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UUs ‘restored to sanity’
When the Twelve Steps and Unitarian Universalism are practiced together, they can heal the broken.
By Sonja L. Cohen 4.20.15 LIFE

An unexpected journey
May we remember our power to bless, ourselves, and others.
By Lee Devoe 4.13.15 LIFE

Letter from a hoped-for future
What Unitarian Universalism looks like, twenty years from now.
By Rosemary Bray McNatt 3.9.15 LIFE

Grief and weariness
Grief has often worn me out, while restoring me to myself at the same time.
By Mark Belletini 3.2.15 LIFE

Rise in body or in spirit
Truth be told, I don't think I ever took aging seriously or personally, until recent years.
By William G. Sinkford 3.1.15 LIFE

Tarantula
I faced my fears and they faced me. It wasn't that big a deal.
By Meg Barnhouse 1.12.15 LIFE

A moral divide
Can we reconcile moral certainties with Unitarian Universalist Principles?
By Kimberly French 11.3.14 LIFE

O gremlins, O St. Anthony!
My faith is in science, but I try to keep an open mind.
By Meg Barnhouse 10.20.14 LIFE

In hopes of traveling light
Some people seek balance and stability, but I like to be off-kilter.
By Jane Rzepka 9.8.14 LIFE

A kind of mirror
I never considered myself a visual artist, but then, I never expected to have cancer.
By Jonah Eller-Isaacs 8.11.14 LIFE

When pigs fly
Do we try too hard to grasp joy when it comes?
By Meg Barnhouse 8.4.14 LIFE

Opportunities are always there
Thriving congregations have leaders who seize the opportunities before them.
By Peter Morales 6.23.14 LIFE

Room to be both Jewish and UU
Religious pluralism was as much a part of our lives as the Southern drawl that flavored our interactions.
By Jaclyn Kottman 6.9.14 LIFE

Our visit to Chernobyl
Sabbatical travel allowed us to see history with our own eyes.
By Larry Stritof 6.9.14 LIFE

Growing up on Star Island
Looking back on my summers spent at a beloved UU retreat.
By Emma Whitford 4.28.14 LIFE

War zone sabbatical
I went to Afghanistan and Iraq to learn something about hope.
By Tim Kutzmark 4.14.14 LIFE

Beyond comprehension
Visiting Auschwitz, the imagination can only handle so much.
By Sonja L. Cohen 3.31.14 LIFE

Sankofa Ghana: A spiritual journey home
What did I need to retrieve from a visit to the slave ships' point of departure?
By James Gray and Jeff Riedler 3.10.14 LIFE

Painting: EJ
'Coming out is kind of like being reborn.'
By Kate Gridley 11.4.13 LIFE

Painting: Meg
Raised Unitarian Universalist, I have 'no problem with things that feel religious.'
By Kate Gridley 11.4.13 LIFE

A pond behind the church?
In my experience, no one improves by way of a scolding.
By Meg Barnhouse 9.2.13 LIFE

You don't say
We can’t help seeing through words, but it’s worth trying.
By James Ishmael Ford 8.12.13 LIFE

May you have ease of well-being
Do I really want to spend this entire day with whatever might come up about my mother?
By Kim K. Crawford Harvie 7.22.13 LIFE

Magic Mondays
Three decades later, a weekly women's group is still going strong.
By Cathy Callen 7.15.13 LIFE

A humanist's guide to prayer
What would the prayer of a humanist sound like?
By Patricia Montley 2.25.13 LIFE

Golden hours
Time is the most volatile and elusive element in our lives.
By Jeane Knapp 2.15.13 LIFE

Workshop of being
Where was I to find a liberal religious community in the middle of Kansas farm country?
By Jackie Magnuson Ash 2.11.13 LIFE

The lesson of Clive
I am a rock person; my husband is a cloud person.
By Kelly Wigmore 2.11.13 LIFE

The spirituality of the body
People watch the Super Bowl for reasons not usually recognized as spiritual, though they are.
By Frank Casper 1.28.13 LIFE

The next Jesus to come through the door
When I meet a Jesus, I like to keep an open mind.
By Meg Barnhouse 12.24.12 LIFE

Poem: Continuum
I'll return to that time and space that was my home.
By Ruth McKendree Treen 11.19.12 LIFE

The gravity of family
All my adult life, I have valued my chosen relationships over the ones I was born into.
By Doug Muder 11.5.12 LIFE

I too am beautiful
Look at the way you see me.
By Kristen L. Harper 10.29.12 LIFE

The green after
'When I die, I want to have my ashes buried under this tree.'
By Meg Barnhouse 10.1.12 LIFE

The Zen koan of Baizhang’s fox
We are what we do. And whatever we are, unless we notice and take corrective action, we just become more of it.
By James Ishmael Ford 9.3.12 LIFE

