JD Stillwater Remind me that life is magical and mysterious. Continue reading "Wondrous Beyond Words"

Ralph Waldo Emerson at 35 Yesterday poet Lawrence Raab gave us a glimpse of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s last fading days.   Today we look at the Sage of Concord in his prime 1836 at the age of 33.   That Emerson commemorated the Battle of Concord Bridge, in which his grandfather Rev. William Emerson served, and which took place at the very doorstep of the Old Manse which was both the residence of his ancestor and his own home. In addition to the Obelisk monument that he dedicated fifty years later, verses of his poem were later inscribed on the famed Minuteman statue.   In Lexington an equally famous statue memorialized Captain Parker grandfather of Unitarian preacher and theologian Theodore Parker. Emerson had just concluded his brief ca...

Whatever is going on, it’s no longer just Pagans and witches who are noticing it. People in other religions and other cultures are seeing the same things we are, they’re just interpreting them in the context of their own beliefs.

Taken with a Fuji X100V using Øyvind Nordhagen’s Kodak Ektar 100 Recipe   Just click on a photo to enlarge it.

In her powerful poem Earthrise, Amanda Gorman includes these important words: “So I tell you this not to scare you, But to prepare you, to dare you To dream a different reality, Where despite disparities We all care to protect this world, This riddled blue marble, this little true marvel To muster the ... read more . The post Co-ministers’ Colloquy – April 18th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

We all will be meeting at Doane Stuart school for the multigenerational service with the other local UU congregations. It’s geared with children in mind, so children and youth are encouraged to attend with their families There will be childcare on-site for our youngest ones. ... read more . The post Religious Education on Sunday April 23rd appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Join UU Schenectady member and mindfulness Buddhist practitioner, Tamara Geveci, for five sessions of shared in-person meditation and mindfulness practice. All are welcome for any or all of the Spring sessions in the Emerson Room (or maybe outside if the weather allows). This will be a time of ... read more . The post Mid-Day Meditation – Thursdays 3pm – 4pm appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

Mark your calendar now for music, community, fun and PIES on Sunday, May 7! The Music Team will be hosting a coffeehouse after worship. A pizza, salad and cookies lunch will be provided in the dining room, followed by musical performances with some of our own UUSS talent ... read more . The post Eyes on the Pies Coffeehouse appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

We unleash the hounds to do a quick round-up of some interesting archeological finds announced just in the first two weeks of April 2023. Continue reading Unleash the Hounds: April 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

A Robot’s Dream: The Zen Teacher Goes Ego Surfing The latest in ego surfing is asking Chat AI for a bio sketch. A colleague just did it. Found out he was an Anglican priest, although he was pretty sure he’d spent the past thirty years as an English Unitarian minister. And it had him as […]

“My dreams matter. They matter, as they pull me inward and yet simultaneously push me outside of myself; My dreams matter; they matter as they speak to the breadth of love, of pain, of hope, that rest deep in the fabric of my blood and bones.” – from “My Dreams, They Matter,” by roddy bell-shelton biggs … Continue reading Dreams

Understanding the vital role water plays in preserving and nourishing our planet.

A Catholic priest, working in the addiction field, said during a workshop “the good is the enemy of the perfect.” Many of us were  brought up with this same belief to constantly seek moral and behavioral perfection, and to be … Continue reading →

Back in 1993, when they revised the Unitarian Universalist hymnal, the editors decided to include “De Colores.” I’ve always hated “De Colores.” It’s a kids’ song. Actually, I like a lot of kids’ songs, but to me “De Colores” sounded like something from that horrible kid show with the ridiculous purple dinosaur. It didn’t help … Continue reading "Why I decided to like “De Colores”"

                                                  Ralph Waldo Emerson in his later years but before his memory failed. Prolific contemporary American poet Lawrence Raab painted a touching portrait of a great mind trapped   by what we now recognize as Alzheimer’s disease.     Ralph Waldo Emerson—the most important and influential American thinker and writer of the first half of the 19th Century—remained active as a lecturer and author into the post-Civil War era.   But by 1879 to the despair of family and friends he had to give up public appearances.   In his own words he explained: I am not in condition to make visits, or take any part in conversation. Old age has rushed on me in the last year, a...

In this week's Pagan Community Notes, a review of Earth Day events and more news. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of April 17, 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

Sarah Cannon In a world altered by the pandemic, religious educators are finding ways to stitch unraveled communities back together.

