When the topic of wisdom comes up, so do the usual images.  Walls and walls filled with dusty old books.  Elders with the wisdom of many years carved into the wrinkles on their faces.  Diplomas framed and filling one’s office wall.   Endless letters placed in front and behind your name (Dr, PhD, LCSW, JD, Rev, … Continue reading Wisdom (March 2020)

When did we decide that resilience was a solo project? It’s not that we consciously defined it that way. It’s just what we were taught, from the time we were little until, well, today. The same thing was – and is – said in so many ways: “Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps”; “You’re … Continue reading Resilience (February 2020)

What Does It Mean to Be A People of Integrity? Wholeness is never lost; it is only forgotten.  Integrity rarely means that we need to add something to ourselves: it is more an undoing than a doing, a freeing ourselves from beliefs we have about who we are and ways we have been persuaded to … Continue reading Integrity (January 2020)

This at least seems to me the main problem … How can we contrive to be at once astonished at the world and yet at home in it? … How can this world give us at once the fascination of a strange town and the comfort and honor of being our own town?                 — G … Continue reading Awe (December 2019)

What Does It Mean to Be A People of Attention? Alice Walker famously wrote, “I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don’t notice it.” Walker’s words are a great reminder that attention and gratitude go hand in hand.  Indeed they are a perfect embodiment … Continue reading Attention (November 2019)

What Does It Mean to Be A People of Belonging? You hardly knewhow hungry you wereto be gathered in,to receive the welcomethat invited you to enterentirely …Tentative steps became settling in …You began to breathe again …You learned to sing.But the deal with this blessingis that it will not leave you alone,will not let you … Continue reading Belonging (October 2019)

What Does It Mean to Be A People of Expectation? We’ve all heard the line: “You get what you expect.” It’s very UU. Liberal religion has always emphasized the tremendous power human beings have to shape their reality. And not just with our actions, but also with our expectations. We know that if you expect … Continue reading Expectation (September 2019)

What Does It Mean to Be A People of Beauty? Where do you look for beauty? There is universal agreement that we all must make time to visit museums and sit before stunning sunsets. But seeking beauty there is not enough. Every religion agrees: The secret to encountering spiritual beauty is to visit and observe … Continue reading Beauty (June 2019)

What Does It Mean to Be A People of Curiosity? UU minister Victoria Safford speaks of curiosity using the metaphor of perception and sight.  She writes, To see, simply to look and to see, is an ethical act and intentional choice; to see, with open eyes, is a spiritual practice and thus a risk, for … Continue reading Curiosity (May 2019)

What Does It Mean to Be A People of Wholeness? Let’s just say that we’re skeptical about rushing in to fix things. We Unitarian Universalists understand the urge to restore what once was.  Nothing is more human.  Who doesn’t want to reverse the damage?  Who doesn’t hold on to the humpty dumpty hope that all … Continue reading Wholeness (April 2019)