by Amy Norton, August 01, 2024
This summer, we delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing from our members about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which they feel connected to or made room for the Divine. Summer worship is at 10am in Willett Hall downstairs. My sister has often remarked, “thinking about the universe makes my stomach hurt,” and to be honest, I get it. Our homilist this week, Stella L. writes, “How do you feel about the unknown? Does it fill you with excitement—or with fear? The apostle Paul wrote to the Philippians, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation,… Read More
by Kent French, July 25, 2024
This summer, we delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing from our members about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which they feel connected to or made room for the Divine. Summer worship is at 10am in Willett Hall downstairs. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives instructions about how to pray (Matthew 6:7-15). It includes what we call The Lord’s Prayer. As we’ve discussed before, Jesus didn’t necessarily mean for us to quote this verbatim, but more as instructions about how we ought to pray, including praise, thanks, petition, confession, forgiveness, praying for others. How do you… Read More
by Kent French, July 18, 2024
This summer, we delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing from our members about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which they feel connected to or made room for the Divine. During the height of the pandemic, we tried an experiment with Sacred Hikes and Strolls — taking our worship and prayer outdoors in a time when we wanted to be together and also practice safe social distancing. Remember that? As we walked and talked intentionally in the Blue Hills, along Boston’s Emerald Necklace, Forest Hills Cemetery, Brookline’s Halls Pond, Waltham’s Prospect Hill and other outdoor spaces, I often… Read More
by Kent French, July 11, 2024
This summer, we delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing from our members about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which they feel connected to or made room for the Divine. Finding Contentment What does it mean for you to feel content? What keeps you from feeling contentment? While in prison and facing all kinds of external opposition, the apostle Paul wrote to his start-up churches: I have learned how to be content in any circumstance. I know the experience of being in need and of having more than enough; I have learned the secret… Read More
by Kent French, July 02, 2024
Each summer, we have the pleasure of hearing from our thoughtful membership and guests about their own spiritual lives, musings, and life experiences. You may remember that last summer, we had a theme of “Who Is My Neighbor?” and heard from a variety of wider community members about what it means to be neighborly. This summer, we will delve into the theme of “Sacred Places, Sacred Moments” hearing about locations, physical spaces, situations, or moments in time in which people feel connected to or made room for the Divine. These spaces and moments can be as varied as a spot… Read More
by Kent French, June 27, 2024
This Sunday’s worship is at 3pm. There is NO 10am worship. This Sunday at 3pm, we will celebrate a special moment in the life of our congregation. Many churches go decades without ever having this privilege. We’re going to ordain one of our own, Jaz Buchanan, to the Christian ministry of Word and Sacrament. Many of you remember that Jaz came to us as our Seminarian in 2019-20. You’ll recall her sweet spirit, her willingness to learn, her openness in preaching, her deep kindness. She was with us when the COVID pandemic hit and we learned to pivot to online… Read More
by Kent French, June 20, 2024
NOTE: Worship on Sunday, June 30, will be at 3pm in the Sanctuary, for Jaz Buchanan’s ordination service. We will not have 10am worship that Sunday. Three years ago this month, Juneteenth became a federal holiday, following many months of nationwide protests against police brutality against Black people. While many of us have seen increased awareness of Juneteenth, I wonder how many of us are familiar with the holiday or have actively celebrated it. Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, in the western reaches of the then confederate state of Texas, and announced… Read More
by Kent French, June 13, 2024
Worship begins at 10am this Sunday in Willett Hall followed by our All-Parish Meeting Covenant is one of those church-y, biblical words that is probably not a part of most of our active vocabularies. We’re more used to terms like “contract” or “agreement.” Covenant is what mere mortals in the early books of the Bible made with God. It’s what prophets mediated between God and the people. It’s the relationship with God and humanity that Jesus came to renew, restore and expand with his ministry. Covenant is more than transactional — it’s about relationship, about promises, beholden-ness,… Read More
by Kent French, June 06, 2024
In the first chapter of Genesis it says: God created humanity in God’s own image, in the divine image God created them, male and female God created them. (Genesis 1:27, Common English Bible) It’s a claim each of us takes about our unique place in the world. Each one of us bears the imprint of God, the great cosmic divine force in the universe. So, whenever one of us harms another person, looks down on someone, kills someone, we are trespassing on that shared divine imprint. June is Pride month across the globe. This weekend is Pride weekend in Boston,… Read More
by Amy Norton, May 30, 2024
This Sunday, we have the joy of celebrating our confirmation class and the educational and spiritual journey they have taken. Over the past church ‘semester,’ our confirmation class has been diving into some pretty big questions: What is faith? Who is God? Who is Jesus? What is the Holy Spirit? What does it mean to be a Christian in the world? What does it mean to be a member of United Parish? And much, much more…they’ve explored the Bible; and they’ve delved into prayer, spiritual practices, and some Very Big Questions, such as, “Did God create a multiverse?”, “What were Jesus’ emotions when being… Read More
