Gathering Music (Mary Bopp) Welcome & Announcements Centering Prelude #188 "Come, Come Whoever You Are" Music by Lynn Ungar Arranged & performed by Mary Bopp Chalice Lighting Building Belonging by Rev. Dr. David Breeden Welcome, friends-- Newcomers, old-timers, seekers, skeptics, saints of habit and rebels of the heart Here, we gather not because we think the same, but because we choose to journey together. Belonging is not something given--it is something we build, with open hands and open hearts. It is made in the sharing of stories, the holding of silences, the courage to show up as we are. Here, we practice and radical hospitality--not of perfection, but of presence. May we make this place a shelter for the soul, a workshop for justice, a sanctuary where love is not merely spoken but lived. Deeply. again--in trust, in hope, in the spirit of belonging. Introduction to the Service Opening Hymn #360 "Here We Have Gathered" Words by Alicia S. Carpenter Music per Genevan psalter Here we have gathered, gathered side by side, Circle of kinship, come and step inside! May all who seek here find a kindly word; May all who speak here feel they have been heard. Sing now together this, our hearts' own song. Here we have gathered, called to celebrate Days of a lifetime, matters small and great; We of all ages, women, children, men, Infants and sages, sharing what we can. Sing now together this, our hearts' own song. Life has its battles, sorrows, and regret; But in the shadows, let us not forget; We who now gather know each other's pain; Kindness can heal us: as we give, we gain. Sing now in friendship this, our hearts' own song. Time for All Ages Selections from Rumple Buttercup by Matthew Gray Gubler Welcoming Visitors and Joys and Concerns Musical Response Prayer "Belonging" (a responsive reading) Rev. Dr. David Breeden One: Belonging is the warmth of a hand held out, All: the nod across the room that says: I see you. One: Belonging is not agreement but the invitation to the table; All: the invitation to be whole. One: Belonging is the story that changes because you arrived, All: the circle that widens because we are here. One: Belonging is the lilt in the song sung together, All: made more true because it holds your note. One: Belonging is a promise: not that you must become us, All: but that you already are. Offering Our September Community Outreach Ministry recipients are the Manchester Latino Affairs Council and She Leads Justice. Manchester Latino Affairs Council The Manchester Latino Affairs Council (M.L.A.C.) was established in January of 2007. Its current mission is to address social issues with a focus on diversity, inclusivity and equality within Manchester's Latino community. She Leads Justice She Leads Justice advocates for under-resourced, marginalized women in Connecticut. They work to close the civil legal justice gap and to create state policy for economic security. Formerly known as the Connecticut Women's Education and Legal Fund, their work supports women who identify as cisgender and transgender, and non-binary individuals, as well as people of all marginalized gender identities. Offering Music "We Can Be Kind" Words & Music by David Friedman Sung by Gerald Dillenbeck Sermon "Radical Welcome" Stacey Musulin Closing Hymn #323 "Break Not the Circle" Words by Fred Kaan Music by Thomas Benjamin Break not the circle of enabling love Where people grow, forgiven and forgiving; Break not the circle, make it wider still, 'Till it includes, embraces all the living. Come, wonder at this love that comes to life, Where words of freedom are with humor spoken, And people keep no score of wrong and guilt, But will that human bonds remain unbroken . Join then the movement of the love that frees, 'Till people of whatever race or nation Will truly be themselves, stand on their feet, See eye to eye with laughter and elation. Extinguishing the Chalice A Theology of Welcome Rev. Dr. David Breeden Let's be the welcome we crave-- open hearts, arms outstretched. Let's embody radical welcome, unquestioning love. Let's be the welcome we crave-- deeply hearing voices and hearts. Let's be the welcome we crave-- enriching, understanding. Let us embody the community we crave. Closing Circle May faith in the spirit of life And hope for the community of earth And love of the light in each other Be ours now, and in all the days to come.

UUSE's Oak Burl Chalice, on the globe table in the garden level chapel We are in the midst of launching our congregational year. I am using this morning’s sermon as well as my September 28 th  sermon to imagine what the year will look and feel like. There are a few things I really want to do with these two sermons, and one thing I don’t want to do. Broadly speaking, I do want  to convey excitement about everything we have planned: worship, concerts, movie nights, game nights, classes, small groups—all the ways we grow and learn together—meeting new people, building new relationships, engaging in the wider community. I do want  to emphasize our September ministry theme, building belonging . As I said in my newsletter column, I like having this theme front and center in our hearts and minds as we launch the congregational year. It’s a reminder that, all year long, one of the most critical aspects of congregational life is the way we welcome, include and empower people, the way we build and strengthen our community here at 153 West Vernon St., and the way we work to strengthen relationships beyond our meeting house. I do want to express my joy at being amongst you after my summer vacation and study leave. I do want  to express my enthusiasm and excitement to be practicing ministry in and with a congregation that, by so many measures, is thriving.           And then there is one thing I really don’t want to do this morning, but it would be spiritually negligent for me as your minister to not do it, which is talk about authoritarianism in the United States. I notice we often use euphemisms to talk about it. We refer to “the difficult times in which we live.” We refer to “everything going on in the nation and the world right now.” We say, “I can’t watch the news anymore.” So I will say it as clearly and as plainly as I can, because we need to call it by its true name: Every day, the United States government, under the leadership of President Donald Trump and the architects of Project 2025, slides more deeply into authoritarianism, enabled by a federal judiciary and a Congress that, on the whole, refuse to and/or fail to use the tools available to them to limit the excesses of the executive branch.           