Sermons
Living with Dementia
Rev. Jane Dwinell and Sky Yardley February 4, 2018
This couple has been living with dementia since Sky’s diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease in the summer of 2016. They are busy speaking at UU churches around the country, and sharing their experience via
their blog.
Through this work, they are hoping to erase the stigma surrounding this disease. They are former residents of Montpelier.
Seeking Truth in a Post-Truth World
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval January 28, 2018
Oxford Dictionaries selected “post-truth” as the 2016 International Word of the Year. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote “a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.” What does this search look like in a post-truth world?
Choosing One Another
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval January 21, 2017
Our human longing for connection is universal. Getting beyond superficial connection to real intimacy requires intention and practice. What are the ways we can truly get to know one another and also allow ourselves to be known?
Changing the Narrative
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval January 14, 2018
Carrying on the work of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in building the Beloved Community requires our dedicated action and also our intentional questioning of the narratives that shape us. What role can we play in changing the narrative of injustice and inequality to continue bending the arc of history towards justice?
Download January 14 sermon audio
Living and Dying with Intention
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval January 7, 2018
How we approach death can also speak to how we approach life. Are we living in alignment with our truest selves? How do we carry this integrity even into our dying? And, as we do so, what kind of transformation is possible?
Download January 7 sermon audio
A service to mark the transition into the new year with hope and intention.
The Worship and Arts Committee
Church members Sue Stukey, Bob Riggen, and Maria Parr reflect on something that is important to each of them as we transition to 2018.
Homily: “Love Enters In” – and a Pastoral Prayer
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval Christmas eve, 2017
We will welcome the hope of Christmas into the world and into our hearts in this annual service.
Active Hope
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval December 17, 2017
December marks a time of holy days across many religious traditions. Advent, Hannukah, Winter Solstice, and Christmas all encompass themes of anticipation, finding light within the dark, and yearning and hopefulness for a new world.
Download December 17 sermon audio
Hope in the Dark
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval December 10, 2017
December marks a time of holy days across many religious traditions. Advent, Hannukah, Winter Solstice, and Christmas all encompass themes of anticipation, finding light within the dark, and yearning and hopefulness for a new world.
Download December 10 sermon audio Sermon PDF
Hope: Yearning for What Can Be
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval December 3, 2017
December marks a time of holy days across many religious traditions. Advent, Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, and Christmas all encompass themes of anticipation, finding light within the dark, and yearning and hopefulness for a new world. This month, we will reflect on the many sides of this ancient and complex topic – hope.
Download December 3 sermon audio. Sermon PDF
Two Words to Change Your Life
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval November 19, 2017
We teach our children to say “thank you” from a young age. These simple words can have a profound impact on ourselves and others. How can we more thoughtfully cultivate the practice of gratitude in our lives?
Download November 19 sermon audio Sermon PDF
Shared Abundance
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval November 12, 2017
Our economy is a reflection of what and who we value. How do we move ever closer toward an economic model that values people and the planet? What role do we play in this endeavor as people of faith?
Download November 12 sermon audio Sermon PDF
This Life is Enough
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval November 5, 2017
It can be difficult at times to recognize the gifts and blessings in our lives. It can be easier to live from a sense of scarcity rather than a sense of abundance. What would it take to live as if this life – your life – were enough?
Download November 5 sermon audio Sermon PDF
Día de los Muertos
a multigenerational celebration October 29, 2017
El Día de los muertos (Day of the Dead) is celebrated in Mexico with gatherings to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. In this lively celebration of life, we sing songs and tell stories for all ages to enjoy.
The Death of Sunday School…and Life After
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval October 22, 2017
The landscape of religious education is changing dramatically. At our congregation, we have the opportunity to embrace these changes and meet the shifting
spiritual needs of our multigenerational community – children and adults alike. Join the conversation as we probe these questions: Is the traditional Sunday school model dying? How do we “nurture each person’s spiritual journey”? What is the future of Unitarian Universalist religious education for all ages?
Download October 22 sermon audio Sermon PDF
The Courage of Heretics
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval October 15, 2017
Ours is a heretical faith. At its foundations, Unitarian Universalism emerged out of communities that took theological stands at odds with accepted religious beliefs. How is that heretical tradition still alive today? In what ways are we called to be heretics in our time?
Download October 15 sermon audio Sermon PDF
In the Handprint of Your Love
Kathryn Blume October 8, 2017
While it can be valuable to spend some time cataloguing and taking responsibility for our negative impacts on the world – our carbon footprint, our ecological footprint – the ongoing litany of our wrongdoing can wear down our spirits and sense of wellbeing. Giving more attention to our positive impacts, our handprint, can not only be personally rejuvenating, but restorative for the larger world as well. And there’s no better source for our best work than our deepest love.
Download October 8 sermon audio
Brave Space
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval October 1, 2017
Facing the unmasked hatred and bigotry of our time requires courage – emotional, moral, spiritual, and even physical. Our task as a religious community is to create a brave space in which we can call one another to greater truth and love, cultivate our courage, and then take action together.
Content warning: The sermon discusses disturbing events that may bring up intense emotions.
The sermon was delivered in two parts with a musical interlude, Boy on a Swing, by Heather Moz. The interlude is not included in the audio recording, but lyrics can be viewed here.
Download October 1 sermon audio Sermon PDF
Welcoming the Other
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval September 24, 2017
Division and conflict often arise based on how we treat – and mistreat – “the other.” How do we come to define who is “the other” in our lives and in our communities? How might we go about offering welcome even across our apparent differences, no matter what they might be?
Download September 24 sermon audio Sermon PDF
Welcoming New Beginnings
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval September 17, 2017
In many religious and spiritual traditions, this is a time of celebrating the new year. For many of us, fall is also a time of beginning again as school and church years begin and we embrace the change of seasons. How might we each welcome this time of new beginnings in our own lives?
Download September 17 sermon audio Sermon PDF
Ingathering Sunday: Welcoming All of Who We Are
Rev. Joan Javier-Duval September 10, 2017
On this our Ingathering Sunday, we come back together to ground ourselves in community. We bring together the water we have gathered during our summer journeys – those that have taken us afar and those that have kept us close to home. We welcome all the parts of ourselves we bring into our shared spiritual community. Join together, welcome one another, and be welcomed again!