Tag Archives: Covenant

Charge to the Minister, for the Installation of the Rev. Eric Banner, First Universalist Church of Denver

Posted on April 28, 2024 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Many of you know that I was a member here before seminary; my now 18 year old daughter was dedicated here, and in many ways I was formed in ministry right here. Returning always brings a rush of memories, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Ordinations/Installations | Tagged Call, Charge to the Minister, Courageous Love, Covenant, Faith, Installation, Love, Ministry, Partnership, Relationship, Transformation, Transformative Relationships, Truth, Universalism | Leave a comment

What You Can Control

Posted on January 23, 2024 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

The Work That Is Theirs to Do by Joanna Fontaine Crawford And said, “That’s enough of that.” And the day came when finally they put down their burdens The moment was full of sorrow but also relief Arms exhausted from … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons | Tagged Boundaries, Boundary, Caregivers, Caregiving, Communication, Control, Covenant, Families, Family, Family Systems, Healing, mental-health, Needs, Parenting, Parents, personal-growth, Relationships, Saying no, Self-Differentiation, Sermon, Sermons, Unitarian Universalism | Leave a comment

Gather in Storms

Posted on December 18, 2023 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Reading – a combination of Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg’s 2022 and 2023 Hanukah reflections, which end with this reflection Hanukah isn’t just about what happened in the past, on the calendar. It’s about who we are capable of being. It’s about … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons | Tagged Beloved Community, blog, Christmas, Compassion, Conflict, Conflict Avoidance, Covenant, Empathy, Family, Gathering, Hanukkah, Hebrew Bible, Inherent Worth, Interfaith, Interfaith Dialogue, Jewish, Jews, Judaism, Justice, Listening, Non-Violence, Non-Violent Communication, NVC, Peace, Priya Parker, Religion, Sermon, Sermons, Television, The Bear, Trauma, Trauma-Informed, TV, TV Shows, Universalism, Vincent Harding, Violence, War | Leave a comment

Church as Countercultural Practice

Posted on November 19, 2023 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

A couple of weeks ago, I sat down with Rabbi Finestone, who serves Congregation Har Shalom, just down the road. We were speaking about the attack on October 7th, and what her community has been feeling since. She shared many things … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons | Tagged Christian Zionism, Church, Covenant, Ecclesiology, Fascism, James Luther Adams, Liberal Church, Liberal Faith, Liberalism, Purpose of Church, Resistance, Sermon, Sermons, Small Groups, Zionism | Leave a comment

Good Walls: Boundaries as Acts of Love

Posted on September 13, 2023 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Reading: From Prentis Hemphill, On Boundaries For me, there is a big love [that exists regardless of me]. [Which means,] there are people I have boundaries with that I’m like, “I don’t know if I love you but there’s a big … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons | Tagged Boundaries, Boundary, Change, Community, Covenant, Diversity, Justice, Liberal, Sermon, Sermons, Tolerance, Trump | Leave a comment

The Hopefulness of History, written for the 125 year anniversary of the Foothills Unitarian Church

Posted on January 9, 2023 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Like a lot of people in the last few days, I watched the drama play out in the US House with both a little shock and not a little schadenfreude. When they hit the 11th vote, I called my mom … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons | Tagged Activism, Ancestors, Covenant, Future, History, Hope, Hopefulness, Justice, Living Tradition, Parker Palmer, Past, Rebecca Parker, Rebecca Solnit, Sermon, Sermons, Time, Unitarian History, Unitarian Universalist History, Unitarianism, Universalism, Universalist History | Leave a comment

More Than Enough

Posted on October 30, 2022 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Reading: The Church Where Everything Goes Wrong by Elea Kemler Sermon: More than Enough Like a lot of teenagers, my daughter really does not love getting up in the morning. Instead she loves her cozy bed, and the sweet dark of … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons | Tagged Abundance, Change, Church, Community, Covenant, Emerson, Enough, Faith, God, Grace, Love, pandemic, Post-pandemic, Recovery, Resilience, Sermon, Sermons, Theology, Transcendentalism, Transcendentalists, Trauma | Leave a comment

Shall We Gather at the River?

Posted on September 11, 2022 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

It was an oppressively hot July morning in 1864 when Pastor Robert Lowry wrote what would become the popular hymn, Shall We Gather at the River. In those days, talk of a civil war was not a threat made on a … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons | Tagged Church, Collective, collective liberation, Community, Covenant, Gathering, Hymnody, Interdependence, Promise, Promises, Sermon, Sermons, Water Communion | Leave a comment

Membership and Re-Membership

Posted on July 31, 2022 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

First Reading: The Hope of Shared Jokes by Liz James When I was a new Unitarian Universalist, my favorite part of church was joys and sorrows. Our minister, Linda taught us that joys and sorrows were for the important moments … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons | Tagged Belonging, Commitment, Congregational, Covenant, Disappointment, Imperfect, Imperfection, Loyalty, Membership, Relationship, Sermon, Sermons, Unitarian, Unitarianism, Universalism, Universalist | Leave a comment

Community in Diversity

Posted on July 24, 2022 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

(This sermon is an update of a few different sermons I’ve offered in the past, including this one) Reading: The Purpose of the Church Sermon: Community in Diversity In the late 1990s, and the early 2000s, Bishop Carlton Pearson experienced … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons | Tagged Belonging, Beloved Community, Community, Covenant, Covenantal, Diversity, Eccelesiology, James Luther Adams, Mission, Sermon, Sermons, Theological Diversity, Unity | Leave a comment