A congregant said to me recently, “Many of us would like to love our neighbors without exception, but we know there are people who regularly deal in bad faith.” And with election denial continuing as Election Day rapidly approaches on Tuesday, November 8, it can be especially consequential when anti-democratic, authoritarian politicians act in bad […]

I leave this afternoon for Minneapolis/St. Paul where I'll present at the ISACS annual conference and then fly home tomorrow night. It's a quick trip as on Saturday afternoon I'll be selling my work at a show at Suzanne Reed's studio/gallery. I'm a bit less nervous about my trip, realizing that time passes and that I'll be glad that I went. Join me at Suzanne's. You'll find original glasswork by Suzanne, photography by Megan Kirk and pottery by Pat Sullivan in addition to my boxes and books. It will be a lovely afternoon event. Make, fix and create.... Assist others in learning likewise.

Congressional elections are almost upon us. What should human rights-conscious voters be looking for?

There are patterns in chaos. These patterns are fractals, which repeat endlessly like the roots and branches of trees, blood vessels, branching rivers, lightning, seashells, hurricanes, and galaxies!  Most of us,  through the random events of our lives, perceive emotional … Continue reading →

  Fouier-Major Augustin de La Balme of the Gendarmerie de France, a personal Guard Regiment of the King, was decorated and respected cavalry officer despite his low birth. Col. Augustin de La Balme was a French cavalry officer who came to the American shores as an early volunteer with the Continental Army in 1777.   The veteran officer had dreams of glory and advancement that were not realized.   Three years later he died in a desperate fightafter being ambushed and besieged in a makeshift mud fort on the banks of an obscure creek in what is now Indiana.   How he got there and just what the hell he thought he was going to accomplish are matters of some considerable mystery and dispute. He was born as Augustin Mottin on August 28, 17...

Languages are the heart of community. Indigenous languages are being taught and reclaimed in order to preserve the cultures they describe. Sign language knits together the deaf community in ways that hearing people cannot understand. The ways in which we describe relationships are grounded in the language(s) of our hearts. How have the languages you … Continue reading Language

Although I haven’t been writing much this year, I couldn’t let All Souls Day pass unrecognized. I thought to look at the All Souls’ Day service in the 1878 Order of Services for the Days of the Christian Year: Specially Observed by the Universalist Church of the extinct Church of the Redeemer, Chelsea, Massachusetts. Much … Continue reading "Reading for All Souls Day service"

The Adocentyn Research Library is on track to open before the end of 2022 with new additions and an expanded space. Continue reading The Adocentyn Research Library to open by end of 2022 at The Wild Hunt.

  Today is All Soul’s day. In the Western Christian calendar its the conclusion of Allhallowtide. It is a day to pray for the dead. For Christians its usually for the Christian dead. The Roman Catholic church has a developed theory of the afterlife and speaks of a place between death and paradise for believers […]

So we're lowering the starting bids on several.

Elaine McArdle Congresswoman Judy Chu on climate change, being a UU, and more

Melissa Jeter Love is reaching through the generations with expectations that I live through challenging times. Continue reading "Called to Heal"

presented at the Unitarian Church of Quincy, Illinois October 30, 2022 Opening words “We no longer claim that a genuinely religious government can be democratic, but that it cannot be otherwise.” - Abdolkarim Soroush Responsive reading  #594 “Principles and Purposes for All of Us” Readings I thought I’d start by reading you some criticisms of democracy and party politics from other times and places. The first known usage of the phrase “Vox populi, vox dei” (The voice of the people is the voice of God.) comes from a letter the Saxon scholar Alcuin of York wrote to the Emperor Charlemagne in 800 AD, “And those people should not be listened to who keep saying the voice of the people is the voice of God, since the tumult of ...

