I'll Be Home for Christmas , Bing Crosby's war time hit, was re-released on the LP version of his classic holiday album in 1949. Eighty-two years ago , today the Japanese launched their devastating surprise attack on Pearl Harbor thrusting the United States into a bloody worldwide conflagration and forever altering the lives and destinies of millions.   It also cast a somber pall over Christmas festivities getting underway stateside just as the last vestiges of the Great Depression were being shaken off and folks had money to spend for a change. The  USS Arizona  going down after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1949. With a long war ahead with families and sweethearts wrenched by separation and fear, people turned to ...

A multi-year archaeological project funded by the UK National Lottery has revealed a possible Anglo-Saxon temple site near Sutton Hoo. Continue reading 1400 year old ‘temple’ discovery near Sutton Hoo at The Wild Hunt.

Years ago I'd made and sold wooden ties. As I was cleaning up in the shop, I found a few walnut blanks that I'd not used. I also had made some inlay that was not being used, so I put them to work. I now have 8 wooden ties almost ready to finish and assemble. The woods used to make the inlay are walnut, maple, cherry and sycamore. Wooden ties are goofy to wear. I've stood in conversation with friends for long minutes before my wood tie was noticed and met with howls of laughter and delight. Friends of mine won one in a charity auction and when I visited their house for a party I found it framed as though it was art. That's not something you'll do with a Chinese made tie from Dillards. And when you're done with it, it can be composted or u...

I received an email today signed by Sarah Lammert, the executive secretary of the Ministerial Fellowship Committee (MFC) of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). The MFC was notifying congregational leaders that Rev. Stephen Furrer had resigned from fellowship with the UUA rather than face a “Full Fellowship Review…for sexual misconduct.” Mostly when these emails are … Continue reading "More alleged misconduct, and a glitch in the notification system"

Congregational Safety: More Questions Than Answers A few decades ago, congregational safety may have seemed relatively simple, a matter of determining how many fire extinguishers a church building needed to have or what the appropriate ratio of adults to children should be for Sunday school classes. In the years since, however, the issue has become […] The post Congregational Safety: More Questions Than Answers first appeared on Canadian Unitarian Council Conseil unitarien du Canada. The post Congregational Safety: More Questions Than Answers appeared first on Canadian Unitarian Council Conseil unitarien du Canada.

It has always been mysterious to me being able to see the sun and the moon at the same time. I wonder about the power of being in two times at the SAME time… day and night. I also wonder … Continue reading →

UUSC plays an instrumental role in offering a spiritually-grounded space for people of faith and people of conscience at international climate negotiations.

“The purpose of a storyteller is not to tell you how to think, but to give you questions to think upon.” – Brandon Sanderson When has a good story left you with questions to ponder?

Laura Dobson The Magnificat is a courageous and subversive song of praise; a call to social justice. Continue reading "Magnified"

In the New Year, UUSC will be advancing its commitment to human rights and social justice with a new Impact and Accountability Framework. This comprehensive framework will not only reinforce UUSC’s commitment to upholding human rights and social justice, but will also amplify our dedication to transparency, accountability, and partner-centered work.  Our mission: UUSC advances human […]

Just a reminder that you can hear my reflections on my podcast "Seeking Paradise" that comes out about once a month. You can access it through the link above to podbean, or get it by searching for "Seeking Paradise" on Apple podcasts or Spotify. 

                                                         Jolly Old St. Nicholas --the Ray Conniff Singers This is St . Nicholas Day, a day when children in the Netherlands and across much of Northern Europe awake to find their stockings or shoes filled with candy, nuts, oranges, and small toys left behind in the night by the sanctified Bishop .   It is also still observed in some American families, though the practice seems to be fading.   Our three daughters always found their stockings filled until they were adults.   It is also a good day to trot out Jolly Old St. Nicholas, America’s oldest secular Christmas song—if you discount Jingle Bells which was not intended to be linked to the holiday. A...

