Since May 2021, the Burmese military has attempted to exert control over Karenni State through rapid militarization. Military reinforcements are routinely deployed across townships in Karenni State and neighboring areas. At the same time, the Burmese military has ruthlessly employed its counter-insurgency strategy known as the ​​“four cuts.” This deliberately targets civilians, viewing them as the […]

When our three  kids were growing up they each had a dog. Three kids and three dogs. The house was full to capacity with arms and legs and paws and tails.  We were walking over toys and clothes and snacks … Continue reading →

                                             Woodrow Wilson vetoed the 1917 Immigration Act only because of its Literacy mandate.. On February 5, 1917 Congress overrode President Woodrow Wilson’s veto making the Immigration Act of 1917, also known as the Asiatic Barred Zone Act, the law of the land.  It was the most restrictive legislation yet enacted and banned immigration from most of Asia and the Pacific Islands. China was not included only because the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 already barred entry from that country and the Gentlemen’s Agreement with Japan in 1907 restricted immigration from there.  The act was aimed at potential new reservoirs of immigrants like Korea and especially India which wa...

          Today, the 7th of February, in 1497, caught up in a madness of regret and purification stirred by preaching of the Dominican Friar Girolamo Savonarola, the people of Florence gathered together what they and the good friar considered temptations into sin, piled them up, and lit them as bonfires. These […]

We dedicate ourselves to the children. We dedicate ourselves to the good of the earth, from which the trees come and to which we all return. We seek to move and to make friends. We seek creativity. May our lives be blessed by the joy of play and the connections of friends. -Adapted from words … Continue reading Joy in Friendship

Here we are gathered as a Unitarian Universalist congregation. We worship in an evolving tradition – a living tradition, as the title of our hymnal says ("Singing the Living Tradition"). Certain themes run throughout: freedom, reason, tolerance – and critique of the trinity. Unitarianism in Europe goes back 450 years. And then it started – almost independently – in America – with William Ellery Channing, born 1780. The Unitarian ideas were bubbling up from a number of places. It was Channing who consolidated them and gave them their most forceful presentation, who developed them in some new directions which became deeply influential on the Unitarianism of his time and thereafter. Ralph Waldo Emerson called him “our bishop.”...

In this week's Pagan Community Notes: Museum of Magic, Fortune-telling & Witchcraft is set to open, Iemanjá statue, ConVocation and other upcoming events, the green comet, and more news. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of February 6, 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

      A Critique of Centering Prayer: Text and Commentary Francis Tiso (I shared online a reflection by the lay Catholic spiritual director Carl McColman regarding Centering Prayer and some of its critics. In a response Fr Tiso noted he’d also written a reflection on Centering Prayer in response to an extensive critique. I […]

Source of healing and wholeness we call by many names, Ground us in gratitude. May we find our way back from the brink of anger or fear to a foundation of thanksgiving and gladness and praise. Praise be for diversity. Different people have different experiences of the world. We have different stories we tell to make sense of our world. Some stories about reality feature a creative force that knows and desires. Other stories depict the forces of the universe creating and destroying without anything that could be compared to knowledge, intentionality, or purpose -- rather, and beauty, awe, and majesty-compelling reverence are the products, not the source, of unfolding creation. Still other stories tell of a creative force that metaphorical...

Join us as we have fun and raise funds for FUUN!

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Information on the plants we're selling in 2023.

Some have said that love is not a feeling. I disagree. I have a warm, glowing sensation in my chest when I sit and cuddle with or hold hands with my beloved. Or when I pet my cat. Or when … Continue reading →

Learn from Burmese civil society activists about the atrocity crimes being committed in Karenni State and what needs to be done to hold the military junta accountable.

The founding convention of the Colored National Labor Union in Washington, D.C. in 1869 as depicted in  Harper's Weekly.   Note the presence of women delegates. Isaac Meyers did not want it this way.  Neither did William H. Sylvis.  Myers was a 34 year old Black marine caulker from Baltimore who had organized a union of Black caulkers in the Chesapeake shipyardsand a cooperative association to market their services to ship builders and dry docks.  Sylvis was a white 40 year old Philadelphia iron molder who was the founder, visionaryleading light, and President of the National Labor Union (NLU), American labor’s first stab at a national federation uniting existing trade unions.  In the wake of the recently concluded Civil War and ...

