You can find it in the myths and folklore of pretty much all Mesoamerican cultures; it shows up in lot’s of other cultures, too.  Hungarians called it, “égig érő fa,” the Sky-High Tree, and “életfa,” the Tree of Life.  To the Norse it was, “Yggdrasil,” the World Tree.  At the base of which was the pool of the […]

Having lived through WWII and communism, Unitarians in Transylvania know a lot about sticking to core values during hardship and change. Rev Alex will offer ideas for us based on her visit.  [Note: we will be celebrating our New Member Recognition ceremony!] Our liturgical year is organized around the four seasons and four fundamental issues […]

There’s a joke I’ve always loved, but always have to look up to make sure I get it right.  When I looked it up (again) this week I discovered that in a 2005 poll in the UK it had been voted the funniest religious joke: I was walking across a bridge one day, and I saw a […]

As I listened on Thursday to the testimony of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, I knew that what I’d planned to reflect on this morning had to be set aside.  This happens to preachers from time to time.  I’ve had it happen as late as while I was stepping into the pulpit.  I know someone who says that there’ve […]

The various traditions and lineages of Buddhism disagree with one another as much as the different branches of Christianity do (or, for that matter, people who understand Unitarian Universalism differently).  These various traditions and lineages do share many common teachings, of course.  One of these is that all Buddhists — from no matter what specific […]

This morning I’d like us to explore two ideas:  marginalized community, and beloved community.  We hear both of these terms a fair bit, yet with one of them we have all too many examples to look to, and the other nowhere near far enough.  When I studied philosophy in college I learned that it’s really important to begin […]

Ganesh and Blessings for New Beginnings OPENING When I was in college, I spent four months in Sri Lanka, which is a country on the other side of the world, near India.  I lived with a family there.  One day, we were setting out on a trip.  As we left town, we stopped by a statue at the […]

Water is pretty awesome. 50% – 60% of the human body is made up of water.  Did you know that?  50% – 60%.  And some 75% — ¾ — of the earth’s surface is covered in water.  (Some people say we shouldn’t call our planet “Earth;” we should have called it, “Water.”)  Life on this planet, at least, began in […]

Her marriage had imploded, leaving her a divorced, single mother, dependent on welfare to get her from day-to-day.  She was severely depressed, and things felt so bad to her that she considered suicide.  To make matters worse, perhaps, she also was an aspiring author.  She said ever since she had learned what a writer was, she wanted to be […]

Elwyn Brooks White, better known as E. B. White, may be best known as the author of Charlotte’sWeb and Stuart Little, or, by people of a certain age, the co-author of a little volume often called Strunk & White or, more accurately The Elements of Style.  (Some people shudder at the memory of it; others delight in its clarity and decisiveness.  Most are […]