I do actually believe in God but not the traditional viewpoint. In the last few years I had a business and two relationships fail, other business problems, health problems, family problems...you name it, I have encountered it. It's been getting steadily worse.
None of my friends are able to help, and despite praying, God seems distant. I've spoken to my minister, she has said she has felt the same on occasion. My therapist references the story of Job (she is Christian) but it's cold comfort when I am suffering now. Unless she knows specifically when the suffering will end, it's not helpful.
I still pray and have not lost my faith, since I have had God appear in my life before in remarkably dramatic ways. But still the torrent of bad news is unrelenting, so I am on the edge of despair sometimes.
Posting here instead of Christian subs because Christians always say "God's perfect timing" which is NOT helping (like the last three therapists I saw)
"The Double-edged Sword of Faith"
Sunday, November 13, 10:50 am, Worship Service Livestream
Someone asked me on the way out of service this fall what I meant, as a Unitarian Universalist, when I said the word "faith." Let's look at what faith is (and is not) and the role it plays in our lives -- the blessing and the danger of it.
Rev. Vanessa Rush Southern, Senior Minister; Richard Davis-Lowell, Worship Associate; Reiko Oda Lane, Organist; UUSF Choir; Kate Offer, Soprano Kai Leith, Pianist & Conducting; Wm. Garcรญa Ganz, Pianist & Conducting
Eric Shackelford, Camera; Jonathan Silk, Communications Director; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Remigio Flood, Sexton; DeAndre Smith, Sexton; Athena Papadakos, Flowers; Linda Messner, Head Usher
โAcross the Veilโ
Sunday, November 6, 10:50 am, Worship Service Livestream
This is the time of year of the Pagan celebration of Samhain, and the Christian (no doubt borrowed and adapted!) witness to All Souls and All Saints, and to the celebrations of Dรญa De Los Muertos in Mexico and across Latin America. All of these community and religious ceremonies and sacred times begin with the Samhain idea that at this time of year the veil between the living and the dying is thinned. It is a season, therefore, for reaching across that veil and pulling those we have loved and lost, their spirit and their legacy, more intentionally into our world for a while.
Rev. Vanessa Rush Southern, Senior Minister; Mari Magaloni Ramos, Worship Associate; Reiko Oda Lane, Organist; UUSF Choir; Mark Sumner, Music Director; Laurel Sprigg, Soprano; Brielle Marina Nielsen, Mezzo Soprano; Wm. Garcรญa Ganz, Pianist
Shulee Ong, Camera; Jackson Munn, Camera; Jonathan Silk, Communications Director; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Dan Barnard, Facilities Manager; Kelvin Jones, Sexton; Athena Papadakos, Flowers; Linda Messner, Head Usher
โLiving with the Troubleโ
Sunday, October 30, 10:50 am, Worship Service Livestream
The saga of our relationship with the nightly raccoons, as a metaphor for learning to live with the troubles in life.
Rev. Margot Campbell Gross, Minister Emerita; Daniel Jackoway, Worship Associate; Reiko Oda Lane, Organist; UUSF Choir; Mark Sumner, Music Director; Ben Rudiak-Gould, Soloist; Laurel Sprigg, Soloist
Jackson Munn, Camera; Jonathan Silk, Communications Director; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Dan Barnard, Facilities Manager; Judy Payne, Flowers; Linda Messner, Head Usher
โWhat Fuels These Fools?โ
Sunday, October 23, 10:50 am, Worship Service Livestream
What makes Fools โfaithfulโ? More than anything it is a willingness to hang in there, even when it seems like not much is changing. Futility, rather than fuel, seems to be whatโs on peopleโs minds these days, but the Fools are committed to the faithfulness of fidelity and steadiness, keeping on even when it seems rather ridiculous to do so. Carmen Barsody and Sam Dennison, two long-time Faithful Fools, bring us their reflections on what it takes to keep on keepinโ on. As Faithful Fools ready to celebrate 25 years of reflection and engagement, and Carmen and Sam will share their 25th year questions and insights with us.
Carmen Barsody; Sam Dennison; Dennis Adams, Worship Associate; Mark Sumner, Pianist; Richard Fey, Songleader; Rosalie Alfonso, Percussionist; Jon Silk, Drummer; Bill Klingelhoffer, Percussionist; Michael Yamashita, Hula; Ka'ala Carmack, Pianist, Vocals and Ukulele
Eric Shackelford, Camera; Jonathan Silk, Communications Director; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Kelvin Jones, Sexton; Carrie Steere-Salazar, Flowers; Linda Messner, Head Usher
Can Atheist, Agnostics & Pagans be members of the unitarians, do they have to renounce their old position and embrace the new position or do they retain their own position and identity in the group?
โBeing Aliveโ
Sunday, October 16, 10:50 am, Worship Service Livestream
For months we struggled with the confinement required to avoid Covid, then the numbers went down and we began to move around again. Some said it felt 'Alive' again. What does being alive mean now that many of us now have more freedom?