  Photos taken with a Fuji X100V using Øyvind Nordhagen’s Kodak Ektar 100 Recipe  

The Dutch Supreme Court has ruled that objects borrowed 9 years ago by a museum in Amsterdam from museums in the now Russian-annexed region of Crimea belong to Ukraine and not Russia. Continue reading Dutch Court rules Antiquities claimed by Russia to be returned to Ukraine at The Wild Hunt.

Generosity is one of our UU values. The Article II Study Commission notes, “We cultivate a spirit of gratitude and hope. We covenant to freely and compassionately share our faith, presence, and resources. Our generosity connects us to one another in relationships of interdependence and ... read more . The post December Theme: Unexpected Gifts appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

There are so many holy days and holidays at this time of year. There are so many expectations placed on us by others, and ourselves. And some of these expectations are unspoken. Those are harder to meet because they are unspoken and often result in ... read more . The post Co-Ministers’ Colloquy appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

We’re running our usual Religious Education (RE) sessions for grades K-7, including the 8/9th grade Our Whole Lives (OWL) program. The High School Youth Group will not meet this week. Here is the schedule: The nursery room opens at 10:15 and is available for children under 5 ... read more . The post Coming up in Religious Education appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

This year we will again support Schenectady Street Soldiers and The MoonCatcher Project. We will deliver dinner – vegetarian (GF and vegan too) lasagna, garlic bread, salad and dessert right to your door. You don’t have to cook or even go out. Order by December 8th! For ... read more . The post Dining for Dollars appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

If there was ever a moment to rekindle the hope of human rights for every person, it is now.

“Blessed One, we also know so many stories about ourselves, some of them the same stories we tell about others: Beautiful, Ugly, Simple, Difficult, Joyous, Useful, Worthless. Stories about who we are, what we know, and the potentials and impossibilities of our future. Stories about our purpose and the meaning of our lives. We have … Continue reading Excavating Stories

The past three years have been especially hard on my spirit. A good friend of mine ghosted me during this time, only contacting me every once in a while. I wasn’t used to that because we were so close, and … Continue reading →

                                                                 Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys-- Empty Chair at the Christmas Table.   Today’s Christmas nugget is a rarity that I am pretty sure you never heard before.   Although a vintage recording made during the Golden Age of American holiday music it never became a hit.   But it strikes a couple of my favorite notes—western swing music and World War II separation songs.   Empty Chair At The Christmas Table was actually recorded in October of 1945 after the war was over but while millions of GIs , sailors, and airmen were still overseas by Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys. Fiddler Bob Wills did not invent western swing but perfected it ...

Last week, Carol and I spent four days at a retreat center in Deerfield, Mass. We managed to visit four bookstores in those four days. Here are some notes about each bookstore: World Eye Bookshop is quite small. As is often the case these days, about half the store is taken up with gifts, toys, … Continue reading "Bookstores in Pioneer Valley"

As many of you know, I am from Georgia and started my career there. I even worked to an ill-fated and later abandoned master’s degree in church history; my thesis would have been about Universalist churches in the antebellum South. But resources were harder to get thirty years ago, and so left that behind, went … Continue reading "“Missing” Georgia churches found"

In this week's Pagan Community Notes, Fun with Krampus, Cherry Hill awards, Birthday wishes to Jonathan and more news. Continue reading Pagan Community Notes: Week of December 4, 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

By Kavita Das | I remember a conversation I had with an editor at a literary magazine soon after I had transitioned from working in social change to becoming a writer close to ten years ago. I had shared with the editor that I was committed to developing my craft as a writer but that I was also committed to continuing to lift up social issues, even if I now would focus on addressing them on the page rather than in real life settings. I was floored by the editor’s response.

I. Transformation is our theme for December. Change, of course, is inevitable. We can’t help but change. The first task is to accept this – don’t try to fight change, and when it comes, as it is continually coming, let go of that impulse to pine for the good old days. Embrace change – that’s the first spiritual task in the category "transformation." But transformation suggests something a little more than the random – or seemingly-random – vicissitudes of change. Transformation – in the sense of a spiritual orientation – suggests a certain intentionality. There’s changing by accident – and then there’s changing on purpose, and transformation should have some purpose driving it. That's the second task: to have a pu...