Change is coming. Do I let it in?  I don’t know. Change is coming.  Do I hide? Maybe, I will. Change is coming.  Do I fear it? Sometimes, I do. Change is coming.  Will it be bad? I hope it … Continue reading →

  Cheer leading was already a well established tradition at Yale when this 1916 photo was taken before a game with rival Princeton.  The World Series is still going on , the holiest and most important of all American sports championships—shut up and sit down, it’s my Blog and I won’t put up with silly pleas for other contests.   Although we baseball purists may be bereft until Spring Training, the average sports fan is still as happy as a pig in shit.   College football is going full force and still dominates Saturdays.   Basketball and hockey are in the early throws of their interminable seasons.   The NFL owns Sundays and has staked claimto some weeknights for good measure. A sports fanatic ’ s wet dream come true.   Tha...

Brendan Myers’ new book is the philosophy of climate change: the thinking that got us here, why the thinking that many expected to correct the problem failed (thinking many still advocate today), and the kind of thinking required to heal the Circle of Life.

Community is understood differently in different cultural contexts. In my Italian-American upbringing, who was and was not a member of our “family” had little to do with genetics, and everything to do with generosity, reciprocity, and love. Hawai’ians speak of ohana as the center of community. -Rev. Dr. Michael Tino (CLF) How does your culture … Continue reading Culture

Taken with a Fujifilm X100V Just click on the photo to enlarge it    This photo is straight out of camera using the  Acros Dark   recipe by Marcel Fraij I took this photo on a day when the temperature was closer to that of a normal summer’s day than one at the end of the third week in October (the 22nd, to be exact). So, although this photo looks like an everyday, picture postcard, view of Cambridge, it feels uncanny to me.  This feeling served to remind me that at the end of August there appeared in The Guardian newspaper a thoughtful editorial which reflected on the uncanny beauty of this summer’s “false autumn,” one that was “mysteriously suggestive of evil or danger” and also, perhaps, “an assertion of moral fail...

  WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? GLEANINGS FROM THE OCTOBER COFFEE KLATCHES   It’s been interesting to compile my notes of the September and October coffee klatches, the discussions, the complaints, even a few mild warnings about losing people because of the intensity level of our conversations about trauma and how it might affect PUUF’s ability to thrive because of the trauma that is endemic in our 21 st century world. I have done a lot of thinking about this.  I understand our resistance to hearing more and more about trauma; it was difficult for me to hear about the many traumatic experiences that folks in our Fellowship have endured and are still enduring.  We all are still enduring the trauma of the pandemic, its limitations, the...

Help Get Out The Vote for the November 8th election! Please join our 4 textbanks set up for next week! We have two on Wednesday, 11/2 from noon to 1pm or later that day from 7-8pm, one on Thursday, 11/3 from 7-8pm and one on Friday ... read more . The post UU the VOTE textbank opportunities! appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

The American Psychological Association says, “Resilience is the process and outcome of successfully adapting to difficult or challenging life experiences, especially through mental, emotional, and behavioral flexibility and adjustment to external and internal demands.” How resilient we feel is impacted by how connected we are ... read more . The post November Theme: Resilience appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

We write this on the cusp of October into November… with our monthly themes of Democracy and Interdependence tumbling into Resilience. On this day, we encourage you to participate in Sunday’s Open Question conversations, to share your ideas and perspective, and maybe even more importantly, to ... read more . The post Co-Ministers’ Colloquy – Nov. 1st appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Sunday November 6th is a multigenerational worship service, so I hope children in grades K-6 will join me and Rev. Wendy there! The 9-12 Coming of Age (COA) class will meet in their classroom from 10-12, and will be visited by Rev. Lynn. (COA meets in ... read more . The post Religious Education News – Nov. 1st appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Begins January 2023. Now that a multiplatform world is here for good, how do we steward a multiple-form congregation? Continue reading "Cornerstones of Effective Stewardship Webinar Series"

In this week's Pagan Community Notes, a round of up of witch articles in the mainstream, new US stamps, another book burning, and more news. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of November 1, 2022 at The Wild Hunt.

Rachel Myslivy Environmental degradation is exacerbating existing inequities; we have a moral obligation to center solutions on those most impacted.

