Sermon Central

​

Frontier culture, central to the American imaginary, is defined by individualism, freedom from social constraints, and regeneration through violence. The persistent problems that face us, climate apocalypse, the erosion of truth, gun violence, and the commodification of the world, cannot be solved through the logic of the frontier. Indeed, frontier logic may be the very gasoline which fuels it. How can we UUs forge a path forward that grasps the best of the American experiment, transforming frontier violence into humanism and a dedication to the dignity of all creation?

​

Democracy, Religion and Imagination

Let us celebrate Pride Month with joy and defiance!
After Stonewall, in the 1970s, the communities of Fourth Universalist in Manhattan and First Unitarian in Brooklyn were early leaders among Unitarian Universalism and religious liberalism in rejecting religious and legal homophobia and honoring and affirming the worth and dignity of the LGBTQ+ community in civic and religious life in New York. Let's honor our heritage and celebrate Pride!
Join us for grounding songs, special readings, sharing our joys and sorrows, and an invitation to reflect on the joys, challenges and hopes of our Unitarian Universalist tradition-as we celebrate Pride!

Grace is like the lapping water of a stream.
It might ebb and flow, but it never stops spreading its message of kindness.

We Are All Bystanders:
Is it enough just to avoid doing bad things?
What are we called upon to do when we witness evil?
Some thoughts inspired by current events, a famous short story by Ursula K. LeGuin, and a Booker Prize nominated novel to help us think about how to be more than a neutral bystander.

​

​

Our faith calls us to journey toward spiritual wholeness.
What might it look like to deepen spiritually in Unitarian Universalist community, on the path toward transformation and liberation?

The saying attributed to the Unitarian Francis David that "we need not think alike to love alike" has been a refrain among religious liberals for decades.
But sometimes loving alike means we do have to think alike--doesn't it?

​

​

"In our age of electricity, humanity finds itself thinking it has conquered darkness and night. But what lessons can we learn from embracing darkness?
Can darkness help us better understand ourselves?"

After forty years in the UU ministry, and more as a person in the pews, there are a few things that I have learned along the way-and some of the most important of these things are beliefs that I have unlearned, and what soul freedom can mean for us...

In 2023, Croton on Hudson honors 125 years as a town- and we celebrate 66 years as a congregation! This Sunday, Marjie and Michael Kemper help us launch the 2023 congregational pledge drive, inviting us to imagine justice, equity and compassion through our congregational life! Join us for deepening music, meditation and a song for all ages, joys and sorrows, and an invitation to reflect on our values - and the groups we cultivate together!

​

What and who is sacred among us? How do we respond? Whether the beauty of the dark night, compassion in the emergency room, advocating for arts in our schools, or the unexpected laughter that arrives even in hard times, what, how and who is sacred? Let’s consider varied voices and expressions of our principles and values from our tradition as we consider the sacred among us. Join us for deepening songs, joys and sorrows, and a new member flower ceremony.

Most modern religious practices stem from shamanic principles of indigenous peoples of the world. Our own UU commitment to inclusive communities and connection to the divine are no different. Leaning into our shamanic roots can help us connect more deeply to ourselves and to each other.

As Croton on Hudson begins a year-long celebration honoring 125 years as a town, this Sunday we recall the 1963 interfaith fundraiser for civil rights organized in this community by the playwright Lorraine Hansberry. We gather to connect with our past and be galvanized for the present. Join us for deepening music, a song for all ages, a candle of rededication, joys and sorrows, and a reflection on Hansberry's call to see the profound in the ordinary.

Anxiety, overthinking, and doubt can torment us, and our living in the internet age doesn't help. If we're anxiously inclined, the very things we care most about may cause us the greatest doubt and worry. We may find some freedom in seeing our doubts and worries as parts of us rather than problems to be solved.

As a wisdom seeking tradition, we look for teachings that invite us to deepen our personal and community practice for justice, equity and compassion. This Sunday, at the beginning of Black History month, we consider the invitation of Rev. Dr. Walter Fluker to "remember, retell, and relive" our history in pursuit of ethical leadership today. Following Dr. Fluker, let's consider the teachings of the late Rev. Dr. William R Jones - a Unitarian Universalist theologian and Black religious humanist- who invited secular and spiritual communities alike to go deeper to truly pursue justice. Join us for deepening songs, a meditation for all ages, joys and sorrows, and reflection on storytelling as a spiritual practice.

As Unitarian Universalists consider adopting new Principles centered around love, let's reflect on what it would mean to live our lives with love as our center.

