Complete Service-First Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco

Spiritual Audacity (EASTER SERVICE) Rev. Alyson Jacks offered the Message for All Ages and Rev. JD Benson shared a reflection. The Bell Choir performed “Now the Green Blade Riseth,” and Reiko and the choir was accompanied by trumpeter Tom Dambly in a joyous, audacious celebration of Easter. The offering went to resurrect a UU ministry to the poor in Oklahoma that was destroyed in a recent fire. Re...

The Road To The Promised Land Until recently the Dean of Religious Life at Stanford, Scotty McLennan continues to teach ethics there in the business school. He is a UU minister whose most recent book is "Christ for Unitarian Universalists: A New Dialogue with Christianity" --which is the Minister’s Book Club Selection for April, to be discussed on Monday evening, April 17. Rev. Scotty McLennan, Gu...

Justice and Confrontation Conflict is a great way to uncover the truth. World leaders rely on conflicting and competing advisers to make wise decisions. Instead of focusing our efforts in ending conflict, how about if we learned to wage them well in conversations? Conversations are the best places to wage conflict. Conversations are the currency of organizations. Our faith says revelation is unsea...

Heartwood Our beautiful sanctuary is, among other things, adorned with redwood beams and ceilings, oak plank floors, and carved chancel furniture that goes back to the ministry of Thomas Starr King. John has long felt that under the surface of every liberal church there lies a framework of covenantal heartwood, left to us as a gift and a present guide in challenging times. Rev. John Buehrens, Seni...

Presence In The World The late Harry Scholefield, beloved minister of this church for many years, began his days with a meditation practice (“Living by Heart”) that included preparing to be present and welcoming to each day, and to welcome every sign of sacred presence in people as well as in the natural world. Rev. John Buehrens, Senior Minister Rev. Alyson Jacks, Associate Minister Richard Davis...

The Unseen Guests Faith, Hope and Love are evidence of the inherent grace in the world, for humans do not invent or create these experiences, but uncover them as a quality of life itself. That said, we can train our hearts to prepare them room, and, in so doing, we also prepare ourselves for other unseen guests. These are the many people who would benefit from our tradition but have not yet discov...

Spiritual Friendship In Challenging Times Our congregation is experiencing notable growth. We will kick off our annual fundraising and a much-needed capital campaign to strengthen our church and its work for these challenging times. The theme for the month is “Presence.” The Message for All Ages will come from our 5th and 6th grade church school class. Rev. John Buehrens, Senior Minister Lucy Smit...

Love, Remembered Congregations often accumulate layers of love and stories over decades, like layers of sediment below the surface. They may not be visible, but they are the ground on which we stand. The Rev. Diane Miller, who was ordained by this congregation 40 years ago, was Assistant Minister, Interim Senior Minister, and Associate Minister during her five years with the congregation. She was...

Wanted: Love Makers Wedged between tirades of mean tweets, disparaging demagoguery and the rollercoaster of topsy-turvy politics, love holds on tight for the ride of its life. To effectively counter the barrage of hate mongers, we need creative and committed love makers engaged in efforts that bring hope, vision and transformation. Let’s explore ways to be faithful and imaginative love practitione...

Loving The Future Native Americans, as in the Great Law of the Iroquois Confederacy, stressed keeping in mind the well-being of those who will follow us in seven generations. If we loved, rather than feared, the future, perhaps we might be better at doing this. John Buehrens will preach. The service will include the dedication of Iris Floyd, child of Emily Hurstak and Ryan Floyd. Rev. John Buehren...

Dr King said, “What is needed is a realization that power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice, & justice at its best is power correcting everything that stands against love.” Rev. John Buehrens, Senior Minister Rev. Alyson Jacks, Associate Minister Lucy Smith, Worship Associate Phil Ma...

It Ain't Necessarily So Our nation lives in a perpetual wrestling match with might opponents. Individually and collectively we are called to engage our personal, social, political and religious communities to bring about transformation for the common good of humanity. Really is this what we are called to?  If so, how might the arts support us in the divine project of becoming fully human...

Dread, Hope, And Expectation On the Sunday after the presidential inauguration, and our annual UUSF Spaghetti Supper for Social Justice, the Choir will sing, “Take Care of This House,” from the Lerner/ Bernstein musical, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. It includes the line, “but hope isn’t easy to see.” John’s sermon will be based on his own experience, as President of the UUA (1993-2001) of false news,...

