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Sermons
03/16/2008--Why Do I Celebrate Easter
--by Sarah Schurr
On Palm Sunday, come hear our Intern Minister, Sarah Schurr, explain why she celebrates Easter and the meaning this Christian holiday can have for UUs. Here is a hint: This sermon is not about resurrection, per se.
02/03/2007--The Sunflower
--by Sarah Schurr
What does our UU theology tell us about forgiveness in the face of incredible wrong? Intern Minister Sarah Schurr will share her reflections on Simon Wiesenthal's book about forgiveness, justice, and the Holocaust.
01/13/2008--Peace
Sarah Schurr
It is easy to say we want peace, but sometimes things get complicated. Is peace merely the absense of war? Is violence toward another person ever necessary? Can you really fight for peace? Intern Minister, Sarah Schurr, offers this sermon as the kick-off to our Peacemeking Study Action Project.
12/24/2007--Christmas
--by Sarah Schurr
12/09/2007--Praying and Paying Attention
--by Sarah Schurr
Sometimes it is called mindfulness. It involves noticing the world around us and inside of us. It is a form of spiritual practice and, yes, prayer. Intern Minister Sarah Schurr talks of how prayer can be as simple as a smaile or as elaborate as a symphony.
11/04/07--One Chaplain Over the Cuckoo's Nest
--by Sarah Schurr
Intern Minister, Sarah Schurr, will share her story of serving as chaplain intern at the Oregon State Hospital and will discuss how we are called to better care for our fellow humans who suffer from severe mental illness.
10/07/07--Where Did We Come From
--by Sarah Schurr
The birth story of our Unitarian Universalist faith tells a great deal about why we are organized the way we are and why we share some values we hold so dear.
09/23/07--Who Is This Intern
--by Sarah Schurr
Meet your student (or intern) minister, Sarah Schurr, as she shares some of her own religious beliefs and discusses how they were influenced by her early training as a scientist.
09/23/07—Living Ultimology
Can we rethink the whole
concept of theology? Is there a way to respond to the human need to make
sense of the world that does not use the word “God?”
09/17/06--What's a UU?
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
Unitarian Universalists tend to throw acronyms around willy-nilly. What do some of them mean and why do we use them?
09/10/06--The Meaning of Water
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
Bring water of special significance to you.
08/20/06--The Power
of Naming and the Wonder of Knowing One Another
--by Barbara Stevens
Hagar was an Egyptian slave in the Hebrew Scriptures who had the unique
distinction of naming God. This God saw her, heard her, and also named her.
Her story offers us wisdom about seeing and hearing each other, and about the
power of names.
07/23/06--The Christian Code for Unitarian Universalists
07/02/06--Returning Pride to America
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
What action can and should we take to renew the American Creed that mirrors our Unitarian Universalist values?
06/18/06--Why Fathers Are Important
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
A meditation on how healthy men offer options for health in our children, using the insights of Robert Moore.
05/14/06--Mother's Day for Peace
05/14/06--Celebrate Our Faith
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
04/16/06--Who Do You Say That I Am
04/09/06--What Is Ministry II
04/02/06--April Fools
03/12/06--Bridging the Class Divide
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
Unitarian Universalists are squarely located from middle class to upper middle class, with a strong emphasis upon education that includes those who hover at the poverty level but constitute the "privileged poor." Can we expand this base, or is it our destiny?
03/05/06--A Gift to Share
--by The Rev. Solymosi, guest minister
Closing celebration to a weekend conference for the Pacific Northwest District.
02/26/06--Recovering from Loss
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
Grief is evoked by loss and a necessary human experience at some time during our lives. We cannot love without losing. How can we move through grief to even fuller life?
02/05/06--Whom Do We Welcome
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
Our Unitarian Universalist principles invoke respect for all with no one excluded. Is that actually our practice?.
01/29/06--What Is Ministry
01/22/06--Intersection of Race
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
It should be no surprise that toxic waste dumps are placed in the neighborhoods of the poorest, the lowliest, and the lost. Why is this a spiritual as well as a social issue?
01/08/06--In the Beginning.
--by Rev. Gretchen Woods
The uneasy relationship between science and religion deserves our attention as Kansas and Pennsylvania struggle to determine how our children will learn about cosmology. How did the reaction to the concept of evolution lead to the development of the notion of "intelligent design?" Join us for this exploration.
12/24/05--The Peace of Christmas
12/04/05--The Magic of Christmas
12/04/05--Good Things
Come from Unexpected Places: Why UUs Can and Shouyld Be Optimists
The Christmas story, operant conditioning, game theory, and evolution come
together to show us UUs reasons to be optimists.
11/27/05--The
Mayflower Covenant
Our Puritan forebears laid the groundwork for a country that would be strong
both in governance and theology. Let us explore their covenant with one
another.