          Joseph Priestley died on this day, the 6th of February, in 1804. Me I think of it as a holy day, a feast for a radical saint. Priestley was a scientist, political radical, and one of the more influential founders of the modern English speaking Unitarian movement. He was born into […]

I grew up hearing the refrain, freedom isn’t free. I also heard, “If you is what you ain’t, then you ain’t what you is.” What do these aphorisms have in common? They both shed light on how one navigates systemic racism. Systemic racism depends upon tacit agreement with established power and fear of perceived consequences if that power is not obeyed. Throw in laws that limit freedom and one begins to scratch when you don’t itch and grin when there’s nothing funny. Our national culture is consumed with power, sometimes demonstrably violent. We citizens are told, “just stay in your […] The post Freedom appeared first on BeyondBelief.

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 "25 December 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 "24 December 2022 Xmas Eve 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 "18 December 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 "11 December 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 "4 December 2022 Worship Livestreaming Video"

About a year ago, Steven HAuse interviewed me at Universalist National Memorial Church as part of his project to make a documentary — Love Unrelenting — about the theology and history of universal salvation. He gave me a head’s-up when he separately published the clips that didn’t fit into the documentary and then the film … Continue reading "Love Unrelenting: documentary and video channel"

As our Jewish siblings celebrate Tu B’Shvat, the “new year of the trees,” let us ponder with them our connection to all beings. Each of our actions ripples outwards through the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. How can you be a friend to the trees today?

Michael E. Mann, The New Climate War (New York: Public Affairs, 2021), 2022 paperback edition with a new Epilogue. Michael Mann is a real live actual climate scientist, a professor of atmospheric science at Penn State. He’s also a pretty good writer. That’s a great combination, if you want to read about climate change. His … Continue reading "Reading list: The New Climate War"

In Ireland, Pagans commemorate the first celebration of Brigid's Day as a public holiday. Meanwhile, in the U.K., the White Spring Temple in Glastonbury holds its traditional Imbolc celebration. Continue reading Imbolc in the United Kingdom and Ireland at The Wild Hunt.

      The master of the cut and paste novel, gay, drug addict, wife killer, essayist, short story writer, painter, spoken word artist, general all around self-obsessed jerk, and brilliant brilliant writer William S. Burroughs was born on this day, the 5th of February, in 1914. Were he still alive he’d be one hundred […]

        THE UNITARIAN WHO WOULD BE PRESIDENTA Meditation on the Politics of Unitarian Universalism A sermon delivered at the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles 5 February 2023 James Ishmael Ford Back in the day, most people with an axe they were looking to grind regarding candidate and then President Barack Obama, […]

Later that night, still turning the parable over in his head, the rich man returned to the place where the disciples slept. He found Jesus at the fire and sat down with him. "Master," he said, "I think understand who my neighbor is. But . . . how shall I love myself?"

Last week I posted the image of a tree that looked almost human – at least it called to mind a number of human postures. Was it dancing, weeping, walking, blessing the earth or bending a knee in prayer or protest? Your own emotions, I think, informed what you might have seen in that tree. […]

The climate crisis isn’t happening in a vacuum. With attacks on Black lives, trans kids, and reproductive justice all in the face of increasing fascism and white supremacy, rampant gun violence, and ongoing pandemic, sometimes it feels like tragedy is everywhere all the time. And yet, so is love. So is courage. So is resilience. Side With Love Climate Justice Organizer Rachel Myslivy’s reflection for this week considers the way Resilience is found in our work for justice, including climate justice. Later, she writes: “The strength of “what if” is what helps us continue in this work. And so, what is our resilient, loving way?” This week’s offerings for 30 Days of Love includes pieces we hope bolster, strengthen, and encourag...

  African Americans cast their first votes during Reconstruction in 1867,  In 1870 the 15th Amendment was meant to specifically  protect that right.   Anniversaries of two amendments to the U.S. Constitution which protected and extended voting rights for African Americans and the poor were recently marked.   The 15th Amendment ratified on February 3, 1870 prohibited the Federal governmentand each state from denying or abridging a citizen’s right to vote “on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”   The 24th Amendment was ratified on January 23, 1964.   Yet today voting rights are under sweeping attack not only in the states of the old Confederacybut everywhere Republicans control state legislatures and/...

