UUCSC http://uustudiocity.org Sermons and services from the Unitarians of Studio City, California en-au Sun, 18 Mar 2012 16:00:00 PST Well-received guest speaker and oncology chaplain Michael Eselun explores, through personal reflections, the tension between our rational self that yearns for answers and the spiritual self that can be moved by wonder. Sun, 11 Mar 2012 16:00:00 PST From a poem by John Ciardi, author of How Does a Poem Mean? Sun, 26 Feb 2012 16:00:00 PST A celebration of the relationship between science and religion/spirituality. Sun, 19 Feb 2012 16:00:00 PST What the ancient Buddhist texts say about Loving-Kindness – “One sleeps easily, wakes easily, dreams no evil dreams. One is dear to human beings, dear to non-human beings. The devas (spirits) protect one. Neither fire, poison, nor weapons can touch one. One's mind gains concentration quickly. One's complexion is bright. One dies unconfused and is headed for heaven." Sun, 12 Feb 2012 16:00:00 PST Rev. Mike discusses how the search for our new settled minister is going. Sun, 5 Feb 2012 16:00:00 PST Sun, 29 Jan 2012 16:00:00 PST Sun, 22 Jan 2012 16:00:00 PST Sun, 15 Jan 2012 16:00:00 PST Sun, 8 Jan 2012 16:00:00 PST Sun, 1 Jan 2012 16:00:00 PST Sun, 25 Dec 2011 16:00:00 PST Rev. Mike's homily from the Christmas Eve candlelight service. Sat, 24 Dec 2011 16:00:00 PST Sun, 18 Dec 2011 16:00:00 PST Rev. Mike discusses ways to prepare for the arrival of our new settled minister. Sun, 11 Dec 2011 16:00:00 PST Petitioning the favor of the universe and assuring that there is life before death. Sun, 4 Dec 2011 16:00:00 PST A personal exploration of ethical eating from an avid carnivore. Sun, 20 Nov 2011 16:00:00 PST The Director of the UUA Transitions Office and our leader of yesterday’s workshop on the habits of mind that confine us to the familiar and restrict our openness. Sun, 6 Nov 2011 16:00:00 PST The Ministerial Search Committee sponsors a workshop offered by the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) for congregations involved in the search for a new minister. We consider the hopes, expectations, and concerns they have for a new minister, learn more about the ministerial search process, and explore how thinking categorically about people sometimes interferes with choosing the best candidate. Sat, 5 Nov 2011 16:00:00 PST Autumn and the Day of the Dead remind us of endings—in the year, and in our lives. Drawing on the work of William Bridges about transitions in our lives, and drawing on Buddhist practices of lovingkindness, David focuses on creating new beginnings for ourselves and our church community. Sun, 30 Oct 2011 16:00:00 PST No, he wasn’t a Buddhist, but his teaching method was Eastern, not Western. He was more like a Roshi than a moralist. Sun, 23 Oct 2011 16:00:00 PST After a surprising silence that a number of scholars have conjectured was a near-death experience, Shakespeare roared back with five magnificent tragedies. Those tragedies explore the nature of evil and of good in the human heart, and the transformative power of forgiveness to heal what has been broken and set the soul-compass aright. Sun, 16 Oct 2011 16:00:00 PST In observance of National Coming Out Day, Jon Bassinger-Flores and Liz Owen share the pulpit with Rev. Mike Young, each talking about the importance of coming out of the closet...as a member of the LGBT community, as a straight ally, and as a welcoming church. Sun, 9 Oct 2011 16:00:00 PST Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, is celebrated as a time for reflection on the past year. Who has a call on your ethical behavior? Sun, 2 Oct 2011 16:00:00 PST Whether an honest mistake by an ancient translator or a power play by the early church, the word “faith” has been convoluted into an instrument of repression rather than the positive, joyous concept it was meant to be. So how bad is everything? As bad as we decide it is. Sun, 25 Sep 2011 16:00:00 PST Marshall McLuhan said we were externalizing our nervous system. The Arab Spring may be the first crackle of those virtual neurons. We really are all in this together. Sun, 18 Sep 2011 16:00:00 PST The Kaddish is the Hebrew mourners’ prayer said daily for eleven months... ONLY! Sun, 11 Sep 2011 16:00:00 PST I am Union, and I am management. We are