We had an appointment with a professional who was helping us do some estate planning. They sent us an email the day before reminding us of the appointment and included a helpful message: give yourself some extra time.  Our building … Continue reading →

A Butterfield Overland Stage departing San Francisco in 1858. On September 15, 1858 two new Concord Coaches, one in Saint Louis,Missouri and one in San Francisco,California set off in opposite directions two cross more than 2/3s of the continent.  They were inaugurating a new contract with the Post Office for transcontinental mail service operated by the Butterfield Overland Mail.  It would take 23 days for the California service to arrive at its eastern terminal—two whole days before its projected time.  The west bound routewould make similar time.  Both traveled the indirect Ox bow route that dipped south to cross Indian Territory and kitty-angle across Texas before heading west along the Rio Grande River and through the rugged m...

    In the broad middle of the Twentieth century there were a number of writers exploring a synthesis of Eastern and Western approaches to the spiritual life. I would hazard the best known of these was Alan Watts. For good and ill have to count him among my teachers, if some of that was […]

Abigail Eliot was a member of the Unitarian Universalist church I grew up in. I have only vague memories of her, but somehow knew she was someone important. I didn’t realize just how important she was until I read No Silent Witness: The Eliot Parsonage Women and Their Unitarian World by Cynthia Grant Tucker. It … Continue reading "Thinking about Abigail Eliot"

We did not have an in-person worship service on Sunday, 26 June 2022. Since church staff and church members were attending the 2022 Unitarian Universalist General Assembly (GA) in Portland, Oregon, we had an all-ages potluck and watched the livestream video of the Sunday GA worship from Portland instead. You can watch the GA worship … Continue reading "26 June 2022 UUA General Assembly Sunday Worship"

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 "19 June 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 "12 June 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 "5 June 2022 Worship Livestreaming Video"

Taken with a Fujifilm X-T2 Just click on the photo to enlarge it   This photo was taken on the August Bank Holiday whilst visiting my parents who live just a couple of miles outside Harwich. At the surface level, it simply shows a very familiar, happy and peaceful, sunny Bank Holiday scene centred on a family picnic-cum-fishing trip to the seaside. Although, strictly speaking, this view shows the riverside at the confluence of the Stour and Orwell rivers just before they run out into the North Sea to the right of the frame.  But, firstly, take a look at those cranes across the river in Felixstowe Port (the busiest container port in the UK) . . . they are all upright and there are no ships to be seen. This is because, for the first ti...

Like the cosmic dust following after a great Perseid meteor, we are the living remnants of time and all that has come to pass in its wake—briefly shining lights on the way to eternity. We are only visible to the naked eye for an instant. Take this moment to shine like the stardust you are. … Continue reading Shining

An update on yet another twist in the case to protect and preserve Chi’chil Bildagoteel in Arizona as the 9th Circuit considers whether to rehear the case, en banc. Continue reading Fate of Chi’chil Bildagoteel and Apache Stronghold await decision on case being reheard at The Wild Hunt.

It was a busy weekend at UUSS! After lots of activities on Saturday, it was good to hear the choir rehearsing as we prepared for worship, and then to see all the folks in the circle, and those who attended online. We are grateful for ... read more . The post Co-Ministers’ Colloquy – Sept. 13th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

The 9/11 Children’s Chapel was such a delight! Our first Children’s Chapel in 2.5 years. A great big THANK YOU to Stephanie Maslanka for joining us to share her time and storytelling talents with Juliana Post-Good, me, and 9 Children! Turns out, we have a ... read more . The post Religious Education News – Sept. 13th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Canadian Unitarian Universalists Honour Death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II – September 8, 2022 – It is with a momentous sense of an era passing that the Canadian Unitarian Council (CUC) and Unitarian Universalist Ministers of Canada (UUMOC) acknowledge the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on September […] The post Canadian Unitarian Universalists Honour Death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II appeared first on Canadian Unitarian Council Conseil unitarien du Canada.

