Unity Church-Unitarian Sunday Services Podcast
Sermons from Unity Church Unitarian, in Saint Paul, MN
Here is the link to listen to the congregational meeting led by Rev. Jen Crow on January 12, 2020: https://www.unityunitarian.org/ministerial-transition.html
About the Music
The music for this service, which integrates Latinx and indigenous perspectives, was chosen to reference and honor values of the Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration.
Lady Xøk is a Nu-Nueva music project mixing Indigenous instruments, electronic, acoustic, and experimental performance and multimedia installations. Front woman interdisciplinary artist Rebekah Crisanta de Ybarra pulls from roots in Latin American Nueva Canción and American Blues. Members are Rebekah Crisanta de Ybarra (vocals, piano, guitar) and Xilam Balam (bass, Indigenous instruments).
Curandero is a Twin-Cities based sound-healing project whose music presents a fusion of pre-Columbian Indigenous instruments, house, and dance hall. Curandero's music brings together traditional indigenous instrumentation and rhythms of Mesoamerica (Mexico) with electronic DJ elements and production. Members are Gustavo Lira, Xilam Balam, and Rico Simon Mendez (DJ Don Cuco).
Ahmed Anzalduúa, Director of Music Ministries, piano
ORDER OF WORSHIP
Sunday, October 27, 2019
*Please rise in body or in spirit.
Gathering Music
Words of Welcome Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs
Ringing of the Bell
PRELUDE (9:00/11:00) Round and Round (traditional round) The Earth Is Our Mother (Cherokee song) Tulla Wallace, soloist
Prelude (4:30) Eintritt (Entry) — R. SchumannCall to Worship Bob PeskinLighting the Chalice
*Opening Hymn (18) What Wondrous Love*
Responsive Affirmation Brave Space — Micky ScottBey Jones
Together we will create brave space
Because there is no such thing as a “safe space”
We exist in the real worldWe all carry scars and we have all caused wounds.
In this spaceWe seek to turn down the volume of theoutside world,
We amplify voices that fight to be heardelsewhere,
We call each other to more truth and love
We have the right to start somewhere and continue to grow.
We have the responsibility to examine what we think we know,
We will not be perfect.This space will not be perfect.
It will not always be what we wish it to be
ButUnison: It will be our brave space together, and we will work in it side by side.
Silence
Embracing Meditation
Minister's Prayer
Anthem (9:00/11:00) Amo (Love) — N. Gutiérrez
Todo, todos, se han idoSólo me acompañan mis recuerdosCon los cuales unos ratos yo lloroY en ocasiones logro a sonreirLos amo
Everything, everyone, has leftI am accompanied only by my memoriesWith which sometimes I cryAnd sometimes I manage to smileI love them (or I love you, or I love you all)
Anthem (4:30) The Sky Above the Roof — R. Vaughan Williams
CHILDREN’S RECESSIONAL (11:00) Children’s Blessing — Jason Shelton
May your mind be open to new learning. May your lips bring truth into the world. May your heart know love, and your hands do the work of justice, as you go your way in peace, as you go your way in peace.
Reading excerpt from The Fire Next Time — James Baldwin
Reflection My History and Yours
Interlude
Offering (9:00/11:00) Con amores la mi madre (With love my mother) — J. Anchieta
Con amores, la mi madre, con amores m´adormi.Así dormida soñaba, lo qu´el corazón velaba,Qu´el amor me consolaba, con mas bien que merecí.
With love my mother, with love she lay me to sleep.And that way I dreamed of what was weighing on my heart.Her love consoled me, with more goodness than I deserved.
Offering (4:30) Morgen! — R. Strauss
Und morgen wird die Sonne wieder scheinenund auf dem Wege, den ich gehen werde,wird uns, die Glücklichen sie wieder eineninmitten dieser sonnenatmenden Erde...und zu dem Strand, dem weiten, wogenblauen,werden wir still und langsam niedersteigen,stumm werden wir uns in die Augen schauen,und auf uns sinkt des Glückes stummes Schweigen...
And tomorrow the sun will shine againand on the way that I will go,she will again unite us, the happy onesamidst this sun-breathing earth,and to the beach, wide, wave-bluewill we still and slowly descendsilently we will look in each other's eyesand upon us will sink the mute silence of happiness...
Sung Response Turn the World Around
We come from the mountain (ocean, fire, heartland, story, mountain)
Living in the mountainGo back to the mountain
Turn the world around.
Dedication
Reading excerpt from Praise Song for the Widow — Paule Marshall
Interlude
Sermon Forgive Us Our Debts
*Closing Hymn (139) Wonders Still the World Shall Witness
Benediction
POSTLUDE Asbchied (Farewell) — R. Schumann
Worship Associate is Maima Fant
Includes a reflection offered by Michael Orange.
The text of Karen Hering's poem, “Here,” recited at the end of the sermon: http://karenhering.com/a-poem-for-living-through-change/
Hallowed Be Thy Name Translation -- Rev. Karen Hering
This audio begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Helen Pohlig.
Gathering Music
Ringing the Bell
Prelude Away in a Manger — James Murray, arr. Fred Bock
Call to Worship Helen Pohlig
Lighting the Chalice
*Opening Hymn Joy to the World
*Unison Affirmation (615) The Work of Christmas
Silence
Embracing Meditation Nic Cable
Minister’s Prayer
Interlude
Reading A Christmas Poem (adapted) — Dr. Maya Angelou
Interlude
Reflection Mary, Did You Know?
*Hymn of Affirmation (409) Sleep, My Child
Homily My Lord, What a Morning
*Closing Hymn (232) The Hills Are Bare at Bethlehem
Benediction
Postlude On This Day Earth Shall Ring — Personent Hodie, set by John Carter
About the Worship Leader
Nic Cable is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He graduated from DePaul University with a degree in Religious Studies, as well as Peace, Justice, and Conflict Studies. Nic received his Master of Divinity from Chicago Theological Seminary in 2014. In the few years prior to coming to Unity Church, he lived in Michigan where his wife pursued her law degree. During this time, Nic worked full time for the UUA in Stewardship and Development, and part time with the UU Church of Greater Lansing. Nic feels blessed to learn and grow as a ministerial intern at Unity Church this year and is looking forward to getting to know the community.
About the Worship Associate
Worship Associate, Helen Pohlig, was raised Lutheran and explored several spiritual traditions before finding her home at Unity Church when she moved back to St. Paul seven years ago. She teaches business law seminars around the country and also does legal document review on a part-time basis. Helen lives in south Maplewood and spends much of her spare time doing various kinds of social dancing.
About the Musician
Priscilla Morton (piano) enjoys volunteering as the accompanist for the Unity children’s choir. She also enjoys her new part-time retirement career in counseling and the extra time allowed for hobbies like table tennis (the seniors at the Y are killer players) and modern dance. Priscilla has recently added a small terrier and two capable students to her household — all of whom add joy to her life.
ORDER OF WORSHIP
Sunday, December 11, 2016
Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs, Co-Minister
Kevin Ward, Worship Associate
Ringing the Bell
Prelude Andante con moto — Alexandre Guilmant
Call to Worship Kevin Ward
Chalice Lighting
*Opening Hymn (295) Sing Out Praises for the Journey
*Unison Affirmation (463)
Silence
When I breathe in, I breathe in peace. When I breathe out, I breathe out love.
Minister’s Prayer Janne Eller-Isaacs
Interlude
Offering
Offering Music Michelangelo’s On Beauty — Kurt Knecht
Readings
Twenty Questions After November 9 — Marg Walker
The Sycamore — Wendell Berry
*Hymn of Affirmation (55) Dark of Winter
Sermon The Bark Heals the Wound
*Closing Hymn (225) O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
Benediction
Postlude Noel — Claude Balbastre
Kevin Ward has been attending Unity Church since 2010 with his spouse, Jessica Goff, and children, Murray and Olive Goff. Kevin has been an English Language Arts teacher at Avalon School since 2002.
About the Musicians
Unity Choir is the foundation on which our music program is built and is a vital and energetic presence in our community. Its members share various levels of musical experience and a wide variety of activities and interests, all of which are brought together by their love of singing. Ruth Palmer, Director
About the Offering Recipient
Avenues for Homeless Youth is a transitional housing program for twenty youth, ages 16-20. Its North Minneapolis location, staffed 24 hours a day, provides basic shelter needs, meals, intensive case management, health and wellness care, independent living skills, and help with education and employment help. The average stay at Avenues is between 90 and 120 days. Avenues also manages a host family program for homeless, queer-identified youth, the majority of whom are people of color.
This audio begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Angela Wilcox.
ORDER OF WORSHIP
Sunday, December 4, 2016
Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs, Co-Minister
Angela Wilcox, Worship Associate
Gathering Music
Words of Welcome Rob Eller-Isaacs
Ringing the Bell
Prelude
Something Within — words and music Lucie Eddie Campbell; arr. Robert L. Morris
... Something within me I cannot explain. All that I know there is something within.
Call to Worship Angela Wilcox
Chalice Lighting
*Opening Hymn Earth Moves in a Mysterious Way
Earth moves in a mysterious way, her wonders to unfold
She fashions beauty out of clay, like straw spun into gold
I lose her voice amid the din, and clamor all around
But if I listen to the wind, I hear her sacred sound
And though this human enterprise, is poised ’tween hope and hell,
Earth circles in her endless dance, and whispers “All is well”
Earth moves in a mysterious way, her wonders to unfold
She fashions beauty out of clay, our mother and our home
*Responsive Affirmation (439) We Gather in Reverence
Silence
When I breathe in, I breathe in peace. When I breathe out, I breathe out love.