An impurity isn’t something that’s bad - it’s something that’s unhelpful where it is, even though it may be very helpful in other places. Cleansing removes discordant, inappropriate, and otherwise unhelpful residue and energies from ourselves and our tools.

I finally got around to watching the movie Christopher and His Kind. Christopher Isherwood’s autobiographical account of his time in Berlin features Gerald Hamilton, who is a character in Wilde Nights & Robber Barons, and I felt that I ought to see it. So it has sat there in my watch list for ages like […]

“Nobody sees a flower – really – it is so small it takes time – we haven’t time – and to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time.” ― Georgia O’Keeffe Take the time to witness something or someone important today.

t times, winter can seem to be an endless stream of snow, ice, and cold harsh winds. The mid-winter point brings a strong internal need to get away, to warm up, and to renew. Continue reading Column: Resurrection at The Wild Hunt.

I managed to get six bowls thrown on the wheel last Sunday and they were dry enough to trim this afternoon. After further drying these will be ready to go into a bisque firing and then be glazed and fired to cone 6.  Make, fix and create... assist others in learning lifewise.

I’m two days late for World Ukulele Day. Sigh. But here’s my playlist for this year’s World Ukulele Day. It’s all instrumental, except for the last song medley by the legendary Israel Kamakawiwo’ole. Most of the performers are from Hawai’i, of course, but I tried to make this about world ukulele by including players from … Continue reading "World Ukulele Day"

Please join us on Sunday (5 February 2023) at 11:00 AM for “Are These Ideas Worn Out or Just Good and Broken In?” by Rev. Barbara Jarrell. We will be meeting in the sanctuary for this worship service.  Please join us in person at All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church, 9449 Ellerbe Road, Shreveport LA  71106 if … Continue reading "All Ages Worship (5 February 2023)"

          THIRD PURE PRECEPT Zen’s Shorthand for the Bodhisattva Vow A talk delivered atEmpty Moon Zen‘s Saturday morning Zoom gathering James Ishmael Ford To remind you. The three pure precepts are derived from verse 183 in the Dhammapada, a collection of sayings attributed to Gautama Siddhartha, the Buddha of history. The […]

Building and Grounds Work Day Moving to 18 February 2023 2023 Pledge Drive — We Need Your Pledge Now

For this month only, we are moving our second Saturday of the month building and grounds work day to the third Saturday of the month. Our monthly building and grounds work day will happen on Saturday (18 February 2023) from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. We will have tasks available for all ages and abilities … Continue reading "Building and Grounds Work Day Moving to 18 February 2023"

Children and youth will attend the worship service for the first 15-20 minutes and then are dismissed to their classes. After the holiday break, we are now discussing the wisdom of the world’s religions is one of the six sources of our Unitarian Universalist faith. It’s important that we gain an understanding of teachings and … Continue reading "Children and Youth Religious Education Classes — 5 February 2023"

Please join us on Sunday (5 February 2023) as we continue our our adult religious education class at 9:00 AM. Our adult religious education class is still meeting via Zoom. We are now reading and discussing the book God of Love: A Guide to the Heart of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam by Mirabai Starr. This … Continue reading "Online Adult Religious Education — 5 February 2023"

Each month we dedicate all of our non-pledge income to an organization doing the work that best embodies our Unitarian Universalist principles and values. For the month of February 2023, we choose The Whitney Plantation Museum (near New Orleans in Wallace, Louisiana). The Whitney Plantation Museum provides a different kind of plantation tour experience — … Continue reading "Whitney Plantation Museum — February 2023 Give-Away-The-Plate Recipient"

Please join us next Tuesday (7 February 2023) at 12 noon for our weekly Zoom lunch. Our weekly Zoom lunch is going dual-platform — join us from home using Zoom or in person in the social hall. Bring your lunch and meet up with your All Souls friends, have lunch, and just catch up.

