Our theme this month is presence and I am immediately reminded of a saying I learned long ago: The past is gone; the future hasn’t happened yet; and the present is a gift. One of the long playing stories of my life that I frequently tell myself, is how I am on a path to … Continue reading What Does It Mean to Be a Congregation of Presence?
November 2016 seems likely to feature prominently In the story of our communities. We’ve been rocked by an election campaign and election results that that seem both shockingly unprecedented and reminiscent of some of the darkest chapters of our history. Dickens’ famous opening sentence about “the best of times … the worst of times” builds … Continue reading “… the epoch of belief … the epoch of incredulity”
I am one of those modern households that lost the draw. The kids usually go to their fathers’ houses for Thanksgiving and then we go out for Pho on the Friday night after for our ThankPho Celebration. The tradition fits us. And this gives me time to start our other family tradition: holiday cards for … Continue reading Thanksgiving Tradition
We are a week out from the election and there is still a lot of uncertainty, to say the least, about what a Donald Trump presidency will mean. Some of our children and youth will be able to articulate their reaction and feelings about this, others may simply be reacting. It’s important to let your … Continue reading After the Election for Children and Youth
Our theme this month is what does it mean to be a congregation of story? Two days ago I posted picture of myself on Facebook joyously voting for what I thought was to be the nation’s first woman president. This morning I awoke to a slightly different story. An Orange is the New Black story … Continue reading What Does It Mean to Be a Congregation of Story?
Our Change for Change collections in November will benefit the Bismarck-Mandan UU Congregation, which since April has been standing on the side of the Standing Rock Sioux in their protests against siting of the Dakota Access Pipeline. The church has hosted a community teach-in, acts as a place to ship supplies for the camps 40 miles … Continue reading November Change for Change – Bismarck-Mandan UU Congregation – Standing with Standing Rock Sioux
“And did you get what you wanted from this life, even so?” This question is the opening line of Raymond Carver’s “Late Fragment,” a poem that seems to reach out to me every few years. Earlier in 2016 I heard this line as the culminating “bonus” question in a commencement address at the Harvard … Continue reading “And did you get what you wanted from this life, even so?”
Greetings, A cherished component of our faith community is encouragement to ask questions and receive support as we seek our own truth. For families, I believe a question often asked is, “Is it worth it to muster not only myself, after a long and busy week, but sleepy and sometimes resistant children to church on Sunday morning?” … Continue reading Is It Worth It?
This summer a transformation took place in several of the Religious Exploration classrooms thanks to the generosity of Tahama UU’s Paddle Raise donors! The two rooms are used for the middle school and high school youth groups, as well as adult committee meetings and covenant groups. The rooms went from seriously drab …. to fab! But … Continue reading Thank You Tahoma UU Paddle Raise Donors!
The church year has officially begun! We begin our church year anew each year with our Water Communion. Merging our waters together is a symbolic representation for us that we are indeed a community of covenant. But what does it mean to be a community of covenant? With the help of the Soul Matters … Continue reading What Does it Mean to Be a Community of Covenant?
