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"The Postmodern Elephant in The Room" by Rev. Emrys Staton

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"Beginning With Faith" by Sky Williams-Tao

How do we stay in covenant, even when we are not our perfect or best selves? How do we continue to show up in love?

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"Caring for Each Other When It's Hard" by Sky Williams-Tao

Spirituality is the miracle of birth and the mystery of death. The flower and the compost heap.

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"Moment of Truth" by Sarah Campbell read by Bill Dugan

The water we gather in our annual Ingathering ritual comes from all over the world and also from across all time on Earth. The water cycle doesn't only involve rivers and clouds, but also creatures. 

Featuring a story for all ages titled "Puddles the Raindrop" written and read by Louise Gabriel.

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"Ingathering and Water Ceremony" by Sky Williams-Tao

Samhain is the time for resting, celebration, rituals, and self-reflection. Now is the time to say goodbye to the past year. Saying farewell to those we have lost while celebrating and honoring their life. This is a season when children and adults are faced with the reality of death but given the opportunity to embrace and come to terms with it.

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"Samhain" by Rev. Darren Reale

Our resident actresses Rev. Cathy Corbin-Mannino and Ann Harper perform monologues and discuss the importance of empathy when preparing to embody a role. 

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“The Actress Prepares” by Rev. Cathy Corbin-Mannino and Ann Harper

At times the changes in the world can feel overwhelming and out of control. At other times we may yearn desperately for the better world that only deep and lasting change can bring. Unitarian Universalism and Science Fiction offer us some tools for carving a path in shifting sands.

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"Shaping Change" by Rev. Sky Williams-Tao

The song "Both Sides, Now" written by Joni Mitchell points a way to transcendence by living, truly living, every day. It's an enlightenment of the kind the Buddha would recognize.

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"Both Sides, Now" by Dr. Kaden Sheffield

The Thanksgiving holiday is a time of family, gratitude and food. It is also a time when a story of the origins of the United States is told, a story of Pilgrims and American Indians sitting down to a meal together. What does this founding story tell us about this country? How can examining it help give direction for the future?

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“The Past, The Present and The Future” by Rev. Sky Williams-Tao

Humanism knows nothing as sin as a natural inheritance. It only knows sins as acts that may be committed by people as a result of ignorance or weakness. A person needs to be saved, not from the consequences of sins that Adam committed, but from the consequences of the sins that we are committing today. And the only salvation from these things is education and character.

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"Salvation from a Humanist Perspective" by Tom Lopez read by Barry Linden

One place I am finding hope right now is in the 2020 report, "Widening the Circle of Concern". This text is the final report or the national UU Association’s Commission on Institutional Change that examined power systems, structural racism and white supremacy culture in the association a nd UUism as a whole. The report engages with the ways UUs don't always live up to our ideals. And gives signposts for our ongoing journey to Beloved Community.

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"Finding Hope in Widening the Circle of Concern" by Rev. Sky Williams-Tao

Jim Reay talks about some of his favorite things and the elements that light up his life. 

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"Luminescence" by Jim Reay

"Hope in the Desert" by Sky Williams-Tao

Our special Christmas Eve service explains the story of the Nativity from a very UU perspective. 

(Please accept with no obligation implied or explicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the summer/winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year of 2022, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make your great nation. Not to imply that this country is necessarily greater than any other country in the world. Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith, gender identity or sexual orientation of the wishees.)

=)

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"The Christmas Story: A UU Version" read by Emily Whitmore

Our spiritual tradition says "notice what's happening." Be systematic about what there is to be concerned about and decide what those next steps need to be. Take time to sit with your feelings about the situation. Allow a sense of perspective to enter your thoughts. Move toward the sources of goodness and hope.

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"Getting Through the Night" by Mary Wellenmeyer read by Bill Dugan

The beginning of a new year offers a space of reflection. A moment to pause on this threshold that marks both an end and a beginning.

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"Pause for Reflection" by Rev. Sky Williams-Tao

Ideas of right and wrong evolve with the times, with the zeitgeist. Morality is both stable and fluid. 

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“Morality: It’s not just for the Godly” by David Moore

Critical Race Theory is quite a hornet's nest and easy to get lost in the nuance. Unitarian Universalism is currently taking an important step in committing to work as an entire body, a beloved community against white supremacy. In order to make this commitment as effective as possible, it is important to reflect on the internal struggle that we who are white undergo as we come to recognize, accept the reality of, and commit to fighting against white supremacy. 