            Sri Nisargadatta’s Zen Hinduism James Ishmael Ford Sri Nisargadatta is arguably the Zen community’s favorite Hindu. At the veryt least we sure like to quote Nisargadatta. As an example, I was reading a book on the practice of Jhanas, pretty inside Buddhist baseball. And there it was. A book […]

Today is the Jewish commemoration of Yom HaShoah, on which we are tasked to remember the genocide of the Holocaust–and the things that led to it–so that such an atrocity will not be repeated again in human history. How do you remember the past in order to make a better future?

Spring, as we all know, is a time of renewal of nature, a rebirth of plant life. I think that is a good metaphor for what religion is, or should be—a renewal of our spirit, a rebirth of our life. At All Souls, we pride ourselves on our diversity, like a field of wildflowers, everyone unique. We all have our own light I remember when my parents died, I was invited to a memorial mass at St. Francis Hospital for those who had lost loved ones during the year. During the reception, I was speaking to one of the nuns. […] The post Spring: A Time of Renewal and Transformation appeared first on BeyondBelief.

During the pandemic a new road was built behind my neighborhood connecting two busy roads.  This change distressed me. The noise and vibration of clearing the land and laying the road invaded my home environment. Our house literally shook as … Continue reading →

                                   Carl Sandburg--the Chicago years. Dead White guys have taken a backseat to lots of fresh and diverse voices so far in our National Poetry Month series.   But we can’t ignore one of my favorite poets and personal inspirations—Carl Sandburg.   The old   Universalist, socialist organizer, Chicago reporter, folk singer and song collector, and Lincoln biographer remains fresh and topical. Sandburg was mightily put out by the shenanigans of Billy Sunday, the former baseball player and hair-on-fire tent show Evangelist.   He was even more outraged at the capitalist bosses and their bought-and-paid-for politicians who benefited from Sunday’s sideshow freak distraction.   Sandburg...

Over the past year and a half, I’ve slowly been learning a little about botany. One of the most amazing things I’ve learned is that somewhere around one third of all plants in the wild are not native where I live here in Massachusetts. And along suburban streets, most of the plants I see are … Continue reading "Natives"

A new exhibit in Mexico City honors the discovery of the stunning Coyolxāuhqui Stone, which tells the myth of the Mexica goddess of the moon. Continue reading “We are children of the Sun”: new exhibit honors Mexica Coyolxāuhqui stone at The Wild Hunt.

A sermon calling for the end to gun violence. The post A Day of Mourning appeared first on Colin Bossen.

Resistance to oppression takes many forms. Sometimes that form is art.

Sometimes, amid what looks like rubble and decay, surprises can appear. Trails can be dusty, with fallen tree branches rotting and crumbling into the ground. In the rainy season moss, fungi, and lichen compose the most obvious cleaning crew in the forest. They even eat away at rock, turning large stones gradually into dirt. The […]

  Some Zen Words for End Times James Ishmael Ford Today, the 21st day of the first month of the third season, in the 23rd year of Thutmose III’s reign, or as we may prefer to put it, the 16th of April, in the year 1457 before our common era (okay unless it was 1482 […]

“We often forget that there are creative ways of bringing about change in our communities and society at large. When Jesus suggests we love our enemies, he is imaginatively expanding our concept of what it means to be a good person.” -Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat What religious or spiritual lessons help you expand your … Continue reading Expanding Good

Our first frog sighting in the pond yesterday, April 15! Much earlier than the last two years, when the first frogs came in June or July. It turned out to be a tree frog, rather than the green frogs that we’ve seen in prior years. We figured it out because in the afternoon, when my […]

I have another day of box making with students at the Windgate Center for Art and Design at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock. It is a beautiful facility with wood working being at the center of it all.  In the  meantime, this lovely state has the highest rate of maternal mortality in the US with a death rate of young mothers 10 times that of California. What an unbelievable shame that is! Our governor is more concerned about drag shows, the ease of getting guns and positioning herself for higher office than about the death of mothers. Go figure, please. Gun violence has become the highest cause of the death of children in the US. So between the death of mothers and of kids, we have a great deal of work to do and it appears that ...

