In this week following our magnificent Music Sunday, I am thinking more than ever about how our spiritual life as a congregation is expressed through and deepened by art. Art in a spiritual context is one of our strengths at First Unitarian Church. We have a beautiful building and produce beautiful music. We provide gallery space in our Chapel (a photography exhibit from Seven Hills Photography Club is there now, and photos are for sale). We encourage our children to express their feelings and faith through art in their Faith Development classes. Art is part of how we express our spirituality.
Common wisdom regarding church growth says to build on your strengths. If we are already a home for art in a spiritual context, how can we build on that to invite even more people into our church? How can we expand the kinds of art we use to deepen our faith? How can we seek ever more avenues toward our deepest truths toward art in our worship services?
I see our beautiful liturgy and sanctuary as a vessel for our spiritual pilgrimage. In our worship services, we try, together and alone, to touch greater meaning and connection with one another. We try to reorient ourselves toward our highest values and deepest calling. We try to listen for that still, small voice-to some the voice of God, to others the voice of conscience-and we hope-on a good Sunday!-that our spirits will brush against transcendence. Art can be part of that journey. Music and words already play their part; visual art and theater can also contribute.
Beginning in Advent of this year, our Worship Arts Collaborative will present a variety of artistic expressions during our worship services. You can take part in the creation of a collaborative sculpture which will be mounted in front of the apse during Advent. This project will be led by Lynn Simmons, a sculptor and Assistant Professor of Art and Design at Assumption College. Our sculpture will hang in the sanctuary to help focus our attention in a new way on our spiritual journey. Join Lynn in the garden after the service (or Unity Hall in inclement weather) on Sunday November 15 to help create this shared work of art.
On Chanukah Sunday we'll have klezmer music. Our children are already looking forward to the annual Christmas pageant on December 13, ably directed by two of our youth. On the Sunday before Christmas we'll enjoy chamber music, our wonderful choir, and improv theater. We will celebrate Christmas Eve with our traditional service of readings, sacred music and candlelight. Art will carry us through the wonder and awe of the sacred seasons of Advent, Chanukah and Christmas.
And what's next? The Worship Arts Collaborative will continue its work, looking for artistic projects to enhance our worship life together. Be on the lookout for the next meeting; all are invited, especially those with an artistic idea to explore. The Chapel will continue to host art installations. Art will continue to be one of the strengths of our church, one of the ways we are brought together and seek the sacred as a community.
In faith,
Rev. Sarah C. Stewart