Embracing Meditation
Minister’s Prayer
Interlude
Offering Music
The Heaven’s Flock (Paulann Petersen) — Eriks Ešenvalds
Stars, you are the heavens’ flock tangling your pale wool across the night sky.
Stars, you’re bits of oily fleece catching on barbs of darkness to swirl in black wind.
You appear, disappear by thousands, scattered wide to graze but never straying.
While I, a mere shepherd of these words, am lost.
What can I do but build a small blaze and feed it with branches the trees let fall:
that twiggy clatter strewn along the ground.
And lichen crusting such dead limbs glows silver, glows white.
The earthfood for a fire so unlike and like your own. Oh, what can I do but build a small blaze.
Readings Sweet Darkness — David Whyte
Leaf Huts and Snow Houses — Olav H. Hauge
Interlude
Reflection Deep Listening
*Hymn of Affirmation
Listen, listen, listen to my heart’s song. (2x)
I will never forget you. I will never forsake you. (2x)
Sermon Love Begins With Listening
*Closing Hymn (226) People, Look East
Benediction
Postlude Allegretto — Daquin
About the Worship Associate
Angela Wilcox was pulled to Unity Church ten years ago by her children, after they attended one day of religious education and declared that this was “for sure” their church. They were right. Those two children, Lucy and Nelson, have now launched themselves to Los Angeles and Scotland, and Angela is focusing more of her energy on issues of equity in education and cultivating a healthy sense of curiosity of what’s next. She lives in St. Paul and is grateful that we no longer have to pay large sums of money to make long distance phone calls.
About the Musicians
Unity Singers is Unity Church’s auditioned, a cappella, chamber choir. Each singer’s involvement is built on a passion for singing and willingness to work towards an ensemble of excellence capable of sharing varied musical genres with the community. All singers volunteer their talents to offer the musical gift of this ensemble and are deeply involved in the life of this church community. Ruth Palmer, Director
About the Music
Luci Eddie Campbell (1885-1963) stands fourth in the line as one of the creators of Gospel Music. She is the first woman composer of Gospel music in the Black American Tradition. Her Gospel ballads, coupled then-current everyday language with archaic words to provide an impressive and emotional look into the singer’s mind and soul. She preferred the songs to be performed using both Gospel and European singing traditions. A good number of her existing songs have made their way into music books of almost every denomination that sings hymns.
Robert L. Morris is a highly respected choral conductor and teacher. Locally he taught at Macalester College and Concordia University. He is founder and artistic director of the Leigh Morris Chorale.
ORDER OF WORSHIP
Sunday, November 27, 2016
Nic Cable, Ministerial Intern
Rochelle Lockridge, Worship Associate
Gathering Music It is Well with My Soul
Philip P. Bliss; arr. John Purifoy
Prelude Present — Footfall
If you ever wonder if I am thinking of you
Watch the rain fall on our hearts
It makes its mark to wash the darkness away
If I ever wonder if you are here beside me
Watch the tears fall on our souls
Where we hold hope and love all our days
And if we ever wonder if we can walk the long road
Watch the sun give us this gift of the day
As we make our way through the here and now
Call to Worship Rochelle Lockridge
*Opening Hymn (6) Just as Long as I Have Breath
*Responsive Reading (610) The Journey of Love
Silence
When I breathe in, I breathe in peace. When I breathe out, I breathe out love.
Embracing Meditation
Minister’s Prayer
Interlude Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing
arr. Carol Tornquist
Offering Music Sister, Sit on Down — Footfall
Sister, sit on down. Sister, sit on sit on down. Sister, sit on down
Tell me something I don’t know
Tell me something about where you want to go
Tell me something I forgot about to love or hope or know
Make a space to let it in
Take a break to start your heart again
Wake up knowing that it’s easy to find yourself a friend
Talk your way onto the ride
Shake off the shadows of your pride
Walk into the world knowing that we’re right here by your side
Readings A Hidden Wholeness — Parker Palmer
A Sikh Prayer for America on November 9, 2016 — Valarie Kaur
*Hymn of Affirmation (1) May Nothing Evil Cross This Door
Sermon The Power of the Shared Table
*Closing Hymn I Know I Can
Benediction
Postlude Peace Call — Woodie Guthrie/arr. Footfall
Open your hearts to the paradise to the peace of heavenly angels
Take away that woeful shadow dancing on your wall
Take to the skies of peace of friends, of the peace of one great spirit
Get ready for my bugle call of peace
Chorus: Peace peace peace
I can hear the bugle sounding, roaming around my land, my city and my town
Peace peace peace
I can hear the voices ringing, louder while my bugle calls for peace
If these storms fill your heart with a thousand kinds of worry
Keep to my road of peace, you’ll never have to fear
Keep in the sun and look around, in the face of peace and plenty
Get ready for my bugle call of peace
I’ll clear my house of the weed of fear and turn to the friends around me
With my smile of peace, I’ll greet them one and all
I’ll work, I’ll fight, I’ll dance, I’ll sing, of peace of the youthful spirit
Get ready for my bugle call of peace
About the Worship Leader
Nic Cable is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He graduated from DePaul University with a degree in Religious Studies, as well as Peace, Justice, and Conflict Studies. Nic received his Master of Divinity from Chicago Theological Seminary in 2014. In the few years prior to coming to Unity Church, he lived in Michigan where his wife pursued her law degree. During this time, Nic worked full time for the UUA in Stewardship and Development, and part time with the UU Church of Greater Lansing. Nic feels blessed to learn and grow as a ministerial intern at Unity Church this year and is looking forward to getting to know the community.
About the Worship Associate
Rochelle Lockridge was lured by the sweet siren’s song of the Unity Choir singing from the balcony in 2002. She has been a member of the choir and the Unity Church family ever since. After careful consideration she has expanded her involvement to include serving as a worship associate. Rochelle lives in Maplewood, newly venturing out to build her own management consulting business. In addition to following her passions in grand-parenting, music, and digital storytelling, she has recently rediscovered the joys of Ballroom dancing.
About the Musicians
Footfall is what happened when folk, punk, rock, classical and good common sense converged. If a label helps, alt country is where we landed. We hope you’ll agree but mostly just want you along for the ride. Footfall is Jim Christiansen and Debbie Cushman. We’ve been playing music together for about fifteen years. Jim plays guitar, slide guitar and mandolin. He also sings a mean harmony line and can be nudged into lead. Debbie brings guitar, vocals, piano and dreams of fiddle playing. Songwriting is shared and so is banter over covers. The day jobs pay for the gear. The music feeds the soul.
Kathleen Bartholomay, a long-time member, has enjoyed a rich history of musical involvement at Unity Church: accompanying Unity’s adult choir, coordinating summer music, and sharing her musical gifts in recitals, memorial services, weddings, and other occasions. She sings with the St. Paul Vocal Forum, and is completing her training to become a music therapist. Kathleen holds a Master of Music degree from University of Nebraska-Lincoln. www.twincitiespianist.com
ORDER OF WORSHIP
Sunday, November 13, 2016
Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs, Co-Minister
Heidi Huelster, Worship Associate
Gathering Music
Words of Welcome Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs
Ringing the Bell
PRELUDE Sicilienne — Fritz Kreisler
Call to Worship Heidi Huelster
Lighting the Chalice
*Opening Hymn (128) For All That Is Our Life
*Responsive Reading (515) We Lift Our Hearts in Thanks
Silence
Embracing Meditation
Minister’s Prayer
Interlude Deep Peace (Traditional Gaelic blessing) — Bill Douglas
Deep peace of the running wave to you.
Deep peace of the flowing air to you.
Deep peace of the quiet earth to you.
Deep peace of the shining stars to you.
Deep peace of the gentle night to you.
Moon and stars pour their healing light on you.
Deep peace to you.
Offering
Offering Music Affetuoso (from Sonata in D Major) — George Frederic Handel
Readings
You Must Try to Praise the Mutilated World — Adam Zagajewski
Accidents of Birth — William Meredith
*Hymn of Affirmation (123) Spirit of Life
Sermon Cultivating Gratitude
*Closing Hymn (318) We Would Be One
Benediction
POSTLUDE Berceuse, Op. 16 — Gabriel Faure
About the Worship Associate
Heidi Huelster and her husband Josh were married at Unity in 2002, and have been calling it their church ever since. Heidi is currently working on her Masters at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, where she gets riled up about education policy and parent outreach. She enjoys travel, playing the piano, producing the podcast Parent Town, cooking, and seeing art. The coolest thing she gets to do is call herself “mom” to her children, Mimi, Howard, and Zoe, who pretty much amaze and make her laugh every day.