Hope Is Not Idle This Sunday begins our Human Rights Awareness Month. Serving as Worship Associate will be Rochelle Fortier-Nwadibia, member, immigration attorney, and chair of our Human Rights Working Group. The Choir plans an anthem by contemporary composer Debra Scoggins based on the Emily Dickinson poem, Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the wo...

Intransitive Hope Hope is dangerous. We can become attached to particular outcomes. The best sort of hope is not a bet on outcomes, but an intransitive “orientation of the spirit,” as humanist Vaclav Havel put it. To operate in the realm between faith and love is also to learn to practice non-attachment to the fruits of right action. We’ll sing, with the help of the choir, a hymn that speaks of “h...

Lost Hopes, New Hope The year 2016 was one of many dashed hopes. But then so are most years. On New Year’s Day we will write some of our lost hopes on cards, then let them go – to be burned in the courtyard following the service. We will also write new hopes on cards – to be taken home, reflected upon, revised, and held. Alex Darr will serve as Worship Associate. Music will be provided by singer E...

OPENING GIFTS It’s not just on Christmas morning that we open gifts. It’s every morning that we receive and open the gift of a new day. As we gather on Christmas morning, Worship Associate Dennis Adams (a.k.a. Poindexter the Clown) will help us greet one another with surprise and wonder. Our guest musicians will be Ted Rust and Viva Knight on oboe and piano. And we will sing some beloved carols. R...

IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER The hymn from which the sermon title is taken includes the words: “Once more child and mother weave their magic spell,/ Touching hearts with wonder words can never tell./ In the bleak mid-winter, in this world of pain,/ Where our hearts are open, love is born again.”

THE WONDER OF CHRISTMAS The hymn from which the sermon title is taken includes the words: “Once more child and mother weave their magic spell,/ Touching hearts with wonder words can never tell./ In the bleak mid-winter, in this world of pain,/ Where our hearts are open, love is born again.” Kat Liu will serve as Worship Associate and offer a reflection. Trumpeter Tom Dambly and soprano Kate Offer...

Wonders Still The World Shall Witness The world does not lack for wonders, said poet Muriel Rukeyser, only for a sense of wonder. John’s spiritual mentor, Dr. Jacob Trapp, wrote a hymn with the same title as his sermon. In the face of life’s inevitable changes, disappointments, and losses, how do we revive a sense of wonder? His text will come from a question the disciples of John posed to Jesus:...

Wondrous Music In The Face of Wrongs Dr. Buehrens, homilist Dr. Mark Sumner directing the UUSF Choir and Soloists and the Jubilate Instrumental Ensemble and Reiko Oda Lane at the organ keyboard. Jonathan Silk, OOS, Sound, Worship Archives/Podcast Bring your music loving friends! Our “Big Music Sunday” this year features works by J.S. Bach, centered on Cantata 79, his “Reformation Cantata” --a fitt...

A Rebirth of Wonder In a poem with a refrain about “awaiting a rebirth of wonder,” San Francisco’s own Lawrence Ferlinghetti once described how he got through the McCarthy era and the complacency of the ‘50s. That “rebirth of wonder” is what we most need in our own souls to keep our spirits alive and just grateful for life – and a good theme for the season of Advent, as we approach the wonder of t...

Once Upon A Time . . .  Again We welcome back popular guest speaker Michael Eselun, who has come to us every autumn for several years. An Oncology Chaplain at UCLA Hospital, Michael will use very personal stories to illustrate how we can retell the story of our lives in ways that reconcile us to the past and allow us to face whatever may come with grace and courage. Michael Eselun, Guest...

Good Grace: Stories of Thanksgiving and Reconciliation There is a good chance your Thanksgiving holiday will include some post-election reflection. Along with some side dishes, well come with our stories. In preparation, we will spend this Sunday with the Thanksgiving story, which will serve as our centerpiece, exploring the facts and the fiction, seeing what  it can teach us about recon...

Reconciling Opposing Views Novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald once said that “the test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” This is true both in our relational lives – and in more profound forms of religious thought.   Rev. John Buehrens, Senior Minister Rev. Alyson Jacks, Associate Minister Ri...