We are a ministry of all people. Participation in the life of our congregation provides you with opportunities to practice the arts of ministry. Come learn about some of the ways you can make at difference in our Beloved Community!
Sermons
This is a full list of sermons presented at UUCCSM since mid-1999. Links to sermon texts are included when made available by their authors. Audio recordings are also available for most sermons presented after September, 2007 by our staff ministers and others directly affiliated with our church (just click the speaker icon next to each sermon where it's available*). Audio from guest speakers is posted only when we have their permission to share it.
Hard copies of sermons by Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae are available in the church office. Contact office assistant Sibylla Nash at office@uusm.org if you have a request.
"Leaving Room for Hope: Sermons for Uncertain Times," a book of Minister Emerita Judith Meyer's sermons, is available here.
**Please Note: Video recordings are available for sermons with a small TV icon showing at the bottom of the sermon listing. Just click the icon to watch the service.**
8 Elements of Effective Congregational Ministries - Revisited
Monthly Theme: History
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
Honoring Thanksgiving/Thanxgrieving
Monthly Theme: History
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
We honor this holiday with gratitude and grief as we count life's many blessings and we also remember the brutal legacy of colonialism in the United States. Let us offer thanksgiving together and reaffirm our commitments to justice and wholeness for Indigenous Peoples. I will share the traditional story of the first Thanxgrieving from my late spiritual teacher Ibrahim Baba.
The Danger of a Single Story
Monthly Theme: History
Rev. Kikanza Nuri-Robins
"Any one person’s story can change the way we think — and in changing the way enough people think, it can change our world. But what of the stories that cannot be told by one person alone? What of the stories that touch many people, all of whom have different perspectives and points of view?" -- Stephen Bradley
Unitarian Universalist History 101
Monthly Theme: History
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
Our liberal religious history has roots in the Jewish and Christian traditions and it was deeply influenced by the many diverse sources of our faith. Come learn a bit more about some important moments in the evolution of our liberal faith tradition!
Whispers of Our Ancestors
Monthly Theme: Cultivating Relationship
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
Día de los Muertos, Allhallowtide, and Samhain all recognize this is the season of our ancestors. Join us for this special holiday service as we listen for the whispers of our ancestors and honor death in the midst of life. Please submit pictures of those who you would like to include in the service to worshipassociates@uusm.org by Thursday, October 28. If you would like to purchase a memorial brick to add to the Garden of Eternity, please contact the church office. Our 7 Unitarian Universalist Principles
Monthly Theme: Cultivating Relationship
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
Our liberal faith affirms and promotes 7 Principles that we hold as strong values and moral guides. Join us as we explore the history, meaning, and application of these liberal religious principles to our lives right now.
Now What Do I Say?
Monthly Theme: Cultivating Relationship
Rev. Kikanza Nuri-Robins
Sometimes we just don’t know what to say. We see something; we know it is wrong, but we say nothing. The next morning we think of several things we might have said, but the moment is gone. The perpetrators think we agree with them. The targets feel alone and abandoned. And we feel like failures as witnesses, allies, or advocates. And then there are the times when “sorry” isn’t enough. But we just don’t know what to say. Join the chorus of a very human community of goodhearted people who want to do the right thing, but sometimes just don’t know what the right thing is to say.
Telling Stories: Reflecting on a Fairy Tale by A. S. Byatt
Monthly Theme: Cultivating Relationship
Rev. James Ishmael Ford
Our guest, the Reverend James Ford, thinks we can learn a lot about a lot of things from fairy tales. But then he stumbled upon a revisioned fairy tale by A. S. Byatt, and finds himself pointed in entirely new directions.
We welcome back Rev. Ford, who has been a Unitarian Universalist parish minister for over 30 years. He is Minister Emeritus of the First Unitarian Church of Providence. He is also a Zen Buddhist priest, guiding teacher of the Empty Moon Zen sangha, writes the “Monkey Mind” blog, and has penned several books addressing Zen and Buddhism.
St. Francis Day & Blessing of the Animals
Monthly Theme: Cultivating Relationship
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
Join us for our annual service dedicated to our beloved animal companions and the interdependent web of all existence. We are collecting pictures of our furry, feathered, and finned friends to include in our online blessing this year. Please send a picture of you and your friend to worshipassociates@uusm.org by 5 pm Thursday, September 30.
Ingathering and Water Communion
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
ONE SERVICE AT 10:30 am online
Our new church year has arrived! We will gather together virtually as beloved community once again with our annual Water Communion Ceremony. Let us bring the blessings of our lives to our congregation as we name our intentions, hopes, and dreams for the church year before us. What is stirring in your heart?