Sermon delivered by Chris Nemeth on June 26, 2011. Chris has been a UTUUC member since 2010 and lives in Oak Park with his wife, Tara, and their two girls, Marie and Vivienne. Chris speaks to how our popular society --a society wedded to the notion that we should ultimately be able to "have it all"-- seems increasingly fearful of and unprepared for the inevitability of disappointment, tragedy and, ultimately, death and loss. Chris can be reached at lcnemeth@gmail.com. A printable copy of his sermon can be found at http://www.unitytemple.org/pdf/sermons/TheAlgebraofLoss.pdf.
Sermon delivered by John on June 19, 2011. John has been a member of our congregation for almost 50 years and currently serves as a Pastoral Associate. He is retired from Northwestern University where he was in research administration, and was formally the Co-CIO of the American Hospital Association. He and his wife Jane lead an active life within our congregation and local community and greatly enjoy their annual travels to visit with grandchildren. He confesses to a great affection for bad puns.
This worship service from June 12, 2011, honors the life of Unitarian minister Rev. Norbert Capek and the beautiful tradition he began that is still celebrated by U.U. congregations around the world. The podcast begins with the choir singing a piece composed for a past Flower Communion Sunday by former UTUUC Music and Choir Director Jonathan Miller. Following the choir is a play enacted by four children of the congregation. The service ends with a reflection by Rev. Emily Gage, Minister of Faith Development.
Sermon delivered by Reverend Dr. Qiyamah A. Rahman on June 5, 2011. Rev. Rahman shares her circuitous spiritual odyssey beginning with her childhood religion in the Baptist church, her God-is-Dead period, 10 years as a devout practicing Muslim, her non-denominational period, and now 19 years of service in the vineyard of Unitarian Universalism. "If Unitarian Universalism had not existed, I would have had to invent it," she laughingly states.
Mystical humanist/womanist/post-colonial feminist Unitarian Universalist is how she describes herself on a good day! She recently tackled the question, "How does my nationality, race, gender, class and sexual orientation shape how I make meaning of the sacred and holy in my life and how have I come to name that?"