I recognize there are many who will accuse me of being an out-of-touch liberal (and much worse), that I am contributing to the polarization plaguing our country, that I am being divisive, that I am somehow brainwashed by woke ideology. I really don’t know how to counter those arguments, except to say that I am trying to respond to facts. For example, it is a fact that masked government agents are abducting people off the streets without warrants and detaining them without any semblance of due process. That is evidence of authoritarianism, not democracy. That is evidence of a failure to follow the Constitution which requires due process. I want  to launch our congregational year with joy, pride and excitement. I really don’t want to talk about authoritarianism. But it is our reality now. It is shaping our congregational life, and it requires a faithful response. (I note that our Unitarian Universalist General Assembly passed an Action of Immediate Witness this past June in Baltimore entitled “Faithful Defiance of Authoritarianism, a Call to Action: Reaffirming Our Covenant for Democracy and Freedom.” ) So, in imagining the congregational year, I understand it is my task (though certainly not mine alone) to articulate—first to myself and then to you—what it means to stay true to our Unitarian Universalist principles, values and traditions as a liberal religious congregation in the midst authoritarianism.           Hint: there is nothing in our principles or values or our Unitarian and Universalist traditions of theological and spiritual freedom, innovation and searching, our traditions that center human dignity, our traditions that align us with human rights and social and environmental justice movements—nothing!—that would prompt us to comply with authoritarianism. Nothing. Everything about our principles, values and traditions calls us to resist authoritarianism.           And given the political assassination earlier this week, I feel compelled to say what should go without saying: our principles, values and traditions call us to engage in nonviolent  resistance. I am convinced violence only leads to more violence. In resisting authoritarianism, the central question for me is how we do it with love, compassion and empathy. I said talking about it is the one thing I really don’t want to do this morning. There’s some nuance here. Some of it is emotional. As I’ve had time to pause, reflect, read, volunteer and pray during my vacation and study leave, I’ve realized that I, like many of you, have big feelings about the rise of authoritarianism in our beloved country and the weakening of our (admittedly imperfect) democratic institutions.  It’s hard to talk about it when the feelings are so big. I am grieving. I am angry. I am frightened. I am also mindful that my fear as a middle-aged, upper middle-class, white, cis man is not the same as the fear of those directly targeted by the new administration’s policies: my transgender and queer siblings whose identities are being erased, my siblings of color whose history is being erased, my immigrant siblings who are being disappeared, my low-income siblings facing the loss of Medicaid and SNAP, my siblings with disabilities, my siblings who’ve lost jobs due to federal budget cuts and the economic impact of the tariffs. Even so, my fear and all my feelings are still big and, frankly, I am not entirely sure how to bring them into the pulpit. I don’t want to rage in this pulpit, especially when so many of you come here in search of respite and peace. I don’t want to weep uncontrollably in this pulpit. I don’t want to panic in this pulpit. But I feel all these feelings. AND THEY ARE BIG. I would much rather feel the joy, pride and excitement of our homecoming, our new congregational year, our beloved community. I will get there. We will get there. More nuance: Through my engagement in the wider community as your minister since 2003, through the engagement of our Social Justice / Anti-Oppression Committee with coalitions like the Greater Hartford Interfaith Action Alliance, Connecticut for All and HUSKY for Immigrants, through the engagement of our Sustainable Living Committee with organizations like the Interreligious Eco-Justice Network, through our work at Verplanck Elementary School, through our work with the Manchester Interfaith Social Action Committee—and much more—our congregation is part of a loosely-organized statewide progressive advocacy structure. This structure has evolved over decades. Its goal is to build political, social and economic power that can be used to make progressive change in Connecticut. Over the years, as participants in this structure, we’ve organized to win better access to safe, affordable healthcare, affordable housing, affordable childcare, excellent and well-funded k-12 and higher education, tax equity, criminal justice reform, marriage equality, the addition of ‘gender identity’ to the state anti-discrimination statutes, environmental justice, etc. I’m very proud of the victories we’ve won, and very mindful of where we’ve fallen short, what the barriers to success are and where we need to build more power. But here’s the rub: this loosely-organized statewide structure is not designed to resist an authoritarian federal government. We’ve never imagined, for example, that a significant portion of the approximately 6 billion federal Medicaid dollars Connecticut receives every year could disappear overnight. We’re not ready for that kind of health care catastrophe. We’re not structured to address it. Not every recipient will lose benefits, but what if half do? What happens if four or five hundred thousand neighbors lose access to health care? What happens to them? What happens to emergency rooms? What happens to the hospitals that will close without those Medicaid dollars coming to the state? What happens to the associated businesses, the doctor groups, the nurses, the PCAs, the nursing homes, the health care unions? And that’s just the Medicaid question. There are hundreds, if not thousands of ways authoritarianism is manifesting. There are new expressions of it every day: firing federal officials deemed uncooperative or disloyal, recission of funds Congress has already appropriated, deployments of federal troops to American cities, ICE abductions, supportive Supreme Court shadow docket decisions with no explanations, disregard for long-standing scientific consensus, decimation of the Centers for Disease Control and the National Institutes of Health, halting of renewable energy projects, threats against the media, threats against universities. People complain that the Democratic Party has been ineffectual, but I argue that pretty much all of us who care about the survival of our democracy have been ineffectual, not because we aren’t committed—we are—but because the underlying nation-wide organizational structure needed to resist a genuinely authoritarian executive doesn’t yet exist. It will come into existence, of that I am confident. But