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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.**

July 11, 2021 - 10:30am
UU Greater LA Ministry (GLAM) Virtual Summer Road Trip: "It Takes Practice" - Courtesy of Neighborhood UU Church
Matt Meyer
In order to give our amazing Sunday Worship Service production team a much needed break, UUSM is delighted to participate in the UU Greater LA Ministry (GLAM) Virtual Summer Road Trip, in which a different UU minister from around the local area will lead the service.  Services will be held each Sunday from 10:30 to 11:30 am in a common Zoom room (NOT on our Facebook page, as our services have been for the last year), with the link provided in our UUSM Facebook Group.  Please note that this link will be the same every week. 
 
This week's service, by Matt Myer, Director of Religious Education, is courtesy of Neighborhood UU Church. 

Watch the video here:  https://www.neighborhooduu.org/sermons-and-podcasts/it-takes-practice

 
The full summer schedule is:
 
July 4 – Emerson UU – Rev. Matthew McHale
July 11 – Neighborhood UU – Matt Meyer, Director of Religious Education
July 18 – UU Santa Clarita – Rev. megan Visser
July 25 – Throop UU – Rev. Tera Klein
August 1 – UU Santa Monica – Rev. Kikanza Nuri-Robins
August 8 – Neighborhood UU – Rev. Teresa Cooley
August 15 – UU Studio City – Rev. Hannah Petrie
August 22 – UU Verdugo Hills – Rev. KC Slack
August 29 – UU Santa Monica – Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
 
After each service, in the “coffee break-out rooms” hosted by the assigned congregation, we will have the opportunity to get to know members from other congregations. There will be no separate UUSM Zoom Coffee Hour.
 
July 4, 2021 - 10:30am
UU Greater LA Ministry (GLAM) Virtual Summer Road Trip: "Should We Cancel Thomas Jefferson?" - Courtesy of Emerson UU Church
Rev. Matthew McHale
In order to give our amazing Sunday Worship Service production team a much needed break, UUSM is delighted to participate in the UU Greater LA Ministry (GLAM) Virtual Summer Road Trip, in which a different UU minister from around the local area will lead the service.  Services will be held each Sunday from 10:30 to 11:30 am in a common Zoom room (NOT on our Facebook page, as our services have been for the last year), with the link provided in our UUSM Facebook Group.  Please note that this link will be the same every week. 
 
This week's service, by Rev. Matthew McHale, is courtesy of Emerson UU Church.
 
The full summer schedule is:
 
July 4 – Emerson UU – Rev. Matthew McHale
July 11 – Neighborhood UU – Matt Meyer, Director of Religious Education
July 18 – UU Santa Clarita – Rev. megan Visser
July 25 – Throop UU – Rev. Tera Klein
August 1 – UU Santa Monica – Rev. Kikanza Nuri-Robins
August 8 – Neighborhood UU – Rev. Teresa Cooley
August 15 – UU Studio City – Rev. Hannah Petrie
August 22 – UU Verdugo Hills – Rev. KC Slack
August 29 – UU Santa Monica – Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
 
After each service, in the “coffee break-out rooms” hosted by the assigned congregation, we will have the opportunity to get to know members from other congregations. There will be no separate UUSM Zoom Coffee Hour.
 
June 27, 2021 - 10:00am
UUA General Assembly Worship: "Until Love Wins" (Online Service)
Monthly Theme: Play
Please come for the largest annual gathering of UUs joining in worship. Last year more than 10,000 screens tuned in for the Sunday Morning Worship at GA! Recognizing the importance of shared ministry and the many innovative approaches to worship created by congregations during the pandemic, UUA President the Rev. Dr. Susan Frederick Gray selected the First Universalist Church of Minneapolis to serve as worship leaders for this year’s GA Sunday Morning Service: Rev. Jen Crow; Rev. Arif Mamdani; Julica Hermann de la Fuente; Karen Hutt; Lauren Wyeth; Dr. Randy Buikema; Franco Holder; Aimee K. Bryant.
 
