Archives: Services

An Intimate Collaboration with Others

“The self, after all, is an intimate collaboration with others,” writes Dominic Pettiman in his book on ghosting. Digital technology has dramatically altered how we experience human relationships and intimacy in the span of just a few decades. Why is participation in congregational life a meaningful spiritual practice in these times when digital connection is … Continue reading An Intimate Collaboration with Others

Curiosity

Curiosity, according to UU minister Victoria Stafford, is “To see, simply to look and see, is an ethical and intentional choice. To see, with open eyes, is a spiritual practice, and thus a risk, for it can open you to ways of knowing the world and loving it that will lead to inevitable consequences.” Worship … Continue reading Curiosity

Brokenness and Beauty

Sometimes our capacity for imagination and beauty is only fully realized when we confront and embrace brokenness. Worship Leaders: Rev. Darcy Baxter, Tricia Garcia, and Melynda Rodriguez.

The Rites of Spring

Spring burst upon the central valley in a fragrant snow of almond blossoms. Soon it will be Beltane: the Celtic festival of fertility. While we can see why that festival would make sense to our ancestors who lived close to the seasons of the year, what significance does it have in our modern lives? Join … Continue reading The Rites of Spring

Abundance Through Subtraction

Most of us want plenty, or at least enough– plenty of friends, plenty of money, plenty of time. But what if the way to access a sense of abundance is not through addition but through subtraction? What do we need to give up to have plenty of what is most important to us? Worship Leaders: … Continue reading Abundance Through Subtraction

To Nurture Possibility

Nurturing the possibilities we most desire requires so much of us–this is one lesson of Easter. Please bring a flower or two to worship (whether you are coming in person or via Zoom) as we celebrate and honor all that possibility requires of us in our annual Flower Communion ritual. Worship Leaders: Rev. Darcy Baxter, … Continue reading To Nurture Possibility

Drum Circle Sunday

Whether it’s Christian Church “Father” St. Augustine, who believed rhythm came from God, or Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., asking to be called a “drum-major for justice,” religious leaders have considered rhythm as essential in our efforts for spiritual and ethical living. So this will be a service full of rhythm! Dave Rogers from … Continue reading Drum Circle Sunday

Peace with Uncontrollability

A driving force of our world today is the desire to make the world controllable. Yet, according to sociologist Harmut Rosa, “it is only in encountering the uncontrollable that we really experience the world–only then do we feel touched, moved, alive. A world that is fully known, in which everything has been planned and mastered, … Continue reading Peace with Uncontrollability

Abolish ICE Now! Lessons in Resistance from Minneapolis

Our deepest faith values tell us we must ABOLISH ICE NOW! “What Minneapolis taught me is that resisting authoritarianism requires trained, sustained resistance, grounded in truth-telling and faithful witness.” 1. Resistance must be trained. 2. Sustained resistance matters more than one-day action. 3. Non-cooperation is a moral strategy. Worship Leaders: Rev. Kevin Mann, Tricia Garcia, … Continue reading Abolish ICE Now! Lessons in Resistance from Minneapolis

How to Get Free

We too often think of freedom as liberated from constraints or obligations. But the words freedom and friend share a common linguistic ancestor, an old word that meant free or beloved. Freedom originally meant being among friends—being in particular kinds of relationships. What relationships help us get free?  Worship Leaders: Rev. Darcy Baxter and Zana … Continue reading How to Get Free