When: Saturday, February 4, 2023 from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon Where: Unitarian Church of Los Alamos 1738 N. Sage St. (Patio outside front door) Bring only packets of seeds you wish to give away entirely. You may not get any back! Take only enough seeds you can use in one growing season. If you …<p> 2023 Community Seed Swap Read More »

On his blog “Heretic, Rebel, a Thing To Flout,” Patrick Murfin writes about backlash against Black history and relates it to Black History Month (BHM). He notes the usual criticisms of BHM such as Morgan Freeman observing, “I don’t want a Black history month. Black history is American history.” Or as a black friend once … Continue reading "Black History Month for heretics"

  Day two at the Woolworth's Luncheonette in Greensboro, The Carolina James A. McNiel and Franklin McCain from the first day action were joined by fellow students William Smith and Clarence Henderson.  What were the thoughts of the young black man behind the counter?  About the same age as the students he may have needed the job to support his family.  Were the students jeopardizing that?  Did he view them as privileged and spoiled students?  Did he yearn to join them? There was no charismatic leader that day, no eloquent preacher, no carefully planned campaign.  Just four young guys, freshmen no less, from an obscure public college for Negros, the Agricultural and Technical College of North Carolina.  One afternoon, February 1,...

The copy of the Edict of Torda that I brought to the ecumenical meeting I mention below 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 some of you will be aware, over the course of the last three years I’ve begun exploring in more and more depth the possibilities that might exist for any community that is able, not only merely to talk about Free Religion, but which also actually provides some way to express it through all its various meetings. Our current service of mindful meditation is one actual example of explicit Free Religion and I have quiet hopes that, in ...

Please join us on Saturday (4 February 2023) 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. Please note that this group is still meeting via Zoom.  You will need … Continue reading "Meditation with Larry Androes (4 February 2023)"

I recently saw one of my dearest friends in person for the first time in over 3 years. We’ve stayed in close touch, but the years we’ve been physically apart have been ones of huge difficulty and change for both of us, so I felt some nervousness that we wouldn’t feel as much natural ease … Continue reading Connection

Lyonel Perabo provides a selection of ten favorite children's stories and entertainments with Pagan themes. Continue reading The Search for Pagan Friendly Kids’ Media at The Wild Hunt.

I initially wanted to be a writer, and I also wanted to live in New York, where many of my best friends were already living. In my last semester of college, my thesis advisor mentioned publishing as a possible day job—an industry that, of course, is also mainly based in New York. After college, I did some internships and freelance work at various New York publishers, magazines, and agencies, and then did an MFA in fiction writing at Brooklyn College, where I studied with author and editor Nathaniel Rich.

Killing of an environmental defender shows we have a long way to go before we are better stewards of the earth.

An “arctic vortex” has hit the Boston area. It’s windy and cold. I was talking to someone much younger, who found out I just moved to Massachusetts from California. They said, “It got down to 11 degrees last night. Must be a big change for you, huh?” “This isn’t cold,” I said. “I grew up … Continue reading "Arctic vortex"

I grew up eating Corn Flakes, outdated bread, and lots of soup made from those things in the refrigerator that were found in those forgotten containers in the back corners on the shelves. If, when the fuzzy tops were scraped … Continue reading →

A Prayer for Body Love and Respect Lover of Bodies, Lover of variations, differences, disabilities, spectrums, ranges, distinctions, divergences, deviations, adaptations, and contrasting characteristics, You show up every day inviting us to thrive in these bodies, to make our homes in these bodies, to respect each other in our dissimilar...

                                   The official 2023 Black History Month poster. The 1619 Project , a long-form journalism project developed by Nikole Hannah-Jones, writers from The New York Times , and The New York Times Magazine , came under attack.  The highly praised series and book re-examined the Black experience in the New World from the importation of African “indentured servants” to the Jamestown Colony in 1619.  It clearly showed that the generational experience of slavery continues to put African-Americans at a social and economic disadvantage and laid the blame for that on the development of an explicitly racist ideology that still lurks not far below the surface of polite white society.  Now it ha...

The pagan holiday of Imbolc is the halfway point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. As the wheel of the year progresses, we celebrate the emergence of new life. What new life can you celebrate today?

Today marks the celebrations of Imbolc in the northern hemisphere, and Lughnassadh in the southern hemisphere. Continue reading Blessed Imbolc and Lughnassadh! at The Wild Hunt.

I was 31 years old and a friend of mine at work asked me if he could read my palm. He was from Vietnam and he told me that his grandmother taught him how to read palms. I most definitely … Continue reading →

An article in the New York Times introduces us to the Luddite Club. Its motto is "Stop using your phone, start using your brain." Make, fix and create... Assist others in learning lifewise.