    The Reverend Doctor DAVID P. KEYES (1945-2022) The Ministries and Faith Development staff of the Unitarian Universalist Association offer our condolences to the family and colleagues of the Rev. David P. Keyes, who died on September 13, 2022, at the age of 77. David was born on January 21, 1945, in Kansas City, […]

I'm getting ready to do two presentations at the annual ISACS conference, this year to be held in Minneapolis/St. Paul. ISACS stands for the Independent Schools Association of the Central States, and it is the membership organization through which the Clear Spring School receives its accreditation.  One of my presentations is about the Wisdom of our hands, and how the strategic use of the hand benefits learning at all ages. The other presentation is about woodworking with kids. Both of these subjects are well known to me, but that doesn't relieve me of the nervousness about making these presentations. I'm in the midst of organizing my thoughts and wish I'd started months ago. Yesterday I received pdfs of two articles I've written for Fi...

Gaily hand painted skulls on sale in a Mexican shop for  Día de Los Muertos. Note —Another blog perennial. Despite sharing some key common imagery—skulls and skeletons—and some cultural and religious DNA, Día de los Muertos, the two day festival from Mexico, is not just aLatino Halloween.  The two observations reflect two entirely different views of death—one reflecting terrorand horror and the other welcoming acceptance.  That’s the shorthand for it anyway.  It is, of course, more complicated.  The Mexican holiday owes its unique vitalityto the merging and mutual corruption of two cultures so aliento each other that at first the seemed totally incompatible. The Aztecs were the new kids on the block.  Just the latest in...

One of the most ancient ways that human beings have sought direction and guidance is through reading the clouds. We have all probably participated in some form of cloud reading. Especially on a day with some sky showing and some … Continue reading →

This month, we look at community–with a bilingual twist! What does it mean to form and maintain a community? How can community be the source of our collective liberation? How is community understood differently by different peoples and cultures? What are the communities that you consider yourself a part of?

    Going back to a year that might have changed my life Yes and . . . A Zen Jesuit Response to my blog posting Best Read on Jesus and His Message Dear James, Your “Best Read on Jesus and His Message” was more than quick summation of the Jesus sayings, miracle stories, resurrection […]

We are grateful to your readers who shared their ancestor altars and bovedas this year. TWH wishes its northern hemisphere readers a blessed Samhaintide and a merry Beltaine in the southern hemisphere. Continue reading Samhain Blessings at The Wild Hunt.

We've raised over half our auction goal already!

The New York Times has an interesting article about the pandemic buying of cheap furniture to fill homes and the quick return of all that cheap stuff to fill our landfills. 'Fast Furniture is Cheap and Americans are Throwing it out in the Trash.'  We have choices. We can make what we need while harvesting the benefits of our own growth. We can simply live without so much stuff and lean toward simplicity in our lives. And we can do both. Today for me is a day of rest and reorganization, as I put away the various tools and materials used in my weekend class, and savor having watched my student's growth. The photo shows a few of my veneered boxes made a few years back. Where they are now, I have no way of knowing. Make, fix and create.  A...

In my spiritual exploration, I’m reading Smile at Fear: Awakening the True Heart of Bravery by Chögyam Trungpa. In the few first pages he offers ideas about what fear is and where it comes from:  “Fear is nervousness; fear is … Continue reading →

Shopping for Halloween decorations at the five and dime store in the 1950's. Note —Our annual Halloween post. Halloween traces its origin to the Celtic harvest festival Samhain.  It was one of the four festivals that fell between the Solstices and Equinoxes and which celebrated the natural turning of the seasons.  Samhain was particularly important because it was the gate in time to the death and starvation season of winter, as well a time to celebrate the recent harvest.  This association with the death of winter also extended to the spirit world, which was considered to be closer to the mortal plane than at any other time of the year.  The Celtic priests—the Druids—marked the occasion with the lighting of bonfires and with gi...

I had the honor and privilege of spending the better part of a week this October in Alabama with close to 150 of my fellow Unitarian Universalist Religious Educators from across the continent. During this spacious and intentional time together, we spoke of the many different places from which we come and the obstacles we each face. We talked about what it was like to serve our congregations as we struggle to come out of the pandemic. We shared best practices and learned from each other’s mistakes. We traveled together to the Legacy Museum… (A collection of videos may be […] The post A Liberal Religious Educator’s Fall Conference appeared first on BeyondBelief.