About the Musicians
Wendy Tangen-Foster is violinist, teacher, and performer whose passion is helping others connect through music. She is the director of Ms. Wendy’s Suzuki Violin Studio in Saint Paul where children and adult students learn to build character, sensitivity, confidence, and expressivity through studying the violin as part of a joyfully vibrant community of families. With over 20 years of Suzuki and music teaching experience, Wendy loves to travel and share her joy and passion for music at Suzuki workshops around the country. A dynamic performer, Wendy plays regularly with Rogue Tango on Sundays at the Loring Pasta Bar, and with CharangaTropical, a nine-piece salsa band with strings. Wendy makes her home in Northeast Minneapolis where she enjoys running, playing backgammon, cooking, going to art shows, and jamming with friends. Ms. Wendy’s Suzuki Violin Studio is currently accepting new students. Her studio theme this year is cultivating gratitude. wendysuzukiviolin@gmail.com
Unity Choir is the foundation on which our music program is built and is a vital and energetic presence in our community. Its members share various levels of musical experience and a wide variety of activities and interests, all of which are brought together by their love of singing. Ruth Palmer, Director (9:00/11:00)
About the Offering Recipient
Growth and Justice is a non-partisan, non-profit, research and advocacy organization, focused on expanding prosperity in Minnesota. It promotes policies that reduce inequality and that eliminate racial disparity, through investment in human capital and public infrastructure, by ensuring universal and affordable health care, and through a cleaner and greener economy. Unity Church member Dane Smith is president of Growth and Justice.
Assistive Listening System
To access the sanctuary’s assistive listening system, please switch your hearing aid to “T” or request headphones or assistance from an usher.
Worship Associate: Avi Viswanathan
On this audio:
Excerpt from Lincoln's First Inaugural Address
Reflection offered by Bill Doherty
Excerpt from Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address
Reflection offered by Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs
This audio begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Brian Newhouse.
This audio begins with a reflection offered by Rev. Dave Ruffin.
This audio begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Angela Wilcox.
This audio begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Heidi Mastrud.
This audio includes a story for all ages offered by Rev. KP Hong followed by an Easter message offered by Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs
This audio begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Heidi Mastrud.
This service begins with worship associate Rene Meyer-Grimberg reading March Parish Hall artist Ken Starlin's artist statement. Following Rob's reflection, there is a writing prompt offered by community editors from St. Paul Almanac.
This audio begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Heidi Mastrud.
This podcast begins with a Story for All Ages offered by Rev. KP Hong.
This podcast begins with a Story for All Ages offered by Director of Religious Education Rev. KP Hong.
Here are links to the books Dane references in his sermon:
http://www.amazon.com/Harvest-Empire.../dp/0143119281
http://www.amazon.com/Half.../dp/046500296X/ref=sr_1_1...
http://www.amazon.com/Slavery.../dp/0385722702/ref=sr_1_1...
http://www.amazon.com/Between-World-Me-Ta.../dp/B00SEFAIRI
http://www.yesmagazine.org/
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Avi Viswanathan.
This Memorial Day Sunday worship service audio begins with a reflection written by Unity Church member Michael Orange and read by Worship Associate Terri Burnor.
Arthur Foote Music Sunday Order of Service (PDF)
Individual Tracks: Please click HERE to listen to individual tracks.
- Spiegel im Spiegel - Arvo Pärt
- Words of Welcome
- Peace Flows Into Me - Jake Runestad
- Call to Worship/Peace Chant/Responsive Reading (Thich Nhat Hanh)
- Nada Te Turbe - Jake Runestad // Soloists: Brian Newhouse, Chris Crosby-Schmidt
- Prayer
- A Breathing Peace - Daniel Elder // Soloists: Cathy Crosby-Schmidt, Mary Baremore
- Reflection
- Sing Wearing the Sky - Jake Runestad // Soloists: Jeannine Robinette, Anna Meek
- Offering words
- I Am - Melanie Horn
- Dansi Na Kiumba - Swahili partner song
- Deep in the Quiet Woods - James Weldon Johnson
- The Peace of Wild Things - Jake Runestad
- Reflection
- We Can Mend the Sky - Jake Runestad // Soloists: KrisAnne Weiss, Teresa Tierney, Blake Morgan
- Prayer and Benediction
- Postlude
Personnel List
Unity Choir
Unity Singers
Women's Ensemble
Children's Choir
Worship Associate: Marg Walker
Readers: Marg Walker, Don Lee, Brian Newhouse
Violin: Nancy Oliveros
Percussion: Elizabeth Giffin, Steve Lewis
Children's Choir Director: Kathleen Radspinner
Children's Choir Pianist: Priscilla Morton
Pianist and Musical Assistant: Kathy Kraulik
Director of Music Ministries: Ruth Palmer
Ministers: Janne and Rob Eller-Isaacs
About Arthur Foote Music Sunday
Arthur Foote was minister at Unity Church from 1945-1970. Upon his death in 1999 the Arthur Foote Music Fund was created as a permanent endowment to provide an annual music Sunday in his memory. Currently the endowment supports a portion of Foote Music Sunday expenses. Click here to make an online donation to the fund and include "Arthur Foote Music Fund" in the comments section. Thank you!
This sermon podcast begins with a reflection on Coming of Age offered by Drew Danielson, Unity's Coordinator of Youth and Campus Ministry, and then a Collage of Voices of the 2015 Coming of Age class credos.
This podcast begins with a collage of voices offered by members of the group who traveled to Selma in March as part of the 50th anniversary of the march for voting rights. The collage is followed first by a reflection offered by Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs and then a reflection offered by Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs.
This audio has two reflections delivered on Easter Sunday 2015. The first by Rev. Janne and the second by Rev. Rob.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Neil Bray.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Heidi Mastrud.
This sermon podcast begins with eulogies of prominent people who died during 2014.
This audio includes a reflection offered by worship associate Helen Pohlig and two readings from Genesis, 22:1-10 and 22:11-19.
This audio includes a reflection offered by Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs and a Story for All Ages told by Rev. K.P. Hong.
This audio begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Heidi Mastrud.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Diane Ross.
Three reflections offered (in order) by Rick Koyle, Joan Velasquez, and Segundo Velasquez.
This podcast is a series of reflections offered by Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs and worship associate Ray Wiedmeyer.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Don Lorr.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Mary-Margaret Zindren.
This podcast begins with a collage of reflections from Unity's 2014 Coming of Age class.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Neil Bray.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Helen Pohlig.
This sermon is based on the song, Stones in the River. You can listen to the song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhgKxWGCj-c
This audio begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Bailey Webster.
This podcast begins with eulogies for public figures who died in 2013.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Ray Wiedmeyer.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by Worship Associate Bailey Webster.
This podcast begins with a Story for All Ages offered by Director of Religious Education Rev. K.P. Hong.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Drew Ross.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Neil Bray.
This sermon is from Pledge Drive Sunday.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Ray Wiedmeyer.
A compilation of reflections offered by members of Unity's Mano a Mano Community Outreach Ministry Teams.
This podcast begins with the Buddhist parable, "The Monk and the Strawberry."
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Steve Harper.
This podcast features two reflections. The first offered by Hallman Ministerial Intern Mae Gibson Wall. The second offered by Unity's Co-Minister Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs.
This sermon podcast begins with a reflection offered by Drew Danielson, Unity's Coordinator of Youth and Campus Ministries, about Coming of Age. It also includes a Collage of Voices from Unity's 2013 Coming of Age class.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by Unity's Ministerial Intern Jim Foti.
This sermon podcast begins with a reflection offered by Worship Associate Ray Wiedmeyer.
This sermon podcast begins with a Story for All Ages told by Unity's Director of Religious Education Kerri Meyer.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Bailey Webster.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Mary-Margaret Zindren.
Begins with a homily delivered by Worship Associate Ray Wiedmyer.
Begins with a homily by Derek Mitchell, Director of the Unitarian Universalist Holdeen India Program.
Includes eulogies from Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs and Hallman Ministerial Intern Mae Gibson Wall.
Begins with a reflection from Worship Associate Sherry Essen.
Includes a Story for All Ages delivered by Director of Religious Education Kerri Meyer.
This podcast begins with a reflection offered by worship associate Ray Wiedmeyer.
Two reflections offered by Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs and Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs.
High School Senior Bridging Sunday
This podcast includes a Story for All Ages told by Interim Religious Education Assistant Mary Blouin Auffert.
Podcast includes selected eulogies of those who died in 2011 as well as a homily entitled "The New Normal" offered by Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs.
Includes A Story for All Ages read by Jim Foti, Ministerial Intern.
Includes a collage of voices from pilgrims who have traveled to our partner church in Homorszentpeter, Transylvania.
Unity Tomorrow Sunday
This sermon begins with a "Collage of Voices" which is a collection of writings from members of the congregation on the topic of hospitality.
Begins with a Memorial Day reflection from Worship Associate Michael Orange.
A three-part homily.
MLK service with Story for All Ages from Kerri Meyer included.
Includes eulogies and homily.
Three reflections
Includes a collage of voices from villagers in Homorodszentpeter as well as from members of Unity's Partner Church Team. Homily delivered by Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs.
Includes a reflection on covenant by Rev. Karen Hering
On the eve of General Assembly in Minneapolis, join Lissa Gundlach, Worship Associate Ann Kirby McGill and Nathan Eckstein for a special service celebrating Lissa’s ministry at Unity and exploring dimensions of belonging to the larger body of Unitarian Universalists.
"It is easy to live after the world’s opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great person is the one who, in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude." Emerson’s words point toward a creative response to the inherent tension between independence and belonging. As we turn toward summer Rob and Worship Associate Nick Raths will offer the service.
Like concentric circles rippling out on a pond, we belong to ever expanding groups: first to ourselves, then to our family and extended families, our communities, neighborhoods, nation, the world, and to the planet itself. Janne and Worship Associate Katy Taylor will explore the roles of belonging and letting go.