The McLeod Ganj Psalter RSV, Week 4 Ken Ireland (Ken was Ivy League and Jesuit trained, and for some years a member of the Society of Jesus. He currently lives in Dharamshala. Ken’s a long time Zen practitioner and a friend. He’s taken an interest in my current deep dive into the Psalms project, and […]

The Queen is dead – now what? Whether we are Americans, Britons, or otherwise, electing better people to run the governments we have is far simpler and more likely than changing our form of government.

Several years ago, I published a blog, “Rev. Prep” as my personal, public statement affirming that one can be religious and gay and sexual and engaged in promoting safer sex.  Although I use a different medication now (Descovy), I am still on and committed to PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis i.e. anti-HIV medication) as a non-gendered, non-political, […]

Niles West High School in the 1960s. I was a senior that fall at Niles Township West High School in 1966.   It was a good year for me.   I was finding myself.   After arriving from Cheyenne, where I was something of a pariah as a bookish kid, the year before, I had discovered that at least in some circles my interests were valued and shared.   I had friends.   I was active in drama and was cast in good parts.   I had my own allegedly humorous column The Wind from the West in the school newspaper and my short stories and poems had been published in the literary journal Apotheosis .   I competed in Forensics. Outside of school I was part of a circle of kids from all three schools in the district who were interested in things like ci...

I was born into a non-practicing Baptist family. We did celebrate Easter and Christmas but not much else. That was my religious upbringing. I had to go on my spiritual journey alone.  When I was a teenager, I was an … Continue reading →

In this week's Pagan Community Notes: a legal challenge for choice in Indiana includes Paganism, the Native Polish Church announces the passing of Mazur Kazimierz, Egyptian artifacts scheduled for return, and more news. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of September 12, 2022 at The Wild Hunt.

Realizing that you are a tiny speck in a universe with no end strikes our sense of wonder and awe. The perspective that follows can make you feel holy. What gives you a perspective that feels holy?

A few photos from an early autumn walk by the River Cam through Grantchester Meadows All photos taken with a Fuji X100V and are straight out of camera Just click on a photo to enlarge

Restaurant and market reviews from Spain.

Would you give a dozen 8th graders $10,000? Seriously?? That’s exactly what happened last year at Monroe Demonstration Academy! The Ed Darby Foundation and Tulsa Changemakers teamed up to offer hands-on experience for twelve 8th graders with $10 grand. Subsequently, the adults were blown away. Identifying the Needs The novice philanthropists started by identifying six topics most important to the Monroe community: Basic needs, menstrual products, classroom supplies and décor, youth voice, special events and mental health. Then they cleaned out a school closet and organized it into a pantry for food, clothing and hygiene products. They held a drive […] The post PIE ala Mode appeared first on BeyondBelief.

“Hey, we’re making music twice as good.By playing what we’ve got!” ~ Shel Silverstein, Ourchestra, Where the Sidewalk Ends (p. 23) In this century we are all connected somehow, and for many of us, those connections are everything. We can’t … Continue reading →

  Horses in the Lascaux Cave complex. On September 12, 1940 four teenage boys chasing their dog Robot into a partially obscured cave mouth came upon something extraordinary.   Marcel Ravidat, Jacques Marsal, Georges Agnel, and Simon Coencas stumbled upon a vast trove of paintings on the walls of the cave complex near the village of Montignac, in the Department of Dordogne , France. The dog Robot who sniffed out the hidden entrance to Lascaux, with two of the human-co-discoverers The Lascaux Cave complex was eventually found to include several rooms or galleries including those designated as the Great Hall of the Bulls , the Lateral Passage , the Shaft of the Dead Man , the Chamber of Engravings , the Painted Gallery , and the Chamber o...

  REMEMBERING AND HEALING FROM TRAUMA Sept. 11, 2022          Where were you when the planes crashed into the World Trade Center, into the Pentagon, and into an empty Pennsylvania field?  Speak that place into the silence as we listen.        It was a Tuesday.  It was 5:14 a.m. here in the PNW.  It was the first or second week of school for many children and youths.    And teachers.  It was a week after the celebrations of Labor Day.  It was a perfectly ordinary sort of day---until the news reports came rolling in, the TV screens flashing horrifying photos of people jumping out of the World Trade Center, planes obliterating parts of the Pentagon and two of the towers,  brave passengers cooperating to divert their hi...

