I'm a bleeding heart liberal and a peacenik.  I opposed the war in Iraq before it ever started and thought President Obama's escalation of the war in Afganistan was a huge mistake.  But this Veteran's Day I want to express my gratitude to the men and women in our armed forces.  In an age of increasing selfishness and self-centeredness, where so many people seem to have the shallowest of lives and values, these are people who are willing to dedicate their lives and risk maiming and...

Arvid’s Arcana 5 Signs Of Spiritual Progress Is your spiritual life progressing? Is your spiritual practice unfolding in a good way? Here are 5 signs of spiritual progress according to meditation teacher Shinzen Young, with whom I have studied for many years.

If you haven't heard my sermon on the novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand on July 3 you may want to listen to it to get the context for the conversation which follows.  Ayn Rand preached the virtue of selfishness and said that altruism was moral depravitity.  Her philosophy is that of the Tea Party movement and many influential right wing public figure. After the sermon, I invited people to respond to what I had to say.  Here are some responses: This is from Fritz Stocker: Your fine...

Please join me in sending out our sincere support and best wishes to the people of Japan and all of the regions affected by the recent earthquake and tsunami. Our Unitarian Universalist congregation shares your sadness but also offers our strength and solidarity. UUA / UUSC Japan Relief Fund

Hi everybody,   My fellow First Church pilgrims and I have arrived safely in the Philippines.  There were no major waves here and we should be able to continue our pilgrimage as planned.  I'll blog when I can have access to wireless.    

Here is the latest chapter of my book on Unitarian Universalist theologies. HUMANISM The third of the major theological movements to emerge in Unitarianism and Universalism was humanism, which inspired debate in both movements beginning in the late 19th Century. Today, when Unitarian Universalists are asked to describe their theology in various surveys, there is no one theology which represents a majority of Unitarian Universalists.

Here is a new chapter in my book on UU theologies about Scientific Theism. TRANSCENDENTALISM AND SCIENTIFIC THEISM Annie Dillard, in her book titled, Teaching A Stone To Talk, tells us of a neighbor of hers who was trying to do just that. He patiently and persistently tried to coax words out of a stone.

Here is another chapter from my book about the theologies within Unitarian Universalism.  It describes the oldest of our theologies, Liberal Christianity. LIBERAL CHRISTIANITY Unitarian Universalist Christianity is the oldest of the main theologies of Unitarian Universalism. The historical roots of both Unitarianism and Universalism are firmly within Protestant Christianity.

Here is the complete summary chapter of my book on the theologies of Unitarian Universalism.  What the book is finished, it will be the final chapter. PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER In Henry Fielding’s novel Tom Jones, there is a character by the apt name of Parson Thwackum. Fielding has the cleric declaim on religion at a luncheon.

During this second half of my sabbatical, I have been working to turn a series of sermons I did in 2007 and 2008 on the major theological strands within Unitarian Universalism into a book.  I'm starting with the last chapter/sermon.  In this chapter I'm seeking to define what makes us all uniquely UU despite the diversity of our beliefs.  In Henry Fielding’s novel Tom Jones, there is a character by the apt name of Parson Thwackum. Fielding has the cleric declaim on religion at a l...

Yesterday, I began the second half of my 5 month sabbatical, which will be from January 15 to April 1.  As most of you know the first 2 1/2 months of my sabbatical were spent in Mexico, traveling and studying Spanish.   Having decided to split the sabbatical, I returned to my regular duties on December 1, checking in with the life of the congregation before beginning part 2 of the sabbatical. What do I plan to do in Part 2?  Mostly writing.  I am turning a sermon series ...