Summer Sunday worship services are held at 10:00 a.m., from May 27 through September 2.
Sundays at Unity ChurchSunday worship at Unity Church is a cornerstone of our religious community. It is where we envision and create a new reality for a better world. It allows us to come together for community and deepen our individual spirit. It is about us coming together as a religious family. It is where we practice being our best selves. It is an encounter with mystery and awe to plumb our spiritual depths.
From the Sunday before Memorial Day through the Sunday before Labor Day, there is just one service each week at 10:00 a.m. During the church year, worship services are held at 9:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., and 4:30 p.m., except where noted. The entrance to the Sanctuary is at 733 Portland Avenue and parking is available in the church's lot on the corner of Portland Avenue and St. Albans Street. Map and Directions June/July Sunday WorshipJune 3: Centering Decentering
Earlier this year Rev. Mitra Rahnema, editor of the book Centering: Navigating Race, Authenticity, and Power in Ministry, spoke with members of Unity Church about her book and the questions that arise when UU faith communities grapple with questions of multiculturalism and cultural expressions that are or are not “centered” in congregational life. As we open a month focused on the theme of belonging, join Hallman Ministerial Intern Arif Mamdani and worship associate Maima Fant as they invite us to consider the spiritual practices of centering and decentering and what they might mean here at Unity Church. Offering recipient: Faith Builders Habitat for Humanity June 10: The Importance of Belonging The experts tell us that the most significant ailment afflicting Americans is isolation. It is a human need to belong to someone, or something. And yet our culture values the rugged individual. How do we square these conflicting values in our lives? Rev. Janne Eller-Isaacs and worship associate Heidi Huelster will wrestle with the importance of belonging in our world. Offering recipient: Unity Church Chalice Camp June 17: Longing to Belong Poet John O’ Donohue explains that the word belonging holds together the two fundamental aspects of life: being and longing. Belonging is deep, only in the superficial sense does it refer to our external attachment to people, places, and things, rather it is the living and passionate presence of the soul. Join ministerial intern Andrea Johnson and Rev. Lisa Friedman as we explore our longing to belong. Offering recipient: Vivienne’s Joy Foundation June 24: The Freedom of Belonging It is easy to shy away from commitment and call it freedom. But there is a difference between freedom from and freedom to. True belonging invites us into discipleship not to a person, though the teacher may well embody the teachings, but to the teachings themselves. What does discipleship look like in our religious community? What kind of freedom is born of true belonging? Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs and Rev. KP Hong will offer the service. Offering recipient: Pu Taw Memorial Junior College July 1: Young, Scrappy, and Hungry The hit musical Hamilton turns the story of the American Revolution on its head and challenges assumptions about the nature of our democracy. Youth-led movements against gun violence and national movements such as Black Lives Matter and the Poor People’s Campaign issue those challenges again in our day. Unitarian Universalism affirms the democratic process in our faith and world. Join Rev. Lisa Friedman and worship associate Alex Askew for a service asking: What is the hunger for freedom and citizenship that is alive for us today? What lessons might we take from the birth of our nation in the midst of slavery and the oppression of the indigenous people here before us? Offering recipient: Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop July 8: On the Run 1 Unitarian Universalists often discuss race in the abstract. How do we build the beloved community? How do we be more welcoming? How do we dismantle racism? Through this lens, UUs often miss the realities and lived stories of people of color in their own congregation. Join Avi Viswanathan and Kevin Ward as they begin the exploration of the racism people in our own community face. Offering recipient: Transitional Conferencing July 15: On the Run 2 Worship Associates Kevin Ward and Avi Viswanathan continue the exploration of how white supremacy paralyzes progress and justice. How can we own our roles in the oppression of people of color, and what is the way forward? Musician: Sunita Staneslow Offering recipient: Vivienne’s Joy Foundation July 22: Knowing and Doing Better Worship leader Jackie Smith and worship associate Bob Lies will unwrap the tension between knowing something to be true, understanding that what is one's truth might not be another's, and the balance between both living in and healing a broken world. Offering recipient: CLF Prison Ministry July 29: Inherent Worth and Dignity The first principle of Unitarian Universalism is the inherent worth and dignity of every person — an affirmation that we are each a part of the original blessing of being. Having once been challenged by a lifelong Unitarian Universalist: “Can I still be a UU, even if I’m not sure of everyone’s worth and dignity?”, Rev. Lisa Friedman and worship associate Bryan Smith will ponder the question of what it means to be a religious tradition which places its faith in humanity, in a world whose cruelty and tragedy does not always bear that faith out. Offering recipient: ApparentPlan |
Family and Story Sundays
Family Sundays 2018-19
Family Sundays take place five times each church year:
Story Sundays 2018-19 Story Sundays happen frequently throughout the church year, with children in grades 1-8 beginning in worship with the congregation in the Sanctuary. After the opening hymn, prayers, and children’s message, Workshop Rotation children (grades 1-5) proceed with their Journey Guides to their classrooms for religious education programming while junior high youth (grades 6-8) remain in the sanctuary for the entire worship service.
Coffee and Fellowship HourEveryone is invited to the Parish Hall for coffee and fellowship following the morning service. If you or a team you are working with would like to request a table in the Parish Hall as a way to share information with the congregation about a project, class, or other learning opportunity, please CLICK HERE. Parish Hall tables are reserved for programs and groups affiliated with Unity Church.
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