Services Archive - Mount Vernon Unitarian Church

“Don’t Hesitate”

Date and Time: 11/26/2017 10:00am

Presenter: Peter Bloom, Parker Collins, and Kris Rosenthal

Mary Oliver begins her poem “Don’t Hesitate”: “If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it.” We reflect on the poem, hesitation, life, and joy.

Money, Power, and Democracy: Part Two

Date and Time: 11/12/2017 9:15am and 11/12/2017 11:15am

Presenter: Rev. Dr. Kate R. Walker

How power effects people in a democracy is an important question. As we ask ourselves about our relationship with our own power, and how we use our money, we’ll explore the Theme of the Month: Democracy.

Featured in the second service on this Sunday: listen here to the world premiere of “I Lift My Lamp,” composed and directed by MVUC member Steve Bogart. Performance by the MVUC choir with Steve Bogart, soloist.

The Gift of the Poet and the Scientist

Date and Time: 10/29/2017 9:15am and 10/29/2017 11:15am

Presenter: Rev. Dr. Kate R. Walker

Sermon for October 29, 2017 by the Reverend Dr. Kate Walker

We live more deeply than we think; We’ll explore hidden messages of life and happiness.

Race in the 21st Century: Revolutionary Love

Date and Time: 09/25/2016 9:15am and 09/25/2016 11:15am

Presenter: Rev. Dr. Kate R. Walker and Tom Griffin

With our country facing significant conflict and tension around race issues, we ask how it impacts our religious association as well as how effects us personally.

Modeling Religious Public Discourse: Sunday, April 24, 2016

Date and Time: 04/24/2016 10:00am

Presenter: Rev. Dr. Kate Walker

Sermon for April 24, by Rev. Dr. Kate Walker

What do Unitarian Universalists have to teach and model for others about religious dialogue? Are we in a place of enough power to make an impact on public discourse?

“And Now for Something Completely Different”

Presenter:

Sermon for January 22, 2017, by Rev. Kate R. Walker.

The ground under our feet feels unstable. The world feels like it’s tipping. Yet, there is power within and without that can help us endure and thrive. That power comes from a clear vision, creative out-of-the-box thinking, lessons from the past and some wicked humor.

“Getting Along With One Another” – Rev. Russ Savage

Presenter:

Sermon for Sunday, February 26, 2017, by Rev. Russ Savage, Guest Minister from the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Shenandoah Valley

We live all our lives in relationships with other human beings. Some of those relationships are close and some are distant or superficial. Some are idyllic and some are troubled. Let us examine some of the mechanics of personal relationships in the light of modern psychology.

“How the Light Gets In” – Alice King

Presenter:

Intern Minister Alice King explores this month’s transformational worship theme of Wholeness.

March 13 – 2016

“Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything.

That’s how the light gets in.”

—Leonard Cohen

Ingathering
Welcome and Announcements Alice King, Intern Minister

*Introit: I Am in Need of Music MVUC Choir

Chalice Lighting/Opening Words: The Chalice Is a Symbol

Hymn No 360, Here We Have Gathered

Our Covenant (inside back flap of hymnal)

Time for All Ages Ann Richards?

Singing Our Children to Class

For you shall go out in joy / And come back in peace / Blessed be.
Offertory

During our offering, we invite you to come forward in silence and light a candle to commemorate a joy or sorrow.

Music: In the Morning Light by Yanni Yee Von Ng

Sharing Our Gifts♡ MVUC’s Partner Church Program

Meditation, Prayer & Silence: Meditation on Broken Hearts by Thomas Rhodes

Musical Response: No 1011, Return Again

Reading: We Are Whole by Beth Lefever Jane Nelson

Anthem by Leonard Cohen Ron Brandt

Sermon: How the Light Gets in Alice King

Closing Hymn
# No 1059, May Your Life Be as a Song
* No 1030, Siyahamba
Extinguishing the Chalice (No 456)
We extinguish this flame but not the light of truth, the warmth of community, or the fire of commitment:
these we carry in our hearts until we are together again.

Benediction Postlude

“Question Box Sunday” – Rev. Dr. Kate Walker

Presenter:

Sermon for August 21, 2016, by the Reverend Kate R. Walker.

Reverend Kate returns from her summer vacation to our pulpit today. This is her annual “Question Box Sunday,” when she welcomes written questions from those in attendance.