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 "29 May 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 "22 May 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 "15 May 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 "8 May 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 "1 May 2022 Worship Livestreaming Video"

Our capacity to adapt to change is awe-inspiring. We are faced with seemingly impossible odds, and we find a way to overcome them over and over again. Stronger than ever before. -JeKaren Olaoya (CLF) What is a time you’ve faced the need to adapt to changing circumstances?

as preached at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Houston, September 11, 2022 It is good to be back in the pulpit. It is good to share this morning with you. It is a special morning for me. It is my first Sunday back from sabbatical. And it is my first time preaching to you […]

Join us as we kick off the new church year with our traditional Ingathering service. We begin this year at the beginning - what does it mean to belong?

We had some serious heat this week in California. It was so hot I stayed off the trails for most of last week. It is cooler now, so we’ll get going again soon. We were lucky to have A/C and solar with battery storage so we ran on the battery in the evening. It felt […]

Staff Writer Our hearts are still heavy on the anniversary of September 11, 2001.

    All I have is a voiceTo undo the folded lie,The romantic lie in the brainOf the sensual man-in-the-streetAnd the lie of AuthorityWhose buildings grope the sky: There is no such thing as the StateAnd no one exists alone;Hunger allows no choiceTo the citizen or the police;We must love one another or die. W.H. […]

Two beacons shone from the site of the World Trade Center Towers in New York City on anniversaries before the new towers were finally built. Note —Last year, twenty years after America’s most traumatic experience the memory of the 8/11 attacks was everywhere—news specials and documentaries all over broadcast and cable, newspaper front pages, special commemorative magazines at the grocery check-out, made-for-TV movies, new books both serious and refloating conspiracy theories.  This year, not so much, although it will be noted on your evening news and the annual observances at the Twin Towers site, Pentagon, and that Pennsylvania field where a passenger uprising against hijackers brought down a potential flying bomb.  The death of...

A witch is a person who practices witchcraft, as they understand it. You need no one’s permission, no one’s blessing, no one’s investiture to claim the title with power and pride.

Please join us this Sunday (11 September 2022) at 11:00 AM for the presentation of the 2022 Emerson Award to Kathaleen Pittman (Executive Director — Hope Medical Group for Women). We honor Kathaleen for her years of service and unyielding dedication to the rights of all people to plan their families as they choose and to … Continue reading "All-Ages Worship (11 September 2022)"

Please join us on Sunday (11 September 2022) at 9:00 AM for “WhUU Dat (yeah, we did that . . . join us anyway)” via Zoom and facilitated by  Susan Caldwell and Barbara Deger. This Sunday we will try and answer the question “WhUU Dat?” as an introductory session to Unitarian Universalist theology along with … Continue reading "Online Adult Religious Education — 11 September 2022"

As the church year begins, our classes will be meeting separately for activities and discussion around our Unitarian Universalist principles and how they fit into our history and our daily lives. For most weeks, they will be joining together for part of the hour to continue work on the updated mural in the middle and … Continue reading "Children and Youth Religious Education for 11 September 2022"

Please join us next Tuesday (13 September 2022) at 12 noon for our weekly Zoom lunch. Bring your lunch and meet up with your All Souls friends, have lunch, and just catch up.

"I think we have a problem." I held up two identical wooden blocks, each stamped with an image of a man bent low under the weight of a massive boulder. “We’ve got two Sisyphuses and no Graces.” Continue reading “Sisyphuses and no Graces”: Telling Myths to Babies at The Wild Hunt.

The moment you acknowledge your survival of something you once thought beyond your ability is one of the purest forms of Awe in the human condition. -Rev. Dr. Erien Babcock (CLF) Think about a time when you survived something you thought impossible.

