Putting up resistance

Sunday Talks / Random Musings, , , ,
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Rev. Clay Nelson

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Rev. clay Nelson © 27 August 2017

“Neuroscientists tell us that our brain is constantly looking for ways to be more efficient, and habits and routines are one way of achieving that. While following a routine is somewhat antithetical to the idea of being present in the moment, of “being here now,” it does allow us to be in the present moment in a very different way, with a different consciousness, a different awareness.”

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Good outcomes from broken homes?

Sunday Talks / Random Musings
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David Hines

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David Hines © 20 August 2017

I saw a surprising Facebook post from my oldest daughter Karen a few weeks ago. It was paying tribute to Aunty Phyll. Now, I didn’t know she had an aunty Phyll so I thought it must have been one of her husband’s aunts, and didn’t reply.

Then a few days later I got another Facebook post, from my youngest daughter Nikki, who lives near Levin. She was asking if I could pick her up from the airport in a couple of days time, to take her to Aunty Phyll’s funeral in Auckland. I was embarrassed because by now I had guessed who Aunty Phyll might be, but I wasn’t be sure. And didn’t like to admit I didn’t know. Continue reading Good outcomes from broken homes? →

Preaching a Feminist Gospel

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Rev. Clay Nelson

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Rev. clay Nelson © 13 August 2017

As anyone in my line of work knows, there is a vast body of religious humour. Every faith and denomination has theirs. Generally, they are not nasty. They are the kind of jokes we tell on ourselves, self-deprecating humour that reveals something about who we are, including our foibles.

As a Unitarian, I have a rich body of humour to draw upon. For a small denomination, we laugh at ourselves a lot. One that tickles me goes like this: A group of children in a Unitarian religious ed class were trying to determine the sex of a rabbit. “There’s only one way to decide,” said one child, “let’s take a vote on it.” Continue reading Preaching a Feminist Gospel →

When is breaking the law a moral imperative?

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Rev. Clay Nelson

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Rev. clay Nelson © 6 August 2017

If you grew up in 1950s America as I did, you probably assumed certain things about the world. In particular, the system was fair. It never occurred to me that the system was rigged to reward my privilege of being born white, male, and middle class. My privilege blinded me to the fact that this wasn’t true for everyone.

Until I went to university I only knew one black person my own age. Continue reading When is breaking the law a moral imperative? →

Passing the Flame

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Rev. Clay Nelson

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Please accept our apologies for the sound quality this week, and for the absence of the first 3 paragraphs below from the audio recording.

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Rev. clay Nelson © 30 July 2017

In preparation for this Sunday, when we welcome new members to our congregation, I have been reflecting on what it means to self-identify as a Unitarian and how it has changed. Continue reading Passing the Flame →

To whom does a non-theist pray?

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Rev. Clay Nelson

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Rev. clay Nelson © 23 July 2017

A journalist assigned to the Jerusalem bureau takes an apartment overlooking the Western Wall—the holiest site in Judaism. Every day when she looks out, she sees an old Jewish man praying vigorously. So, the journalist goes down and introduces herself to the old man. Continue reading To whom does a non-theist pray? →

Amnesty International – Urgent Action Network

Amnesty International Rapid Response Letters
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A group in our congregation is working with Amnesty International’s (AI) “Urgent action campaign”.

An “Urgent action” is initiated when an individual is in immediate danger of human rights violations. A I then mobilises a dedicated group of letter writers to take action in the form of letters, email or fax. The letters ask that officials improve human rights of the situation of the individual.

Amnesty International New Zealand is a part of the Amnesty International network, an international nonprofit organisation working to end human rights abuses. It is one of more than 80 nationally organised sections of the global Amnesty movement.

Leave your details if you have a contribution to our ethical gift fair.

Four reasons not to give up on Politics

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David Hines

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David Hines © 16 July 2017

Intro:

About once a year I find myself writing a sermon on why you shouldn’t give up on politics. Every time it’s because of some current news item. Last year it was many Americans who were despairing of politics because Donald Trump had been voted president of the United States by a very small margin. Earlier the same year, many people in Britain were despairing of politics because of the decision to get out of the European community, again by a very small margin. And to cap it off, this year there’s just been an early election in Britain, called by Teresa May hoping to get a bigger margin of support, only to find her margin is almost down to zero. We get similar reactions to politics here. And as a result, the number of people who turn out to vote is often very low. Continue reading Four reasons not to give up on Politics →

Little Food Pantry

Little Food Pantry
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Little Food Pantry

On Sunday 9th July 2017 we launched our no-questions Little Food Pantry – “Give what you can; take what you need”. Please bring items of non-perishable food or sanitary items for the pantry. You can bring them on Sunday or drop them off any time during the week; just pop them into the cheerfully painted custom-made cabinet outside the front of the church.