Religion New Service interviews Laura E. Anderson, a psychologist who has written a new book, When Religion Hurts You: Healing from Religious Trauma and the Impact of High-Control Religion. In the interview Anderson makes the obvious point that the cure for religious trauma might not be renouncing all religion: “[Religion News Service:] Why might it … Continue reading "Healing from religious trauma"

My mom was born in Puerto Rico in the year of 1941. She came to New York in 1957. The biggest challenge for her at the time was learning English.  She then moved to Texas in 1958. My parents eloped … Continue reading →

              In Iran and within the Persian diaspora today, the 12th of October, is Hafiz Day. And a very good day to think of this remarkable Persian poet. While in the west he remains in the shadow of the wondrous Rumi, in the Middle East, especially in Iran, Hafiz […]

I endured a testosterone driven puberty One that nearly irrecoverably broke me But somehow I came out and Tolled the world I’m transgender female So now to lessen my dysphoria Further lessen my crippling gender dysphoria And bring my more gender congruence Bring my even more gender congruence Soon I’ll undergo a breast augmentation

There are many Festivals of Light celebrated by religions and cultures around the world including Christmas , Chanukah , and Winter Solstice observances familiar in the West .   But none are more colorful or enjoyed with such gleeful abandon a Diwali, the Hindu festival of the victory of light over darkness , good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.   In most of the Northern Hemisphere the five day holiday begins this year today, October 7, and reaches its peak on Sunday, the third day of the celebration.   The large Indian diaspora in the United Kingdom , South Africa , the Caribbean , Canada , Fiji , the United States and elsewhere has spread observances across the globe. Typically, during the celebration, temples, homes, shops...

For many years, I heard about the idea of connection to ancestors and thought of it in theoretical terms — always with a little distance, never quite believing that direct connection could be possible. I wasn’t sure that connecting to ancestors was even for me, as a white person (weren’t my ancestors the bad ones?), … Continue reading Lifeline

A floating temple to the Chinese sea goddess Tin Hau, also known as Mazu, has been moved to a permanent location and will undergo an extensive renovation. Continue reading Sea Goddess’s floating temple gets new home at The Wild Hunt.

I thought it was time for a roundup of what-all I’ve been doing with this lovely spacious sabbatical time. I like having a lot of projects going–it’s one thing I love about congregation-based ministry–so I’ll give several brief updates. One thing I wanted to do was keep practicing my Spanish. Of the four basic language […]

  I live in an arts community, where so many of us are focused on beauty, (and attempting to sell our representations of it)  and yet I think that part of the beauty in things lies in their usefulness.  Beauty is  a reflection of the whole thing… how it’s made, the motivation of the maker, the responsible use of materials in the making, reflecting how it will serve in the simple practicalities of life, as well as  the ability to recycle or repurpose at end life. I find a particular value in making objects for use, not to just to be looked at, so if a few of my things have been worn out and discarded or recycled, that's a good thing . I’m reminded of an interview years ago with Yo Yo Ma about his visit to a village in China. He...

Laura Solomon Embodying all of me is the best way I know to love the world. Continue reading "Unlearning the Rules"

My Pop was born in Texas in the year 1938. He was a first generation born in The USA of Mexican parents. He was the only son of six children.  He never talked about his childhood to me. I never … Continue reading →

Why would a fat old breeder like me celebrate National Coming Out Day?   Because like almost everyone, I have known and loved Gay , lesbian , and transexual folk my entire life—even when I did not know or was not supposed to know the “truth” about them.   Because I was bullied and tormented in school—queer bait was a particular taunt aimed at a bookish kid who didn’t fit in—and saw worse.   Because one of my closest friends in the tight knit and open circle of young Wobblies in Chicago in the early ‘70’s was afraid to come out even to us—although we all knew it.   We all had to pretend.   He was the first person I knew who died from AIDS. Because I have lived for more 30 years in a conservative county where Gays, l...

