Recent and Upcoming Services

February 2012

Sunday, Feb. 5 – “The Invention of Christian Communion” – Rev. Richard Trudeau
Today’s sermon examines the origin of the central ritual of mainstream Christian worship services.

Sunday, Feb. 12 – “Monogamy” – Rev. Richard Trudeau
For Evolution Weekend, today’s sermon takes a look at claims about monogamy in the animal kingdom and monogamy’s evolution—incomplete though it is—among humans.

Sunday, Feb. 19 – Rev. Barbara Mills

Sunday, Feb. 26 – “Buddhism in the Bible” – Rev. Richard Trudeau
A new translation of Ecclesiastes makes it clearer than ever before that in the heart of the Bible there is a book whose outlook is very much like that of Buddhism.

January 2012

Sunday, Jan. 1 – “ One Atheist’s Ten Suggestions” – Rev. Richard Trudeau
Penn Jillette, of the Penn & Teller magic/comedy team, calls himself a “hardcore atheist” and offers his own “Ten Suggestions” in place of the traditional Ten Commandments. Today’s sermon compares the two.

Sunday, Jan. 8 – “ The MLK We Don’t Hear About ” – Rev. Richard Trudeau
Toward the end of his life Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a lot more than a civil rights marcher who gave speeches about his dream. Today’s sermon tries to round out our memory of him. (It is offered today rather than next Sunday in the hope that we won’t yet be tired of hearing about him.)

Sunday, Jan. 15 – “ Bright-Sided” – Rev. Richard Trudeau
Today’s sermon, drawn from Barbara Ehrenreich’s book of the same title, concerns the distressing pressure put on people today to look only on the bright side of things.

Sunday, Jan. 22 – “ Is God a Sports Fan?” – Mark Schlesinger
If God exists, does he or she watch over athletes? Favor believers over nonbelievers? Guide foul shots into the hoop? How should belief in God affect and be expressed by athletes and their fans?

Sunday, Jan. 29 – “ The Solomonic Wisdom of Roe v. Wade” – Rev. Richard Trudeau
Next January the Supreme Court’s decision in the case of Roe v. Wade will be 40 years old. Will it reach that milestone without being overturned? As the forces against Roe v. Wade continue to grow, this sermon reflects on the decision’s common sense.