As we move through the sacred season, marked by the enduring light of Hannukah and the burgeoning anticipation of Advent, we’re invited into a unique space where the realms of time and eternity intersect. Here, every moment becomes an encounter with infinite potential. Amid the whirlwind of holiday activities, the understated power of rest emerges as a counterintuitive path to liberation, offering us a sanctuary within time itself. Taking a step back, we find ourselves attuned to the subtle, beautiful harmonies of our communal existence, appreciating the transitions and transformations that shape our collective journey. In the dance between who we are and who we aim to be, we see success as a delicate balance between progress and patience. Each Sunday becomes a vibrant heartbeat in our relentless pursuit of growth and spiritual elevation, and as the nights lengthen, our collective resolve only strengthens. We invite you to join us on this journey – to pause, reflect, and celebrate the sacred story we’re composing together.

Join us for worship this Sunday, December 10, at 9 and 11 a.m. as we explore our theme for December, “Listening Deeply”

Offering: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

 Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.

Special musical guest and First U member, Ellis Delaney, joins us for worship this Sunday, December 3 at 9 and 11 a.m. as we explore our theme for December, Listening Deeply.

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Amid the chill and hush that precedes the snow, Advent whispers to us of endings and beginnings, each story a thread in a great tapestry that covers all eras and lands. The tales of apocalyptic visions—sun darkened, moon obscured, stars cascading from the sky—are less portents of doom, more symbols ripe with potential, waiting for us to unearth ‘treasures of darkness’ held in times of seeming desolation. 

In this time when the world can feel like it’s ending every time we read the news, and the days grow shorter and shorter, what is our sacred task? We are called to listen deeply to the darkness. What holiness is thickening in these darker days? What tenderness is growing inside our hollows, individually and collectively, awaiting birth this season? Let us listen and learn together.

This Advent, let us gather with intention, embracing these ancient narratives not as tales of dread but as prompts for introspection and growth. Together, in our sacred space, we shall seek out the divine amidst the shadows and find within ourselves the ember of transformative hope. Through our listening and reflection, may we uncover that within the darkness, there is not an ending, but the hushed promise of new beginnings.

In person at 9 a.m.

In person and livestreamed at 11 a.m.

Watch the livestream on Zoom or YouTube Live. The recording is available for on-demand streaming on our YouTube channel immediately after the service ends.

Zoom webinar ID: 861 805 984

Offering: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.

A Place to Start – in person, immediately after worship (option to join via zoom after the second service on the first Sunday of the month)

Facilitated by one of our members, A Place to Start is a brief, casual orientation to Unitarian Universalism and First Universalist Church. During this 40-minute class, participants will learn about the foundations of our faith tradition and opportunities to get involved. The facilitator will be holding a green “Here is A Place to Start” sign at the front of the sanctuary after the worship services. We look forward to welcoming you!

We host A Place to Start next on December 3 and 31. If you can’t make it, or prefer to connect with a staff person one on one, please fill out the Visitor Connect form so we can follow up with you. Thank you!

One service only this Sunday at 10 a.m.

Join us this Sunday service for the whole community, for people of all ages, a heartfelt journey to “Destination Gratitude,” as we immerse ourselves in the rich teachings of the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address. Embracing the wisdom of the Turtle Clan, Wolf Clan, and Mohawk tribe, we acknowledge the importance of not just feeling gratitude but actively directing it toward each other.

Offering: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.

This Sunday’s ‘Staying at the Table: Starts with Grace’ celebrates the joy of embracing new members, showcasing the grace that defines our community spirit across our whole lives long. As Thanksgiving approaches, bringing its complex weave of anticipation and anxiety around encounters with all kinds, we invite you to a service that rekindles the essence of connection through the simple, yet profound act of sharing grace. 

This week’s service will explore the significance of grace not only as an expression of love and kindness but as an initiating embrace that precedes all our encounters. Discover how approaching every moment with graciousness, warmth, and gratitude can redefine our interactions and offer us a new lens through which to engage our membership and view ourselves and others.

In worshipful community, we’ll embrace a service dedicated to unclenching defenses, our unique traditions lifted up and joyfully shared together, and trying on other ways to engage that may just turn a years-long drudgery to delight (props to First U Worship Associate Meleah for that one!). Transform your fears into wellsprings of hope and opportunities for deep connection.

Whether you come with an open heart or a seeking spirit, let this service arm you with the spiritual nourishment needed to face the complexities of the season with a renewed sense of thankfulness. Take from our gathering the gifts of perspective and fellowship you can carry beyond our doors to all your holiday engagements.

Let’s begin with grace, together.

Join us in cultivating gratitude and graciousness for all life’s encounters. Don’t miss this moment to strengthen your spirit and enrich your practice of thanks.

Peace,
Dr. Glen Thomas Rideout, for the Worship Team at First Universalist 

Offering: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.

A Place to Start – in person, immediately after worship (option to join via zoom after the second service on the first Sunday of the month)

Facilitated by one of our members, A Place to Start is a brief, casual orientation to Unitarian Universalism and First Universalist Church. During this 40-minute class, participants will learn about the foundations of our faith tradition and opportunities to get involved. The facilitator will be holding a green “Here is A Place to Start” sign at the front of the sanctuary after the worship services. We look forward to welcoming you!

