Archives: Services

This I Believe

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Lincoln Grey will be “Looking into the Dark” and discussing how so much of what he believes is unknown and what that means.
Lincoln is a Jericho native, Father of two and currently working as a homemaker, literally: when he’s not caring for his kids as a stay at home dad, he builds a house for them to live in from the ground up. It’s currently 1/2 insulated and stays mostly warm, but by April hopefully will be much further along!

Jean’s presentation, “Places of the Heart” will be a look at a lifetime of “church shopping.”
Jean Archibald is a long time member of MMUUF and resident of Jericho and Underhill since 1958. Mother of five grown children, 8 grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren and recently celebrated her 90th birthday.

In our “This I Believe” services, fellowship members offer thoughts about what they believe and what they wonder about over the course of their spiritual journey. Shared services such as these allow MMUUF members to share their thoughts and questions and gather rewards from the wisdom and gratitude of those who are present.

Adventures Large and Small

As Dana and his wife Karen headed into retirement (BIG adventure), they had two big plans: hike the Appalachian Trail and bike cross-country. A year ago they set out to accomplish the first, but fell short. Now they’re rethinking the second. In his talk, he will explore how we come to grips with failure, especially when that failure brings into focus the biggest adventure of all: aging and mortality.

Forgiveness is Beautiful

Happiness expert Sonja Lyubomirsky has written that forgiveness is the most difficult happiness practice. Ginny has found in her happiness work that many people struggle with the concept – yet it is so important for our own well-being and happiness, and, again, can and must be applied to the much broader community to move toward peace. This sermon also addresses some of the myths of forgiveness.

Ginny Sassaman created the Happiness Paradigm Store and Experience, and co-founded Gross National Happiness USA. Just this past September, Ginny stepped down from her position as president. Ginny has a masters in mediation and conflict studies; she now works as both a mediator and a meditation teacher, and as a happiness writer and advocate. She is a member of the Unitarian Church of Montpelier, where she led her first service in 2013. Since then, Ginny has led services in local UU churches as well as churches in South Carolina, Wisconsin, and Massachusetts. In two weeks, she will be a presenter at a GNH conference for international business leaders in Costa Rica. She is always grateful to share the wisdom of happiness with UU congregations and other receptive audiences.

Barriers to Acceptance

This service is a chance to reflect on what keeps us closed off from connecting with others who are different from us. What are the “mechanics” of acceptance, and how is spiritual growth inherent in acceptance.

Kate Plummer is a nurse, midwife, and chaplain-in-training who is discerning a call to Unitarian Universalist ministry. She worked at the Vermont State Hospital right up until it flooded during Tropical Storm Irene, and now sees patients at Planned Parenthood health centers in northern Vermont. She is mother to an adult daughter, and daughter to elder parents, and is seeking to respond as well as she can to this year’s UU call to dismantle intersectional white supremacy.

Finding Buddhist Humanism Within

Long-time MMUUF member, social worker and author, Sarah Ward will share her experience of discovering Buddhism through her extended Italian Family and the cross-cultural sharing that led her to examine the Buddhist path of faith, practice and study to promote positive change within and in her external environment.

Tragedy and Revenge

How is it that we can dismantle the impulse for revenge? Why is that important to do? Rabbi Jan will share insights from the Hebrew Bible and Rabbinic commentary as to the Jewish perspective on revenge.

In 2016, Rabbi Jan Salzman began Ruach haMaqom, a non-affiliated synagogue located in the heart of the Old North End in Burlington. She was ordained in 2010 by ALEPH: Alliance for Jewish Renewal, where she was blessed to have been a student of Reb Zalman. Rabbi Jan serves on the Board of OHALAH, an international professional Association of Renewal Rabbis, Cantors and Rabbinic Pastors. She is on the board of Living Tree Alliance located in Moretown Vt, which is an ecologically oriented community that offers co-housing, farming, and educational opportunities. Rabbi Jan has lived in Vermont for over 35 years, is married to her “Rebbitzmon”, Loredo Sola, and has two grown children and a two grandchildren.

Dying in Character

How does the UU principle of acceptance relate to the challenges faced at the end of life? Both for an individual and that person’s family? What happens when acceptance means something different for members of a family? Charley MacMartin will speak this Sunday on acceptance at the end of life and the theme of “dying in character.”

Charley is the Volunteer Services Manager for UVM Health Network Home Health & Hospice (formerly VNA Hospice). Charley is a presenter for UVM’s End of Life Doula certificate program and a trainer for the No One Dies Alone project at the UVM Medical Center.

Christmas Eve Service

The theme this year is Wonder & Joy in Many Voices; a celebration of birth, families, possibilities, and the quiet of Christmas. Songs, stories, readings, and candlelight will fill the barn and our hearts. Visiting family and friends, as well as newcomers – all are welcome.

The Waiting Game

Inspired by Advent and other December sacred observances, our service this Sunday will explore the role of waiting and anticipation in our spiritual journeys. In our daily lives, we often find ourselves waiting for things big and little. And yet, more and more, our technology and culture shape us to expect instant results and rapid change. How do we live in this tension? How can we get better at waiting, and what unexpected possibilities might it offer for spiritual growth?

Art & Spirituality

Our third principle states: “Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.” Being a teacher, and now an art teacher, Dusty will explore how the third principle enfolds in his classroom and in our congregation. Art is a powerful way to be spiritual, it’s inherent mindfulness and its creative spirit.

Dustin Kemp was raised in the Midwest outside of Chicago. He grew up Christian, became a Buddhist, and most recently has fallen in love with Taoist thoughts and ideas (surely this qualifies him as a Unitarian Universalist!) He has worked as an engineer, taught high school math for the last 15 years, and is now teaching high school art.