the economy. Money is imaginary. When we lose faith with one another, both go down the tubes. Sun, 4 Sep 2011 16:00:00 PST Or maybe I should call it "Listen Louder!" When it comes to religion and spirituality it's easy get caught sounding like we believed in magic words. Shazam! Sun, 28 Aug 2011 16:00:00 PST The core of our tradition is not what is believed, but the experience—individual and relational. The question is, What do you behave AS IF you believed? Sun, 14 Aug 2011 16:00:00 PST Social Justice is at the core of our faith tradition and our belief system as Unitarian Universalists. But to what extent do we carry this value? And what are our social responsibilities as UU’s? We explore social justice as our “creed” and ponder the possibilities of a worldwide religious community striving to do good. Sun, 7 Aug 2011 16:00:00 PST Our new Interim Minister gives us a quick taste of who he is and what he will be doing with us. Sun, 24 Jul 2011 16:00:00 PST Mike Young shares his flute collection with us. Sun, 24 Jul 2011 16:00:00 PST Can money and spirituality mix comfortably? Trish Lester — a UU from Santa Clarita and successful entrepreneur, saver and investor — talks about our values and the “almighty dollar.” Sun, 17 Jul 2011 16:00:00 PST This church is our spiritual home and beloved community, and the same is true for many 12-step groups that meet here. "Moorpark," as they call our church, is their sanctuary too, and today they share their recovery journey with us. Sun, 10 Jul 2011 16:00:00 PST Grace Mekrut, Carissa Edwards-Mendez, Siena Foster-Soltis, Faith Jorden, and Clara Pierone lead today's service. For more than a year these girls have worked together on the "Religion in Life" project, comparing our Unitarian Universalist principles with the values expressed in the Girl Scout Law. As they receive awards for the effort they have put into a really challenging project, they share some of what the Golden Rule means to each of them. Sun, 26 Jun 2011 16:00:00 PST Our annual recognition and appreciation Sunday gives us an opportunity to thank our UUCSC community members for sharing their gifts this past church year. Sun, 19 Jun 2011 16:00:00 PST I’ve been thinking about the occasion of my last sermon as your minister, and in typical UU fashion, I still have more questions than answers. But it will include, at least, some reflections on the journey that we have shared with one another over the past twelve years. Sun, 12 Jun 2011 16:00:00 PST John Seager is President and CEO of Population Connection, a grassroots organization that works to ensure that every woman around the world who wants to delay or end her childbearing has access to the health services and contraceptive supplies she needs in order to do so. Sun, 29 May 2011 16:00:00 PST Jay Atkinson, Deb Heisly, Anna Moore, and Jon Bassinger-Flores introduce this UUA program designed to help us raise our congregational understanding and awareness of what we can do to become truly and proactively welcoming to people of all sexual orientations and identities. Sun, 22 May 2011 16:00:00 PST Three of our members--Christiana Rosa, Greg Machlin, and Nanci Armstrong-Temple--share some of their thoughts and feelings about their mothers, or about being mothers themselves. Sun, 8 May 2011 16:00:00 PST The festival of Passover celebrates both a very specific event and a universal story. The themes of liberation and search for holy ground that we can call home prompts us to ask deep questions about our UU identity and what is sacred to us. Sun, 17 Apr 2011 16:00:00 PST Courage requires much more than just running head first into burning buildings. The Turning Tides teens will talk about choosing to live a courageous life. Sun, 10 Apr 2011 16:00:00 PST Despite our claim to diversity, we often carry knee-jerk biases against religious traditions that we have decided offer us nothing of value. To paraphrase George Orwell: "All religions may be equal, but some religions are more equal than others." How can we become less judgmental and more genuinely receptive to insights from "unlikely" sources? Sun, 3 Apr 2011 16:00:00 PST Reverend Miller, who describes himself as a "recovering fundraiser," talks about how we grow our church and meet its needs as well as the needs of the larger