Jeff Lockwood will offer a sermon on how UUs might think about climate change—not just the phenomenon but what it means in terms of our principles. He raises the question of whether cleverly adapting human enterprises to the changes imposed by global warming means that we fail to confront the moral and spiritual meaning of our (in)actions. Does technology allow us to avoid coming to terms with our relationship to the natural world? What could we learn if we’d pay attention to the dying forests, rather than scrambling to develop “solutions” that allow us to avoid the depths of the problem?
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Not a graceful title, but exactly descriptive. As I am “in the pulpit” this Sunday and not the next, let us celebrate Earth Day together. Then you get to do it all over again a week later. Earth Day is a powerful reminder that we are all related. Indigenous peoples the world over work to communicate the depth and richness of this beautiful understanding of Mother Earth and the Cosmos and our relationships with it all. We gather this day in the spirit of mitakuye oyasin. “We are all related.”
RE: Play Practice for Earth Day It is difficult to talk about money. Especially in church. This is where we come to hide from the yucky stuff of life, like money, isn’t it? Yes. Yet we must. Without our pledges of financial support, UUCG would not exist. Period. And those pledges, if they come from a place of loving commitment, warm our own hearts. It feels good to give for a good cause. And it helps us to feel a real part of our spiritual community.
NOTE: This service, and the pot luck that follows the service, marks the beginning of our pledge campaign for 2018 Wisdom and insight about the world around us has been shared since humans could talk. One of the earliest expressions that has come down to us is contained within Taoism and the I Ching. Dating to at least 26 centuries ago these writings/practices of Confucius, Lao Tze, and others have deepened our understanding of how we fit in nature as much as indigenous spiritual practices. As a matter of fact, it formed the basis for the spirituality of the Lakota and many other native tribes. What they did left us a guide for a balance life.
We like to be sure about things and we like to know what to expect. It is comforting to be clear about our beliefs, yet there are times when our world-view is shaken and doubt begins to erode away our solid perspective. This doesn't usually feel like a gift, but it often is one of the best gifts life has to offer.
Huston Smith spent his lifetime studying and practicing religions and religious practice. Growing up in China, the son of Methodist missionaries, got him started in the quest that would take him around the world many times over. His book, the World’s Religions, has given millions a view into religious worlds that informed and inspired. I feel honored to bring him into our sanctuary.
RE: Chapel What are we called to cultivate in the midst of troubled times? What must we let go of? The answers are in the ways we practice relationship with the ecosystems in which we are embedded. Perhaps we can learn a new kind of hope from the wild spaces both inside and around us.
Martin Luther King, Jr carried out a prolonged effort as the head of a movement to bring civil rights alive for African-Americans and other besieged minorities in the US, affecting millions around the world as well. What can we learn from his powerful intention? Despite obstacles that would stop many lesser souls in their tracks, he persevered till the moment of his untimely death. How can we learn from his life, his leadership, his courage and strength, to be better human beings? May we learn how to continue to fulfill his mission, one person, one day, at a time.
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SermonsHere you will find recent sermons, some audio, some video. |