Love Is…Mutual Flourishing 

We celebrate our uniquely Unitarian Universalist Flower Communion. Please bring a flower or many to contribute to our communion. We will also dedicate some of our wonderful children and bid a fond farewell to our beloved Ministerial Intern, Dr. (and soon to be Reverend) Emma Farrell. Charles M. Anderson and Chester Beck, soloists; the UCE Choir, directed by Vickie Hellyer and accompanied by Gregory Shifrin on piano and Nadav Simon on percussion, and The Lively Spirit Dancers provide music to lift our spirits. Annual picnic and potluck to follow service. Please bring a dish to share.

Today’s offering will be shared with Deborah’s Place, which opens doors of opportunity for women that experience homelessness in Chicago through supportive services and permanent housing.

Upcoming Services

June 14 – The Power of Community to Heal – Rev. Susan Frances

June 21 – UUA General Assembly Worship (masks required) Livestream starts at 10 a.m.

June 28 – Kera Beskin’s Spiritual Journey

July 5 – This Country is a Piece of Me and I am a Piece of This Country – Rev. Susan Frances

Love Is…Mutual Flourishing

 We celebrate our uniquely Unitarian Universalist Flower Communion. Please bring a flower or many to contribute to our communion. We will also dedicate some of our wonderful children and bid a fond farewell to our beloved Ministerial Intern, Dr. (and soon to be Reverend) Emma Farrell. Ellie Feddersen serves as our Worship Associate. The UCE Choir, directed by Vickie Hellyer and accompanied by Gregory Shifrin on piano, provide music to life our spirits.

Today’s offering will be shared with Deborah’s Place, which opens doors of opportunity for women that experience homelessness in Chicago through supportive services and permanent housing.

Upcoming Services

June 14 – The Power of Community to Heal – Rev. Susan Frances

June 21 – UUA General Assembly Worship (masks required) Livestream starts at 10 a.m.

June 28 – Kera Beskin’s Spiritual Journey

July 5 – This Country is a Piece of Me and I am a Piece of This Country – Rev. Susan Frances

The Courage to be Curious

It’s hard to be brave and curious when things change so rapidly. Things are changing faster than we can possibly adjust to, but we can build the courage to slow down together amidst overwhelming change and move forward with curiosity. We bid a fond farewell to beloved, long-time members, Lee and Jane Bannor who are moving away. Rev. Eileen leads the service with Carla Williams as the Worship Associate. Charles Anderson is our hymn and song leader and Gregory Shifrin on piano lead us musically.

Today’s offering will be shared with The Unitarian Universalist Prison Ministry of Illinois (UUPMI), which works to equip UU’s in Illinois to ​transform institutions, partnering with and supporting people harmed by the prison industrial complex.

Upcoming Services

June 7 – Flower Communion and Child Dedications – Rev. Eileen

June 14 – The Power of Community to Heal – Rev. Susan Frances

June 21 – UUA General Assembly Worship (masks required) Livestream starts at 10 a.m.

June 28 – Kera Beskin’s Spiritual Journey

A Home By Any Other Name

 What does it mean to be a Unitarian Universalist? How often do you say you’re a Unitarian with the Universalist part implied? Why the second U matters. Rev. Eileen leads this service with Bob Mesle as Worship Associate. Music is provided by the UCE Choir, directed by Vickie Hellyer, along with Gregory Shifrin on piano.

Today’s offering will be shared with The Children’s Best Interest Project, whose mission is to assist parents with dismissal or reduction of charges in minor criminal cases and to educate Illinois families, organizations, and lawyers about the Children’s Best Interest Act, which requires Illinois courts to consider children’s needs when making sentencing decisions about their parents. 

Upcoming Services

May 24 – Rev. Allison Farnum and Monica Cosby

May 31 – The Courage to Be Curious – Rev. Eileen Wiviott

June 7 – Flower Communion and Child Dedications – Rev. Eileen

June 14 – The Power of Community to Heal – Rev. Susan Frances

The Fierce Love of Mothering

Mother’s Day can carry gratitude, grief, tenderness, and complexity. In this service, we will honor fierce love in all its forms, whether it comes from mothers or not — love that protects, nurtures, and helps life grow. Together, we will reflect on what it might mean to turn that love toward one another for our collective liberation.

Dr. Emma Farrell, ministerial intern, leads this service with Ellie Feddersen as worship associate. The UCE Choir and  Children’s Choir, along with soloist Jenn Wisegarver and pianist Gregory Shifrin provide the music.

