one or more non-perishable food … Continue reading Belonging to the Earth
More and more people describe themselves as lonely these days, and our awareness of the impacts of loneliness is growing. This morning, we’ll explore some of the effects and some of the antidotes to loneliness. [Image from Soul Matters] Worship Associate: Marti Everett Share the Plate – click here to donate Click here for this … Continue reading Alone Together?
It’s time for our annual ingathering and water communion service! This morning, we’ll explore water’s movement; sometimes it’s still, and sometimes it brings waves big enough to knock us over. Bring water that holds meaning for you to blend in our communal bowl! Photo by Karen Armina Worship Associate: Stephen Rich Special Music from the … Continue reading It Comes In Waves – Water Communion