Memorial Day service. Includes reflection from Michael Orange.
Flower Communion Sunday
As we express our gratitude to the volunteer Religious Education teachers who have made our Ministry with Children and Youth a reality, worship leader and Director of Religious Education, Kerri Meyer, will pause to reflect on the causes and the consequences of R.E.'s growth in both enrollment and commitment. We wrestle with crowded Sunday School classrooms, but can we actually ever have “too many kids”? As the psalmist sang, our quiver is full. Now where shall we aim our bow?
Our Universalist forbearers used the phrase "our larger hope" to refer to their belief in universal salvation. How many of us have come to know God’s love because our mothers have given us the kind of love "we did not earn and cannot buy," a love that is so very much like grace.
Some of life’s important rites of passage come to us as a matter of chronological growth, development and an increasing ability to assume responsibility. Other transformations come to us much more subtly without fanfare.
We are transformed by forces outside ourselves but we can welcome or resist those forces.
From the days of the Pilgrims and Puritans, our free-church tradition has been shaped and transformed by history, maintaining its core message while responding to the social and spiritual signs of the times. Taking a look back into our past, Lissa Gundlach and Worship Associate Amy Kujawski explore directions of our shared faith in a quickly changing world.
Easter Sunday homily from Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs. Includes the much requested A Story for All Ages delivered by Kerri Meyer.
It is so easy to be captured by the myth of progress. It’s not that there is no such thing as progress but it is neither inevitable nor orderly. As young people we imagine our personal lives will conform to certain patterns of progress. And as a culture we tend toward the assumption that progress is "onward and upward forever." There are aspects of the myth both personal and collective that need to be broken. Janne Eller-Isaacs and Worship Associate Hal Freshly will lead the service.
Welcome the Rev. Robert Balint, the 2009-10 Balazs Scholar from Starr King School for the Ministry. Balint is minister of the Unitarian Church in Meszko, the alabaster village in Transylvania where Francis Balazs for whom the fellowship is named once served. In addition to his theological studies, Balint has completed a degree in sociology at Kolozsvár Babes Bolyai University. He has been involved in the Unitarian youth movement and worked with local social and charity organizations. With others, he has started the Balázs Ferenc Historical Preservation Project, designed to preserve and promote Francis Balázs's spiritual and material heritage.
It is often difficult to find meaning in the midst of brokenness. Perhaps a deeper question is attempting to find the Sacred in the midst of suffering. What, if anything, is holy or redemptive in suffering? How can our lives be changed for the better from our brokenness? The age old question of “Where is God in my suffering?” is not easily answered, if answered at all. How we respond to brokenness can be painful, as well as beautiful. Join Coordinator of Youth and Campus Ministries Luke Stevens-Royer and Worship Associate Katy Taylor for a service on brokenness and compassion.
Reflections on scarcity and abundance.
For more than a hundred years Unity Church has faced south. We have been a liberal church for old St. Paul. Our congregation has largely come from the nearby neighborhoods of Ramsey and Crocus Hills. What might it mean for us to turn north? Caritas, the fourth form of love, calls us to come to know the neighbors we have yet to know.
When a person can "Friend" and "Unfriend" someone on the internet without ever interacting, what has friendship come to mean? Might it have something to do with the idea of face-to-face "presence?" Rev. Karen Hering explore dimensions of the Greek form of love known as philia, or friendship, in building spiritual communities.
A Standing on the Side of Love Valentine's Day service.
All our wise and heartfelt words amount to dust and ashes if we don’t live out our values in the world. Rob and Worship Associate Amy Kujawski will begin our series of services on love by taking a long, hard look at the way of love the Greeks knew as agape.
It is so hard to tell a decent story. It is even harder to tell a story that is actually true. By what power, by what authority do we tell the stories of our lives. The private stories, the public stories… The stories that insist on being told… With what strength of heart, with what sense of courage do we share our witness of the world? And, more deeply, what is the power of our honest word? Join us for exploration of courage and excellence in public life.
It doesn’t seem to make logical sense. How does it take courage to let go, to surrender? What are the costs and benefits for individuals and congregations of having the courage to surrender, to let go?
Martin Luther King, Jr. stood in the line of the prophets. Unitarian Universalist theologist James Luther Adams was a passionate advocate for the "priest and prophethood of all believers." This year we honor the memory and ministry of Dr. King by asking how we all might be both priests and prophets.
Is it possible to break out of a pattern of living that doesn’t fit any longer? People all over the world and even in our community can testify to the courage it takes to do so. Explore the dimensions of courageous and authentic living.
We begin each new year with a memorial service for those who have died in the previous year. Rob, Janne, and Lissa eulogize men and women whose lives have shaped the world of art or politics, literature or science.
On the Christian holiday calendar, between the joyful celebrations of the birth of Jesus and the wonder of Epiphany, there is an event entitled the "Massacre of the Innocents," which marks Herod’s ruthless and violent search for the baby Jesus. How do we stand against violence, especially done to the most vulnerable in our world? Lissa Gundlach illuminates gifts and challenges of this difficult text.
This is a season of preparation, of anticipation and waiting for new birth and new light to appear once more. Explore the dimensions of preparation for the rebirth of the holy within, among and beyond us.
What Are You Waiting For? — Rob Eller-Isaacs
In the season set aside for waiting Rob and Worship Associate Ann Kirby McGill offer us a service intended to provide an overview of theologies of incarnation. Why would God choose to put on flesh and walk among us? What do we really mean when we talk about the God within us?
Thanksgiving / Partner Church Service
Fellow Travelers, Common Journey — Lissa Gundlach
The poet Rumi wrote:
"O you who’ve gone on pilgrimage where are you, where, oh where?
Here, here is the Beloved! Oh come now, come, oh come!
Your friend, he is your neighbor, he is next to your wall."
Jerusalem may be the most Holy city in the world, a site of pilgrimage for Christians, Jews, Muslims, and seekers alike. The Temple Mount is a shared spiritual landmark for Jews and Muslims — the Dome of the Rock marks where Muslims believe the prophet Mohammad ascended to heaven, while the Jewish people believe the site to have supported the original Temple during Biblical times. How might a common pilgrimage journey provide fertile ground for connections amongst as well as conflict between people of faith?
Some pilgrimages involve travel to a foreign or holy destination. Others actually can occur right at home. Janne and Worship Associate Mary Baremore will explore the dimensions of staying home, recognizing the sacred lessons available in our everyday lives and the riches to be explored in the pilgrimage within.
Our series on pilgrimage begins with a service for the Day of the Dead. When we move through the world with pilgrim eyes even our memories take on new life. Mary Oliver writes, "it matters how you carry it, books, bricks, grief." Pilgrims have to learn to travel light.
We are all sojourners, strangers, on a quest to find deeper meaning and connection in life. We are all strangers but we are all brothers and sisters. The service will explore the soul’s work of finding a true religious home.
Rev. Abhi Janamanchi has been serving the Unitarian Universalists of Clearwater, Florida since 1999. He is a native of India and a third-generation member of the Brahmo Samaj, a Unitarian-Hindu reform movement. Abhi is a member of the International Advisory Council to the UUA President. He and his wife, Lalitha, have two sons, Abhimanyu and Yashasvi.
After scoring a run in the sixth to tie the game, the Indians forged ahead with two runs in the seventh. Luis Valbuena singled to start and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. With two outs, Brantley sneaked a single through the right side of the infield… The Twins lost that game, 3-1. Cleveland taught us about what sacrifice really means. Sometimes, we think of it as an act of losing, as surrender, as a penalty for a mistake or worse. Sacrifice is also a means of getting the runner home.
San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk used to begin every speech by saying, "My name is Harvey Milk, and I’m here to recruit you." He was asking us all to come out; all of us, gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, transgendered, queer and each and every ally, all of us together have a right to live open and authentic lives.
What’s Love Got to Do with It? — Janne Eller-Isaacs
What does sacrifice mean in a liberal religious context? As its meaning becomes more elusive in today’s post-modern world, is it possible that it is exactly what we need now?
Stuck in a dead-end job? Move. Or don’t. Sometimes a change of attitude or perhaps, of consciousness is really what’s called for. Could it be that our upwardly mobile, self-centered culture puts too much emphasis on moving on and too little emphasis on staying put? There are times in our lives when only faith can see us through.
How do we know when we have been "called" to particular work or tasks? How do we respond to numerous calls coming from different directions? How do we do as Quaker educator Parker Palmer says, "Let our lives speak"? Janne explores this dimension of vocation.
Labor advocates and spiritual progressives have found common cause for a century and a half in Minnesota and the nation. The righteousness of all God’s children getting fair recompense and enjoying the fruit of their labor is foundational for the Judeo-Christian tradition, and others too. After decades of progress earlier in the 20th century for working people, Labor Day 2009 finds us at low ebb. Union membership has declined sharply over the last 30 years and middle- and lower-income households now have a smaller share of total income than they’ve had since the Depression. But there’s new hope and energy rising, and a growing understanding among business leaders that we must obey Donna Summers’ message in her hard-driving 1983 anthem for working women (and men): We’d better treat them right.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said that our real sacred text is "...life passed through the fire of thought." In other words, we find the holy when we share and process our stories with each other. This Sunday, we will explore the ways storytelling and storyhearing let us cross barriers of difference and allow us to meet each other in our deepest humanity.
