Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Greater Cumberland

March 1, 10:45 – Lora Powell-Haney: 

“Bearing Witness”

When so many things scream for our attention, how might we resist? How might we re-center ourselves toward what truly needs and deserves our attention? We’ll explore ways to bear witness without being overwhelmed as evil, injustice, and distraction grow ever louder. Included will be an invitation to spiritual practice for the month from a Soul Matters “Practice Matters” packet (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1g3yxeYqNIdnV7VRbIHXauwCSytsXIPMS/view?usp=sharing).

March 8, 10:45 – Rev. Paul Britner:

“Taoism and the Art of Inaction”

Taoism embodies the notion of “going with the flow” more than any other historical religion. One of its fundamental principles is that of wu wei, the art of inaction. This has nothing to do with procrastination. Rather, it emphasizes letting things unfold naturally. This message uses wu wei to introduce basic tenets of Taoism and how, if we just let the water settle, we can see things more clearly. 

March 15, 10:45 – Dr. Michael Franch:

“My Face in the Mob”

I was very moved by a recent obituary for Jo Ann Allen Boyce, who as a fourteen-year old was one of twelve African American students to integrate the high school in her small East Tennessee town. She was met by angry mobs and antagonistic fellow students. It broke my heart to look at the photo of her and another young Black girl, neatly dressed and dignified, walking down the school steps. I thought of my fourteen-year old self and couldn’t imagine going through what they went through. But then I had another thought. Had circumstances in my life been different—had I been raised in the South instead of Northern Illinois, had I had racist parents instead of parents who taught me to respect everyone—could I have been one of those angry faces in the mob calling ugly names. Could I have harassed my Black fellow students? Have there been times in my life when I couldn’t see the humanity of the other? And the answer was, yes, there had been times. Sometimes we are good people almost by the accident of where we lived, of our parents’ views, of various situations that molded us without our even thinking about it. I’ll reflect on this on March 15, and eagerly await hearing your reflections. Dr. Franch is Affiliate Minister with First Unitarian Church of Baltimore. 

March 22, 10:45 – Rev. Paul Britner:

“Is Confession Good for the Soul?”

We’re all on board with the idea that shame is a bad thing. Yet, we’ve all seen political leaders who have no shame. Perhaps—just perhaps—it’s time for shame to make a little bit of a comeback.

March 29, 10:45 – Rev. Kent Stone:

“Seriously Funny Serendipity”

This sermon is about a surprising moment of wise insight that came when I was just looking for laughs from a comedian’s podcast I played on my headphones while I was dog walking. Such a moment is serendipity. Openness to serendipity is essential to any spiritual journey. As Wikipedia says:“Serendipity is an unplanned fortunate discovery. The first noted use of ‘serendipity’ was by Horace Walpole in 1754 in a letter he wrote to his friend Horace Mann about a Persian fairy tale, ‘The Three Princes of Serendip’ who, he said, were ‘always making discoveries, by accident.’ From then on, many discoveries in history were seen as serendipitous ‘active luck.’ A casual walk in the park can lead to new opportunities.” You never know: this sermon just might serendipitously make listeners actively lucky, too, or, at the very least, make for momentous musings to mull over on an interesting walk.