Sermon "Jan Hus and the Flaming Chalice: the Story of Our Symbol Part 1"
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The Base, the Bowl, and the Transforming, Dancing Flame Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship ~ Revs Paul Beckel and Barbara Ten Hove November 24, 2019
The Base, the Bowl, and the Transforming, Dancing Flame Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship ~ www.buf.org Revs Paul Beckel and Barbara ten Hove November 24, 2019 Gathering Hymns #349 We Gather Together #21 For the Beauty of the Earth Welcome - Paul We’ve been speaking throughout November about different aspects of memory. Today we’ll be considering a way to organize our memories in such a way as to give them deeper meaning than nostalgia or regret. A way to recognize the patterns that have shaped our understandings of what grounds us, holds us, and warms us even through our ongoing, sometimes chaotic, personal transformations. This morning, I am joined by Rev. Dr. Barbara Wells ten Hove. Many recognize Barbara as a BUF member who sings in our choir; she is also a retired minister with long service to our faith tradition. Last year she served as Consulting Minister at the North Shore Unitarian Church in West Vancouver, BC and before that she and her husband Jaco (also a stalwart choir member) retired as Emeritus Ministers of Cedars UU Church on Bainbridge Island. Barbara has taught courses, primarily on worship, at churches and seminaries throughout the US and Canada. I have invited Barbara to help me to develop a program this coming winter for training and support of celebrants, who assist in leading Sunday services. This will be a small group who meet regularly for training and support. Please contact me if you’re interested in applying to be a part of this program. [email protected] or [email protected]. -
The Story of Our First 100 Years
The First Unitarian Universalist Church of Ann Arbor The Story of Our First One Hundred Years by Marjorie Reade Published by the 1990 Committee of the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Ann Arbor, Michigan, May, 1990. Second Printing, March, 1994. Reformatted and reprinted, June, 2008. i ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword ......................................................................................................................................................... i History of the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Ann Arbor—1865–1965 ..................... 1 The Early Universalists ...............................................................................................................................1 The Rev. Nathaniel Stacy ....................................................................................................................1 Dr. T. C. Adam .........................................................................................................................................2 Dr. Snead .......................................................................................................................................................... 2 Dr. S. Miles ...............................................................................................................................................2 R. Thornton ..............................................................................................................................................2 Unitarianism Comes to Ann Arbor ..........................................................................................................3 -
History of the Flaming Chalice
The History of the Flaming Chalice The flaming chalice is the symbol of our denomination. The chalice and the flame were brought together as a Unitarian symbol by an Austrian artist, Hans Deutsch, in 1941. Living in Paris during the 1930’s Deutsch drew critical cartoons of Adolf Hitler. When the Nazis invaded Paris in 1940, he fled to the South of France, then to Spain, and finally, with an altered passport, into Portugal. In Lisbon, he met the Reverend Charles Joy, executive director of the Unitarian Service Committee (USC), newly founded in Boston to assist Eastern Europeans, among them Unitarians as well as Jews, trying to escape Nazi persecution. Rev. Joy oversaw a secret network of couriers and agents. He wanted the new organization to have a visual image to represent Unitarianism, especially when dealing with government agencies abroad. Deutsch was impressed and soon was working for the USC. He wrote to Joy: “There is something that urges me to tell you… how much I admire your utter self-denial [and] readiness to serve, to sacrifice all, your time, your health, your well-being, to help, help, help. “I am not what you may actually call a believer. But if your kind of life is the profession of your faith—as it is, I feel sure—then religion, ceasing to be magic and mysticism, becomes confession to practical philosophy and—what is more – to active, really useful social work. And this religion—with or without a heading—is one to which even a `godless’ fellow like me can say wholeheartedly, Yes!” The USC was an unknown organization in 1941, a handicap in the cloak-and-dagger world, where establishing trust quickly across barriers of language, nationality, and faith could mean life instead of death. -