This I Believe: Holding Onto Doubt — Richard Foushée
During the past year I have struggled with two of the central issues of religion. Join in the exploration and personal reflections on faith and doubt and what they mean to our lives.
In his book A Path with Heart, Buddhist teacher Jack Kornfield writes, "...it is not by moving rocks that we find happiness and awakening, but by transforming our relationship with them." When we suffer, it is often because we are defining ourselves by a life story that we have come to believe as absolute truth. We define ourselves by this narrative because in many ways it is easier than the work that is required to create a new story. Changing our story requires a faith that many of us as religious liberals struggle to define. How do we do the hard work of transformation when we may not have faith in a higher power? Where is our source of comfort?
When we tie our words together as if making nets large or small, what is it that we hope to catch? What is the power of poetry and story, of naming and metaphor, to catch or to carry that which is beyond words? How do we use these tools of language in matters of faith?
It’s a small world. Our tendency to shuffle life’s debris around rather than confront the mess is not without its consequences. From the broken toasters in the city landfill to the children in our broken foster care system, worship leader Kerri Meyer and Worship Associate Steve Harper explore the geography of human responsibility.
Youth Sunday: The Street COA Experiment
When’s the last time someone struck up a conversation with you about religion in a public space? The youth of Unity Church have taken their Coming of Age questions out on the streets, engaging folks on the bus or on the sidewalk in respectful discussion about their beliefs around death, the sacred and God. Come hear their reflections on the experience of going deep with strangers as our youth lead us in worship.
William Channing Gannet’s Bond of Fellowship, which we read in unison with new members, speaks of a community of helpers wherein it is made easier to live a thankful, trustful, loyal and helpful life. We are in covenant with one another, a religious family which values the sacredness of every individual and encourages us to live lives of integrity, service and joy. Laura Smidzik will explore the impact of a sacred covenant and how belonging to a spiritual community enhances one’s life.
We’re Americans, and we breathe American culture. But does our Unitarian Universalist religion tell us something about our role as citizens? How should we engage with America? If it is true that neither politics nor religion should be spoken of in polite company, it could be that UUs are more likely than others to get thrown out of dinner parties. Maybe that’s not all bad.
Come welcome summer Rob, Janne and Karen Hering in the final service of the formal church year. Though not everyone is able to "go to the lake," everyone can make room in their lives for the deep restorative rest that brings us back to life.
This is not a website. It is the sermon title. This is an exploration and a celebration of beauty — an exploration in the sense that we will discover its variety and a celebration in the sense that all of this variety is held in boldest embrace. It is a gentle and difficult journey that beauty takes through our lives. Joining it makes us beautiful as well.
Those who equate the Sabbath with daily spiritual practice misconstrue its meaning. For Sabbath has a communal dimension that transcends the purely personal. Rob and worship associate Jackie Hendrickson will offer a service focused on the communal implications of Sabbath practice.
Jacob wrestled all night with an angel. As the sun rose the angel tried to end the struggle. And Jacob said, "I will not let you go unless you bless me." This Memorial Day Rob will ask us to consider how we have been blessed by those who have fought for our country.
The whole church family gathers to celebrate the uniquely Unitarian Universalist ritual of flower communion.This year the ministers will be joined by Justin Schroeder who has recently been named the candidate to become Senior Minister at the First Universalist Church of Minneapolis. Justin will be preaching.
We celebrate the challenges and blessings of mothering and mothers. Explore the relationship between our very real mothers and the archetype of the great mother and acknowledge those women in our lives who have been informal but none the less formative mothers.
Rob Eller-Isaacs brings us the final sermon of our redemption theme. We say each child more is one more redeemer. Even when they challenge our assumptions? Even when they make us squirm?
Hankering For a Higher Quality of Life — Michael A. Schuler, Senior Minister, The First Unitarian Society of Madison, Wisconsin
In his just-released book Making the Good Life Last, Michael Schuler argues that sustainability must become a major consideration as we ponder the future not only of the natural environment, but of our families, finances, communities, and individual physical, emotional and spiritual well-being. In a culture which encourages the pursuit of evanescent "good times" we sorely need a strategy that delivers more lasting benefits.
Includes Kerri Meyer's Story for All Ages. What can resurrection mean for those of us for whom the bodily resurrection is a metaphor at most.
How can we best cultivate those aspects of our character which encourage us to perform redemptive acts in the world?
What is sin in a liberal and progressive faith? Janne will examine how sin has been viewed in Unitarian Universalism and what might be sins in today’s church. Janne is joined by Balazs Scholar Endre Nagy who will explore sin in the Transylvanian church.
Despite history's best efforts at creating commandments and rules of all sorts and sizes, sin can be hard to pin down in specifics. Explore what these ambiguities mean for our ability to wrestle honestly with the definition of sin - and to address it in the world and in ourselves.
From Augustine to Aquinas, from Freud to Matthew Fox, understandings of the nature of sin have shifted and evolved. Though we have rejected the concept of original sin and though many of us have distanced ourselves from shame-based theologies, we can’t ignore the fact that they exist.
Engaging the concept of sin can be a challenge. Confronting the possibility that sin might engage us can be even more challenging. The traces that we leave on the wind, the footprints we leave in the sand... Evidence of our having lived... sometimes wastefully.
What are the ideas which guide th eliving of your life? What are the blessings and assurances that echo in the liminal spaces between slumber and awakening?
We are not the first doubters to struggle with prayer. Our spiritual ancestors thought deeply about many of the same question with which we still wrestle. And they found some answers.
Since Copernicus displaced the earth from the center of the universe, we find ourselves increasingly dwarfed by the infinite creation of expanding space. How, and who, and wher is God in this vastness? Marjorie Suchocki askes, "Can we really believe that creatures such as our sorry selves in the littleness of our histories are invited by the creator of the univers to pray?" We will explore an old image of an ever-present God within a new understanding of space and time.
Prayer is a state of being. Practice is what gets us there. Words can make it hard to pray especially when it matters what they mean.
What in the world does the role of prayer play in the life of someone who if they do pray, prays To Whom It May Concern? What do prayer and meditation have in common?
Thom Belote, minister at Shawnee Mission Unitarian Universalist Church in Overland Park, Kansas, preaches the concluding service of our series on resistance.
Martin Luther King Jr. was part of a community of resistance. Without Ralph Abernathy, Rosa Parks, Bayard Rustin and a host of others, there would have been no Martin Luther King Jr. Janne and Intern Minister Leon Dunkley will help us understand the many ways in which we are a community of resistance and suggest what heroism may be needed now.
We know what’s good for us. But for some reason we hesitate to do those things we know full well will help us to be happier, healthier, more effective, more loving people.
We begin each New Year with a service to honor those who have died in the previous year. The ministers will eulogize a number of "world shapers" artists, musicians, writers and leaders.
There is a challenging passage in the Gospel of Matthew (2:16-18) to which we return, year after year. We ask what scared King Herod so much that he unleashed such violence upon the world. What strength within us is tough enough to resist him?
Every great religious tradition kindles new light in the midst of the darkness.
This question is legitimately asked by people new to Unitarian Universalism. Though our religious taproot is the Judeo-Christian heritage, our religious perspective and inspiration is not confined there. At the same time, we do not throw away the powerful stories or images that exist in the Christian narrative. This Sunday we will celebrate the ancient invitation to rebirth and renewal. This podcast includes the Story for All Ages delivered by Kerri Meyer.
Is our relationship with Jesus beyond repair? We say we follow Jesus but we do not worship him. What exactly might that mean? As we once again await his birth, we will reconsider our relationship to Jesus.
Such a small thing to be thankful for... not even three feet square. In 1936, Georgia O’Keefe put oil on canvass. She painted the skull of a deer and some flowers floating in the clouds above a barren range of gentle hills as a way of saying "thank you" for their beauty and their gift. What great and small things have we to be thankful for?
Our dear friends in Homorodszpeter, our partner village in Transylvania, have done so much to deepen and enrich our lives. Ray Wiedmeyer, recently returned from pilgrimage, will offer a reflection on his journey as the whole Unity Church family gathers to give thanks.
Saying thank you is good manners but it can be ever so much more. Giving thanks can be a way of life. It can be a deeply nourishing spiritual practice.
Like grammar and syntax provide structure for our language and communication, gratitude can provide the underlying structure to our lives. Explore the role that gratitude can play in everyday living, particularly when challenged with pain and disappointment.
We owe so much to so many. As we prepare our minds and hearts for the election Tuesday let’s think about thanking the Georges; George the Third, George Washington, George M. Cohan, George Gershwin and yes friends, the Georges Bush.
Throughout the centuries people in the public realm have had to be accountable for their destructive or immoral behavior. Some refused to apologize, while others lied and schemed about their illicit deeds. Others have apologized but to what aim? Explore the dimensions of public apologies. Is the common good enhanced or diminished by public apologies and what constitutes the difference?
Sometimes, forgiveness in the world outside depends on forgiveness in the world inside, on the delicate grace of self-acceptance, on a turbulent courage that one might call "deepest hope." Sometimes our own best efforts fail us and fail us well...right into the open arms of a noble gift.
Mark says of his sermon, "Give me that old time religion because today’s world needs 19th century Universalism’s proclamation of a loving God as much as it ever has."
