Tag Archives: Faith Formation

Becoming a Unitarian Universalist

Posted on August 14, 2022 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Reading: Show Up Hungry by Elizabeth Nguyen I got off work at 7 pm and did the thing where you chase the bus a ­little bit but then realize you won’t make it and walk sheepishly back to the bus … Continue reading →

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What We Give Our Children – a sermon for Mother’s Day 2022

Posted on May 8, 2022 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

My first real impression of the Orange Conference came from a text from Eleanor VanDeusen, our Director of Family Ministry.  It was a photo of her and Rev. Sean in a giant arena with amazing stage lights and thousands of … Continue reading →

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Pass It On – on faith formation & mentorship

Posted on February 19, 2018 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Teacher Parker Palmer calls the place where we begin muttering miserable, unrepeatable things at the radio, or at our social media feed – that place that many of us are way too familiar with these days – he calls it … Continue reading →

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Giving Up the Ghost

Posted on August 23, 2016 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Reading from Christine Robinson’s essay, “Imagineers of Soul”  Sermon Preached August 21, 2016 The audio version of this sermon can be found here. A few years ago, my colleague Robin Bartlett, who grew up Unitarian Universalist, preached a sermon she … Continue reading →

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goodness, despair, and imagination (theology of social witness – post 2)

Posted on March 14, 2016 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

Last week, we met once again for a small group reflecting on the theological ground of our witness for social change.  This time we were tasked with choosing one piece from the meditations and prayers section of the UU hymnal that reflects our … Continue reading →

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Human Community and Holy Texts

Posted on February 3, 2016 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

A sermon offered at the Foothills Unitarian Church, January 31, 2016  Listen to the audio of this sermon here.  (contains quite a bit of extra text not included here…)  It is the last Sunday of January, which means it is … Continue reading →

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How to Write Your Unitarian Universalist Testimony

Posted on March 29, 2014 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

“Only by….conversion can we be possessed by a love that will not let us go.”  – James Luther Adams, in “Root Ideas of Human Freedom” My colleague Joanna Fontaine Crawford posted this article, along with an invitations to Unitarian Universalists to … Continue reading →

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Talking Money in Church

Posted on March 1, 2014 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

My very first social hour at Foothills, the one where my family and I were introduced to the community in May of 2012, I declared my unabashed love for stewardship and finance related ministry to a small group of folks … Continue reading →

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Doing Church Through Learning Communities

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Rev. Gretchen Haley

I often ask those who are newer to the church – what brought you here? Perhaps not surprisingly – I don’t get too many who say “I was really hoping to join a Committee!” And yet, without the loving hands … Continue reading →

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