                                                            Christell Victoria Roach. No, not the Lincoln Park in Chicago which started out as a boggy burial ground for early settlers and now contains just one neglected mausoleum and the grave of a dubiously alleged Revolutionary War veteran.   No, Christell Victoria Roach is writing a about a boneyard in her hometown of Miami, Florida which seems as neglected and abused as Burr Oak Cemetery in Chicago suburban Alsip where bodies were dug up the burial plots resold, disposing of bones in a remote area ten years ago. Roach is an Emmy-nominated writer and performer from Miami. She is a 2022-2024 Wallace Stegner Fellow in Poetry at Stanford University. S...

What we're doing at Nashville Pride | Ride Sharing | Hosting out of towners

The core of Witchcraft has always been carnal in nature. It is rooted in the wisdom of both the land and the body, recognizing the physical world as the holy temple through which we worship the omnipresent divine, the indwelling consciousness within all things and places. It is this consciousness which we often deify, calling it Goddess or God or some other equally nebulous title meant to inspire a sense of awe, reverence, and mystery. Continue reading Ecstasy and the Craft at The Wild Hunt.

Ngoc, Matt, and I are gearing up to offer a week of Ecojustice Camp here on the South Shore beginning August 14. I’m looking forward to translating the California Ecojustice Camp curriculum, which I helped develop, to southeastern Massachusetts. We still haven’t figured out how much we’re going to charge, or what ages we’re going … Continue reading "Camp"

Please join us on Sunday (16 April 2023) at 11:00 AM for “Ya’ Know . . .  ?  We Don’t” 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 you are able … Continue reading "All Ages Worship (16 April 2023)"

Announcement of Special Congregational Meeting (16 April 2023) 2023 Pledge Drive — We Need Your Pledge Now

Children and youth will attend the worship service for the first 15-20 minutes and then are dismissed to their classes. We are now discussing peace, social justice, and the interdependent web and these ideas connect to our Unitarian Universalist faith. Elementary class with Ash McLain and Kevin Henry will be exploring what makes a family … Continue reading "Children and Youth Religious Education Classes — 16 April 2023"

Please join us on Sunday (16 April 2023) as we continue our new series in our our adult religious education class at 9:00 AM. Our adult religious education class is now a dual-platform class — meeting in person in the church social hall and also on Zoom. We have several persons in the adult religious … Continue reading "Online Adult Religious Education — 16 April 2023"

Please join us next Tuesday (18 April 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.

“If you want to view paradise, simply look around and view it. Anything you want to, do it. Want to change the world? There’s nothing to it.” -from “Pure Imagination,” by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley Where do you see paradise around you today? How can you imagine it?

I had a very nice time last night making a presentation to an audience of hand enthusiasts at the Windgate Center for Art and Design in Little Rock. I think there may have been as many as fifty in the audience... not bad on a Friday night when there are thousands of other things to do.  At one point, I asked the audience whether they thought that providing means of maintaining mental health should be a primary mission of American education. And of course that should be the case, and the audience agreed. We know there's a significant link between the development of hand skills, and a sense of well being. Woodworkers may call what we do, "sawdust therapy" knowing that what we do with wood make us feel better. And all other craftsmen in ev...

The war in Ukraine drags on, mostly ignored by the U.S. media.   Boring stuff, you know.   Yesterday’s news regurgitated.   Unless, of course, there is a particularly unfortunate atrocity or a visit by some high muckety-muck or rock star. The book Words for War: New Poems from Ukraine (Boston, Academic Studies Press, 2017) edited by Oksana Maksymchuk and Max Rosochinsky reflects the experience of war back when it was a supposedly low-boil regional conflict with Russian supported separatists. The words and images created an impression of a shimmering landscape that kept shifting and changing. It is these moments that move us most—the moments when things no longer make sense but are about to start making sense again. Meanings change...

Nathan Hall reflects on the Sacred Space / Between the Worlds conference, an event that he found "enormously powerful, challenging, and revivifying." Continue reading Mnemosyne Affirming: Reflecting on Sacred Space/Between the Worlds 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

Please join us on Saturday (15 April 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 (15 April 2023)"

“The great instrument of moral good is imagination.” – Percy Shelley How has imagination led you to do good things?

Carol and I went for a day trip to Cape Cod. The first place we went was Sandy Neck in Barnstable. As we walked from the parking lot to the beach, someone said, “Are you here for the whales?” About 80 North Atlantic Right Whales have been hanging out around Cape Cod. The Cape Cod … Continue reading "Whales"

I'll be in little Rock for the next three days at  UA Little Rock’s School of Art and Design leading a lecture and a workshop as part of the artWORKs series.   Made possible through the Windgate Foundation, the UA Little Rock artWORKs Series brings renowned artists to the UA Little Rock campus where they can collaborate and craft a community that values learning and the visual arts.   Details, times and  locations  can be found in this link:  https://ualr.edu/news/2023/04/06/stowe-artworks-artist/ Make, fix and create...

