In this service we’ll explore the field of love, which is not limited to romantic love, and includes agape, described by C.S. Lewis as “a selfless love that is passionately committed to the well-being of others.” Agape is healing and transforming love, the “extravagant tenderness,” that Father Greg Boyle talks about in his book, The … Continue reading Extravagant Tenderness
Forgive is a loaded term: it conjures pain, betrayal, and even anger. Those wounds are a true part of our story—but they’re not the only story. The opposite of woundedness is the freedom found in healing those wounds. In this service, we’ll approach the new year by exploring how we can tell new stories about … Continue reading The Story of Forgiveness
Kwanzaa was established as a ritual space to form and bond community. Come celebrate this African-American & Pan-African holiday with us! I reside on the unceded land of the Massachusetts and Pawtucket peoples. Here’s the video of this Service: If joining by Zoom, please use the regular First Parish Zoom account: https://zoom.us/my/firstparishdot For our in-person … Continue reading Kwanzaa!
This story has been told before. It has been told again and again for generations. And we gather, yet again, because there is so much beauty and wonder and meaning still to be found in it. Join us for a funny and delightful interactive Christmas Pageant! Here’s the video of this Service: If joining by … Continue reading “Creating Christmas”
Each year, we honor the longest night with an intergenerational service. We gather, as people of all ages and backgrounds, to relish the dark and call back the sun. This year, we will do this with a service woven around a story that imagines a world where the sun never ceases to shine and tells … Continue reading “The Solstice Badger”
Every single one of us is brimming with complex and beautiful stories of hope and resilience. We are wonders, each one of us. And yet, we put each other in boxes all of the time. Approaching one another with curiosity rather than judgement can be so hard. Join us as we explore how we might … Continue reading “The Mystery of Each Other”
Waiting is the worst. It is so uncomfortable. Especially when we do not know what the outcome will be after we have waited for it. As we enter this season that celebrates waiting, Advent, let us explore the most difficult parts of waiting and wondering about the future. Let us balance what makes waiting so … Continue reading “Uncomfortable Unknown”
In this time of year as we are poised to go headlong into the end-of-the-year holiday season and everywhere we go the sounds of familiar carols are piped into elevators, stores, and restaurants, Rev. Maddie Sifantus will consider the hymn sung in this season which was written by Unitarian minister Edmund Hamilton Sears: It Came … Continue reading “Calm on the Listening Ear”
This week we remember and honor all of the Transgender folks who we have lost to violence in the last year. Join us for a celebration of the lives of beloved children of the universe as we gather resilience from being together. Here’s the video of this Service: If joining by Zoom, please use the … Continue reading “Remembrance and Resilience”
Life is about exchange. We give and we receive. There is a reciprocal relationship between all of us and the earth. Drawing on themes of abundance, gratitude and generosity – and how they interact with one another – we will explore how we might bring more reciprocity into our lives and our world. Here’s the … Continue reading “Reciprocity”