My mother told me stories about our family members that are now ancestors, especially of her younger brother. I don’t remember him, he died when I was two, but apparently I was ‘his baby’ and we had a strong bond. Hearing the stories of how he loved me helped me to feel a connection with … Continue reading Connections

We have our first snow-covered morning here in our yard in Portland Maine. In places further from the shore they got several inches, but we had mostly rain until early morning. Now it feels like winter is really here. My internal clock has felt the shift, as the days grow shorter and darker. A few […]

  The official video of Fairytale of New York by Irish folk/punk band The Pogues with Shane MacGowan and Kristy MacColl. Word came the other day that Shane MacGowan, the lead singer and main songwriter of the rowdy Irish punk/folk band The Pogues, died at home in Dublin of pneumonia after being in intensive care for viral encephalitis since July.   He was only 65 years old but had ravaged his body with heavy drinking, drugs, and brawling for years.   He was born on Christmas Day in 1957 in Pembury, Kent, England   so perhaps it was inevitable that his most famous and beloved song was about the holiday.   Or that the song itself was a bitter antidote to the usual relentlessly cheerful seasonal fare. Shane MacGowan's life was full of ...

I wonder how many of us are out there, Sitting in cars in grocery store parking lots Staring into space Wondering how we are going to pay for gas…or rent, Or how we’re going to make the trip…again, Or how we will have the next conversation, Or give the next bath, Or tell them “it […]

Medical marijuana is legal in many states, and a friend of my wife asked if I could make a stash box to hold various paraphernalia. In the old days I know many of my boxes were used for objects associated with the use of marijuana. But that was never discussed. The advantage of this box is that it has two levels of storage, under the lid and in the drawer and we can talk about it. The top is frame and panel construction, and the drawer is made with a mortise and tenon technique that I always use on small drawers. The wood used is walnut except for the bottom panels (Baltic birch) and the drawer sides (maple.)  Plans for a similar box can be found in my book  Beautiful Boxes: Design and Technique    With the stash box finished, it wil...

In college I studied photography and fell in love with Jerry Uelsmann. I took four semesters of film photography and studied a lot of Uelsmanns work. He was an outstanding photographer, but his skills shined in the darkroom where he … Continue reading →

            Today, the 3rd of December has been declared a feast or saint’s day for Francis Xavier. He was one of the first Jesuits. And eventually a Catholic missionary to Japan. While fervently hostile to nonChristian religions, and with, if indirectly, some blood on his hands in that regard, I […]

A London art exhibition explores the psychological, symbolic, and supernatural connections between Surrealist artists like Leonora Carrington and the figure of the witch. Continue reading “Manifestations of the witch:” London Exhibition on Surrealism and Witchcraft connects women artists across the decades at The Wild Hunt.

The holiday season is a time of giving, warmth, and community spirit. At All Souls, we believe in making a tangible difference in the lives of those around us. This year, we are excited to announce the All Souls Community Food Bank's holiday initiative to support Women in Recovery. The post Join the All Souls Holiday Food Drive for Women in Recovery appeared first on BeyondBelief.

The fourth sermon in the "Lives of the Spirit" series focuses on the life and teachings of Howard Thurman. The post The common Good: Howard Thurman appeared first on Colin Bossen.

The older I get, the more losses I’m experiencing. Things I thought would last forever, aren’t. Progress I assumed would continue, isn’t. People I expected would outlive me, haven’t. Some of this is the reality of being 61. Some if it is the times we live in. Some of it is… more.

SERVICE PARTICIPANTS Rev. John Cullinan, Pastor Rev. Tina DeYoe, Director of Lifespan Religious Education Nylea Butler-Moore, Director of Music Elisa Enriquez, vocalist Renae Mitchell, Mike Begnaud, Patrick Webb, Galen Gisler, and Rick Bolton, AV techs WELCOME! New to our church community?  Sign our guestbook and let us know if you’d like to get more connected. …<p> Advent for Everyone Read More »

“Don’t sweat it.” It is something people tell you. No worries, it’s OK. Don’t stress. But that isn’t always good advice. Sometimes you need to sweat, and not just when hiking. I ALWAYS sweat when hiking, even on cool days, which is partly why hydration is important even if you don’t feel particularly hot or […]

Some stories are lovingly passed down from generation to generation. They bring us connection to those who came before. What is a story that has been passed to you through generations?