Today’s offering will be shared with The Children’s Best Interest Project, whose mission is to assist parents with dismissal or reduction of charges in minor criminal cases and to educate Illinois families, organizations, and lawyers about the Children’s Best Interest Act, which requires Illinois courts to consider children’s needs when making sentencing decisions about their parents. 

Upcoming Services

May 17 – A Home By Any Other Name – Rev. Eileen Wiviott

May 24 – Rev. Allison Farnum and Monica Cosby

May 31 – The Courage to Be Curious – Rev. Eileen Wiviott

Constructing Curiosity: Faith Formation Sunday

As we returned to in-person worship in 2021, our Faith Formation Sunday looked at how we wanted UCE to be for all to grow in their UU faith. Together, we built a structure with our visions and commitments written on blocks. Are you curious about whether we have kept to those visions? How can we continue constructing and building Beloved Community on the foundation we began with? Kathy Underwood, Director of Lifespan Faith Formation, leads this service with Ally Hunter as worship associates. Ally Hunter on vocals and the ukulele, Taylor Hobart on harp, and Gregory Shifrin on piano provide the music.

Today’s offering will be shared with Children’s Best Interest Project.

Upcoming Services

May 10 – The Fierce Love of Mothering – Dr. Emma Farrell

May 17 – A Home By Any Other Name – Rev. Eileen Wiviott

May 24 – Rev. Allison Farnum

Honesty, Integrity, Good Works

Long time UCE member and choir tenor, Mike Dickenson, shares his Spiritual Journey which includes what it means to him to be a ‘true Christian’ and a Unitarian. Rev. Eileen Wiviott and Heike Eghardt will serve as his Worship Associates, Charles M. Anderson as hymn leader and soloist, Kevin Barrow on guitar, and Gregory Shifrin on piano.

Today’s offering will be shared with Connections for the Homeless, one of our longest community partnerships. Connections serves as a safety net for neighbors who need support to maintain safe, stable housing in Evanston and northern Cook County.

Upcoming Services

May 3 – Faith Formation Sunday

May 10 – The Fierce Love of Mothering – Dr. Emma Farrell

May 17 – A Home By Any Other Name – Rev. Eileen Wiviott

May 24 – Rev. Allison Farnum

Welcoming One Another Home

 We come together to practice Beloved Community, to welcome and affirm the worth of all people, and to heal our spirits through joyful song. This spring music service allows us to set down our loneliness and despair, as we participate in the

deeply human desire to experience home as a place of radical belonging. 

Musicians include:

The UCE Choir, Dana Plazak, vocal soloist, Andy Carpenter, soprano sax; Julia Schifrin, violin and fiddle; Kevin Barrow, clarinet, Gregory Shifrin, piano; Nadav Simon, drums and timpani; Vickie Hellyer, conductor

Readers include:

Eleanor Boyer, Thom Duncan, Ellie Feddersen, Robb Geiger, Lynn Kendall, and Rev. Eileen Wiviott

Today’s offering will be shared with Connections for the Homeless, one of our longest community partnerships. Connections serves as a safety net for neighbors who need support to maintain safe, stable housing in Evanston and northern Cook County. They’ve been a tireless advocate and leader for affordable housing in our area.

Upcoming Services

April 26 – Mike Dickenson’s Spiritual Journey

May 3 – Faith Formation Sunday

May 10 – The Fierce Love of Mothering – Dr. Emma Farrell

May 17 – A Home By Any Other Name – Rev. Eileen Wiviott

Breaking the Rules

In this special service, where our youth and young adults take the helm, we’ll explore what happens when we break the rules. Our young people will help us examine when rules should be broken, and how we can live with the consequences when our values, integrity and conscience call us to challenge unjust rules.

Rev. Eileen works with members of the Youth and Young Adult Groups to lead.

Worship Leaders/Designers: 

Youth: Birdie and Clementine Dreznick, Henry Donoghue, Lee Horn, Sophia Kern, Sydney Lawrence, Lucas O’Reilly, Ned Parsons

Young Adults: Julia Adams, Kevin Barrow, Bex Blackmore, Aidan Caravana, Rai Johnson-Nicholson, Kiley Korey, and Grey Wiviott

Today’s offering will be shared with Connections for the Homeless, whose mission is to serve and catalyze our community to end homelessness, one person at a time. 

Upcoming Services

April 19 – Music Sunday – Vickie Hellyer

April 26 – Mike Dickenson’s Spiritual Journey

May 5 – Faith Formation Sunday – Kathy Underwood

May 12 – Mother’s Day – Dr. Emma Farrell