When I need to do a hard thing, before I start I take a few minutes to center myself and think about the love and support that surrounds me. My family. My friends. My ancestors. Depending on what I’m gearing up to do, different ancestors come to mind. Sometimes it’s ancestors whom I knew – … Continue reading Cheering Me On

Catching up on taiko ~ Treehouse retreat ~ Advice for the Spiritually Perplexed and Vexed Even on sabbatical, I have a schedule of things that happen every week. I Zoom with my mom on Mondays. I cook dinner on Tuesdays and Saturdays. I have a grad school class on Monday afternoon. I usually do art […]

An American tourist has been arrested for breaking two Pagan statues at the Israel Museum Continue reading Two Ancient Pagan statues broken at the Israel Museum at The Wild Hunt.

What a wonderful turnout we had for Wonderful Wednesday and for worship on a holiday weekend! We continue to expand the circle of belonging! And… we also grieve the horrifying conflict in Gaza. We share these words from our friend and colleague the Rev. David Miller, who is ... read more . The post Co-Ministers’ Colloquy – Oct. 10th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

We’ll have regular sessions of RE for grades K-7 and Senior High Youth Everyone will gather in for the first part of the service in the Great Hall. After the story in the service, the elementary aged children will go to their classrooms: the 4th-7th graders (the ... read more . The post Religious Education on Sunday Oct. 15th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Thanks for the ways that you care for one another and our neighbors by allowing those with mobility challenges and/or young kids to have spaces in the parking lot, or directly in front, and making sure to leave driveways completely clear when parking on the ... read more . The post Care in Parking appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

My family didn’t pass down many generations-old traditions, but the few I can think of are allbased around food. First, when I was growing up, it was always important to my family to eattogether. I ate breakfast in the kitchen … Continue reading →

                                     Carol Alfus reading her poetry at an earlier Tree of Life Open Mic. Tree of Life Unitarian Universalist Congregation , 5603 Bull Valley Road in McHenry, will host another of its popular Open Mic and Coffee Houses on Saturday, October 14 from 7 to 9 pm.   It is a showcase for all sorts of performers including musicians in all genres, poets and spoken word artists, magicians, and novelty acts. Open Mic Host, Lisa Campagnolo. Organizer and host, Lisa Campagnolo, is issuing a call for acts to sign up.   Performers can sign up on the spot for one of the open 12 slots. Each act should be no longer than a firm 8 minutes.   Larger acts will receive ample additional time.   To reserve...

Where I live, today is still, unfortunately, celebrated as Columbus Day, a holiday intended to honor Italian-American heritage, but instead honoring colonization and the dehumanization of the Indigenous peoples of North America. As an Italian-American, it pains me that my people celebrate the wrong ancestor. I long for a celebration of the vibrant culture of … Continue reading The Wrong Ancestor

In this week's Pagan Community Notes: Honoring Indigenous People's Day, Taíno revival, events, and happenings. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of October 9, 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

T. Thorn Coyle posted the following this morning, from the poet Joy Harjo of the Muskogee Nation: Recognize whose lands…</p> The post Short Musings on Indigenous People’s Day appeared first on Taking Up Space.

With heartfelt dedication, Dennis Neill and John Southard have helped create a new Pet Memorial in the church's garden. Our love of pets spans generations, and thanks to Dennis, John, and the garden team, this space allows them to be remembered and cherished. The post New Pet Memorial Dedicated In All Souls Garden appeared first on BeyondBelief.

                                                                                … Continue reading →

Cal Ball I was motivated to action by anger, but what I found was love.

Sofía Betancourt What are the stories that shift and shape your understanding of yourself, and have you had the opportunity to share them with someone else?

It’s been a busy couple of days for me. Another one of my websites started misbehaving. The problem turned out to be that the site had been compromised by some bad actor, presumably for nefarious purposes. While I was working on that problem, my younger sister told me that this site was down. Now I … Continue reading "Internet criminals"

Nancy Pierce Remembering an uplifting moment of community.

  Today is the Federal Holiday honoring Christopher Columbus, the alleged discover of the New World, who made his first landfall on the island of San Salvador on October 12, 1492.   Years ago, Congress, in all of its wisdom assigned the holiday to the second Monday in October to make way for a possible three day week-end for the few people who get the day off—or possibly to extend the giant mattress sales that seem to have become one of the most visible traditions of the holiday. The trouble is Columbus has been falling out of favor for some time, except among the Italian-Americans who used his Italian roots to claim their spot at the American table.   The Columbus Day parades in the big cities are less about the Navigator—an iron...

