My mentor has a phrase I have heard her utter so many times: “It’s just not easy, is it?” I’ve heard her say it for 15 years and with each passing year, the phrase seems to become wiser. What do we do with our pain? How can it become a resource for healing instead of … Continue reading The Power of Our Pain

Human hate– we hate circumstances, institutions, celebrities, politicians…we hate people, we hate food, we can hate parts of ourselves. For a religious tradition so committed to both radical love and compassion, what do we do with the hate we feel? Worship leaders: Rev Darcy Baxter, Zana Roberson, Melynda Rodriguez. Tech Maestro: Todd Whiteley.

In a culture that works hard to distract us from death and dying, we gather to remember, mourn, and/or celebrate those who have died. Please bring mementos and/or photos of those who have passed on, as we will co-create an altar for those who have died. Worship leaders: Rev. Darcy Baxter, Robbie Edge, and Melynda … Continue reading Remembering Our Dead

Who are you when it all goes wrong? Worship Leaders: Matte Black, Sharon Arpoika, and Melynda Rodriguez. Tech Maestro: Todd Whiteley.

When our worlds lack the certainty and stability we humans tend to crave, how do we make our way through? Worship Leaders: Rev. Darcy Baxter and Brian Wise, Tech Maestro: Adlai Frederickson.

Popular wellness culture sells us so many ways to calm ourselves– if we breathe deeper, meditate longer, journal harder, we are told we can achieve some mythical state of perpetual “zen.” But what if human beings are not wired for calm, but for aliveness and connection that come in many different kinds of moods and … Continue reading Calm is a Con

“Happiness is fleeting but joy is grounded by grief” preached historian Kellie Carter Jackson’s brother at their sister’s memorial. In this service, we will reflect for a few minutes and then you will be invited to share your hope and your fear, your joy and your sorrow. Worship Leaders: Rev. Darcy Baxter, Robbie Edge, Melynda Rodriguez. … Continue reading Joy Grounded by Grief

Queer Chicana Poet Gloria Anzaldúa teaches, “Caminante, no hay puentes, se hace puentes al andar. / Voyager, there are no bridges, one builds them as one walks.” As People of Color Unitarian Universalists, we often are building bridges between worlds, languages, cultures and our UU faith. The goal of identity based caucusing is to cultivate authentic … Continue reading Building Bridges of Love: A Call Towards an Anti-Racist, Anti-Oppressive, Multicultural Unitarian Universalism

We are living in baffling, scary, and stressful times– times that make it more challenging to be our best selves. What do we do when we fall short of who we hope to be and how we hope to act? Worship leaders: Rev. Darcy and Tricia Garcia. Tech Maestro: Adlai Frederickson.

Our Universalist ancestors believed that cosmic love was a building block of reality. Over these past decades, we UU’s have begun emphasizing our Universalist roots more than ever. “When someone comes into our congregations” writes UU historian Dan McKanan, “I’d like the message they hear to be ‘You have always been loved.’ ” What does … Continue reading You Have Always Been Loved