While it is disappointing, it is not surprising we are back in a Level 4 lockdown. We’ve had a good run, but the Delta variant is the trickiest and most dangerous to date, so it was only a matter of time. A year and a half ago, we were still learning how to defeat the virus. We’ve learned a lot since then and, fingers crossed, we will be even be more successful this time if we all do our part.
Auckland Unitarians will do ours. The building is closed for In-person and live-streaming worship until we return to Level 1. Committees, men’s group, circle groups, and renters may return at Level 2 if they can meet Ministry of Health NZ guidelines.
Not all the news is bad. We will be open online. We will continue our Sunday worship by Zoom at 11.00am. Some committees and groups can still meet by Zoom. Daily support for anyone who needs to just chat with someone outside their bubble is offered on Zoom at 11.00am, Monday through Saturday. Pastoral support from me is always available. If you do not have my contact details, you can email me from the website, which also has further details on how to gather by Zoom.
Covid does not stop our being a beloved community. Be kind. Check in on our single members and seniors. If you need assistance please let Clay or one of our other members know.
Stay safe by following government guidelines to the letter. If you can’t stay home, wear a mask. Book your vaccine. Give thanks for all those essential workers who have to risk their lives to care for us.
I look forward to seeing you Sunday on Zoom,
Clay
All posts by Clay Nelson
Reclaiming our rabble-rouser roots
with Rev. Clay Nelson
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Clay Nelson © 15 August 2021
You may remember the movie The Perfect Storm that came out in the year 2000. It was about a real storm in 1991. A variety of factors came together to create a hurricane that was never named. In the northern hemisphere hurricanes form in the tropics and move north. This hurricane started as a nor’easter that became a hurricane that formed off the Atlantic coast of Canada and New England and then moved south causing considerable damage.
The term “perfect storm” was coined by journalist Sebastian Junger after a conversation with Boston meteorologist Robert Case in which Case described the convergence of weather conditions as being “perfect” for the formation of such a storm. It has entered our lexicon to describe an especially bad situation caused by a combination of unfavourable circumstances. It certainly applies to our new reality.
Continue reading Reclaiming our rabble-rouser rootsReligion and Middle-earth
with Rev. Clay Nelson
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Clay Nelson © 8 August 2021
What would reality be like without fantasy? Would you want to live there? Can you really imagine a place not inhabited by Gandalf and Frodo, Harry and Albus, Sparrowhawk and Vetch; Lucy and Aslan? Thanks to fantasy literature, we can live in an extensive travel bubble. We are exempt from quarantine when we visit Alice in Wonderland, Peter in Neverland, Ged in Earthsea, Harry, Ron and Hermione at Hogwarts, Max where the wild things are, and the Hobbits in the Shire, especially since Hobbiton is only 168 kilometres from Auckland.
Continue reading Religion and Middle-earthLanding in the Cuckoo’s Nest
with Rev. Clay Nelson
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Clay Nelson © 1 August 2021
I’m always surprised by where my musings begin and where they take me. This week they began with gymnast Simone Biles’ withdrawal from team and individual Olympic events to protect her physical and mental health. While many have applauded her decision despite global expectations she would win gold in all of them, many others have criticised and condemned her for lacking courage and the appropriate Olympic spirit. What codswallop! I can barely imagine the kind of pressure she was under to hide her mental distress and continue competing through the physical pain. I’m in awe of this young woman’s courage to publicly acknowledge her struggle and refuse to comply. She could’ve withdrawn saying she was not 100% physically able to compete, but she went on to acknowledge that more importantly she was struggling mentally. I can imagine the world’s high expectations could weigh you down when you are supposed to be flying through the air.
Continue reading Landing in the Cuckoo’s NestReligion: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
with Rev. Clay Nelson
We lost sound for the final minute of the sermon, but you can follow this link to jump to the final minute of the text.
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Clay Nelson © 25 July 2021
Religion is often singled out for the evil it is responsible for in the world, from the Crusades to 9/11. Jonathan Mason has used his opportunity from winning the Service Auction item to select the following sermon topic: Considering religions’ responsibility for wars and intolerance, explain the positive elements of world religion and spirituality. He and I have a friendly repartee about a variety of subjects so I’m not sure if he is trying to hoist me on my own petard or he sincerely wants to know, so he is asking someone who is on a first name basis with the devil we know as religion, after my 40-plus years in the business.
