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Niki Harré © 27 September 2026

Thank you for the invitation to speak today.

I am a community psychologist, and an atheist and in 2021 I undertook what could be called action research in which for a year I a) investigated Christianity and a) was a secular priest.

To be clear, it was a role I made up.

Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.

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Ralph Catts © 9 August 2026

Address: A Theology for Seekers

Our fourth principle is a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. This approach contrasts with most of the major world religions where canon and a scripture from thousands of years ago proscribe what followers are to believe.

Hans le Grand, a European minister who is a friend of mine, has recently completed a Doctorate in Theology, in which he develops a Seeker Theology. His starting point is an agnostic approach to the mystery of existence and our place within the complexity of existence which, he suggests, is beyond our full comprehension (Le Grand, 2023, p. 46), The elements of a Seeker theology include

• human thought as the source of ethics,
• diverse sources of inspiration,
• spiritual growth,
• a world view,
• the role of community and
• a perspective on what happens after death (Le Grand, 2023, pp. 36 -37).

In all these dimensions he argues that rational analysis and personal discernment are the arbiters of reality. This distinguishes Seeker Theology from the canon of Christian theology.

for Well-Being of People and Planet

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Laurie Ross © 19 July 2026

The goal of an Eco-Economy will only be achieved if there is a Transformation of the global Economic System, to truly serve our higher values, to protect and nurture the well-being of Humanity and the Earth. Te ira Tangata e Te Taiao.

This honours the Unitarian Universalist Principle #7 ‘Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.’ This means the realization that the natural environment is interwoven with human Beings in the Spirit Te Wairua.

James and Harriet Martineau, a brother and sister and two different paths

19th Century Unitarians James and Harriet Martineau resisted inherited authority and insisted on the freedom to seek truth for themselves. One remained a religious theist and the other became a freethinker, but both embodied a spirituality grounded in conscience, courage and responsibility.

Speaker:- Peter Lineham
Worship Leader:- Ted Zorn

Video to come

Audio to come

Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.

Peter Lineham © 28 June 2026

Meditation / Conversation starter

• What beliefs or assumptions have you changed through honest inquiry?
• What made that change possible?

Links

Opening Words:- are from James Martineau’s chapter, “Christianity without Priest and without Ritual,” in his book Studies of Christianity.

Reading:- is from excerpt from Harriet Martineau’s “Autobiography, vol. 1”

Niki Harré talks about her year as a self-appointed secular priest. She undertook three vows – simplicity, hospitality and pause, offered weekly services and personal conversations, and attended a Christian church. While she experienced considerable resistance, she also learnt a great deal about humility, listening to and caring for the other, and an awareness of the world as it is, rather than as we wish it was.

Speaker:- Niki Harré
Worship Leader:- Rachel Mackintosh

No text this week.

Meditation / Conversation starter

• Is there something missing in the secular world?
• What is it?

Discussion ‘rules’:

• Keep your comments brief
• Ensure everyone has a turn (or passes)
• Listen, but do not comment (you can affirm with a very brief comment during your own speaking time)
• You can add a further comment if everyone has had their turn to speak

Higher Values for Ecological Economics

Speaker:- Laurie Ross
Worship Leader:- Shirin Caldwell

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Laurie Ross © 17 May 2026

Kia Ora, E te whanau.

I am delighted to be invited to speak to you again today in this beautiful building and in this beautiful fellowship. Tēnā koe Shirin, Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

Introduction:

The development of Science, Technology and Military Intelligence has not been balanced by collective development of Spiritual Intelligence. This is essential for Evolution of Human Consciousness, in order to save Humanity from Nuclear War Apocalypse and Ecological Destruction of Earth.

Guest speaker Catherine Delahunty has had a lifetime of working for justice. She is an ally and champion of the people of West Papua, who live under occupation.

Speaker:- Catherine Delahunty
Worship Leader:- Rachel Mackintosh

Catherine Delahunty © 19 April 2026

No text this week.

Meditation / Conversation starter

• What did you learn today?
• How will it affect what you do to live our values of Justice and Interdependence?

Links

Opening Words:- “West Papua: A freeman’s dream” by Krystal Selwood Juffa

Chalice Lighting:- “We Are Not Alone” Adapted from Michael DeVernon Boblett

Reading:- “The Buddha, the angry man, and the gift”

What if fear is not a flaw to be fixed, but an invitation to be answered? This sermon explores stories of courage – what it means to take trembling steps into the unknown and what holds us when we do. If you have ever stood at a threshold you did not choose, wondering whether you had what it takes to cross it, this one is for you.

Speaker & Worship Leader:- Keola Whittaker

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Keola Whittaker © 19 April 2026

I. INTRODUCTION

Now picture the crowd in this story.

Jesus is passing through Jericho, and the whole city has come out to see him. It is loud and pressing and alive with anticipation. And somewhere at the edge of that crowd is a man named Zacchaeus — a tax collector, a collaborator, a man who has made himself comfortable by extracting money from his own people. Everyone knows who he is. Everyone knows what he’s done.

And this man wants to see Jesus. But he cannot get through. He is short, and the crowd — the very people he has harmed — are standing between him and what he is reaching for. So he does something that must have looked absurd: he runs ahead and climbs a sycamore tree.

I want you to hold that image. One of the most compromised men in town, up in a tree, alone above the crowd that has every reason to keep him out. Straining toward something he is not sure he deserves to see. Not knowing whether the door is open. Not knowing whether, if he came down, anyone would make room for him.

Speaker:- Dr. Tof Eklund
Worship Leader:- Rachel Mackintosh

If you find nonbinary gender(s) confusing, want to understand what it means to be nonbinary, or are nonbinary, this one’s for you. Dr. Tof Eklund (they/them) speaks about being nonbinary, the challenges and prejudices nonbinary folks face, and the profound implications of nonbinary thought and spirituality.

Dr. Tof Eklund, (they/them), is Lecturer in English and New Media Studies @ AUT.

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A Reflection on Rainbow Flags

Maria Hayward © 15 February 2026

Kia ora koutou katoa. I am going to read a personal reflection on this month’s Pride theme, and then I’ll introduce our guest speaker, Dr Tof Eklund.

I thought I’d talk about flags.

I had intended to open the Pride month services with brief explanation of the rainbow flags we’ve been displaying, but I didn’t manage to get around to it. Then, with the occasion of Tof speaking today, I wondered if there was a non-binary flag – and there is, so I’ll talk about that soon, but this gives me an opportunity to also talk about the rainbow flag in general.

Speaker & Worship Leader:- Keola Whittaker

Instead of preaching about queer folks as people who need support, I’m inverting it to what can queer and trans people teach the rest of us about being fully human? Especially now, when authoritarianism and even AI are trying to flatten us all into simple categories. I’ll be weaving in the story of the Kapaemahu stones in Waikiki – four healing stones connected to mahu (Hawaiian gender-diverse) practitioners that were literally buried under concrete for decades and then uncovered in the 90s.

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Reading 

Our reading today comes from Hawaii. It is the ancient legend of the Kapaemahu Stones, which I will talk about in my sermon. Here is the story: