|
|
CURRENT SERMONS UNDER RECONSTRUCTION.
Meanwhile, please enjoy samples of sermons by lay leaders in 2007.
Recordings of some services led by Martha L. Munson, Interim Minister, are stored in the church office and may be checked out by members.
Also, listed below are past sermons:
services planned and coordinated by Religious Services Committee.
(Now called Worship Service Committee, Jerry Trexler, Chair)
Religious Services Committee
Religious Services Committee Page
|
Darfur: the Horror and the Hope
|
H. Richard Levy March 25, 2007
Today Unitarian-Universalist communities throughout the United States are observing Justice Sunday. This is an opportunity for us to remember our principles of justice, equity, and compassion, and to translate that compassion into action. The focus of this year's Justice Sunday is Darfur, the region of Sudan where a genocide has been in progress for the past 4 years.
|
|
The Dalia Lama On Compassion
|
Jerry Clausen August 13, 2006
Compassion was placed as a first priority by those who built the mission statement.
One of the Dalai Lama's main themes is compassion. Two of his best loved books on the subject are The Compassionate Life and An Open Heart. Since all religions "advocate love, compassion, and forgiveness" we need to be specific. The Dalai Lama states, "In Buddhism compassion is defined as the wish that all beings be free from suffering" - - the wish that all beings be free from suffering.
|
|
Rejection
|
Peggy Sperber Flanders, January 30, 2000
When I picked the topic of rejection to talk to you about, it came from
my experience of having to send hundreds of rejection letters to
writers aspiring to publish their poems in our magazine, The Comstock Review.
That definitely put the subject at a distance.
|
|
Soul Hunger
|
Susan M. Shaw, March 5, 2000
I’ve often used the phrase “feeds my soul” to describe why I come to
church, enjoy planning worship services, and remind myself to live with
an openness to spiritual awareness. But even though I’ve said
participating “feeds my soul”, I had neglected to think about what kind of soul
hunger exists to await the soul food I receive.
|
|
The Attitude of Gratitude
|
Peggy Sperber Flanders, November 26, 2000
You used to practice grammar, arithmetic, and algebra. Practice is
probably something you think you’re done with when you leave school or
give up music lessons. Have you ever thought of practicing the art of
gratitude? There is, indeed, an art to gratefulness.
|
|
The Practice of Letting Go
|
Peggy Sperber Flanders, October 1, 2000
Chances do slip away - and “letting go” comes when we least expect it.
We need to practice the small losses in life in order to deal, anyway
near appropriately, with the big ones. Practicing letting go can be as
simple as paying attention to why something doesn’t fit your
life-style, or your self-image, anymore.
|
|
Labor: Chore or Celebration
|
Peggy Sperber Flanders, September 2, 2001
My own feelings [on Labor Day] are complicated by the fact that I
“retired” almost 3 years ago from my Administrative Assistant job at Upstate
Medical Center. I use the oldest name for the Medical Center, because
I worked there, in psychiatry and radiology, for 29 years – most of my
working life. However, as many of you know, “retirement” is just
another word for “Labor” – only the ways to “keep score” change -- usually
financially!
|
|
The Resentment Fighter
|
Jerry L. Clausen, M.D., February 3, 2002
Resentment was described by Father Martin, when he came to Lemoyne
College, as "anger that is being re--sensed." That is sensed again.
Frederick Nietzsche said, "Nothing on earth consumes a man more completely
than the passion of resentment."
|
|
Pride 2003, Words of Love
|
Kim Reed, the Welcoming Congregation Committee, & the Religious Services Committee, June 22, 2003
Our Annual GBTL Pride Service! This year the service included: a pagan
Summer Solstice ritual, some readings including one from Hedwig and The
Angry Inch, and a thoughtful reflection from our own Kim Reed.
|
|
Forgiveness - the Scientific Slant
|
Jerry L. Clausen, M.D., Summer 2003
Last December I went to Harvard to study forgiveness as a tool of
medical healing. I had been using it in my practice of psychiatry for a
long time before that. … To forgive is a self loving act.
|
|
|