  We Gather Together is an Thanksgiving song originating with the Dutch is now widely sung in many American Protestant churches as an Advent hymn as well. Today in most Western Christian churches is the first Sunday of Advent, the four week liturgical season of anticipation of the birth of Christ.   Although most Americans call the whole time from Thanksgiving to December 25 the Christmas Season, Christmas was the 12 day period from the Nativity to the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6.   In churches only hymns of prophesy of a coming Savior, songs of Joseph and Mary on their journey to the City of David, and finally announcement carols on Christmas Eve were sung during Advent.   Songs of celebration of the Birth come after. In most...

Please join us on Sunday (3 December 2023) at 11:00 AM for “Don’t Have To…” 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 to do so. Our service … Continue reading "All Ages Worship (3 December 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 December 2023, we choose North Louisiana Interfaith as we finish out 2023 with our fulfillment of our membership dues to North Louisiana Interfaith — one of the … Continue reading "North Louisiana Interfaith — December 2023 Give-Away-The-Plate Recipient"

For this Sunday (3 December 2023), our children (Pre-K thru Grade 5) will be using a program adapted from Moral Tales (a Tapestry of Faith curriculum by Alice Anacheka Nasemann and Elisa Davy Pearmain). The lesson for this week is making a difference.

This class is an exploration of our eight Unitarian Universalist principles through artistic expression. On this Sunday (3 December 2023), we will explore the eighth principle (“working together to build a diverse, multicultural Beloved Community by our actions that accountably dismantle racism and other oppressions”). The All8 curriculum is the creation of Jil Novenski (Director … Continue reading "Middle and High School Youth Religious Education (3 December 2023)"

Please join us on Sunday (3 December 2023) for 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 will continue reading the UUA Common Read for 2023 — On Repentance and Repair … Continue reading "Online and In-Person Adult Religious Education — 3 December 2023"

Taste of Interfaith is happening on Sunday (3 December 2023) from 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM — All are welcome! Taste of Interfaith is happening at Williams Memorial CME Temple (3301 St. Matthias Way, Shreveport LA  71119) Come and join with our Interfaith partners as we celebrate this year’s victories, welcome new member institutions, and … Continue reading "Taste of Interfaith (Sunday, 3 December 2023)"

Please join us next Wednesday (6 December 2023) at 12 noon for our weekly Zoom lunch. Our weekly Zoom lunch is 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.

We walked through the Nelson Homestead at Woolman Hill Conference Center. This is where Wally and Juanita Nelson lived the last couple of decades of their lives — off the grid, growing their own food, refusing to pay taxes that funded the war machine of the United States. Carol remembers Wally and Jaunita Nelson coming … Continue reading "You don’t gotta"

Long or short, we enter this world alone,  and usually, we leave alone. The comfort we give each other during our lifetime is what we hope will be extended to us during the actual process of dying, as well as the moments surrounding death. Continue reading Gratitude for Being a Death Midwife at The Wild Hunt.

December is, among many other things, Self Help month at the church. Self Help, Inc. was founded in 1969 by Bethlehem Lutheran Church, along with several other churches in town including our own. It was founded as a means to pool charitable resources and use them for assistance and outreach in our northern New Mexico …<p> Self Help Month Read More »

Every single time my family gathers, we tell stories about each other. Usually they are funny or silly. We like to heckle each other about things we did growing up, like the time I made biscuits for the first time. They were so hard my brothers used them as baseballs! I cried and cried that … Continue reading Funny Stories

                                                         White Christmas from the finale of the 1954 MGM film of the same name. It is a bit early to break out perhaps the most iconic of the classic Golden Age of American Secular Christmas songs, but last night my wife Kathy Brady-Murfin and I took in a production of the stage version of Irving Berlins ’s White Christmas by Theatre 121 at the Woodstock Opera House.   It was at least the third production of a version of the film classic we have seen.   It is a staple of both the professional and community holiday theater.   It is both comfortable and an invitation to sing along. You probably know that the most played and beloved secular American Chris...

