Unitarian Church of Los Alamos

The story of the first Thanksgiving, as we've come to tell it, glosses over the reality of Native American encounters with their colonizers. This week, how reclaiming and retelling the truth of the lives of our forebears is an act of gratitude for what has come before.

"Self-care" is rapidly turning into a commodity, with businesses large and small seeking to sell your soul-feeding back to you. This week, some thoughts on tapping into an abundance of the spirit without tapping your wallet dry.

Welcome back, Rev. John! As we celebrate a belated Ingathering, our minister celebrates his return from sabbatical with a story about big ambitions, humility, and rediscovering what is necessary.

Spirituality and conspiracy theories often cohabitate. Can we differentiate the two? Does the second coming place Christianity in one or the other category?

Rev. Dr. Leona Stucky-Abbott is a UU community minister and has been a psychotherapist for over 40 years. She is semi-retired and loves to share insights with others, as she did when training pastors to become pastoral psychotherapists. She has watched meaning-making activities in people for many years and draws some surprising conclusions.

What is essential to living a good life? What non-essentials continue to receive our energy and time? In this historical moment filled with ambiguity, unknowns, and endless distractions, it's time to ground ourselves in the essentials. Join Rev. Elaine Aron-Tenbrink for a reflection on what really matters.

The Rev. Elaine Aron-Tenbrink serves as Assistant Minister at Foothills Unitarian Church in Fort Collins, Colorado. Prior to this, she served both in congregations and as a chaplain in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Charleston, South Carolina. Elaine enjoys hiking and biking in Northern Colorado with her two young children and her husband, Jason, who grew up in the Unitarian Church of Los Alamos.

We all know that endings and beginnings are a part of life, and yet change often leaves us with feelings of grief and loss. Join me in exploring the complexity of emotions that comes with times of transition and change.

Our prior guest speaker, Jenny McCready was married in August and returns to our pulpit today with a new last name, Jenny Amstutz. Jenny is currently serving as the minister of a small church in Littleton, Colorado, Columbine Unitarian Universalist Church, where she serves part time. Her part time schedule allows her to return to our pulpit. Jenny is the mother of five, ages 21 to 8 years and lives in Lakewood, Colorado, with her new husband Jason and a menagerie of pets. She is grateful to continue to be a visiting presence in our church and looks forward to a continued relationship with UCLA.

The interdependent web of existence is central to who we are. We are all connected. We are entangled. These are scientific facts and theologically rich concepts worthy to be chewed on. So, quantum mechanics has a central place in our faith.

The Rev. James Galasinski is in his sixth year of settled ministry at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Canton, NY. Before that he served the First Unitarian Church of Albuquerque and fell in love with the mesas, the mountains, and the red chile of New Mexico. James enjoys listening to jazz, growing tomatoes, writing poetry, and hiking with his wife, Ulrike, and their two sons, Miles and Oskar. He is excited to be back in Los Alamos as a pulpit guest.

Where is the meaning of life to be found? Join us in a recounting of a journey of discovery, including wild strawberries, hitchhiking, a smidgen of philosophy, and one too many electric fences.

The Rev. Bob Janis-Dillon had the great privilege of studying with the Rev. John Cullinan at Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago. He has served a UU congregation in New Jersey before serving for six years in Northwest England, as minister for three Unitarian congregations in Wigan, Warrington, and Chester. He currently serves in New York as minister of Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Catskills, and as an accredited spiritual director.

Rev. Janet Newton is the senior minister at the First Parish Church of Berlin in Berlin, Massachusetts. Janet was born and raised Unitarian Universalist in the Unitarian Church of Los Alamos, NM. She comes to ministry after many years as a high school English and philosophy teacher. Janet received a Masters in Divinity in May 2018 from Meadville Lombard Theological school.  For Janet, religion is a collaborative invitation to find, feed, and honor the spark of the sacred within every human heart, that we may know ourselves and our communities more deeply, and that we may make love more visible in the world. Her experiences have helped her develop a vision for church that uses worship, conversation, contemplation, and opportunities for lifelong learning and service to help us grow our souls, build community, and heal our world. She said she’s still a little amazed that her calling means she can live “an intentionally conscious spiritual life.”

A 12th-century Benedictine abbess, writer, poet, and composer, Hildegard had prophetic and mystical visions and is said to have been a miracle worker. How do mystical experiences fit into our UU faith?

Our prior guest speaker, Jenny McCready was married last month and returns to our pulpit today with a new last name, Jenny Amstutz. Jenny is currently serving as the minister of a small church in Littleton, Colorado, Columbine Unitarian Universalist Church, where she serves part time. Her part time schedule allows her to return to our pulpit. Jenny is the mother of five, ages 21 to 8 years and lives in Lakewood, Colorado, with her new husband Jason and a menagerie of pets. She is grateful to continue to be a visiting presence in our church and looks forward to a continued relationship with UCLA.