Continue reading Religion: The Good, the Bad and the UglyThe wages of trust is life
with Rev. Clay Nelson
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Clay Nelson © 18 July 2021
I unashamedly stole the title for my musings from a sermon by Unitarian Universalist Joshua Pawelek. I liked how he played with a verse from Paul’s letter to the Romans (6:23): “for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus.”
I agree with Pawelek’s implication that Paul is inviting us to trust Jesus if we want to live. Paul understands sin to be disconnection from God. Disconnected we die. Trusting Jesus connects us to our creator giving us not just life but eternal life. This one verse is the doctrinal core of Christianity. It all boils down to whom do you trust? Unitarians have a different view but I will get to that later. Stay tuned.
Continue reading The wages of trust is lifeDown to earth: the overview Effect
with Rev. Clay Nelson
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Clay Nelson © 11 July 2021
When I offer a sermon topic of your choice at our annual Service Auction, I take a big risk. David Fougere might win it. Today’s musing is courtesy of David. He asked me to reflect on “The Overview Effect.” The what?!?!
It turns out to be awe and wonder on steroids. The term was created by astronaut Frank White. The overview effect is a cognitive shift in awareness reported by some astronauts during spaceflight, often while viewing the Earth from outer space. As of 17 June, 2021, only 570 astronauts from 41 countries have had the opportunity to experience it.
Continue reading Down to earth: the overview EffectEvasive Manœuvres: the art of invulnerability
with Rev. Clay Nelson
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Clay Nelson © 4July 2021
If the penny hasn’t dropped yet, the title is facetious. I’ve been musing this week about how good we are at avoiding being vulnerable. Each Sunday I invite you into small groups to discuss a question. I explain the groups should be small, ideally four or five. That is an opportune size to practise being vulnerable. Some of you have figured that out, and create groups of six to twelve. Easier to hide in a larger group. It is also easier to stay in our heads if we have to say something –– we are rational UUs of course. Sharing emotions and feelings is outside our comfort zone.
Continue reading Evasive Manœuvres: the art of invulnerabilityA “Letting-go” people
with Rev. Clay Nelson
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Clay Nelson © 27June 2021
How good are you at letting go? Personally, I find it a struggle even when it involves letting go of negative things in my life.
There are plenty of things to practise on. I think of derogatory or critical things people in authority –– parents, teachers, coaches, ministers –– said to me that I let define or limit me. I can think of things I didn’t try or insufferable things I endured or bad choices I made because I didn’t let go of those diminishing words. If I ever find out who instilled in me that my purpose in life was to meet others’ expectations, I have a few choice words I want to share. Yet, I have to ask myself why I didn’t let go of something so toxic to my well-being long ago? It took someone I loved and trusted to point out the obvious, before I could let go and be fully my authentic self.
Continue reading A “Letting-go” peopleChange is inevitable, growth is optional
with Rev. Clay Nelson
Audio to come
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Clay Nelson © 6June 2021
In 1964 I lived in a small town near the top of the Rockies, 60 miles from a town of any size. It was the year I got my learner’s permit to drive. Like most males of that age I took every opportunity to practise driving our new car, our third, but our first with an AM radio. As it was in the top 10 on the charts, I frequently heard Dylan’s new hit, warning that, “The times they are a-changin’”. Even at 15that seemed obvious. It had been only six months since JFK was assassinated. As a country we were still grieving. But whether we were ready or not for more change, 1964 was to be momentous. The Beatles kicked off the year, invading in February. The closest I got to them was watching them on the Ed Sullivan show. Besides, I wasn’t impressed, and thought the Fab Four were just a flash-in-the-pan fad. Little did I suspect I would have in my music library all of their albums by the time I was wondering who would still need me at 64. Nor did I suspect that my next birthday would be celebrated living in LA going to a high school six times larger than my previous one.
Continue reading Change is inevitable, growth is optional