Minister’s Blog

Greetings friends,

It’s been very moving these past weeks to reunite with you, and to see so many new faces in the ‘pews.’ Being reminded that there are newer friends in our midst is a good thing! It helps us all consider how we talk about our faith, how we live it, and, certainly, how we make room at the table.

Greetings Dear Ones, I really am counting the days to see you and be with you again. These past weeks have been rich ones–your staff and I had our yearly retreat where we learned about healthy ways to serve and be in community with a congregation, alongside a delicious lunch at Red Lentil in Watertown, where we took time to tell stories and catch up with one another. We have revisited our staff covenant, as we always do at the beginning of the year, and plan to spend the next few weeks...

I don’t know about you, but our June theme of ‘Renewal’ couldn’t be more fitting for this community. Many of the rituals that still mean something to this church find themselves happening around this time of year–from Bridging our Youth to First Chalices to Flower Communion and to our new closing Ritual of Appreciation, which will happen on June 16th. Marking the transitions of our lives through ritual is one of the unique features of a spiritual community. From birth to death, our UU...

Many clergy see Spring as a time of pushing through and dragging across–not unlike the final stretch of a marathon. “Hunker down,” many say, “you just have a bit more to go until your summer break.” I’ve always struggled with this thinking and advice. It doesn’t feel all that inspiring–nor does it have much to do with a pastor’s sacred call: being spiritually grounded so that we can care for the souls we serve. This kind of holy work (for isn’t the care of souls holy?) requires some things so...

Dearest Church Family, In my first year with you I wrote about the beauty of the Lilac Tree in the parsonage yard in April. It sits quite close to the house which makes watching its spring-green buds slowly unfurl a daily joy. Lilacs are my favorite flower, and my family knows that once those lavender blossoms arrive, the whole house will be filled with their fragrance. After sharing about this, your previous minister, Rev. Andrea, reached out and told me that it was a gift to their once...

Happy March Church Family! As always, I pray that you and yours are well these days. In these days I am reflecting on the ways we are living out our UU purposes so well as a congregation. You will have noticed that most of our worship themes this year have focused on our newly articulated Unitarian Universalist theology and, what I would describe as, our ‘faith in action’: Generosity, Justice, Equity, Transformation, Interdependence, Pluralism and, of course, Love–which is the jet fuel that...

Greetings Church Family, I pray that you and yours are well these days. February is an interesting time of ‘looking ahead’ in the life of church as membership, giving and nominating seasons begin to make their plans for the next church year, which begins in April, right after our Annual Meeting takes place. This ‘looking ahead’ offers excitement, deep discernment, and good forward motion, which is nice to feel in the cold months of winter. Quite serendipitously, just as spring bursts forth, so...

Greetings Church Family, I pray that you and yours are well and that you have what you need these days. Our month’s worship theme is Liberating Love and, personally, I’m feeling a lot of it at First Parish. I have come to love you and this congregation so deeply. You make me laugh, you challenge me, you teach me, you inspire me, and your continued kindness and generosity towards me and one another, makes being your minister a complete joy. We are truly a blessed church. This coming Sunday,...

Greetings Church Family, There is a spirit of this season that I love and need, with its promise of light shining in the darkness, and love being born in the most unexpected of places. I can feel this light and love in this building–particularly in our sanctuary–and also when I am with and among you. I feel so blessed to be a minister, your minister, at this time of the year. This is what many call the Season of Light. We will light our first Advent candle on Sunday, which ritualizes the slow...