Oglala poet and advocate Layli Long Soldier. Layli Long Soldier , and enrolled member of the Oglala Lakota Nation, poet, writer, feminist, artist, and activist reflected in a very personal way the gulf of understanding between the experiences and lives between Native peoples and even the most would-be White sympathizers in her acclaimed poem Whereas .   It’s a hard lesson for even the most self-proclaimed White to understand. Long Soldier grew up in the four corners region of the Southwest, where she continues to live and to advocate against the continued, systematic oppression of indigenous populations.   She graduated from the Institute of American Indian Arts in in Santa Fe, New Mexico with a B.A. in Fine Arts, and went on to earn...

In my life, it seems that resistance can come from three places. I want to talk about the third of those three places,the one where I think we may be required to dig in and become the resistors ourselves: internal … Continue reading →

A Prayer for Connecting Deeply with Earth Rock of Our Hearts, connect us deeply to the earth wherever we live, wherever we are migrating, wherever we are exiled, wherever we travel, wherever we are. Connect us deeply to the earth, so we learn the ways of the land as it...

Click here to hear Lindsa Vallee's focus talk. The main lecture was given by Peter Wohl, author of Wild Mind, Wild Heart: Discover Your True Self in Nature , Zen Buddhist teacher, registered Maine Guide.  Click here to hear him. Listen to the dragonfly....          by Ival Stratford Kovner

Two new research studies offer evidence that breathwork - an easily taught and affordable technique - can reduce anxiety, depression, and stress effects. Continue reading Research finds that breathwork improves mood and eases stress better than meditation at The Wild Hunt.

A look at UUSC’s partners’ approaches to loss and damage.

Elaine McArdle Strong connections with caring adults matter when young people are struggling.

Imagination is tied to curiosity for me. Being curious about the world around me sparks my imagination…why is that flower that color? what kind of evolution had to happen to make the platypus? Imagine if that had gone a different way! -Christina Rivera (CLF) What sparks your imagination?

An interesting essay by Tolkien scholar Robin A. Reid points out that the beloved author’s works are also loved by neo-Nazis, white supremacists, etc. Why? Perhaps because Tolkien’s fictional universe sets up a fictional racial hierarchy similar to the real-world racial hierarchies promoted by neo-Nazis, white supremacists, etc. The essay’s title is, in of itself, … Continue reading "J.R.R. Tolkien and white supremacy"

In my life, it seems that resistance can come from three places, and only one of those requires me to dig in and continue the force of resistance. I want to talk about the second of those three places: a … Continue reading →

        The Sikh TraditionA Small Celebration James Ishmael Ford There is one god, named truth, the creator, without fear, without hate, timeless in form, beyond birth, self-existent, (known by) the grace of the Guru. It was today, the 13th of April, in 1699 that the Guru Gobind Singh created a formal initiation […]

I not only voted for Harold Washington for Mayor, I rang doorbells in Dick Mell's hostile ward for him. Monday was the 40th anniversary of Harold Washington’s election as the first Black Mayor of Chicago.   I remember how thrilled and excited I was to see the Congressman from Hyde Park win after a hard-fought, racially divisive vote.   He had captured the official Democratic Party nomination on the strength of a massive Black turn-out and faced Republican Bernie Epton—suddenly anointed the white savior of the city’s White ethnic wards.   I was proud to pound pavement on his behalf in both elections in Dick Mell’s 33rd Ward on the Northwest Side. Just a couple of weeks ago another Black progressive, Brandon Johnson, won his rac...

Some contemporary Pagans and polytheists have patron deities. Most don’t. “Finding your patron deity” is far from the most urgent matter for someone on this path.

A prehistoric archaeological site in Miami appears to be a contemporary of Stonehenge and Brú na Bóinne. The area around the site is under threat by development plans that are being opposed by Indigenous leaders and archeologists. Continue reading Luxury condo plans opposed on Miami Ancestral site as old as Stonehenge at The Wild Hunt.

