As we continue to live more of our lives from home and weather pandemic life, this service will be about finding renewal at home. In our effort to support our kids and families as we rethink Religious Education, we’re now offering a guide called “Soulful Home” that helps us build rituals of renewal at home. Today we’ll dive into this practice of seeking renewal at home together.

Written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

"What are the sources that fill your well, that bring water when your soul feels thirsty? And what of our collective community - what does it mean to be a people of renewal together?"

This is our ingathering service, a day for celebrating our being together in community and the start of a new church year. It is our custom to start with a Water Communion service, blending waters from places we hold dear to create a well of holy water. In that spirit, this service will be about the streams that renew us in hard times and fill our wells with love, hope, and peace.

Works referenced in this sermon:

"Blessing of the Well" from Circle of Grace by Jan Richardson

"On Claiming our Time for Renewal" by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

Amanda and Rev. Gray reflect on this month's sermon and the UUA General Assembly.

Topics of discussion: widening the circle of concern; what we are or what we aren't?; selective and imperfect inclusivity; freedom to vs. freedom from

Referenced in this episode:

Widening the Circle of Concern: Report of the UUA Commission on Institutional Change June 2020: https://www.uua.org/uuagovernance/committees/cic/widening

Sermons written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

Produced by: Bruce Hall

Amanda and Rev. Gray reflect on this month's sermons and answer questions from the congregation.

Topics of discussion: freedom of the pulpit; what work is this doing?; shame:performance::guilt:learning; allyship pitfalls and paradoxes; grieving in public

Referenced in this episode:

#WeCantBreathe UUA Vigil recording: https://youtu.be/5HeVBM4tGk4?t=593

Black Lives of UU: 

https://www.blacklivesuu.com/

https://www.facebook.com/BlackLivesUU/

https://twitter.com/BlackLivesUU

Sermons written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

Produced and Directed by: Bruce Hall

"We can trust ourselves to grow, to adapt, and to change. And we can trust each other to meet us in the place of flowering, the place of hope, the place of courage."

Incredibly, this is our last service of the church year. We’ll be doing flower communion, as is the custom of so many UUs this time of year. While we continue to gather online, we’ll celebrate this uniquely UU ritual. Don’t forget to bring your flower!

Works referenced in this sermon:

"A Power Governments Cannot Suppress," by Howard Zinn, from "Walking Toward Morning," edited by Annie Chagnot and Emi Ikkanda: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/558465/how-lovely-the-ruins-by-edited-by-annie-chagnot-and-emi-ikkanda/

"Take Courage Friends," by Wayne B. Arnason: https://www.uua.org/worship/words/closing/183796.shtml

More information about Flower Communion can be found here: https://www.uua.org/worship/holidays/flower-ceremony

Written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

Produced and Directed by: Bruce Hall

“Racism is so deeply woven in the fabric of our society that we won’t escape it in our lifetime, but we can seek to continually move farther along the continuum of awareness and action.”

This episode contains 1) a letter from Reverend Laurel to the congregation; 2) a reading from the book “White Fragility” by Robin DiAngelo; and 3) the sermon “People of a Covenant,” which was originally written for the MLK Jr. 2020 service that was cancelled due to snow. It has been revised to reflect recent events.

Works referenced in this sermon:

“White Fragility” by Robin DiAngelo: https://robindiangelo.com/publications/

“Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/220290/between-the-world-and-me-by-ta-nehisi-coates/

More information about the proposed 8th Principle of Unitarian Universalism: https://www.8thprincipleuu.org/background

More information about the Black Lives of UU organization: https://www.blacklivesuu.com/about-bluu

The works of UU theologian James Luther Adams: https://www.uua.org/offices/people/james-luther-adams

Written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

Produced and Directed by: Bruce Hall

When we planned this year’s calendar, today was set to be the bridging ceremony for all of our teens graduating from high school. One of the great losses during Covid is all the celebrations that have been cancelled or postponed, celebrations that are meant to mark significant transitions in people’s lives. Today we’ll do what we can to celebrate our teens.

Works referenced in this sermon:

"Blessing for Bridging Youth" by Julia Hamilton: https://www.uua.org/worship/words/ritual/blessing-bridging-youth

Written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

Produced and Directed by: Bruce Hall

Amanda and Rev. Gray reflect on this month's sermons and answer questions from the congregation.

Topics of discussion: what day is it?; consent culture in situations of tenderness & power; debunking redemptive suffering ("what doesn't kill you makes you stronger")

Works referenced in this episode:

"On Coronavirus Lockdown? Look for Meaning, Not Happiness" by Emily Esfahani Smith: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/07/opinion/coronavirus-mental-health.html

Sermons written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

Produced and Directed by: Bruce Hall

"[In moments of ritual] we gather together to hold the fullness of each other’s becoming, to say we recognize you, and we gather in celebration of your being as you are."

It’s not uncommon for people to ask if UUs do baptisms. Like all religions, we as Unitarian Universalists have rituals that mark the changes in our lives, which are specific to our theology, principles, and history. Today we’ll talk about why it matters to mark these transitions as a community and what these rituals mean.

Written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

Produced and Directed by: Bruce Hall

"When things are too big and too scary and too hard, all you have to do is the next right thing."

In the midst of the overwhelm and thinking about big problems, it can be hard to know how to move forward. Today we’ll focus on the power of just doing the next right thing.

Works referenced in this sermon:

"Desert Spring," from "Walking Toward Morning" by Rev. Victoria Safford: https://www.uuabookstore.org/Walking-Toward-Morning-P16809.aspx

"Frozen II" on Disney+: https://www.disneyplus.com/movies/frozen-ii/28vdy71kJrjb

Words from Sonya Renee Taylor: https://www.instagram.com/p/B-fc3ejAlvd/?hl=en

"Clearing" by Martha Postlethwaite: https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/18466576.Martha_Postlethwaite

March's Reflections episode: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/q-a-march-2020-wisdom/id1489379281?i=1000471207773

Written by: Rev. Laurel Gray

Music by: Kala Farnham

Hosted and Edited by: Amanda Hall

Produced and Directed by: Bruce Hall