At one time Froebel's classic gifts consisting of numbered sets of blocks, tiles and other interesting learning objects were made by artisans in small villages throughout Europe. Predating Maria Montessori by about 75 years, Froebel's gifts were among the earliest toys developed for early childhood developmental learning. While you can buy Froebel's gifts in a manufactured form, that they were also made by individual village craftsmen, suggested that I write a book, Making Classic Toys that Teach to guide you in making them yourself. That you can make them yourself, for your own children or grandchildren is really, for me, a big deal. You learn some basic woodworking. Your children or grandchildren learn also, and you receive greater pl...

About a year ago I fell in love with Don Miguel Ruiz the writer of the Four Agreements. Since then I’ve read (listened) to several of his books finding an understanding and kindred knowledge in his writing.  I try very … Continue reading →

            “Ordinary people and saints living together. Dragons and snakes all mixed up.” Blue Cliff Record From one angle Zen did proceed from the brow of Zeus. Like Athena, a goddess of intelligence and wisdom. It is here. This is it. Fully present. It has always been. What you see […]

Carol and I are staying at a retreat center in central Massachusetts for a couple of days. No internet, so I’m using my phone to post this. It’s very slow, so won’t be posting again for a couple of days.

In this weeks Pagan Community Notes, The Beaver Moon, The Troth is organizing an International Pagan Day of Prayer and Action for Peace, announcements, holiday events, announcements, and elephant babies. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of November 27, 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

True words aren’t charmingCharming words aren’t true.Good people aren’t contentious,Contentious people aren’t good.People who know aren’t learned,Learned people don’t know.Wise souls don’t hoard;The more they do for others the more they have,The more they give, the richer they are.The Way … Continue reading →

Save the date for 30 Days of Love 2024: January 15 - February 14, 2024 This annual event offers a month of spiritual nourishment, political grounding, and shared practices of faith and justice. Each week, you can expect to receive several different kinds of offerings, each from a different voice within Unitarian Universalism. Within each weekly theme, which will connect with one of our intersectional justice priorities, we plan to offer prayers, blessings, grounding, and meditative practices, a story or time for all ages, as well as a reflection from one of Side With Love's program and field staff. To get an idea of what to expect or to enjoy some meditative breaks during your lunch this month, see last year's offerings at sidewithlove.o...

                                               The Huron Carol Twas in the Moon of Winter Time  performed by the Prairie Rose Rangers Today for Native American Heritage Month we share a First Nations Christmas Carol .   The Huron Carol , also known as Twas in the Moon of Wintertime is a Canadian Christmas hymn . It is Canada’s oldest Christmas song , probably written in 1642 by Jean de Brébeuf , a Jesuit missionary at Sainte-Marie among the Hurons. Brébeuf wrote the lyrics in the native language of the Huron/Wendat people .     The song’s original Huron title is Jesous Ahatonhia — Jesus , he is born . The melody is based on a traditional French folk song, Une Jeune Pucelle or A Young Maid . The Eng...

We break relationships with people when we define them as “other,” which is often the first step to defining them as “less.” We can celebrate differences without creating categories that marginalize people. Celebrate differences today in a way that builds relationship rather than breaks it.

Scientists have detected one of the most powerful cosmic rays ever observed. Named after the Japanese sun goddess Amaterasu, the particle rivals the famous "Oh-My-God" particle observed in 1991 - and appears to come from a blank area of the sky. Continue reading “Amaterasu” particle raises new mysteries from beyond the Milky Way at The Wild Hunt.

If you are beginning to shop for Christmas or any other seasonal holiday and are a maker or one of those who love working with your hands in the kitchen, garden, or workshop and you wish others might understand you better, this little book of mine may help you to explain yourself to others. Buy it as a gift to yourself, as I know you'll enjoy it. Give it as a gift to others as a way of enlisting friends in a revolution. If you buy it through this link, I receive a small bonus as an amazon affiliate. We have about 30 making days left before Christmas. Make, fix and create.

