UUSLO

We Think We Can't...We Think We Can't - Audio

September 05, 2021 16:58 - 16 minutes - 3.74 MB

No, that's not what the Little Engine says, but that's often what we hear when we demand an end to economic inequality, racism, and destruction of the environment. In an age of possibility, we often run into fatalism. And a new book has just come out that is a companion to the Little Engine That Could...

Making Room for Lovingkindness - Audio

August 29, 2021 14:22 - 9 minutes - 2.2 MB

Mary Raskin is a member of Kol Shalom, Community for Humanistic Judaism in Portland, Oregon and serves on their Ritual Committee. Mary also serves as national president for the Society for Humanistic Judaism. She is certified Madrikha/Ritual Leader and is currently close to completing her studies to become a Humanistic Rabbi. Mary will share in this service about Tashlikh, a holiday that falls between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

Future Tense - Audio

August 15, 2021 15:23 - 14 minutes - 3.33 MB

We are leaning toward the future, ready to reclaim our lives...with more than a little hesitation.

The "We" We Long to Be - Audio

July 11, 2021 15:31 - 20 minutes - 4.69 MB

What do we talk about when we talk about "we"? Does every "us" require a "them"?

The Country Where My Heart Is - Audio

July 04, 2021 23:51 - 19 minutes - 4.57 MB

“This is my home,” I say, along with the words in our hymnal: “The country where my heart is.” How can I not love it? How can I not feel patriotic when I look at what it has offered me? And yet, what do I do with the recognition that what has been offered me is not available to everyone. That “liberty and justice for all” is not a reality, no matter how many times we say the words. How do I use what privilege I have to make that a reality, and how much am I willing to challenge my own comfort...

It's Only Words - Audio

May 24, 2021 03:08 - 18 minutes - 4.32 MB

...but words matter. On the road to being an ever-more inclusive community, we need to also embrace a new vocabulary.

Telling Stories - Audio

May 02, 2021 20:30 - 17 minutes - 4.04 MB

Storytelling is wonderful, right? And, yet, "telling stories" can be a euphemism for...well...lying.

To Be or To Become - Audio

April 11, 2021 17:06 - 12 minutes - 2.9 MB

We welcome you here, saying that you are accepted just as you are...and then we encourage your (and our own) "transformation." So which is it?

Inciting Resurrection - Audio

April 04, 2021 17:42 - 16 minutes - 3.7 MB

It began as a misspoken phrase by a lawyer for then-President Donald Trump, but the phrase (quite apart from its original context) has stayed with me. How would we go about inciting resurrection?

Traveling Light - Audio

March 28, 2021 18:10 - 19 minutes - 4.36 MB

What should we bring on the journey? Reflections on the story of liberation contained in Exodus as the Jewish celebration of Passover begins.

Everything in Its Place - Audio

March 08, 2021 03:22 - 19 minutes - 4.4 MB

If we are truly committed to a more inclusive society, then we need to also be committed to making room.

Beloved - Audio

February 28, 2021 20:22 - 10 minutes - 2.51 MB

It's an interesting word, right? Is it different than "loved"? Is it just more formal? And how does it connect with "Community"?

Love Will Tear Us Apart - Audio

February 21, 2021 16:53 - 17 minutes - 4.07 MB

I've always been intrigued by this provocative title of a song by Joy Division. Lately, I've been wondering how this shows up in our world. Does love, in being a threat to current systems, appear threatening to some? Is love, in being a challenge to fear, also disruptive to perceived security?

Going Viral - Audio

February 08, 2021 01:42 - 16 minutes - 3.76 MB

What lessons might a virus teach us about creating beloved community?

When I Know I'm Right - Audio

January 31, 2021 15:53 - 19 minutes - 4.57 MB

It is difficult to open myself to opposing--or even alternative--viewpoints when I know that I'm right. And yet, I must support what I believe is right when confronting what is wrong...right? How do we balance compassionate listening with courageous conviction?

In Dreams Begin Responsibilities - Audio

January 18, 2021 21:56 - 17 minutes - 4.09 MB

Most everyone knows what is meant by "The Dream Speech." Lesser known is this title of a short story by Delmore Schwartz that may help us grasp Martin Luther King's words in a new way.

I Can't Even Imagine - Audio

January 10, 2021 15:59 - 16 minutes - 3.67 MB

It is said sometimes as an acknowledgment that I cannot fully understand your experience from the inside. And it is sometimes said as…well, what?

Epiphany - Audio

January 04, 2021 03:51 - 18 minutes - 4.16 MB

An epiphany is an experience of a sudden and striking realization; an awareness beyond what we had previously imagined.

Fear Not - Audio

December 22, 2020 15:52 - 14 minutes - 3.29 MB

“Fear not,” is a consistent, persistent message brought by angels in the Christmas stories. “Fear is the opposite of faith,” writes Jan Christian. “When we act out of fear, we are in danger of inadvertently creating what we most fear.” How do we let go of fear? Where do we find assurance?

Be Still - Audio

December 16, 2020 16:37 - 10 minutes - 2.41 MB

When I was told this as a child, it usually meant, “STOP whatever it is you’re doing and be quiet.” Does it have a different meaning in sacred writings and teachings? How does it take shape in our lives?

The Wind. The Earthquake. The Fire. - Audio

December 06, 2020 21:02 - 22 minutes - 5.1 MB

The beautiful story of the prophet, Elijah—which gave us the phrase “a still, small voice”—also points out that the Lord was not in the wind, the earthquake, or the fire. In a theology that generally purports that “everything is holy now,” how do we understand the absence of a holy presence.

