First Unitarian Universalist Church of Houston Podcast

We concluded our series of three occasional services on the spirituality of music with a special service devoted to the spirituality of Beyonce.

Mayday, or m'aidez, is an international distress signal. May Day is also International Worker's Day. Massive government layoffs and economic mayhem are prompting a distress signal. More happily, May Day is also a traditional festival to welcome summer, celebrated down through history by diverse peoples and religions.

The image of the crucified god is found in many religions. What does it's ubiquitous nature suggest about humanity? How does it's widespread presence change our understanding of the life and death of Jesus?

For Earth month we will explore the questions: What do we owe future generations? How will our actions impact the future of the planet? What if future generations had the same rights as those now living?

Across the state and across the country the politics of cruelty are on the rise. We can build a community of compassion as a counter and a refuge. Let's celebrate that possibility as we launch our 2025-2026 stewardship campaign.

Peddling fear to maintain power, the current administration has cynically presented the Trans community as Exhibit A. Author Tinnekke Bebout said, "Fear of the unknown and the other is the root of almost all hate. It is born of ignorance and fed by those who would keep us divided." Join us as we observe the International Transgender Day of Visibility. 

Peddling fear to maintain power, the current administration has cynically presented the Trans community as Exhibit A. Author Tinnekke Bebout said, "Fear of the unknown and the other is the root of almost all hate. It is born of ignorance and fed by those who would keep us divided." Join us as we observe the International Transgender Day of Visibility.

The guest preacher is Rosemary Bray McNatt, President of Starr King School for the Ministry.   Now that the worst has begun, what is our task as free religious people? Before we can decide, we must understand how trauma shapes our decision making – and the real difference faith can make. 

Does humanity's future lie amongst the stars? Or shall we remain forever terrestrial bound? What will happen to how we conceive of our selves and our species if we ever become interplanetary? 

The spirit of the Confederacy appears to animate much of the politics of cruelty. What would it mean to exorcise it from national life? How might we rekindle the spiritual practices of abolitionism during these times as its counter?

This sermon seeks to assist people of faith in understanding the historical complexity of the "Black experience" which pre-dates the American encounter with enslavement and racism. Wherever and whenever Black people have encountered different cultures, they have likely experienced dehumanization, marginality and "racial-ethnic" bias. Thus, one way to understand Black History is as a spiritual and...

What comes after death? Does some part of us continue after we have shed our mortal coils? Religious communities have helped people to wrestle with questions like these since as long as they have existed.

Marian Anderson was an internationally-acclaimed contralto and goodwill ambassador for the United States government. A woman of faith, she was devoted to her mother and family for her entire life. Anderson masterfully navigated deconstructing and reconstructing her performative identity, which enabled her to attain the status of iconic internationally-renowned contralto and U.S. government asset w...

Our Future Visions, Future Selves program has promised to explore various topics via three aspects – societal, personal, and planetary. Rev. Scott challenges himself to look at this month's theme, death, through all three lenses, from the Big Bang, to the beliefs of varying traditions (and his theory) regarding an afterlife, to his personal metaphors for a Divine Being.  

J. Edgar Hoover called the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "the most notorious liar in American." This Sunday we'll celebrate Dr. King's legacy with a consideration of the roll of lying and truth in religion and politics.

"Religion is the human response to being alive and having to die," wrote Unitarian Universalist theologian Forrest Church. And so, we will started the year with a focus on that most religious of topics: death.

Dame Maggie Smith said, "If you're lucky, I think you know what you want to do with your life." Kris Kristofferson agreed," To me, if you love it enough to devote your life to it, then you're doing the right thing." These were just two of the many talented people we lost in 2024 who devoted their life to something they became respected and renowned for. Continuing his annual tradition, Rev. Scott...

Unitarian Universalists have historically focused on the immediate future rather than attending to that which lies beyond the grave. We strive to love and to work to achieve justice now. The next four years will no doubt be eventful. How do we plan for an uneasy time spiritually, emotionally, and politically? How do we not lose focus on the Beloved Community that is to be? 

During the winter holiday season we will focus on an issue that impacts many people in our community: religious trauma. For those that wrestle with it, working to heal from it, in a congregation like ours, can be a way to prepare for a more wholistic spiritual future.

We kicked off a series of three occasional services on the spirituality of music with a special service devoted to the spirituality of Nina Simone.  We include clips from the following: "Black Journal", 1969 hosted by Lou House and William Greaves "BBC Hard Talk", 1999 hosted by Tim Sebastian "Nina: A Historical Perspective", produced by Peter Rodis in 1970

Rebecca "Artie" Throop reflects on what art has taught them about mistakes--how to make better mistakes, enjoying the process, and showing others imperfections.   They are a member of our congregation and a senior at Rice University, double majoring in Religion and Studio art. They plan to attend seminary after graduation and become a Unitarian Universalist Minister.

Families convene around the dining table, partygoers are drawn like magnets to the kitchen table, colleagues work around the board room table, and a Christian religious ritual famously focuses on a table. Nourishment and community both happen around the table. Our Bread Communion expresses the gratitude we hold for both the nourishment and community that happen around the table.

The winner of the 2024 auction sermon has chosen "generative artificial intelligence and religion." We'll honor their wishes with sermon exploring how Large Language Models and other kinds of artificial intelligence are shaping religious experience and religious communities.  Rev. Colin also delivers a "Pulpit Editorial" to address current events.

As a result of the 2024 presidential election, the country and the world remains at a crucial turning point. New technology, rising inequality, the climate crisis will continue to shape what it means to practice democracy. We focused the month on imagining a more participatory democracy.

The Sunday before an election is often a time of hope and anticipation. Is hope warranted? What would it mean for us to live in a world beyond or without hope.