Sunday Morning Reflections by Rev. Aaron Payson @ The Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester, MA

Sunday Morning Reflections by Rev. Aaron Payson @ The Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester, MA

Greetings! This podcast features reflections by The Reverend Aaron Payson, Minister of The Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester, MA (UUCW). UUCW is the legacy of The First Universalist Church of Worcester, established in 1841. The congregation is located across from Indian Lake in the north-west part of the city. In its present location since 1956, UUCW is a vibrant community for all ages, committed to love, hope, and justice, inspiring people to take on the challenges of a changing world. Join us online or in person at 10 am on Sunday. Information about upcoming services, as well as a full archive of past worship, and information about the many programs and opportunities for community service and social justice, is available at our website www.uucworcester.org, or by contacting us at office@uucworcester.org. For more information about this podcast, contact podcast@uucworcester.org. UUCW is a member congregation of the Unitarian Universalist Association (www.uua.org). We are located at 140 Shore Drive, Worcester, MA 01605. For directions, visit our website www.uucworcester.org.

Episodes

November 23, 2025 28 mins

Join us this Sunday as we celebrate the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday by exploring the role of origin stories and how the one popularized in our country about Thanksgiving might better be understood. What shall we offer in thanksgiving this year? How shall we remember our history? What does our faith tradition offer us as we seek to create a more just and peaceful world? Join us and find out!

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Wor...

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Writing for Religionnews.com last August, Phyllis Zagano quipped, “As several mainline faith leaders and the U.S. Catholic bishops have pointed out, the derisive oppression of poor immigrants by members of the current administration is sickening. That some administration officials continue to publicly espouse Christian ethics is mind-boggling.”

Unitarian Universalism has a long history of arguing for a return to the essential nature...

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Sometimes, we feel as though we are fully authentic, entirely ourselves. Sometimes we feel just the opposite—lost, confused, as if we do not know who we are. Today, Rev. Michael F. Hall returns to UUCW to talk about the trouble we sometimes have reconciling the experience of Being with the notion of Self.

Rev. Michael F. Hall has been an ordained Unitarian Universalist minister since 2012. After a 12-year settlement at his first chu...

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Rev. Dr. David Breeden, in a piece entitled “Compassion Needs Weather,” writes, “Compassion loves rough soil, the stones, weeds, the cracks between our best intentions.” This Sunday, we explore the place of intention and how, sometimes, intention can get in the way of healing, compassion, and progress toward peace. Join us for this important exploration!

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester (UUCW) is located in Worcester, ...

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October 26, 2025 21 mins

In his song “Holy Now,” UU Musician Peter Mayer sings, “It used to be a world half there, Heaven’s second-rate hand me down, Now I’m walking with a reverent air, ‘Cause ev’rything is holy now.” We pause this morning to consider what it might mean to give up the sacred/profane binary that has been the mark of many religions and ponder how our presence in it might shift if we lived as though we were part of a holy whole. Join us for ...

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October 19, 2025 16 mins

Eileen Workman writes:

You are not weak for trembling in the face of cruelty.

You are not naïve for hoping when the sky darkens.

You are not failing because you cannot fix it all.

You are part of something ancient and emergent:

a slow, deep evolution of consciousness

that transcends the need for violent revolution.

You are part of the sacred turning.

This Sunday, we consider how this “sacred turning” is revolutionary. In the face of all th...

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October 12, 2025 28 mins

Join us this Sunday as we explore the complexities of history and memory and the ongoing impact that the creation of our origin story as a nation has on all of us. As we honor Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we strive to face the legacy of our founding with humility and courage.

During this service, we also honored Domestic Violence Month with an exhibit on the chancel from the YWCA of Central MA entitled "Empty Places at the Table" that f...

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October 7, 2025 34 mins

We honor the Jewish High Holiday of Yom Kippur this week as we explore the essential nature of Tikkun "repair" in Hebrew. What might we learn about the current state of the world and our place in it by honoring this ancient Jewish time of turning inward and outward toward others, and the Master of the Universe, to discover how we might be in this moment of trial and tribulation in our world.

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Wor...

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October 7, 2025 25 mins

This week we continue exploring the parables of Jesus, asking if the message is about despising wealth or the obligations we have toward each other.

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester (UUCW) is located in Worcester, the heart of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Our services are live-streamed on ... at 10 am every Sunday and stored on our website www.uucworcester.org for future viewing. The music you hear is from "Song ...

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October 7, 2025 28 mins

The reflection this Sunday takes up one of the most difficult and misunderstood parables of Jesus, which asks us to consider if the story is about despising wealth, or choosing compassion.

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester (UUCW) is located in Worcester, the heart of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Our services are live-streamed on ... at 10 am every Sunday and stored on our website www.uucworcester.org for future vi...

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October 7, 2025 27 mins

We return this Sunday to a favorite story, Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach. Only we discover that the newest edition of the book contains an additional 4th section, which addresses the evolution of the flock in the afterlife of Jonathan. What does this addition to the original story tell us about ourselves, religion, and the world in which we live?

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester (UUCW) is located in Wor...

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October 7, 2025 19 mins

As we return again to a new season of worship and opportunities for religious exploration, service, and fellowship this Sunday, we ask what it means to return home. We’ll explore this theme by looking at the hymn, which repeats our service title refrain, noting the changes in phrasing from the original and pondering what it might mean for those of us who yearn for our place in the world.

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Worceste...

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