The Flaming Chalice
Newsletter THE Starr King Unitarian Universalist Church of FLAMING Hayward, California November 2017 CHALICE Sunday Worship, 10:30am November Monthly Theme: Gratitude Church Office Hours Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday November 5: Turn Back the Clock 9:30am – 2:30pm Lay-led by Lorie Miller and Stuart Fink 22577 Bayview Avenue Lorie and Stuart will inspire us to focus on being Hayward, CA 94541 grateful for the time we have and honoring the past. 510-581-2060 www.starrking.org November 12: Veterans Day Rev. María Cristina Parish Minister We commemorate Veterans Day together. Rev. María Cristina Vlassidis Burgoa [email protected] Office Administrator November 19: Thanksgiving Kelli Abatangelo Rev. María Cristina and Terri Owen [email protected] We gather to express our solidarity and support for our Church President community partners, South Hayward Parish. You are Will Fitch invited to bring non-perishable food donations to [email protected] contribute to their shelter pantry and Thanksgiving dinner. The collection from the offering plate will go Director of Religious Exploration entirely to SHP. (More information on page 3) Allison Prout [email protected] November 26: InterPlay DRE Office Hours: Wednesday and Thursday, Rev. Claire Eustace, pulpit guest 10:30am – 2:30pm We all benefit from play. This participatory service will include forms learned through InterPlay workshops. Newsletter InterPlay is an affirmative movement and storytelling [email protected] modality that helps integrate mind, body, and spirit. Practicing InterPlay forms is one way to counter stress and cynicism, so we can be strong warriors for peace. 1 What’s Inside Sunday Services, 1 Peace & Justice, 6 Birthdays & Wheel of Life, 2 RE Reflections, 7 Thanksgiving, 3 Adult RE, 8 From the Minister, 4 Announcements, 9-10 Wildfire Updates, 5 Calendar, 11 November Birthdays 2 Lesley Hitchings 8 James Green 20 Bobby Robinson 2 Bob Meyerson 8 Bob Rett 21 Alyssa Joy Baker-Blanc 3 Diana Dickerson 11 Jordan L. -
Hussite Prague Master Jan Hus Saturday 4Th July Centres Czech History Is Full of Gripping and Surprising Twists and Turns
Master Jan Hus In the footsteps of A day with Jan Hus on Prague City Tourism Information & Services in Six Tourist Information Hussite Prague Master Jan Hus Saturday 4th July Centres Czech history is full of gripping and surprising twists and turns. When Summer in Prague Jan Hus was burned at the stake in Constance for his views and – Old Town Hall – Staroměstské náměstí 1 criticism of the Catholic Church 600 years ago on 6th July 1415 none To mark the 600 years since the events that led Prague City Tourism have prepared a day full of fun – Rytířská Street 31 (from August in Rytířská 12, corner of Na Můstku) suspected what profound changes Czech society would undergo thanks to the burning of Hus in 1415, let us follow in his and surprises while getting to know the persona – Wenceslas Square (upper part) – corner of Štěpánská Street 2015 to him in the following decades. His name came to stand for principled footsteps. One of the most important personages of Master Jan Hus and the Prague sites tied to him. – Lesser Town Bridge Tower defi ance. This theologian, preacher and Master of Prague University – Václav Havel Airport Prague – Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 was to be one of the leading religious authorities, whose ideas spread of Czech history will lead us via matchless and Would you like to meet the ghost of Jan Želivský or tel. +420 221 714 714 and e-mail: [email protected] beyond Czech borders. The European reformation of the 16th century historically distinctive Prague sites. and get to know more about Czech Hussite past? owed much to what Hus called for. -
John Huss and the Origins of the Protestant Reformation
Journal of the Adventist Theological Society, 28/2 (2017): 97-119. Article copyright © 2017 by Trevor O’Reggio. John Huss and the Origins of the Protestant Reformation Trevor O’Reggio Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary Andrews University Introduction The Protestant Reformation of the 16th century is closely associated with Martin Luther, the great German Augustinian monk, who on October 31, 1517, nailed 95 theses on the bulletin board of the castle church in Wittenberg to protest against the abuses of the indulgences and called for a debate. This event was seen by many as the spark that ignited this remarkable religious reformation. However, Matthew Spinka is more accurate when he says this event was not the beginning of the Reformation, but the result of a reform movement that began two centuries before and was particularly effective during the conciliar period.1 During the prior two centuries before Luther called for a debate on the indulgence issue, and his eventual revolt against the church, there were many voices within the Roman Catholic Church who saw the deplorable conditions of the church and called for reform. Time and time again their voices were silenced. They were condemned as heretics and many were executed. But no sooner than their voices were silenced, others were raised up, calling for reformation. Most notable among these voices were the English philosopher/professor John Wycliffe at Oxford University in England, Girolamo Savonarola, the charismatic priest at Florence, Italy and 1 For a description of highlights of this reformatory movement see Matthew Spinka, ed. and trans John Huss at the Council of Constance (New York and London: Columbia University Press, 1965), 3-86. -