A short  “ thought for the day” offered to the Cambridge Unitarian Church as part of the Sunday Service of Mindful   Meditation.   (A recorded version of the following piece can be heard at this link)  —o0o— As many of you will be aware, this week, the COP28 climate summit has begun in the United Arab Emirates against the background of the depressing, but in so many ways not unexpected news that the President of this summit, Sultan Al Jaber, has abused his position to try to sign oil deals with other governments. Looking on this and earlier global summits can easily produce in many of us feelings of deep despair and even anger. It certainly does in me from time to time, And I think it is important to tell you that over the ...

That’s the tentative title for what might end up being a painting. I envision this writing scratched in paint or ink so that an under-layer of paint or ink shows through, but some kind of dry medium might also work, or maybe colored pencil over an ink wash–the layers are important. I have tried it […]

Please join us on Saturday (2 December 2023) at 10:30 AM for our weekly meditation group with Larry Androes. This group will be meeting via Zoom and not in person. This is a sitting Buddhist meditation including a brief introduction to mindfulness meditation, 20 minutes of sitting, and followed by a weekly teaching. The group … Continue reading "Meditation with Larry Androes (2 December 2023)"

Alan U. Dalul hears about a local curiosities market in his city, and hesitates at the idea of signing up to vendor as a tarot reader and sigil creator. But despite his anxiety, he finds himself practicing magic in a whole new way - and with a whole new community. Continue reading Ready, Set, Goth! – My first Witches’ Market in a new country at The Wild Hunt.

One of the things to love about walnut is the  rich shift in color and tone that results when a penetrating finish is applied. Compare the box shown with the unfinished box earlier in the day and you can see the richness that results. I have one or two more coats of finish to apply, but must wait hours between coats Another reason to prize walnut is shown in the top panel, selected for the curly figure that results from the wood having grown close to a major limb.  The straight grained walnut surrounding it frame it nicely. Make, fix and create. 

The third sermon in the series "Lives of the Spirit" was delivered by the Rev. D. Scott Cooper. It focuses on the life and philosophy of the founder of the Catholic Worker movement, Dorothy Day. The post Dorothy Day: Works of Mercy (Guest Blog Post by Rev. D. Scott Cooper) appeared first on Colin Bossen.

Sunday, December 3 Let the Mystery Be Our human brains are constantly seeking to quantify, measure, and categorize the world around us. Join us this Sunday, December 3, as Rev. Alice reflects on the value in simply living with the mysterious unknown.  “I would rather live in a world where my life is surrounded by mystery   [ … ] The post Sunday, December 3 ~ Let the Mystery Be ~ 10:30 a.m. appeared first on Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson.

Our vision statement concludes with the words “We are a beacon of hope.” These are years when that beacon is particularly important. I note two major trends in this country, trends which may not be unrelated. Church membership is down markedly — a 2021 Gallup poll reported that adults who were church members were 70% …<p> We are a Beacon of Hope Read More »

During the holidays, I tend to reflect on the cycles of life … birth, death, and the in-between. Thinking about new babies coming into the world provokes thoughts of joy, imagination, idealism, hope, miracles, and mystery. Thinking about death provokes thoughts of sadness, depression, release, peace, and mystery. Why is it that both life and …<p> A Panoramic UU View of . . . Mystery Read More »

This month, we explore the theme of storytelling and the stories that shaped us. Each of us has stories that have helped us make sense of the world, develop our theology, and relate to others. What is an important story that has shaped you?

  In 2016 Cat Templeton designed my current website. I've been trying to get better at keeping up with it. It looks as fresh and lovely, I think, as the day it was launched. Dougstowe.com Normally websites are out of date in a year or so. This one may last a decade or more. One thing I'll not change on it is the photo on the publications page t showing my books arranged on the top of my work bench. It shows 8 books. In the intervening years I've written several more that you can find on Amazon at this link:   Just in time for holiday shopping. A book can be a great gift. As a gift to yourself it might guide you in making gifts for others. Shown on the same workbench today is a walnut stash box ready for final sanding and finish. Make,...

