UCDSM Sermons
100 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 7 years ago -UCDSM Sermons
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
We Remember Them: A Festival of Remembrance
October 30, 2016 05:00Rev. Mark Stringer and Rev. Erin Gingrich October 30, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) For this, our traditional end-of-October service of remembrance to honor those who have died and to celebrate the continuity of life, we will together create an altar adorned with items that we think would be beautiful to our departed loved ones.
Forgetting to Heal
October 23, 2016 05:00Rev. Mark Stringer October 23, 2016Listen to the Audio (MP3) Watch the Video (YouTube link) Download the Text (PDF)Celebrant Reflection: "To be a Family Man" by Garrett McGuireListen to the Audio (MP3) Watch the Video (YouTube link) Download the Text (PDF)
Sexual Healing
October 16, 2016 05:00Rev. Erin Gingrich October 16, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3)One in three women and one in four men are sexually violated at some point in their lives, with the majority of transgressions occurring before the age of 12. This means we have either experienced this ourselves or know someone who has.
The Bonds that Bind Each to All
October 09, 2016 05:00Rev. Mary Katherine MornOctober 9, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)Mark Morrison-Reed reminds us that the “central task of religion is to unveil the bonds that bind each to all.” The unveiling is, in and of itself, a healing—of disconnection, loneliness, alienation. We will explore the practice of unveiling these bonds in our shared life and our individual spiritual practice.
Thou and I
October 06, 2016 05:00Rev. Mark Stringer October 2, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Download the Text (PDF) Celebrant Reflection by Lyra Halsten Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3)To download the text, click the PDF link above
Promises We Keep
September 25, 2016 05:00Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs, Co-Minister of Unity Church-Unitarian in Saint Paul, MinnesotaSeptember 25, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)Rather than asking that you be bound to a set of specific beliefs, Unitarian Universalism invites you “to dare to love God without mediator or veil.” Our community invites you into a way of being religious that centers on the covenantal question; what shall we promise each other and in what interest?
Faith in Covenant
September 18, 2016 05:00Rev. Mark StringerSeptember 18, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)While we don’t necessarily share a common creed as Unitarian Universalists, we do share a common faith--a faith in covenant. We’ll consider together the challenges and benefits of such a faith and why it matters.
Whose Are We
September 11, 2016 05:00Rev. Mark Stringer September 11, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) It has been suggested that the question “Who am I?” will inevitably lead to a deeper question: “Whose am I?” To whom do you belong? To whom are you accountable?
Blending the Waters
September 04, 2016 05:00Rev. Mark StringerSeptember 4, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)
Faith for the 21st Century
August 28, 2016 05:00Rev. Brian Eslinger, Community MinisterAugust 28, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)
Living as We are Meant to Live
August 21, 2016 05:00Rev. Elaine Aron Tenbrink, Minister of Membership and Adult Ministries at First Universalist Church of MinneapolisAugust 21, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)The poet Wendell Berry reminds us that the spiritual journey is not a journey of miles, but the journey of one inch "by which we arrive at the ground at our feet, and learn to be at home." What would it look like to resist the cultural scripts and guidelines that are fed to us and learn to be at home in o...
Tempermentally Unfit
August 14, 2016 05:00Rev. Mark StringerAugust 14, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)Download the Text (PDF)Mark returns to the pulpit following his sabbatical with a meditation on what it means to be human as the world seems to be going awry.
Beyond Belief
August 07, 2016 05:00Rev. Steven Protzman, UU Society of Iowa CityAugust 7, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)Unitarian Universalism is often described as a religion where you can believe anything you want to, but what if UUA President Peter Morales is right when he says that belief is the enemy of religion? What would a religion beyond belief look like?
42
July 31, 2016 05:00Rev. Jay Wolin, UU Congregation of the Quad Cities in Davenport, IAJuly 31, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)In Douglas Adams book the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy the "Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, The Universe and Everything" is 42. In multiple interviews, Adams has said it was a joke, and he just made up the number.
Rocking Chairs and Hot Air Balloons
July 24, 2016 05:00Rev. Kent McKusick, UU Fellowship of AmesJuly 24, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)Whenever I return to my home state of Maine, I remember tall tales and folk stories my grandfather told, some of them even true! His stories made me laugh, and many were passed from generation to generation.
Learning to Listen
July 17, 2016 05:00Rev. Steven Protzman, UU Society of Iowa City July 17, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) It is said that we often listen to reply rather than understand. What does it mean to truly listen and how can we cultivate the spiritual practice of listening?
