First Universalist Church

Rev. Arif Mamdani shares: In a year that has seen so much, how we gather, how we mark this passing, is not as clear cut as it may have been in other, less tumultuous years. Back in the spring, almost a year ago now, I asked “what is the story that we want to be able to tell about this time?” I invited us then to imagine ourselves into a future where we’d be sharing the story of this pandemic with young ones who hadn’t lived through it or were too young to recall. This was before George Floyd was murdered, before the cities across our nation and around the world rose up in a cry for justice that is still reverberating, before it became evident that Line 3 was going to be a significant fight, before our president would make numerous attempts to destroy our democracy and we would wonder (we are still wondering) if we’d have a peaceful transition of power or if we would need to be in our streets defending our democracy. And in the background of all this, the drumbeat of loss, and loss, and loss that has been a co

Our beloved annual Christmas Pageant, adapted for the small screen with creativity, humor, and extra layers of meaning will remind you of what matters most in this extraordinary season, as 2020 draws to a close. This year’s Pageant is born of the time and talents of so many, including: our children and youth, who will co-lead the service and act out our story; Aimee K. Bryant, Randy Buikema, Franco Holder, the First Universalist Choir, Seth Anderson-Matz, Andrew Tralle, Dave and Ani Peichel, several caroling families and our virtual children’s chorus, who crafted amazing music; and a great deal of technical wizardry from dedicated church members and staff.

Sunday, December 13, Julica Hermann de la Fuente, our Director of Anti-Racism and Anti-Oppression Ministries, offers a Question Box Sermon. Do you have a burning inquiry about anti-racism and anti-oppression work, especially as it applies to our congregation? We create the message together when you provide the questions for the sermon part of our worship service. Words of Welcome - Rev. Justin Schroeder (:22) Story for All Ages - The Wonder Box- Julica Hermann de la Fuente (3:04) Sermon - Question Box - Julica Hermann de la Fuente (13:48) Anthem - Make Them Hear You, from Ragtime - First Universalist Choir, Dr. Randal Buikema, conductor, Dominique Wooten Embretson, soloist, Franco Holder, piano, First Universalist Instrumentalists, Shelley des Islets, editor (40:33)  

In his poem, “For the Interim Time,” John O’Donahue writes, “You are in this time of the interim/Where everything seems withheld,” and “The old is not old enough to have died away; the new is still too young to be born.” These words capture right where we are: we are in a season of waiting, of anticipating the arrival of Christmas, of the Solstice, of Hannukah, of the turning of the planet, and the returning of the light. We are in a season of waiting, anticipating the vaccine for Covid-19 and the end of the pandemic, but “when?” and “how?” remain just out of reach. We are in the in-between place, the liminal space, a time of miracle and magic, fear and anxiety, wonder and grief. In such a space, where do we cast our eyes for hope? In such a space, what is the spiritual work as we wait for the new dawn?   Words of Welcome - Rev. Justin Schroeder (:31) Wisdom Story - Aimee K. Bryant (1:45) Hymn- Lo, How a Rose/The Rose - First Universalist Choir (12:54) Sermon - In the Interim Time - Rev. Justin Schroeder (18:

Historically, UU ministers were instrumental in creating this U.S. holiday and the “Pilgrims and the Indians” pageant tradition that roots the holiday in an historically inaccurate and harmful colonial narrative. Many UU congregations in New England can trace their lineage directly back to early settler congregations that had a role in the genocide of Native communities. As a religious tradition, we cannot decide who we will be without reckoning with the truth of who some of our ancestors were. This year, let us be grateful in a genuine manner. Let our gratitude flow from our deep, ongoing commitment to justice and equity. Let our gratitude grow from the opportunities we have to be together authentically—whether virtually or in person. Please join me as we reimagine this day and gather in community to honor Indigenous ancestors, experiences and traditions. May it be a time to reflect and find meaning in how our shared values connect us. ” – UUA President, Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray. This podcast includes porti

From Rev. Arif: These last many weeks, I’ve been returning to the notion of the fractal nature of reality that adrienne maree brown writes about in Emergent Strategy. As she writes: “Dandelions contain an entire community in each spore that gets blown on children’s breath.” Here in the Twin Cities, the dandelions are long gone. Winter is coming. COVID rates are on the rise. Hospitals and those who staff them are at the very edge. This may well be a very hard season. And yet, I wonder in this emerging winter, what spores are we crafting that will reseed the Earth as it awakens in spring? How might we, individually and collectively share the burdens, lighten our load, and move, even just a little, toward the world we dream of? Let’s gather up on Sunday- Breathe together and share word and song as we turn our hearts toward the season ahead, grab each other’s (digital, imaginary) hands, and make our way through.   Words of Welcome, Julica Hermann de la Fuente (:28) Wisdom Story- Tigers Above, Tigers Below, Seth A