it’s not here yet. When I say I don’t want to talk about it, what I mean is I don’t want to spend significant time and energy in the pulpit exploring all the specific ways the authoritarian government in Washington, DC is undermining our democracy. It would be easy to do that, though I am not sure how much you would learn from me that you don’t already know; and more importantly, we’d be no closer to discerning our place in emerging structures designed to nonviolently resist authoritarianism. That’s what I want to preach about. What new structures are emerging? Where do we fit in? How do we contribute? That’s the discernment I want us to engage in this congregational year. That’s what I want to preach about. I don’t want Executive branch cruelty, racism, lies and corruption setting my preaching agenda. Over the decades we have built a strong, thriving, vibrant, growing, caring, fun, creative, principled, justice-seeking, earth- and land-stewarding Unitarian Universalist community here atop Elm Hill on the Manchester/Vernon line, up above the Hockanum River . We’ve served as a beacon of liberal religious principles and values, compassion, service and love for two generations. We have a lot to offer the emerging resistance movement. I want to preach about that. I want our congregational year to be about that. We have deep and always-deepening institutional relationships in Manchester and across the state: Power Up CT, MLAC, AABAC, GHIAA, Moral Monday CT, Connecticut for All, CT Students for a Dream, Hartford Deportation Defense, HUSKY for Immigrants, IREJN, SEIU 1199, 32BJ, AFL CIO CT, Equality CT, Working Families Party, Third Act, She Leads Justice, Universal Health Care Foundation. And we’re always getting to know new organizations, one of my favorites being Kamora’s Cultural Corner in Hartford. Don’t worry if you don’t recognize all the initials. Just know that everyone in the structure is trying to figure out how to conduct their work in ways that effectively build a nonviolent resistance movement. I want to preach about that. I want our congregational year to be about that. Then there’s the role this congregation plays in keeping each of us healthy, whole, and hopeful; the role it plays in reducing our anxiety, in calming our bodies, in soothing our souls, in accompanying us in our sadness and grief, in validating our anger. Some of my studies this summer looked at the ways stress and trauma get lodged in our bodies, and how simple practices like breathing, singing, chanting, humming, and rocking back and forth can help dislodge it, making healing more accessible. (See My Grandmother's Hands by Rezmaa Menakem and Liberated to the Bone, by Susan Raffo .) When we engage in such practices in groups they are even more potent than when we engage individually. So I’ve been expanding my understanding of the purpose of worship. I am beginning to understand worship more clearly as an invitation to calm and dislodge the stress and trauma that are part and parcel of living under authoritarianism. Let this be a house of peace, a house of respite, a house of healing in trying times. I want to preach about that! I want our congregational year to be about that. Some beloved little one said it well.... Now, imagine, as I’ve heard many of you say, things get worse before they get better. Imagine a few years from now, people out in the wider community are tired, angry, fearful, panicking, grieving. Imagine people are struggling. Imagine people are feeling lonely and isolated, distrustful, not able to talk openly and honestly with their neighbors. They know something needs to change, something needs to happen, but they’re just not sure what it is. And all along, we’ve been doing our work as a spiritual community, figuring out how to be true to our principles and values in public; figuring out how we fit into the movement to end authoritarian rule in the United States. All along we’ve been caring for each other, loving each other, breaking bread with each other, singing, chanting, humming and rocking back and forth with each other, facing our fears together, expressing our rage together, crying our tears together, calming our bodies together, settling in, relaxing, breathing together, building up our strength, our resilience and our resolve together, remaining hopeful together, being in the struggle together. In the midst of authoritarianism, people need what I’m describing. People will want to belong. I want to preach about that. I want our congregational year to be about that! Amen and blessed be.

Gathering Music (Mary Bopp)   Welcome and Announcements (Rev. Josh Pawelek)   Centering   Prelude “Give Yourself to Love” by Kate Wolf Nancy Madar, guitar & vocals Joe Madar, vocals   Chalice Lighting and Opening Words “One Love” by the Rev. Hope Johnson   Opening Hymn #1053 “How Could Anyone?” By Libby Roderick   How could anyone ever tell you you were anything less than beautiful? How could anyone ever tell you you were less than whole? How could anyone fail to notice that your loving is a miracle? How deeply you’re connected to my soul.   Time for All Ages   Musical Meditation (Mary Bopp)   Joys and Concerns   Musical Response “Prayer for Connection” Words by Cyndi Krupa Music by Mary Bopp   May peace, light and love Infuse all living beings With a feeling of connection And knowing we are one.   Offering Our September Community Outreach Ministry recipients are the Manchester Latino Affairs Council and She Leads Justice.   Manchester Latino Affairs Council  The Manchester Latino Affairs Council (M.L.A.C.) was established in January of 2007.  Its current mission is to address social issues with a focus on diversity, inclusivity and equality within Manchester’s Latino community.   She Leads Justice She Leads Justice advocates for under-resourced, marginalized women in Connecticut. They work to close the civil legal justice gap and to create state policy for economic security. Formerly known as the Connecticut Women's Education and Legal Fund, their work supports women who identify as cisgender and transgender, and non-binary individuals, as well as people of all marginalized gender identities.   Offering Music "Song for Judith" By Judy Collins Nancy Madar, guitar & vocals Sermon “Imagining a Congregational Year” Rev. Josh Pawelek   Closing Song #1057 “Go Lifted Up” By Mortimer B. Barron   Go lifted up, Love bless your way, moonlight, starlight guide your journey into peace and the brightness of day.   Extinguishing the Chalice “The Flame in Our Hearts” Words by Josh Pawelek, Music by Mary Bopp   The flame in our hearts, never ceases burning.   Closing Circle (with music by Nancy Madar) May faith in the spirit of life And hope for the community of earth And love of the light in each other Be ours now and in all the days to come.