I live on the lands of the Kitchawan and Wappinger peoples, at the northern edge of the great Lenape Nation, which stretches out to my south. To my north are the lands of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. The peoples on whose lands I live are still here, and their culture is very much alive, and it … Continue reading Indigenous Peoples

The Universalist National Memorial Church held a convocation on October 7, 2023 entitled “Universalist Jubilee: Its Legacy and Promise.” The video will become available at some point and I will link it here, but in the meantime these are the notes from my part of the service. Friends, where have we as Universalist come from? … Continue reading "Remembering Universalist Heritage at Jubilee celebration"

In this sermon given in advance of Indigenous Peoples Day, I link the current conflict in Israel-Palestine to the ongoing process of colonialism in the Western Hemisphere and the Doctrine of Discovery. The post Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery appeared first on Colin Bossen.

A film where Christopher Lee performs real ceremonial magic techniques should be a shoo-in for our Classics of Pagan Cinema, right? Not so fast, writes Meg Elison, who reviews the 1968 film "The Devil Rides Out" and finds it not just flawed, but repellent. Continue reading (Not a) Classic of Pagan Cinema: The Devil Rides Out at The Wild Hunt.

Presented by: Jennifer Young and Steve Howard

This morning, ask Rev. John your burning questions.

I have never been one who has been much into meditation. Too much silence is involved and it often seems to require sitting still as well. Labyrinths I like, walking meditation. I like altars, but more for building meaning and beauty, and not so much for contemplation. I like enthusiastic worship best. If the theology […]

                                We seem to be endlessly fascinated by people’s last words. They are often taken as summations of people’s lives. And perhaps that’s so. At least on occasion. Pretty much everyone knows of Oscar Wilde’s last words said in a […]

A short  “ thought for the day” was offered to the Cambridge Unitarian Church as part of the Sunday Service of Mindful   Meditation. —o0o— One of the things that is very hard for many people properly to understand about the creative, free-spiritual tradition in which a church like the Cambridge Unitarian Church stands, is its willingness, both for itself and its members, continually to claim the freedom to be tomorrow what it, or they, are not today. This radical openness to change inevitably cuts against most people’s idea of religion as expressing something stable and long-lasting, even eternal and it can easily appear as if there is nothing at all that is stable and long-lasting about the creative, free-spiritual traditio...

My favorite part of gardening is when native plants show up and bloom all on their own! Asters are all around the edges of our yard, and in so many other Maine yards in our neighborhood right now. Different varieties, all beloved by pollinators, tiny beautiful blossoms when you look closely. My least favorite part […]

  The Chicago and Peshtigo, Wisconsin fires of October 8, 1871 were just two of the deadly blazes that swept the upper Midwest that day.  Libraries in Illinois and Wisconsin hosted a virtual on-line discussion on the 150th anniversary during the Covid year of 2021. You may have noticed that this is National Fire Protection Week.   The annual event is marked by news stories extolling the virtues of smoke alarms and family fire evacuation drills.   Your local fire station may host school field trips or an open house—maybe they will let you climb on an engine or even slide down a pole.   Ask and you will be told that this week was selected because the Great Chicago Fire broke out on October 8, 1871. This is the anniversary of that co...

My grandmother, Bapcia if you will, came from Poland at the beginning of the 20th century along with many others escaping political strife and hunger.  Dad always said his mother was 13 when she left everyone and everything she had ever known to set out for a new better world in Chicopee MA.  She had … Continue reading Finding A Better Life

Please join us on Sunday (8 October 2023) at 11:00 AM for “The Paradox of Holding Space” 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 you are able to do so. … Continue reading "All Ages Worship (8 October 2023)"

For this Sunday (8 October 2023), our children (Pre-K thru Grade 5) will be using a program adapted from Moral Tales (a Tapestry of Faith curriculum by Alice Anacheka Nasemann and Elisa Davy Pearmain). The class resumes this week with “Faith, Hope, and Prayer” — introducing tools and practices to help us discern the path … Continue reading "Pre-K thru Grade 5 Children’s Religious Education (8 October 2023)"