Join UUs and James Carroll for our Biblical Scholarship Class the 4th Sunday of the month.

As days grow short and darkness comes early - and as shadows lengthen across our war torn and troubled world - where do we find realistic hope? Reverend Gary Kowalski offers a meditation on the power of unorganized goodness. Rev. Kowalski is an American author noted for his books on eco-spirituality, science, history, and animals. He is currently serving as minister for the UU Congregation in Taos, NM, and serves as a volunteer firefighter/emergency medical responder for Hondo Fire & Rescue.

The classic Thanksgiving turkey pic was taken again this year. It was a somewhat smaller turkey than last year, but I am a little bigger now even though I am wearing the same shirt pants and slippers. Only one oven mitt though. In the older picture, both the turkey and I were both significantly larger. […]

Increasingly, our congregations are finding themselves the targets of online harassment, phishing, doxxing, and other forms of digital hate – often as a result of the ways we are embodying UU values in the world. Unfortunately, many of our UU communities do not have the skills and the infrastructure to protect themselves from malicious digital targeting that is constantly evolving. Equality Labs' Digital Security For All Workshop is a dive into the world of digital security, and what that means for you and your organization. We will develop some common ground and shed light on types of attacks and security concerns that affect our communities, engaging with you at a strategic level as you plan for your organization. Register for this t...

Pride is necessary when one is taught by society to be ashamed of the beautiful, wonderful, whole parts of oneself. It is not sinful to learn that you are magnificent. What have you struggled to feel pride about?

A Christian blogger is promoting “freedom from witchcraft.” I say he has it backwards. Witchcraft IS freedom.

                                                       Everyday Will Be Like a Holiday by Carole King  Yesterday Kathy and I took in a performance of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical at the Marriott Theater in Lincolnshire.   Their shows always feature strong casts and in-the-round staging.   We had a great time enjoying samples from the gifted singer/songwriter’s seemingly limitless catalog as well as music by her contemporaries   in the Brel Building Era. King performing at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. In honor of the occasion, today we will feature a holiday song written not by King but by William Bell and Booker T. Jones from her 2011 Album A Christmas Carole .   Everyday Will Be Like a Holi...

First Parish in Cohasset, where I work, has a meetinghouse built in 1747. When you come at it from the north and see it across Cohasset Common, it looks like the classic white New England church with a simple steeple: But the tower and the steeple weren’t added until 1799, over half a century after … Continue reading "Changes in a New England Meetinghouse"

Aside from mysterious nocturnal creatures and inner earth cults, there are also elves and dwarfs in the forest. There are dark holes in trees that are obviously the entrances to elf homes. There are ancient tree stumps clearly used by the elf-king to address his gathered followers during moonlight ceremonies. Continue reading An Urban Heathen in an Urban Forest at The Wild Hunt.

 A recorded version of this piece can be heard at this link As many of you know I hugely admire the work of Imaoka Shin’ichirō because I think it offers us a model for how radically to reimagine the liberal, Unitarian tradition so that it can become a genuinely creative, free-spirituality suitable for our own era, something that Imaoka-sensei called jiyū shūkyō (自由宗教 free-religion). But I realise that to some people this can look as if I am introducing something alien into play, but a poem by Rainer Maria Rilke called, “Taube, die draußen blieb”, “Dove that ventured outside,” can help reveal that this is not true because, in fact, something is being returned to us, albeit subtly transformed and newly freighted.  ...

        Our American Thanksgiving has just passed. While it’s set for the third Thursday of November, I’ve noticed many people move the date around for their personal or family observances. I personally know some people who marked it out on Wednesday, and we here in Tujunga actually had our grand family gathering […]

Please join us on Sunday (26 November 2023) at 11:00 AM for “If Service is Our Prayer . . .” by Susan Yellott. We welcome the All Souls Board Vice President Susan Yellott to our pulpit to speak on her experiences working with asylum seekers from all over the world through Louisiana Advocates for Immigrants … Continue reading "All Ages Worship (26 November 2023)"

For this Sunday (26 November 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 lesson for this week is exploring the idea of making a difference.

