by Kent French, October 30, 2025
REMINDER: Daylight Saving Time ends this Sunday; set clocks back one hour. This Sunday is All Souls Day, also known as “the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed,” and we have the special treat to experience a complete orchestral Requiem in our Sunday worship. Death has been swallowed up by a victory. Where is your victory, Death? Where is your sting, Death? 1 Corinthians 15:55 God will swallow up death forever. The Lord God will wipe tears from every face; and will remove their people’s disgrace from off the whole earth. Isaiah 25:8 Years ago I sang in the Tanglewood Festival Chorus… Read More
by Kent M French, October 23, 2025
This autumn, we are reflecting in worship on the same stories the youngest among us are discussing in Church School, going through the Bible from the beginning. For the next few weeks, we’ll move through the Old Testament and hear stories about how, “God calls.” Our Worship Series, Living the Word, reminds us that, “God’s call is often surprising to us, as God looks not on the outside, but at the heart. God continues to invite unlikely people to be great leaders and pillars of the faith. These imperfect leaders answer God’s call, allowing God to work through them in remarkable… Read More
by Amy Norton-Benfield, October 15, 2025
This autumn, we are reflecting in worship on the same stories the youngest among us are discussing in Church School, going through the Bible from the beginning. For the next few weeks, we’ll move through the Old Testament and hear stories about how, “God calls.” Our Worship Series, Living the Word, reminds us that, “God’s call is often surprising to us, as God looks not on the outside, but at the heart. God continues to invite unlikely people to be great leaders and pillars of the faith. These imperfect leaders answer God’s call, allowing God to work through them in remarkable… Read More
by Anna Jeide-Detweiler, October 10, 2025
This autumn, we are reflecting in worship on the same stories the youngest among us are discussing in Church School, going through the Bible from the beginning. From our series, Living the Word: God created humans to be in relationship with their Creator and blessed them with all they would need. Desiring the best for us, God regularly calls us back into relationship and invites imperfect people to be part of God’s beautiful story of redemption. This relationship with God requires trust, and often challenges us to step out in this trust. When God calls, God also provides all that… Read More
by Kent M French, October 02, 2025
This autumn, we are reflecting in worship on the same stories the youngest among us are discussing in Church School, going through the Bible from the beginning. From our series, Living the Word: God created humans to be in relationship with their Creator and blessed them with all they would need. Desiring the best for us, God regularly calls us back into relationship and invites imperfect people to be part of God’s beautiful story of redemption. This relationship with God requires trust, and often challenges us to step out in this trust. When God calls, God also provides all that… Read More
by Kent French, September 25, 2025
This fall, we are reflecting in worship on the same stories the youngest among us are discussing in Church School, going through the Bible from the beginning. From our series, Living the Word: God created humans to be in relationship with their Creator and blessed them with all they would need. Desiring the best for us, God regularly calls us back into relationship and invites imperfect people to be part of God’s beautiful story of redemption. This relationship with God requires trust, and often challenges us to step out in this trust. When God calls, God also provides all that… Read More
by Amy Norton-Benfield, September 18, 2025
This fall, we are reflecting in worship on the same stories the youngest among us are discussing in Church School, going through the Bible from the beginning. From our series, Living the Word: God created humans to be in relationship with their Creator and blessed them with all they would need. Desiring the best for us, God regularly calls us back into relationship and invites imperfect people to be part of God’s beautiful story of redemption. This relationship with God requires trust, and often challenges us to step out in this trust. When God calls, God also provides all that… Read More
by Kent M French, September 11, 2025
Join us after worship at the United Parish table for Brookline Day! More info here. Once again, we are reflecting in worship on the same stories the youngest among us are discussing in Church School, going through the Bible from the beginning. From our series, Living the Word: God created humans to be in relationship with their Creator and blessed them with all they would need. Desiring the best for us, God regularly calls us back into relationship and invites imperfect people to be part of God’s beautiful story of redemption. This relationship with God requires trust, and often challenges… Read More
by Amy Norton-Benfield, September 04, 2025
Even though we still have a couple more weeks of Summer, this Sunday marks the beginning of the “program year” at United Parish, so I suppose it’s fitting that our Bible story this week starts off with “in the beginning…”. It’s a story of God making order out of chaos, of making meaning out of mess, of making delight and life out of emptiness. It’s a lot to live up to…or is it? Perhaps to some of my school teachers’ chagrin, I’m decidedly not a perfectionist, and never have been. An oft-quoted motto is “good enough is good enough.” And… Read More
by Amy Norton-Benfield, August 28, 2025
In summer worship (June 22-August 31, 10am in Willett Hall), we hear from one another about “how we learn to be brave,” (based on a book by the same name here). Bravery is something we begin learning when we’re young and continue strengthening throughout our lifetimes, figuring out how to stand up for what is right, what is good, what is worth defending. Many of us are familiar with the warning to be careful when handling an injured animal, that even a beloved family pet can snap or bite when in pain. I had a painful cavity-drilling experience years ago and… Read More
