This summer, we delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing from our members about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which they feel connected to or made room for the Divine. Summer worship is at 10am in Willett Hall downstairs. NOTE: This Sunday’s homily will not be broadcast on YouTube. Who is God to you? Someone human-like who loves you unconditionally? A severe judge? A taskmaster? Or something more abstract? A rushing wind? A misty cloud? Or maybe a mother hen? A soaring eagle? Is God something or someone as close as your ..read more

This autumn we drop into various stories of the Bible sequentially, starting at the beginning — following along with our young people in Church School. We look at the promises God makes with humanity and how those promises get broken. We look at our relationship with God and how we honor and keep it. This Sunday is our Welcome Back Sunday, when we begin our program year and re-convene after our summertime travel and adventures. It’s a fun, festive day, complete with an after-worship picnic on the lawn. New Beginnings. Many of us are probably well familiar with the second ..read more

This summer, we delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing from our members about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which they feel connected to or made room for the Divine. Summer worship is at 10am in Willett Hall downstairs. I’ve always loved Psalm 104- it’s an exultant ode to creation, to each part of our beautiful ecosystem.  I especially love verse 26, which talks about God creating the ocean, “and [the sea monster] Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there.”  I find special meaning in the idea that thi ..read more

This summer, we delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing from our members about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which they feel connected to or made room for the Divine. Summer worship is at 10am in Willett Hall downstairs. A long time ago in a land far, far away, Abraham (our foreparent in faith) lived into a new way of relating to God that would have ripples down the millennia: the movable altar. (Ok, there were many things that Abraham did that shaped Judaism as well as what would become Christianity and Islam, bu ..read more

This summer, we delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing from our members about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which they feel connected to or made room for the Divine. Summer worship is at 10am in Willett Hall downstairs. My sister has often remarked, “thinking about the universe makes my stomach hurt,” and to be honest, I get it. Our homilist this week, Stella L. writes, “How do you feel about the unknown? Does it fill you with excitement—or with fear? The apostle Paul wrote to the Philippians, “Do not be anxious ..read more

This summer, we delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing from our members about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which they feel connected to or made room for the Divine. Summer worship is at 10am in Willett Hall downstairs. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives instructions about how to pray (Matthew 6:7-15). It includes what we call The Lord’s Prayer. As we’ve discussed before, Jesus didn’t necessarily mean for us to quote this verbatim, but more as instructions about how we ought to pray, including praise, thanks ..read more

In the first chapter of Genesis it says: God created humanity in God’s own image,         in the divine image God created them,             male and female God created them. (Genesis 1:27, Common English Bible) It’s a claim each of us takes about our unique place in the world. Each one of us bears the imprint of God, the great cosmic divine force in the universe. So, whenever one of us harms another person, looks down on someone, kills someone, we are trespassing on that shared divine imprint. J ..read more

Worship begins at 10am this Sunday in Willett Hall followed by our All-Parish Meeting   Covenant is one of those church-y, biblical words that is probably not a part of most of our active vocabularies. We’re more used to terms like “contract” or “agreement.”   Covenant is what mere mortals in the early books of the Bible made with God. It’s what prophets mediated between God and the people. It’s the relationship with God and humanity that Jesus came to renew, restore and expand with his ministry.   Covenant is more than transactional — it’s about relationship, about promises, be ..read more

Each summer, we have the pleasure of hearing from our thoughtful membership and guests about their own spiritual lives, musings, and life experiences. You may remember that last summer, we had a theme of “Who Is My Neighbor?” and heard from a variety of wider community members about what it means to be neighborly. This summer, we will delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which people feel connected to or made room for the Divine. These spaces and moments can be as varied as a spot ..read more

In the liturgical calendar, this Sunday is Trinity Sunday, a tradition dating back to medieval times, in which the church pays attention to the doctrine of the trinity. It’s how we try to make some sense of the unfathomable nature of God. This weekend is also Memorial Day, an American tradition that began in the waning days of the Civil War, when families began decorating the graves of the war dead. As writer Ben Irwin notes here: “If you feel conflicted over Memorial Day, you’re not alone. On the one hand, it is right we should honor those who sacrificed ..read more