We honor today that the veil between the worlds of the living and dead is at its thinnest. Many different customs and rituals honor that thinness at this time of year. What is something you’d like to say to a beloved who has died?

“You have been paid for. Each of you, Black, White, Brown, Yellow, Red—whatever pigment you use to describe yourselves—has been paid for. But for the sacrifices made by some of your ancestors, you would not be here; they have paid for you. So, when you enter a challenging situation, bring them on the stage with … Continue reading Ancestors

        Today is the 31st of October, in our Western calendar Halloween. In my corner of the world Halloween is basically about small children, and sometimes not so small putting on disguises and hoping to extort candy from the neighbors. And, yes, for some adults costumes, as well. And for a subset […]

Fear is a word we all are all accustomed to in some degree or another. For me, it is something I know far too well. The Unitarian Universalist Congregation at Montclair, New Jersey’s recent service “Courage to Grow” dealt with fear. The whole month the congregation focused on courage as part of the Soul Matters […] The post Don’t let Fear control you — conquer and destroy it appeared first on Nature's Sacred Journey.

Noelle K. Bowles examines the Pagan themes in the fourth season of the detective series The Sinner, now streaming on Netflix. Continue reading Review: Suspicion and Solace in The Sinner’s Eclectic Paganism at The Wild Hunt.

I just finished a three day class at ESSA with my students making lovely veneered boxes. It was a great group of  students including old friends. It was a delightful way to spend a three day weekend. All the students ended up with first class, beautiful boxes and some parts to take home to make more. My thanks to all and to ESSA for a good time. Make, fix and create. Assist others in learning likewise.

Join us on All Souls Sunday for a special service of memory, grief, and celebration of the dear souls we've lost throughout the pandemic and beyond.

My trip to Yosemite National Part was as much a pilgrimage as my trips to Brú Na Bóinne and Orkney. There was a call, a journey, and a spiritual experience.

I wore one of my clerical robes last Sunday. It had been a long time. I have 4 robes of different colors including a lavender, a royal blue, a wine, and a black. The black one is the only one I could wear as it was the shortest. Because of my weight loss, all the […]

  Rosa Parks' mug shot in Birmingham.  I echoed this frequently cited quote in slightly different wording, in my poem. Rosa Parks died onOctober 24, 2005 in Detroit , Michiganat the age of 93.   She is revered as the Mother of the Civil Rights Movement for sparking the Montgomery Bus Boycott by refusing to give her seat to a white man.   A young ministernamed Martin Luther King , Jr . was selected to lead the long campaign that led to one of the first great victories in for the Civil Rights Movement in the South. After her death that year, she was widely celebratedincluding the then unheard of honor for a woman and private citizen who never held high civil or military office of being laid in state in the Rotunda of the United States...

“We call in our elders. The pioneers and pilgrims whose shoulders we stand on. We call you in not to rest and bask in your glow of bygone days. But to be held accountable to the struggles and challenges and sacrifices you offered with love. May we love you enough, love us enough, love those … Continue reading Elders

        It was today, the 30th of October, 1938 that Orson Welles broadcast a radio adaptation of H. G. Wells’s The War of the Worlds, causing panic among some of the audiences across the United States. I understand it, the narrative of the panic in the country has generally been overstated. But […]

        I’ve been thinking a lot about what we can know about Jesus and what he was about. Apparently the scholarly consensus is that Jesus lived, he was at one time a follower of an apocalyptic prophet named John, he said things that captured hearts, and he died horribly at the hands […]

How can city-dwelling Heathens bring back the old sense of wonder when gazing upwards? How can we reenchant the post-post-postmodern skies in this third decade of the 21st century? Continue reading Column: Look Up to the Skies and See at The Wild Hunt.

