After my Father died suddenly, my Mother’s health began a steady decline. This is not unusual for people who lose their long-time life and love companions. After a heart attack, her cardiologist recommended a cardiac stent to prevent further attacks. … Continue reading →

For the next spell, I’m going to write small items and not dwell on UUA business (it makes me unhappy) and spend that time in prayer, reading Scripture and digging into the works of the “new Universalists.” Their thoughts and arguments remind me of what I’ve read for decades, particularly from the nineteenth century. I’m … Continue reading "Certification numbers, Article 2 thoughts"

Sometimes I need to shut my brain off. One way I can do that is by writing. But writing can also act as a stimulant, making my thoughts go round even faster. People tell me meditation will shut my brain off. I meditated seriously for years, until I realized that I really disliked meditating, and … Continue reading ""

This month, the United States honors Black History Month, understanding that the history of Black Americans is the history of the nation. We learn this month of creativity and struggle, of perseverance and inspiration, of brilliance and hard work. We learn also that history lives right here among us in the relationships we have right … Continue reading History is Here

Sunday, February 12  Measure Your Life In Love With our friends at First Parish Northborough; Rev. Misty-Dawn Shelly presiding Martin Luther King Jr. writes,  “Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice, and justice at its best  is   [ … ] The post Sunday Worship: February 12 at Northboro ~ Measure Your Life In Love ~ 10:30 a.m. appeared first on Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson.

  “The priest Xiangyan (Kyogen) said, ‘It is as though you were up in a tree, hanging from a branch with your teeth. Your hands and feet can’t touch any branch. Someone appears beneath the tree and asks, ‘What is the meaning of Bodhidharma’s coming from the West?’ If you do not answer, you evade […]

Alumni Pagans and Witches of New College react to Governor Ron DeSantis' shocking and unprecedented changes at the institution. Continue reading Pagan Alumni react to DeSantis’ disruption of New College at The Wild Hunt.

In January, Climate Justice Organizer Rachel Myslivy hosted the Green Sanctuary 2030 Celebration. The event spotlighted the amazing work UUs are doing through the Green Sanctuary 2030 program. We heard from about twenty Green Sanctuary 2030 congregations on their successes, challenges, and everything in between.  It was inspiring and exciting to hear all of the great things happening in our congregations.  Thank you all for your excellent work! Did you miss the celebration?  Or wish you would’ve taken notes on that one awesome presentation?  You’re in luck!  You can watch the recording of the Green Sanctuary 2030 Celebration or review the slides .  Get inspired! Join the GS2030 Community! Each month, we hold  Green Sanctuary 2...

                                               There was no mistaking the heroes of  The Birth of a Nation  in the most widely used of several posters. The premier of D.W. Griffith’s epic The Birth of a Nation on February 8, 1915 was just the beginning of its vast influence for good and mostly bad.  One of the most celebrated films in cinema history it has been lauded and reviled.  On one hand the schizophrenic flick was a stunning technical and artistic breakthrough from America’s most accomplished director—an epic on a scale never before seen chocked full of camera and editing techniques that exploded the visual vocabulary of the medium, made long-form cinema viable, and raised the ante on the low-...

Let me not to the marriage of true minds admit impediments . . . Sonnet 116, by William Shakespeare  There are rocks on the Path of Love. And being a Kentucky hillbilly, I hate wearing shoes. But I will not … Continue reading →

Red Flags, a novel by Juris Jurevics, was originally published in 2011, and reissued as a paperback in 2021 by Soho Crime. Soho Crime typically publishes mysteries, but this isn’t exactly a mystery. Maybe it’s a thriller, thought it’s not one of those thrillers that raises your blood pressure and keeps it high. I’d say … Continue reading "Reading list: Red Flags"

Friendship at different times of life. The grade school best friend who held all my secrets. The high school and college friends who held all my dreams. The career and mama friends who held my fears and triumphs. Then came the sister friend who held them all. -Christina Rivera (CLF) Who are the friends that … Continue reading Friends Through Our Lives