Reflections on Learning
July 10, 2016 05:00Rev. Erin GingrichJuly 10, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)Rev. Erin reflects on some of the ideas and books she is engaging during her study leave.
When Restorative Justice Arrived in Search of Me
July 03, 2016 05:00Fred Van LiewJuly 3, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)Fred reflects on his discovery of Restorative Justice, its influence on him as a prosecutor, and how it has led him to see Community as essential to the healing of our broken justice system.
To Exist is to Resist
June 26, 2016 05:00Maria Filippone, D.O., memberJune 26, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)Listen to the Audio (MP3)Member Maria Filippone shares her experiences from a medical delegation trip to Gaza this past January. Hear the stories she was lucky to bear witness to and get a glimpse into the lives of the beautiful forgotten people of Gaza. Your heart will burst wide open.
A Tribute to Fatherhood
June 19, 2016 05:00Jon Royal, member June 19, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Download the Text (PDF) As we celebrate Father's Day, Jon explores and reflects on the role and challenges of modern fatherhood. In today's world fatherhood can be reduced to the role of sperm donor or elevated to the level of primary care giver; regardless it is critical in all of our development.
The Question Box Service
June 05, 2016 05:00Rev. Linda Barnes & Rev. Erin GingrichJune 5, 2016Watch the Video (YouTube link)2016-6-5 Question Box Service.mp3
A Call to Authenticity
May 29, 2016 05:00Rev. Linda Barnes May 29, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Download the Text (PDF) We all struggle to know ourselves honestly and fully. Join Rev.
Giving and Receiving
May 15, 2016 05:00Rev. Erin Gingrich May 15, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) UU minister Jaco ten Hove writes, "I may lift up and articulate well the principle of interdependence, but then live out of an exaggerated independence. To the extent that any of us are able to ask for help, we invite that life-giving spirit to join us on our path when the going gets rough.” How might we lean into our beliefs through our actions?
Love, No Matter What
May 08, 2016 05:00Rev. Erin Gingrich May 8, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) In preparation of becoming parents, Rev. Erin and her husband have been listening to a series of TED talks called "Advice to Help You Be a Great Parent”.
'Yes, and...' - the Art of Improv Blessing
May 01, 2016 05:00Rev. Karen Hering, consulting literary minister, Unity Church-Unitarian (St Paul, MN) May 1, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Improv performances are based on a simple formula of saying “yes” to whatever is given — a word, a scenario, an action — and adding to it to create a rich story of shared authorship. Far from the panacea of positive thinking, this challenging practice can be useful when living through significant change, especially in community.
We Are Because of Others
April 24, 2016 05:00Rev. Erin Gingrich April 24, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) People often say it is their desire for community rather than God that brings them to First Unitarian. What do we find in community that is of ultimate concern and meaning?
Remembering Our Belonging
April 17, 2016 14:15Rev. Linda Barnes April 17, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) A great forgetting has occurred. We have forgotten that to which we belong, of what we are made, and how we are connected to all of creation.
Creating Mercy
April 10, 2016 05:00Rev. Erin Gingrich April 10, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Just Mercy, the UUA’s suggested all read book by Bryan Stevenson, details a lawyer’s extraordinary efforts to serve those unjustly condemned to life without parole or death. He strives for just mercy, as opposed to mercy, defining it as the kind of mercy that "has the power to heal the psychic harm and injuries that lead to aggression and violence, abuse of power and mass incarceration.” How might we c...
A Life Transformed
April 07, 2016 05:00Harvey Harrison, member April 3, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) When Harvey Harrison retired from his law practice in 2011, he did not anticipate becoming an activist on issues of racial justice. Michelle Alexander’s book, The New Jim Crow and the NAACP booklet, Born Suspect changed all of that. Becoming involved in the movement to end, once and for all, the continuing racial injustice in our country has been a privilege, an honor and a transformative experience
Resurrecting Ourselves
March 27, 2016 05:00Rev. Erin Gingrich March 27, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Download the Text (PDF) Easter offers us the spiritual themes of letting go into death so that we can be reborn through resurrection. What liberation might we experience in letting go and making space for something new in us to take form?
Enlightenment and Liberation
March 20, 2016 05:00Rev. Dr. Brian Eslinger March 20, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Easter offers us the spiritual themes of letting go into death so that we can be reborn through resurrection.