The Stories We Tell Ourselves - Audio

November 22, 2020 21:06 - 21 minutes - 4.92 MB

We are called, as a country, to confront the truth (and the lies) contained in the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves. For instance: the narratives that surround a favorite holiday to many: Thanksgiving. During this Native American History month, let's find out what there is to be learned about these stories of "the founders."

Well, Now What Do We Do? - Audio

November 09, 2020 01:29 - 16 minutes - 3.72 MB

Election day has come and gone and now...well...what?

If Memory Serves - Audio

November 02, 2020 01:55 - 13 minutes - 3.19 MB

A commemoration of loss and a celebration of love.

At the End of the Day - Audio

September 29, 2020 18:22 - 15 minutes - 3.56 MB

It's a well-worn phrase, repeated often, I've noticed, by news correspondents, politicians, etc. It means that time, apparently, when priorities are properly ranked and we can see "the truth of the matter." One question: why do we have to wait until the end of the day?

Renewing Our Relationship to God - Audio

September 26, 2020 15:58 - 16 minutes - 3.82 MB

In this service, filmmaker and activist Justice Whitaker uses his own journey to explore how redefining and in turn renewing his relationship with spiritual faith has sustained the emotional roller coaster of 2020. Examining his personal relationship with GOD as a youth in the UU church, and how spirituality has guided his growth as an artist and a Black man, Justice explores how many different faith derivatives have contributed to his renewing his relationship with God in 2020, The Year of G...

Happily Ever After - Audio

August 30, 2020 21:48 - 17 minutes - 4.03 MB

"...and they lived happily ever after." Ummm, yeah, but what did that look like? What do you do after you have successfully found happiness?

Living on Purpose - Audio

August 23, 2020 21:24 - 16 minutes - 3.81 MB

What on earth am I here for? Pastor Rick Warren sought to answer that question with a book entitled "The Purpose-Driven Life." What does it mean to "have a purpose," and is that a question we can answer once and for all?

Happy to Be Sad - Audio

August 16, 2020 20:35 - 16 minutes - 3.67 MB

If asked to say "the opposite of happy," a response that naturally--almost automatically--comes to mind is, "sad." And yet, that doesn't quite fit.

Bored Again - Audio

August 12, 2020 14:48 - 15 minutes - 3.6 MB

What do we do with our time in a pandemic? How do we wrestle with restlessness?

Chasing Our Tails - Audio

August 02, 2020 19:34 - 16 minutes - 3.75 MB

Pursuing happiness may be a right, but it can sometimes feel like a hopeless endeavor. Is happiness a goal, or a byproduct of other pursuits?

Give Me Liberty - Audio

July 26, 2020 21:14 - 18 minutes - 4.33 MB

When we hear the word "liberty," we are apt, first, to think of a certain statue. Next, we may remember this line from a speech by Patrick Henry in 1775: "Give me liberty or give me death."

Is That All There Is? - Audio

July 24, 2020 20:18 - 13 minutes - 3.09 MB

Freedom, reason, and tolerance have been identified as central characteristics of Unitarianism. But...does that sufficiently capture our highest aspirations? How is freedom the same as liberation? And how does it differ?

Dust to Dust - Audio

July 13, 2020 02:33 - 18 minutes - 4.15 MB

Is there life after death? How do some of the world's religions and wisdom traditions speak to this question? How do beliefs about life after death affect how we live in this life? "Some beliefs are like walled gardens," writes Sophia Lyon Fahs. "They encourage exclusiveness, and the feeling of being especially privileged...Other beliefs are expansive and lead the way into wider and deeper sympathies."

City on a Hill - Audio

July 05, 2020 19:01 - 18 minutes - 4.22 MB

Puritan John Winthrop told the early colonists that their community would be "as a city upon a hill," hearkening back to some words from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. That phrase has been used throughout American history...what does it mean?

Within You and Without You - Audio

June 25, 2020 23:40 - 16 minutes - 3.77 MB

Compassion is often about empathy; feeling with, understanding. But can compassion exist without the benefit of shared experience? What about those things that are beyond our capacity to fully comprehend?

Too Tired to Care - Audio

June 07, 2020 13:02 - 18 minutes - 4.2 MB

Sometimes known as "compassion fatigue," we can become overwhelmed at the number of injustices, inequities, and sorrowful circumstances calling for our attention. How do we renew our commitments when the temptation is to give up?

Meditation on Breathing - Audio

May 31, 2020 14:47 - 20 minutes - 4.78 MB

"The first step to building an antiracist America is acknowledging America’s racist past. By acknowledging America’s racist past, we can acknowledge America’s racist present. In acknowledging America’s racist present, we can work toward building an antiracist America…" Ibram X. Kendi

Forgetting to Remember - Audio

May 24, 2020 14:09 - 16 minutes - 3.75 MB

Memory is a powerful tool, one that can lend itself to healing or harming. How do we choose to use it? And what are those things we forget to remember?

May Nothing Evil ... - Audio

May 10, 2020 13:38 - 16 minutes - 3.86 MB

...cross this door. That's the rest of the line in the very first hymn in one of our hymnals. But how do we go about refusing evil entry?

Guilty as Sin - Audio

May 03, 2020 12:38 - 16 minutes - 3.88 MB

Looking at the tragic (and unnecessary) suffering that pervades our world, we can understandably feel guilty for all that we have not done to alleviate it, losing faith in ourselves and in humanity at large. How might we approach this feeling of hopelessness as a threshold, inviting us to summon the courage to change the things we can.

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