It’s our first animal blessing since 2020! In the spirit of St. Francis, patron saint of non-human animals, whose day is this Friday, we give thanks to all the animals who bring their incredible variety, beauty, weirdness and wildness to our world. Please bring any animals you live with who will enjoy being with us. If you have some who prefer staying home, or have animals you have loved who are now departed, please bring their photos and other mementos for our altar. Amy will also make a slideshow of all the species we particularly love and admire, from microscopic creatures to charismatic megafauna, so please email her their names by Friday.
The choir will sing “All God’s Critters Got a Place in the Choir,” and maybe some critters will raise their voices along with them. We will bless them all, just as they have blessed us. Snacks for various species will be provided. After the service, visit the petting zoo here at UUCPA!
With this service, we continue our series on the newly adopted shared values of Unitarian Universalism with:
Interdependence. We honor the interdependent web of all existence. With reverence for the great web of life and with humility, we acknowledge our place in it.
We covenant to protect Earth and all beings from exploitation. We will create and nurture sustainable relationships of care and respect, mutuality and justice. We will work to repair harm and damaged relationships.
—Article II (Purposes and Covenant) of the Unitarian Universalist Association Bylaws
Worship leader: Rev. Amy Zucker Morgenstern
Special music: Varsha Saxena, piano
Follow along in the order of service: bit.ly/uucpa_oos_20241006
If you prefer to attend online, there are two options. One, join the service via Zoom bit.ly/uucpa_service_1015am_v3. To get the passcode, email sundayservice@uucpa.org or call UUCPA’s outgoing voicemail message, 650-494-0541. It is also included in the weekly update emails. Two, to watch the service live on our Facebook page (no passcode required), visit UUCPA’s live Facebook feed.
Animal collage by Justin, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
*Our mnemonic friend the jetpig reminds us of our Unitarian Universalist shared values: justice, equity, transformation, pluralism, interdependence, and generosity, all held together and undergirded by love. See the above link to Article II of the UUA Bylaws for more details.