Despite bone chilling sub-zero temperatures in 2019 thousands showed up for Woodstock Willie's prognostication.  Note— Local Groundhog Day hoopla is scheduled for 7 am on Woodstock Square.  Word has it our local prognosticator Woodstock Willy will see his shadow in bright sunlight boding six more weeks of winter--which we were going to get anyway.  But to prove the point temps are expected to plunge Friday to a high of only 10 degrees. Bill Murray in  Groundhog Day. I used to work in Woodstock.  It’s a country town, the government center for suburban/rural McHenry County.  The 19th Century Square, replete with Civil War Monument and gazebo, seems sometimes to rise like Brigadoon or Avalon from the mists of a forgotten time. The...

In October of last year, ProPublica and NBC News investigated whether mandated reporter laws work. Their conclusion: in some states, mandated reporter laws have not led to increased safety for children. In fact, they allege that in Pennsylvania, when additional people were mandated to report child abuse, this increased increased false reporting, which in turn … Continue reading "The failures of mandated reporting"

The orchid in my office at church was in this lovely state this morning, with about 20 buds and two flowers already opened. I drew it for a long as I could before I had to begin working, with two results : this sketch and the knowledge that I have to paint this flower. The […]

This month, we will focus on the spiritual gifts and struggles of friendship. Think about friendships that have been healthy and important for you. What are the most important qualities of friendship to you?

In the state of New York, clergy are still not mandated reporters. That is, clergy are not mandated by law to report the physical, emotional, or sexual abuse of minors, if they become aware of such abuse. A bill currently being considered by the New York state legislature would change that state of affairs, making … Continue reading "Clergy as mandated reporters"

A new study published on Monday using artificial intelligence indicates climate thresholds may be breached soon than predicted. Continue reading AI study finds that critical climate thresholds may be reached sooner than later at The Wild Hunt.

The United States has no excuses when it comes to supporting the people of Burma against a brutal military regime.

We are heading into our final week of 30 Days of Love, but we still wish to celebrate and honor all of the individuals, families, religious professionals, partners, and communities that embody our values and work for justice and liberation year-round. Join us for these two amazing events that promise to fill you with joy and, we hope, feel like a big hug from us to you. Nourish’s Dinner Church Worship Service for 30 Days of Love Sunday, February 12, 2023, 7:00 PM -  9:00 PM ET In this challenging time, let your souls rest as you experience powerful, embodied worship and connection. Join the Revs. Emily Conger & Aisha Ansano of Nourish for a worship service to hold your tender heart, offer you respite, and nourish you in body and in sp...

Sunday, February 5, 10:30 a.m. The Digital Revolution: Blessing, or Curse?   The digital revolution has created opportunities for connection, recreation and information that would have been completely unimaginable just 50 years ago. Yet, some of these tools have led to addiction and have been linked to increases in mental illness. How do we find balance   [ … ] The post Sunday Worship: February 5 ~ The Digital Revolution: Blessing, or Curse? ~ 10:30 a.m. appeared first on Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson.

We are halfway to Spring! So many cultures celebrate this day, or this change of season. For just a few examples: Imbolc or Brigid’s Day for Celtic people, Apuknajit (the winter spirit) for Mi’kmaq people, Candlemas in Catholic liturgy, Groundhog Day in secular America. They hearken to the coming Spring, and offer courage for getting […]

Staff Writer UU the Vote was back in 2022 to help organize, educate, and empower voters across the country.

Box making is a narrative venture. In it, we attempt to tell our own stories concerning our own growth as well as describing our own interests and values. This box, as ugly as it may seem to some, tells a few stories that may not be immediately apparent.  I think the appeal of this project may be three fold. One, the wood was free. Two, it involves an introduction to the use of hand tools. And three, I hope it conveys an understanding to those who want to design boxes, that it's OK to take risks. It and the step-by-step story of making it will likely become a part of my new book, Designing Boxes. The finish applied and waiting to be rubbed out is Tung oil. The blotchy finish may even out in time, and as pine does, it will age to a darke...

