From Your Minister
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I’ve always thought that God the Father had a really sick relationship with Mother Earth. Read more →
Biscuits and Star Stuff
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Note: The main character in this story uses the non-gendered pronoun “they.”
“Mama,” said Quinn.
“What’s up?” Mama asked. She could see the sun shining on the top of Quinn’s curly hair. She measured another spoonful of mayonnaise into the bowl. Mama was making drop biscuits. Read more →
The CLF Invites GA Delegates
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Would you like to represent the Church of the Larger Fellowship at General Assembly (GA) this summer? Read more →
Did You Know?
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…that you can listen to Quest Monthly or read (and share) it online? Read more →
Blessing for Bodies
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May we creatures of bone and tissue
know our bodies well: Read more →
Embodiment
February 2017
If anything is sacred, the human body is sacred. —Walt Whitman
Articles
Rise in Body or in Spirit
It was never my goal to become an elder. Over the years I have looked at older men, older than I am, and thought: Someday that might be me. Read more »
Uses of the Erotic
You run into interesting conundrums in church life. For instance, in planning readings for a Valentine’s Day service that honors the erotic, you find that it’s not at all hard to locate some pretty great erotic poems; it’s just a challenge to come up with ones that you can read aloud in church. Read more »
The Least Embodied Church
The CLF is perhaps the least embodied church you will ever find. Read more »
From Your Minister
I’ve always thought that God the Father had a really sick relationship with Mother Earth. Read more »
Biscuits and Star Stuff
“Mama,” said Quinn. “What’s up?” Mama asked. She could see the sun shining on the top of Quinn’s curly hair. She measured another spoonful of mayonnaise into the bowl. Mama was making drop biscuits. Read more »
The CLF Invites GA Delegates
Would you like to represent the Church of the Larger Fellowship at General Assembly (GA) this summer? Read more »
Did You Know?
Did you know that you can listen to Quest Monthly or read (and share) it online? Read more »
Something New
This month, try something new that you’ve never tried before! This can be something big or something small, but it should be something that is new to you. Here are some ideas:
- Try a new kind of food, especially a new fruit or vegetable.
- Learn how to say some words in a new language.
- Make a new friend or sit with a new person at the lunch table.
- Play a sport you’ve never played before.
- Listen to a different kind of music, or music from another part of the world.
- Learn about how children live in other cultures. There are many organizations that will match people up with pen pals in other countries. (Kids, ask your parents for help with this!)
- Learn the names of your mailman, grocery clerk, school crossing guard, or others who help you every day. You might even give them a thank you card to show them you appreciate them.
A New Freedom of Faith
Throughout the history of Christianity there have been big fights over changes in religious belief and practice, with different people say their version is the real version.
But King John Sigismund, the one and only Unitarian king in history, had a different point of view. Way back in 1561, John Sigismund was very interested in religion, partly because people in his country of Transylvania kept fighting about it. The Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Calvinists, and Unitarians all argued about whose views about God and Jesus and how church services should be conducted were right.
Francis David
Finally, King John called the best speaker from each church to come to a place called Torda for a debate to decide who was right. The speaker from the Unitarian church was a man named Francis David. He argued that no one has the right to force people to believe anything about God, and that it’s OK if our understanding of religion changes.
After 10 days, King John ordered the debate to end. But he did not announce a winner; he did not say that any of the four churches was the best. Instead, King John agreed with Francis David, and he created what was called the Edict of Torda, which declared that every church and every person would be free to follow their own beliefs, even if those beliefs changed over time. There are still Unitarians in Transylvania today who share that commitment to freedom of belief.
Read more about Francis David from the UUA’s Tapestry of Faith programming, or read the Edict of Torda for yourself!
Repainting Our Lives
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Old paint on canvas, as it ages, sometimes becomes transparent. Read more →
