Come, join this holiday tradition. Bring friends and family to this multi-generational service of Lessons and Carols of the season. Music and readings will be offered by UUFD’s members and friends of all ages, followed by the traditional candlelighting ceremony. Bring holiday treats for a reception after the service. The offering at this service supports … Continue reading Christmas Eve Candlelighting Service: 4 pm
Today, resonate with the sounds and spirit of Taize music, a worship tradition which originated in the 1940s in the Taize Monastic Order in Burgundy, France, bringing Catholics and Protestants together in common ritual. An authentic Taizé worship service involves sung and chanted prayers, meditation, silence, and readings rather than a sermon. We incorporate elements … Continue reading Mid Winter Taize Meditation
Today in our multi-generational Thanksgiving service we are reminded of the importance of sharing, not only at Thanksgiving but all the year through. We will hold a Bread Communion to remember the earliest rituals of Giving Thanks in colonial American history. Bring in your favorite bread for the communion table, which will be shared by … Continue reading Remembering the Meaning of Thanksgiving
I love the poem that begins, “When someone deeply listens to you, it is like holding out a dented cup you have had since childhood and watching it fill up with cold fresh water.” Deep listening is rewarding not only for the speaker but also for the listener. Deep, active listening creates gratitude in a … Continue reading Gratitude in Deeply Listening
The state of gratitude results from demonstrating compassion for one another: being connected to others, we respond with gratitude for this process of being alive and being connected with other humans. Being grateful is a process of showing ourselves — letting ourselves be known to others — as we realize the meaning of relationships. To … Continue reading Gratitude: The Easiest Way to be Happy
The recent survey from the Ministerial Search Committee included conversations about “shared ministry.” How do you understand this concept? Even if UUs haven’t always labeled laity and professional staff working together with “Shared ministry,” our ancestors in liberal faith have been practicing such collaboration for a long time. Sharing the ministry is an integral part … Continue reading Our Liberal Heritage of Shared Ministry
During this month focused on “the gift of heritage,” let’s consider how “heritage” differs from “history.” We choose what we regard as our heritage by the activities, social groups, and congregations we voluntarily associate through common values. Because heritage can be a matter of choice, we also come by the “ancestors” in that heritage by … Continue reading You Can’t Choose Your Relatives, But You Can Choose Your Ancestors
The High Holy Days on the Jewish calendar, between Rosh Hashana (this year on September 15) and Yom Kippur (September 24), are a perfect time to begin UUFD’s participation in the current UUA Common Read, a new book by Danya Ruttenberg, Repentance and Repair. Ruttenberg brings us lessons from an ancient philosopher, Maimonides, to illustrate … Continue reading Welcoming Repentance
Let’s reflect on one of the surest gestures of “welcome,” that of covenant. Covenants are promises for how we live together, how we walk together sharing common values on this path called Life. Living well in covenant is core to belonging to this free faith of Unitarian Universalism. As Unitarian Universalists, we are connected through … Continue reading Welcoming Covenant
The worship theme for September is “Welcome.” Gestures of Welcome signal belonging, as to a community, to activities, to common values. We reach out our hands to offer welcome to others, just as we accept their welcoming of us. This is In-Gathering Sunday, the traditional start of a new church year to welcome the return … Continue reading Welcoming Joy