Moravian Moravian
Dates to remember Environment Sunday Prayer Notes Richard Ingham 5 www.arocha.org.uk June Luke 7:11 -17 oravianoravian Sunday 5th [Trinity 2] mm Beginning of 17 Prince of Life, who had compassion on the widow of Nain, urging her not to weep; JUNE 2016 the building of June comfort those who mourn the loss of loved ones. By your apostle you have mmessengeressenger Herrnhut 1722 forbidden us to grieve as people without hope, for all who have died in your keeping. Watch with those who wake, or watch, or weep tonight, and give your 20 26 angels charge over those who sleep. We are weakness, but you are our strength. June Refugee Week June Give us faith to stand calm and undismayed throughout the upheavals of the www.refugeeweek.org.uk world, knowing that your kingdom shall come and your will shall be done; to the eternal glory of your name. Bring closer the day when you will wipe away all tears International Day in from our eyes and grant that we might know that all things work together for Ordination 26 Support of Victims of good to those who love you. Amen June Torture as Deacon of www.fiacat.org/-international-day- Sunday 12th [Trinity 3] Luke 7:36 -8:3 in-support-of-victims-of-torture Teacher, give us a humble spirit, that we may never presume upon your mercy, Sr. Jane Dixon but always live as those who have been forgiven much. Make us tender and From Church House compassionate toward those who are overtaken by temptation, considering 14 - 15 June ourselves, how we have fallen in times past and may yet fall again. -
The Reformation in the Czech Lands of Bohemia and Moravia
The Reformation in the Czech Lands of Bohemia and Moravia Rev. Dr. Pavel Černý, Evangelical Theological Seminary, Prague of Europe. The symbol of these early beginnings of the Czech Reformation is the Bethlehem Chapel, which was founded circa 1391 in medieval Prague, then the seat of the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV. When the chapel was founded, its express purpose was to serve a Reformation by preaching God’s word in the language of the people. The very origin of the idea of a people’s sanctuary needs to be sought in the Christian revival movement whose spokesman was Milíč of Kromeříž (died 1374). He was convinced of the vital necessity for preaching the Word. He sought new and effective means and he founded a school for preachers and a social institution for fallen women, which was called in eschatological anticipation „New Jerusalem“. Subsequently, he sought new and effective means and founded a school for laymen who desired to preach the Word of God. His pupil and Master of Paris University, Matej Janov (died 1393), developed the spiritual movement with his scholarly biblical work. When Milíč’s New Jerusalem was destroyed (srovnán se zemí), his followers joined in the endeavour to build a new temple of Bethlehem where there would be sufficient room for preaching. After the collapse of Communism in 1989 we were The Valdensian movement was a long-term influ- flooded with visitors from the U.S.A. and Western ence on missions through the public preaching of God’s Europe. Many were Christian missionaries who arrived Word. -
1 FLAMING CHALICE: UU SYMBOL Homily by Rev. Elizabeth L. Greene
FLAMING CHALICE: UU SYMBOL Homily by Rev. Elizabeth L. Greene Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Intergenerational Service March 7, 2004 Reading Light the first light of the evening, as in a room In which we rest and, for small reason, think The world imagined is the ultimate good. This is, therefore, the intensest rendezvous. It is in that thought that we collect ourselves, Out of all the indifferences, into one thing; Within a single thing, a single shawl Wrapped tightly round us, since we are poor, a warmth, A light, a power, the miraculous influence. Here, now, we forget each other and ourselves. We feel the obscurityof an order, a whole, A knowledge, that which arranged the rendezvous. Within its vital boundary, in the mind. We say God and the imagination are one… How high that highest candle lights the dark. Out of thes same light, out of the central mind, We make a dwelling in the evening air, In which being there together is enough. Wallace Stevens Story A very long time ago, in the early 1400s, there was a Czechoslovakian Catholic priest named Jan Hus. It was a time when the Catholic Church had some serious problems. The pope and some priests were very, very rich while the people were very, very poor; some priests made people pay money in order to have God forgive their sins. (As if God cared about money!) In some countries, like Czechoslovakia, the church was trying to take over the governments. In their church services, Catholics always serve bread and wine—called communion—as symbols of Jesus. -
