Expanding Horizons

Democracy

This service and Jennie's address preceded our Church's AGM on Sunday, 28th November. Jennie chose the topic of Democracy - with reference to our UUA 5th and the 2nd Principles. Evolving historically from the "direct democracy" of ancient Greece, the idea of democracy then morphed into monarchies ruling with "divine right" and later, into representative, parliamentary democracy and responsible Government with rule - in theory - "by the People" - ostensibly - "for the People". 
Drawing on issues drawn from contemporary Australian politics, Jenny describes how Australian democracy is being eroded to the extent that we are in danger of losing it.

Jennie sees hope in "direct democracy" and "sortition" - such as citizen "juries" and how these initiatives might be used to restore the democracy we've lost. Jennie concludes by focusing on today's AGM, the impending election of members of our Church to the CoM and how democratic values are being applied within our church governance. 

Coming Out and Inviting In

In their joint address today, titled "Coming Out and Inviting In", members, Miranda and Aaron jointly describe the challenges faced by LGBTQ people and others in "coming out of their closets". They also define the criteria by which inclusivity is measured and the challenges that remain for us as a church in "Inviting In" - welcoming into our midst, those with the courage to throw open the doors of their closets. Only then might we become the fully inclusive and welcoming church we claim to be. This is an address not to be missed!

Charity

Jennie's address today is all about charity. Her aim is for us all to think about what charity is, what the benefits are, what the pitfalls are and why the idea of charity can cause a degree of "irritation, discomfort and agitation  - especially when we find our letterboxes stuffed with glossy brochures, personalised stickers with our names and addresses and a heap of other "stuff" we don't want".
"Is there a way through all these irritations without becoming uncharitable?" Jenny asks.
Jennie maintains that Charity - our 4th Instinct - moves us beyond the tyranny of our atavistic "fight/flight" to the liberation of a practical spirituality that can transform our everyday lives: - "If we choose to "give rein" to this fourth instinct , it will change our lives  - and the world"!
Jenny concludes this inspiring address with a practical example of Charity in Action by someone well-known to many of us.

Reinventing the Wheel

Today's address is given by The Rev. Nicholas Rundle, the Uniting Church Chaplain at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. Nicholas reflects on today - Halloween, marked on the Christian calendar as "All Saints day" - or "All Souls day". As Nicholas's title might suggest, it's all about the "wheels, circles and cycles" of our lives.
Nicholas refers to that cyclic, repetitive wheel marked by "the breath, the tides, the seasons of the Moon and the tides (the highs and lows) of our human lives. He compares it to the outer rim and six spokes of the "wheel" icon our 7 Principles - a "reciprocity" radiating both inwards and outwards from that "sacred centre" of our Unitarian Universalist wheel - the human person, ourselves!
The relationships we have in this life reflect a higher and hidden cosmic order, cyclic in nature - to quote Bernard Kastrup: "a universal consciousness out of which the material world emerges for our comprehension".
It comes at a time when leaders, now meeting in Glasgow - will make globally significant decisions to reduce carbon emissions by "building bridges" that unite - rather than digging trenches that divide. Only this will secure the unifying rim of our wheel of our 7 UU Principles - "the interdependent web of all existence of which we are all a part". Bridges must reign supreme! Listen on for a very insightful address by Nicholas.

Progress

"Progress is a bit like development," Jennie says from the outset. "It refers to a movement to an improved state." Jennie mentions commercial and economic "progress?" within large cities but emphasises a range of social developments aimed at ending discrimination that have led to positive transformations in the 20th and the first two decades of the 21st Centuries: Feminism, the "Me Too" movement, and discrimination based on Disability. There is also "progress" in the social media where Jennie points to positive and negative developments.
Finally, with reference to Jared Diamond's "Collapse", Jennie points to our ultimate challenge - to reach global sustainability!
Jennie ends her address today on a cheerful, hopeful note. So listen on!

Faith 4 Climate Justice

Our service  - and Jennie's address today is focused on supporting the Australian Religious Response to Climate Change (ARRCC) Weekend of Climate Action where religious groups - including the Unitarian Church of SA  - acknowledge the interdependent relationship between human welfare and that of the planet, between social justice and ecological integrity and the threat posed to these by human-induced climate change. Today, we acknowledge the uniqueness of our varied religious traditions and celebrate that we stand united - in working for an ecologically and socially sustainable future. And as they represent our hope for a sustainable future, our children play a significant role at the commencement of today's service - with the launch of their poster - and in their concluding contributions. In seeking effective and prompt political action on climate change, Jennie asks - "How is it possible to ask for something within the realms of the (politically) possible whilst still being sufficiently in line with the science - so as not to be too late?" Listen on for a special celebration of the unity within the religious response to climate action - led by our Sunday Club children and by Jennie - our lay Leader.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Transcendentalist

In introducing the Transcendentalist poet, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Peter Whitham, a member of our church takes us back to the socio-political milieu of England in the late 18th Century, when revolutionary ideas - fueled by inequality, poverty, unemployment, hunger and a life expectancy of less than 40 years - had spread from France. A paranoid British Government suspected Unitarian free-thinkers and reformers such as Joseph Priestley and Thomas Fyshe-Palmer of sedition. Into this political maelstrom came the Transcendentalist Romantic Poets - Wordsworth, Coleridge and - later, the American poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson. They argued for a Transcendent God. Coleridge - and other Unitarian idealists helped shape the Unitarian, reformist values of the time: adherence to an idealistic system of thought based on a belief in the essential unity of all creation, the innate goodness of humanity and - for the revelation of our deepest truths - the supremacy of insight over logic and experience. listen on for Peter's insightful address.

Great Expectations

As as you might half expect from the title of today's address, Jennie's starting point is a brief "recap" of Charles Dickens's novel of the same name. But - to quote Jennie's intro - "if you've come to this address with "Great Expectations", you might as well resign yourself to having them dashed to the ground!" - Or should you?
According to one best-selling author, life-coach and podcast host who has made a career of steering people and organizations to their highest potential - having no expectations, accepting what is - would be infinitely easier and you'd be happier. Or would you? While this advice seems somewhat inconsistent with what we might expect from a life-coach's business plan, Jennie asks us "Should we have great expectations or not?" And what expectations should we have in relationships?…in marriage? And what about women's expectations and the under-utilisation of their talents in music, medicine and many other fields? Expectations shape reality.
Listen on to a wonderful address given in our Adelaide Church on Sunday, 3rd October!

Lumpy in Lycra

Miranda, one of our younger members - leads us in today's service today held on 26th September 2021. Miranda's subject is allodoxaphobia - the fear of what others might be thinking of us or - even worse still - overhearing other people’s opinions about us that confirm our worst fears.
Miranda raises the question - "If all of us a little allodoxaphobic, how can we move beyond this fear and live our lives to the full?" Our seven Unitarian Universalist (U.U.) Principles challenge us to do so.
Under Miranda's direction and involvement, we then form into small groups to discover - through sharing - how our UU Principles may help with our allodoxaphobia. Listen on!

Now I‘m a Believer

Jennie's address today, this 19th September, 2021 - is on the subject of Belief ... e.g. belief in Love! - even love that may …..at times....frequently? fall well short of Bliss!
Jenny also acknowledges the recent death of the former Episcopalian Bishop of Newark, John Spong who subjected all the unbelievable bits of scripture to a rational, 20th Century scientific scrutiny that is so congruent with Unitarian Universalist beliefs today. Listen on!