Gathering Music (Mary Bopp) Welcome, Announcements (Rev. Josh Pawelek) Centering (Emmy Galbraith) Prelude “Anthem” by Leonard Cohen Led by the Homecoming Singers Forget your perfect offering, (forget your perfect offering) Ring the bells that you can ring, (ring the bells that you can ring) There is a crack in everything, (there is a crack in everything) That’s how, (that’s how) The light, (the light) Gets in, (All:) That’s how the light gets in Chalice Lighting and Opening Words (Rev. Josh Pawelek) “Gather” by James Crews Introduction to the Service (Emmy Galbraith) Opening Hymn #1028 Fire of Commitment Words: Mary Katherine Morn and Jason Shelton Music: Jason Shelton From the light of days remembered burns a beacon bright and clear Guiding hands and hearts and spirits into faith set free from fear. When the fire of commitment sets our mind and soul a blaze When our hunger and our passion meet to call us on our way When we live with deep assurance of the flame that burns within, Then our promise finds fulfillment and our future can begin. From the stories of our living rings a song both brave and free, Calling pilgrims still to witness to the life of liberty. When the fire of commitment sets our mind and soul a blaze When our hunger and our passion meet to call us on our way When we live with deep assurance of the flame that burns within, Then our promise finds fulfillment and our future can begin. From the dreams of youthful vision comes a new, prophetic voice, Which demands a deeper justice built by our courageous choice When the fire of commitment sets our mind and soul a blaze When our hunger and our passion meet to call us on our way When we live with deep assurance of the flame that burns within, Then our promise finds fulfillment and our future can begin. Back to School Slideshow Blessing of the Backpacks Joys & Concerns Musical Meditation (Mary Bopp) Offering Recipients: The September Community Outreach Ministry recipients are the Manchester Latino Affairs Council and She Leads Justice. She Leads Justice She Leads Justice advocates for under-resourced, marginalized women in Connecticut. They work to close the civil legal justice gap and to create state policy for economic security. Formerly known as the Connecticut Women's Education and Legal Fund, their work supports women who identify as cisgender and transgender, and non-binary individuals, as well as people of all marginalized gender identities.   Manchester Latino Affairs Council   The Manchester Latino Affairs Council (M.L.A.C.) was established in January of 2007.  Its current mission is to address social issues with a focus on diversity, inclusivity and equality within Manchester’s Latino community. Offering Music “Highland Cathedral”  By Ulrich Roever and Michael Korb Benjamin Elzerman (Scottish Bagpipes) Vera Elzerman (Snare Drum) UU Principles & Values   UUSE Covenant Chant “Love is the Spirit of This Church” words by James Vila Blake, music by Mary Bopp Love is the spirit of this church and service its law. This is our great covenant: To dwell together in peace.  Love is the spirit of this church and service its law. To seek the truth in love, and to help one another.  Love is the spirit of this church and service its law. Reflection (Emmy Galbraith & Rev. Josh Pawelek) Closing Hymn #118 This Little Light of Mine Words & music: African American spiritual This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Ev’rywhere I go, I’m gonna let it shine. Ev’rywhere I go, I’m gonna let it shine. Ev’rywhere I go, I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Building up a world, I’m gonna let it shine. Building up a world, I’m gonna let it shine. Building up a world, I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Extinguishing the Chalice Closing Circle May faith in the spirit of life And hope for the community of earth And love of the light in each other Be ours now, and in all the days to come.

Gathering Music "Ambient #8" by Dan Thompson Welcome (Vivian Carlson) Prelude "Here Together" by David M. Glasgow Opening Words (Rev. Dr. Molly Housh Gordon) Chalice Lighting (Gretchen Maune & Members of the UU Church of Columbia, MO) Story from Through the Mickle Woods by Valiska Gregory read by Rev. Dr. Leon Dunkley, Jr. Interlude "We Are Weaving Our Lives" by Alexa Sunshine Rose performed by beheld Centering Moment (Jamila Batchelder, Director of Religious Education & Violet Vonder Haar, Director of Music Ministry, UU Church of Columbia, MO) Prayer & Moment of Contemplation (Rev. Joan Javier-Duval) Reading "Shaking the Tree" by Jeanne Lohmann read by Rev. Jordinn Nelson Long Anthem "Weave and Spin" by Starhawk performed by Lea Morris Sermon "Weaving Our Lives" Rev. Dr. Molly Housh Gordon Hymn "Circle Round for Freedom" by Linda Hirschhorn led by Natasha Steinmacher and Francisco Ruiz Offering: Continuing our practice of sharing our gifts with the community beyond our walls, fifty percent of today's Sunday plate cash collection will be shared with The TLC Foundation. The TLC Foundation is a private, non-profit transitional living center in Manchester dedicated to providing a safe, structured home for local children and youth who, through no fault of their own, cannot live with their families. They remain enrolled in Manchester Public Schools and receive the care and stability they need until they can be safely reunited with family or transition to independent living. Offertory Music "Hold On" by Lola performed by beheld Benediction (Rev. Dr. Molly Housh Gordon) Extinguishing the Chalice & Closing Circle Postlude "Weaving Our Songs" Arranged by Paul Winchester Music by David M. Glasgow, Alexa Sunshine Rose, Carolyn McDade and Starhawk

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Gathering Music "Angel from Montgomery" by John Prine "Little Pictures" by Sandy Johnson Sandy Johnson, vocals; Dan Thompson, guitar Welcome and Announcements (Rev. Josh Pawelek) Centering Prelude "Lonesome Valley" by Woody Guthrie Nancy Madar, vocals and guitar Joe Madar, vocals Chalice Lighting and Opening Words Romans 12: 4-8 Adaptation by Rev. Josh Pawelek Opening Song #38 "Morning Has Broken" by Eleanor Farjeon led by Pat Eaton-Robb Morning has broken like the first morning, blackbird has spoken like the first bird. Praise for the singing! Praise for the morning! Praise for them, springing fresh from the Word! Sweet the rain's new fall sunlit from heaven, like the first dewfall on the first grass. Praise for the sweetness of the wet garden, sprung in completeness where God's feet pass. Mine is the sunlight! Mine is the morning born of the one light Eden saw play! Praise with elation, praise every morning, God's recreation of the new day! Emcee's Intro (Gymm Morey) Music "Feelin' Good Again" by Robert Earl Keen Peter Marotto, guitar and vocals Poem "Like Heaven" Elizabeth Thomas Music "A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall" by Bob Dylan Pat Eaton-Robb, guitar and vocals Joys and Concerns Offering The recipients of our July and August community outreach offerings are the MACC Food Pantry, the Hockanum Valley Food Pantry, and the CT Mutual Aid East of the River food security program. Offering Music "Leaving Arisaig" by Bill Livingstone "Loch Maree" by G. S. McLennan Ben Elzerman, bagpipe Vera Elzerman, snare drum Poem "Dashed Dreams" by Cory Clark Music "Songbird" by Nick Glomb Nick Glomb, guitar and vocals Poem "The Haunting of the Asylum" by Bill Lautenbach Music "See You on the Other Side" by Lemmy, Zakk Wylde and Ozzy Osbourne Jennifer Richard, guitar and vocals Poem "Hot Pink" by Lisa Sementilli Music "For What It's Worth" by Stephen Stills Andy Ricci, guitar; Sandy Johnson, vocals Homily (Rev. Josh Pawelek) Closing Song #131 "Love Will Guide Us" by Sally Rogers led by Kate Howard-Bender Love will guide us, peace has tried us, hope inside us will lead the way on the road from greed to giving. Love will guide us through the hard nig ht. If you cannot sing like angels, if you cannot speak before thousands, you can give from deep within you. You can change the world with your love. Love will guide us, peace has tried us, hope inside us will lead the way on the road from greed to giving. Love will guide us through the hard night. Extinguishing the Chalice Closing Circle May faith in the spirit of life And hope for the community of earth And love of the light in each other Be ours now, and in all the days to come.