This class is an exploration of our eight Unitarian Universalist principles through artistic expression. The class resumes this Sunday (8 October 2023) with an exploration of the second principle — “Justice, equity, and compassion in human relations.” The All8 curriculum is the creation of Jil Novenski (Director of Religious Education — Community Unitarian Universalist Church … Continue reading "Middle and High School Youth Religious Education (8 October 2023)"

There is no adult religious education class this Sunday (8 October 2023). The adult class will resume on 15 October 2023. Next Sunday (15 October 2023), our adult religious education class will resume at 9:00 AM. Our adult religious education class is now a dual-platform class — meeting in person in the church social hall … Continue reading "No 8 October 2023 Online / In-Person Adult Religious Education — Class Resumes 15 October 2023"

Bring a favorite dish — or your favorite thing to grab from Kroger — and join us after the 8 October 2023 worship service for our monthly potluck featuring live music from Bob Jordan (guitar and vocals), Gail Burt (vocals and piano), and Jean Kelly (percussion). Join us even if you just bring yourself — … Continue reading "Second Sunday Potluck with Live Music (8 October 2023)"

Please join us next Wednesday (11 October 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.

UUA President the Rev. Dr. Sofía Betancourt shares a statement on the recent tragic flare of violence between Israel and Hamas. Continue reading "Statement from UUA President Rev. Dr. Sofía Betancourt Regarding the Conflict Between Israel and Hamas"

Three things mark this season of death and remembrance for me: the severe drop in temperatures; the death anniversaries of many in my family, most specifically my parents; and the perceived closeness of the ancestors as the veils thin. Continue reading Death and Fruitcake at The Wild Hunt.

William Laud was born on this day, the 7th of October, in 1573. He was born into a family of clothiers, attended local schools, and then studied at St John’s College, in Oxford. He took his BA in 1594, his MA in 1598, and his doctorate in 1608. He was ordained deacon in January and […]

  Note:   The exceptionally brutal murder of young Matthew Shepard 25 years ago triggered a national debate and a movement that led to the adoption of hate crime laws across the country.   Many considered it a game changer.   In subsequent years public acceptance of homosexuality and homosexuals steadily grew as did legal protections against discrimination and stunning victories including the legal recognition of same gender marriage rights.   Many thought that the bad old days of queer bashing for sport and the like were gone for good.   But as in so many other areas the Trump era was a Band-Aid that rips off a scab on a bleeding wound when removed.   Nationally as well as they can be tracked violent assaults and murders of Gay m...

My great-great grandfather, Samuel Hanscom, fought in the Civil War, and was held as a prisoner of war in the south.  I do not have any details about Samuel’s capture, but I do know that over 400,000 people were sent to prisoner of war camps during the Civil War; and almost 13,000 people died in … Continue reading Sacrifice and Trauma

After all, isn’t contemporary Paganism somewhat akin to this very church? A relic from ages past that fell or nearly fell out of used, only to be rediscovered and refitted in order to conform to both the needs of a new age, and the idea we modern men have of a sacred past? Continue reading The Stone-Barrow and the Stave-Church at The Wild Hunt.

Staff Writer A video interview with longtime UUA General Assembly photographer Nancy Pierce

One facet of very localized climate justice work is through our Green Sanctuary 2030 program and we invite all UU congregations to join us - either once or as part of your Green Sanctuary process.  Green Sanctuary 2030: Mobilizing for Climate Justice anchors to the reality that we need to reduce emissions dramatically by 2030 if we are to avoid some of the worst impacts of climate change.  The Green Sanctuary process provides a framework for congregations to adopt a justice-centered, comprehensive approach that can support congregations to hit Net Zero.  Our community meetings provide shared learning and mutual supports for UUs transforming their congregations through climate justice.  So, while we all know we need to reduce emission...

“Disability Justice builds on the disability rights movement, taking a more comprehensive approach to help secure rights for disabled people by recognizing the intersectionality of disabled people who belong to additional marginalized communities. Disability justice is a framework that acknowledges the intersection of oppression, and centers the ways that disabled people experience the world through systems that are not built for us, especially the twice, thrice and more oppressed among us.” - Rev. Amanda Schuber, Side With Love Disability Justice Associate Welcome our new staff! We are excited to welcome two new colleagues to the UUA, both of whom are holding accessibility and disability justice in their portfolios. At Side With Lov...