11/20/05--Giving Thanks by
Fighting Hunger
There are many kinds of hunger that human beings face. We shall address a
few.
11/06/05--More Lessons from Hogwarts
10/30/05--Celebrating
the Day of the Dead
This celebration for all ages explores the meaning of death as part of the
circle of life.
10/23/05--Force of
Character: Aging in an Age of Youth
The most requested sermon topic over the past two years has been "Aging
, not Dying." This is one of my responses, based upon a book by James
Hillman.
10/16/05--Crossing Lines:
Building Larger Community
How can Unitarian Universalists ,ove beyond a narrow parochialism and reach
out to those of other religious backgrounds to find common cause in our
troubled world?
10/09/05--Is
There No Safe Place?
Domestic violence strikes without regard to socioeconomic class or religious
persuasion. How should we, as Unitarian Universalists, respond?
10/01/05--Who Am I: The
Soul's Code
Each of us struggles to know the unique calling that motivates our life. How
do we systematically deepen that knowledge and then move out into the world
with it? Join our search.
11/25/05--Wearing a UU
Chalice--Now What?
Every Question Box service includes at least one request for "What do I
say after I say I am a Unitarian Universalist?" This will offer some
concrete--and possibly unexpected-- answers.
09/11/05--Joining
of the Waters
Bring water from a mement of spiritual transformation that you experienced
this summer and share it with our entire community.
07/03/05--Reclaiming
America for Liberals and Progressives
What does it truly mean to be "liberal"? How might we reframe the
entire discussion to build bridges rather than create deeper divides.
06/05/05--Deep
Peace to You
As we disperse for the summer, let us consider what the season may be for us
and what we may be for it.
05/08/05--From
Abstinence to Polyamory
The "Our Whole Lives" program asks us to develop healthier
understandings of the spectrum of human sexual behavior. How does this fit
with moral and ethical concerns?
03/27/05--Jesus:
Prince of Peace or Bringer of the Sword?
We will consider Jesus's message and his place in our current world. .
12/24/04--The
Peace of Christmas
A quiet contemplative Christmas Eve service of lessons and carols.
12/24/04--I
Seek the Spirit of a Child
Family Christmas service.
12/05/04--Don We Now...
The winter holiday season sometimes overwhelmes us. Let's give in to the
notion that it can be a time for joy and celebration.
11/28/04--Perspective
A view of USA life and
elections upon returning to the United States
from a year on the threshold of the Middle East.
11/21/04--Giving Thanks
An intergenerational Thanksgiving service with Apple Communion. For what can
we truly give thanks and how best to do it? Join us for this opportunity for
gratitude.
11/07/04--Religare-to
Tie Back Together
Is it possible for our country to reconcile the serious split that is the
election? How might our religion serve us in this time of great turmoil
within our world? Let's explore this together.
10/24/04--Kingdoms
and Kinship
On United Nations Sunday our pulpit guest, Rev. Margaret Kelp, spins
reflections on the dream of one world and the daunting dilemma of
sovereignty, which is so fraught with risk in a nation and so essential to
becoming a self.
10/17/04--Ironic
Points of Light
As we begin this year of religious exploration of peace, justice, and the
environment, we ask ourselves how peace and justice are related--and what
they have to do with our everyday lives.
10/03/04--Learning
Non-Violence
Some of our congregants learned about non-violent communication at an Eliot
Summer Institute this year. How does this relate to building religious
community?
09/26/04--The
Rights and Responsibilities of Conscience
Our fourth Unitarian Universalist Principle calls us to affirm and suport the
right of conscience. What does this mea in our troubled world?
09/19/04--Radical
Hospitality
How do we welcome each other into our lives? How can we maintain our
connections? Let's share some answers.
08/22/04--What
Is Marriage Anyway
Definitions, highly emotional and polarizing abound. Let's look deeper at
this charged issue.
07/04/04--A Patriot's
Dream
Celebrating Independence Day the UU way: by remembering our values.
05/30/04--Honoring
Our Loved Ones
A dialogue about how to treat our loved ones while dying, as well as how to
treat one another after death brings grief.
05/16/04--The
Blessings of Community
Reflections on our sense of ourselves at UUFC.
05/02/04--Strong
Voices from Our UU Tradition
Come and celebrate Unitarian Universalists who inspire us on our own life
journeys.
04/25/04--Changing
Relationships
A Partner Church Dialogue: Who have we been to one another? Who shall we
become with one another?
04/11/04--The
Passion of Jesus
There is more than one way of looking at the Jesus story and Easter is a good
time to do it.
03/14/04--Muhammad: Who Was He
Anyway?
As we begin to explore Islam, the final section of our study of the
"Children of Abraham," let us spend some time learning about its
founder.
03/07/04--Laughing
Ourselves to Life
Sometimes people just want to have fun. This can be a spiritual practice.
