Sunday, October 25 — 10 am

In-person & ZOOM



"Creating A Reverse Bucket List"

We've heard a lot about Bucket Lists: the places we want to go, things we want to do, and people we want to see. I think of them as a dreamer's wish list, like the "1,000 Places to See Before You Die." More recently I've been reading about a Reverse Bucket List: the places, things, and people I can NOT go, do, or see; in other words, not my wishes as much as what is important. What does it look like to make a list of the places, persons, and things that are essential to my character and well-being? What would that list of indispensables include? And ultimately, what does that say about my priorities, values, and principles? Let's explore this together. 

• Rev. Greg Chute, Guest Minister
• Jan Sprinkel, Worship Leader
• Michael Casey, Musician
• Judy Graham, Greeter
• Dawn Miller, Coffee Host

This week's music:

• # 1064 (teal hymnal) - "Blue Boat Home"
• # 1028 (teal hymnal) - "Fire of Commitment"

Please CLICK HERE to join us via Zoom.

Order of Service available by noon on Friday CLICK HERE.

NOV 01 | "The Wonder of the Natural World — Interdependence," Rev. Kathryn Adams, Minister — In-person & Zoom

As we start Indigenous Persons’ Month, we will celebrate the wonders of this beautiful planet with so many gifts to explore. The moral call of this time is for our society to learn how to live in harmony with the planet, to live as one species among many, and to honor our interdependence.

NOV 08 | "The Work of Hope in a World of Chaos," Rev. Rebekah Savage, Guest Speaker — In-person & Zoom

When the world feels increasingly fractured, uncertain, and overwhelmed by forces beyond our control, how do we remain grounded in what we know to be true? We'll explore how communities of courage, compassion, and connection can become powerful sources of transformation. Together, we'll consider how our Unitarian Universalist faith calls us to create spaces where Love takes root, hope is an active practice, and another world continues to emerge.

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• This Week's Worship Service
• Upcoming Worship Services
• This Issue's Contents
• Helpful Links, Office Hours, Upcoming Events Calendar
• Minister's Column
• All Saints' Day/Remembrance Day Service — Sunday, November 1
• Love Forward Together! event Sunday, October 25
• Soup Sampler Supper 12/11 — Tickets on Sale After Services
• Democracy Corner
• Birthdays

Community, this week, I am reflecting on the why—why do people choose to help others? What would move someone to risk their life? How did they transform their concern into action? Later work found that as the number of people helping increased, it got easier for people to help. When people were asked, they usually helped.  

I am reflecting on the amazing work of Samuel and Pearl Oliner that led to their book "The Altruistic Personality: Rescuers of Jews in Nazi Europe." Samuel was a Holocaust survivor and became a scholar of this time in history. They both died in 2021. They did a lot of interviews with people who chose to help Jews escape the Nazis. Many characteristics had been offered, but in the research the people who helped were very similar to those who didn't. Those who helped expressed a sense of belonging to all of humanity, a universalized identity, and a clear knowledge that what we do impacts others. Today, there are those showing the power of this mindset again, from a man who stopped a truck to catch a school shooter to a minister (Rev. Dr. William Barber) continuing the work of Martin Luther King, Jr. (see flyer further down in Reflections.)

I love how this exploration resonates with the connectedness in the sentiment from the Australian Aboriginal organizers: "If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together."  

May we all perceive our lives as interdependent and connected, and know that our liberation, our true freedom, is bound up in each other.

Livestream link

Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II is a Professor in the Practice of Public Theology and Public Policy and Founding Director of the Center for Public Theology and Public Policy at Yale Divinity School. He serves as President and Senior Lecturer of Repairers of the Breach, Co-Chair of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call For Moral Revival, Bishop with The Fellowship of Affirming Ministries. He was also in Salisbury on August 26 this summer, where he led a protest and prayer gathering, titled "Standing with Our Haitian Siblings" to support the local Haitian community.

We will feature 10 different soups for sampling, a variety of breads, beverages, and a spread of desserts with coffee for $25 per person. 

Tickets are on sale after our weekly Sunday worship services.

Please contact Jane Hardy if you are willing to make soup, and/or provide breads and desserts.

We want to help celebrate your birthday!

If we didn't include your birthday, please contact the UUCR office by email.