We enter into the spirit of the Jewish High Holy Days contemplating the story of Jonah the reluctant prophet. But we won’t focus so much on his reluctance as on his inability to forgive.
Who are the moral owners of Unity Church? What is the relationship between personal and institutional morality? How can we move from "charity to solidarity" in our efforts for social justice?
The founders of our church chose their words carefully. For them the word pointed to the unity of religious experience. For us the word implies a quality of curiosity, engagement and respect. Are we living up to our name?
It’s a common question among Unity parents: "What about the Bible?" Do the stories of the Old and New Testaments have a place in the religious upbringing of our children? Why does the Bible elicit a wholly different response from Unitarian Universalist adults than other sacred texts? Drawing wisdom from our liberal religious ancestors, William Ellery Channing and Sophia Lyon Fahs, worship leader and Director of Religious Education Kerri Meyer will frame a possible approach to the Judeo-Christian scriptures, useful to parents and Sunday School teachers and of interest -- Kerri hopes -- to all.
At age 6, Sophie discovered that time moves effortlessly from "now" to memory. It’s a wonderful insight, but how important is "now?" What does it mean to be in the moment? Why do we live our lives in "future mode" while clinging to the past for guidance? If we are open, we can discover the "now" that calls us to play and to "dance in a spring wind." Then we can realize that "Only this moment is life."
Hear from several youth who -- in the eyes of their church and community -- are turning out to be fine human beings in a generation subject to our doubts. We will explore what ingredients contribute to the growth of a whole person in this moment in history. How are parents, other adults and the youth themselves cooks in the kitchen that is adolescence? Recipes and tasty morsels of young wisdom will be provided by worship leaders from among the youth of the church.
Mindfulness meditation encourages us to recognize the inevitability of pain and struggle in daily life - the embracing of this reality allows us to let go and find peace. This is the essence of what the Buddhist nun Pema Chodron calls "letting go of the story line." She writes, "real life problems are the material for waking up, not the reason to stop trying" - holding our struggles with the same honor that we hold our joy is the essence of waking up to life. But how do we learn to just "be" while still needing to do the "do"? Jenny explores the challenges in reaching this state of awareness, the journey to find peace there, and the role of faith and religion in this process.
Our liberal religious tradition values the role of rational inquiry more than other traditions. But careful, rational inspection of the best of our information and deepest of our intuitions can lead us into strange places. What happens when familiar truths are shown to have disconcerting implications? Some examples from the history of mathematics can be both cautionary and enlightening.
Unity Church encourages us to create lives of integrity, service and joy. How do we engage in this effort within our own lives, with each other, and beyond the walls of Unity Church? What holds us back and what drives us forward? Laura Smidzik takes a thoughtful look at the journey our faith calls us to take.
At the center of German philosopher Hegel’s construction of logic is the concept of Aufhebung, a word which carries three meanings: to lift up, to preserve and to destroy. This is a look into the spiritual practice of dialectics, or accepting seemingly contradictory ideas to be true, and the practical implications for those on the journey to integrity, service and joy.
July 4 is Independence Day, the premier national holiday, and we are called upon to demonstrate our pride in our independence, our freedom. But before we are washed over by the sea of red, white, and blue flags, and become transfixed by the fireworks red glare, let’s reflect. Do we dare to acknowledge our interdependence on Independence Day? And what can we understand about this iconic word, freedom?
Extraordinary rendition, denial of habeas corpus, enhanced interrogation tactics, waterboarding, torture. We have been hearing and reading these words too often since September 11, 2001. It has been difficult to follow the recent history. It’s tough to sort out facts from spin, and for some, the issue is too abhorrent to think about. CVT and the National Religious Campaign against Torture have determined this June to be Torture Awareness Month and have charged religious communities across the country to recommit themselves to their most deeply held convictions and act in this effort to ban torture. Come hear what this means for our church and the larger Unitarian Universalist community.
In the Buddhist tradition, the first of the three marks of existence is impermanence. This idea that reality is constantly flowing has become embedded in modern, Western theological thought as ‘process’. In this continual flux, is there anything permanent and unchanging? What is our place in this transient world? Where is the joy?
Did you know that Irma Rombauer was a Unitarian? And that Joy of Cooking has its roots in the Women’s Alliance of the Unitarian Church in St. Louis? Janne and Worship Associate Jean Olson will lift up the unique contribution of Joy of Cooking and the importance of kitchen wisdom.
Did you know that the "K" in K-rations refers to U of M professor, Ansel Keyes? During World War II, Keyes was asked to devise a compact, nutritious packet for use by the troops. What did he include and why? What do soldiers need and why? Rob and Community Intern minister, Jacqueline Duhart, a retired Air Force officer will offer a service for Memorial Day.
Come celebrate the affirming, uniquely Unitarian Universalist ritual of Flower Communion. Developed by Czech Unitarian minister, Norbert Capek who died a martyr at Dachau, the ritual celebrates the intrinsic beauty of each and every soul. Bring a flower for the arch. This Family Sunday service is for the whole church family.
Barry Lopez asks, "How is one to live a moral and compassionate existence when one is fully aware of the blood, the horror inherent in life, when one finds darkness not only in one’s culture but with oneself?" How do we embody the generous spirit of mothering in this troubled time? The answers may lie in the workings of an anthill or the language of our very DNA. Ruth MacKenzie is a student of theology at United Theological Seminary in New Brighton, as well as a professional creative and performance artist.
Increasingly, we are not only conscious of the nutritional value of the food we eat, but also its source and sustainability. We are also increasingly aware of the ethical and political dimensions to the food we eat. Explore the dynamics of the food chain and what is healthy eating when the well-being of the whole planet is considered.
We conclude our series on covenant and creed with a service to honor those who are Coming of Age this year. Building on the Saturday night ceremony at which each participant will offer their theological statement, the services will highlight those practices, which are essential to our liberal faith. Community Ministerial Intern, Jacqueline Duhart, who has been working with our Coming of Age class all this past year, and Kerri Meyer, Director of Religious Education join Rob in conducting the service.
"Although there are considerable differences between American UUs and Transylvanian Unitarianism - because we live in different societies and in slightly different kinds of cultures - I am more and more conscious about our common passion for justice, human dignity, true fellowship, real peace and love – and I know that we all feel responsible for these values. As a progressive liberal from Transylvania, being here gives me the unique opportunity to learn from your experience, spirituality, and social involvement. " Rev. Bela-Botond Jakabhazi
An introduction to our way of being religious. Who were our spiritual ancestors? What do we promise each other? Covenant for us is more a verb than a noun, a way of being religious together rather than a set of fixed beliefs.
The entire church family will gather to "practice resurrection." Easter celebrates far more than simply the coming of spring. Easter is the joyful recognition of the ministry of Jesus and the many ways his work lives on in all our lives.
Theologian James Luther Adams identified five smooth stones of liberal religion. These stones can be thought of as the stepping stones that we walk upon as we move forward into the future. Explore the smooth stones of our liberal religion that speak to what we might become in the future.
There are times in life when only faith will suffice. Rob and Worship Associate Elizabeth Alexander have collected stories of such times in the lives of church members and will offer them in collage as part of the service. Even though we know that spring is on the way there are times when even the resilience of the seasons seems in doubt.
How do we keep our heart attuned to the harsh realities of what happens in the public squares of our sacred world? How do we become more and more conscious and spiritually engaged? Explore the road toward becoming an Active Witness; a tool that may reawaken/reconnect us to the fullness and wholeness of life.
Sometimes our efforts at keeping our lives in balance are not enough. With a chance misstep, the world tilts, and we take a tumble. Can we fall with grace, or do we resist the inevitable outcome? Can we recover, and how? Who is there to help us, and can we accept that help?
The Blues tradition embraces the reality that some times "just gettin’ down" with our blues can be the wisest thing to do in response to our disappointments.
There is no work (outside of serving as an instrument of evil) that cannot be made worthwhile. Both suffering and joy are largely a matter of consciousness. Gandhi taught that caste was a matter of karma. In other words, know your place and find happiness there. That approach is in direct conflict with working for human liberation. Or is it?
W. E. DuBois states, "Now is the accepted time, not tomorrow, not some more convenient season. It is today that our best work can be done and not some future day or future year. It is today that we fit ourselves for the greater usefulness of tomorrow. Today is the seed time, now are the hours of work, and tomorrow comes the harvest and the play-time." In justice-making work is there room for joy? If so, how do we find joy and sustain it? This service will be led by Jacqueline Duhart and Worship Associate Neely Crane-Smith.
Every great tradition points to the fact that compassion can take root in a heart that’s been broken. There is work we do that we know won’t be accomplished in just one generation. We do it anyway because we know it’s right. Rob and Worship Associate Estelle Brouwer will speak of their own heartbreak and of why good work is sometimes worth the risk.
The first service dedicated to the theme of "Work Worth Doing" will explore the important work of raising and mentoring our children and youth.
With the joy of birth and hope that the Christmas season offers us, there is another side. Holy Innocents Day, an ancient Feast Day, recalls the story of the slaughter of the infants in Bethlehem as described in the Gospel of Matthew. How can this apparent evil be part of the Christmas story? How do we face the fact that we live, and many around us suffer and die, daily? Come explore how we may navigate a world full of suffering, violence, and despair.