Gathering Music (Dorothy Bognar and Martha Larson, piano duo)   Welcome and Announcements   Centering   Prelude  Sonatina in C major, Op. 55, Nr. 1, in C major, 1st movement by Friedrich Kuhlau & August Riedel (for 2 pianos) Dorothy Bognar and Martha Larson, piano duo   Chalice Lighting and Opening Words #418   Introduction to the Service   Opening Music "Homeward Bound" Words and Music: Paul Simon performed by Sandy Johnson (vocals) and Andy Ricci (guitar)   Joys and Concerns Musical Interlude   Offertory Continuing our practice of sharing our gifts with the community beyond our walls, fifty percent of our Sunday plate collections for the first four Sundays of August will be shared with three local pantries: MACC Food Pantry (in Manchester), Hockanum Valley Food Pantry (in Vernon), and CT Mutual Aid East of the River Food Pantry (in East Hartford).   Offertory Music Sonatina in C major, Op. 55, Nr. 1, in C major, 2nd movement by Friedrich Kuhlau & August Riedel (for 2 pianos) Dorothy Bognar and Martha Larson, piano duo   Reading "Birkat HaBayit," a Jewish blessing for the home   Musical Interlude   First Reflection – Malcolm Barlow, “The History of MISAC”   Musical Interlude Second Reflection - Lynn Damon, "Beechwood Memories from a Former Resident"   Musical Interlude   Third Reflection – Stan McMillen,   “ The Economics and Moral Case for Affordable Housing” Musical Interlude Final Reflection - Anne Carr, "When Affordable is Beyond Reach"    Closing Hymn  Hymn #1, "May Nothing Evil Cross This Door" Words by Louis Untermeyer, Music by Robert N. Quaile Dorothy Bognar and Martha Larson, piano duo   May nothing evil cross this door, and may ill fortune never pry about these windows; may the roar and rain go by. By faith made strong, the rafters will withstand the battering of the storm. This hearth, though all the world grow chill, will keep you warm.   Peace shall walk softly through these rooms, touching our lips with holy wine, till every casual corner blooms into a shrine.   With laughter drown the raucous shout, and, though these sheltering walls are thin, may they be strong to keep hate out and hold love in.   Extinguishing the Chalice and Closing Words From Spirit Wheel: Meditations from an Indigenous Elder, “ House of the Spirit ” (Steven Charleston)   Closing Circle May faith in the spirit of life And hope for the community of earth And love of the light in each other Be ours now, and in all the days to come. Additional Information For information on Manchester population statistics, see https://censusreporter.org/profiles/16000US0944690-manchester-ct .    For information on state statistics and the ALICE Report, see https://www.unitedforalice.org/Attachments/AllReports/state-of-alice-report-Connecticut-2025.pdf    The Beechwood Apartments rent schedule: For information on the economic benefits of affordable housing, see https://homesight.org/the-economic-benefits-of-affordable-housing   To see how zoning affects the price of housing, see https://www.ctinsider.com/business/article/ct-zoning-affordable-housing-values-20791578.php?sid=676c747c7748d4899c0d2ca8&ss=A&st_rid=f5e36bb1-9d1c-4e74-bd94-70d19c6422b7 .   The Connecticut Housing and Segregation study is available at https://portal.ct.gov/datapolicy/Knowledge-Base/Articles/Housing-and-Segregation-Study?language=en_US   Information on rent trends is available at https://www.ctinsider.com/realestate/article/ct-rent-average-cost-zillow-20781943.php?sid=676c747c7748d4899c0d2ca8&ss=A&st_rid=f5e36bb1-9d1c-4e74-bd94-70d19c6422b7    For information about HB 5002, see https://ctmirror.org/2025/06/03/ct-hb-5002-housing-bill   The “CT Fair Share Housing Study Final Report” is available at https://www.coventry-ct.gov/DocumentCenter/View/9575/CT_Fair_Share_Housing_Study_Final_Report___2025 Link to MISAC Grants and Charitable Donations : https://drive.google.com/file/d/16rduv--9ARzMrWtHXdkg7LiEczbGD5Jz/view?usp=sharing

Gathering Music (Mary Bopp) Welcome & Announcements Centering Prelude "Beau Soir" by Claude Debussy arr. by Heifetz Anhared Stowe, violin and Mary Bopp, piano Chalice Lighting and Opening Words Introduction to the Service Opening Hymn #15 "The Lone Wild Bird" Words: H. R. McFadden Music: William Walker's Southern Harmony Mary Bopp, piano The lone, wild bird in lofty flight is still with thee nor leaves thy sight. And I am thine! I rest in thee. Great spirit come and rest in me. The ends of earth are in thy hand, the sea's dark deep and far-off land. And I am thine! I rest in thee. Great spirit come and rest in me. Joys and Concerns Musical Interlude Offering Continuing our practice of sharing our gifts with the community beyond our walls, fifty percent of our Sunday plate collections for the first four Sundays of August will be shared with three local food pantries: MACC Food Pantry in Manchester, Hockanum Valley Food Pantry in Vernon and CT Mutual Aid East of the River Food Pantry in East Hartford. Offering Music "Lotus Land" by Cyril Scott, Arr. by Kreisler Anhared Stowe, violin and Mary Bopp, piano Reflection - Jane Penfield Musical Interlude Reflection - David Klotz Closing Hymn #163 "For the Earth Forever Turning" Words and Music: Kim Oler, arr. by Nick Page Mary Bopp, piano For the earth forever turning; for the skies, for every sea; for our lives, for all we cherish, sing we our joyful song of peace. For the mountains, hills, and pastures in their silent majesty; for the stars, for all the heavens, sing we our joyful song of peace. For the sun, for rain and thunder; for the seasons' harmony, for our lives, for all creation, sing we our joyful praise to Thee. For the world we raise our voices, for the home that gives us birth; In our joy we sing returning home to our blue-green hills of earth. Extinguishing the Chalice and Closing Words Excerpt from Celia Thaxter's An Island Garden Closing Circle May faith in the spirit of life And hope for the community of earth And love of the light in each other Be ours now, and in all the days to come.

