Author Archives: magicvalleyuu

May 14: Can An Athiest Worship?

Posted on by

Presented by Rev. Elizabeth Greene

Words closely associated with religion can be controversial, especially among people whose theologies vary: theists, mystics, agnostics, atheists, nature spirits, etc. (Yes, congregations do sometimes include atheists! These are people who understand the importance of community, without necessarily participating in theology.)

What does “faith” mean to various people: “Worship?” , “God?”, “Reverence?” Rev. Greene will reflect on how we might understand each other better, even when we may have apparently conflicting views of a religious subject.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on our spiritual journeys.

Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.
Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Please park in the rear of the building. Child care is usually available.

May 7: Ethics in a Secular Framework

Posted on by

Presented by guest speaker Jason Carlson

Sunday our guest speaker will be Jason Carlson from the Southern Idaho Humanist Alliance.

Mr. Carlson will lead the discussion of the moral philosophy of Secular Ethics without limits that bind to a theistic or supernatural dogma.

Humanistic perspectives driven by human capacities help us to make ethical decisions during both typical and trying times.

What does a person do with their ethics when they are not in use? Can we stay morally sharp when the world may dull the senses?

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on our spiritual journeys.

Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.
Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Please park in the rear of the building. Child care is usually available.

April 30 – Lessons Learned from PNWD: Listening to Create Beloved Community

Posted on by

Presented by Karen Fothergill

Increasingly, Unitarian Universalist congregations and communities are acting on a longing to bring their faith to everyday life; to live their values everywhere – at home and with friends, in business and politics, in the public square and the market place.
Living an embodied response to this yearning is the basis of Beloved Community.

Karen Fothergill will be sharing a lesson learned from the PNWD conference on Listening to Create Beloved Community. This lesson comes from the Center for Courage and Renewal and the work of Parker Palmer.

“The people who plant the seeds of movements make a critical decision: they decide to live ‘divided no more.’ They decide no longer to act on the outside in a way that contradicts some truth about themselves that they hold deeply on the inside. They decide to claim authentic self-hood and act it out”.

– Parker Palmer

Unitarian-Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on our spiritual journeys.

Unitarian-Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Please park in the rear of the building. Child care is usually available.

Wednesday April 18, Film: “Where we Stand” @ CSI 7:00pm

Posted on by

On Wednesday there will be a screening of a  short documentary film from Paper Bridge Films and Kristine Stolakis, entitled Where We Stand , about the Ordain Women within the LDS church, at the College of Southern Idaho, with a discussion to follow. Put on by the Southern Idaho Humanist group, in conjunction with the Secular Students Alliance at CSI, this film should be of interest to a wide range of people coming from both religious and humanist perspectives. Please mark your calendar for the screening of this BAFTA nominated documentary film:

Wednesday April 19th, 7:00pm
Hepworth 195 at CSI
College of Southern Idaho

where we stand

April 15- 16: “All Things Become New” & Saturday Workshop

Posted on by

Spring is a season of beginnings, of renewal and transformation. It reminds us that we exist in an infinite field of potential and possibility.

When we tap into the source of life, a new heart and spirit open to us, shaking loose what is stagnant and allowing a rebirth of wonder.

There will be a MVUUF Workshop, on Saturday, April 15, 9:30 to noon, at the Vendor Blender:

Members and Friends, please join a workshop, facilitated by Rev. Tandi Rogers (our Western Region Congregational Life Staff member), to help us decide our fellowship’s future direction!

We will explore questions, such as, “Who are we called to be, and who do we serve?” And “How do we want to be in our community”? If you would like to see MVUUF be more active and engaged in our community, let us discuss your ideas. We will take a look at our current mission statement to see if it applies to us today, as it did in 1994, when it was first developed by our founders. We may brainstorm slogans that could describe us. Another UU fellowship has the slogan “Rooted in Love, Reaching for Justice”.

The workshop will be multi-generational, and kids are welcome. Refreshments will be provided.  If you have questions, please ask any board member.  Thanks!

from Your MVUUF Board,
Dale Bostock, Rick Dykes, Eleanor Miller (Secretary), Kyi Kyi Whiting (Treasurer), & Michelle Richman (President)

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on our spiritual journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is usually available. Parking is available in the parking lot to the north side of the building.

