Podcast: Sermons

With Malice Toward None

The audio player above plays the audio podcast of the sermon only. The YouTube player below plays the video of the entire service with copyrighted and private information redacted.

How do we move forward together as such a divided nation? How do we proceed “with … read more.

Annual Service of Remembrance

It is the time of All Souls and All Saints, and Rev. Millie Phillips returns to our pulpit to lead the service of memory for our beloved departed. We will lift up the names of the members of the UUCPA community who have died since … read more.

What Was Left in the Box

We’ve heard the story of Epimetheus and Prometheus, and how Prometheus was punished by the gods for bringing the gift of fire to humanity. Well, in one version, that wasn’t enough for Zeus, who also sent one last punishment: Pandora. And she opened a … read more.

Where Have You Gone, Joe DiMaggio?: When Heroes Fall

Do we still have heroes? Do we still need heroes? When the people we venerate turn out to have flaws, we have some choices: we can give up our ideals, beat up our former idols–or grow up into a more complex view of them and … read more.

Blessing of the Animals

Today is the Feast of Saint Francis, and thus the traditional day for blessing animals in Roman Catholicism. It’s also World Animal Day–a fine occasion for us homo sapiens to reflect on what it means to share a biosphere with about 8.7 million other … read more.

Atonement

Over the centuries, Judaism has honed the meaning and practices of atonement: how we make things right after we have done something wrong. Its teachings can heal our hearts, strengthen our relationships, help us build better communities, and even nudge us closer to world peace. Special Music: Veronika Agranov-Dafoe, piano

The order of service is here.

Radical Welcome

In these times, we deeply need faith communities dedicated to love and justice and compelled to live out radical welcome as a spiritual practice. In this service guest preacher Zr. Alex Kapitan, one of the leaders of “Trans Inclusion in Congregations,” the course that UUCPA is about to engage with, will share how radical welcome isn’t about simply opening our (virtual or physical) doors or being friendly, it’s about creating spaces where each of us can bring our full selves forward, see our truths reflected, and be transformed by our relationships with one another. Special Music: Karen Van Dyke, flute

The order of service is here.

What Can We Trust?

How do we decide what to trust? The solidity of what we can reliably know has been chipped away: by propaganda, deceit by once-trusted leaders, postmodernism, and the multiplication of media sources. However, the question is not new, and wise answers have been proposed for thousands of years. We’ll look at some of the guidance we’ve been offered. Special music: Veronika Agranov-Dafoe

The order of service is here.

Thriving in Difficult Times, What did Buddha have to say?

Difficult times are trying times. They expose our vulnerabilities. How can our vulnerabilities be our gifts? How do we hide our joy, peace and balance? How do we uncover it? Let’s explore together what Buddha had to say about all of this.

The order of service is here.

Water Communion

We hope you can participate in this annual ritual of ingathering. During the ritual in the August 30 service, waters and words that were shared earlier will be poured into the communal bowl. Please also have a glass of water on hand when the service begins in order to join in another part of the ceremony.

The order of service is here.