Constructing a Czech National Art in the Prague Biennale Carrie Dedon Pomona College
Claremont Colleges Scholarship @ Claremont Pomona Senior Theses Pomona Student Scholarship 2010 Visualizing the Nation: Constructing a Czech National Art in the Prague Biennale Carrie Dedon Pomona College Recommended Citation Dedon, Carrie, "Visualizing the Nation: Constructing a Czech National Art in the Prague Biennale" (2010). Pomona Senior Theses. Paper 39. http://scholarship.claremont.edu/pomona_theses/39 This Open Access Senior Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Pomona Student Scholarship at Scholarship @ Claremont. It has been accepted for inclusion in Pomona Senior Theses by an authorized administrator of Scholarship @ Claremont. For more information, please contact [email protected]. VISUALIZING THE NATION: CONSTRUCTING A CZECH NATIONAL ART IN THE PRAGUE BIENNALE By Carrie Dedon Submitted to Pomona College in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts Thesis Readers: Frances Pohl Mary McNaughton April 23, 2010 Carrie Dedon Acknowledgements Many thanks to Frances Pohl and Mary McNaughton for their suggestions and advice in writing this thesis; to the Pomona College Art History faculty, particularly my advisor George Gorse, for their support and encouragement; to the Faculty Research Committee for the Summer Undergraduate Research Project Grant and the Art & Art History Department for the Flintridge Foundation/Louisa Moseley Fine Arts Special Project Grant, both of which funded my research in Prague; to Josef Bolf, Lucie Drdova, Edith Jeřábková, Miloš Šejn, Štĕpanká Šimlová, Pavel Šmíd, and Miloš Voytĕchovsky for their insightful interviews; to Katka Francová and her family for their generous hospitality and Czech-English translations; and to my family and friends who were the patient sounding boards for every idea in the following pages. -
May 05, 2013 Sermon: “The Fire Within Us” Delivered by Rev. D
May 05, 2013 Sermon: “The Fire within Us” delivered by Rev. D. Michael Smith Meditation and Prayer: Creative Spirit of Life, we give thanks for all the blessings that are ours. We seek strength to bear the pain that may be ours. We have opened our hearts and minds to the sorrows and joys of others. Sermon: As you saw in the story this morning, on almost any Sunday, in almost every Unitarian Universalist congregation, the worship invitation…the move toward actual worship…begins by lighting a fire under us, so to speak; and it should be present in all the things we do when we gather together whether it be committee meetings or whatever. For us Unitarian Universalists, the act of lighting our symbol of faith, the flaming chalice, brightens and brings warmth at least to our hearts, and it reignites the spark of our own inner divine light. Like so many symbols religious or otherwise, the origin or history may be lost by some or lost on others, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that its meaning will be lost. Certainly, the impact of what we do when we light this chalice is there. Now some, perhaps many here now know the history, but I am going to go a little deeper into some of that. There are two primary stories that bring us this chalice and this flame and bring them together. The first, of course, comes from that experience of the Holocaust and those who would help many out of that awfulness into safety, then the Unitarian Service Committee, arguably, our mission extension. -
“Good Morning”
“The Flame and the Chalice” Rev. Dr. Jan Carlsson-Bull Unitarian Universalist Church in Meriden Meriden, CT Association Sunday and Dedication of Classrooms October 20, 2013 Imagine! It’s close to midnight. You’re edging your way through a narrow pass in the Pyrenees with your family. You’re a long way from home. It’s 1942 and you’re Jewish. Through clandestine channels, you’ve learned that there is a way out. You’ve never heard of Unitarians, but you did hear that a Rev. Charles Joy headed a group called the Unitarian Service Committee and helped folks like you escape to freedom. But what a journey! You have a compass and a primitive map with checkpoints where you’re supposed to be met by Service Committee escorts. One of these checkpoints is just a few meters up ahead and around a bend. How will you know that the person who awaits you and your family is safe? This is a time to trust no one, but you’ve been told that your escort will ensure credibility by bearing a badge with the likeness of a “flaming chalice.” From your own faith, you cherish the symbolism of the chalice. You’ve drunk from one at every Passover Seder your entire life as you gathered around a table to celebrate another flight to freedom. You cherish the symbolism of a flame. Over two thousand years ago, your religious ancestors overthrew their oppressors and sought to rededicate the temple by rekindling a sacred lamp with enough oil to last only a single night.