I will be very glad to see you this Sunday, and in the coming weeks. It’s felt like a long time!
I am also looking forward to our rituals, prayers, sweet silences, and singing together. It’s been a rough few months in our country and world–and in recent days the passing of Wendell Berry, Dolly Parton, and the glorious Gloria Steinheim, have only added to my general state of weepiness. As I get older, I have come to see that deep sorrow and great joy can, indeed, exist at the same time; for right alongside our collective despair, resides such…beauty.
When we come together for worship we hold these seemingly conflicting human experiences well. After all, this is what ‘worship’ is meant to offer and hold. This month we are working with two themes: one is our year’s theme of Living Our Faith, and the other is our monthly theme of Beginnings. I’m looking forward to seeing what emerges.
You should know that starting on Sunday you will experience a slightly different worship experience. I’ve worked (and prayed) hard on this. The higher purpose of worship is to offer you a transformative spiritual experience–whether this be through small moments of awe, or a feeling of renewal or grounded-ness when you leave. To do this well, we must be ever-ready to enhance, shift, experiment, and stretch ourselves–less worship and our liturgy become rote. Be open. Give yourself time. At first, you might feel disoriented, or even a little anxious or sad. Let these feelings come and be curious about new feelings too.
As with all the changes that worship has undergone over the past five years, we will give this new flow the year. Let’s see how it feels in June, shall we? Mostly, I want you to feel the love, care, and joy that I, staff, and worship committee, pour into Sundays. I think you do, and still will.
I’m moved and honored to begin this sixth year with you. There is much to look forward to, and to grieve, what a blessing it is to do all this, and more, with you.
See you soon.
With love and in faith,
Rev. Sophia
Reverend Sophia Lyons
Rev. Sophia is committed to radical welcome and spreading the good news that is our bold Unitarian Universalist faith. Some of her areas of interest include interfaith partnerships, addictions ministry, spiritual direction, and working towards collective liberation for all. Rev. Sophia aspires to live her life and fulfill her ministry guided by spiritual seeking, big love, and the seven principles of Unitarian Universalism.