We will host an online worship service on Sunday, August 15th at 11:15 am.

Living Our Mission Through the Arts: Poetry
Nurturing the Human Spirit and Making the World Whole Through the Arts: living our mission through Poetry. The creative endeavor is more than the fluff of life. It is essential to our humanity to create, express, and process our struggles through the arts. This August we will explore five modes of artistic and creative expression and their centrality in making meaning in our lives. This Sunday, we explore the power of poetry. Worship leaders are Marianne Griebler, Ann McCallister, Susan Moss, and Rev. Eileen Wiviott.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 am, we will try to read it that Sunday. Thank you for your patience as we are adapting to best serve you all! Note there will only be one service time so that we can gather together as a whole community of faith. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Black Lives of UU.

We will host an online worship service on Sunday, August 8th at 11:15 am.

Living Our Mission Through the Arts: Dance
Nurturing the Human Spirit and Making the World Whole Through the Arts: living our mission through the arts. The creative endeavor is more than the fluff of life. It is essential to our humanity to create, express, and process our struggles through the arts. This August we will explore five modes of artistic and creative expression and their centrality in making meaning in our lives. This Sunday, we focus on dance. Worship participants include Heike Eghardt, Shirley Adams, Alicia Hempfling, Robb Geiger, Jessica Tomell-Presto, Jen Halman, Laura Pettibone, and Rev. Eileen.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 am, we will try to read it that Sunday. Thank you for your patience as we are adapting to best serve you all! Note there will only be one service time so that we can gather together as a whole community of faith. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Black Lives of UU.

We will host an online worship service on Sunday, August 1st at 11:15 am.

Living Our Mission Through the Arts: Drama
Nurturing the Human Spirit and Making the World Whole Through the Arts: living our mission through the arts. The creative endeavor is more than the fluff of life. It is essential to our humanity to create, express, and process our struggles through the arts. During August we will explore five modes of artistic and creative expression and their centrality in making meaning in our lives. This Sunday we will explore Drama and how its various expressions impact us, inspire us, and connect us.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 am, we will try to read it that Sunday. Thank you for your patience as we are adapting to best serve you all! Note there will only be one service time so that we can gather together as a whole community of faith. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Black Lives of UU.

We will host an online worship service on Sunday, July 25th at 11:15 am.

Goodness and Mercy
Guest Preacher: Rev. Allison Farnum
In a dominant culture that fetishizes crime and punishment while remaining apathetic to the failures of the penal system, our Unitarian Universalist theologies remind us that we can rely on deeper truths of goodness and mercy that still hold each of us accountable in and to the interdependent web of life.

Rev. Allison Farnum is the Minister and Director at the Unitarian Universalist Prison Ministry of Illinois, a statewide ministry that focuses on equipping  Unitarian Universalists in Illinois to transform institutions and support people harmed by the prison industrial complex. For more information, please visit www.uupmi.org.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 am, we will try to read it that Sunday. Thank you for your patience as we are adapting to best serve you all! Note there will only be one service time so that we can gather together as a whole community of faith. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Assata’s Daughters.

We will host an online worship service on Sunday, July 18th at 11:15 am.

What’s in a name? Or the journey to find self
Guest Preacher: Rev. Karen Mooney
When my given name became associated with the misuse of white privilege I clamored to find a way to express solidarity and distance myself from a name turned into a symbol that I found repugnant. Shakesphere says in Romeo and Juliet “O, be some other name! What’s in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet;” Does a name have meaning in our world? Who is free to change names and why, or why not.

Rev. Karen Mooney is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist who grew up in rural(ish) Wisconsin. She learned the art of church from her parents who were very involved in the Mequon congregation where they were members for over 50 year. She is currently working as the Executive Co-Director for the UU Advocacy Network of IL piloting a program in antiracist capacity building that builds brave spaces for reflection within congregation. Karen claims to have been educated far and wide by working and playing, listening and walking with people. Ultimately she loves that UU communities are places where you find people who are alive and seeking throughout their lives.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 am, we will try to read it that Sunday. Thank you for your patience as we are adapting to best serve you all! Note there will only be one service time so that we can gather together as a whole community of faith. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Assata’s Daughters.