For the last 30 years, Republican lawmakers have insisted that   1.Global warming is a hoax. 2. That if it is real, man is not the cause of it. 3. That tackling if it was real would be too costly and disruptive. 4. That the fossil fuel industry that helps also to fuel their conservative candidacies is not to blame for global warming.  Are we finally at the point of clear understanding that our use of fossil fuels is fueling planetary destruction and disruption? An are we finally at the point where we can call out those obstructionists in politics and replace them in congress with folks capable of understanding science and willing to guide us (and the planet) toward a more sustainable future? Jimmy Carter, when he was president, was moc...

To see, to touch, and to believe. It seems that most human beings live in fantasies devised by others. I do so myself. I grew up within a Christian mythology. Christ could heal the lame, setting them on their feet again. That he could walk on water and feed the multitudes on only a few loaves of bread, was said and taught. He offered a means of altering the laws of Karma, that most chose to ignore, going instead for the perpetual motion of eye for eye. And within that there was at least enough confusion to plant seeds of doubt, for which I'm grateful. I write this as I sit on the front porch, Rosie at my feet, observing the sun coming through the leaves and feeling the cool air against my skin. The subject of belief is a curious one. We ...

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 we all know, Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, died on the afternoon of the 8th September and as a small, liberal religious community in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, this morning we collectively give thanks for her long life of service to the nation and send our condolences to her family. But as we begin to process what her life and death meant, and still means, to us, we need to be absolutely clear that during her reign a major change occurred in our society that her own, extraordinary, indiv...

Please join us at our table at this year’s Pride in the Park (sponsored by PACE Shreveport). Pride in the Park will be at Betty Virginia Park on Saturday (10 September 2022) from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. All Souls is scheduled for unloading and set-up at 9:45 AM at the parking lot on the … Continue reading "Pride in the Park (10 September 2022)"

Please join us on Saturday (10 September 2022) from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM for our monthly building and grounds work day. Since some of our church members will be staffing our table at Pride in the Park, we’re calling all hands to help with our monthly building and grounds work day. We will prepare … Continue reading "Building and Grounds Work Day (10 September 2022)"

Please join us on Saturday (10 September 2022) 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. The group is free and open to all. For more information, contact Larry … Continue reading "Meditation with Larry Androes (10 September 2022)"

We left our rental in San Mateo, California, on June 20. From then until September 1, we didn’t have a permanent address. We were living out of our car from June 20 to July 17. Then we had a short-term and very inexpensive rental ($500 a month, plus work barter) on the south coast of … Continue reading "Living out of your car"

"How,” I asked my partner, at last, “do you have a home you can’t take care of?” Continue reading Column: Stewardship, or Building the Hearth-Fire at The Wild Hunt.

I am in awe of the hummingbirds in my yard.  They are so tiny and move so fast and are so beautiful.  Truly awe inspiring.  I am in amazed that they spend hours at the discount-store feeder I got.   One of the smallest creatures in nature is so awe inspiring. -Judy DiCristofaro (CLF), photo by … Continue reading Hummingbirds

Sunday, September 11, 10:30 a.m. Water Communion Ingathering Service     Honor the waters that touch our lives: rivers, oceans, lakes, and tears of joy and sorrow. In this family worship service we will celebrate our coming together after the summer months. Bring water from a source that you visited this summer or find sacred and together   [ … ] The post Sunday, September 11 ~ Water Communion Ingathering Service ~ 10:30 a.m. appeared first on Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson.

      I am not especially fond of the institution of monarchy. The reasons for this are many. I’m never not aware the whole institutions of monarchs, each and every one of them, are founded upon someone who killed and maimed their way to the top of a violent heap sometime in the past. […]

Prayer for Week of September 12, 2022 - Prayer for Homeschoolers Lover of Wisdom support those who homeschool and unschool, who seek to learn and teach and grow in ways outside schools and for the specific needs of some families and children. May there be abundant community resources and abundant...