Gathering Music   Welcome and Announcements   Centering   Prelude   “ Wildflowers ” Words and music by Tom Petty Performed by The Gonzalez Family Dan Thompson, guitar   Chalice Lighting and Opening Words   Introduction to the Service   Opening Hymn  # 1008 “When Our Heart Is In A Holy Place” Words and Music: Joyce Poley Mary Bopp, piano   (Chorus) When our heart is in a holy place, When our heart is in a holy place, We are bless’d with love and amazing grace, When our heart is in a holy place.   When we trust the wisdom in each of us, Ev’ry color ev’ry creed and kind, And we see our faces in each other’s eyes, Then our heart is in a holy place.   (Chorus)   When we tell our story from deep inside, And we listen with a loving mind, And we hear our voices in each other’s words, Then our heart is in a holy place.   (Chorus)   When we share the silence of sacred space, And the God of our Heart stirs within, And we feel the power of each other’s faith, Then our heart is in a holy place.   (Chorus)   Joys and Concerns   Musical Interlude   Offering Continuing our practice of sharing our gifts with the community beyond our walls, fifty percent of our Sunday plate collections for the month of August will be shared with three local pantries: MACC Food Pantry (Manchester), Hockanum Valley Food Pantry (Vernon), and CT Mutual Aid East of the River Food Pantry (East Hartford).   Offering Music “Turn! Turn! Turn!” Written by Pete Seeger Performed by The Gonzalez Family Dan Thompson, guitar   Reading “Late Summer Ritual” by James Crews   Musical Interlude   Homily “Bittersweet August” Paula Baker     Closing Hymn  #203 - “ All Creatures of the Earth and Sky ” Words attributed to St. Francis of Assisi Music by: Ralph Vaughn Williams Mary Bopp, piano     All creatures of the earth and sky, come, kindred, lift your voices high, Alleluia, Alleluia! Bright burning sun with golden beam, soft shining moon with silver gleam:   (Chorus) Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!   Swift rushing wind so wild and strong, white clouds that sail in heav’n along, Alleluia, Alleluia! Fair rising morn in praise rejoice, high stars of evening find a voice:   (Chorus)   Cool flowing water, pure and clear, make music for all life to hear, Alleluia, Alleluia! Dance, flame of fire, so strong and bright, and bless us with your warmth and light:   (Chorus)   Extinguishing the Chalice and Closing Words    Closing Circle May faith in the spirit of life And hope for the community of earth And love of the light in each other Be ours now, and in all the days to come.

Gathering Music (Dorothy Bognar) Welcome and Announcements (Martha Larson) Centering Prelude "On Golden Pond by Dave Grusin Dorothy Bognar, piano Chalice Lighting "We Believe" from Martha Larson's childhood Unitarian church in Harvard, Mass. We believe in the beauty of tolerance, The quest for truth, The path of love, The goal of character And the fellowship of the church Introduction to the Service Opening Hymn #347 "Gather the Spirit" Words and music by Jim Scott Gather the spirit, harvest the power. Our sep'rate fires will kindle one flame. Witness the mystery of this hour. Our trials in this light appear all the same. (Chorus) Gather in peace, gather in thanks. Gather in sympathy now and then. Gather in hope, compassion and strength. Gather to celebrate again. Gather the spirit of heart and mind. Seeds for the sowing are laid in store. Nurtured in love, and conscience refined, with body and spirit united once more. (Chorus) Gather the spirit growing in all, drawn by the moon and fed by the sun. Winter to spring, and summer to fall, the chorus of life resounding as one. (Chorus) First Credo - Mike Baxter Second Credo - Dorothy Bognar Welcoming Visitors, Sharing Joys and Concerns Musical Interlude Reading a poem by Nikita Gill read by Sam Taylor Third Credo - Liz Garmise Offertory Now is the time when we pause to share our gifts with our beloved community and reach out to our neighbors beyond. We do not give because we are rich. We are rich because we give - to support our UUSE community, the causes we believe in, and to further justice in the world around us. Fifty percent of the undesignated cash collected in July and August will be shared with three area food pantries: MACC, Hockanum Valley, and CT Mutual Aid East of the River. Offertory Music "Ashoken Farewell by Jay Unger Dorothy Bognar, piano Reading "Desiderata" by Max Ehrmann, c. 1952 read by Mike Baxter Fourth Credo - Sam Taylor Closing Hymn "Go Lifted Up" #1057 in Singing the Journey Words and music: Mortimer B. Barron Go lifted up, Love bless your way, moon-light, star-light guide your journey into peace and the brightness of day Extinguishing the Chalice Closing Circle May faith in the spirit of life, And hope for the community of earth, And love of the light in each other Be ours now, and in all the days to come.