Let's try it.
02/08/04--Is God Love?
The "other U," Universalism, has a great history and lesson that
speaks to us in our search for meaning. Let's examine this together.
02/01/04--What
to Keep and What to Throw Away from Christianity
How do the studies of the Jesus Seminar and other current biblical scholars
inform our Unitarian Universalism?
01/25/04--What
Does Discipleship Mean for Unitarian Universalists?
As our children and youth consider Jesus' disciples, what can we learn from
the concept of discipleship?
01/18/04--Are
There Limits to Free Speech?
Does the right to free speech include the right to say whatever we want,
including hurtful things? How does this affect our value of "free
pulpit, free pew"?
01/04/04--What
Is Ultimate/God for You?
What gives the most meaning to your life? What values/metaphors provide you
with meaning? Come explore with me.
11/30/03--Mouse
Pox, Maquiladora Murders and Mass Destruction--Killing Pollyanna
A Jeremiad on the situation in the world today as it really is.
11/02/03--Covenants: How Do We
Live Our Promises?
The question of the month has deep consequences for all we say and do.
10/05/03--Atonement: Wisdom of
Judaism
On the evening of Yom Kippur, we explore the insights of Judaism that have
provided and still can provide inspiration for UUs.
09/28/03--A
Legacy of Prophecy
In Jewish culture, past and present, prophets identified the most important
problems of the times and spoke truth to power. What is our responsibility
now?
09/21/03--Is It True?
Our children and youth will be examining this question and its implications
throughout this month. We should, too.
06/08/03--The
Sacred Circle of Life
Today we honor and ofer our best wishes to our animal friends.
05/04/03--The
Core of Our UU Faith
The Commission on Appraisal of the Unitarian Universalist Association is
trying to discern what provides a center for our movement. Gretchen Woods
will offer her perspective.
04/13/03--Celebrate Sex
About Your Sexuality was rewritten as Our Whole Lives. Why? How
does it apply now?
03/02/03--Humanist
Teachings
Our fifth UU Source is one of the richest and most recent of our UU sources.
How does it affect our lives?
02/23/03--Loving
Our Neighbors
The fourth source from which our living tradition draws is Jewish and
Christian teachings that call us to respond to God's love by loving our
neighbors as ourselves. What could this mean? How could we do it well?
02/02/03--Our
Ethical and Spiritual Lives
It seems appropriate to follow our Right Relations Covenant-making workshop
with this disucssion of our third source.
01/19/03--Prophetic
Women and Men
The second source reminds us of our powerful forebears, the "giants upon
whose shoulders we stand." Come learn of a few.
01/05/03--Transcending
Mystery and Wonder
12/24/02--Bless Us
Everyone
A service of Lessons and Carols for quiet contemplation.
11/17/02--World Community
World Community: Is It Possible or Even Desirable?
UU Sixth Principle: When
tribalism seems about to fragment our planet, what can our heritage
offer as alternatives?
10/06/02--Justice
vs Violence
As we consider the second Principle of Unitarian Universalism, we also
take into account that this is the first anniversary of the bombing of Afghanistan
and the beginning of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
09/29/02--The First
Principle: The Inherent Worth and Dignity of Every Person
Our first Principle causes most of us some consternation. Is it possible to
actually affirm the inherent worth and dignity of every person? How would our
world look if we lived that way?
09/22/02--We Covenant to
Affirm and Promote...
Thus begin our Unitarian Universalist Purposes and Principles, but
what does it mean? Where does our polity come from and how does it help and
hurt us?
09/15/02--Hospitality
What does it mean to welcome the stranger? To offer hospitality? How
far does one go in doing that?
09/08/02--Living Waters
Bring some water to symbolize the gifts you bring to this religious
community.
06/16/02--Daddies,
Fathers and Real Men
As the pendulum swings in society's interests, exploration of the impact of
fathers deepens from dismissal to puzzlement to new models.
04/28/02--Gender Benders
Our society tends to polarize sexuality and exclude those not on the
far ends. How does this fit human
experience?
04/14/02--Tolerance,
Acceptance--or What?
We often claim a trinity of reason, freedom, and tolerance, but do we
mean it??
04/07/02--Our
Living Tradition
…or Dealing with Fundamentalists plus a little bit of
"Should we leave Jesus in the hands of the religious right?"
03/31/02--Jesus and
the Lilies of the Field
What do pagans, Christians, and nature have in common. What better
time than Easter to find out!
03/17/02--Our
Indebtedness to Transylvanian Unitarians
02/24/02--Tikkun Olam
According to the great Jewish
mystic, Luria, the world was created when Yahweh removed himself from
it. How could that inform us now?
02/17/02--The
Influence of Exile: Zorastrianism and Dualism
While our children learn the
Abrahamic tradition, we consider its impact on our culture.
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