With the month of December, the darkness of our northern hemisphere tilting away from the sun continues. Shadows lengthen. The darkness deepens. Perhaps that is a good backdrop to this month’s theme, The Gift of Mystery. “Mystery” conjures a number … Continue reading →

                          Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles perform The Twelve Days of Christmas. December 1 is World AIDS Day.   In honor of that we feature the Gay Men ’ s Chorus of Los Angeles (GMCLA), the oldest, largest, and most prestigious Gay choral group in the United States.   It was formed in 1979 at Plummer Park Community Center in Los Angeles, with 99 members .   Its first public performance was at the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights that October and they also performed at n the first ever national LGBT concert at the Washington Memorial . World Aids Day 2023 commemorates its origins. As GMCLA continued to grow throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s the AIDS crisis did not spare ...

Perhaps you, like me, have seen this come across your social media feed: Sounds so cool, doesn’t it? Well, the United States is one of those 50 countries, and a depot of the Human Library has been underway for some time here in the SF Bay Area. A friend in the UK gave me a […]

The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) and Love Resists teamed up earlier this month to host the first webinar (in a series of three) to educate people about the “Cop City” project underway in Atlanta and equip them to stop this destructive plan (and similar schemes elsewhere in the U.S.).

Witch bottles have been washing ashore along a 60-mile stretch of beach on the southern span of the Texas Gulf Coast. Continue reading Witch bottles wash ashore in Texas at The Wild Hunt.

Here is a list of everything that is currently in use to provide UUpdates.net as a service.Domain registration. Currently this is done through DirectNic, but any domain registrar will do.CloudFlare is used to provide IPv6 support, caching for images and in general improve site performance and protection. This is at the free level.Virtual Private Server through DatabaseMart. Like the others

In alignment with our commitment to global solidarity, UUSC is providing resources for the vital human rights work in Palestine and Israel.

It is possible to heal. It is possible to be whole once again. It is possible to atone for one’s sins. It is possible to reconcile with those we have wronged. As Unitarian Universalists, we hold out these possibilities as matters of theology and as challenges to us all. Move towards healing and reconciliation with … Continue reading Reconciliation

Johnny Mathis - It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christm as  There are many subsets in the category of the Golden Age of American Popular Christmas Song .   One might be called the secular Advent songs—tunes that conjure up the growing excitement of the Holiday season invoking winter scenes, decorations, shopping, and general merriment.   At their best they deftly mixed daubs of nostalgia, with a snappy, jazzy modernity.   They could evoke the rustic past, but were most at home in bustling urban streets. Perhaps the most beloved of the genre was It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas written in 1951 by Meredith Willson then a prolific pop composer and the musical director of poplar radio programs like The Big Show hosted by...

Pagan clergy eat to a new legal challenge to a Missouri law banning nearly all abortions. Continue reading Religious leaders challenge Missouri abortion law at The Wild Hunt.

The Endowment Trust and Adult Religious Education are proud to present a speaker series covering living a healthy lifestyle, managing their finances, and planning for a long life. These presentations will be held on Sundays in January and February at noon. Please join us for these hybrid learning opportunities.

JD Stillwater I encouraged my students to question authority, especially my authority, because only rarely can we recognize our biases without help. Continue reading "Inviting the "Aha""

Inflicting trauma and abuse on another is surely a sin. And yet cycles of violence are perpetuated through generations. They can be disrupted, but they first have to be recognized, and then stopped. Repeat to yourself today: There is nothing I can do that makes me deserving of pain from another.

UUSC’s community action model of partnership helps center the experiences of those most impacted.

Honoring 75 Years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Recently, I sat outside on my meditation bench at the edge of the woods. The morning temperature was cool but not cold. I was enjoying the early morning light and a little reading with a cup of coffee. Suddenly, I … Continue reading →

This book is exactly what you would expect from someone who is a witch and an aromatherapist, and who also has a background in executive security. Amy Blackthorn knows the mundane and magical sides of protection and she shares her knowledge of both in this concise guide.

