Yom Kippur comes at the culmination of the Days of Awe – a period of time in which we re-align with what we know to be holy and true. It is, ultimately, part of our efforts to write our name in the book of life – enjoy a bright and limitless year ahead. But first, … Continue reading Why Some Apologies Change the World and Others Change Nothing
Sometimes, we feel called to go prove a point. We are captured by a conviction that someone needs to be taught a lesson. So we summon our courage and strap on our suit of righteousness indignation and are surprised when people turn away and fail to appreciate our brilliance and wisdom!! The world, right now, … Continue reading Lessons on Listening, Learning and Leadership
In this year’s annual ingathering service, we’re going to invite the beloved non-humans in our household to recognize and celebrate the thing that all living things need more than anything else: Water. Plan to bring your pet to church and we will explore how our animals help us to be more loving and humane. The … Continue reading As the Water Rises, Remembering We’re Blessed
Think about those times when someone has seen the flaming chalice pin or necklace you’re wearing and asked, ‘oh… UU… what’s that? What do you say? How do you explain this church? These people? This history? This way of being religious – WITHOUT – telling them everything we’re NOT? Come to this service if you … Continue reading How to Explain Unitarian Universalism without a Pamphlet
What is it about change that makes us feel so terrified to face and yet so terrific to have experienced. Something happens at our core that feels existentially vulnerable when we release control on certainty. Sometimes fear of change is so powerful we will foresake everything in order to avoid facing it. The relationship we … Continue reading A Slight Change of Plans
The service this Sunday is really special. MPUUC will have our first Child Dedication service in nearly 4 years. And we’ll have not only ONE child dedication, but THREE. Three families will bring their children and their promise to make MPUUC part of their lives. And they will ask for promises in return. Which brings … Continue reading Growing ‘Yes’ Brain Souls
This fable explores how people who find themselves in places of Sameness learn how to discover Choice. It is the story of Bob who represents everyone that yearns to leave the safety of sameness and to trust they won’t get lost or forgotten by being authentically themselves in a vastly diverse world. By accepting his … Continue reading From Sameness to Choice A Flower Communion Fable
The right to bear arms has a history even longer – and clearer – than our country’s history. It has been cited by proponents as a non-negotiable right belonging to early colonists who had to protect themselves in the wilderness. It was a central issue in the war of independence to remain sovereign from foreign … Continue reading The First Thing to Know about the 2nd
Our relationship with our mothers is one of both tenderness and tension. Rare indeed is the individual who had every need of mothering met by the mother they were given. It is part of our rite of passage to be born into absolute dependence, struggle with differentiation to achieve independence and then, if we’re lucky, … Continue reading I’ll Love You Forever
As a theological thread in the fabric of religion, Unitarian Universalism comes from two separate strands that didn’t give much credence to the notion of Hell. Early Unitarians are said to have believed themselves created too good by God to be sent to such a place. Universalists, on the other hand, believed that God was … Continue reading A Religion that Sends You to Hell