Weighty lessons
It is time for us to rethink our attitudes about weight and health.
By Ellen Brenner 8.6.12 LIFE

Making sure General Assembly has something for everyone
General Assembly needs good social action, but in our diverse faith it needs other things, too.
By Doug Muder 7.30.12 LIFE

A recipe for connection
An hour spent looking through old recipes is like a visit with old friends.
By Nancy Bentley 7.30.12 LIFE

Me, Jewish?
An odyssey into my family's religious past.
By Lenore Hirsch 4.23.12 LIFE

At my mother's funeral
Unitarian Universalists are precisely the people who can't believe whatever they want.
By Doug Muder 1.23.12 LIFE

The best gift that money can't buy
What is the best non-commercial gift you’ve ever received, and why?
By Sonja L. Cohen 12.12.11 LIFE

A candy bar for death
I remember exactly when I first became afraid of death in a more-than-childish way.
By Doug Muder 10.31.11 LIFE

A little change
Pretending I'm self-sufficient at the Family Dollar store.
By Meg Barnhouse 10.17.11 LIFE

Windows and mirrors
I was watching my son through the dim reflection of myself.
By Tom Montgomery Fate 9.19.11 LIFE

The koan
The 'I' of me is a snapshot of something in motion.
By James Ishmael Ford 9.12.11 LIFE

The soul's address
Why do we discount our bodies as unworthy of reverence?
By Laura Randall 8.29.11 LIFE

A panhandler's greeting means 'Look at me'
I stop for everyone who greets me, including panhandlers.
By Victoria Weinstein 7.25.11 LIFE

Doors opened to women in UU ministry
As women entered the ministry, language and habits changed.
By Carolyn S. Owen-Towle 5.16.11 LIFE

Sing me to sleep
I wanted things to go back to normal. I wanted none of this to be happening.
By Meg Barnhouse 5.9.11 LIFE

Chaos cats
They will spring your traps with impunity and lie in wait just to show you who's in charge.
By Meg Barnhouse 2.7.11 LIFE

Winter hope
Optimism often lies, but hope never fails.
By Doug Muder 1.31.11 LIFE

A nation of immigrants
I couldn't help but connect the plight of these migrants to my own family history.
By Margaret Regan 1.3.11 LIFE

Responding to holiday depression with compassion
She stomped up and down the aisles until she saw her Christmas tree.
By Meg Barnhouse 12.20.10 LIFE

Stirring up gratitude
In a flash, memories of joy and sorrow mingle in thanksgiving.
By James Ishmael Ford 11.22.10 LIFE

Sudden death
The real sting of death is the thought that all life’s possibilities were supposed to wait until I got around to paying attention.
By Doug Muder 10.18.10 LIFE

The spirituality of service
Giving our time to our congregations can be spiritually transformative.
By Erik Walker Wikstrom 9.13.10 LIFE

Meditation on brokenness
Our ability to break and heal keeps us alive and makes us stronger.
By David Pyle 8.16.10 LIFE

What can we reasonably believe about an afterlife?
Where should we assign the burden of proof for ideas about the afterlife?
By Doug Muder 7.26.10 LIFE

The catch
I haven't played chess in decades, yet somehow I've ended up with a chess player's worldview.
By Doug Muder 6.14.10 LIFE

Finding spirit in the sundown
The only way to prepare for facing Alzheimer's is to remain attentive to the present moment.
By Laura Randall 3.22.10 LIFE

Mary Daly changed my life
I am not sorry that I used to be ‘one of those angry women.’
By Meg Barnhouse 2.15.10 LIFE

What moves you?
We only find ourselves when we lose ourselves in service to something that transcends us.
By Peter Morales 12.28.09 LIFE

Who says Unitarian Universalism's Principles are easy?
The UU Principles are demanding enough to make me whine.
By Meg Barnhouse 11.23.09 LIFE

The DIY spiritual practice
A spiritual practice my wife and I cobbled together.
By Doug Muder 11.16.09 LIFE

What do you need a potion for?
Maybe I went too far mixing V8 and Pop Rocks, but life isn't always sweet.
By Meg Barnhouse 10.26.09 LIFE

Cricket's song shows life's fragility
There is a cricket playing the violin in my bathroom.
By Elizabeth Lerner Maclay 10.19.09 LIFE

From mother to gypsy
Saying goodbye to the home where I raised my children.
By Meg Barnhouse 8.10.09 LIFE

Finding relief in the storm
The complexity of asking for, and offering, help.
By Mary J. Harrington 6.15.09 LIFE

The love truck
The Karma Fairy is laughing her head off at the SUV in my driveway.
By Meg Barnhouse 4.13.09 LIFE

Laying claim to my own blackness
Being an Afro-American is a diverse experience that resists simple characterizations.
By Mark Morrison-Reed 2.15.09 LIFE

