In our annual ritual of ingathering, we bring water from the places of our lives, and pour the many waters into a communal bowl in a ritual honoring variety and unity. We welcome the Adult Choir back after their several-week break. Music: Nicholas Dold, piano
The world is big and messy and getting messier all the time. We are pulled in two directions: to engage and make a difference, and to retreat into a safe place. Both are important to a meaningful and sustainable life. Let’s explore the possibility of integrating these two needs. Music: Four Shillings Short, Celtic singers/musicians
DUAL SERVICES (at 9:30 and 11 am) RESUME TODAY!
Justice Partner Collection Week: This is the week that we donate the entire non-pledge collection to our Justice Partner of the Month: South Bay Sanctuary Covenant
What does a successful resistance movement look like? Amy visited the Dutch Resistance Museum in Amsterdam and was surprised and inspired by the answers there. She shares them today. Special Music: Veronika Agranov Dafoe, piano
Justice Partner Collection Week: This is the week that we donate the entire non-pledge collection to our Justice Partner of the Month: California Clean Money
The series “Why do we do that in the Sunday service?” continues, with an inquiry into music. The choir sings for the last time before their six-week break; we sing; we listen; and we give some thought to the relationship between music and the spirit.
Music: Veronika Agranov-Dafoe, piano
What is mercy, and what place does it have in our quest for a just society and loving relationships? Mary Grebenkemper was the high bidder on “You choose the sermon topic” at the auction and requested this powerful topic. Music: Varsha Saxena, piano
For this intergenerational service, please bring a flower to exchange in our annual ritual. Dan will tell the story of how the Flower Celebration came to be, and we will fill the hall with flowers. We’ll have plenty of extras for those who forget or don’t know about the ritual in advance. We will also welcome new members during this service. Music: Veronika Agranov-Dafoe, piano
In a service last year, Dan Harper delved into why the elements of our Sunday service are what they are. Amy’s going into several of them in depth, one per Sunday, now and then, and this first exploration looks at the sermon. Why do we have one? What is it for?
Special music: M’Earth Tones, a small chorus featuring some of our members and frequent guest cellist Kris Yenney. Their mission is “Creating Harmony in a Dissonant World,” and they encourage us to “think globally, act vocally.”
In our Building Your Own Theology class last fall, participants generated their ten (or more) commandments. They were so wise and wild and loving that they need to be shared, so here are some of them, and what they indicate about our ethical lives today, in this congregation. Special music: Veronika Agranov-Dafoe, piano
Historically, human development has been regarded as something for infants, children, and teenagers–maybe young adults. Only recently have we begun to frame adulthood as a time of ongoing development. Great things open up when we think of ourselves not as animals who stop growing around age 21, but as trees that never cease to grow.
Special Music: Four Shillings Short
What weighty thing stands, seemingly immovably, between you and new life? Let’s roll it away and be amazed!
Amy gives the sermon, Dan tells the Easter story, and Liz Russ, who has sung for our Christmas Eve services, gives us special music in this intergenerational service. Special Music: Liz Russ, soprano
