“Life is filled with suffering, but it is also filled with many wonders . . .  To suffer is not enough. We must also be in touch with the wonders of life.  They are within us and all around us, everywhere, any time.”   These are the opening lines of Being Peace, the small book by … Continue reading Cultivating Peace for a New Year

Sorrow and joy often appear in our culture, sometimes even in Unitarian Universalist worships services, as binary opposites. Whether we mean to or not, we speak and act at times as if when there is sorrow there can be no joy and when there is joy there can be no sorrow.  What if they are … Continue reading The Cauldron of Vocation

Recent brain research correlated across 11 academic fields shows us not only how important stories and storytelling are to being human but, in fact, that story is the organizing principle of the human brain.  In this service we will explore the kinds of stories a beloved community can tell and offer to the world. Bob … Continue reading Beloved Communities Tell Powerful Stories

Isn’t the work of social justice stand-alone work?  Isn’t social justice a special concerns area that sometimes a few folks are called to attend?  What if I don’t feel called to social justice work – does it have anything to do with me? Bob Patrick, Service Leader. Lydia Patrick, Worship Associate.

In this service, can we agree to enter into a time of deep inquiry with one another?  Can we create a space safe enough to ask some probing questions about ourselves as a community of faith?  When we say each week as we do, “you are welcome here”, what does “here” mean? Once people find … Continue reading All is Welcome Here – To What?

Even in people of color majority communities like Gwinnett County, GA, social and power structures still default to the expectations of white people.  In this service, we will prayerfully and intentionally examine some of the elements of this default and what it means to be a community committed to compassion. Bob Patrick, Service Leader. Miriam … Continue reading When You Open the Window, What Do You Expect?

Zen, in the Buddhist tradition, is the Japanese word for something like this: Directly pointing at one’s heart, seeing one’s nature, becoming Buddha. Tenebrae is the Latin for “shadows” and is the name of the service traditionally held on Good Friday, the day that Jesus was crucified. This service invites us to enter into the … Continue reading Good Friday: Zen Tenebrae

Religious faith has a history of being both the thing that instills fear in people as well as being a vehicle for setting human hearts free to do amazing things.  Bring your own stories to this service and let’s explore faith, fear and finding the inner flame. Bob Patrick, Service Leader. Toby Lyles, Worship Associate.

A Service of Compassionate Presence. Bob Patrick, Service Leader. Evan Varner, Worship Associate.

Those personal qualities and life circumstances that we consider curses very often work out to be the blessings that we are and have to offer others.  What if, rather than treating them as opposing forces, we think about blessings and curses as mutual forces?  As forces of exchange and interchange. Bob Patrick, Service Leader. Devon … Continue reading Blessings and Curses