community. Sun, 27 Mar 2011 16:00:00 PST Our "Second Sunday" offering for March goes to the Valley Shelter that provides lunches to working adults and school children. Children ages 6 and up will stay with the adults for a shortened worship service this morning, followed by all of us joining in hands-on preparation of brown bag lunches to be taken to the shelter for distribution the next day. Your donations will support purchase of supplies for these lunches, and we will learn more about this outreach to local families in need. Sun, 13 Mar 2011 16:00:00 PST Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and . . . Wisconsin?! What domestic inspiration for our own beleagered democracy might we draw from liberation movements spreading out from the Maghreb? And how do we distinguish true democracy from its counterfeits? Sun, 6 Mar 2011 16:00:00 PST The words of my sermon title are ones that UUs have a reputation for avoiding. But I'm unwilling to let the conservatives claim all the good words for themselves, so I intend to rehabilitate these words for us this morning. Sun, 27 Feb 2011 16:00:00 PST This is the Sunday when we ask one another to bring back the "Guest at Your Table" boxes that I hope you've been making objects of attention, discussion, and contribution on your dinner tables over the past four weeks. I'll talk about the moral agenda that our UU Service Committee pursues among oppressed and disadvantaged communities around the world-work that your gifts will support. And I'll put all this into the context of our UU commitment to "Standing on the Side of Love." Sun, 13 Feb 2011 16:00:00 PST Since the shooting in Tucson on January 8, there has been much talk of civility and gun control. Both have to do with what it means to live in a civilized society and what civilization itself is all about, and we need to recall the role of religious values in the maintenance of civil virtue. Sun, 6 Feb 2011 16:00:00 PST What might it mean to each of us, our community and our world, if we each were to talk a little less and listen a little more? The Beatles song tells us that "all we need is love," but I'm thinking that maybe all we need is to listen more to each other and to our own inner truths. This sermon will explore what it means to authentically listen to each other and how it feels to really be heard. Sun, 30 Jan 2011 16:00:00 PST IllUUminations weekend is our annual focus on UU identity, values, and traditions. We'll consider these from the perspective of our flaming chalice symbol-its history and meanings-and our responsibility for the future of all that it represents. And we'll ask one another for special gifts to save our UU treasure-DeBenneville Pines. Sun, 23 Jan 2011 16:00:00 PST In a departure from the schedule due to the horrific events in Arizona, the Rev. Atkinson talks about Martin Luther King's heritage of non-violence and its meaning. Sun, 16 Jan 2011 16:00:00 PST Transitions in life offer challenges and choices: Do we cling to what we know, or do we venture forth into uncharted territory? This sermon will outline the process recommended by the UUA for securing the best minister for the next chapter in the life of this congregation. It will also include a story illustrating the qualities that help us cope creatively with the challenges of change. Sun, 9 Jan 2011 16:00:00 PST On this first day of Kwanzaa, I ask us to consider the universal value of this holiday's seven principles and the communitarian spirit of its vision-a deeply meaningful alternative to the shallowness of tea party values. Sun, 26 Dec 2010 16:00:00 PST When the world is silent and meditating in winter it is an opportunity for us to do the same, listening to the wisdom found within. Led by members Sara MacFarlane and Karen Schmidt, this service will involve elements of earth-centered tradition to honor the solstice and celebrate our community, strengthening our bond as a congregation. Sun, 19 Dec 2010 16:00:00 PST My sermon this morning challenges the all too common presumption of communal worship as a mostly passive experience of listening and responding. I'll offer instead a more active model of worship for which the appropriate follow-up question would be, not "How was it?" but rather "How did I do?" Sun, 5 Dec 2010 16:00:00 PST