Unity Temple Unitarian Universalist Congregation's Podcast

During the '16-'17 program year, our congregation was part of a program entitled Beloved Conversations: Meditations on Race and Ethnicity. In this podcast from the August 20, 2017 service, some of those participants share their reflections on participating and what they learned. Minister of Faith Development Rev. Emily Gage first gives a brief overview of the program. This is followed by reflectio...

Reflections offered by congregant David Llull and Intern Minister Kellie Kelly on August 13, 2017. As part of the Unity Temple Mental Health Awareness Team service (MyHAT), David and Kellie both share how mental illness has touched their lives in the hopes that sharing their stories will help reduce the stigma and increase our understanding. The theme for August is how to be a community of connect...

Sermon delivered by Rev. Brian Chenowith on August 6, 2017. Brian is a lifelong Chicagoan with roots in the South Side. His spiritual upbringing was Catholic and Anglican though he came to Unitarian Universalism in middle school. It was there, in that UU church where he spent his formative years, that he heard the call to ministry most clearly. He earned his degree in Theology & Religion from Elmh...

Sermon delivered by Rev. Karen Mooney on July 30, 2017. Forgiveness, redemption, and atonement are concepts​ we wrestle with in our everyday lives. When someone is imprisoned, this cycle is truncated by systems built to thwart any real reintegration. Separated from community, there is little opportunity for reparation. Our ministry in prisons and jails is based on the radical notion that every per...

Sermon delivered by Rev. Clare Butterfield on July 23, 2017, in which an octopus goes for a walk with Daniel Kahneman and Shylock. Clare Butterfield is the Program Director for the Illinois Science and Energy Innovation Foundation (ISEIF), helping to originate and manage the grants function since 2013. She brings to ISEIF her background in grassroots environmental education around Illinois and wid...

Sermon delivered by Intern Minister Kellie C. Kelly on July 16, 2017. One of the greatest myths in American culture is that vulnerability is a weakness. Kellie shares three teachers who have helped her model a wholehearted and courageous life. The theme for July and August is what it means to be a community of connection. To read about our theme-based ministry, please visit  http://www.unitytemple...

Sermon delivered by Intern Minister Kellie C. Kelly on July 2, 2017. For most Americans, socioeconomic class is one of the last taboos. Unitarian Universalists aren't all that different. Kellie shares her class story and invites us to consider what a class-inclusive religious movement might look like. The theme for July and August is what it means to be a community of connection. To read about our...

Sermon delivered by Minister of Faith Development Rev. Emily Gage on June 25, 2017. "It was a stormy week in New Orleans both literally and metaphorically, as the Unitarian Universalist Ministers' Association gathered for their annual meeting...."   The theme for June is what it means to be a community of joy. To read about our theme-based ministry, please visit  http://www.unitytemple.org/faith-d...

Sermon delivered by Senior Minister Rev. Alan Taylor on June 18, 2017.  The theme for June is what it means to be a community of joy. To read about our theme-based ministry, please visit  http://www.unitytemple.org/faith-development/soul-connections  on our website.

Homily delivered by Senior Minister Rev. Alan Taylor on June 11, 2017. On our first Sunday back in our newly restored beloved worship home, Rev. Taylor reflects on what it means to continue the work of building a cathedral for the human spirit.  The theme for June is what it means to be a community of joy. To read about our theme-based ministry, please visit  http://www.unitytemple.org/faith-devel...

Sermon delivered by Minister of Faith Development Rev. Emily Gage on June 4, 2017. In our last service at our temporary home at United Lutheran Church, Rev. Gage reflects: "Especially in these days and times, it feels important – it feels essential to open ourselves up to being surprised by joy. Or by beauty. Or by some form of goodness."  The theme for June is what it means to be a community of j...

Sermon delivered by Intern Minister Kellie Kelly on May 28, 2017. While our bodies take much abuse from living and aging in the world, we often inflict the most damage to our bodies ourselves. Kellie reflects on how we can learn to accept and love our bodies in their perfect imperfection. The theme for June is what it means to be a community of embodiment. To read about our theme-based ministry, p...

Sermon delivered by Senior Minister Rev. Alan Taylor on May 21, 2017. How shall we embody hospitality as a congregation? Rev. Taylor shares his experience of first visiting what would become his spiritual home and encourages us all to do the same, especially as we return to Unity Temple so soon. The theme for the month of May is how to be a community of embodiment. To read about our theme-based mi...