We host A Place to Start next on Dec. 3. If you can’t make it, or prefer to connect with a staff person one on one, please fill out the Visitor Connect form so we can follow up with you. Thank you!

As a kid and now as a parent, the word “scooch” carries at least two meanings. It can mean scooch, as in move along and get out of here, and it can also mean scooch, as in scooch over and make room for whoever might be joining us. This Sunday, we’ll explore the spiritual practice of scooching over to make room as one way of embodying our Unitarian Universalist belief in the worth and dignity of every person.

Offering: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.

“The world begins at a kitchen table. No matter what, we must eat to live.” 

– Joy Harjo

Our spiritual gathering – much like a meal at a table, nourishes us, but also requires our participation. How does this ‘meal’ feed us and what does it ask of us in return? There might be instances that provoke us to consider leaving this ‘table’. Yet, when should such a step become the necessary course?

Addressing our relevance in the contemporary world, why do we choose to belong to the church today? And how do we ready ourselves and our community for the church love calls us now to become? What do we do with our own resistance?

Our journey is about growing faith into real resilience, cultivating the skills we need to navigate challenging exchanges and open ourselves to evolving perspectives.

In worship this Sunday, we connect with our spiritual community to mutually nourish and learn from one another, to remember why we’re here, to gather the tools we need for a future arriving already and always. We warmly invite you to join us in this journey of self-discovery and collective growth. In staying at the table, we’re choosing to make a difference, together.

Offering: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.

A Place to Start – in person, immediately after worship (option to join via zoom after the second service on the first Sunday of the month)

Facilitated by one of our members, A Place to Start is a brief, casual orientation to Unitarian Universalism and First Universalist Church. During this 40-minute class, participants will learn about the foundations of our faith tradition and opportunities to get involved. The facilitator will be holding a green “Here is A Place to Start” sign at the front of the sanctuary after the worship services. We look forward to welcoming you!

We host A Place to Start next on Nov. 5 and 19. If you can’t make it, or prefer to connect with a staff person one on one, please fill out the Visitor Connect form so we can follow up with you. Thank you!

In a dynamic, multi-generational community, wisdom flows in every direction, reminding us to value the experiences of others to gain a broader understanding of life. It is important to break free from the belief that only older people have wisdom, as this limits our personal growth and potential.

Recently, our youth returned from a trip to Boston, a city rich in Unitarian Universalism history, and their fresh perspectives and thought-provoking questions are reshaping our understanding of our common faith. Through their encounters with our traditions, legends, and seminarians, their connection to our faith and our spiritual community deepens. Their reflections are sure to have a profound impact on your journey, too.

Join us for worship this Sunday, October 29, at 9 and 11 a.m. as we explore our October theme, “Learning from Each Other’s Experiences.”

Offering: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.

Each week we sing, “Where you go I will go, Beloved” to end our worship service and send each other back into the world remembering we do not go alone. This week we’ll dig a little deeper into that song: how do we actually travel with each other as Beloveds and make real the idea that “your people are my people?” In this multigenerational service, we’ll experiment with building a spiritual practice of solidarity that begins with listening to our own bodies’ stories and moves outward playfully and meaningfully into family, church and wider and wider circles of community. Join us for a single worship service this Sunday, Oct. 22 at 10 a.m. as we continue to explore our October worship theme, Learning from Each Other’s Experiences.

Offering: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.

A Place to Start – in person, immediately after worship
Facilitated by one of our members, A Place to Start is a brief, casual orientation to Unitarian Universalism and First Universalist Church. During this 40-minute class, participants will learn about the foundations of our faith tradition and opportunities to get involved. The facilitator will be holding a green “Here is A Place to Start” sign at the front of the sanctuary after the worship services. We look forward to welcoming you!
We host A Place to Start next on Nov. 5 and 19. If you can’t make it, or prefer to connect with a staff person one on one, please fill out the Visitor Connect form so we can follow up with you. Thank you!

Join us for Mental Health Suday worship this Sunday, Oct. 15, in person at 9 a.m. and in person and livestreamed at 11 a.m.

OFFERING: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.

We know that listening deeply to each other changes both the speaker and the listener – but what are the rules of engagement for how and when and who we listen to, and who we speak to? Who controls the expectations of how we will be with each other in society and relationships, and what happens when the limits change? What role might grace play in all of this? Join us at 9 or 11 a.m. this Sunday, Oct. 8 as we continue dwelling in our October worship theme, Learning from Each Other’s Experiences.

Listen to the Sunday Service Podcast here

Watch the livestream on Zoom or YouTube Live. The recording is available for on-demand streaming on our YouTube channel immediately after the service ends.
Zoom webinar ID: 861 805 984

OFFERING: Give via our online giving portal, or CashApp. Make sure to designate that it’s for the “Offering Plate” fund.

Masks are welcome but not required in the sanctuary. Read our COVID policies for gathering. Find information about childcare and Sunday morning options for children and youth here.