Rev. David Sammons, Minister Emeritus; Wonder Dave, Worship Associate; Reiko Oda Lane, Organist; UUSF Choir; Mark Sumner, Music Director; Wm. Garcรญa Ganz, Pianist
Shulee Ong, Camera; Jackson Munn, Camera; Jonathan Silk, Communications Director; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Remigio Flood, Sexton; Kelvin Jones, Sexton; Carrie Steere-Salazar, Flowers; Linda Messner, Head Usher; Ralph Fenn, Les James, Tom Brookshire, Zoom Coffee Hour
โWhose Land Is This?โ
Sunday, October 9, 10:50 am, Worship Service Livestream
Woody Guthrie sang, โThis land is your land, this land is my land, from California to the Gulf Stream waters.โ Yet Indigenous Peoplesโ Day, observed on the second Monday of October (but not as a holiday), suggests that we acknowledge the unceded rights of this continentโs first peoples. Doing so might even shed light on some of our societyโs deepest problems. John Buehrens is both our past Senior Minister and a former President of the UUA. He will also reflect on his recent visit to Alaska, where descendants of the Inuit, Aleut, Athabascan, Tlingit, and other peoples constitute 22% of the population.
Rev. John Buehrens, Preacher; Daniel Jackoway, Worship Associate; Reiko Oda Lane, Organist; UUSF Choir; Mark Sumner, Music Director; Wm. Garcรญa Ganz, Pianist; Rosalie Alfonso, Percussionist; Kaโala Carmack, Ukulele
Shulee Ong, Camera; Jonathan Silk, Communications Director; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Thomas Brown, Sexton; Amy Kelly, Flowers; Linda Messner, Head Usher; Ralph Fenn, Les James, Tom Brookshire, Zoom Coffee Hour
โA Hope Worth Fighting Forโ
Sunday, October 2, 10:50 am, Worship Service Livestream
Exploring hope and despair in the context of the work the Dallas UU community has done for reproductive dignity and what you might ponder as you consider your callings to make a difference.
Rev. Dr. Daniel Kanter, Guest Minister; Rev. John Buehrens; Susan Anthony, Worship Associate; Reiko Oda Lane, Organist; UUSF Choir; Mark Sumner, Music Director; Jon Silk, Drummer; Wm. Garcia Ganz, Pianist; Adam Luftman, Shofar
Jackson Munn, Camera; Eric Shackelford, Camera; Jonathan Silk, Communications Director; Sam King, Live Chat Moderator; Thomas Brown, Sexton; Kelvin Jones, Sexton; Amy Kelly, Flowers; Linda Messner, Head Usher; Ralph Fenn, Les James, Tom Brookshire, Zoom Coffee Hour
Hi are there any unitarian churches on the united states territories like Guam and Puerto rico?
I just saw a big "Flatch Unitarian" sign on a promo for a new Fox sitcom. Anybody else notice?
https://sports.yahoo.com/locally-shot-welcome-flatch-premieres-182135669.html ... I guess that's what this show is about.
Could be good, could be terrible. It is weird seeing mainstream culture acknowledge that UU's exist, outside the random Simpsons joke.
โOrdinary Daysโ
Sunday, August 14, 10:50 am, Worship Service Livestream
Life is made up of ordinary days. And they are often some of the best days we have. A sermon musing on the ordinariness of a sweet life.
Rev. Vanessa Rush Southern, Senior Minister; Mari Magaloni Ramos, Worship Associate; Reiko Oda Lane, Organist; Laurel Sprigg, Soprano; Mark Sumner, Pianist; Richard Fey, Songleader
Shulee Ong, Camera; Eric Shackelford, Camera; Donald Shearer, Camera; Jackson Munn, Camera; Max Benbow, Camera; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Remigio Flood, Sexton; Kelvin Jones, Sexton; Carrie Steere-Salazar, Flowers; Linda Messner, Head Usher; Ralph Fenn, Les James, Tom Brookshire, Zoom Coffee Hour
โRetraining the Dragonโ
Sunday, August 7, 10:50 am, Worship Service Livestream
When threatened some of us fight - even "breathing fire" if provoked, others freeze or retreat. We all know life is better when we are not stressed all the time, but some seem more resilient and able to shake off strife and difficulty than others. Recent brain science points to the limbic system as the place filtering our experience and deciding whether to act on a threat or choose to go with the flow of life. Rev. Sonya Sukalski has found that resetting the switch that sends the mind, body and spirit into rest and digest chemistry rather than fight or flight to be a satisfying spiritual practice. Her practice includes elements of prayer, meditation, movement, and employs theology UUs might find useful and life-affirming.
Rev. Sonya Sukalski, Guest Minister; Kat Liu, Worship Associate; Reiko Oda Lane, Organist; Maria Roodnitsky, Mezzo Soprano; Mark Sumner, Pianist; Richard Fey, Songleader
Shulee Ong, Camera; Eric Shackelford, Camera; Donald Shearer, Camera; Jackson Munn, Camera; Max Benbow, Camera; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Remigio Flood, Sexton; Kelvin Jones, Sexton; Carrie Steere-Salazar, Flowers; Linda Messner, Head Usher; Ralph Fenn, Les James, Tom Brookshire, Zoom Coffee Hour