This class is an exploration of our eight Unitarian Universalist principles through artistic expression. On this Sunday (26 November 2023), we will explore the seventh principle (“respect for the interdependent web of all existence, of which we are a part”). The All8 curriculum is the creation of Jil Novenski (Director of Religious Education — Community … Continue reading "Middle and High School Youth Religious Education (26 November 2023)"

Our adult religious education class will not be meeting this Sunday (26 November 2023). Our class will resume next Sunday (3 December 2023) at 9:00 AM. This adult religious education class is now a dual-platform class — meeting in person in the church social hall and also on Zoom. We will continue reading the UUA … Continue reading "No Online and In-Person Adult Religious Education on 26 November 2023 — Class Resumes 3 December 2023"

Please join us next Wednesday (29 November 2023) at 12 noon for our weekly Zoom lunch. Our weekly Zoom lunch is 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.

Please join us on Saturday (25 November 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 (25 November 2023)"

                                                                      Arlo's original album cut of Alice's Restaurant . Those all-Christmas music radio stations are already churning out their short rotation of holiday hits.   TV specials from highbrow to hip are on almost every night.   There are plenty of ways for you to get your jolly Jones for Yuletide tunes satisfied.    But if you are in the mood for a quiet moment each day with a steaming mug of coffee, cocoa, mulled something, or something stronger and more adult, Murfin’s Annual Winter Holidays Music Festival is for you! Murfin's Winter Holidays Music Festival is back! This is how it works: Every year beginning on the day after Than...

Here in the Northwest Boonies of the Chicago Metroplex we are having our first outbreak of cold weather and we are breaking out real winter coats for the first time.   We expect our first measurable snow on Sunday—maybe two inches on the grass and self-shoveling on the driveway and sidewalks.   Snow at the end of November is not unheard of in these parts, but tends to melt away quickly.   We never have the kind of deep snow cover that would have allowed a sleigh ride to Grandfather’s for Thanksgiving.   But things were different in the Little Ice Age that gripped North America during and after the American Revolution. That’s why the poem Lydia Maria Child published in 1844 and titled A Boy ’s Thanksgiving Day and was later s...

Sin can be understood as places that create brokenness rather than repair it. How have you repaired brokenness?

Photo by AllGo – An App For Plus Size People on Unsplash Maybe you enjoyed that extra piece of pie yesterday, or your mother-in-law’s famous Southern sweet potato casserole. Good for you. Here’s something you should know: your fat friends don’t want to hear you saying how you’re afraid you’re going to look like us. … Continue reading Love Your Whole Self

  The Greenback Party logo was rather charming. On November 25, 1874 a new political party was born at a convention held in Indianapolis , Indiana.   They called themselves the Independent Party .   In some states they would first appear on the ballot as the National Party.   But within months the new party was widely known as the Greenbacks as they grew at an astonishing rate challenging the entrenched Republican and Democratic Parties. The Party was formed out of frustration with both major parties as major eastern banking interests demanded that the Federal Government stop issuing paper money and return the issuance of currency to the banks.   Federal paper money, popularly known as greenbacks, had been first issued under Secreta...

The truth is, being a Witch and having a daily spiritual practice in magic does not allow me to create my own situational blindness to what is happening within the borders of my own community and country or in the world that is really not so far away. I cannot remain connected and be oblivious at the same time. Continue reading Midnight Musings and the Round-Bellied Bowl at The Wild Hunt.