Today in the Clear Spring School wood shop the Kindergarten students and I made dinosaurs. Last week when I asked the students what they would like to make next, one student immediately responded "dinosaurs!" And education at its best adheres closely to "the interest of the child," whatever the age of the "child" might be. That's a thing just as true for my adult students. This week I'll go to Little Rock where as a guest at UALR I'll make a Friday night presentation on the Wisdom of Our Hands, and then follow up on Saturday and Sunday with classes in box making. The details can be found in this link: https://ualr.edu/news/2023/04/06/stowe-artworks-artist/ Make, fix and create... Assist others in learning lifewise.

A prehistoric archaeological site in Miami appears to be a contemporary of Stonehenge and Brú na Bóinne. The area around the site is under threat by development plans that are being opposed by Indigenous leaders and archeologists. Continue reading Luxury condo plans opposed on Miami Ancestral site as old as Stonehenge at The Wild Hunt.

Four years ago I attended an apple grafting workshop, and created four grafted plants to bring home. I planted them in a “nursery” bed in the orchard, a Black Oxford variety in the center to remain there, and the others to later transplant. The root stock was called M111, a semi-dwarf variety. But I wasn’t […]

“True resistance begins with people confronting pain…and wanting to do something to change it.”   – Bell Hooks Photo by Kyle Johnson on Unsplash   Sunday, April 16 Soul Matters Sharing Circle Sunday The Unitarian Church of Marlborough & Hudson invites you into a time of spiritual reflection with our newly-created Soul Matters Sharing Circle. Once a   [ … ] The post Sunday, April 16 ~ Soul Matters Sharing Circle Sunday ~ 10:30 a.m. appeared first on Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson.

Sometimes, when I feel a lot of stress, I imagine myself sitting on the shore in Homer, Alaska, a place I visited once–in 2007. There was something magical about that place where, under the 24-hour sunlight of late May the mountains gleamed across the Kachemak Bay from a tiny fishing village at the end of … Continue reading Stress

Lindasusan Ulrich May we remember the belonging that is ours simply because we were born. Continue reading "Kinship with the World"

In another reflection, I suggested that there are various angles on resistance, and that has been my own invitation to reflect on how I personally encounter resistance. In my life, it seems that resistance can come from three places, and … Continue reading →

The Unity of Religions James Ishmael Ford “The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience.” Emily Dickinson For anyone who says there are common currents to religions, say, like for me; there are challenges. Hard questions. Is there really a thread through them all, a tie that binds, some universal truth […]

                     Chelan Harkin. Chelan Harkin is a 30-something and lives in Washington state with her two young children, Amari and Nahanni.  She has authored four books of poetry, Susceptible to Light , Let Us Dance! The Stumble and Whirl with The Beloved , Taste the Sky , and Bouquet of Stars . She contributes to online spiritual journals and her popularity has grown rapidly. Harkin mixes mysticism and a social justice edge.  In   Lately I’ve been praying to Muhammad she sounds an awfully like a Universalist. Lately I’ve been praying to Muhammad Lately I’ve been praying to Muhammad, Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Baha’u’llah, Zoroaster, Jesus— why be choosy?  I ask any source of true love and great joy to thro...

I was out for a walk at dusk in nearby Wheelwright Park, and heard a strange sound coming from a nearby tree — a sort of whiny “cheep” kind of sound. I looked up, and there was a juvenile Great Horned Owl about 10 meters up. The fading light made it hard to see much, … Continue reading "Young owl"

A team of archeologists in Spain has found evidence of what may be the most ancient use of plant substances in Europe. Continue reading New research provides direct link between Mediterranean shamans and earliest European use of plant drugs at The Wild Hunt.

There is so much sprouting and growing, blooming and greening all around, pushing up through last Fall’s leaves, reminding us that change is constant. If you have attended a service or program at UUSS recently, you may have also felt the springing of energy there, ... read more . The post Co-Ministers’ Colloquy – April 11th appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

For the Faith Development of the children this Sunday, April 16, there will be a Children’s Chapel for those in 6th grade and under at Waters House. Parents please drop your children off before the start of the worship service. Older children are welcome to help ... read more . The post Religious Education programming this weekend appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

The UUSS Green Sanctuary group invites you to join the Earth Day festivities at the Schenectady March for Climate, Sat. April 22 at noon in front of City Hall. There will be live music, dancers, exhibits, speakers, and a 0.8 mile march. For details see here: ... read more . The post Green Sanctuary & Earth Day appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

