We admire the changemakers, the people we think of as making a difference. If we hold “transformation” as a value, this kind of purposeful, activist transformation or change can be what we often think about. However, living in a world of change and transformation also means navigating changes that we did not intend and transformations … Continue reading This Is Not the Change I Chose
Transformation is our religious exploration theme for March. We adapt to the changing world. We covenant to collectively transform and grow spiritually and ethically. Openness to change is fundamental to our Unitarian and Universalist heritages, never complete and never perfect. Sermon audio Sermon Making Ready for Transformation Rev. Joe Cleveland March 3, 2024 The … Continue reading Making Ready for Transformation
Exploring the foundations and implications of equity as a spiritual and religious value. Where does our commitment to equity come from? What might a commitment to equity look like in our individual and communal lives? Just Equity Rev. Joe Cleveland February 25, 2024 The other day I had the pleasure of walking downtown. … Continue reading Just Equity
On the one hundred tenth anniversary of the birth of Rosa Parks, we explore the story of justice, in the sense that our understanding, aspiration, and compassion are bound by the stories we are able to tell and the stories we are able to hear.
A new articulation of the purpose of the Unitarian Universalist Association proclaims that the UUA “will actively engage its members in the transformation of the world through liberating love.” Today we explore the relationship between love and freedom and liberation, and consider how putting love at the center of our values makes a difference.
The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. described the goal of those working for justice as “beloved community.” While we can fairly easily think about “community” as something we can accomplish, but thinking of “belovedness” as an accomplishment doesn’t come so easily. Today we explore combining community with belovedness as a social justice goal and … Continue reading Doing Beloved Community
In the light of the story of the birth of Jesus, we nurture the re-birth of hope and pray for peace in our time.
Contemplating mystery can be a rewarding spiritual practice. What role might respecting mystery have in guiding our relationships with others?
As the nights approach the longest night, we come into the presence of darkness and the limits of what we think we know. Pico Iyer said once, “The opposite of knowledge isn’t always ignorance. It can be wonder. Or mystery. Possibility.”
Speaker: Rev. Joe Cleveland | The barriers of habit and self-protection that we of necessity put up to navigate the world sometimes keep us from the sacredness of the world. Today we explore how we might cultivate a vulnerability to awe as a spiritual practice, and how this might give us access to a greater … Continue reading Vulnerable to Awe