A tribute to Giocille Shaw. Our retiring musical director.

​

The interlocking oppressions that Dr. King organized the original Poor People's Campaign to challenge, continue today, and in many ways are worse today. How can we take up his call, to build a Nonviolent Army of the Poor, a Freedom Church of the Poor, to demand and enact a society of the common good?

In a special New Year's day reflection, Rev. Julie Johnson Staples at Judson Memorial Church in Washington Square implored the community gathered to have courage to meet grief, to meet what we're avoiding, to be present in those tender and hard moments, even at the turn of the year. What are some spiritual habits that might help us, as Unitarian Universalists, meet - and learn from - the stories and emotions unexpected that come from this time of fogs and possibilities? Join us for deepening songs, a meditation practice for all ages, joys and sorrows, and reflection on spiritual practices.

"Vessels of oil ... small, vessels, cruises of oil.. The kind of vessels that once, long ago, gave us just enough hope to try to change everything in our world. Just enough hope to get us to the next miracle. " - Rabbi Noa Kushner

In the Christian calendar it is the middle of Advent, a season of waiting and repentance before the birth of Jesus at Christmas. It's a time where many questions focus on the life of John the Baptist, who also waited for his Messiah. We'll explore what a community like this one, with so many different backgrounds and theological beliefs, can learn from the John's admonition: "Repent! For the Kingdom of God is at Hand"

What and who is sacred among us? How do we respond? Whether the beauty of the dark night, compassion in the emergency room, or the unexpected laughter that arrives even in hard times, what and who is sacred? In this season of rededication, let's look to stories from ancient traditions - and not so long ago New York- to imagine and seek what is sacred among us. Join us for grounding songs, a story for all ages, joys and sorrows, meditation and reflection on the sacred among us.

The thing with feathers?
A light in the darkness?
A waste of time and energy?
The power that keeps us going?
A look at hope and why it's essential for UU's."

The religious philosopher Nancy Frankenberry invites truth seekers to consider moving from studying spirituality to living our spiritual quests, as individuals and in community.
What religious actions do we take, what spiritual habits do we practice, to respond to the tensions, conflicts and anxieties we encounter this autumn, our third in the COVID-19 pandemic? Join us for grounding songs, a poem for all ages, joys and sorrows, meditation and reflection on sustaining habits for spiritual quests.

We are in a climate emergency. We need to cut our greenhouse gas emissions dramatically and immediately to limit global warming to less than 2 degrees C, which is the goal set by the UN Paris Agreement. And yet emissions continue to rise. Countless lives, human and non-human, hang in the balance, and yet sometimes the change we need feels impossible. Where does our hope come from now, and what can we do that is meaningful?

How do we live with courage in our everyday lives? What does the inner work of boldness and bravery look like? Come explore the value that does not always roar as we learn to face our fears together.

We have six years to protect the flourishing of all life on Earth.
How are you called to act to address climate chaos and eco-justice?

​

Our faith invites us to discern the good, learn from the good, and grow the good. Particularly this month, on the 10th Anniversary of Hurricane Sandy, the one year anniversary of Hurricane Ida, and barely a few weeks after Hurricane lan to our South, there can be a great uneasiness, even during a gentle rain. What can we learn from those who respond with care to these hard times? How can we be prophets who honor all souls?

Humans are existantial animals.  A species on a quest for enduring meaning.  In an often chaotic and unordered universe.  We want to know our place in the world.  We want to know that what we do matters.  But in a world where meaning is subjective, how can we know that our lives make a difference?

Valerie Kaur, a Sikh leader and author of 'See No Stranger', reminds us, "The voices we spend the most time listening to, in the world and inside our own minds, shape the way we see, how we feel, and what we do." An interfaith tradition, Unitarian Universalism uplifts words and deeds of prophetic people from multiple traditions as a source of inspiration. How can an interfaith perspective influence what voices we seek and listen to day to day? Join us for uplifting songs, a time for all ages (with a butterfly!), joys and sorrows, a moment of silence and a meditation on interfaith teaching.

From the Civil War to the AIDS Crisis to the Pandemic, from abolition to Women's Suffrage to the struggle for dignity for refugees, Unitarians and Universalists in New York have tried to create religious spaces that are open to seeking multiple truths, respecting dignity, and building lives that are more kind, just and whole. Offering lessons beautiful and ambiguous, healing and harmful, what do our New York Unitarian & Universalist ancestors have to offer us during this season of uncertainty in our politics and culture?