The UUCW Nugget
November 2, 2016
 
Office Hours
(Sept 6, 2016 - 
June 29, 2017):
Mon, Tues, Wed: 
9 am - 3 pm
Thur. 9 am - 2 pm 

Congregational Mission Statement
"The members and friends of the Unitarian Universalist 
Church of Worcester covenant to be a congregation of love, hope and justice inspiring people to take on the challenges of a changing world."
  
Welcoming Church 
Mission Statement 

The LGBTQI and Allies of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester strives to further the affirmation and celebration of LGBTQI individuals in all aspects of the church community. We also seek to increase the visibility of UUCW as a Welcoming Congregation within the greater community.
 
Care for the Soul - A Recipe for Humanity
   


My colleague Roger Bertschausen, the former minister of the Unitarian Universalist congregation in Appleton, Wisconsin (with thanks to Kirk Loadman Copeland's latest Touchstone's primer) once crafted a recipe for crafting his belief in God. He writes, 
 
Ingredients
  1 cup agnosticism
  ½ cup Emerson's Oversoul
  ½ cup of Hindu view of God
  ½ cup process theology
  1 teaspoon liberation theology 
  (for leavening)
  1 tablespoon Star Wars' 'Force'
  ¼ teaspoon forgiveness
  ½ teaspoon gratitude
  ½ teaspoon joy

Directions
  1. Combine Emerson's Oversoul and the Hindu view of God in a small bowl and mix.
  2. Combine all ingredients (including the Oversoul/Hindu mixture) together in large bowl and mix.
  3. Spread batter evenly into container-namely, me (i.e., Roger Bertschausen).
  4. Bake in an oven preheated to 98.6 degrees for 45 years and 356 days.
  5. Let cool and enjoy!
 
As Kirk notes in his primer, more than simply belief in God, Roger's recipe could also be the batter for what it means to be human.  To be sure, the ingredients can change, per one's particular experience, but the recipe, will be bitter without the leavening of those experiences which produce compassion, humility, gratitude and joy.  One could include the wonder of science, the passion for justice, or musings of James Luther Adams or Thandeka in place of Emerson (or name your favorite theologian/public intellectual/social activist).  The point, I think, is that "care for the soul" must include that which inspires you to wonder and experience joy, excites your passion, and instills in you a sense of purpose and meaning, calls forth gratitude and tempers with the challenges of the world's hurts. What say you?  What are your ingredients?
 
Blessings,
Aaron
Contact Information

Phone:

508-853-1942

Email:

office@uucworcester.org

Fax:

508-853-2065

Website:

www.uucworcester.org

 

 

 

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