The Social Justice Action Team (SJAT) and Green Sanctuary Team are working together to stop raw sewage from polluting the Hans Groot Kill, the creek that runs along beside our building, and downstream into the Mohawk River. Our strategy is to employ the Six Circles of Social Justice to support City ... read more . The post Downstream Justice Project Update appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

 Taken with a Fuji X100V using Øyvind Nordhagen’s Kodak Ektar 100 Recipe

We will have regular Religious Education (RE) sessions for grades K-7, 8/9th grade OWL, and Senior High Youth. Here is the schedule: The nursery room opens at 10:15 and is available for children under 5 years old Everyone will assemble in the Great Hall for the initial part ... read more . The post Upcoming Religious Education programming for children and youth appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

For the busy month of December, we are reading Call Us What We Carry (2021), a book of poetry by Amanda Gorman, the first ever National Youth Poet Laureate of the United States. Join us to share thoughts on your favorite poem! We welcome all newcomers ... read more . The post December’s BIPOC Book Group Discussion: Call Us What We Carry, by Amanda Gorman appeared first on Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak cancels a meeting with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in a row that erupted over the Parthenon Marbles. Continue reading PM Rishi Sunak cancels meeting with Greek counterpart in row over the Parthenon Marbles at The Wild Hunt.

I am ending my support for UUpdates.net. if anyone is interested in taking on any portion of this, please comment on this post. Please let me know what you are interested in. Domain name only, software, whatever.

The UUA is aware of the shooting of three Palestinian American students in Burlington, VT this past weekend. Our hearts and prayers are with the three students and we remain steadfast in our condemnation of the rising tide of violence and hateful acts across the country. Continue reading "UUA Statement Regarding Shooting in Burlington, Vermont"

A Q&A with Alicia Kennedy | My awareness of all the ways in which eating meat intersects with systems and outcomes that I don’t agree with unfolded gradually. It was a very instinctual, spiritual conviction that made giving up meat feel both enticing (at first) and necessary (at last), and then the more cerebral reasons for why I was drawn to it came into focus.

                                                                        Do They Know it's Christmas video . Thirty-nine years ago, today on November 29,1984 , the single of Do They Know It ’ s Christmas was rushed into the stores and instantly became a phenomenon—shooting to #1 on the UK charts and staying there for a record shattering five weeks selling 3.7 million copies in Britain an 11.8 million copies worldwide in five years. Only four days earlier on November 25, 1984 a good cross section of the musical glitterati of the U . K . and Ireland assembled to record a song to raise money for Ethiopian famine relief at Sarm West Studios in London.   They had assembled on short notice—many ...

The Wild Hunt remains one of the most widely read sources within modern Paganism. We remain together as reporters and columnists dedicated to a vision of journalism for and about our family of faiths and spiritual practices. We need your help. Continue reading Giving Tuesday 2023 at The Wild Hunt.

          It’s November 27th! And with that, once again, the blessings of the saints Barlaam & Josaphat are upon us! This is flat out my favorite of all Christian holidays. And I like to remind people of the details of this original Christian Buddhist mashup. So, please forgive the repetition parts of […]

                                                                        Wrap Me Up by Jimmy Fallon and Meghan Trainor. It is with no little regret that today’s Murfin Winter Holidays Music Festival entry comes from the relentlessly self-promoting and hyperkinetic talk show host Jimmie Fallon and pop diva Meghan Trainor.   Fallon spent the last week shamelessly hyping their holiday collaboration on the Tonight Show, on his many other NBC projects, and wherever else he can get noticed.   His self-proclaimed goal has been to knock Maria Carrey and the ubiquitous All I Want For Christmas is You for the top-spot on the seasonal charts.   Last I heard the new release was #2 with a bullet. Any alt...

I believe that being a billionaire is immoral. I believe that there is no way to amass that much money without taking advantage of others, and that there is no reason to keep that much money except for greed. -Michael Tino (CLF) How have you been harmed by the greed of others?