        Keiji Nishitani died on this day, the 24th of November, in 1990. I noted this a few years ago. And thought it good to repeat. What follows is lightly edited from that earlier posting. If you’re unfamiliar with Professor Nishitani, and you are interested at all in Zen, I suggest you […]

  All photos taken with a Fuji X100V using Øyvind Nordhagen’s Kodak Ektar 100 Recipe and Pekka Keskinen’s Double-X 400 vintage monochrome recipe   Just click on a photo to enlarge it This morning I had to visit a couple of members of the Cambridge Unitarian congregation in Huntingdon. I’ve found that the best, and most pleasant, way to get from Cambridge to their house is to take the Guided Busway to St Ives with my Brompton in hand, and then to ride from St Ives along the path that runs beside the River Great Ouse. Of course, I had my camera with me so took a few shots along the way. This path runs through “The Thicket” and which, as Thicket Road, carries on to Houghton. This whole stretch of the ride was looking lovely, b...

Growing up my family was constantly on the receiving end of generous people. My mother, a somewhat single female (stepfather wasn’t really around much) raising two daughters constantly worked and did her best to keep a roof over our heads … Continue reading →

Dad was Secretary of the Chamber of Commerce which would have been responsible for this sign greeting circa 1950. Note : My memoir of a distant place and time has become a post-Thanksgiving tradition here. It was 1953. My father was the secretary of the Chamber of Commerce in Cañon City, Colorado.   We rented a big old stone ranch house just outside of town.   Kit Carson was reputed to have signed a treaty with the Utes underneath a massive old cottonwood in the back yard.   B e hind the tree was a big screen house and beyond that the barn, assorted sheds and outbuildings, the caretaker’s cottage and the s pring house built into the s ide of hill with its entry way of cut sod. The day after Thanksgiving the men from town—the merc...

          The tragedy of it all. Who is most at fault is not the greater problem, if it ever were. It’s an eternal struggle in a “holy land.”           It began when certain people had nowhere to go. They had been persecuted and/or run out of every place in the world, including by the great […]

We are killing ourselves and our planet with cheap stuff. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/23/opinion/patagonia-environnment-fast-fashion.html?unlocked_article_code=1.A00.ARcB.rR_6lDsGZwAn&smid=url-share On Wednesday I picked up a computer desk I'd made about 20 years ago, it being donated by friends to the Museum of Eureka Springs Art. I'm building a base for it that will allow it to be easily moved around the museum. After a quick refresh of the finish, it will be good as new... not just because it was well made, but also because it's pretty enough to have been  taken good care of. We must begin a renewed emphasis on quality, as it's the only thing that will save us as we hurtle toward planetary disaster. Things should be made to last...

COP28 will be an opportunity for those most impacted by the climate crisis to have a say in how we collectively respond.

One river givesIts journey to the next.  We give because someone gave to us.We give because nobody gave to us. We give because giving has changed us.We give because giving could have changed us. We have been better for it,We … Continue reading →

“i thank You God for most this amazing day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything which is natural which is infinite which is yes” -e e cummings What are you thankful for today?

For some, the annual angst over Thanksgiving is upon us.   For years Native American protests that the holiday represents European colonialism, American racism, cultural erasure, and actual genocide have begun to register with many of the rest of the current inhabitants of this country.   It is hard to deny that our First Nations, as the Canadians call their aboriginal peoples, have an excellent point.   The people we call Pilgrims represented the tip of the spear of a virtual invasion.   Despite their reliance on the wisdom and assistance of the natives to survive their first brutal year at Plymouth and the shared harvest feast they reportedly had, in less than a generation the settlers were engaged in brutal warfare to annihilate o...

Carlton Pearson, the evangelical Christian preacher who in midlife came to accept the happy teachings of universal salvation, died on Sunday. At his death, Pearson was probably the most widely known and most influential person affiliated with Unitarian Universalism. When Pearson announced to his Tulsa, Oklahoma, congregation that he was a Universalist, many members of … Continue reading "Carlton Pearson is dead"

              An old friend  just announced on his Facebook page the formation of the Soto Zen North America project. Now the posting on social media was quickly taken down. So, it might have been a bit premature. But the website remains. So… As it happens this past year following […]

Rt. Rev. Terry Riley of Aquarian Tabernacle Temple's Southern Delta Church of Wicca has been through some challenges and despite them, has earned a federal grant to build a garden for their free food pantry. Continue reading Feeding 4000: Wiccan priest receives federal grant to grow gardens for free food pantry at The Wild Hunt.