Growing up in a church gave me a sense of belonging both to the congregation and to their beliefs. Our family life revolved around Sunday school, Sunday worship services, Wednesday suppers, choir practices, and revivals. At eight, I was baptized … Continue reading →

In two earlier posts (one and two), I wrote about preaching gowns. Personally I’m not a fan of preaching gowns, but I understand why they can be of use. Now I’d like to think out loud about clerical stoles. Stoles are those long pieces of cloth that clergy drape around their necks. The stole comes … Continue reading "Clerical stoles"

A proposed avocado farm in Spain led to one the world's largest megalithic sites being fully explored and studied by archaeologists. Continue reading Megalithic complex revealed in Spain at The Wild Hunt.

When I hear Gabriel Faure’s famous “Requiem” I cannot help but recall the time I sang it with a choir. I am transported to a place and time of transcendent wonder and beauty—a sense of awe that went beyond me, and connected me to the people around me singing, to the people listening, to something … Continue reading Transcendence

I feel such delight in all the small birds that love to be in our yard. Yesterday morning, the gold finches were all over the evening primrose stalks, eating seeds. Native self-seeded wildflowers for the win! Then I saw a few little brown ones–maybe sparrows–taking a bath in a puddle in the driveway, after the […]

Homilía del 7 de Mayo, 2022 para la Primera Iglesia Unitaria Universalista de Houston Es probable que algunos de ustedes recuerden que el Día de las Madres es un día feriado muy Unitario Universalista. Tuvo su origen gracias a los esfuerzos de Julia Ward Howe, una mujer unitaria, feminista, activista, y escritora. Ella se imaginó […]

The McLeod Ganj Psalter RSV, Week 3 Ken Ireland (Ken was Ivy League and Jesuit trained, and for some years a member of the Society of Jesus. He currently lives in Dharamshala. Ken’s a long time Zen practitioner and a friend. He’s taken an interest in my current deep dive into the Psalms project, and […]

Like most other people in the industry, I’m here because I love books! I love words and how they can be combined to reveal a new way of knowing the world. For a while, my dream was to become a writer, but over time, I grew less interested in telling my stories and more interested in helping others tell theirs. I found Beacon through the amazing We Need Diverse Books internship grant and was immediately drawn to its progressive catalog and justice-oriented mission.

“I am you, you are me, and we are all together.”  ~ John Lennon  I want to belong, to be part of! A large part of this need to belong is about survival. We come into physical existence totally dependent … Continue reading →

For 300 years, people in the West lived in an era of near-continuous progress. Everyone – Pagans included – expected things would continue getting better. People who expect things will keep getting better don’t issue prophecies of decline and demise.

The UUA's nonpartisan civic engagement initiative is focused on states where UU congregations and individuals can make a tremendous difference in democratic engagement this year. Continue reading "UU the Vote Announces 12 States Focus for 2022 Elections: Nonpartisan Civic Engagement Initiative Strengthening Democracy, Organizing for Justice and Accountability"

Priscilla Shumway It's my actions and choices that determine my connection to others. Continue reading "Choosing to Connect"

The Wild Hunt speaks with the Josh and Cat Heath about the decision to shut down their Open Halls Project. Continue reading The Heathen Open Halls Project shuts down at The Wild Hunt.

It is good to sing praises to you, Mother of all creation. And to recognize the touch of your love… We are in awe of your power. When the seasons turn, the growing warmth reminds us of your warmth The flowing waters remind us of the life which comes from you. Thank you, Mother of … Continue reading Mother of Creation

A Q&A with Remica Bingham-Risher | I actually never contemplated writing a book of nonfiction. When I started interviewing Black poets I admired, I did imagine that one day, I’d compile all those interviews. But those would be testaments to the things they were doing in the craft; it wouldn’t have much to do with me. So, it’s interesting that, over time, all the things they taught me kind of melded into this hybrid text, but I couldn’t have imagined it for myself. I’m very grateful.

I began my Kindergarten wood working class this morning and had a great time. The kids asked, "What are we making today?" And the great thing about working with this age of student is that they're excited about making any thing... So we made note holders for them to take home and used to convey messages to each other. It is a simple project but involved sawing, hammering, and decorating. Three things that all kids love. Make, fix and create... Assist others in learning likewise.

On the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies, we ask how governments can secure the human right to clear skies and a livable climate.