Today was a rough day: oral surgery and then rest at home. All I wanted to do was read, and there was this newspaper from the 1880s I found online. How could I resist? The Atlanta Universalist ran from 1879 to 1882, first under the editorship of Universalist minister William Clayton Bowman then under Daniel … Continue reading "Reviewing the Atlanta Universalist"

Today in the Clear Spring School wood shop we made table decorations in advance of Valentines Day. But first thing first. How do you drill a hole straight up and down easily without using a drill press? The simple cylinder of wood on the drill provides both a way of assuring the drill is held vertical, and that it drills only to the desired depth. This simple set-up was to allow me to quickly drill into pieces of wood to serve as bases for our Rainbow Group to make table decorations in advance of the much loved holiday. Photos of the kids follow. To make the Valentines hearts I made a template of a half heart. The kids were able to draw a whole heart by drawing one side, and flipping it over to draw the other. It was a great way to demon...

The intersection between conservation and spiritual practices may offer yet another avenue for protecting the environment. Continue reading Religion and the protection of wild and sacred places at The Wild Hunt.

Tania Márquez Food carries the love, wisdom, and stories of survival of a people. Continue reading "Communion and Sustenance"

People have said, “Don’t cry,” to other people for years and years, and all it has ever meant is “I’m too uncomfortable when you show your feelings. Don’t cry.” I’d rather have them say:“Go ahead and cry. I’m here to … Continue reading →

                                                          Robert Smalls was just 23 years old when he stole the  CSS Planter  and delivered her, the crew, and his family to the Union. At the risk of being crude, and perhaps irredeemably sexist, there are some acts so audacious that the English language seems inadequate to describe them without resort to certain old vulgarities.  The word I have in mind today is balls as in big fat hairy balls.  That is certainly what it took for Robert Smalls,then a 23 year old slave to calmly sail away in a Confederate side-wheel Steamer under the guns of at least one fortress and a Rebel flotilla to deliver the ship, cargo, crew, and passengers to the welcoming ar...

We can honor our Gods and ancestors on our own. Some magic is best worked in solitude. But other magic is best worked in community. And sometimes, what’s most important is to be reminded that whatever we face, we do not face it alone.

Friendship is one of the most important things in life and also one of the hardest things to explain.  It’s not something that can be taught. We all need it.  We all value it.  We all need someone in the world who loves us and values us like a true friend does. -Judy DiCristofaro (CLF) … Continue reading True Friends

UUSC and our community are in solidarity with the people of Turkey and Syria and the first responders and community activists mobilizing support for communities impacted by the devastating earthquake on February 6, 2023. We know that this is a time that global solidarity can strengthen mutual aid on the ground and support long-term movement-building […]

A Q&A with Gayle Wald | It’s fantastic to see Tharpe getting all kinds of recognition, especially from young people and artists like Lizzo. I should also say that there are musicians and people in the gospel world who always cherished her, so the world is catching up with them.

Taken with a Fuji X100F Just click on the photo to enlarge it.  Taken in December 2020. I remember that at the time I was very absorbed in (and hugely impressed by) the work of the Czechoslovak philosopher, Jan Patočka (1907-1977), and this photo somehow reminded me of photos taken there (and in Eastern Europe in general) during the 1950/60s.  My worry is that the similarities I see in this image are not only aesthetic, but only too real. After all, here in a post-Brexit UK we find ourselves increasingly impoverished, being led by a government showing definite tendencies towards enacting repressive and regressive legislation and also experiencing a time of increasing hypernormalisation . And what, you may ask, is hypernormalisation ? ...

