Live Stream As Scotty McLennan reminds us, “Easter is the joyful surprise that even when things look as bleak as they possibly can – following the crucifixion of Good Friday – love has the power to rise again and transform the world.”  Whether we identify as Christian or not, we know suffering is real and … Continue reading Awaken to Healing

Stories of insight, reflection, and growth resulting from our individual and collective experience since March 2020.  If you’ve had some kind of “pandemic awakening,” please let Michael know. We’d love to hear your story. Our First Sunday drop-in covenant group will focus on our monthly theme of “Awakening.”  All are invited to participate.  Dan Frye … Continue reading Pandemic Awakenings

Materialism, which holds that matter is the primary reality of the universe, is not able to explain a range of phenomena yet is considered the rational option by the majority of academics and intellectuals.  What if the essence of reality was not limited to matter but included a fundamental and universal quality we might call … Continue reading Spiritual Science

The Board of Trustees recently voted to adopt a new ends statement (what impact we want to have and on whom) to make an explicit commitment to “work to recognize, understand, and dismantle systems of bias, oppression, and privilege within ourselves, our congregation, our community, and the larger world.” Trustees will share the journey and … Continue reading Widening our Circle of Concern

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”  These words attributed to Victor Frankl assume there is such a thing as free will.  Whether we share this assumption or not, it is critical that we pretend … Continue reading Free Will as Moral Obligation

A life of meaning involves a sense that our life matters – from a eulogy perspective rather than a resume perspective, and that we are immersed in things we both love doing and admire.  David Brooks points to three projects as essential to a worthy life:  (1) Be in internal harmony with ourselves, (2) Be … Continue reading A Life of Meaning

The meaning of life is to be good at soccer or choral singing.  For those who don’t find this obvious, the sermon will unpack these claims by looking at how great thinkers have framed the questions that matter as we search for life’s meaning and how it relates to a life full of meaning. Our … Continue reading The Meaning of Life

 ‘Tis a gift to be simple.  So true.  So often ignored.  It is a gift because simplicity opens space in the webs of our inner and outer worlds.  Space for wonder, for pleasure, for amusement, for contentment, for relief, for gratitude and all the other feelings that make up the emotional expanse of joy.  Slowing … Continue reading The Joy of Simplicity

“Joy is a way of approaching the world.” says Archbishop Desmond Tutu in his dialog with the Dalai Lama.  Joy is a way of being, not a temporary feeling.  Joy can become tangible and real even in times of struggle, anxiety, and despair.  What are the pre-conditions of joy?  How do we create space to … Continue reading Opening to Joy