Please join us on Saturday (7 October 2023) at 10:30 AM for our weekly meditation group with Larry Androes. This group will be meeting via Zoom and not in person. This is a sitting Buddhist meditation including a brief introduction to mindfulness meditation, 20 minutes of sitting, and followed by a weekly teaching. The group … Continue reading "Meditation with Larry Androes (7 October 2023)"

Part three in a series examining the work and impact of UUSC’s partners in Eastern Europe.

Staff Writer The Fall/Winter 2023 issue of UU World explores stories of spiritual journeys and practices, pathways for connecting with others, and actions for creating justice in the greater world. We invite you to use the following questions for reflection, or to spark a guided conversation in your own congregation or small group.

  The popular image of the Captain comes from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's The Courtship of Miles Standish.  In this 19th Century illustration of the narrative poem the disappointed suitor/soldier escorts the wedding procession of John Alden and Pricilla Mullins. Thanks to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow he is one of the few original settlers of Plymouth Plantation who most people know by name.   The Courtship of Miles Standish, Longfellow’s long poem , was among the most beloved verse of the 19th Century and snatches of it were recited by school children who learned it by rote .   While seldom read these days many still know the central story of how a shy, tongue-tied soldier asked his best friend John Alden to speak to the object of h...

Peace Is This Moment Without Judgment by Dorothy Hunt ​Do you think peace requires an end to war?Or tigers eating only vegetables?Does peace require an absence fromyour boss, your spouse, yourself?…Do you think peace will come some other place than … Continue reading →

I’m slowly making my way through a 19,000 word article on Confucian quiet-sitting — “A Study of Cheng Yi’s Quiet-Sitting Meditation and Other Contemplative Practices in the Confucian Context” by Bin Song, Mandala Texts (2023), 1-46 (https://doi.org/10.57010/NCGZ4591. Accessed October 6, 2023.) Not only is it a fascinating article, it might have a real-world effect on … Continue reading "Confucian quiet-sitting"

For many people, thinking about ancestors is painful because our ancestors did real and lasting harm while they were alive. For some of us, that harm lives on in family systems that must be carefully dismantled. And for some of us, truth-telling about the harm our ancestors did is the beginning of a long pathway … Continue reading Reconciling Harm

A Pagan shop in rural Pennsylvania gets a police chief visit about offering divination services that are illegal in that state. Continue reading Pagan Shop gets Police Chief warning about PA “Fortune-Telling” laws at The Wild Hunt.

October 5, 2023.  My post about the Finnish Quakers and their small numbers received some welcome private comment and I want to put this back on the top of my list. Last month, I proposed ten kinds of resources that might already exist to help very small churches. A commenter suggested an eleventh. I’d like … Continue reading "Correcting resources for very small churches"

Sunday, October 8 Welcome the Mystery Led by Rev. Stephen Shick We are raised to seek facts and revere knowledge. We believe knowing will bring us security and a degree of certainty. Mystery, on the other hand, can be filled with uncertainty and beyond the reach of knowledge. This Sunday we’ll explore the liberating paradox that   [ … ] The post Sunday, October 8 ~ Welcome the Mystery ~ 10:30 a.m. appeared first on Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson.

My Dad called me recently to share that my Aunt Janice, one of his two sisters, hadpassed away. This news was sudden and jarring, mostly because I was expecting newslike this to be about my uncle (Janice’s husband), who lives … Continue reading →

Angélica Canlas Castro I am so proud of my trans daughter, and I am ecstatic for the world to see and experience what the embodiment of revolutionary love looks like.