It’s been over a month since more than 3,000 Unitarian Universalists from nearly 600 congregations, 48 states and a number of countries gathered in Baltimore (and online) for the 63rd Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) General Assembly (GA). It’s become my July custom to share my GA experience with you. It felt extremely important to do this in 2023 and 2024 because the UUA was debating significant changes to Article 2 of its bylaws, specifically replacing the seven UU principles with six UU values; and replacing the six sources of our living tradition with a more general statement entitled “Inspirations.” It was a contentious and difficult, multi-year debate. Though the vote at the 2024 General Assembly solidified this change, I remind us our congregation will use both the principles and the values moving forward. Our Policy Board has convened a Task Force to propose best practices for how to do this. We’ll be hearing more from them in the fall.             Interestingly, though speakers and visual displays referenced the new values frequently, there were also regular references to the principles. When one prominent guest speaker quoted the first principle, “the inherent worth and dignity of every person,” there was raucous applause. I am not sure what to do with this, other than to simply note that the principles still seem deeply embedded in the spiritual life and culture of GA. I’m sure this is even more true in local congregations. I imagine it will take time for the new values to become similarly embedded in the spiritual life and culture of our congregations.             This easy mixing of principles and values speaks to my main observation of this year’s GA: no significant controversy. In fact, there was significant unity. We were united in our common concerns, anxieties and fears about the country’s authoritarian drift in general, and the Trump administration’s authoritarian policies and tactics specifically. Many of our Los Angeles area UU kin shared accounts of the impact of the White House sending federal troops to support Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in their city. And on the opening day of GA, the Supreme Court issued its ruling in US v. Skrmetti, upholding a lower court's ruling that a Tennessee law banning gender affirming care for minors does not violate the equal protection clause of the Constitution's 14th amendment. Though anticipated, this was a major and painful setback to transgender people and all those who love and support transgender people. The pain, the anger, the disenchantment with Los Angelas and Skrmetti in particular were palpable in Baltimore. It fed our sense of unity. It also continually gave rise to a unified sense of hope, commitment and a resolve to fight for a more fair, welcoming, inclusive, loving, and just United States.             If you were a GA newbie, you might feel like you’d gone back in time a few years. This is because masks were required. You may remember that the Biden administration terminated the national Covid 19 Emergency Declaration in 2023. In response to various public health trends following that decision, the 2024 GA passed a resolution entitled "Centering Love Amidst the Ongoing Covid 19 Pandemic." 1]  This resolution invites us to do work we haven’t fully done as a congregation: communally examine our experience of the pandemic, what we learned about welcoming and taking care of our most vulnerable members and friends, and how we can continue those practices now and in the future. It urges UU congregations to foster a mask-affirming culture. It says “our … proclamations of love and justice call us to confront the ongoing disregard for those most vulnerable in our world and meet it with liberating counter-cultural norms in our communities.” The GA culture is a mask-affirming culture.             GA is also a music-affirming culture. The music is always phenomenal. Those of you who were able to watch the GA Sunday morning service got a taste of it. I heard six or seven songs during the week that I want to explore with our Music Director, Mary Bopp, and hopefully teach them to you in the coming months. But that’s just the tip of the musical iceberg. There’s big music news: The UUA is publishing a new hymnal called Sing Out Love . [2] Sign of the technological times: Sing Out Love  is an online, digital hymnal. Congregations purchase subscriptions which permit them to download sheet music, print it, share it on the screen, broadcast it, record it, and archive the recordings. It will include a significant number of the hymns from our current hymnals   as well as lots of new music. Because it is online, new music can continually be added. For a congregation our size, the subscription costs $360/year.             I am so excited for new music! Singing the Living Tradition —the grey hymnal—was published last century. It’s 35 years old. Singing the Journey —the teal book supplement to Singing the Living Tradition —just celebrated its 20th birthday. Though we love some of these hymns and will continue singing them, we’ve been repeating them for decades. That’s not how art and creativity work. Just like we have new visual art on our walls every season (thank you Carolyn Emerson), we should be singing new songs every year. Music is a central feature of our worship life, a boon to our collective spiritual experience. While we absolutely should continue singing our beloved favorites, we also need new and uniquely Unitarian Universalist music that responds to the current moment. I hope and trust that’s what we’ll get from Sing Out Love.             Another aspect of GA I have come to love over the years is the wide diversity of worship services. I love to hear colleagues preach, to witness how they craft liturgies, how they incorporate story, video, sacred dance, and music, and how they collaborate. I attended a Juneteenth service led by the staff of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tallahassee, FL. I attended an earth-based service led by the Covenant of UU Pagans at which an apparently unplanned spiral dance took place with over 500 people. The U/U Global Network led worship with participants from India, Hungary, England and Canada. (By the way, anytime anyone from Canada introduced themselves as Canadian, the standing ovation was immediate and sustained. Lots of sympathy for Canadians.)             One could spend all their GA time in workshops, worship, lectures, the exhibition hall (so massive I can never visit every booth) or exploring the host city. But there is also the actual business of the GA delegates. I want to tell you briefly about three Actions of Immediate Witness and one Congregational Study Action Issue the delegates passed with strong majorities. Actions of Immediate Witness (AIWs) are responses to significant developments in the world that necessitate immediate engagement among UU member congregations and groups. [3]  These statements do not direct the UUA to take specific actions. Rather, they express the conscience of the GA delegates and give guidance to congregations for pursuing engagement. The three AIWs are not surprising. They mirror concerns, anxieties, fears and hopes we typically express here.             