No recordings this week.
Following our ritual for welcoming new members into the congregation, Clay gave us a whirlwind tour of some of the early New Zealand Unitarians who have gone before us in this congregation.
Opening words:- “New Member Covenant” By Laura Randall
Chalice Lighting:- is adapted from “Chalice Lighting” By Oberlin UU Fellowship, Oberlin, OH, USA
Closing Words:- “Each of us ministers to a weary world” By Darcy Roake
Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.
Marlon Drake © 14 May 2023
Marlon attended Western Springs College and then moved to Wellington where he was a student activist at Victoria University, serving as President of the students association, campaigning against sexual violence and in favour of mental health support for students. He also worked part time as an organiser in the Living Wage Movement during his time as a law student at Victoria. Marlon is now the full-time community organiser for Te Ohu Whakawhanaunga, a broad-based coalition in Auckland working for social justice.
Continue reading The thrill of participatory social justiceRead below or download the PDF
Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.
Clay Nelson © 7 May 2023
This morning is the fourth in a series of musings about what it means to be a living tradition. (Here are links to talks 1, 2, and 3.) How have we changed? Who decides what it means to be a UU today? And who owns the congregation?
When the eight members from diverse backgrounds were appointed to review Article II Bylaws, the first thing they did was consult UU stakeholders. These included, amongst others:-
This is participatory theology. Its purpose is to determine and articulate our shared values and theology.
Continue reading The thrill of participatory theologyRead below or download the PDF
Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.
Clay Nelson © 30 April 2023
[Third musing in the series] 1, 2I was intrigued by excerpts of Diane Miller’s reflections on the proposed changes to the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) Bylaws to be voted on in June at the General Assembly. Dianne was a young pregnant feminist invited to be on the committee charged with revising our purposes. Her son was born during the committee’s work. He was a toddler when what we know as the Seven Principles passed General Assembly in 1985. It was a radical change from such statements in the past. Her son is now a parent with two children, and Diane is retired. She is 74. She is also delighted that the hard work of the committee she served is being revised nearly 40 years later. What struck me most is that, including her generation, which is also mine, three generations of those who became UUs after 1985 have only known the Seven Principles as the definition of who we are.
Continue reading Will Unitarian Universalism remain a living tradition?Read below or download the PDF
Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.
Clay Nelson © 23rd April 2023
Last week we explored the many challenges of being a living tradition, the biggest being finding a consensus when we don’t have a creed, holy book of revelation or ecclesiastical authority.
This morning our focus is on the Seven Principles. How they came to be? Their role in our faith. Have they passed their use by date?
Continue reading Have the Seven Principles passed their use-by date?Read below or download the PDF
Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.
Clay Nelson © 16th April 2023
This morning I would like to focus on what it means to be a living tradition. As Unitarian Universalists we sing about it. We proudly proclaim it as what we are. But what does it mean? Most simply put our beliefs are etched in pencil and not carved in stone. But there are consequences. Like being green, being a living tradition isn’t easy.
It is a big topic, so this is the first of several random musings exploring who we are, how we got here and where we are being led. My hope is that we might better understand our Kaupapa, our mission and purpose.
Continue reading It isn’t easy being a “Living Tradition”Audio to come
Read below or download the PDF
Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.
Rachel Mackintosh © 9th April 2023
At the risk of being grandiose, I begin this sermon a bit like the person who wrote the gospel of Mark. It’s more than 40 years since I read Madeleine L’Engle’s children’s book, A Wrinkle in Time. I have thought about it and talked about it since, but I haven’t relived it. (I didn’t watch the film because I didn’t want to risk my memory being ruined.)
Here is my telling of the bits that have stuck with me, with some interpositions along the way.
Continue reading A wrinkle in time: the Easter miracle?Read below, or download the PDF
Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.
Martin Lewis © 2nd April 2023
Gratitude and its ability to uplift and enrich our lives is as extremely important and relevant today as it ever was.
As we are constantly bombarded with negative news and dramatic spin; dire messages through various forms of media, we might descend into feelings of anxiety, depression, hopelessness and despair.
Continue reading Unlocking the Power of GratitudeFollow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.
John DiLeo © 26th March 2023
Today, I’m reprising – nearly in its entirety – a service I led in September 2019. At that service, our guest speaker, Jean McElhaney, presented a talk titled “How can awareness of death enrich life?”
We reached out to Jean, to see if she might be willing to join us again today, but we were unable to get in touch. I considered simply playing the recording of her talk from our website, but ended up going in a slightly different direction: I’ll be playing a recorded TED Talk from 2016, on a similar topic.
Welcome:- “Sanctuary of the Soul” by David R. Chapman
Opening words:- “Spirit of Life and Hope” by Clarke Dewey Wells
Chalice Lighting:- “In the Mystery of Life About Us There is Light” by George Kimmich Beach
Time for all ages:- “The Invisible String” by Patrice Karst
Meditation:- “Living Brings Us Closer to Dying” , by Helen Lutton Cohen
Closing words:- “The Purpose of This Community is to Help Its People Grow” by Erik Walker Wikstrom
Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.
Dan Te Whenua Walker © 19th March 2023
Opening words:- ‘When I First Asked For My Whakapapa’ by Miriama Gemmell,
Commentary on this by Essa May Ranapiri in the Spinoff.
Reading:- excerpts from Dame Anne Salmond’s “What is the future of Māori-Pakeha relations?”
Closing words:- Dana Worsnop, “I Want to Be with People”