Or maybe you won’t. The prosecuting attorney in the Lizzy Bordon case was Hosea Morrill Knowlton, a Universalist and the son of a Universalist minister. He also bicycled and was president of the Madrigal Society, which would be a nicer way to be remembered than being associated with, well, you know. “A Portrait of Hosea … Continue reading "You’ll be shocked how this Universalist was tied to famous murders"

Children in Kindergarten through 6th grade will start in the Great Hall for the first part of the service. Afterwards, they will meet in their own rooms: Wonderful Welcome (K-3rd grade) in the classroom next to the dining room Love Connects Us (4th-6th grade) in the second ... read more . The post This week in Religious Education: Feb 7 – Feb 13 appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

UUSS Covenant Groups are small groups of people who will meet six times between late February and early April to have conversations about some of life’s big questions. They provide an opportunity to reflect and share our thoughts and feelings, to get to know some fellow ... read more . The post Covenant Groups Begin Soon! appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

The outing to Saratoga Spa State Park on February 20th begins at 1:30PM at the park. We spoke with a park administrator to confirm there are indeed bathrooms, the skating pond is not open yet this year, but the warming hut is open. They rent ... read more . The post Green Sanctuary lecture Feb 15 & park outing Feb 20 appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

New excavations and research in Egypt provide new insight into ancient funerary practices. Continue reading Unleash the Hounds: Archaeology edition at The Wild Hunt.

By Jeff Milchen Reverend DC Fortune and Sara Phinney Kelley, Director of Religious Growth and Learning at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Susquehanna Valley in Pennsylvania, were looking for inspiration as they brainstormed developing a multigenerational, interactive service preceding Martin Luther King Day this year. They discussed incorporating New Year’s resolutions into the sermon but sought to find a way to make the discussion something that would involve UU justice priorities and stick with participants, rather than just spark momentary ideas. The resulting project had an unlikely source of inspiration: a 1972 Playboy magazine interview with Buckminster Fuller, the architect, inventor, and philosopher (among other ...

I knew I shouldn’t go to the Registry of Motor Vehicles right after lunch. I knew there would be a long line. I knew I’d have to wait forever. I was there 3 hours. A 30 minute drive each way made it 4 hours total. And before you ask, no I couldn’t use a runner. … Continue reading "RMV"

Since May 2021, the Burmese military has attempted to exert control over Karenni State through rapid militarization. Military reinforcements are routinely deployed across townships in Karenni State and neighboring areas. At the same time, the Burmese military has ruthlessly employed its counter-insurgency strategy known as the ​​“four cuts.” This deliberately targets civilians, viewing them as the […]

When our three  kids were growing up they each had a dog. Three kids and three dogs. The house was full to capacity with arms and legs and paws and tails.  We were walking over toys and clothes and snacks … Continue reading →

                                             Woodrow Wilson vetoed the 1917 Immigration Act only because of its Literacy mandate.. On February 5, 1917 Congress overrode President Woodrow Wilson’s veto making the Immigration Act of 1917, also known as the Asiatic Barred Zone Act, the law of the land.  It was the most restrictive legislation yet enacted and banned immigration from most of Asia and the Pacific Islands. China was not included only because the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 already barred entry from that country and the Gentlemen’s Agreement with Japan in 1907 restricted immigration from there.  The act was aimed at potential new reservoirs of immigrants like Korea and especially India which wa...

          Today, the 7th of February, in 1497, caught up in a madness of regret and purification stirred by preaching of the Dominican Friar Girolamo Savonarola, the people of Florence gathered together what they and the good friar considered temptations into sin, piled them up, and lit them as bonfires. These […]

We dedicate ourselves to the children. We dedicate ourselves to the good of the earth, from which the trees come and to which we all return. We seek to move and to make friends. We seek creativity. May our lives be blessed by the joy of play and the connections of friends. -Adapted from words … Continue reading Joy in Friendship

Here we are gathered as a Unitarian Universalist congregation. We worship in an evolving tradition – a living tradition, as the title of our hymnal says ("Singing the Living Tradition"). Certain themes run throughout: freedom, reason, tolerance – and critique of the trinity. Unitarianism in Europe goes back 450 years. And then it started – almost independently – in America – with William Ellery Channing, born 1780. The Unitarian ideas were bubbling up from a number of places. It was Channing who consolidated them and gave them their most forceful presentation, who developed them in some new directions which became deeply influential on the Unitarianism of his time and thereafter. Ralph Waldo Emerson called him “our bishop.”...

In this week's Pagan Community Notes: Museum of Magic, Fortune-telling & Witchcraft is set to open, Iemanjá statue, ConVocation and other upcoming events, the green comet, and more news. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of February 6, 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

      A Critique of Centering Prayer: Text and Commentary Francis Tiso (I shared online a reflection by the lay Catholic spiritual director Carl McColman regarding Centering Prayer and some of its critics. In a response Fr Tiso noted he’d also written a reflection on Centering Prayer in response to an extensive critique. I […]

Source of healing and wholeness we call by many names, Ground us in gratitude. May we find our way back from the brink of anger or fear to a foundation of thanksgiving and gladness and praise. Praise be for diversity. Different people have different experiences of the world. We have different stories we tell to make sense of our world. Some stories about reality feature a creative force that knows and desires. Other stories depict the forces of the universe creating and destroying without anything that could be compared to knowledge, intentionality, or purpose -- rather, and beauty, awe, and majesty-compelling reverence are the products, not the source, of unfolding creation. Still other stories tell of a creative force that metaphorical...

Join us as we have fun and raise funds for FUUN!

We've ordered our plants! Check out what you can expect to see here.

Information on the plants we're selling in 2023.

Some have said that love is not a feeling. I disagree. I have a warm, glowing sensation in my chest when I sit and cuddle with or hold hands with my beloved. Or when I pet my cat. Or when … Continue reading →

Learn from Burmese civil society activists about the atrocity crimes being committed in Karenni State and what needs to be done to hold the military junta accountable.

The founding convention of the Colored National Labor Union in Washington, D.C. in 1869 as depicted in  Harper's Weekly.   Note the presence of women delegates. Isaac Meyers did not want it this way.  Neither did William H. Sylvis.  Myers was a 34 year old Black marine caulker from Baltimore who had organized a union of Black caulkers in the Chesapeake shipyardsand a cooperative association to market their services to ship builders and dry docks.  Sylvis was a white 40 year old Philadelphia iron molder who was the founder, visionaryleading light, and President of the National Labor Union (NLU), American labor’s first stab at a national federation uniting existing trade unions.  In the wake of the recently concluded Civil War and ...

          Joseph Priestley died on this day, the 6th of February, in 1804. Me I think of it as a holy day, a feast for a radical saint. Priestley was a scientist, political radical, and one of the more influential founders of the modern English speaking Unitarian movement. He was born into […]

I grew up hearing the refrain, freedom isn’t free. I also heard, “If you is what you ain’t, then you ain’t what you is.” What do these aphorisms have in common? They both shed light on how one navigates systemic racism. Systemic racism depends upon tacit agreement with established power and fear of perceived consequences if that power is not obeyed. Throw in laws that limit freedom and one begins to scratch when you don’t itch and grin when there’s nothing funny. Our national culture is consumed with power, sometimes demonstrably violent. We citizens are told, “just stay in your […] The post Freedom appeared first on BeyondBelief.

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, we have begun to broadcast a livestream video of our Sunday morning worship services. This worship video will be available live and in recorded formats. For our livestream video of our worship services, we are using Facebook Live.  One does not have to log into Facebook … Continue reading "25 December 2022 Worship Livestreaming Video"

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, we have begun to broadcast a livestream video of our Sunday morning worship services. This worship video will be available live and in recorded formats. For our livestream video of our worship services, we are using Facebook Live.  One does not have to log into Facebook … Continue reading "24 December 2022 Xmas Eve Worship Livestreaming Video"

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, we have begun to broadcast a livestream video of our Sunday morning worship services. This worship video will be available live and in recorded formats. For our livestream video of our worship services, we are using Facebook Live.  One does not have to log into Facebook … Continue reading "18 December 2022 Worship Livestreaming Video"

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, we have begun to broadcast a livestream video of our Sunday morning worship services. This worship video will be available live and in recorded formats. For our livestream video of our worship services, we are using Facebook Live.  One does not have to log into Facebook … Continue reading "11 December 2022 Worship Livestreaming Video"

