UPCOMING WORSHIP SERVICES FOR JANUARY

The Practice of Story (with love at the center)

 

January 5

Once Upon A Time

10:30 am

Rev. Clare L. Petersberger, Kara Tyler, Director of Religious Education, and Tracy Hall, Music Director, and The TUUC Choir

Our Christian neighbors are celebrating Epiphany Sunday, the story of how the wise travelers, who followed a star, finally arrived to visit Mary and the baby Jesus and to offer their gifts. Our Jewish neighbors just celebrated the story of the oil that was supposed to burn for only one night but lasted for eight days. When you think about the practice of story, what comes to mind? For me, it’s the opening, “Once upon a time….” These words signal wonder, imagination, and possibility. What “once upon a time” story is speaking to you at the beginning of 2025?


January 12

Contact With Life From Another Star?

10:30 am

Rev. Clare L. Petersberger, Kara Tyler, Director of Religious Education, Tracy Hall, Music Director and the Community Choir

This morning, we share the true story of an interracial Unitarian couple who, in 1961, experienced a close encounter with an unidentified flying object and lost two hours of their lives. Afterwards, the wife asked her husband, “Do you believe in flying saucers now?” He replied, “Of course not.” What can we learn from the story of the abduction of Betty and Barney Hill? (This is the worship service that “won” the most votes at our annual auction.)


January 19

Building The Beloved Community

10:30 am

Rev. Clare L. Petersberger, Mr. Cameron E. Miles, Director and Founder of Mentoring Male Teens in the 'Hood', Kara Tyler, Director of Religious Education, Tracy Hall, Music Director, and the TUUC Choir, and Sue Royer

Today we remember the story of the friendship between The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Thich Nhat Hanh. King nominated Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967. In May of 1967, Hanh shared with King that in Vietnam, King was viewed as a bodhisattva, “an enlightened being trying to awaken other living beings and help them move toward more compassion and understanding.” Both religious leaders, from different parts of the world, and from different religious traditions, were committed to building the Beloved Community. Closer to home, Mr. Cameron E. Miles, the founder and Director of Mentoring Male Teens In The 'Hood' is also committed to building the beloved community. What can we learn from these leaders about our purpose as a congregation? Our offering today is designated for our community partner, Mentoring Male Teens In The Hood.


Max Koren, Speaker

As humans, we live in a world of cats and cars and chairs and countless other discrete things—each with their own identity. This is the world we're meant to live in, but every once in a while, it helps to take a step outside of it. Today we'll look at an abstract mathematical universe that's wildly different from our own. Can this universe support life? If so, what can it teach us about our own human experiences?

January 26

A Window to a Parallel World

10:30 am