Category: Sermon

The Joy that Finds Us

The Joy that Finds Us, by Rev Elea Kemler, read by Jessica Wirges. This sermon was first delivered at First Parish Church, Groton MA. Moment of Perspective – AJ Fox – Behind the Scenes: Church Decisions, Values, and COVID-19 The opening words are Joy is Hard, by Rev Joe Cherry. Joy is hard.Joy requires us … Continue reading The Joy that Finds Us

With Joy in Our Hearts

Message by Rev. Michelle Scott-Huffman The opening words are Still So Much Good, and Beauty, and Joy, by Rev. Gretchen Haley. Come in, all who long to knowhow to love this worldHow to keep eyes openhands unclenchedarms wideBreathing deeplyIn, and outThis is a time to practiceBecause there isstill so much good, and beauty, and joyBut … Continue reading With Joy in Our Hearts

Warm Feet, Warm Hands, Warm Hearts

Colleen Appel reads some heart wrenching messages from real homeless people in Springfield. View this video by clicking the link below. https://express.adobe.com/video/yVUsEwoyJJ9uj/embed The opening words, “Why Celebrate Christmas?” are from Robert Edward Green. Why Celebrate Christmas? To reflect upon the miraculousness of birth: For with the winter solstice, the sun has turned about to begin … Continue reading Warm Feet, Warm Hands, Warm Hearts

Trans Day of Remembrance

The opening words speak both of those in our history who paved the way for us to be here today, and also to our special observance on Trans Day of Remembrance, which falls on November 20 each year. They are: We Remember Them, by Sylvan Kamens and Rabbi Jack Riemer At the rising of the … Continue reading Trans Day of Remembrance

Favorite UU Memories

Congregants share their favorite memories of the UU for the monthly theme of Holding History. The opening words are Constellations of Our Lives, by Rev Karen G. Johnston.Humans make maps of stars,choosing some stars, ignoring others,to project our imaginations onto the heavens.These maps shift over time, across cultures.Names change for the same assemblage of bright … Continue reading Favorite UU Memories

Holding the History

Homily by AJ Fox The opening words are a welcoming of the ancestors, adapted from words by Christina Shu and Tera Little, read by Religious Education Director AJ Fox. In ChurchWritten by Peter Ilyich TchaikovskyPublic DomainPerformed by Colleen Appel I Lift My VoiceWords and Music by Andrea RamseyFrom the Justice Choir SongbookUsed with Permission Here … Continue reading Holding the History

The Gift of Being Let Down

Message presented by Gary Meints. Originally written and presented by Rev. Gretchen Haley. Moment of Perspective – The Platinum Rule – AJ Fox The opening words are Woven Anew by Rev Scott TaylerCome.Come with your joy, your incurable curiosity, your hunger for hope.But bring too your broken heart, your cracked confidence, your ruptured relationships.Let this,today,be … Continue reading The Gift of Being Let Down

Banned Books and Us

by Dacia Reid and Eva Riebold Footnotes for the message are HERE. Our Opening Words this morning are the words of Sophia Lyon Fahs – a Unitarian Religious Educator whose work made its way into my Methodist childhood. While she speaks of children she also speaks of the self. . . . In this case … Continue reading Banned Books and Us