We are grateful for the presence of so many hundreds of people at the November 6 event, “Why We Cannot Turn Away: Resources for UU Leaders Engaging Palestine & Israel.” We apologize for the delay in release of these materials, although unfortunately the violence in the region continues and these conversations are very much still ongoing. We hope you will find these resources helpful for both your own learning and reflection and that of your congregations and communities.  We are keenly aware that members of our Unitarian Universalist community do not all share an identical analysis of the history of the region or the realities of the current crisis, and yet what is clear is that we are all united by our shared heartbreak over the ki...

Uncolonize or Decolonize? We’ve had a lot of people ask us why we use the terms uncolonize and decolonize. They often wonder if they are interchangeable terms or if we mean to say decolonize.  In using the terms uncolonize and decolonize we are drawing a distinction between two types of actions that Indigenous peoples need […] The post Uncolonize or Decolonize? first appeared on Canadian Unitarian Council Conseil unitarien du Canada. The post Uncolonize or Decolonize? appeared first on Canadian Unitarian Council Conseil unitarien du Canada.

Melissa Jeter Building relationships requires the risk of being open and curious. Continue reading "How Were You Loved?"

By Christian Coleman | When loved ones perch at the table together for holiday gatherings, it’s not just the star protein with fixings that gets served. Whether it’s on Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any other occasion for feel-good feasting in big company, those mashed potatoes and greens come with a side of divergent viewpoints on touchy, real-life subjects. Sometimes they’re served respectfully, sometimes with vitriol, but on many occasions, they stir up tough conversations, and the meals become so ideologically fraught that digestion seems out of the question.

Models of scarcity ask us to believe that only a certain amount of pie exists, and we “deserve” a certain share of it. Instead of buying into this zero-sum game, we should invest in systems that make more pie, so that everybody has enough. How can you help make more pie?

I’ll be honest. I’ve been a bit worried about the revisions to Article II. I feel like I just figured out the language of the last version of Article II, and in my five years as a UU,  I’ve become … Continue reading →

Note —This year the annual Clan Thanksgiving gathering will not be held at the Murfin Estate in Crystal Lake, but at Crandall’s, a popular Broasted Chicken up in Hebron.   There are just getting to be too many of us to squeeze into the small front room even with furniture piled in bedrooms.   But many if not most of Murfin’s Thanksgiving Rules will still be in force. I have posted my Murfin’s Thanksgiving Rules before, but on Thanksgiving itself when everyone is too busy with preparations, entertaining, dinner, and cleaning up to read them.   I have been scolded for this.   “Damn it, Murfin!   Why didn’t you post this when it would have been of use!   I didn’t read it until 10 pm after the last guest was gone, last di...

Taken with a Fuji X100V using Pekka Keskinen’s Double-X 400 vintage monochrome recipe Just click on a photo to enlarge it

Christian protestors attempt to disrupt Witchfest International with megaphones, loud music, and other tools Continue reading “This is hate crime:” Christian protestors disrupt Witchfest International at The Wild Hunt.

Once again, by request — and for the 16th year! — I am renewing the Sunday-only calendar, useful for church planning. Get it, learn how we got here at the original post from 2008.

This week is Thanksgiving in the United States, when many of us are more intentional about offering gratitude, as well as a week of Thanksgrieving, when we acknowledge the lives and lands that have been lost to genocide, greed, colonialism, and entitlement. Many times, two ... read more . The post Co-Ministers’ Colloquy – Nov. 21st appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

This Sunday November 26, we’ll have a Faithful Funday for children ages 5 and older on the theme of welcoming. Children and youth will come to the Great Hall to attend the first part of the service with their families and hear the story ... read more . The post Upcoming Religious Education programming appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

The Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color (BIPOC) Book Group will discuss the November read, Tommy Orange’s There There, on Monday, November 27th, from 6-7 pm on Zoom. For details, see calendar listing. Upcoming Reads Dec, 2023: Call Us What We Carry by Amanda Gorman, 2021 Jan, 2024: If Beale ... read more . The post BIPOC Book Group Upcoming Reads appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