The costs of the global pandemic have been high: lives and jobs lost; family gatherings, celebrations, and memorial services postponed, or cancelled; and physical contact limited with friends and loved ones. At the same time, for some of us, the lockdowns and different pace of life have given us a glimpse of what else might be possible. For a time, the smoggy sky over major world cities cleared. Carbon emissions dropped. Many of us became more clear what really mattered and why. How might these new “pandemic insights” shape our holiday season this year? What would it mean to put the earth first this year? To prioritize what really matters? Though the votes have been counted, and a new president elected, every day, we get to vote with our dollars, our actions, and our relationships. Everyday, we can cast a vote for a more just and fair world, or a vote for the status quo. This Sunday, we explore these questions as we launch our annual Holiday Giving Project, in support of Black Lives of Unitarian Universalism.

The election is over. The votes counted and still being counted. What now? What next? What guides, holds, and shapes us in these coming months? How might we live with, wrestle, and be challenged by these words of the great American poet, Langston Hughes, who wrote, “Out of the rack and ruin of our gangster death, The rape and rot of graft, and stealth, and lies, We, the people, must redeem The land, the mines, the plants, the rivers. The mountains and the endless plain— All, all the stretch of these great green states— And make America again!”   Words of Welcome - Rev. Justin Schroeder (:32) Story for All Ages- Aimee K. Bryant (2:59) Sermon- What Now? - Rev. Justin Schroeder (9:11)

On November 3, the United States will hold our 59th national presidential election day–and in the midst of pandemic, climate catastrophe, rising authoritarianism, and widespread uprising, this is perhaps the most significant election in our country’s history. In the context of extreme polarization and threats to so many communities, what trust can we have in the traditional systems and structures of democracy in the United States? And if that trust has been eroded–or never existed–in what can we place our trust, and our hope? Rev. Ashley Horan explores of our current moment and what our faith offers and compels us to do in these times. Words of Welcome, Rev. Justin Schroeder (:30) Story for All Ages, Julica Hermann de la Fuente (5:45) Sermon- On God and Country, Rev. Ashley Horan (15:52)

Some say that the most unique element of Unitarian Universalism is its individualism - the idea that each one of us is an essential source of religious authority for our own spiritual journey. But individualism and personal authority are not all there is to it. Our faith requires community, and our faith communities call out the good - and the god - in us. This Sunday, we set one among us apart as we ordain Arif Mamdani to the Unitarian Universalist ministry. Our faith community will call out the good - and the god - in him - and we will reaffirm our commitment to call out the good and the god in ourselves and each other.   Words of Welcome, Rev. Justin Schroeder (:30) Story for All Ages, Seth Matz (2:29) Hymn: Gather the Spirit, Aimee K. Bryant and Franco Holder (7:38) Homily, Rev. Jen Crow (10:30) Act of Ordination, Bryana French and congregants (21:42) Presentation of Stole (26:20) Laying on of Hands, Revs. Janne and Rob Eller-Isaacs (31:00) Hand of Kinship, Rev. Ashley Horan (35:45) Charge to the Minister

The poet Gwendolyn Brooks, in a poem and tribute to Paul Robeson writes “…we are each other’s harvest/ We are each other’s business/ We are each other’s magnitude and bond.” These lines reflect one way we might understand what we’re driving at at church when we talk about being a community of communities. This Sunday, Aimee Bryant, Arif Mamdani, and Lauren Wyeth weave together music, story, and prayer and in the process endeavor to lift up some ways we might enter into all this: these words from Gwendolyn Brooks, the invitation of community, and a heart’s yearning to be known and beloved.   Wisdom Story- Lauren Wyeth (:29) Hymn- Aimee K. Bryant and Franco Holder (5:08) Sermon- Arif Mamdani (6:30)  

In these extraordinary times, we are called to care for ourselves and each other with extraordinary discipline and extraordinary tenderness. This Sunday, we explore how we might lean into vulnerability and expand our resources as we name the mental health challenges of this and every time.   Words of Welcome, Rev. Jen Crow (:27) Wisdom Sharing, Julica Hermann de la Fuente (3:22) Humming Meditation, Aimee K. Bryant (10:27) Sermon, Rev. Jen Crow (17:48)