This service from May 14, 2017 was presented by the senior class of the UTUUC Youth Group. Youth Group Coordinator Heather Godbout presents a brief introduction. She is followed by each senior delivering his or her bridging statement. In order, they are Isabella Andries, Leo Boler, Alec Ubogy, Samantha Michaud, Dan Jones, Blair Ripley, Grace Van Note, JT Sandoval, Jovan Williams, Gabe Lewis and Ju...

In this service from May 7, 2017, the first homily is delivered by Intern Minister Kellie C. Kelly. Senior Minister Rev. Alan Taylor follows with his homily. As our wider Unitarian Universalist community grapples with how our faith tradition perpetuates institutional racism, Intern Minister Kellie Kelly and Senior Minister Rev. Alan Taylor reflect on the discomforting reality that many Unitarian U...

This service from April 30, 2017 was presented by the 9th graders of the Coming of Age (COA) program. Dan Crimmins, one of the COA facilitators, gives an introduction. Then, each of the 9th graders presents his or her personal credo. In order, they are Brooke Bellmar, Kevin Cawley, Alex Cleofe, Nic Ubogy, Joey Alvestad, Jeremiah Boyd, Ryan Michaud, Elly Freehand, Isabelle Meyer and Collin Waco. Th...

This service presents the Unity Temple Choir under the direction of Music Director Marty Swisher performing Ralph Vaughn Williams's "Dona Nobis Pacem." The choir is joined by soloists Rosalind Lee, soprano; Eric Miranda, baritone; Peter Storms on piano and a 12-piece orchestra. The theme for the month of April is how to be a community of transformation. To read about our theme-based ministry, plea...

Sermon delivered by Senior Minister Rev. Alan Taylor on April 16, 2017. Both "life before death" and "love after death" are causes for celebration. In this Easter sermon, Rev. Taylor shares his understanding of Jesus and how the metaphor of resurrection is relevant to our lives. The theme for April is what it means to be a community of transformation. To read about our theme-based ministry, please...

Sermon delivered by Minister of Faith Development Rev. Emily Gage on April 9, 2017. Rev. Gage shares that our theme for exploration this April is not safety or love or acceptance. It is transformation. Transformation. You know, those opportunities for growth and change that sometimes we welcome, and sometimes make us uncomfortable, and sometimes force us to shift our perspective and do new things,...

Sermon delivered by Senior Minister Rev. Alan Taylor on April 2, 2017. Reflecting on a "spirituality of imperfection," Rev. Taylor looks to the wisdom of the recovery movement which has a lot to teach us about the process of transformation. The theme for April is what it means to be a community of transformation. To read about our theme-based ministry, please visit  http://www.unitytemple.org/fait...

Sermon delivered by Intern Minister Kellie Kelly on March 26, 2017. Unitarian Universalism calls us to our best selves and to our highest aspirations, our seven Principles. Kellie explores the "riskiness" of our first Principle: the inherent worth and dignity of every person. The theme for March is what it means to be a community of risk. To read about our theme-based ministry, please visit  http:...

Sermon delivered by Senior Minister Rev. Alan Taylor on March 19, 2017. What do you do when your wider community, your nation, and your mental health are all in a precarious position? Rev. Taylor reflects on the prevalence of mental disorders and the need to cultivate a community of understanding and compassion.  The theme for March is what it means to be a community of risk. To read about our the...

Sermon delivered by Senior Minister Rev. Alan Taylor on March 12, 2017. What is the difference between a tourist and a traveler when it comes to a spiritual community? What journeys do conscience and spirit call us to? Rev. Alan Taylor reflects on that crucial role of the church: providing spiritual grounding for engaging the world. The theme for March is what it means to be a community of risk. T...

Sermon delivered by Minister of Faith Development Rev. Emily Gage on March 5, 2017. And here is the thing: sometimes the ideas you have and the things you do seem dangerous to other people. And so sometimes they try and stop you from sharing those ideas or living those actions. Sometimes--depending on the time and the place--you become a risk taker because of who you are and what you believe and h...

Sermon delivered by Community Minister Rev. Scott Aaseng on February 26, 2017. Rev. Aaseng says that we can keep on having half-conversations about who's right and who's wrong and further feed the brokenness that threatens to tear us apart. Or we can see each other as part of a larger We – a We that is broken, but a We that is in this brokenness together. Rev. Aaseng was a musician, a community ac...