Sermon Archive
Now Let Us Rise
Now Let Us Rise Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church April 9, 2023 “…maybe we are not so different than the leaves. …maybe we are also always being reborn to be something more then we once were. …maybe that’s what waking up each morning is.” (For the...
Spiritual Resistance
Spiritual Resistance © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church April 2, 2023 Introduction Typically when we think of the word ‘resistance’, it’s not at all in a spiritual context. Resistance usually implies an active response – pushing back at something or...
The Key of Longing
The Key of Longing © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church March 26, 2023 “Bring your broken hallelujah here... We all bring some broken things, songs and dreams, and long lost hopes…” There was a civil war, in the 1990’s, in Bosnia, in Eastern Europe. The...
The Privilege of Vulnerability
The Privilege of Vulnerability © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church March 12, 2023 They haven’t caught the vandal or vandals that spray-painted hate messages on 16 businesses and the local synagogue in Portsmouth, New Hampshire late in February. But the...
To be Alive is to be Vulnerable
To Be Alive is to Be Vulnerable © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church March 5, 2023 We have learned a lot these past three years. We’ve learned some science, and some medicine. We’ve learned a lot about our economy, and how dependent we are on the global...
General Assembly, 1969
General Assembly, 1969 Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church February 19, 2023 “I’m not saying that a demonstration is going to solve the problems…It’s going to take something much more than a demonstration, but at least the demonstration calls attention to...
To Call Yourself Beloved
To Call Yourself Beloved Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church February 14, 2023 “And did you get whatyou wanted from this life, even so?I did.And what did you want?To call myself beloved, to feel myselfbeloved on the earth.” ~~ Raymond...
The Crucible
The Crucible © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church February 5, 2023 I took time yesterday to stand and watch the sea smoke rising and blowing. At times it was so thick that the water was completely covered with a layer of swirling white. Huge puffy clouds...
Those in the Shadows
Those in the Shadows © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church January 15, 2023 Those “honor-driven activists.” We ‘find memory beneath their doors, and taste the blessings of their midwifery.’ (Sonia Sanchez, “Progress Report”) Today we pause and look...
A Dual Hunger
A Dual Hunger © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church January 8, 2023 There is a moment, when we are watching the swinging of a pendulum, when there’s a slowing, a pause, before the pendulum begins to move back in the other direction. Picture this with me...
We Are the Dwelling Place
We Are the Dwelling Place © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church December 24, 2022 The photo was posted on social media, among many photos of the flooding and the angry surf over the past two days. The photographer, Jay Albert, managed to capture the moment...
Who Makes Much of a Miracle?
Who Makes Much of a Miracle? © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church December 4, 2022 “As for me, I know of nothing else but miracles,” wrote Walt Whitman. We have entered the season of miracles, of enduring stories, tales of events that we cannot explain,...
Upcoming Services
Summer offers us a chance to attend Brunch Church!
Please join us in the Social Hall Sunday morning for an informal service that is centered around a shared meal and guided conversation. Steve Lacey will provide the music. Please note: there will be no livestream Sunday morning since we will be downstairs. Following the service, Lisa Smith from the Cape Ann Climate Coalition will be joining us: see below for more information.
Free Home Energy Coaching
On Sunday, July 12 Lisa Smith from Cape Ann Climate Coalition will be in the Social Hall following the service to answer questions about CACC's new energy coaching service. Please check out the green flyer here and come to talk to Lisa about your home's energy needs.
Recent News
Sunday Apr 19
Building a House Called Tomorrow, led by Reverend Janet Parsons with music by Steve Lacey. As we do each year, we'll reflect on why we create a church community, and how we support it. In a world that shifts daily, a church is meant to hold the center for us. How...
Returning from the Brink
Returning from the Brink © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church April 12, 2026 First Reflection: At the Brink It has been, perhaps, the most frightening week of recent memory. To find the equivalent, I found myself going back to September...
Sunday April 12
Returning from the Brink, led by Reverend Janet Parsons. This week began with a threat by the President to destroy a country. We stepped frighteningly close to the edge of disaster. How do we emerge from this crisis and restore our trust and faith in the future? Join...