April 2: “A Merry Heart Doeth Good Like a Medicine”

Posted on by

Presented by Rev. Elizabeth GreeneEGreene

Taking her cue from Proverbs in the Hebrew Scriptures, Rev. Greene will reflect on how important it is to laugh, to share humor, to have as merry a heart as possible.

While laughter is not generally considered a “religious” subject, Rev. Greene will illustrate—with laugh-producing examples—how humor brings us to better places in our spiritual lives.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on our spiritual journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is usually available. Parking is available in the parking lot to the north side of the building.

March 26: “Belovedness as an Antidote to Fear”

Posted on by

Presented by: Rev. Sara LaWall (Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship)

In this time of heightened fear, disruption and dismantling of our deeply held values, where can we turn to inner strength and spiritual fortification? Belovedness offers us a spiritual grounding to which we can anchor ourselves as we seek new and creative ways to respond to the call of our tradition. Hear stories from our UU presence in the Civil Rights Movement as a reminder that showing up for justice and human dignity is deeply rooted in our tradition.

SLaWallBUUF_cropWe are pleased to have Rev. Sara LaWall be our visiting minister this Sunday. Rev. Sara LaWall has served as the minister for the Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship since being called by the congregation in 2015. She is an alumna of Meadville-Lombard Theological School, one of our Unitarian Universalist seminaries, and also holds a Masters in Education from Pepperdine University. Prior to relocating to Boise, Sara served as the Director of Religious Education at Neighborhood Church in Pasadena, CA for ten years. She has a wonderful family which includes husband Michael, whom she’s known since she was fourteen, and two beautiful sons, William and Gavin. She and her husband have traveled extensively to some of the world’s spiritual “hot spots” including Angkor Wat, Cambodia and Machu Picchu. In her “free” time, Sara fancies herself a circus performer and enjoys bouldering, yoga and the flying trapeze. You can find her on the web at http://www.boiseuu,org and her personal website at http://www.RevSara.com and on Facebook and Twitter @SaraUU.

March 19: “Happily Ever After”

Posted on by

Presented by Julie Merrick

Why are we drawn to the idea of Happily Ever After? Is it simply a desire to live a trouble free life? Or is something deeper at work here? Could it be that within each of us is a knowing that life is a gift; that we are blessed and that when we choose to live in gratitude, happily ever after (not perfectly ever after) is not only possible but probable?

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on our spiritual journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is usually available. Parking is available in the parking lot to the north side of the building.

March 11: “Why UUs”

Posted on by

Presented by:  Rev. Elizabeth Greene

EGreeneRev. Greene will be speaking about how important it is for a religious faith to embrace all people, why we need and have a responsibility to help create community for all, and how working for justice is often a result of a commitment to the proposition that all people have some of the Holy within them.

In addition to reflecting on our close-to-home communities and commitments, Rev. Greene’s sermon will include stories of how Unitarians and Universalists have contributed to nurturing souls and helping heal the world.

Unitarian Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on our spiritual journeys. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Please join us Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Avenue West in Twin Falls at 10:30 AM. The Vendor Blender is located near the old hospital near the intersection of Martin St. and Addison Avenue West. Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Child care is usually available.

March 5″The Miracle of Forgiveness”

Posted on by

Presented by: Collete Hoglund

Forgiveness has many physical, mental health and spiritual benefits; however, it can be challenging to forgive others or ourselves. We will explore forgiveness from various perspectives including psychology, Christianity, Buddhism, mindfulness and A Course in Miracles.

Regardless of the perspective, forgiveness offers us inner peace and an opportunity to reconnect with others.

And, a note from Elizabeth:

“On March 12, I am preaching about why UUism is important, in the larger world and also in our individual congregations.

It will be SO helpful to me if some of you would write to me and tell me a story about how this congregation—or another UU congregation you’ve been part of—has made a difference in your life. The more stories I get, the better!!!

Remember: stories of help, support and challenge, sent to me directly at uurev@pobox.com  “

Unitarian-Universalism honors the differing paths we each travel. Our congregations are places where we celebrate, support, and challenge one another as we continue on our spiritual journeys.

Unitarian-Universalists (UUs) covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.
Newcomers of all religious paths or none at all are always welcome. We are handicapped accessible. Please park in the rear of the building. Child care is available.

Join us at the Magic Valley Unitarian-Universalist Fellowship at 10:30am on Sundays at the Vendor Blender and Event Center in Twin Falls.