Although the focus of Universalism has shifted over the years – today’s Universalists are far less focused on Universal salvation and everyone going to Heaven than our forebears were – the essential message of Universalism (there is something of value in every human being; or said another way, there are no fundamentally bad people, only bad and deeply harmful behaviors) remains a challenging, potent, and powerful roadmap for building the Beloved Community here on earth. Universalism is no easy faith. It demands we do away with either/or, right/wrong, good/bad thinking, and hold a more honest and nuanced understanding of what it means to be human, and how love can shape and change us. It calls us into the difficult, uncomfortable work of loving the hell out of ourselves, our communities, and ultimately, the world. Story for All Ages- Aimee K. Bryant (:20) Sermon- Rev. Justin Schroeder (5:46)

In this Sunday Service podcast, we remember the tools, practices, and habits that will sustain us through election season, winter, and a pandemic. Words of Welcome- Rev. Justin Schroeder (:31) Story for All Ages- Aimee K. Bryant (2:52) Sermon- Rev. Justin Schroeder (10:35)

From Julica Hermann de la Fuente: Dear First U, This first month and a half of my time with you has been a lovely time of connecting and deepening trust. Thank you for welcoming me so warmly, for trusting me to go deep quickly, for your willingness and desire to engage in anti-racism work in the many areas of our congregation. Please join me this coming Sunday morning for a couple of stories about imagination and hope that I hope will nourish you in these difficult times, and also give you a window into what moves me and sustains me in my work. Bonus for the crafters among us: the story of how I constructed the tree in my office!    Story for All Ages - Interview with Rev. Jen and Julica (:29) Sermon- Julica Hermann de la Fuente (8:00)

As we gathered for this virtual Water Communion Sunday, we remembered that we are held in a larger community of care, a community that isn’t afraid of the complexity of this time, or the many swirling currents of this time, or the waves of feeling and emotion that crash into us on a daily basis. In the midst of all of this, we symbolically linked arms, held hands, and breathed together, riding the waves of our life, finding our way.  Words of Welcome- Rev. Jen Crow (:21) Wisdom Story- Lauren Wyeth (2:41) Sermon- Rev. Justin Schroeder and Rev. Jen Crow (8:18) Water Communion Ritual (27:00)

The service includes a story for all ages, music from the First Universalist Choir, and a sermon from Rev. Karen Hutt. We continue to explore our summer worship theme, “Here We Are.” Wisdom Story- The Water Bearer- Seth Matz (:20) Anthem- Shenandoah - First Universalist Choir (4:21) Sermon- The Ugly Cry- Rev. Karen Hutt (8:11)

 On Sunday morning, August 23, we celebrated our annual back-to-school ritual (formerly known as Backpack Blessing) in a new way for new times.   Song- Seth Matz (:22) Wisdom Story- Aimee K. Bryant (2:49) Song- Count on Me by Bruno Mars, First Universalist Choir (11:25) Sermon-Rev. Jen Crow (14:43) Back-to-School Blessing- Ministers and Staff (30:36) Song- Go On Your Way in Peace, First U Summer Campers (32:57)

As author and activist adrienne marie brown writes, “We are in an imagination battle.” It’s true; imagination creates racial hierarchies, creates borders, creates supremacy thinking, creates oppression. As adrienne marie brown says, “I often feel I am trapped inside someone’ else’s imagination, and I must engage my own imagination in order to break free.”   Whose imaginations are we trapped in? Who are we trapping by our imaginations? And what does it look like to break free? Though story, spoken word, music and message, we explore what radical imagination might unlock in the world around us.   Wisdom Story- Julica Hermann de la Fuente (:31)   Poem- H. Adam Harris (8:06)   Sermon- Bryana French and Rev. Justin Schroeder (12:10)

What does presence have to do with poetry? Where are we when we say “Here We Are.” What do the poetic forms of haiku, American sentences, and dekazz have to do with the pandemic? On Sunday, join Seth Matz and Arif Mamdani as they help us travel with these questions through music, story, and word as we continue to explore this summer’s theme: “Here We Are.” Seth and Arif are joined by Julica Hermann de la Fuente, Barrington Walker, and Aimee Bryant-- the newest members of the team! And, bring some paper and something to write with so you can join the poetic fun and add your words to the space we create when we come together. Words of Welcome- (:22) Wisdom Story- Seth Matz (5:42) Sermon- Arif Mamdani (9:43)