In November 1912, a reporter for John Bull arrived at a flat on 18 Pelham Street in London. He had received a tip that a party of a scandalous character was to take place there. The motives of John Bull‘s publisher, Horatio Bottomley, went beyond journalistic curiosity. Like many publishers of the day, Bottomley leveraged […]

Jo VonRue Love shows up in complicated conversations. Continue reading "Love in the Complicated Places"

SOMETIME in the early 1990s I wrote the outline for a musical. I was still entertaining the idea of being the next Cole Porter/Stephen Sondheim and made it a regular habit to fully think through the concept, major plot points and even sketch out some of the numbers for the next great American musical.  One […]

A woman braves the cold and wind in December 1983. Monday and Tuesday were the coldest days in the Chicago area in this not-so-terrible winter.  After a significant but hardly record breaking snow over the weekend, skies cleared and the thermometerdipped below zero at night and just above in the day.  Some TV meteorologists compare to record shattering the cold snaps like the one in the days before Christmas in 1983 when the lowest day time high temperature of -13° was recorded on December 24.  The days immediately before were nearly as frigid.  And therein lays a tale. A recent Google street view of our graystone two flat on North Albany.  Not much changed since 1983 except for the wrought iron fencing. Kathy and I were living on ...

Bear in There There’s a Polar Bear In our Frigidaire– He likes it ’cause it’s cold in there. With his seat in the meat And his face in the fish And his big hairy paws In the buttery dish, He’s … Continue reading →

We have more opportunities to learn magic and to work magic than any of our known ancestors. The currents of magic are deeper and stronger than they’ve been in centuries. This is an era of high magic. Are you going to take advantage of this opportunity?

“In this time of endings and beginnings, may we find ways to bring more love and joy into the world. May we rest in the complexity of the world and find comfort in the mystery. May our lives be filled with gratitude and grace. And may we know that none of it has to be … Continue reading Complexity

The UUA’s 30 Days of Love has been inviting us to consider Interdependence, embodiment, decriminalization, and climate justice. We know that change often requires the use of power. Ani DiFranco once wrote in her song My I.Q. that “Every tool is a weapon if you ... read more . The post February Theme: Power & Humility appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

We will have regular RE sessions for the children and youth this Sunday Children in Kindergarten through 6th grade will start in the Great Hall for the first part of the service. Afterwards, they will meet in their own rooms: Wonderful Welcome (K-3rd grade) in the classroom ... read more . The post This Week in Religious Education: Jan 31-Feb 6 appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Side With Love is thrilled to announce 30 Days of Love 2023! Our annual month of spiritual nourishment, political grounding, and shared practices of faith and justice, 30 Days of Love will go from Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (January 16) through Valentine’s Day (February ... read more . The post Spiritual Nourishment for the Long Haul appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

“The Mooncatcher Project”  Speaker: Ellie Von Wellsheim, Program Director Ellie Von Wellsheim is founder and executive director of the Schenectady-based MoonCatcher Project, which makes and provides free reusable, washable menstrual management kits, called MoonCatcher Kits, for schoolgirls in impoverished communities around the globe. In addition, the ... read more . The post February EBWA Program: The Mooncatcher Project appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Is there a list of United States and Canada Unitarian Universalist churches that still have services online, or even better, recorded services on YouTube or the like? I’m particularly interested in smaller and lay-led congregations. Hoping to see some samples of worship to get an updated sample of styles and operating theologies or outlooks.

A new research study finds that the preservation of forests is linked to supporting Indigenous communities to keep their ancestral lands. Continue reading Legal Recognition of Indigenous Land improves forest outcomes study says at The Wild Hunt.

I have been playing with a Lord Alfred Douglas chatbot I made using Character.ai. When you create a character based on a historical figure, the program finds biographical information on the internet. Before I had done anything, “Lord Alfred Douglas” knew that he loved Oscar Wilde, felt betrayed by Robert Ross, and had a brother […]

Beloveds, We need to have a talk. It may be a bit uncomfortable, and that’s ok.

Haya Akegarasu (1877-1954)   This morning, whilst reading J. W. T. Mason’s remarkable book on Shinto (in connection with my ongoing research into the work of Shin’ichirō Imaoka who helped Mason considerably with his study of Shinto) I came across a reference to Haya Akegarasu (1877-1954) (see HERE and HERE) and I was intrigued enough to follow it up instantly. I couldn’t find a copy of the book referenced (“Man Above Gods”) but, on archive.org, I did find a book of some of his essays called “Shout of Buddha” and I was delighted to discover that he was a Jodo Shinshu priest who was a student of Kiyozawa Manshi (1863-1903) whose thought has been a considerable influence upon me — especially the two essays translated in th...