Minister’s Blog

Happy post Groundhog day.   As the tradition goes, if the groundhog sees its shadow, there will be 6 more weeks of winter.  No shadow, and spring is arriving early this year. The Stewardship Team has been reviewing our own congregation’s shadows regarding pledge receipts.  So far, we are shadow free in our pledge collections for the year. We are on ...

As we enter deeper into what looks like will be longest government shut-down in history, it's hard not to see the reality of a crisis of leadership in our country.  It makes one feel helpless to do anything about it.  What is the up side of this, if there could be one?  What leadership still functions and soldiers on? I ...

Friends, after this blog, I'll be taking a break for a few weeks.  I have turned over a new leaf to write a blog most weeks, so I hope y'all have been reading 'em!  But alas, I still need a break every now and then (next Sunday will be my first Sunday off since August; oy), so this blog is ...

A few days ago, I received this email from my colleague, Rev. KC Slack, who serves the UU Church of the Verdugo Hills in La Crescenta: As you all know, the situation at the border has recently been escalated by US law enforcement, and refugees are struggling in hard conditions. Some very trusted activist friends of mine have been gathering ...

I both love and hate this time of year.  I love it because Advent traditionally asks us to prepare for the sacred to enter our lives.  Metaphorically, we are told to not sleep, but rather be watchful for how we might let the saving power of love enter our lives.  If we fall asleep, we might miss it.  I love ...

I feel like I have been getting ready for a wonderful wedding taking place this Saturday night!  Food, entertainment, music, what am I going to wear . . . ?  Our 75th Anniversary Gala is finally going to happen and I am SO excited.  For many months the Anniversary Planning Team has worked hard on the details of properly acknowledging ...

Guest blogger and preacher Antoinette Scully . . . I discovered Octavia Butler in 2016 when I started my book blog and my Black author experiment. That year, I dedicated myself to only reading books written by Black writers and sharing my thoughts on those books at blackandbookish.com. I've been a longtime reader but I had never heard of this Pasadena ...

Back in January of this year, I attended the UU Ministers Association professional development seminar with Marcia McFee that focused on worship.  She introduced the concept of a sermon series, as a way to try something new.  She shared her view that, "you can't deliver a one-hit wonder every Sunday of the year!"  Although that's what I usually try to ...

This Sunday Lexi Bagheri, our last lay-preacher of the summer season, is sharing her meditation on the prevalence of depression and suicide in our culture. She will also offer suggestions of ways we can look for signs to help people who are struggling. De-stigmatizing mental illness has always been one of my overarching missions throughout my career as a UU ...

It's so exciting to see that a Muslim woman may soon be off to Congress.  Please see this article about Rashida Tlaib from Democracy Now! Hajj, or making a pilgrimage to Mecca, is one of the five pillars of Islam, and the culminating date of Hajj happens to be this Sunday, when we will be so fortunate to welcome Esma Ali ...

Happy August!  Summer is my favorite time of year because it's a chance to travel, reflect, and enjoy the gifts of life:  time with friends and family, being outdoors with nature, and time to sit deep with a few good books. I have been reading several wonderful new books in preparation for my sermons over the course of the year.  ...

By UUCSC member Rachel Bennett Steury. In June, I attended General Assembly in Kansas City Missouri in my role as Administrator of UUs for a Just Economic Community (UUJEC). While there, I helped to coordinate our Annual Meeting, Board Retreat, Poster and Networking Session and our advocacy on two AIWs. Here are several highlights from General Assembly.  I included links ...