The long midwinter nights seem almost out of time. We rush around in hope of pleasing those we love the best while the world around us slows down to starlit stillness. A quality of spiritual surrender is forcing ourselves to slow down.
The title of this service comes from the poetry of Sufi poet, Rumi. But folk wisdom posits that guests, like caught fish are welcome for about three days.
All creation sings the secret told to Mary by an Angel. Soon God will be born again through you. Soon love will come to you in human form.
In a quest for efficiency, order and even survival, we compartmentalize our lives, separating work from family, from church, from leisure. We know that some boundaries are necessary, but when do we go too far? What is the spiritual cost to such dis-integration?
The story of the first Thanksgiving may well be mostly myth. We know how quickly gratitude gave way to conquest. But seeds of possibility and hope were planted with the corn when spring finally arrived after that terrible first winter. For years now we’ve been planting seeds of hope in Transylvania. We’ve exchanged visits, struggled for mutual respect and gained far more than we could ever have imagined as genuine, lasting friendships have taken root.
We welcome Vivek Pandit, freedom fighter, community organizer and the visionary founder of Vidhayak Sansad, an organization at work freeing slaves in India. Vivek, who is in Saint Paul to explore partnership possibilities with Unity Church, asks us to contemplate the following question. How can liberal religion help newly liberated people to achieve inner freedom? Breaking physical chains is easy when compared to confronting the oppression of self-doubt.
To miniaturize another human being is a violent act. When we make assumptions about others on the basis of some singular aspect of their identity we diminish and marginalize them. Rob and Worship Associate Mary Baremore will wrestle with this all-too-human tendency.
College education, money, sound body and mind, heterosexual, male, physically attractive, white skin, English speaking, socially skilled…do these characteristics separate us from beloved community and contribute to our collective suffering or bring us together in a spirit of love that is healing and liberating? Worship and reflect on how sins of privilege can be transformed and blaze a path toward freedom and justice for all.
Kabir says, Go over and over your beads, paint designs on your forehead, wear your hair matted, long and ostentatious. When deep inside you there is a loaded gun, how can you have God?" We live at the intersection of spiritual development and right action in the world. Urgency is understandable but so often its also an indication that we’re hiding behind the troubles of the world as a way to avoid confronting our own troubles. We run from church to church or from crisis to crisis hoping against hope to find an all-consuming cause. Such behavior can perpetuate the very injustice its intended to combat. Rob and Worship Associate, Craig Allen will begin our series on "Identity and Violence."
Evil prospers and wrongdoing asserts itself; loved ones disappoint us and fall short. Even our own dreams die and our courage often fails us. In the face of this often cruel reality, how dare we lay claim to hope? Rev. McNatt invites us, and our faith, to endure. This Celebration Sunday join us as we renew our financial commitments to our church community.
As part of our series on faith, Janne and Worship Associate Karen Palmen will examine where we look for validation of our faith. Do we look inward for our own sense of truth or do we look to outside sources? Or is it ever that clearly delineated? Emerson’s essay on self reliance will be a primary source for this service.
What does faithful living look like? What does faithful living feel like? It must have to do with living aligned to our values. What questions should we be asking ourselves? How can we most usefully serve one another in living faith-filled lives? Rob, Janne and worship associate, Estelle Brouwer will each offer reflections on these essential questions.
What is the role of faith in a noncreedal religion that is so attractive to skeptics? In what ways is faith different than belief? Janne and worship associate Don Brunnquell will examine the role of faith in today’s world.
In Jewish tradition the ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are called "the Days of Awe." That awe is inspired by the sure knowledge that you and I can move beyond our brokenness, beyond our dissolution and begin again. Each year we celebrate the Jewish High Holy Days in a service, which culminates with a "Litany for Atonement." Rob Eller-Isaacs will offer a sermon on faith. Jean Olson will serve as worship associate.
First lines explores the importance of beginnings and what it means to have a beginner’s mind.
Is it possible that starting a backyard flock of three chickens could be a meaningful response to the human crisis of inequity in food production and distribution? What does producing our own food at the really local level reveal to us about the relationship between feeding our communities and nourishing our souls? And what are you supposed to do when one of your hens begins to crow? Kerri Meyer reflects on the growing trend of keeping chickens and the ‘inexpressible satisfaction’ that comes from more than just fresh eggs.
We in America are immersed in a culture of violence, and in general we don’t even notice. Our news, our entertainment, and our societal norms lead us to accept horrific violent acts as normal, acceptable, business-as-usual. As Unitarians, as people seeking to lead a religious life, should we be concerned? What response can we offer?
In religion and spirituality, a pilgrimage is a long journey or search of great moral significance. It may also be a journey to a sacred place or shrine of importance to a person’s beliefs and faith. Lyn Burton will share joys, hardships and insights from her seven-year journey of faith as a Unity Church sponsored candidate for UU parish ministry on the path to Preliminary Fellowship in the UU Minister’s Association.
For many people, working in corporate America seems both necessary and unavoidably numbing. Is workplace spirituality really an oxymoron? Must it be so? Come for some observations about the alleged conflict between work life and personal essence based on Craig’s 15 years working for large Minnesota businesses.
In a world in which money and success are intimately tied with time and efficiency it is difficult to stop and reflect on and appreciate our actions as well as the way in which society and nature act upon us. Based on Thich Nhat Hanh’s book "Peace is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life," we will explore simple ways to incorporate mindfulness into our busy lives in order to create a more peaceful and meaningful existence.
Oh Say Can You See, By the Dawn’s Early Light? — Tom Esch
It is time to really put our imaginations to use. Fewer people can doubt that we are near or at a point of crisis on many levels as a planet and as a species. Is it time for all of us to begin to see new things in new ways? Where do we as a UU movement find our vision and inspiration in times of desperation?
The Eldercare Journey - by Rev. Ann Romanczuk
Many of us in this congregation are caring for, or anticipating caring for, our aging parents. Author Mary Pipher writes of this process: "if we embark freely and willingly on this voyage of discovery, we may find joy, empathy, understanding, and intimacy. We expand our definitions of what it means to be human. We grow our own souls in the garden of time." Rev. Ann Romanczuk will explore this difficult and potentially rewarding passage.
During the month of May, our ministers Rob and Janne Eller-Isaacs made their way along the Camino de Santiago, an ancient pilgrimage trail that culminates at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compestella. They return to Unity Church to tell us why they chose to go beyond Santiago and to end their pilgrimage at the sea.
In this 4 part sermon, Rob and Janne reflect on their sabbatical, on making a pilgrimage, and on the importance of "taking time" to truly reconnect with ourselves and our deepest callings.
The Joy of Ripeness Justin Schroeder
Life is full of beginnings and endings. Yet, there is that magical moment, that space someplace between the beginning and the ending, where a fullness and perfect readiness is reached. It is as if we have been preparing our whole lives for this moment, this moment that can come again and again in our lifetime. It is a moment of joy, a moment of perfect ripeness - filled with sweet nectar, ready to burst forth.
The Journey We're Ready For by Teresa Schwartz
We make our paths by walking them, step by step. If our lives are a journey, are we ever truly ready? How would we know? What is the role of faith as we step into the unknown, especially as Unitarian Universalists? As we reach the close of our church year, we"ll reflect on the paths we�ve made together, and what lies ahead as we move into the ripe season of summer and the ripe season of ourselves.
Service and Sacrifice: The Complexities of Memorial Day by Justin Schroeder
In part, Memorial Day is a day of remembering all who have given their lives in service to our country. In this remembering, we are drawn into larger questions of meaning and purpose in our own lives: What am I willing to sacrifice? Who or what am I most authentically serving?
Heading into summer is the perfect time to pause and reflect on the nature of joy and pleasure. How do we find our true course in the midst of so many distractions? What is the difference between a joy we can trust and follow inward and a pleasure that is only a temporary fill for the "God-shaped Hollow."
Katie Lawson was Unity's Hallman Ministerial Intern in 2005 and 2006 and was fellowshipped with the Unitarian Universalist Association in September. She spent the summer as chaplain at Ferry Beach, a Unitarian Universalist retreat center, and currently teaches seventh and eighth grade social studies at St. Paul Academy.
“You’re Going To Wear That??
— Teresa Schwartz
We were all born — and we all have mothers. Some of us are mothers and grandmothers. We’ll explore having a mom and being a mom — times funny and sad; moments poignant and irreverent. Mothers of all kinds should be remembered, if not honored. Some mothers are nurturing, some mothers are stifling, some mothers always loved us, some didn’t know how, some mothers we never met, some mothers are our best friends. Come and and honor motherhood with us.
Work That is Real
by Rev. Dottie Mathews, Fox Valley UU Fellowship of Appleton, Wisc.
The title for this sermon comes from the Marge Piercy poem "To Be of Use." Explore the dynamics between finding coherence in our inner life and how we then take that coherence (or sense of meaning) out into the rest of our lives, our work, our home, and our relationships.
Dottie Mathews is the Assistant Minister at the Fox Valley UU Fellowship. In middle-life, after a successful business career, Dottie answered a call to the ministry. She graduated from United Theological Seminary in May 2006 and was ordained in Appleton six months later. Dottie's internship at Unity Church is one aspect of her learning process for which she is particularly grateful. She is delighted for this opportunity to return to greet old friends and new.
