-
Blessing It All
This year seems to mark the threshold in my life where everyone around me seems to be getting married, and I could not be more thrilled. While I’m (thankfully) not being asked to officiate them all, I am getting to have so many conversations with loved ones about ritual. For many people in our increasingly secular world, marriage ceremonies are a central and primary form of ritual in their lives. More and more, I see couples aware that their wedding is a place to honor their transformation from individuals into a family, and they are putting care into crafting rituals
-
Introducing Confluence
Confluence, as defined by Merriam-Webster: 1: a coming or flowing together, meeting, or gathering at one point 2: the place of meeting of two or more streams Inspired by the UU water communion tradition of bringing water together at our Ingathering service, our worship theme for the the 24-25 church year is Confluence. I believe this is a beautiful metaphor for our community, which is a place where we come together out of our disparate life experiences, where we choose to meet and flow together. If we aspire to be like water, we should always be moving and changing from
-
Ingathering Invitation
In just over a week, we Westsiders will be gathering for our annual Ingathering service and social hour. As this marks the start of my second full year as minister in this community, this is a special occasion that I am really looking forward to. Whether or not we took time away for the summer, we will get to greet one another anew. Those of us in leadership roles and on volunteer teams will get to check in with one another after some well-deserved rest. And, there will inevitably be new faces to welcome in: folks who met us at
-
A Call to Action! Should WSUU Join the “No on I-2117” Coalition – Vote by Sept 2
The Environmental Justice Group has proposed and the Board of Director has approved of the church joining the No on Initiative 2117 Coalition, a diverse group of over 400 organization from across the state. This initiative would eliminate the state’s Climate Commitment Act, an act which has raised over $2 billion in just 1.5 years from WA’s major polluters to fund progressive community (mostly energy) projects. The coalition: (https://no2117.com/our-coalition/). The Climate Commitment Act’s Projects: (Climate Commitment Act: Polluters pay, communities benefit | Climate (wa.gov). Per the church bylaws, this needs to be decided upon by the church membership. Indicate your
-
Westside UU Parent Group
Parenting Group meets on the third Sundays of the month from 10:30am–11:45 am, and is open to parents/caregivers of children, youth, young adults, and adults of all ages. Sunday August 18th WSUU Parenting Group meeting: folks can meet us at 10:30 am directly at the playground area at Lake Burien Memorial Park or or we’ll meet you outside church between 10 and 10:15 am and give rides to folks that need them, please let us know you’re coming so we can be sure to look for you and your family. Lake Burien Memorial Park located at 1620 SW 149th Street, Burien
-
A Statement on Palestine
From WSUU Minister, Board of Trustees and Racial Justice Change Team Dear members of the Westside UU Community, As world leaders negotiate for a ceasefire deal between Hamas and the Israeli government, we wanted to send this note of care to you all. Over the past 8 months, we citizens of the world have witnessed unprecedented levels of violence and destruction: the brutal attack that killed over 1,000 people in Israel on October 7, and the more than 36,000 people killed in Palestine since. The numbers are staggering. These statistics, along with personal stories and images from this war, haunt
-
Happy Anniversary, Westside!
In march of 2023, one year ago you all welcomed me into your community. And what a year it’s been! It’s tempting to use this kind of platform to hype up the community and name all the hard work folks have put in to make this past year go well. I could talk about the strong worship team who is dedicated and thoughtful in crafting meaningful services that ground us on Sunday mornings. Or all the ways people in this community have shown up for and let themselves be changed by learning Nonviolent Communication and engaging in Right Relations work.
-
Welcome to Core Team Corner!
Dear Westsiders, Do you keep hearing about the Core team and wonder what it is? And why it is? Please read on for a quick view of the origins and future of Westside’s Core team. Please keep in mind that this is not a comprehensive review, and we encourage anyone with questions to reach out and have a conversation with us! You can reach us at coreteam@wsuu.org. Our work with Pam Orbach of the Center for Restorative Solutions began last winter. Members interested in right relations self selected into a group at our Beloved Community Café in the fall of
-
Help Identify 2024 General Assembly Delegates for WSUU
General Assembly (GA) is the annual meeting of our Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). Participants worship, witness, learn, connect, and make policy for the Association through democratic process. It will be held Thursday June 20 through Sunday, June 23 and it will be online only. Anyone may attend! Delegates vote on our behalf, but everyone is encouraged to attend GA! Information about financial aid can be found here. Our GA Delegate Policy charges the Nominating Committee with presenting the congregation with a slate of delegates to vote on. This policy has the aim of being inclusive! This is because Westside is
-
Advent Week 4: Love
Okay, the timing of these blog posts doesn’t neatly align with the Sundays of Advent, so you’re reading this a few days after Christmas. Christmas has come and gone, and in this last week, we reflect on the theme of Love. Those of us lucky to experience deep love in our lives also know that it comes with equal parts pain and loss. And yet, our inner knowing pushes us to love anyway. Unitarian minister, Forrest Church, writes: “Whenever we give our hearts in love, the burden of our vulnerability grows. We risk being rebuffed or embarrassed or inadequate. Beyond