As we at All Souls Unitarian Church reflect on the life of Bishop Carlton D. Pearson, we find ourselves in a state of deep gratitude and contemplation. Bishop Pearson, who passed away on November 19, 2023, at the age of 70, was not just an Affiliate Minister at All Souls; he was a beacon of progressive theology, a voice for universal love, and a beloved member of our church family. The post Remembering Bishop Carlton D. Pearson: A Legacy of Love and Inclusion appeared first on BeyondBelief.

NOTE: This service will be held at First Parish of Stow and Acton, 353 Great Road, Stow, MA, and will begin at 10:00 a.m. There will be no Sunday Service at UCMH on November 26. World AIDS Day Remembrance World AIDS Day is December 1st of every year, and this Sunday will focus on remembering the   [ … ] The post Sunday, November 26 ~ Visiting Stow/Acton ~ 10:00 a.m. appeared first on Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson.

Wednesday, December 6, 7:00 p.m. Holiday Grief Circle With Rev. Alice Anacheka-Nasemann   There are many among us who find the holiday season difficult or even painful because of the loss of a loved one. When everyone else seems to be joyful, sadness can be hard to bear.  In recognition of this, Reverend Alice will host   [ … ] The post Wednesday, December 6 ~ Holiday Grief Circle ~ 7:00 p.m. appeared first on Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson.

                      In 1842 Margaret Fuller sent her mentor the Reverend William Ellery Channing a letter. It was “A Credo,” her attempt to formulate her faith.  It was published posthumously together with other writings as Memoirs in 1852, by her friends and admirers Ralph Waldo Emerson, W. […]

Recently, I heard on the radio “Heart of Gold” by Neil Young, one of his more famous songs, that has always touched me to the core.  “I want to live, I want to give, I’ve been a miner, for a … Continue reading →

“When you have more than you need, build a longer table, not a higher fence.” -Unknown When have you experienced the welcome of someone else’s longer table?

 It feels auspicious to return to Hinduism since we are near Diwali, the annual Hindu festival of lights. In Sanskrit, Diwali literally means “a row or series of lights” and has the connotation of lights which illuminate knowledge. If you google “Diwali,” you will see some spectacular images that merely touch the surface of the […]

I was recently on an eight-day retreat for meditation teachers near Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina. Because we have an almost five-month old, the only way for me to attend the retreat was to rent a house about twenty-five minutes away in nearby Black Mountain, North Carolina. My mom and my wife took care […]

  New Yorkers gobbled up hastily printed extra editions as they gathered in shock on the city streets. Note —Tomorrow will be the 60th anniversary of the event that was the pivotal shock to the shrinking cohort of the Old Man. November 22 .  For the members of a couple of generations, at least, I don’t have to say or write anything else.  You know.  The date and the event are etched in your mind.  If you were sentient in 1963 the moment when you heard the news is so solidly implanted in your memory that you can recall every detail—the cast of the light through the window, the muffled sobs or wails, even the smell of that autumn day 60 years ago. November 22, 1963 was, of course, the day Pre...

This Skill Up was led by Rev. Ranwa Hammamy, our Congregational Justice Organizer on November 19, 2023. UUA President Rev. Dr. Sofía Betancourt invites us to remember "what symbols, messages, principles, or experiences are most central to [our] deep understanding of Unitarian Universalism.” During this Skill Up, we took time to discuss and practice articulating our theologies of justice-making with faith-centric language that can be used in outreach, public statements, petitions, letters, and more. View the webinar on Vimeo View the slide deck View the notes from our discussion Our Skill Ups are a monthly training series to help build organizing capacity across our congregations and communities. We are grounded in our UU calling to be...