Chipper mills in the US have been destroying southern hardwood forests in the US and are now doing the same thing to old growth forests in Europe according to this article in the New York Times: Europe Is Sacrificing Its Ancient Forests for Energy.  The energy monsters claim that burning ancient forests is a form of green energy, but nothing could be further from the truth. It takes hundreds of years to grow a mature forest, and the burning of them is more costly to the environment than burning coal or natural gas. In the meantime, today is my first day teaching woodworking to the Kindergarten class at the Clear Spring School. And yesterday I received copies of my Guide to Woodworking with Kids, translated into German.  Make, fix and c...

There are times that you find yourself belonging to a group that you feared. A group that would change your life forever. All you see are the tears of suffering and death. You never see the smiles and the laughter … Continue reading →

      It was on this day, the 7th of September, in 1911 that Guillaume Apollinaire was arrested under suspicion of stealing the Mona Lisa. A classic example of the dangers of being an ironist in literalist times. Apollinaire was a renowned critic, poet, pornographer and the man who coined the term “surrealism” as well […]

In this week's Pagan Community Notes: Pagan Pride events starting up, Gaea Retreat Center changes visitor policy, Parliament of the World’s Religions, and more news. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of September 6, 2022 at The Wild Hunt.

The Rev. Kathleen McTigue wrote that we gather in community for worship, “to remind one another to rest for a moment on the forming edge of our lives, to resist the headlong tumble into the next moment, until we claim for ourselves awareness and gratitude.” ... read more . The post Co-Ministers’ Colloquy – Sept 6th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

RE classes begin Sunday, 9/25! To register your child(ren), click HERE . Below is a list of this year’s awesome RE offerings. Please note that this is a tentative schedule while we’re inviting folks to teach, facilitate, and advise. A final schedule will be ... read more . The post Religious Education News – Sept 6th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

The Co-ministers have been in conversation with several other ministers across the country about the start of the new year. There are so many factors to consider in each location when striving to care for one another in the best ways we know how. Rev. ... read more . The post COVID 19 Update – September 6, 2022 appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

“Covenant … is a vision that says we are most human when we bind ourselves in relationship. But not just any relationship – relationships of trust, mutual accountability and continual return. This is not what our culture teaches us. Our culture teaches us that what ... read more . The post September Theme: Covenantal Community appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

The blackberries in my garden have finished their abundant season. Until next year, there will be no more purple-stained fingers, no more tart cobbler, no more daily hunt for the ripest berries in the thicket. Their brief annual presence in my life is a marvel of summer, and a reminder that all things have their … Continue reading Blackberries

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post. The post Protected: The Fountain is a healing place & ours is fully restored appeared first on BeyondBelief.

Heretic, Rebel, a Thing to Flout is going on hiatus for a few days while the proprietor and Chief Blowhard takes some R&R in Door County, Wisconsin with Kathy Brady-Murfin.  Will post pictures from new cell phone camera on Facebook.  Your regular programing should resume Sunday, September 11.  

My 9-year-old granddaughter is homeschooled, but on Thursdays she goes to a “hybrid” school program with other homeschooled kids. This year she is in a class with mostly kids she didn’t know before. After the second week, I picked her … Continue reading →

Four questions on three topics: the purpose of art in Paganism, restarting a spiritual practice after a period of inactivity, and Paganism in interfaith work. Good questions that should stimulate some good discussion.

      This is the anniversary of Zen teacher Issan Dorsey’s death on the 6th of September, 1990. I’ve written appreciations a number of times, often expanding over the years on something started a long time ago. Here, after my brief bio, I include Ken Ireland’s appreciation of Issan first delivered at Maitri Hospice, […]

“It is in the small things we see it. The child’s first step, as awesome as an earthquake. The first time you rode a bike, wallowing up the sidewalk.” -From “Courage,” by Anne Sexton When has an act of courage awed you?

If you agree with anything I've written thus far, you need to read this article about cartoonist and creator Lynda Barry from the New York Times.  Make, fix and create... Assist others in learning likewise.

Happy Labor Day from The Wild Hunt! Continue reading Happy Labor Day! at The Wild Hunt.