We are busy preparing the church for Celebration Sunday. The images of the steeple of Eliot Chapel on which we wrote about the importance of First Unitarian in our lives are being hung in the sanctuary. The choirs are ready to lift our spirits. Tables … read more.
Last Sunday, we celebrated Kate Lore’s ministry and released Kate from her ministerial call at First Unitarian. The service was powerful as Kate offered her “heartfelt farewell” and we remembered some of the high points of our justice ministry. Kate leaves a social justice program … read more.
I am writing from Washington, DC where I am taking part in a board meeting of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC). It is good to be part of this national religious effort to support reproductive health, choice and justice. It is a blessing … read more.
The campers who were making our block their home have moved on. To be more specific, they were “moved on.” The city finally began enforcing the ordinance that prevents camping within 1000 feet of any school. There are many schools in our immediate vicinity, including … read more.
The news is filled with the impending landfall of Hurricane Matthew on the Florida coast. Living in Oregon, it is easy to feel insulated from those troubles a continent away. It is far more difficult to avoid the danger and divisiveness of this election season. … read more.
Our spiritual theme for October is forgiveness. It is a religious concept that invites us to learn more each time we engage with it. We think of the Biblical story of the prodigal son and the forgiveness every family I’ve known well has had to … read more.
Two more highly publicized police shootings of black men. Shall we just begin calling them murders? Are these the unfortunate actions of a tiny, misguided minority of our police? Will anti-bias training and body cameras stop the killings? Or serve to justify them?
As I write, … read more.
Mark your calendars. Next Tuesday, September 20 at 9 PM, PBS will broadcast Ken Burns’ new film, the story of Rev. Waitstill and Martha Sharp, Unitarians who travelled to Europe in early 1939 as the drum beat of war intensified and the Nazis began, in … read more.
In just a few days we will begin a new church year at First Unitarian. We will also pass an anniversary. Sunday, September 11, 2016, will mark 15 years since the attacks that changed so much in our life as a nation and in our … read more.
In recent days, immigration has taken center stage once again in our national political discussion. Will we create a “Deportation Force” to expel even more undocumented migrants than the record number sent south in the last 8 years? Will we attempt to build an impenetrable … read more.
