Soul Matters theme: Finding Our Center
Sunday Services take place at 11:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary. You can also connect via Zoom at https://uuma.zoom.us/j/920676087 or telephone to 646-876-9923 (Meeting ID: 920 676 087).
The Rev. Andrew Clive Millard
January 1st: "A Stunning Power in Our Hands"
New Year’s Day is traditionally a time of taking stock of the past while also looking to the future, as represented by the two faces of Janus, the Roman god for whom January is named. In this time of change and possibility, let’s pause on the threshold of the new calendar and consider how we might move forward and shape together what is to come.
January 8th: “Who We Are"
Our “center” is a much richer place than is often recognized. It’s not simply a sought-for place of peace and calm: it’s also a place of being pushed and launched. Our center is not just a sanctuary, but also an invitation. It’s a still point, yes, but we pivot on it and turn toward something new. It’s not just “Breathe”: it’s “Take a breath and jump!”
The UUFP ChorUUs will provide us with music!
January 15th: "Imbolc Service"
Join EarthRising for an experiential, mythopoetic Sunday Service centered on the Celtic celebration of Imbolc, which means “in the belly” in Gaelic, referring to pregnancy and “quickening”, the first delicate movement felt by the mother. Traditionally, Imbolc occurs on February 1st, half way between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. It is a time for us to search for what is quickening within us by “finding our center”.
The UUFP’s EarthRising is the oldest continually meeting Earth-centered group in Virginia. Founded in 1987, it was also one of the first UU Pagan groups in the country. EarthRising celebrates the traditional Neopagan Sabbats with ideas and inspiration from Pagan, Pantheist, Indigenous, Animist and other Earth-centered Spiritualities.
January 22nd: “We Covenant to: Welcome Everyone of Good Will” Last month, by unanimous vote at a special membership meeting, the UUFP adopted a congregational covenant, a list of intentions describing who we aspire to be as a faith community. The first point of our covenant echos language said every Sunday morning for decades: “All those of good will are welcome to join with us”. Let’s unpack that. We’ll welcome our newest members and celebrate our community with a Soup Social!
January 27th: “Imbolc Ritual”
NOTE TIME: 7pm at the UUFP
In-gathering is followed by the ritual and a potluck feast! If you’d like someone to guide you through the ritual, we can pair you with a friend. Children are welcome with their parents. To request childcare or ask questions, please email: EarthRising@uufp.org
January 29th: "Where Things Meet"
Sometimes finding balance in our lives is about sorting out the many things that we have difficulty separating from one another. Can we find balance when things seem inextricably intertwined? Come and explore.
The Rev. Viola Abbitt (she/her/hers) is the settled minister at the Coastal Virginia Unitarian Universalists in Virginia Beach. She was a contributor to BLUU (Black Lives of Unitarian Universalism) Notes and to the Promise and the Practice of Our Faith campaign, and she has served on the UUA’s Journey Toward Wholeness Transformation Committee. Viola is a member of the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association Committee on Anti-Racism, Anti-Oppression and Multiculturalism, the Vice President of the Meadville Lombard Theological School Alum Association, and a board member of UU Wellspring, Inc., for whom she co-authored a spiritual deepening program for youth and a curriculum exploring Article II of the UUA’s bylaws.