In this weeks Pagan Community Notes , Red Wheel/Weiser announces acquisitions, holiday events, announcements, and even talking crows. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of November 20, 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

Lenore Bajare-Dukes At this time of year – a cold bite to the air, long dark nights – I feel a deep, almost primal impulse to huddle around a hearth-fire, spending time with people dear to me. Continue reading "A Time to Gather Around the Hearth-fires"

I'm making small drawers to fit the walnut stash boxes. The grooves for drawer guides have been cut, the bottoms fitted and the mortise and tenon joints that give the drawers strength and non life have been fitted and glued. A small square is used to assure assembly is square so it will fit in the body of the box. Make, fix and create...

Information on usage of the shared values flower image from the proposed new version of Article II of the UUA Bylaws and Rules Continue reading "Article II Shared Values Flower Image"

  The Tree of Life Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 5603 Bull Valley Road in McHenry, is hosting a Pre-Trial Fairness Act forum examining the history of the campaign to pass the Illinois Pre-Trial Fairness Act and how it actually is being implemented in the criminal justice system despite strong opposition on Wednesday, December 6 at 7 pm.   Emma Gonzalez, Outreach Coordinator of the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice (INPJ), will lead the discussion.   Emma Gonzalez, Outreach Coordinator for the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice. Each year, Illinois incarcerates nearly a quarter million people in 92 county jails. Most of these people were jailed not because they’ve been convicted of a crime but because they couldn’t af...

Harmful theologies of sin also encourage people to dwell in scarcity rather than noticing and sharing the abundance around us. What is the abundance around you today? How can you share it?

Growing up in a Christian society I have,  on more than one occasion, heard about giving generously and receiving glory. Many passages in the bible talk about giving to the Lord, giving to those in need. The implication of those … Continue reading →

  Maybe because their names and faces get lost in the grim glut of crime reporting. Maybe because no one knew their story—or their secret.  Maybe it’s because the Guardians at the gate want to protect our tender sensibilities.  Maybe it’s because outside of “those people” no one cares.  Or maybe it’s because some see a kind of rough justice acted out on the streets and prefer to let it go on as they used to whistle-by-the-graveyard the dark at lynchings that kept Black folk in their place. But someone must remember these Transgender people murdered every year simply because of who they are.  According to the Human Rights Campaign: 2022 saw at least 41 transgender and gender non-conforming people fatally shot o...

I almost forgot to do this blog post. I usually post in the morning, but at least I remembered this evening. Accountable is what I am trying to be – to myself mainly. But the holidays are coming so can I use them as an excuse? Why not? Excuses aren’t always explanations. People who confuse […]

I went for a walk to Wheelwright Park this afternoon. I still forget that the time change means the sun sets pretty early. By 4:30, it was already getting dark. As much as I enjoyed listening to the Great Horned Owls calling, there have been reports of Coyotes in the woods at dusk. So far, … Continue reading "Dusk"

Reading: Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front, by Wendell Berry Last Sunday, I told you about sitting down with the Rabbi from Har Shalom, and how the first people to call her after the Hamas attack were Christian Evangelicals. What … Continue reading →

A couple of weeks ago, I sat down with Rabbi Finestone, who serves Congregation Har Shalom, just down the road. We were speaking about the attack on October 7th, and what her community has been feeling since.  She shared many things … Continue reading →

TWH commemorates Trans Day of Remembrance, 2023, acknowledging the disproportionate violence against trans people. Continue reading Transgender Day of Remembrance 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

READING From Isabell Call, “Thanksgrieving" Although both Native American and Europeans had feasts expressing gratitude during harvest time, the Europeans who arrived on this continent were incredibly destructive to Native American communities. The Wampanoag man often celebrated as a friend of the pilgrims, Tisquantum, spoke English because traders had enslaved him and forcibly taken him to England. When he finally escaped and made his way back home, his community had all died from smallpox his captors had left behind. He was friendly to the pilgrims who moved into the land of his people because none of his own people were left. He was able to find work with the pilgrims as a translator and helped them negotiate treaties. But as we kno...