UUA President Rev. Dr. Sofía Betancourt appoints Adrienne K. Walker to become the Association’s new general counsel. She replaces Thomas Bean of Verrill Dana, who is retiring. Bean had been the UUA’s general counsel since 2011. Continue reading "Adrienne Walker is Appointed the UUA’s New General Counsel"

Back in April I had the great pleasure and honour to play bass with Chris Ingham (piano and voice), Paul Higgs (trumpet) and George Double (drums) on a second CD of Hoagy Carmichael’s songs. The first CD, recorded in 2014, was very well received and reviewed (see for example this review in the Observer). Well, the second CD is out now and, I’m pleased to say, also seems to be being well received, as this review in the London Jazz Times will reveal. If the reviews intrigue or even excite you, then you can buy CDs or downloads directly from Chris Ingham’s website: https://www.chrisingham.co.uk/hoagy Left to right: Me, Chris Ingham, George Double, Paul Higgs Recording the CD

Gary Whited is one of my favourite contemporary poets and, on a few occasions, I have chosen to centre my Sunday address on one of his poems [see HERE for example]. In recent years, I have also been lucky to get to know him personally, firstly via email and, later via Zoom. Anyway, in our last conversation, I was excited to learn that his new book will shortly be published, and he’s just sent me the flyer for that event. I realise most of you won’t be anywhere near this book launch in Cambridge, MA (not Cambridge, UK!), but you might be persuaded to purchase a copy of the book. Having seen an earlier draft, I can recommend it wholeheartedly along with, naturally, Gary’s first book,“Having Listened.”

Tomorrow I'll head to Worcester, MA to meet my grand daughter Sylvie for the first time. In the shop today I've finished assembling blocks of inlay, so I can inlay box lids when I return. Have you ever wondered how decisions are made, and how necessary change begins to take place? I've been watching the news and the complete chaos in the House of Representatives. I called my congressman this morning to express my concerns that our representatives need to awaken to the necessity of  working together, for the benefit of all.  Philosopher William James shared some wisdom on the subject in his 1890 book, Principles of Psychology, as follows:  "We know what it is to get out of bed on a freezing morning in a room without a fire, and how the...

Sammy Castro-McCauley , Isa Castro-McCauley Brothers reflect on their love and support for their trans sister.

Angelle Eve Castro Every day I wake up, and I’m more myself than ever before.

                                            Jenny Lind in an 1861 daguerreotype taken in New York City age 31. Before 1850 when showman P. T. Barnum brought   the Swedish soprano Jenny Lind to these shores for a legendary and triumphant tour, the young United States had celebrities, but no stars in the sense of a performing artist of such renown as to be a household word to millions who might never see her in person. Entertainment itself was suspect as a gateway to sin and sloth in much of the country, especially if indulged in by the lower classes who should not be tempted from their 10-12 hours a day, six days a week labor for their employees and a Sabbath dedicated to pointing out to them what sinful, undes...

The pieces of a quilt are carefully sewn together, making patterns and designs that no piece alone can capture. Each of us is also a patchwork of experiences, lessons, and more. Each of us has been carefully pieced together, hopefully with love in every stitch. What piece of you can you celebrate today?

Republican Presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy just joined TikTok to the dismay of WitchTok. Curses follow. Continue reading Ramaswamy joins TikTok and promptly cursed at The Wild Hunt.

Few people know how to take a walk. The qualifications are endurance, plain clothes, old shoes, an eye for nature, good humor, vast curiosity, good speech, good silence and nothing too much. Ralph Waldo Emerson My mother and I parted … Continue reading →

Ripples of Creativity Have you noticed how creative ideas and events inspire other innovations? And the more you pay attention, the more you see? We have! And we’re excited to make it an intentional practice that spreads the joy far and wide.  Ripples of Creativity, the second section of the Canadian Unitarian Council’s Call & […] The post Ripples of Creativity first appeared on Canadian Unitarian Council Conseil unitarien du Canada. The post Ripples of Creativity appeared first on Canadian Unitarian Council Conseil unitarien du Canada.

Cory Doctorow wrote a lengthy blog post on how evil Google has become. I already knew that Google search results have declined in quality over the past few years. But I didn’t realize how bad it’s gotten. Here’s how Doctorow describes it: “When you send a query to Google, it expands that query with terms … Continue reading "Google is even more evil than I knew"

Sarita Gonzales , Candice Bautista-Biddle , Martha Bautista-Biddle , Chris Long Four Unitarian Universalists reflect on what brought them to the faith—and what keeps them coming back.

