Tonight in Boston is the first of my Minns Lectures on American Populism and Unitarian Universalism. The lecture is being held at First Church in Boston and the event will run from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Danielle Di Bona and Wendy Salkin are serving as my respondents. This lecture is titled “The Populist Imagination: A White Man’s Republic?” It will be live-streamed starting at...
During an interim ministry there are specific tasks that the interim minister and the congregation are supposed to focus on in order to prepare for the success of future ministries. One of these tasks is strengthening the connection between the congregation and the larger Unitarian Universalist Association. In recent months we have been doing this by bringing outstanding denominational leaders...
as prepared February 12, 2019 for the Harris County Commissioners Court Commissioners, public servants, and members of the public, I bring you greetings from the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Greater Houston. Unitarian Universalism is a religious tradition that celebrates the possibility of goodness within each human heart, the transformative power of love, and the clarifying force of...
This month our congregation launches our annual stewardship campaign, “Weaving a Tapestry of Love and Action.” The theme is drawn from the words we use to bless the offering each week. This theme reminds us that justice is at the core of who we are as Unitarian Universalists: As Cornel West once observed, “justice is what love looks like in public.” Your financial gifts to our congregation are...
The two interviews that I did for WGVU‘s radio show Common Threads are now available online. You can listen to the January 20, 2019 interview here and the January 27, 2019 interview here.
The theme for worship in January is transformation. This is a particularly apt theme for a period of interim ministry. The departure of one senior minister and the arrival of another is always a significant time of transformation in congregational life. The first month of the year is also a time when people naturally think about the past and imagine the future. Thinking about the past and...
I figured that since it is January it would be interesting to check which of my blog posts over the last few years have been the most well read. I looked at my analytics and compiled two lists: the most read blog posts of all time and the most read blog posts of 2018.Most Read Blog Posts of All Time1. American Populism and Unitarian Universalism: the 2019 Spring Minns Lectures2. Starting as the...
Two 30-minute interviews with me will run on WGVU in Grand Rapids, MI as part of their show “Common Threads.” The first will run on Sunday, January 20, 2019 and the second will run on Sunday, January 27, 2019. The show has a weekly audience of between 8,000 and 10,000. The interviews will be available online on the day following their broadcast debuts.
Dear Members and Friends of First Houston:December is a busy time. Thanksgiving is quickly followed by the winter holidays. Growing up in an inter-religious household we celebrated in what always felt like rapid succession Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Years. In my home we still do. Alongside all of the work of the season my month will be filled with lights, snatches of Hebrew, Christmas music...
Dear Members and Friends of First Houston: November is a big month for First Church. It will begin with the move of the Thoreau campus to Richmond. The campus’s new building is located on a lovely five-acre plot immediately across the street from a new housing development. It represents a real opportunity for the congregation to grow a voice for Unitarian Universalism in Fort Bend County. The...