          There’s a saying: “Cheer up, things could be worse; so I cheered up and sure enough—things got worse.’ Bobby McFerrin’s decades-old ditty, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy,” won’t work now, if it ever did.           There’s plenty of fright left over from Halloween–and in biblical proportions: war, famine, earthquake, pestilence, fires and either too much […]

        We were riding through frozen fields in a wagon at dawn. A red wing rose in the darkness. And suddenly a hare ran across the road. One of us pointed to it with his hand. That was long ago. Today neither of them is alive, Not the hare, nor the man […]

Sgt. Bill Mauldin on the job in Italy covering the war from the front lines for  Stars and Stripes .  He looked younger than his 22 years. When I was a boy I was obsessed with the great event of my parents’ lifetime—World War II.  It was hard not to be.  Almost every house I ever visited had at least one framed photo of a handsome young man in uniform proudly displayed.  Sometimes more.  Husbands, brothers, fathers.  Most came home.  Some did not. The survivors of those photos were still mostly youngish men in the prime of their lives—my father and the fathers of almost all my friends.  They were serious, hard working men.  They were very busy doing things, sometimes big things.  To a man those I knew best, my father and...

The sanctuary of the Cambridge Unitarian Church 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— A perennial question for a small, free religious church such as the one where I am minister , especially in a time where more and more people are no longer inclined to come to any kind of church, is: What’s the point of coming? Now there are, of course, certain theological and philosophical reasons for coming to church that centre on answering the big question of “the meaning of life” in general, and the meaning of a person’s own individual life in particular.  However,...

“Sacrifice is a word that evokes feelings ranging from horror to noble aspiration. It is hailed as a necessary ingredient of religion, success, and community, on the one hand, and it is deeply mistrusted, on the other.” – UU Church of Palo Alto, CA What are the feelings that the notion of “sacrifice” evokes in … Continue reading Feelings

Please join us this Sunday (30 October 2022) at 11:00 AM for “Answer in the Form of a Question” featuring special guest Michael Servetus. It’s the format for one of the world’s most popular game shows and it’s also the way that we Unitarian Universalists often look at the Big Questions before us — with … Continue reading "All-Ages Worship (30 October 2022)"

On this Sunday (30 October 2022), the children and youth will stay with the adults in the sanctuary for a multigenerational service and religious education for all ages.

Please join us on Sunday (23 October 2022) as we resume our adult religious education class at 9:00 AM for “WhUU Dat” via Zoom and facilitated by Susan Caldwell and Barbara Deger. This week’s readings continue in the section entitled “Our Faith” and include: “Bringing My Whole Self” by Dr. Takiyah Amin, pages 8-10 “Saving … Continue reading "Online Adult Religious Education — 30 October 2022"

Save the Date — 12 November  2022 — 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM The Not-Too-Early-For-a-Holiday-Market Park-It Market For Vendors:  $25.00 gets you a parking space to set up as you like you keep all proceeds of your sales.  Register and pay online here. Or if you prefer old school — download and print out a … Continue reading "Park-It Market (12 November 2022)"

Please join us next Tuesday (1 November 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.

Here in the wilderness of October, there are no veils, no doorways, and no thresholds for those who are willing and able to walk between the worlds. Continue reading Column: Wild October at The Wild Hunt.

Help UUSC rush resources to grassroots Haitian leaders as they address their country’s dire social and humanitarian emergency.

My four-year-old niece is learning to swim.  Riley loves the water, but she is also terrified of it.  On the day of her first swim lesson, she got all gussied up in her bathing suit, bathing cap, and goggles. She … Continue reading →

                                             The theatrical poster for the new film Till .   The new film Till opens wide in theaters today and is already a critical successgenerating an astonishing 98% fresh rating from the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes and is equally impressing its audiencewith PostTrak reporting a 92% positive score, with 87% saying they would definitely recommend it.   It is already generating Oscar buzz.   My wife Kathy and I have already bought tickets for a screening tonight. More importantly, the movie shine attention on the horrific 1955 lynching of young Chicagoan Emmett Till in Mississippi and his mother’s breakthrough crusade for justice.   It follows on the heel of anothe...

“Walking. I am listening to a deeper way. Suddenly all my ancestors are behind me. Be still, they say. Watch and listen. You are the result of the love of thousands.” ~Linda Hogan Sunday, October 30, 10:30 a.m. Samhain Service of Remembrance With Rev. Alice Anacheka-Nasemann Samhain, translated from Old Irish as “Summer’s End,” is a   [ … ] The post Sunday, October 30 ~ Samhain Service of Remembrance ~ 10:30 a.m. appeared first on Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson.