We’re changing up a bit this month as we read a multigenerational book, The People Could Fly: American Folktales by Virginia Hamilton. We will gather by zoom on Monday, April 24, for a book discussion. Leah Purcell, our Interim Director of Lifespan Religious Education, has agreed to incorporate the ... read more . The post Discussion of The People Could Fly: American Folktales by Virginia Hamilton appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

                                Wild and Precious: A Celebration of Mary Oliver Reflecting on the making of an audiobook James Ishmael Ford Just shy of a year ago I received an email. Helena de Groot was, okay, is a producer for Pushkin, a […]

                                Wild and Precious: A Celebration of Mary Oliver Reflecting on an Audiobook James Ishmael Ford Just shy of a year ago I received an email. Helena de Groot was, okay, is a producer for Pushkin, a multi platform publisher. […]

“Imagination has power. Imagination is power. Therefore, be sure to have A good and elevating imagination” -Sri Chinmoy How have you experienced the power of imagination?

(studio recording…. )  Song by Keala Settle and The Greatest Showman EnsembleSongwriters: Benj Pasek / Justin Paul          This Is Me lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Walt Disney Music Company (Resist the notion that you are … Continue reading →

Harlem Renaissance poet Countee Cullen.  Countee Cullen , leading light of the Harlem Renaissance was orphaned at 16 and was adopted into the home of Harlem’s most important clergyman, the Reverend Frederick A. Cullen, of Salem Methodist Episcopal Church.  He took the name of his foster father and enjoyed being at the epicenter of Harlem life.  He was sent to prestigious White schools where he excelled as a scholar and was quickly recognized as a poet.  In 1923 he graduated from New York University and was accepted to graduate school at Harvard.  He had already published several poems in important magazines and was lauded by white critics as a voice for his race.  That year he published  The Ballad of a...

In this week's Pagan Community Notes, we remember Rachel Pollack, the Parliament of World Religion repudiates Doctrine of Discovery, announcements, and more news Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of April 10, 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

April 9, 2023 was a perfectly gorgeous Easter Sunday, and our Sanctuary and Emerson Hall were filled to overflowing. We had two energizing services with our choirs performing both the sacred and the secular versions of Hallelujah, the first by Handel and the second by Leonard Cohen. Our cherub, children’s and youth choirs performed as well. The 10 am service was followed by communion in the Sanctuary, and Easter egg hunts in the Memorial Garden and front lawn. Families gathered between services to enjoy the weather and reconnect with friends. It was wonderful to see so many of you, and […] The post Easter Sunday at All Souls: Photos appeared first on BeyondBelief.

Now the green blade riseth, from the buried grain, Wheat that in dark earth many days has lain; Love lives again, that with the dead has been: Love is come again like wheat that springeth green. When our hearts are wintry, grieving, or in pain, Your touch can call us back to life again, Fields of our hearts that dead and bare have been: Love is come again like wheat arising green. --John McLeod Campbell Crum When we are all despairing: when the world is full of grief; when we see no way ahead, and hope has gone away;       Roll back the stone. Although we fear change; although we are not ready; although we’d rather weep and run away:       Roll back the stone. Because we’re coming with the women; because we hope where hop...

Sometimes I feel like I’ve imagined my whole worldview into being. I believe in and care deeply about the animacy of the world — meaning that I see many forms of life as having agency and personhood, even if that personhood is very different from my own, and beyond my full understanding. The white, colonial … Continue reading True

Charles Coe UU World asked two deeply-involved religious educators to share their perspectives on on the future of the curriculum.

Lawrence Ferlinghetti at his City Lights Bookstore in North Beach. Leave it to Lawrence Ferlinghetti, the Dean of beat poets, who died two years ago just a month shy of his 102nd birthday to capture a post-Easter take on mortality.  Never one to shy away from ambivalence, his deep well of moral outrage at a brutal modern world is counterpoint to the sunny optimism of What a Wonderful World , the Vietnam Era Louis Armstrong hit. The World is a Beautiful Place                  The world is a beautiful place                                                            to be born into if you don’t mind happiness                              

I see disaster everywhere; I also […] see generosity and resistance everywhere. Rebecca Solnit Sometimes, I confess, I see disaster everywhere. I get discouraged and depressed by what I perceive as destructive ideologies and events around me. I also get … Continue reading →

The Gods I serve and who occasionally allow me to experience them directly have forbidden me from spending too much time in the Otherworld, much less staying there. I’m allowed to taste it. Occasionally. I can’t forget that taste. And I can’t stop wanting it.