First Universalist has been a model of shared ministry and what it means to put the work of dismantling white supremacy and building anti-racist, anti-oppressive practices at the center of their ministry. They have been on the front lines in support of the Movement for Black Lives in Minneapolis, bringing spiritual care and moral leadership in the wake of George Floyd’s murder by police and the important uprisings for justice that followed. Children and families are a vital part of their ministry, and they have been using creative approaches to engage all ages in worship during the pandemic. Their leadership exemplifies some of the best practices for the creativity, spiritual depth, and moral leadership that is possible when we embrace the work of shared ministry rooted in love and justice.
 
Video of the public events from General Assembly (GA) 2021 of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) will be live-streamed June 23-27, with no registration required. Folks can watch General Sessions, the Candidates Forum and Info Session, the Service of Living Tradition, the Synergy Bridging Worship, and the Sunday Morning Worship. An online chat is available during live events, to further connections between members of our UU extended family. GA registration is also still open.
 
PLEASE NOTE:
We will stream this service, as we usually do, at 10 a.m. on Sunday, on our Facebook page.  No changes from our previous services this year.
 
Also note:  our UUSM Annual Meeting of the Congregation will also stream on our Facebook page today, starting promptly at 12:00 p.m.  (There will be NO musical prelude to this stream - it will begin promptly at 12 p.m.)
 
June 20, 2021 - 10:00am
Our Brightly Burning Flame (Online Service)
Monthly Theme: Play
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
 
 
Join us as we reflect on a year of liberal ministry during a global pandemic, celebrate our many members who gave of themselves to our Beloved Community, and prepare for the unique challenges and exciting opportunities of the new church year!
 
 
June 13, 2021 - 10:00am
Queer Pride! (Online Service)
Monthly Theme: Play
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
   
 
Unitarian Universalists have been leaders in the movement for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, asexual, and queer liberation for nearly seven decades. Join us this Sunday as we celebrate our trailblazing herstory and Queer Pride in 2021!
June 6, 2021 - 10:00am
Call to Imagination (Online Service)
Monthly Theme: Play
Liz Murphy
For so many of us, the practice of imagination is left behind after childhood. But what if we reincorporated the magic of imagination into our daily lives? What might we imagine anew for ourselves? What might we dream up for our world? How might doing the work of imagination in community be a pathway to justice and love? This Sunday, we will revisit the practice of imagination as a form of “play,” our worship theme for June.
 
Liz Murphy (she/her) recently completed her intern ministry at Throop Unitarian Universalist Church in Pasadena, CA. She will be ordained as a Unitarian Universalist minister this August, and is looking forward to what ministry will hold in the future. Liz graduated from the Claremont School of Theology with a Master of Divinity in 2020, and we’re delighted to welcome her back to our pulpit. Originally from Pittsburgh, she lives in Los Angeles with her wife, Hilary.
May 30, 2021 - 10:00am
Playing Nicely
Monthly Theme: Story
Rev. Kikanza Nuri-Robins
Why is shared leadership so difficult? Nurturing healthy relationships in a polarized environment is a challenge. While, there are good reasons for playing nicely together, it is not always easy to do. Even when you are in charge, you can’t always get what you want. Let’s explore some assumptions that create barriers and approaches for surmounting some of the barriers to playing nicely.
May 23, 2021 - 10:00am
Buddhist Wisdom
Monthly Theme: Story
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
Unitarian Universalist faith affirms “wisdom from the world’s religions which inspires us in our ethical and spiritual life.” The life of Siddhattha Gotama — “The Enlightened One” — had a profound impact on our liberal religious faith. Join us for this service as we consider Buddhist wisdom for our lives.
 
May 16, 2021 - 10:00am
Animal Liberation
Monthly Theme: Story
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
We celebrate the interdependent web of all existence and strive to live in harmony with the natural world. Anti-oppression work asks us to consider anti-speciesism and the welfare of our non-human animal siblings. Join us for a service that contemplates our place in the circle of being and our relationship to all of the natural world.
May 9, 2021 - 10:00am
The Bahá’í Faith
Monthly Theme: Story
Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae
Over a century ago, a new faith emerged in Persia and its founder, Baháʼu’lláh, was heralded to be longed for Messiah of the world’s major religions. Join us for this service as we encounter the teachings of Baháʼu’lláh and learn more about this persecuted global religion.