July 1 – Faith Under Fire: Religious Liberals and the War of 1812 – There were not yet any Unitarian or Universalist churches in Canada at the time of the War of 1812, but most American Unitarians distinguished themselves from their fellow citizens by opposing the war as ill-advised and unjust. On the other hand, our Universalist forebears were more likely to support the war. Why were religious liberals at odds with one another in 1812? And what difference does it make two centuries later? Rev. Stefan Jonasson
July 15 – To Whom It May Concern – It is said that prayer is at the heart of religion – some say, it is the oldest religious experience in the world. This service explores the premise that prayer is a natural, universal, even helpful impulse, whether or not we profess belief in a Deity. Rev. Millie Rochester
August 5 –
Is Compassion Out of Fashion? – In today's highly
polarized political climate, compassion seems out of fashion. Is that because
showing and practicing compassion is seen as a weakness? Or is it because being
compassionate is a difficult spiritual practice for anyone, especially those in
adversarial professions like politics? Rev.
Wayne Arnason & Rev. Kathleen Rolenz
August 19 – Dwelling in Tents – Ever since God is alleged to have given the ancient Hebrews a Promised Land -- and likely long before that -- humans have been marking their territory, not unlike our four-legged friends, under the illusion that whole territories are somehow permanent and inviolate. Yet simple observation shows that we are nomads and no civilization or state has wholly stemmed to tides of migration. Rev. Stefan Jonasson
September 2 – Priceless: What Money Can’t
Buy – It
was the apostle Paul who wrote that “the love of money is the root of all evil”
and, over the course of two millennia, age after age has supplied evidence to
support his assertion, although I personally think it’s actually second to the
love of power. But money can’t buy you
love, as The Beetles sang, and notwithstanding the present idolatries of the
market economy, money can’t buy us most of what we treasure in life. Rev. Stefan Jonasson
