“Silence of the Season” by Mark W. Harris – Silence has always played a critical role in religious journeys. Does silence play a role in your life? Do other people silence you sometimes with their words or looks? When is silence a weapon, and when is it a source of strength?
“Longing for God” by Mark W. Harris – Many members of UU congregations are humanists who usually say that all religion is an expression of human longing for meaning , connection, and hope, to make life and memory meaningful or “sacred.” But what about God? Do we still have a longing or desire for the divine, and how does it play a role in our lives?
“Blessing the Curse” by Mark W. Harris – We feel terrible when some difficult event occurs in our lives, but sometimes what seems like a life changing failure or disaster turns into a blessing.
“Time’s a Wasting” by Mark W. Harris – The modern age has us plugged in all the time, but perhaps that over connectedness and over scheduling means we have lost the ability to waste time. And this may be the most valuable time of all.
November 11, 2018 –
“How to Not Give Up After Hearing the News” Lay Service – Our three speakers will share their thoughts on dealing with the challenges of the troublesome era in which we are living and how we might respond in these hard times.
“All Our Losses” by Mark W. Harris – “As Halloween (and the Day of the Dead, and All Saints Day) approaches we think of the time of year when the veil between the living and the dead is thinest. Grief for a loved one is one kind of loss, but we all wrestle each day with other losses in our lives.”
“Arthur Knapp’s Journey from Watertown to Japan” Arthur Knapp was our minister from 1880 to 1886, when he left, under the direction of the American Unitarian Association to start a mission to Japan. What can we learn from Knapp, and what does his work tell us about examining our history from an anti-oppressive lens?
“Beautiful Souls” by Mark W. Harris
In the past few weeks we all witnessed the testimony of Christine Blasey Ford who showed such courage in coming forward to tell her story. Under what circumstances do we come forward? What impels us to defy authority and convention and speak up?
“Everyday Pilgrims” by Jolie Olivetti
“What I Learned From Being a Jock” by Mark W. Harris – I may be the only UU minister who played football in college. We often identify Unitarianism as a heady, intellectual faith, and not one that has adherents who believe in physical exertion. We think about sports as being about winning and losing, but do we learn something more?
“Making Sense of a Free Faith” – Ask you average UU to explain our faith, and they become tongue tied. Many younger UUs today didn’t have a childhood faith to reject because they were brought up without one. How can we make it a positive faith? Whither UUism today?
“Thinking About God: Theistic Beliefs and Practices” This is the second lay service the worship committee has planned about our members’ beliefs and practices. We’ve asked our three speakers to address questions such as: What is the source of your faith or beliefs in your religious or spiritual life? Does “God” or the “Divine” call to you and manifest itself in your life? What is your motivating religious / spiritual impulse and how is it made manifest in your life?
A Walk to the Altar of the World A Sermon for the Ordination of Jolie Olivetti April 29, 2018 The First Parish of Watertown The Rev. Andrea Greenwood One autumn day, in a century that has passed, I took a small expedition to the woods of New Hampshire. Somewhere I had read that there was a […]
“Easter Magic” by Andrea Greenwood -Years and years ago, out pickling berries with my two year old, O asked him how he found so many and he answered very simply: “I open my eyes.” What do you see on Easter morning when the eyes of your eyes are opened? What treasures are hiding nearby, awaiting your discovery?