Many different faith traditions have understood Autumn as the best time to connect with the ancestors. We do that in this worship in the spirit of this quote by Ralph Ellison: “Some people are your relatives, but others are your ancestors, and you choose the ones you want to have as ancestors. You create yourself … Continue reading Listening to the Ancestors
How we can defeat “Soul Weariness” by listening well to ourselves, attending to the present moment and nurturing our curiosities. Susan Ritchie is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Topic: NUUC VIRTUAL WORSHIP AND SUNDAY PROGRAMMING Time: Sundays 10:30 AM Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7541126323?pwd=d1J2dVhJeTJBMEk3UHA5emlhckppUT09 Meeting ID: 754 112 6323 Passcode: 152468 One tap mobile … Continue reading Keeping 2020 Weird: Defeating the Noon Day Demon
We introduce our monthly theme of deep listening by reflecting on how it has never been harder or more important to listen deeply—to each other, and to what Ralph Ellison called the “lower frequencies” of repressed voices. And yet listening deeply breaths spirit into both individual lives and the commonwealth—renewing the soul of democracy. This … Continue reading Listening to The Lower Frequencies
On the eve of Yom Kippur and in the wake of the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsberg, we explore the individual, relational, and communal aspects of renewal and situate them within RBG’s legacy of hope. Intern Minister Liora Malicdem offers the message and Rev. Susan Ritchie hosts. Susan Ritchie is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom … Continue reading Renewal and the Dissenter’s Hope
In this worship service, we hear some of the credos from our Coming of Age youth, and then reflect on the original meaning of “credo,” which means not so much an intellectual statement of belief, but “that to which I lend my heart.” Applying this month’s theme of “renewal,” we explore how renewing the choices … Continue reading To This I Lend My Heart
We celebrate our official start to the church year with our annual water celebration, a setting of intentions for the year to come, and a reflection on what it means to live through a watershed moment in history. This year we celebrating our Ingathering Water Celebration virtually! Please email a photo (whether your own or … Continue reading Watershed Moments
This Labor Day service explores the quest for not only economic stability but dignity on the part of so many “essential workers” who, while a vital part of our interdependent lives, nonetheless too often struggle for either “bread or roses.” We consider how the spiritual health of all of us depends on the fair recognition … Continue reading The Garment of Destiny: On Essential Workers in an Age of Inequality
We observe our annual blessing of the animals, only this year we are doing it virtually! Please send a photo of the animal(s) you would like to have blessed along with their names to minister@nuuc.org by midnight on Wednesday August 26. We’ll use the photos in a video as a part of the blessing. The … Continue reading Likeness to God: A Blessing of the Animals
Rev. Susan Ritchie hosts this worship with Intern Minister Liora Malicdem offering the message. Chicano poet Francisco X. Alarcón concludes his poem “Face and Heart” with a call to “arrive as children to this huge playground – the universe.” This playful, expansive conclusion resides uneasily with the opening call to “hear what nobody wants to … Continue reading Of God and Garbage Trucks
Daniel Boone liked to say that he never once got lost in the forest even though there would be three days or more during which he would be completely bewildered.” These days, many of us feel like we are living in completely uncharted territory. In this service, we explore wisdom from people with experience on … Continue reading The End of the Known Path
