‘Spirit Made Visible’ at UUCWI
The Transcendentalists of the 19th century are important historical figures in Unitarian Universalism. They changed the trajectory of liberal religion by asserting that Nature and God were closely intertwined. Poetry and essays from this period have influenced philosophy and literature for generations.
At the Sunday service for the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Whidbey Island, Rev. Kit Ketcham will speak about how their influence affects present lives of the congregation.
There will be childcare but no religious education during August.
The service is at 10 a.m. at 20103 Highway 525, just north of Freeland. Check www.whidbey.com/uucwi for more information.
Come contemplate Buddhist thoughts
On the second Wednesday of each month, the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Whidbey Island holds a quiet, contemplative candlelight gathering of song, meditation and readings.
The congregation will take a brief look at the Buddhist perspective that happiness is a way of being and experiencing the world — not a matter of agreeable sensation. Accompanied by harp music, this is a time to take a short, calm respite from busy lives.
The service is at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 11 at 20103 Highway 525, just north of Freeland.
Forums explore early Christianity
The adult forum schedule for August at St. Augustine’s in-the-Woods Episcopal Church will feature a continued focus on early Christianity.
The forums will present lectures given by Dr. Bart Ehrman, professor and chairman of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina, that address the persecution and martyrdom of the faithful in the first three centuries of the church.
On Aug. 8 is “The Causes of Christian Persecution.”
The lecture will provide a historical sketch of the course of persecution from the 1st to the 3rd centuries. It examines the motivations for the two kinds of violence against the Christians, i.e. grassroots, mob uprisings and top-down persecutions ordered by the state. The written account of the martyrdom of Polycarp will guide reflections on this issue. Interestingly, state-sanctioned persecutions did not appear until the middle of the 3rd century.
Finally, the lecture will consider several key reasons for pagan opposition to Christianity and its followers.
The forum starts at 9:15 a.m. Sunday; Ted Brookes will present.
Pastor Wedeking talks of forgiveness
How can we learn to be at peace with one another? How can we forgive when the offenses hurt so much? Pastor Ron Wedeking talks about these issues Sunday morning at South Whidbey Community Church, from the book of Colossians 3:12-17.
Morning worship begins at 10 and is preceded by an adult learning forum at 9 a.m., with Stan Walker leading an inductive study into Paul’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus and Art Angst leading a study into the Gospel of Luke. These are open classes, and everyone is invited.
Also Sunday, there will be a soup/salad picnic at Forget Me Not Farms at 5 p.m. Visitors and guests are welcome, and the group will also discuss future building plans for the church.
At 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 14, there will be a church breakfast at the Deer Lagoon Grange for both men and women. The speaker will be Ed Smyth, professor of educational ministry at Seattle Pacific University’s School of Theology. Everyone, regardless of church affiliation, is invited.
All SWCC sermons and special adult-forum lectures are recorded, and copies on CD-R or e-mailed as Windows audio attachments may be obtained by calling the church at 221-1220.
SWCC is a local independent, non-denominational church that adheres to the National Association of Evangelical’s Statement of Faith and provides a smaller church experience in a historical setting, with traditional worship and hymns in a friendly, informal atmosphere. It is open to everyone, and gathers for worship each Sunday at the Deer Lagoon Grange, 5142 Bayview Road.
For further information about the church and services, call 221-1220.
‘Where There’s a Will’ is topic of talk
There is much being said and written these days about the challenging economy and how it is impacting people’s lives. Talk about money from a spiritual perspective often includes words such as “prosperity” and “abundance.”
What if prosperity and abundance have nothing to do with money itself? At the Unity of Whidbey service on Sunday,
Rev. Joanna Gabriel will discuss this possibility and how the power to improve our financial situation may have more to do with our beliefs, and our choices based on those beliefs than on the state of the economy and the balance on the bank statement. Come join an interesting exploration and a lively worship celebration, with musical accompaniment by Lynn Parr. The platform assistant will be Karen McInerney.
The service is at 10 a.m. and all are welcome. Unity of Whidbey’s new chapel is at 5671 Crawford Road in Langley.
Unity of Whidbey also maintains office hours at the church from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.
See the Unity Web site at www.unityofwhidbeyisland.org for more information.
Sermon looks at liberty to enjoy life
Liberty from all enslavement — illness, addictions, fear, and hate — is a God-given right for all. Life itself, the spark of spiritual creation, is God-given, and everyone has the right to enjoy life to the fullest. The service on Sunday, Aug. 8 at the Christian Science Church probes the reason that Mary Baker Eddy wrote, “To those leaning on the sustaining infinite, today is big with blessings” (“Science and Health”).
“Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty,” (II Corinthians 3:17).
Come join in celebrating our liberty and blessings as children of Spirit: 10:30 a.m. at 5910 Highway 525 (just north of Bayview and across from Useless Bay Road).
The Quakers share expectant silence
There will be no Quaker meeting at the Sears House in Bayview on Sunday, Aug. 15.
Instead, members of the Whidbey Island Quaker community will visit the Unitarian Universalist Congregation during the 10 a.m. service and share the Quaker tradition of sitting in expectant silent worship.
