Holding on tight to the past is a common human experience – sometimes we hold on tight both to that which we grieve, and sometimes we also hold on tight to our grudges and grievances. We invite you this Sunday to consider the power of release, and how listening, listening to your heart, might help … Continue reading Listening for Release
Adapted from a quote by the South African theologian and religious leader Desmond Tutu. Tutu reminds us that to someone suffering from injustice, neutrality can and will look like taking the side of the oppressor. Two equally real places in which we see individuals trying to remain neutral are in cases of animals abuse and … Continue reading Neutrality in the face of injustice
Most of us want community of some kind in our lives, and yet we don’t often talk about what it means, what it takes, to form deep, genuine, meaningful, connected community. Join us this morning as we extend the invitation to one another to join in the kind of community that makes our hearts sing. … Continue reading Invitation to Community
There will be a service in celebration of the life of longtime WUS member, Marty Kennedy, on September 21st @ 1:00 pm. All are welcome. Marty would want people to come dressed in a celebratory manner with color as they feel comfortable. Those not able to attend Marty’s service in-person are invited to attend virtually by clicking HERE. Marty passed … Continue reading Marty Kennedy Memorial Service
Change is often hard, change is often scary, change often evokes feelings of loss, sadness, and grief. And, without change, everything would stay the same. Which sounds lovely in some ways. And would be awful in others. In this morning’s invitation to change, we will reflect on how we might embrace some of the goodness … Continue reading Invitation to Change
It is our annual tradition to begin the program year with a ritual, Water Communion, a pooling of the waters symbolic of places we have been during the slow Summer season. Water Communion represents not only coming together after a time apart but coming together in a new way, renewed in our connections with one … Continue reading Water Communion: Coming Together
Thanks primarily to Robert Richardson’s pathbreaking 1995 biography of Ralph Waldo Emerson (Emerson, The Mind on Fire) we have come to know Emerson at last as his contemporaries, family, and friends actually knew him. For them, he was not “the plaster sage of Concord.” He was an engaged and activist citizen, who took time from … Continue reading What Would Emerson Say?
A curious relationship between mystical experiences and healing have been investigated in recent psychological science. In studies where participants have experienced mystical type experiences, subjects have rated these experiences among the most meaningful in their lives, and the intensity of these experiences are associated with significant reductions of depression. In this service, we will explore … Continue reading Mystical Experience, Healing and Spirituality
All too frequently we rush through our natural environment without taking the time to see beauty in the detail, be awed by Her power or ponder the mysteries of Mother Nature. Walk with me to rediscover, through photos and verse, different elements of nature in the Fells, your neighborhood and our own church grounds…all hiding … Continue reading Always Listen to Your Mother (Nature)
When a small child is tickled, they can giggle with joy or be overwhelmed. As we get older, being vulnerable can also be overwhelming or, by embracing our vulnerabilities, they can be a tool for growth and understanding. When our lives are at their most difficult point, we are sometimes given the gift of hope … Continue reading The Gift of Vulnerability
