Auckland Unitarians

with Ted Zorn

I’ve always had a thing for language. I think I inherited this from my dad. Dad wasn’t highly educated, nor widely read – the only magazines he ever subscribed to were Reader’s Digest and TV Guide, and I never knew him to read a novel — but he loved to play with language.

He often used words that were either made up or some version of a word he’d learned while serving overseas in the military. He would latch on to words and phrases that were new to him.

When he came to New Zealand for the first time, the term flatmate caught his eye – it’s not a term used in the USA — so for his remaining years, he referred to my daughter, his granddaughter, as “my little Kiwi American flatmate”.

In fact, he had nicknames for just about everyone – or at least everyone he liked. They were not all flattering.

For more information see

With John DiLeo

Recorded @ Auckland Unitarian Church, 20th August 2023

As we were driving home from last Sunday’s service, I was thinking on what I should talk about this week.

During that service, we celebrated Clay’s years with this church as our paid minister, and we acknowledged that phase of our community’s life was coming to a close.

During the Notices that day, Ted reminded us all of the need for members to step up and fill the void Clay’s retirement has created. We can no longer sit back and let him come up with all the ideas week after week, because – simply put – it’s not his job any more.

The ‘theme’ or ‘slogan’ that popped into my head during last Sunday’s drive home was simple: “One Community – Many Voices.”

For more information see https://aucklandunitarian.org.nz/mystery/

Speaker & Worship Leader:- Rev. Clay Nelson

Recorded @ Auckland Unitarian Church, 13th August 2023

As has been mentioned once or twice recently, and to my great sadness, I am retiring at the end of the month. Because I have loved all forty-one years of my ordained ministry in two denominations and my nine years with you, I want to scream, “Nah, this isn’t how I planned it.” But, ”Yeah, it is the reality I must come to accept…kind of.”

The expectation of ministers, when they retire, is to absent themselves for at least a year from the congregation they served to make room for the new minister. As trained UU ministers don’t grow on trees here or in Australia, and it will be a while before we can hire my replacement, I’ve been asked to help fill the vacuum on a voluntary basis while you figure out where you want to go.

For more information see https://aucklandunitarian.org.nz/nah-yeah/

Speaker & Worship Leader:- Rachel Mackintosh.

Recorded 6th August 2023 at Auckland Unitarian Church.

I met Clay 10 years ago at a residential training for community organising. The basis of the training was storytelling.

At the opening of the training, all participants were asked to tell stories about a time we had spoken truth to power. Clay’s story was about taking the Anglican Bishop of Auckland to the Human Rights Commission for violation of the Human Rights Act because he refused to ordain a gay priest.

My story was about standing up to a union leader who, to a largely but not totally white male audience, had used the phrase “dirty girls of the Philippines” to refer to migrant sex workers. I confronted him privately and told him I had been offended at his use of language that was imperialist, misogynist and anti-worker. He went back to that audience and apologised, even though many of them had found his language perfectly acceptable.

As all the people in the room told their stories, we began to see that all of us had not only identified injustices but had also had moments of courage where we had spoken up. Some of our stories had had successful outcomes, but many had not. Many of us had acted alone. All of our stories had promise. When one person shows courage in the face of injustice, that act holds the kernel of transformational change.

For more information see:-

https://aucklandunitarian.org.nz/were-gonna-sit-at-the-welcome-table/

Recorded @ Auckland Unitarian Church, 30th July 2023

Speaker & Worship Leader:- Rev. Clay Nelson

My father loved words. The Oxford English Dictionary and books on etymology, the study of the origin of words and how their meanings have changed throughout history, were never far from his fingertips. If he couldn’t find just the right word for the book he was writing, he had no reluctance in just creating a word that captured his intent. He passed on his love of words to me. That was to my benefit in seminary, where I was required to take two semesters of word study. It was essential to preparing sermons. Our task was to fully understand biblical words in all their meanings, translations and uses in biblical times so they could be applied relevantly in our modern and cultural context. I know it sounds boring and tedious, but thanks to Dad, I loved it.

For more information see:-

https://aucklandunitarian.org.nz/organic-generosity/

With Rev. Clay Nelson

Piano:- Frank Chen

Recorded at Auckland Unitarian Church 23rd July 2023

For more information see:-

https://aucklandunitarian.org.nz/whiteness-the-gift-that-keeps-on-giving/

With Kate Lewis

Recorded at Auckland Unitarian Church 16th July 2023

Many of us have lost a sense of belonging in one place or another, having made a life around the world from where we were born and grew up. There is a longing for a beloved past and people, and despair when we realize that when we go back everything has changed and feel grief at what has been lost.

For more information see:-

https://aucklandunitarian.org.nz/coming-to-a-sense-of-belonging-matariki-in-our-time-and-place/

With Paul Henriques.

Recorded 2nd July 2023 by Auckland Unitarian Church.

As many of you know, with Auckland Unitarian Church support, I initiated a pilot programme to help dyslexic children in Samoa in a joint programme with their Ministry of Education, Science and Culture. While there I came across information on Samoa’s nonviolent struggle for independence from New Zealand. Back in New Zealand, I began to read up on the subject and in asking friends and family about it, found few knew much about it and some nothing at all. I find it a very sad but interesting story, that certainly deserves knowing about, and thought I would share a bit of it with you this morning.

For more information, including links to the photographs and references, see:- https://aucklandunitarian.org.nz/samoas-nonviolent-struggle-for-independence-from-new-zealand-colonial-rule/

with Rev. Clay Nelson

Recorded at Auckland Unitarian Church 25th June 2023

Over a long life, I often think about the choices I’ve made or were made for me. How have they determined who I am now? How have they pointed me in a positive direction or made my life a personal hell? They have surely done both. Has my life followed a script with little input from me, or has it been totally of my own making? These are the musings I’d like to explore this morning.

For more information see:-

Speaker & Worship Leader:- Rev. Clay Nelson

Recorded 11th June 2023 @ Auckland Unitarian Church

I keep getting enquiries about and objections to replacing principles with values (Here are links to the earlier talks on this topic:- 1, 2, 3 & 4). I thought I’d dealt with this issue but, apparently, not satisfactorily for some. So, let me try again.

These changes did not come out of the blue. There are a couple of stories behind them. They tell stories about UU principles and values.

For more information see:- https://aucklandunitarian.org.nz/a-ministers-work-is-never-done-and-neither-is-yours/