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, we have begun to broadcast a livestream video of our Sunday morning worship services. This worship video will be available live and in recorded formats. For our livestream video of our worship services, we are using Facebook Live.  One does not have to log into Facebook … Continue reading "4 December 2022 Worship Livestreaming Video"

About a year ago, Steven HAuse interviewed me at Universalist National Memorial Church as part of his project to make a documentary — Love Unrelenting — about the theology and history of universal salvation. He gave me a head’s-up when he separately published the clips that didn’t fit into the documentary and then the film … Continue reading "Love Unrelenting: documentary and video channel"

As our Jewish siblings celebrate Tu B’Shvat, the “new year of the trees,” let us ponder with them our connection to all beings. Each of our actions ripples outwards through the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. How can you be a friend to the trees today?

Michael E. Mann, The New Climate War (New York: Public Affairs, 2021), 2022 paperback edition with a new Epilogue. Michael Mann is a real live actual climate scientist, a professor of atmospheric science at Penn State. He’s also a pretty good writer. That’s a great combination, if you want to read about climate change. His … Continue reading "Reading list: The New Climate War"

In Ireland, Pagans commemorate the first celebration of Brigid's Day as a public holiday. Meanwhile, in the U.K., the White Spring Temple in Glastonbury holds its traditional Imbolc celebration. Continue reading Imbolc in the United Kingdom and Ireland at The Wild Hunt.

      The master of the cut and paste novel, gay, drug addict, wife killer, essayist, short story writer, painter, spoken word artist, general all around self-obsessed jerk, and brilliant brilliant writer William S. Burroughs was born on this day, the 5th of February, in 1914. Were he still alive he’d be one hundred […]

        THE UNITARIAN WHO WOULD BE PRESIDENTA Meditation on the Politics of Unitarian Universalism A sermon delivered at the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles 5 February 2023 James Ishmael Ford Back in the day, most people with an axe they were looking to grind regarding candidate and then President Barack Obama, […]

Later that night, still turning the parable over in his head, the rich man returned to the place where the disciples slept. He found Jesus at the fire and sat down with him. "Master," he said, "I think understand who my neighbor is. But . . . how shall I love myself?"

Last week I posted the image of a tree that looked almost human – at least it called to mind a number of human postures. Was it dancing, weeping, walking, blessing the earth or bending a knee in prayer or protest? Your own emotions, I think, informed what you might have seen in that tree. […]

The climate crisis isn’t happening in a vacuum. With attacks on Black lives, trans kids, and reproductive justice all in the face of increasing fascism and white supremacy, rampant gun violence, and ongoing pandemic, sometimes it feels like tragedy is everywhere all the time. And yet, so is love. So is courage. So is resilience. Side With Love Climate Justice Organizer Rachel Myslivy’s reflection for this week considers the way Resilience is found in our work for justice, including climate justice. Later, she writes: “The strength of “what if” is what helps us continue in this work. And so, what is our resilient, loving way?” This week’s offerings for 30 Days of Love includes pieces we hope bolster, strengthen, and encourag...

  African Americans cast their first votes during Reconstruction in 1867,  In 1870 the 15th Amendment was meant to specifically  protect that right.   Anniversaries of two amendments to the U.S. Constitution which protected and extended voting rights for African Americans and the poor were recently marked.   The 15th Amendment ratified on February 3, 1870 prohibited the Federal governmentand each state from denying or abridging a citizen’s right to vote “on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”   The 24th Amendment was ratified on January 23, 1964.   Yet today voting rights are under sweeping attack not only in the states of the old Confederacybut everywhere Republicans control state legislatures and/...

An impurity isn’t something that’s bad - it’s something that’s unhelpful where it is, even though it may be very helpful in other places. Cleansing removes discordant, inappropriate, and otherwise unhelpful residue and energies from ourselves and our tools.