First, “We Declare and Affirm: Immigrants [Are People Who] Have Inherent Worth and Inalienable Rights.” [4]  This statement grounds our support for immigrants in our affirmation of the “the sacredness of every human being and our shared humanity across lines of culture, experience, and theology.” Further, “Our UU values affirm that justice demands fairness and equal protection [for] all. Due process – a cornerstone of democracy – guarantees that no one is deprived of life, liberty, or property without a fair hearing. When immigrants are denied these rights, we are called to respond with moral clarity and courageous action.” The statement then describes the current crisis facing immigrant communities in the United States. And it outlines a set of actions UU individuals and congregations can take, including education, advocacy, public witness, fundraising and partnering with immigrant rights groups.             Second, “Defending LGBTIQ Freedom Amid Funding Cris[e]s: A Call for Global Solidarity.” [5]  This AIW refers to the UU principles for its theological grounding. “Our Unitarian Universalist principles affirm the dignity of every person, justice and compassion in human relations, and the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.” It adds: “Our UU faith calls us to recognize that all bodies are sacred, and that each person is endowed with the divine gifts of agency, conscience, and self-determination, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation.” It describes the global crisis in funding for LGBTIQ people and communities, spurred not only by US cuts to both USAID and domestic programs, but also cuts by other nations, corporations and private donors amounting to more than $100 million worldwide this year. It names countries like Uganda, Myanmar, Malawi, Ukraine, and the United States where cuts have already caused severe harm. It outlines opportunities individuals and congregations can take in terms of learning, advocacy, organizing and public witness.             Third, “Faithful Defiance of Authoritarianism: Reaffirming Our Covenants for Democracy and Freedom.” There are multiple grounding sources for this statement, but I love that it begins with a reference to the “the flaming chalice, the living symbol of contemporary Unitarian Universalism, [which] recalls the compassion and strength needed to aid Jewish refugees on the eve of World War II, and has come to represent helpfulness, sacrifice, and enduring faith in action.” [6]  Inspired by this history, the statement calls upon the UUA, member congregations, clergy and laypeople … to “cast off the cloak of isolation and transcend our differences—both within and beyond ourselves—to defend the guarantees of just law, constitutional integrity, equal justice, meaningful separation of powers, due process, and the freedoms of speech, press, and assembly.” It urges us to “work actively with leaders of other faith traditions to develop common strategies, events, actions, and messaging to bring a strong multi-faith presence that promotes our common values, counters the autocratic actions and messages of elected leaders, helps build a powerful pro-democracy movement, and guides us to a common dream where all can thrive.”             Finally, the delegates adopted a Congregational Study Action Issue (CSAI) entitled “Abolition, Transformation, and Faith Formation." [7]  CSAIs are different from AIWs in that, when adopted, they inaugurate three years of congregational study before the GA passes further resolutions or calls for any actions. This statement defines abolition as “a holistic approach to systemic social change that includes, but is not limited to: the abolition of slavery; replacing systems and cultures of violence, coercion and control with transformative justice and relational practices; and dismantling the prison-industrial complex as we now know it. It requires the transformation of our society and the replacement of our current public theologies of retributive justice and violence.” It lists a series of questions for congregational study and reflection, followed by a list of possible congregational or regional actions to help further explore the topic. Imara Jones             I would be remiss if I did not mention Imara Jones’ Ware Lecture . [8]  The Ware Lecture is a longstanding GA tradition dating back to 1922. Past lecturers include Martin Luther King, Jr., Howard Thurman, Mary Oliver, Stacey Abrams, Kurt Vonnegut, Shirley Chisholm, Jesse Jackson, Krista Tippet, and Maria Hinajosa. Imara Jones is the creator o f TransLash [9]  Media, a cross-platform journalism, personal storytelling and narrative project, which produces content to shift the current culture of hostility towards transgender people in the US. She spoke about the reality that across the planet, and certainly in the United States, transgender people are inevitably among the first targets of authoritarian and fascist regimes. She said (and I am paraphrasing) “if you can’t understand the attacks on transgender people and communities across the country as the vanguard of fascism, I don’t know what to tell you.” She spoke at length about the Heritage Foundation and its decade-long effort to build right-wing political power using misinformation about transgender people as a wedge to shape public opinion. She said if you find yourself talking with anyone on any side of the political spectrum about bathrooms, athletes, grooming, pronouns – any of the hot button issues related to trans people – know that these are not the conversations transgender people want you to have. These are the conversations the Heritage Foundation wants you to have. Please do not take the bait. At some point we’ll host a screening of Ms. Jones’ lecture here. It was a highlight for me, one of those moments at GA when our common concern, anxiety and fear transformed into a common hope, commitment and resolve. These are my GA reflections. Amen and blessed be. [1]  The Action of Immediate Witness regarding Covid Care is at: https://www.uua.org/action/statements/centering-love-amidst-ongoing-impact-covid-19 . I also recommend reading (or re-reading) the text to the 2024 General Assembly business resolution, “Embracing Transgender, Nonbinary, Intersex and Gender Diverse People is a Fundamental Expression of UU Religious Values” at: https://www.uua.org/action/statements/embracing-transgender-nonbinary-intersex-and-gender-diverse-people-fundamental#:~:text=Most%20recently%20in%202021%2C%20the%20General%20Assembly,promotes%20discrimination%20abridges%20human%20rights%20and%20our . [2]   https://www.uua.org/worship/lab/virtual-hymnal . [3]  Learn more about AIWs here: https://www.uua.org/action/process/aiw . [4]  Read the full text at: https://www.uua.org/action/process/2025-proposed-aiw-all-people-have-inherent-worth-and-inalienable-rights .  [5]  Read the full text at https://www.uua.org/action/process/2025-proposed-aiw-funding-global-lgbtiq-freedom-amid-crisis . [6]  Read the full text at https://www.uua.org/action/process/2025-proposed-aiw-faithful-defiance-authoritarianism . [7]  Read the full text at https://www.uua.org/action/process/2025-proposed-csais/abolition-faith-formation . [8]  Learn about Imara Jones and the Ware Lecture at https://www.uua.org/ga/program/highlights/ware-lecture . [9]  See https://translash.org/ .