Prayer for the Ancestors - Week of October 31, 2022 Beloved, may we pause to dust the ancestral photographs and tend the ancestral stones, to share the ancestral prayers and meditations, and to make offerings of gratitude, amends, and recognition of ancestral actions good, wrong, and mixed of curse and...

“Although exhausted, I slowly recalled a truth that has helped me to carry on: As I trudged alone through the night hallways, I staggered to a call as old as humankind. That night and every night, mothers and fathers around the world awaken to reassure restless children. That night and every night, grown children arise … Continue reading Tired Bones

The U.N. just issued a report saying that it’s unlikely that world leaders will meet emissions targets, meaning that it’s unlikely that we will be able to keep global temperature rise at 1.5 degrees Celcius. In other words, we’re fucked. Because with Putin on a rampage, and United States political leadership tearing at each other … Continue reading "Gloom"

Pagans recount their magical and sometimes eerie "fairy-led" experiences in the U.K. Continue reading Fairy led: Part two at The Wild Hunt.

In the early days of manual arts training, students were not to decorate their work, as the underlying skill in the use of tools and techniques in the development of form were to be emphasized.  For the younger kids, however, the application of color to what they've made or assembled provides a sense of pride and agency.  Some children will work on the development of patterns, while others emphasize broad and rich strokes appearing random to an adult mind. Each can spend a great bit of time, doing so.  For the woodworking teacher, the coloring of the work allows those students who are a bit slower in the assembly process to catch up. Learning must start with and be maintained by the interest of the child, and this is as much true for ...

Theodore Roosevelt--boyhood idol turned obsession. Brilliant . Bombastic. Explosively energetic.  Arrogant.  Innovative.  Egomaniacal.  Heroic.  Perpetually manic.  Self-inventing.  Those are some of the words and phrases the immediately spring tomind when contemplating the life of Theodore Roosevelt, the man who, among other things, reinvented the Presidency for the 20th Century.  The man who was born into a wealthy and influentialold Knickerbocker Dutch family on October 27, 1858 continues to fascinate103 years after his death in 1919 at the age of 60.  In recent years he was the subject of widely hailed three volume biography by Edmund Morris and several other books examining various parts of his multi-faceted life, studied i...

Would ye build that generations Yet to be may call you great? Would ye have your lives’ creations O’er the ages tower elate? Hearken then a world-old moral,— Abnegation, meek and pure. Build as doth the lowly coral,— Give yourselves. That shall endure. -”A Lesson,” by Ruby Archer What are you building, like the precious … Continue reading Building

New research explores the human genetic mutations that likely resulted from the bubonic plague in 1347-1352. Continue reading A gift of resistance from our ancestors at The Wild Hunt.

The struggle to build a world of justice begins with the intimate partnerships we build.

Karen G. Johnston How much notice would I want ahead of time before I die? Continue reading "Unfinished Business"

If you pay attention to climate issues, you know that not a day goes by without at least one major headline, whether it's a hurricane, wildfire, political posturing, or new technology; climate is in the news. I'll tell you that my heart has been heavy this past week or so because of a headline I saw explaining that animal populations have declined almost 70% since 1970. One of my mentors used to say that focusing on climate change is too small and sustainability isn’t enough.  We also have to think about species extinction, environmental justice, and the many other intersecting social and environmental justice issues. As for sustainability not being enough: You don't want your marriage to be sustainable; you want it to flourish! So ev...

“The secret to freedom is courage.” ~ Thucydides Last month when “belonging” was the topic, I began thinking about how we find courage to choose where to belong and with whom to belong.  When I finished writing, the monthly topic … Continue reading →

  The Charge of the Light Brigade  by Richard Caton Woodville, Jr. Alfred , Lord Tennyson , then the Poet Laureate of England got it exactly and succinctly right when he wrote “Not tho’ the soldier knew, someone had blunder’d... Charging an army, while all the world wonder’d.”   He dashed off what would become the recital piece of every English schoolboywithin moments of laying down the Times with a correspondent ’ s account of a disastrous vainglorious charge by the British Light Cavalry into the teeth of Russian artillery that commanded a long , narrow valley from the heights on both sides as well as the head of the vale .   The poem, The Charge of the Light Brigade was rushed to press and publishedon December 9, 1854, ...