We will host an online worship service on Sunday, July 11th at 11:15 am.

Telling Our Stories
We are a people of story. The stories we tell shape how we see ourselves and the world. So what happens if we change our stories?

The Rev. Darrick Jackson (he/him) is the Director of Ministries for Lifelong Learning of UU Ministers Association and an Affiliated Community Minister with Second Unitarian Church of Chicago. He is one of the authors in the book “Centering: Navigating Race, Authenticity and Power in Ministry.” Darrick is active in DRUUMM (the UU ministry for people of color), and is the treasurer for Healing Moments (a ministry for caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s). He is also Co-Associate Director of the Chicago Playback Theatre Ensemble and is an avid knitter. Darrick and his husband, James Olson, live with their two cats, Merlin and Morgana.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 am, we will try to read it that Sunday. Thank you for your patience as we are adapting to best serve you all! Note there will only be one service time so that we can gather together as a whole community of faith. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Assata’s Daughters.

We will host an online worship service on Sunday, July 4th at 11:15 am.

The Game of Life
Since ancient human history, board games have been a way of entertaining ourselves and bringing people together. From chess to “Monopoly,” these games are not only rich with strategy and memories – but also lessons for how to be in community during difficult times. Join guest preacher Rev. Monica Kling-Garcia as they share the wisdom and lessons found in these games, and what we can learn from them about what it can mean to be a covenantal community.

The Rev. Monica Kling-Garcia (they/them) is a community minister and will begin a new role as a Chaplain Resident at UnityPoint – Meriter hospital in Madison, WI later this fall. Having studied religion both in the US and the UK, while also having travelled to 11 different countries, Monica’s personal theology embodies how humanity is deeply connected and also uniquely diverse. A Wisconsinite at heart, Monica currently lives in Chicago with their husband Logan and their energetic cat Yen.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 am, we will try to read it that Sunday. Thank you for your patience as we are adapting to best serve you all! Note there will only be one service time so that we can gather together as a whole community of faith. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Assata’s Daughters.

UCE joins an online worship service with the UUA General Assembly on Sunday, June 27th at 11 am.

General Assembly Worship
Join the largest annual gathering of UUs joining in worship. This powerful, communal worship experience will stream on Sunday, June 27, 2021 at 11 am CST. Members of the public are welcome to view the service. Learn more here.

Joys and Sorrows cannot be read this Sunday, but please submit yours through this online form to be read another Sunday. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.

UCE joins an online worship service hosted by Meadville Lombard on Sunday, June 20th at 11 am.

Meadville Lombard in the Pulpit
Rev. Nancy McDonald Ladd, MDiv ‘04, Senior Minister of River Road UU Congregation in Bethesda, Maryland, will preach on “Going to the Well of Living Waters,” based on the Gospel of John 4:1-26.  A special musical guest is Mark Miller, faculty at Drew Theological School, and the Institute of Sacred Music at Yale University. This service will be livestreamed on Facebook and Youtube.

Joys and Sorrows cannot be read this Sunday, but please submit yours through this online form to be read another Sunday. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.

We will host an online worship service on Sunday, June 13th at 11:15 am.

Joy in Resistance
Expressing your true self is a great joy. For LGBTQIA+ folks those “ah ha” moments of recognition within themselves and with their peers are priceless. Societal norms frequently impinge on the freedom for LGBTQIA+ people to simply be themselves. As Elliot Page, actor and transman, queried in his recent Oprah interview, “Why does it have to be so hard?” Despite all the roadblocks and U-turns, many LGBTQIA+ people are able to move through extraordinary obstacles to express their authentic selves. In celebration of Pride Month, we will share our personal stories, poetry, and songs of hardship, of resistance, of pride, and of joy. Come celebrate who you really are.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 am, we will try to read it that Sunday. Thank you for your patience as we are adapting to best serve you all! Note there will only be one service time so that we can gather together as a whole community of faith. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.