“A wide variety of topics is welcome, although I hold the right to defer to actual experts.” – Reverend Kate

“This is Who I Am”

Presenter:

Sermon for August 7, 2016, by Bianca Rey, Equality Virginia.

“We are in a place now where more and more Trans people want to come forward and say THIS IS WHO I AM.” —Laverne Cox

“A Free and Responsible Search for… Our Lost Childhood” – Gail Dickert

Presenter:

Sermon for Sunday, June 26, 2016, by Gail Dickert

Frog Pond’s Executive Director, Gail Dickert, shares how a lifetime of work with children and youth integrates with the UU faith. Can we find any inherent worth and dignity in diapers? How interconnected are the webs of tantrums, cuss words, and spilled milk? Will a democratic process be effective in determining who gets to sit in the front seat on the way to Grandma’s house? As we listen to the stories of children and youth, may we hear the voice of our initial prophet – our lost childhood.

“Bridging Sunday”

Presenter:

Sermon for Sunday, June 12, 2016 by Intern Minister Alice King.

This service is a celebration of our Youth, their value to our community, and their advancement toward adulthood.

“Church Growth and Change in the 21st Century”

Presenter:

The Theme of the Month is Generosity. How do we move forward with our Mission and Vision in a fast changing culture of diminishing church affiliation and shifting demographics of age and wealth? What do these changes mean for Unitarian Universalists? A sermon for March 5th, 2016 by the Rev. Dr. Kate R. Walker

“Favorite Tee Shirt Day: To What Are You Committed?”

Presenter:

Sermon for January 8, 2017, by Rev. Kate R. Walker.

They know us by what we wear, where we spend our time and how we spend our money. But what will really make you do all three? Wear your favorite social justice tee shirt to church!

“How Do We Honor the Dead While Celebrating Life?” – May 29

Presenter:

On this Memorial Day we honor those who have died in combat. How we honor them, deeply matters for us and the generations to come. A Memorial Day Service by Rev. Dr. Kate Walker.

“Pass It On: Receiving a Gift, Leaving a Legacy” – May 22

Presenter:

Join us for this multigenerational service in which Mount Vernon Unitarian Church teachers, students, and the Lifespan Spiritual
Growth Council help us celebrate adult and children’s religious education at MVUC.

“The Language of the Heart” – First Service 9:15

Presenter:

Sermon for May 15, 2016, by Rev. John Manwell.

Prayer has been described as giving voice to our hearts. It asks for no special words, but only an attitude of openness, as we listen for our deepest hopes and longings, and for the voice of Life itself — some would say of God.

“Transcending the Ego for the Sake of the Whole”

Presenter:

We are caught in a never-ending tension between the individual and community. How we balance that tension, how we maintain healthy boundaries, and how we merge with other members of our community can help us thrive as healthy members of society.

Sermon for November 15th – Service lead by Reverend Kate Walker.

To enjoy the audio presentation of this sermon from the Mount Vernon Unitarian Church, click on the play button below.

“True Believers” (Part 1) – Rev. Dr. Kate Walker

Presenter:

Sermon for Sunday, February 5, 2017, by Rev. Dr Kate R. Walker

The Theme of the Month is Prayer and Spiritual Practice. We’ll explore the hallmarks of fundamentalist belief systems, and how liberal religious beliefs might intersect in prayer and practice (Part 1 of 2)

“True Believers” (part 2)- Rev. Dr. Kate Walker

Presenter:

Sermon for Sunday, February 12, 2016, by Rev. Dr. Kate R. Walker.

“Voices of Unitarian Universalism”

Presenter:

Sermon for Sunday, June 19, 2016 by Sarah Cade and Jeanette Skow

Come listen to members of the Mount Vernon Unitarian Church community discuss the role that Unitarian Universalism and MVUC has had in their lives.

“We Can Do This! Steps to Change the Course of Climate Change”

Presenter:

Sermon for August 27, 2017, by MVUC member Pam Tinker.

In a follow-up to Alan Bunner’s service on the science of Climate Change, Pam discusses the current state of actions on climate change and the many successes and positive trends that are emerging. Pam offers a basic “blueprint” of individual, local and national initiatives, through which we can take simple, concrete steps to change the course of history.