What Makes a Fire Burn
March 13, 2016 06:00Jordinn Nelson Long March 13, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube) Listen to the Audio (MP3) In reading this, you are likely contemplating a deeply subversive action: coming to church. How do the small spaces we create in our weeks make room for something larger in our lives? What might we kindle together on Sunday morning, and how will those sparks bring light to the larger world?
Only Connect
February 28, 2016 06:00Rev. Dr. Larry Peers February 28, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) “Only connect!
Light Will Someday Split You Open
February 21, 2016 06:00Celebrant Reflection - Chris February 21, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Rev. Erin Gingrich February 21, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) We learn from life's difficulties and also life's joys. As we explore being a people of desire, let us recall the times when it was what we desired, or the light, as the poet Rumi writes, that split us open and expanded our hearts for the better.
High Desire / Low Desire?
February 14, 2016 06:00Rev. Mark Stringer February 14, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen the to the Audio (MP3) In all relationships, romantic and otherwise, there tend to be differences in desire between the partners. Depending on the topic at hand, one partner may be considered “high desire” and the other partner, comparatively speaking, “low desire”.
How Much is it Worth
February 07, 2016 06:00Member Reflections and Rev. Mark Stringer February 7, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link)
Steadying Ourselves in a Rocky Boat
January 31, 2016 06:00Rev. Erin Gingrich January 31, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) We often face resistance when changing the status quo at work, school or in our relationships. What fortitude and spiritual centering is needed to persist in the face of resistance?
Resistance: Navigating the Tension Lines Between Power and Love
January 24, 2016 06:00Rev. Kent McKusick, UU Fellowship of Ames January 24, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) The Rev. Dr.
Resisting the Headlong Tumble
January 17, 2016 06:00Rev. Mark Stringer January 17, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) In the midst of challenging times when we can too often respond with emotional reactivity rather than with clear thinking, what are some ways that we can keep our heads on straight and our hearts engaged?
Dedication to Black Lives Matter
January 13, 2016 06:00January 10, 2016 Reflection by Karen Lauer: Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Banner Dedication, Rev. Stringer's Meditation & Rev. Gingrich's Reflection: Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Download the Text of Rev.
Resistance and Acceptance
January 03, 2016 06:00Rev. Mark Stringer January 3, 2016 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Welcome the new year with your church family at this annual “Crossing the Threshold” service. Meaningful fun and ritual for all ages.
All That We Need
December 24, 2015 06:00Rev. Mark Stringer December 24, 2015 Christmas Eve Homily Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3)
Hope in the Dark
December 20, 2015 06:00Rev. Erin Gingrich December 20, 2015 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Nature's dark season reminds us of the nourishment of being fallow. This Solstice, let us slow down to embrace the gifts and nourishment of the dark, even as we celebrate the returning of the light.
Making a Life: Faith and Living the Big Open Question
December 13, 2015 06:00the almost Rev. Linda Barnes December 13, 2015 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3)
Believing in Santa
December 06, 2015 06:00Rev. Mark Stringer December 6, 2015 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) Mark shares with us his personal journey with the mystery and mythology of Santa Claus. He hasn’t always believed.
You Make the Call - Arriving Empty Handed
November 29, 2015 06:00Rev. Mark Stringer November 29, 2015 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) At our October 25 services, the congregation voted for a sermon they would like to hear Mark deliver again. “Arriving Empty Handed”—originally presented in 2014—was the winner.
All in the Family
November 15, 2015 06:00Rev. Mark Stringer November 15, 2015 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) For this annual service that grapples with a concept from Murray Bowen’s Family Systems theory, Mark considers how we are bequeathed at least some of the emotional process and levels of differentiation of our ancestors and how we might begin to claim our own differentiation (or capacity to be a separate self) in the current families of our lives.
Celebrant Reflection
November 15, 2015 06:00Laura Berardi November 15, 2015 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3)
Crossing the Bridge to Selma
November 08, 2015 06:00Rev. Dr. Mark Morrison-Reed November 8, 2015 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) In March 1965, when the call came to join the African-American citizens of Selma, UUs responded.
Waking Up to Whiteness
November 01, 2015 05:00Rev. Mark Stringer November 1, 2015 Watch the Video (YouTube link) Listen to the Audio (MP3) By considering his own indoctrination into his “white” racial identity, Mark will invite us to reflect upon how we have been racialized—cast into stories of racial identity that we did not choose but that impact our lives nonetheless.