"Abundant Possibilities"
by Rev. Marlin Lavanhar, All Souls Church, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Marlin Lavanhar grew up Unitarian Universalist at North Shore Unitarian Church in Deerfield, Illinois. After graduating from Tulane University, he relocated to Kyoto, Japan, where he worked and studied for two years. Leaving Japan, he and a friend took a three year, around the world odyssey on mountain bikes. The trip took him through some of the world's highest mountain ranges, across parts of the Gobi desert, Tibet, India, Pakistan, through the Middle East, across Eastern Europe and North America. It was on this trip that he felt the call to Unitarian Universalist Ministry.
His sermon explores the power of generosity and possibility - and the surprising moments that can come from spontaneous giving!
Easter Sunday
by Teresa Schwartz and Justin Schroeder
We honor the Easter story every year; every year we are in need of resurrection. We will celebrate doubt and belief, the commonplace and the miraculous, our fears and our hopes as we reach into new life.
Fools, Foolishness, and Folly:
What Clowns, Jesters and Pranksters Have to Teach Us
by Justin Schroeder
This April Fool's Day (and Palm Sunday), come laugh and chortle as we explore the history of the holy fool - those clowns and jokesters that throughout the ages have managed to penetrate our upright defenses to tell us the things we really need to know.
The Idolatry of Symbols by Rev. Karen Gustafson
Karen was ordained by the Duluth Unitarian Universalist congregation in 1986. She is a graduate of the Starr King School for the ministry in Berkeley California. Before becoming an minister, Karen was a public school educator in Northern Wisconsin and Minnesota. She is married and has four just- barely-adult children. Karen is inspired by the poetry of Mary Oliver, Denise Levertov and Wendell Berry and time in the woods and near the lakes of northern Minnesota.
This sermon explores symbols and the power they can hold over us.
Gates, Alarms, Mace, and Faith: Finding Real Security in an Insecure Age. ByJustin Schroeder
What makes us safe, really safe? Is it a home alarm system, razor wire, the truth, or a hand gun next to our bed? How secure is secure enough, and what's faith got to do with it?
March 4, 9:00am, 11:00am, and 4:30pm Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
We strive for excellence, but when does it become too much? When does our pursuit of improving our careers, our homes, families, bodies, our very selves become too much? When does our drive to be better keep us from doing anything at all? What awakens this drive is us? What feeds it? What can it offer us? As part of our Lenten series on idolatry, Sabbatical Minister Teresa Schwartz and Worship Associate Karen Palmen will explore the idolatry of perfectionism.
February 25 (9:00, 11:00, 4:30)
“Possessed By Possessions? — Rev. Melissa Carvill-Ziemer, Unitarian Universalist Church of Kent, Ohio
Melissa served a Unity Church’s second Hallman Ministerial Intern. She is currently serving the Unitarian Universalist Church of Kent, Ohio. Melissa served as Unity’s Intern in 2003 and 2004. Melissa is married to Ellen Carvill-Ziemer. In addition to her full time parish ministry, Melissa has been focused on Conflict Resolution and is currently exploring religious themes in children’s literature. Sharon Hogenson will join Melissa as her Worship Associate.
“Created Identities? — Justin Schroeder delivered at www.unityunitarian.org
Join Justin Schroeder and Worship Associate Neely Crane-Smith as they explore the fundamental questions of “identity.? Are our identities fluid or static? Who determines our identities and labels? What are the politics of identity and is it possible to ever be without an identity? Or are we forever creating the identity we show the world?
Neil is the author of two acclaimed books, VoiceMale, and Fatherloss. He is writer-in-residence at the Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning in Lexington, Kentucky, where he lives with his wife, Rev. Kelly Flood, and their 13-year-old son, Evan. Neil is co-founder of the Unitarian Universalist Men’s Network. Justin Schroeder will join Neil as his Worship Associate.
Rev. Jennifer Crow, First Unitarian Church of Rochester, New York delivered at www.unityunitarian.org
Effective leadership requires genuine concern, curious listening, humility,and bold vision - a tricky combination whether your find yourself seated in the oval office, around the board room or at the family dinner table. How can we, as leaders and as members of our country, our church, and our families, encourage one another to embrace this difficult balance? What can past leaders teach us about how to proceed — either by way of warning or by way of example? How might we offer and earn the trust required for the emergence of a humble vision in our relationships? Let us explore these tricky questions together
"Deep Democracy?
Teresa Schwartz
How do our “democratic ideals? line up with our basic lived values, in our lives, and in the world? How is our democracy failing us? Or have we failed it? In this service, Teresa Schwartz and worship associate, Dick Buggs, will look at ways to ground ourselves in a democracy that is life-giving, transformative, and reminds us that as a part of the interconnected web of life, we must work toward the common good.
"Beloved Community" by Justin Schroeder
Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
What we do we mean when we talked about "Beloved Community"? How do we recognize the "Beloved Community," and how do we know if we're there? On this Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Sunday, we'll explore visions and intersections of "Beloved Community," "Mountain Top" experiences, and the "Kingdom of God."
"Tolling of Bells" - Rob Eller-Isaacs and Janne Eller-Isaacs
January 7, 9:00, 11:00 and 4:30 pm. Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
We begin each new year with a memorial service for those who have died in the previous year. Rob and Janne will each eulogize men and women whose lives have shaped the world of art or politics, literature or science.Everyone will have an opportunity to acknowledge those they’ve loved and lost. In grief and gratitude and gladness we turn to welcome the new year.
October 29 (9:00, 11:00, 4:30) Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org. "What Are We Afraid Of?" — Rob Eller-Isaacs
Why do we fear what we fear? Beyond hard-wired aversion to poisons or pain there are more subtle triggers. Particular costumes, a certain swagger or even just the color of a person’s skin can set off our interior alarms, speeding up our heart-rates, closing down our minds. Rob will be joined by Kerri Meyer and Worship Associate Mary Baremore for a descent into the underworld.
October 22 (9:00, 11:00, 4:30) Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
"In Our Own Best Interest" — Janne Eller-Isaacs
Huston Smith said that the first step in human flourishing is empathy and compassion. Janne and Worship Associate Neely Crane-Smith will examine the role that justice making activities and our own community outreach play in our own lives. This service is part of the Privilege of Place series.
October 15 (9:00, 11:00, 4:30) Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
“The Even Better News? — Rev. Robert M. Hardies,
What is the good news of Unitarian Universalism that our world so desperately needs? Rev. Hardies, senior minister of
Rev. Robert M. Hardies is senior minister of
September 24 (9:00, 11:00, 4:30) Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
"Familiar Strangers" - Janne Eller-Isaacs
For the first of our High Holy Day services, Janne and Worship Associate Elizabeth Alexander will explore the dimensions of the classic text used for the beginning of the new year, the sacrifice of Isaac at the hands of his father. In addition they will address this in the light of the immigrant experience in our country.
September 17 (9:00, 11:00, 4:30). Delivered at www.unityuntarian.org.
"The 6 Realms of Being" - Dr. Huston Smith and Rob Eller-Isaacs
A lifelong career of studying the world's religions has made the world-renowned Dr. Huston Smith especially gifted in illuminating the dialogues that are timeless. His conversations touch upon many Big Questions: what is the meaning of God? Where do science and religion meet? How can we teach children about the sacred in everyday life? Join Rob Eller-Isaacs and Dr. Smith for an insightful look into this field of study.
September 10 (9:00, 11:00, 4:30). Delivered at www.unityuntarian.org.
"Crossing the Waters" - Rob and Janne Eller-Isaacs
Every river flows down to the sea. And we will merge the waters of the world as we begin another year together. The whole church family will gather bringing water they have brought back from around the world. We'll sing songs old and new. We'll pray for peace and be at peace together. Please note that this Sunday begins our new service schedule of 9:00, 11:00, and 4:30.
August 27 (10:00 a.m.) Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
"Ordinary Things" by Richard Foushee
This service will reflect on appreciating the simple in a complex world by exploring the writings of the 17th century haiku master Matsuo Basho.
August 20 (10:00 a.m.) Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
"Godtalk: UU Children and Theist Language" - Kerri Meyer
Our childhoods are chapters of naming, a time when words are magically attaching themselves to our reality and becomng the currency of our transactions with other people. What do our children mean, whether they come from theist or humanist families, when they use the word God? How do we respond to the Godtalk they are absorbing simply by existing in a predominantly Judeo-Christian religious culture? What choices are we making, as teachers, parents, and fellow seekers, about the theological language we use with our young people, and to what end?
August 13 (10:00 a.m.) Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
"Conditions for Travel" Jenny Wilson
Writer Frederic Brussat claims that "we read the world to see what it can show us about the meaning of life. Through this reading, we gain a new understanding of our place in the universe and learn to recognize the many movements of the spirit." Join Jenny Wilson as she explores the journey we share as planetary pilgrims traveling on the edge of a galaxy.
June 25 (10:00 a.m.) Delivered at www.unityunitarian.org.
"Shaping Unitarian Universalist History: The Ministry of Frederick May Eliot" by Briana Melom.
"In all of us there is a hunger, marrow deep, to know our heritage - to know who we are and where we came from." - Alex Haley.
This service helps us to remember the ministry of Dr. Frederick May Eliot, minister of Unity Church from 1917-37 and president of the American Unitarian Association just prior to the merger with the Universalists in 1961. As we make space in our busy lives for what Eliot called a sacred reality, we recall one who illuminated our heritage of faith. Briana Melom will be joined by Worship Associate Sharon Hogenson.