I finally got around to watching the movie Christopher and His Kind. Christopher Isherwood’s autobiographical account of his time in Berlin features Gerald Hamilton, who is a character in Wilde Nights & Robber Barons, and I felt that I ought to see it. So it has sat there in my watch list for ages like […]

“Nobody sees a flower – really – it is so small it takes time – we haven’t time – and to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time.” ― Georgia O’Keeffe Take the time to witness something or someone important today.

t times, winter can seem to be an endless stream of snow, ice, and cold harsh winds. The mid-winter point brings a strong internal need to get away, to warm up, and to renew. Continue reading Column: Resurrection at The Wild Hunt.

I managed to get six bowls thrown on the wheel last Sunday and they were dry enough to trim this afternoon. After further drying these will be ready to go into a bisque firing and then be glazed and fired to cone 6.  Make, fix and create... assist others in learning lifewise.

I’m two days late for World Ukulele Day. Sigh. But here’s my playlist for this year’s World Ukulele Day. It’s all instrumental, except for the last song medley by the legendary Israel Kamakawiwo’ole. Most of the performers are from Hawai’i, of course, but I tried to make this about world ukulele by including players from … Continue reading "World Ukulele Day"

Please join us on Sunday (5 February 2023) at 11:00 AM for “Are These Ideas Worn Out or Just Good and Broken In?” by Rev. Barbara Jarrell. We will be meeting in the sanctuary for this worship service.  Please join us in person at All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church, 9449 Ellerbe Road, Shreveport LA  71106 if … Continue reading "All Ages Worship (5 February 2023)"

          THIRD PURE PRECEPT Zen’s Shorthand for the Bodhisattva Vow A talk delivered atEmpty Moon Zen‘s Saturday morning Zoom gathering James Ishmael Ford To remind you. The three pure precepts are derived from verse 183 in the Dhammapada, a collection of sayings attributed to Gautama Siddhartha, the Buddha of history. The […]

Building and Grounds Work Day Moving to 18 February 2023 2023 Pledge Drive — We Need Your Pledge Now

For this month only, we are moving our second Saturday of the month building and grounds work day to the third Saturday of the month. Our monthly building and grounds work day will happen on Saturday (18 February 2023) from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. We will have tasks available for all ages and abilities … Continue reading "Building and Grounds Work Day Moving to 18 February 2023"

Children and youth will attend the worship service for the first 15-20 minutes and then are dismissed to their classes. After the holiday break, we are now discussing the wisdom of the world’s religions is one of the six sources of our Unitarian Universalist faith. It’s important that we gain an understanding of teachings and … Continue reading "Children and Youth Religious Education Classes — 5 February 2023"

Please join us on Sunday (5 February 2023) as we continue our our adult religious education class at 9:00 AM. Our adult religious education class is still meeting via Zoom. We are now reading and discussing the book God of Love: A Guide to the Heart of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam by Mirabai Starr. This … Continue reading "Online Adult Religious Education — 5 February 2023"

Each month we dedicate all of our non-pledge income to an organization doing the work that best embodies our Unitarian Universalist principles and values. For the month of February 2023, we choose The Whitney Plantation Museum (near New Orleans in Wallace, Louisiana). The Whitney Plantation Museum provides a different kind of plantation tour experience — … Continue reading "Whitney Plantation Museum — February 2023 Give-Away-The-Plate Recipient"

Please join us next Tuesday (7 February 2023) at 12 noon for our weekly Zoom lunch. Our weekly Zoom lunch is going dual-platform — join us from home using Zoom or in person in the social hall. Bring your lunch and meet up with your All Souls friends, have lunch, and just catch up.

When: Saturday, February 4, 2023 from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon Where: Unitarian Church of Los Alamos 1738 N. Sage St. (Patio outside front door) Bring only packets of seeds you wish to give away entirely. You may not get any back! Take only enough seeds you can use in one growing season. If you …<p> 2023 Community Seed Swap Read More »

On his blog “Heretic, Rebel, a Thing To Flout,” Patrick Murfin writes about backlash against Black history and relates it to Black History Month (BHM). He notes the usual criticisms of BHM such as Morgan Freeman observing, “I don’t want a Black history month. Black history is American history.” Or as a black friend once … Continue reading "Black History Month for heretics"

  Day two at the Woolworth's Luncheonette in Greensboro, The Carolina James A. McNiel and Franklin McCain from the first day action were joined by fellow students William Smith and Clarence Henderson.  What were the thoughts of the young black man behind the counter?  About the same age as the students he may have needed the job to support his family.  Were the students jeopardizing that?  Did he view them as privileged and spoiled students?  Did he yearn to join them? There was no charismatic leader that day, no eloquent preacher, no carefully planned campaign.  Just four young guys, freshmen no less, from an obscure public college for Negros, the Agricultural and Technical College of North Carolina.  One afternoon, February 1,...

