Sermon Archive

The second week of November is Transgender Awareness Week.  In this service led by Wy'east Members and Friends we will work to develop our literacy of transgenderness and explore what it means to practice radical welcome and renew our commitment to be a Welcoming Congregation.  

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/files/20191104MOROBRIDGES.mp3An angry delegation of UU’s once told me that I had better throw certain other members out of the church I was serving, or risk getting tossed myself. They weren't kidding. But what could I do? And what were those "certain other members" doing that made some folks so angry? Find out this Sunday.  Service led by Rev. Craig Moro.

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We know that young people are resilient, dedicated and passionate. Let’s dive into the power of youth, the value of their vote, and how they are shaping our world. Isabela Villarreal serves as the Youth Leadership Coordinator at Next Up, a local nonprofit that amplifies the diverse voices of young people for a more accessible and equitable Oregon.

This service is the second in our Social Justice Speaker Series this church year and will feature a Special Collection for Next Up.  Learn more about this organization at www.nextuporegon.org

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A few years back, four Connecticut police officers were arrested by the FBI for repeatedly violating the civil rights of members of a local immigrant community.  Most of us are descendants of immigrants from other lands. So how can some of us decide that newcomers today are no longer welcome?   Service led by Rev. Craig Moro.

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Many public gatherings open with a reminder about the traditional Native inhabitants of the land where it is taking place, honoring them and their descendants. Occasionally our Sunday services have made explicit reference to our chosen name, Wy’east, as “the term the Multnomah native tribe, on whose land we sit, have historically used for the mountain we call Mt. Hood.” In this lay-led service falling the day before Indigenous People's Day, we will explore the practice of land acknowledgment and the history of this place and its peoples. We'll also consider how the church came to adopt this name, and what it means to us now and going forward. How might we approach being Wy'east UU with the respect and seriousness that is called for?  This service is led by Wy’east members.

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When someone “screws us over” it seems only normal that we’d like to see them get “nailed” for it.  But is that really the right way to go? In these days of reflection between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, let’s give some thought to the alternative possibilities of atonement and forgiveness. Service led by Rev. Craig Moro.

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The 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote and the League of Women Voters which emerged from the suffrage movement both celebrate their centennial in 2020.  Debbie will describe the remarkable history of the passage of the Amendment, current challenges to everyone’s right to vote, and how the League of Women Voters’ continues to work toward a more perfect democracy.  Service led by Debbie Kaye, the President of the League of Women Voters of Portland.

This is the first of our Social Justice Speakers for the 2019-2020 Church Year on our Sociual Justice Theme of "Voting:  A Year of Democracy."  There will be a Special Collection for the League of Women Voters at this service. 

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Anna Fritz is a Quaker and a cello-wielding activist folksinger. She brings us a program that incorporates silent worship in the manner of Friends (Quakers) and her Spirit-led songs for cello and voice. Through singing together, she invites us to listen for how we are led as forces of love and justice in the world.

Anna writes songs that are used as political anthems and intimate prayers, touching on themes of colonization, climate, racial justice, and connection with the natural world. She tours as a folksinging cellist, records with bands like The Decemberists, My Morning Jacket, and First Aid Kit, and as a composer, works with theater productions in prisons. You can learn more about her work at annafritz.com.

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A few summers back, our son introduced his mom and me to some important cultural phenomena that we’d been missing out on—Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead. We had guided his awareness of literature through years of bedtime reading.  Now he was ready to return the favor with another form of cultural expression. “Guidance”: what a great gift it can be, and what a great difference it can make when it’s time to face new things!  Service led by Rev. Craig Moro.

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Join us for this annual service that celebrates the blessings of clean and safe water!  The Water Communion is our annual ingathering as we start the beginning of the new church year. Please bring a small amount of water that represents water that was important to you this summer: water from somewhere you traveled or from your own backyard.  Service led by Wy’east members.

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