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Select a Month August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

July 2017

July 13, 2017

A review of Why God? Explaining Religious Phenomena by Rodney Stark

Before I say anything else, I should say: Read this book. Whether you agree or...

June 2017

June 22, 2017

The Lesson of Sunday School Cards

My dad was out of work a lot when I was a kid, so we...

May 2017

May 18, 2017

I’m an Atheist! Now What?

As I mentioned in my last blog post, unlike progressive traditions such as the United...

September 2016

September 22, 2016

Ganesha, Nietzsche, Truth, Consequences

The story goes that Shiva—one of the chief manifestations of divinity in Hinduism—and his...

September 15, 2016

Humanism: Without God, Not Anti-God

The September 2016 Atlantic features an article about new Humanist communities titled “A Less Lonely...

August 2016

August 18, 2016

The Mindfulness of Stoicism, Part Three

Last week I continued a discussion of the seven Stoic methods of inner-discipline (what’s popularly...

July 2016

July 12, 2016

Black Lives Matter more than White Fear

Black Lives Matter. Black Lives Matter. In Louisiana In Minnesota In Texas Black Lives Matter....

July 12, 2016

A Review of Grace Without God: the Search for Meaning, Purpose, and Belonging in a Secular Age by Katherine Ozment.

By Rev. Dr. David Breeden A question from one of her children sends Ozment on...

July 07, 2016

They Ain’t Heavy: UU Pluralism and Its Discontents

One of the most serious issues for a tradition such as Unitarian Universalism that has...

June 2016

June 28, 2016

You should start a meme, they said…

June 02, 2016

Cafeteria, Smorgasbord, Grubhub: Religion Delivery Today

A Twitter meme says, “Spiritual but not religious: people who prefer to make up their own...

May 2016

May 19, 2016

#Religion: Let’s Talk About the Relationship

Recently I saw a bumper sticker: “It’s not a religion / It’s a relationship.” The...

May 12, 2016

Getting a Mission On

If I’ve learned anything from serving and visiting several congregations, it is that survival is...

April 2016

April 28, 2016

Getting Real With Church (or: More Questions Than Answers)

In a recent blog post by marketing entrepreneur Seth Godin called “Supply and Demand” Godin...

April 21, 2016

So You Want a #Spiritual Experience? #SBNR

GET YOUR AWE ON Which religion offers the best chance at a spiritual experience? Thirty-nine...

April 12, 2016

A spiritual responsibility for a moral tomorrow

In case the not so subtle nuances and coded language around race and class that are...

March 2016

March 24, 2016

Cutting Some Slack for Integrity

Reformers. Protestants. Heretics. Loudmouths. William Tyndale’s (1494-1536) crime was translating the bible into English. Tyndale said,...

February 2016

February 25, 2016

Humanist Jesus

The changing religious landscape in the US is a bit hard to get one's head...

February 16, 2016

The heartwork of coming alive

“Under all the harsh noise of the world coming in on us, this is how...

January 2016

January 14, 2016

Some Accumulated Wisdom for Seminarians

One of the best aspects of being a senior minister is working with ministers-in-training. I...

January 07, 2016

#Apatheism

This year First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis is celebrating a century of humanism. Rev. John...

December 2015

December 17, 2015

Why Would Anyone Want to be a Minister?

My mother says I was born serious. Could be. For example, I remember that when...

December 01, 2015

Giving TUUesday

While many people in this country go to work and get paid, social change workers...

November 2015

November 24, 2015

Fear Not

“The one most frequently repeated command in the Bible is not “love your neighbor,” but...

November 11, 2015

The “Trinsics”: Where are You Coming From?

Psychologist Gordon Allport argued that there are two types of religious experience—the extrinsic and the...

November 10, 2015

People Who Have Come ALIVE!

What makes you come alive my friend? This week I grateful to bear witness to...

November 05, 2015

Congregational Humanist Liturgy: Creating a Religion-Neutral Zone

The Daoist philosopher Zhuangzi (370-287 BCE) told this story: Once three friends were discussing life....

October 2015

October 22, 2015

Why Does a Super-Nice Word Like “Spiritual” Make Humanists All Itchy?

Here is what Plato had to say about the body and the soul: Does not...

October 21, 2015

Things that get in the way

I often tell the story of the time my Chaplain Supervisor told me, “Deanna, I...

October 15, 2015

Death of the Curate

Art museums are currently going through a sea change, and that sea change is about...