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"Critical Race Theory" by Tom Begush

We deserve the right to decide to have children, to decide not to have children, to raise our families in a safe environment, and a right to bodily autonomy. We all deserve to have a tree of life. That becomes a lot more difficult when there's a proverbial toxic waste dump in your backyard. 

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“Reproductive Justice Sunday”  by Rev. Sky Williams Tao

Jo Cleland remembers times in her life when she was helped by random strangers and blessed with acts of kindness, and when she was able to provide unexpected blessings for others in return.

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“Unexpected Blessings” by Jo Cleland

“We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote: journeying toward spiritual wholeness by working to build a diverse multicultural Beloved Community by our actions that accountably dismantle racism and other oppressions in ourselves and our institutions.”

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“The Eighth Principle” by Sky Williams Tao

Ann Harper reflects on random acts of kindness. 

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"Random Acts of Kindness Revisited" by Ann Harper

May we continue to find ways to honor the inherent worth and dignity of every being, and the interdependent web of which we are a part. May we continue to grow and learn and fail sometimes, and flail sometimes too. May we continue living into covenant and living into the diverse multicultural Beloved Community.

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"White Supremacy Culture" by Rev. Sky Williams-Tao

“Secular” does not mean “anti-religion.” As Arizona’s voice for secular government, Secular AZ is supported by individuals who believe that government policy must remain free of religious bias. They welcome participation of religious individuals who share our view that freedom of conscience must extend to people of all faiths and of none.

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"Use Your Voice with Secular AZ" by Jeanne Casteen

We will all have descendants, by love, by relationship, by blood, by proximity. What would our descendants ask of us right now? What would you have asked of your anscestors, if you could? Is this the world we want to live in? We have agency to recognize the patterns we are living in, and we have agency to change those patterns. 

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"Ancestors and Descendants" by Rev. Sky Williams-Tao

While mending a favorite cup that had broken I was reminded of an old Japanese wisdom story about some possible meanings of renewal. I'd like to share it with you.

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"On Mending a Cup" by Kaden Sheffield

Rebirth and renewal is often messy and awkward, like a baby chick, navigating strange and wild times. Rev. Sky Williams-Tao shares a collection of songs that belong on an "I don't know what I'm doing" playlist. 

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"Transformation" by Rev. Sky Williams-Tao

An exploration of the death of Buddhism’s teaching of rebirth.

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“Being born-again and again and again…” by Emrys Staton

Earle Canfield is the founder and executive director of ANSWER, a nonprofit that stands for American-Nepali Students’ and Women’s Educational Relief. He explores what it means to be happy, and how a simple act of kindness can go a long way, not just for the recipient, but for the giver as well.

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"When Someone Told Me I Live In a Fantasy Land, I Almost Fell Off My Unicorn" by Earle Canfield

According to Nicola Tesla, “If you want to find the secrets to the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.” Gong Master, Karyn Diane Kish, will lead the congregation in a gong meditation, incorporating the gong, crystal bowls, and bells. For more, visit www.westvalleyuu.org or visit us at 5904 W. Cholla St. in Glendale, Arizona.

Inspiring Optimistic Upbeat Energetic Guitar Rhythm by Free Music | @fm_freemusic
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"Gong Meditation/Sound Bath" by Karyn Diane Kish

Postlude for our March 1, 2020 service featuring Paul Darling, Kellye Perkins and Emily Whitmore.

"Forgive Me Friend" Smith and Thell cover

If someone asked you, "What do you believe?" would you have a ready answer?  Or do you start pushing spin control buttons? To read the sermon in its entirety, click here: allsoulsnyc2.org/publications/sermons/fcsermons/bornagainuuism.html For more, visit www.westvalleyuu.org or visit us at 5904 W. Cholla St. in Glendale, Arizona.

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"Born Again Unitarian Universalism" by Forrest Church read by Jim Reay

We'll discuss the differences between the Satanic Temple and the Church of Satan. We'll also compare the seven Tenets of the Satanic Temple to our seven UU Principles. Hail Satan! For more, visit www.westvalleyuu.org or visit us at 5904 W. Cholla St. in Glendale, Arizona.

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"Why UUs and the Satanic Temple are Natural Allies" by Tom Begush

Unitarian Universalism’s greatest strength lies in its conviction that the journey of the human spirit is one that each person must make for her or himself.

Popular tracks by West Valley Unitarian Universalist Church