The copy of the Edict of Torda that I brought to the ecumenical meeting I mention below A short  “ thought for the day” offered to the Cambridge Unitarian Church as part of the Sunday Service of Mindful   Meditation   (Click on this link to hear a recorded version of the following piece) —o0o— As some of you will be aware, over the course of the last three years I’ve begun exploring in more and more depth the possibilities that might exist for any community that is able, not only merely to talk about Free Religion, but which also actually provides some way to express it through all its various meetings. Our current service of mindful meditation is one actual example of explicit Free Religion and I have quiet hopes that, in ...

Please join us on Saturday (4 February 2023) at 10:30 AM for our weekly meditation group with Larry Androes. This is a sitting Buddhist meditation including a brief introduction to mindfulness meditation, 20 minutes of sitting, and followed by a weekly teaching. Please note that this group is still meeting via Zoom.  You will need … Continue reading "Meditation with Larry Androes (4 February 2023)"

I recently saw one of my dearest friends in person for the first time in over 3 years. We’ve stayed in close touch, but the years we’ve been physically apart have been ones of huge difficulty and change for both of us, so I felt some nervousness that we wouldn’t feel as much natural ease … Continue reading Connection

Lyonel Perabo provides a selection of ten favorite children's stories and entertainments with Pagan themes. Continue reading The Search for Pagan Friendly Kids’ Media at The Wild Hunt.

I initially wanted to be a writer, and I also wanted to live in New York, where many of my best friends were already living. In my last semester of college, my thesis advisor mentioned publishing as a possible day job—an industry that, of course, is also mainly based in New York. After college, I did some internships and freelance work at various New York publishers, magazines, and agencies, and then did an MFA in fiction writing at Brooklyn College, where I studied with author and editor Nathaniel Rich.

Killing of an environmental defender shows we have a long way to go before we are better stewards of the earth.

An “arctic vortex” has hit the Boston area. It’s windy and cold. I was talking to someone much younger, who found out I just moved to Massachusetts from California. They said, “It got down to 11 degrees last night. Must be a big change for you, huh?” “This isn’t cold,” I said. “I grew up … Continue reading "Arctic vortex"

I grew up eating Corn Flakes, outdated bread, and lots of soup made from those things in the refrigerator that were found in those forgotten containers in the back corners on the shelves. If, when the fuzzy tops were scraped … Continue reading →

A Prayer for Body Love and Respect Lover of Bodies, Lover of variations, differences, disabilities, spectrums, ranges, distinctions, divergences, deviations, adaptations, and contrasting characteristics, You show up every day inviting us to thrive in these bodies, to make our homes in these bodies, to respect each other in our dissimilar...

                                   The official 2023 Black History Month poster. The 1619 Project , a long-form journalism project developed by Nikole Hannah-Jones, writers from The New York Times , and The New York Times Magazine , came under attack.  The highly praised series and book re-examined the Black experience in the New World from the importation of African “indentured servants” to the Jamestown Colony in 1619.  It clearly showed that the generational experience of slavery continues to put African-Americans at a social and economic disadvantage and laid the blame for that on the development of an explicitly racist ideology that still lurks not far below the surface of polite white society.  Now it ha...

The pagan holiday of Imbolc is the halfway point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. As the wheel of the year progresses, we celebrate the emergence of new life. What new life can you celebrate today?

Today marks the celebrations of Imbolc in the northern hemisphere, and Lughnassadh in the southern hemisphere. Continue reading Blessed Imbolc and Lughnassadh! at The Wild Hunt.