When I feel devastated by the images of premature babies in al-Shifa hospital in Gaza, without incubators, without oxygen, placed together for warmth, but some dying, (and finally I hear that they are being evacuated today)… When I feel devastated that the initial violence and hostage-taking of Israeli citizens by Hamas has been multiplied by […]

Conservative Christians in the U.S. are lining up to tell us that the Israel Hamas war is a harbinger of the End Times. A number of Bible-based preachers are telling their followers to get ready for the Apocalypse. Robert Jefress of First Baptist Church, Dallas, Tex., recently said: “We are on the verge of the … Continue reading "Says it right in the Bible"

We finish out our theme of Generosity by imagining what a community might look like when our generous natures are set free.

    One who embarks on the path of awakening aspiring to master Wisdom is a Bodhisattva motivated by Great Compassion, taking the Great Vows to save all beings with the cultivation of Samadhi, and not seeking Liberation for one’s own sake alone. Zhanglu Zongze There are three critical meditation manuals within the Zen tradition. […]

It is easy to see gluttony as a sin if one confines it to the obscene hoarding of wealth. But what else are we taught to hoard, to amass great quantities of without sharing with others? People are harmed by the hoarding of love, for example, sequestering it away as if it were finite. How … Continue reading Hoarding

A magazine ad from the much ballyhooed launch of Ford's new Edsel for the 1958 model year. It was a mercy killing, of sorts.   On November 19, 1960 the Ford Motor Company announced it was ending its Edsel brand in just its third model year.   Named to honor Henry Ford ’ s only son and a former company president who had died in 1943 at the age of 59, the car was launched amid considerable fanfare in 1957 for the ’58 model year. It was a large car aimed at the mid-range market and had several break-through features and unique styling.   It was the styling the public noticed first, dominated by the shield-shaped center grill that was a radical departure from the horizontal grills that had become standard on post-war on cars.   The p...

Bride's Mound, a site in Glastonbury with ties to the goddess and saint Brigid, is set to receive improvements thanks to new funding. Continue reading Bride’s Mound, sacred to Christians and Pagans, set to receive renovations at The Wild Hunt.

Please join us on Sunday (19 November 2023) at 11:00 AM for annual Thanksgiving worship service and potluck feast. Our annual service of Thanksgiving begins with a short service in the sanctuary followed by an inclusive communion ritual in the social hall and culminating in our annual feast. All are welcome. Please sign up here … Continue reading "All Ages Worship and Thanksgiving Feast (19 November 2023)"

There is no Pre-K thru Grades 5 religious education class this Sunday (19 November 2023). Our children and their teachers will remain in the sanctuary and join us for the Thanksgiving feast. Next Sunday (26 November 2023), our children (Pre-K thru Grade 5) will resume using a program adapted from Moral Tales (a Tapestry of … Continue reading "No Pre-K thru Grades 5 Children’s Religious Education This Sunday (19 November 2023) — Class Resumes 26 November 2023"

There is no middle school / high school youth religious education class this Sunday (19 November 2023). Our youth and their teachers will remain in the sanctuary and join us for the Thanksgiving feast. Next Sunday (26 November 2023), we will explore the 7th principle (“respect for the interdependent web of all existence, of which … Continue reading "No Middle and High School Youth Religious Education This Sunday (19 November 2023) — Class Resumes 26 November 2023"

Please join us on Sunday (19 November 2023) for our adult religious education class at 9:00 AM. Our adult religious education class is normally a dual-platform class — however, we are meeting only using Zoom for today’s class because the social hall will be set up for Sunday’s Thanksgiving Feast. We will continue reading the … Continue reading "Online Adult Religious Education — 19 November 2023 (online using Zoom for this week only)"

Please join us on Saturday (9 December 2023) from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM for our All Souls Holiday Park-It Market and Moving Sale. Join us as a vendor — Calling all painters, sculptors, bakers, writers, fabric artists, jewelry makers, artists, artisans and crafters of all kinds — join us on 9 December 2023 for … Continue reading "All Souls Holiday Park-It Market and Moving Sale (9 December 2023)"