Our All Ages service this Sunday will feature the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address, which was used by the six nations of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) to open and close major gatherings or meetings. We will explore our connection with nature and the universe as we reflect together on how interdependence and gratitude connect and intertwine. Don’t forget … Continue reading Gratitude: Nature & Interdependence
People generally aren’t “against” the idea of gratitude, even as perhaps some of us might disagree over what we should be grateful for. It’s generally accepted in our culture that gratitude is a good thing. And yet it’s also not something we talk about as a practice to embrace. While we might complain about those … Continue reading Nurturing Gratitude
Knowledge is a valuable and important thing, particularly so in Western culture. We have perhaps come to overvalue the certainty of knowing though, valuing that certainty, and the sense of control it can sometimes offer. This Sunday we will explore the gifts of not-knowing, and the idea of perhaps leaning into “not-knowing” as a skill … Continue reading The Gifts of Not-Knowing
Many versions of the Buddhist Loving-Kindness meditation ask us to offer care and compassion to someone with whom we’re in conflict or who is a challenge for us in our lives. This is a good practice, and, in this day and age in our country, and, more is needed, something needs to be paired with … Continue reading Holy No
Compassion is lifted up as a virtue in most of the world’s religions, with good reason. In Western culture though, we tend to think of compassion as a two-party interaction – compassion flows from one person to another. We also tend to think of relationships that way, as happening between two people. We are in … Continue reading Cultivating Self-Compassion
Join us this Sunday as we explore what it means to cultivate a “practice of presence.” Often, we wonder what are the “right words” to comfort someone who is struggling. Often, as our pet companions demonstrate to us, words are not needed, our mere presence is enough. This service is also our annual “Animal Blessing” … Continue reading A Practice of Presence
Community is a term and an idea that we often take for granted. We all “know what it means” when we talk about community and the importance of community. Do we all have the same understanding of what it means to be in community? And are we even in “real” community together most of the … Continue reading How Do We Be Real?
Self-reflection and self-awareness are key ingredients towards living a life that involves growth, evolution, and wholeness, and yet they are not widely embraced practices within American culture. Self-reflection and self-awareness are powerful tools that can transform how we experience ourselves, our lives, and the world around us. We’ll look at how these spiritual practices can … Continue reading Looking Within
Many of us long to belong – some greater philosophers and mystics say it is a core part of our how we are wired as human beings, to yearn for connection and belonging. Yet many of us feel like we don’t belong, sometimes in many places in our lives. We’ll explore what it means to … Continue reading Building Belonging
It is our annual tradition to begin the program year with a ritual, Water Communion, a pooling of the waters symbolic of places we have been during the slow Summer season. Water Communion represents not only coming together after a time apart but coming together in a new way, renewed in our connections with one … Continue reading Water Communion: Coming Together