Flat tire and a beating heart
A heartbeat is one thing you want to do like everyone else.
By Meg Barnhouse 2.9.09 LIFE

Hold on: The wisdom of endurance
Suffering and anxiety are usually just as finite and time-limited as high passion and unalloyed joy.
By William F. Schulz 1.5.09 LIFE

The devil and Martha Stewart
Don’t give in to the voice that fuels the fires of perfectionism—especially here at the holidays.
By Meg Barnhouse 12.22.08 LIFE

The ghosts of Unitarian Christmas
'A Christmas Carol,' updated.
By Doug Muder 12.8.08 LIFE

Do you have just enough anxiety?
Anxiety can be a major source of energy in our lives and our organizations.
By Robert Rosen 9.29.08 LIFE

Assembly of a lesser god
Belief and worship are powerful tools for organizing thought and behavior. If others get control of those tools, they can make us dance like puppets. But if we’re careful, we can learn to pull our own strings.
By Doug Muder 9.22.08 LIFE

Can spirituality help at work?
Spirituality is packaged as if it's a pep pill for overworked managers.
By Stephanie Anagnoson 9.1.08 LIFE

The avatar's advantage
Cast your goals in mythic terms to make a lasting difference.
By Tad Waddington 7.28.08 LIFE

PostSecret Project reveals our common humanity
People keep secrets for all kinds of reasons.
By Doug Muder 7.21.08 LIFE

The call of self
Finding my path when the choices I made in my twenties didn't work out.
By Manish Mishra 7.7.08 LIFE

The stages of rest
Four stages of burnout and recovery as the church year draws to a close.
By Doug Muder 6.9.08 LIFE

Ceremonies for everyday life
Establishing connections with self, family, and the earth.
By Louise Nayer and Virginia Lang 4.14.08 LIFE

Do you feel loved?
On alternating days, a resolution to stop beating myself up.
By Meg Barnhouse 2.11.08 LIFE

Sketches of Crete
A sense of humor builds a bridge across cultures.
By Robert Fulghum 1.7.08 LIFE

Rekindling the flame
Tickets to the Keith Urban concert weren't just a gift. They were a miracle.
By Meg Barnhouse 12.24.07 LIFE

Sitting between the extremes
Why a journalist writes haiku.
By Tom Stites 10.29.07 LIFE

The floating life
Going with the flow sounds nice, until the river tries to kill you.
By Meg Barnhouse 9.17.07 LIFE

Confessions of a prodigal volunteer
Life after burning out at church.
By Elizabeth Weber 9.10.07 LIFE

The death of li'l Anthrax
A more vicious little creature you could hardly imagine.
By Barbara Merritt 8.18.07 LIFE

Love the contradictions
The world needs people who can love it in its contradiction and complexity.
By Robert Hardies 7.23.07 LIFE

Reading our lives
Take time to read the story of your life.
By Marshall Hawkins 7.9.07 LIFE

Unitarian Universalists on the Eightfold Path
Buddhism puts down roots in American congregations.
By Rick Heller 5.21.07 LIFE

Stick your neck out
How you can make a difference.
By John Graham 1.1.07 LIFE

Fortune cookies for the soul
If I owned a fortune cookie company.
By Meg Barnhouse 11.13.06 LIFE

We are what we eat
Michael Pollan's 'Omnivore's Dilemma' challenges our eating habits.
By Kenneth Sutton 11.1.06 LIFE

Poem for an inked daughter
A mother reaches across the generations.
By Jean Wyrick 10.16.06 LIFE

Why I am fasting for Ramadan
A Unitarian Universalist embraces a month-long discipline of letting go.
By Abhi Janamanchi 10.2.06 LIFE

Can Unitarian Universalists talk about failure?
Original Sin isn't a good idea. Expecting perfection isn't, either.
By David Hubner 9.25.06 LIFE

Spiritual lessons from running
Ten spiritual lessons that running has taught me.
By Lisa Watts 8.8.05 LIFE

Was Thomas Jefferson really a Unitarian?
What makes someone 'one of us'?
By Peg Duthie 11.1.04 LIFE

A mother's bond
Grief and recovery transform the author's relationship with her mother.
By Barbara Hamilton-Holway 5.1.04 LIFE

Reconciliation as a spiritual discipline
In our own souls, between individuals, within groups, and between groups.
By Paula Cole Jones 3.1.04 LIFE

A religion of exile and personal choice
Unitarian Universalists aren't strangers to exile.
By Victoria Safford 3.1.04 LIFE

Resetting the worry alarm
Psychologically and spiritually, we don't have to live in Code Orange.
By Forrest Church 1.1.04 LIFE

Winter mind
Emptiness, like silence, like love, is indeed a gift.
By Philip Simmons 1.1.01 LIFE

Living at the edge
By living in the present moment, we can find ourselves at the gateway to eternity.
By Philip Simmons 9.1.00 LIFE

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