                                Thunder Rolling Down the Valley--Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce in1877. On October 5, 1877 Hinmuuttu-yalatlat —Thunder Rolling Down the Valley—surrendered the battered and exhausted survivors of his Willowa band to U.S. Army troops under the command of General Nelson A. Miles in the Bear Paw Mountains of the Montana Territory, less than 40 miles south of the Canadian border .  Known to his pursuers as Chief Joseph, the 37 year old had helped lead his band on an epic 1,600 mile fighting retreat across modern Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana in hopes of finding refuge and safety in the land of “The Grandmother Queen.” Young Joseph , as he would come to be called was...

Melissa Jeter Spirit and Breath, create an openness that violence has constricted. Continue reading "Healing Begins with Breath in the Body"

The poster boy for tortured genius novelists, Thomas Wolfe hemorrhaged gorgeous prose, lush descriptive passages, and sharp characterizations that others hammered into readable books. It was 1966.   With typical ambition Elaine Zelznick, the young drama teacher and theater director at Niles West High School in Skokie , Illinois had selected a noted Broadway serious drama as the class play.   Look Homeward , Angel was a bittersweet but lyrical evocation of life in an early 20th Century small Southern city as seen through the eyes of a sensitive young man coming of age.   Ketti Frings adapted the well-known novel.   The play earned six Tony Award nominations and the 1958 Pulitzer Prize for Drama . The leading role of Eugene Gant natura...

Today in the wood shop I'll be making inlay for boxes using a variety of Arkansas hardwoods. The process starts with play with blocks, carefully cutting them to uniform size and arranging them in a pattern  of alternating colors and species that can then be glued into a long block. The woods used here are ash, sassafras, cherry, maple and walnut. This is to prepare for making inlaid box lids. Make, fix and create..

          Today, the 4th of October, is celebrated as the feast of St Francis throughout the Western Christian churches. Many years ago I ran across a book describing a visit to Japan sometime before the second world war. I don’t recall a lot about it. Except, that is, for one thing. […]

The ancestors who shape our lives are not all related to us. Many are spiritual ancestors, whose teachings and guidance live on in us. Who are your spiritual ancestors?

Back in 2015, the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) developed a WordPress theme for congregational websites. It was one of the best things the UUA has done in the past 25 years, because the theme made it super easy to build an excellent website in just a few hours. Unfortunately, the UUA WordPress theme hasn’t been … Continue reading "Redesign"

The Department of Justice releases a warning about a violent online group with ties to Paganism. Continue reading The arrest of a 23-year-old has led the FBI to a cult with links to Satanism and Paganism at The Wild Hunt.

As human beings, most of us share a need to belong. When and where have you felt a real sense of belonging? This month we’ll explore what it means to belong in community, to the Earth, and with one another. How might we practice radical ... read more . The post October Theme: A Circle of Belonging appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Sometimes we can offer a warm welcome and a place to belong, and it will just be needed for a little bit. This past Sunday, as our service centered on creating a bolder welcome, a family visited for the first time. They were traveling, and ... read more . The post Co-Ministers’ Colloquy – Oct 3rd appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

This Sunday, October 8th is our first Faithful Funday. Everyone will gather in for the first part of the service in the Great Hall and then children in grades kindergarten through 7th grade will go across the street to Waters House. Childcare for infants through Pre-school ... read more . The post Religious Education News – week of Sunday Oct. 8 appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Oct: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Juno Diaz, 2007. Nov: There, There by Tommy Orange, 2019. Dec: Call Us What We Carry: Poems by Amanda Gorman, 2021. (Dates of monthly discussions and Zoom link to be announced) The post Upcoming Reads in the BIPOC Authors Reading & Discussion group: appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

“Solidarity is not a scarce resource in a zero-sum game. It is not an equation that divides; rather, it is one that multiplies.” — Saidiya Hartman Feminist leaders in Central and Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central and North Asia (CEECCNA) are calling for global solidarity in the face of an overlooked humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh—a […]

Dear Reader, I was angry.  I was so angry that adrienne maree brown, in a course on radical permission, was…</p> The post Fat Anger and adrienne maree brown Pt. 2 appeared first on Taking Up Space.