The Buddhist teacher, Ajahn Jotipālo writes: Ajahn Sucitto once said that we often think of patience as waiting for change. I will endure this situation, gritting my teeth, until it changes. Certainly, we might want a painful situation to change, but with true patience, according to Ajahn Sucitto, it’s more like thinking, I will be with … Continue reading Don’t Just Do Something, Sit There!
As we enter another season of Advent, we pause to consider the spiritual challenges of “waiting”. In their book, Discernment, Henri J. M. Nouwen, Michael J. Christensen, Rebecca J. Laird write, “Our spiritual life is a life in which we wait, actively present to the moment, expecting that new things will happen to us, new things that … Continue reading Thoughts on Waiting
Join us this Sunday as we celebrate the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday by exploring the role of origin stories and how the one popularized in our country about Thanksgiving might better be understood. What shall we offer in thanksgiving this year? How shall we remember our history? What does our faith tradition offer us as we … Continue reading A New Narrative of Thanks
Writing for Religionnews.com last August, Phyllis Zagano quipped, “As several mainline faith leaders and the U.S. Catholic bishops have pointed out, the derisive oppression of poor immigrants by members of the current administration is sickening. That some administration officials continue to publicly espouse Christian ethics is mind-boggling.” Unitarian Universalism has a long history of arguing … Continue reading Taking Back Faith
Sometimes, we feel as though we are fully authentic, entirely ourselves. Sometimes we feel just the opposite—lost, confused, as if we do not know who we are. Today, Rev. Michael F. Hall returns to UUCW to talk about the trouble we sometimes have reconciling the experience of Being with the notion of Self. Rev. Michael F. Hall … Continue reading Just Be Yourself, with Guest Minister Rev. Michael Hall
Rev. Dr. David Breeden in a piece entitled “Compassion Needs Weather” writes, “Compassion loves rough soil, the stones, weeds, the cracks between our best intentions.” This Sunday we explore the place of intention and how, sometimes, intention can get in the way of healing, compassion, and progress toward peace. Join us for this important exploration! … Continue reading The Unintended Consequence of Good Intentions
In his song “Holy Now,” UU Musician Peter Mayer sings, “It used to be a world half there, Heaven’s second-rate hand me down, Now I’m walking with a reverent air, ‘Cause ev’rything is holy now.” We pause this morning to consider what it might mean to give up the sacred/profane binary that has been the … Continue reading The Holy Now
Eileen Workman writes: You are not weak for trembling in the face of cruelty.You are not naïve for hoping when the sky darkens.You are not failing because you cannot fix it all. You are part of something ancient and emergent:a slow, deep evolution of consciousness that transcends the need for violent revolution.You are part of … Continue reading Choosing Presence Over Projection
Audio recordings of Aaron’s Sunday Morning Reflections are now available in podcast form here. “The United States of America has a white majority that remembers a history of discovery, opportunity, expansion, and exceptionalism. Meanwhile, our communities of color have the lived experiences of stolen lands, broken treaties, slavery, Jim Crow laws, Indian removal, ethnic cleansing, … Continue reading The Legacy of Discovery
Join us this Sunday as we honor the Jewish High Holiday of Yom Kippur and explore the essential essence of Tikkun Olam. What does repair of the world mean to you? How shall we as a community join in solidarity with so many others that are working to repair what is broken and failing? Join us as we honor the work of repair and peace.