Taken with a Fujifilm X100V Just click on the photo to enlarge it    This photo is straight out of camera using the C202 recipe by Marcel Fraij I took this photo yesterday on a lovely autumn walk across Grantchester Meadows. I post it not only because the view is, quite simply, lovely but because this was the view across from where I was rereading a section from a quite wonderful book by George M. Williams about Shin'ichirō Imaoke (1881-1988). The book is called Cosmic Sage: Imaoka Shin'ichirō, Prophet of Free Religion . Williams has also, very generously, made it available via his academia.edu page but I’d encourage you to buy a paper copy as proceeds from the book go to support indigenous Hawaiian education, culture and religion...

“We pray for those things that give us joy and hope. For those things that we trust in, believe in, will sacrifice for. These are gifts of grace, and perhaps we need not define them in order to savor them, rejoice in them, be thankful for them.” -Krista Taves What brings you joy and hope?

As the leaves continue to fall and the election nears, we’ve been hearing growing worries in the congregation about what Nov. 8 will bring, what the Jan. 6 investigation will reveal, what to do about the divisions in our community. One of the best ways to ... read more . The post Co-Ministers’ Colloquy – Oct. 25th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

This Sunday, November 30th: Costumes welcome! Please no props. The worship service will honor our ancestors and loved ones who have died, and children are also welcome to contribute photos and mementos to the memory altars. Following worship and classes, gather on the patio for pumpkin ... read more . The post Religious Education News – Oct 25th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Let’s read about food, unlikely families, and resilience in November with Mango and Peppercorns; a Memoir of Food, an Unlikely Family, and the American Dream by Tung Nguyen, Katherine Manning, Lyn Nguyen, and Elisa Ung, 2021. Join us on Monday, November 28 at 6:30 for the ... read more . The post November’s BIPOC Book Discussion will explore the book Mango and Peppercorns; a Memoir of Food, an Unlikely Family, and the American Dream appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

As the wheel turns to Samhain and the veneration of ancestors, those who are incarcerated and lucky enough to have access to a Pagan ministry program also celebrate the season. Continue reading Samhain rituals and those incarcerated at The Wild Hunt.

                       During many of the past electoral seasons, I have pulled out Parker Palmer’s “Healing the Heart of Democracy” to read the passage you heard this morning.   In particular I reflect on these words: “Looking at politics through the eye of the heart can liberate us from seeing it as a chess game of moves and countermoves or a shell game for seizing power or a blame game of whack-a-mole. Rightly understood, politics is no game at all. It is the ancient and honorable human endeavor of creating a community in which the weak as well as the strong can flourish [and so too can] love…<span>   And [where] power can collaborate, and justice and mercy can have their day.   ‘We the people’ m...

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 began this year on October 23, and reaches its peak on Wednesday, 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, and workplac...

“How do I do that?” It’s a question that, as a parent and sometimes as a teacher, I learned to listen for. It usually came from one of our three children as they reached some place in growing up and … Continue reading →

My great-grandfather, facing a hard life in his village just south of Naples, decided he had to try to make a life in America with his skills as a brick mason. He couldn’t do that if his wife and three daughters were with him, so he went alone, and sent for the rest of his … Continue reading Separation

In this week's Pagan Community Notes: Parliament of the World's Religion's Declaration for the Dignity and Human Rights of Women is re-circulating; due to overwhelming crowd sizes, Salem, MA is asking visitors to leave their cars at home and arrive by train, ferry, or broom; Mountain Rose Herbs announces winners for "Grants 4 Plants" program; burial site of a priestess of Aphrodite found in Russia; and more news Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of October 24, 2022 at The Wild Hunt.

      The 24th of October! I try to notice this day as it rolls around in our calendar. At least for a time, the Western church recalled the Archangel Raphael on this day, the 24th of October. In more recent years he’s been mushed together with Michael and Gabriel and the three together […]

On United Nations Day, we call on world leaders to take bold action to protect the common good.