09/03/2021 by Shannon Day

Workshop with Paula Cole Jones – Building a Culture of Inclusion

Building the Beloved Community is about building a culture of inclusion. Is this our unfinished business or is it the bridge to a vibrant future for Unitarian Universalism? Over 115 congregations and UU groups have had positive votes to adopt an 8th Principle that calls on us to build the Beloved Community. And many more votes are in process. Will we heed the call? To build the Beloved Community, UUs must attend to the unfinished business of dismantling racism and oppression in our congregations and Association and with our community partners. How do we stand in solidarity with the social

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09/02/2021 by Shannon Day

Fall’s Westside Spiritual Practice – Poetic Lectio Divina

Lectio divina is a monastic practice of Western Christianity to facilitate the contemplation of texts, and their meaning for our lives. It involves reading the same text repeatedly, and each time applying different lenses or approaches. We will practice this way of engaging texts, each time sharing a new poem, and discover how this contemplative practice can enrich our reading and understanding. Only a half hour long, beginning on September 14th we’ll gather on Zoom on Tuesday mornings from 8:30-9:00am, and Thursday evenings from 8:30-9:00pm. Come once, come every time, come whenever the spirit calls you. Contact Rev. Christopher if

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09/01/2021 by Shannon Day

Moving in Spirit – Meditation in the Great Outdoors

For so many Westside members and friends, the experience of wonder and awe is found most often in nature, moving through the trees, listening to the wind, watching wildlife. Join Rev. Christopher for Saturday morning guided walking or rolling meditation, with questions to hold, time for individual or paired reflection, and seeking joy in the beauty in our outdoor spaces. Bring friends and family, and find a moment of pause, while seeing Westside beloveds. Register below for one or more of the upcoming Saturdays, rain or shine. Let us know on the form if you can offer a ride or

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04/16/2021 by Shannon Day

Thank you to Garden Volunteers!

Last weekend we had a great turnout, with 14 people coming early on a Saturday morning, masked and distanced, to help get the Westside garden into shape for the spring! After many yards of mulch, lots of weeding and planting, the garden is looking great! Thank you to everyone who came out to help, and to our Landscape and Garden Team Co-Chairs, Amy Hance-Brancati and Kimberly Frappier!

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03/03/2021 by Shannon Day

The Shared Pulpit Series

You have a story. Each of our stories is part of a larger narrative of being human in this world, in this time. One of the most powerful spiritual practices we have is in the sharing of our stories and reflecting on the ways those stories awaken us to love, illuminate our humanity, connect us to the holy and ineffable—and common—experience of life. We invite you to join Rev. Christopher for a Shared Pulpit Workshop Series, which will guide you in developing your story into a sermon and worship experience that you can share with the congregation. Using a series

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02/19/2021 by Shannon Day

Under the Bridge

One of the things that was shared during the start-up and has been a continuing thread in my conversations, was a reflection that at Westside “conflicts have to become significant before we attempt to resolve them.”  It makes me think about those cracks in the wall of the first house I bought with my ex-wife. When we moved in there were some really big cracks in the plaster upstairs. If they’d been dealt with when they were small, it would have taken just a little work to patch and fill, but over time they grew wider and filling them became

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02/12/2021 by Shannon Day

With Trust and With Grace

This is the first in a series of posts talking about some of the cracks that I’ve perceived or received from members of the congregation. If we are going to forget our perfect offering and seek to let a healing light in through those cracks, a practice of honesty and accountability, seems essential to moving forward together. “Forget your perfect offering. Ring the bell that still can ring. There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.” Poet and Songwriter Leonard Cohen, inspired by Sufi Mystic and Theologian Jalaluddin Rumi “What was I thinking?” is what I’ve

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02/05/2021 by Shannon Day

That’s How the Light Gets In

Forget your perfect offering.Ring the bells that still can ring. There is a crack in everything.That’s how the light gets in. I’ve heard from lots of folks this week that they are having a lot of different, sometimes conflicting, feelings after last week’s startup and Sunday service, but that these words in particular have been resonating with them. I’ve found the same, and have been singing them to myself pretty frequently. One of the things I’ve appreciated about these conversations is that they seem to carry a deep sense of a desire to be honest, to be really real, about

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10/07/2020 by Shannon Day

Update from the Board and Minister on in-person gatherings

Dear members and friends of Westside, As we enter the fall season, many of you may have questions about our plans for continuing to come together as a community and specifically about the possibility of having in-person meetings with proper physical distancing and masks. The board is committed to considering how we function as a community with a focus on caring for the safety of all of Westside’s members and on making decisions with equity in mind. Taking into account differing health and safety concerns and access needs, we have concluded that church activities must continue without in-person contact. This

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07/24/2020 by Shannon Day

You Cannot Turn Your Back

“You can turn your back on me, but you cannot turn your back upon the idea of justice. You can turn your back now and you can keep the club in your hand, but you cannot beat down justice… And we will register to vote, because as citizens of these United States we have the right to do it.” Rev. C.T. Vivian A Civil Rights organizer, Rev. Vivian, died a little more than a week ago and I regret that I had only a faint sense of who he was before the eulogies started to come out. While John Lewis’

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