Minister’s Moment, April 2018

In mid-March I sat on a panel hosted by the Inter-Religious Council of Linn County as part of a series called “Know Your Neighbors.” Throughout the series all of the panelists made it clear that we were not speaking on behalf of everyone in our entire faith tradition....

From the President, February 2018

Creating Space for Change In Leading Change in the Congregation, author Gilbert Rendle explains what he calls the emotional roller coaster cycle of change. He points out that folks usually respond to impending change with some initial level of excitement and...

Minister’s Moment, February 2018

“Empathy is full presence to what’s alive in the other person at this moment.” – John Cunningham As a student at the University of Minnesota I heard a story I will never forget. A young man, a college freshman from the Deep South, had just moved to...

From the President, January 2018

What’s in a Mission: Applying the Toolkit We have a new Mission! On December 3, our congregation voted unanimously that our faith community is: Leading compassionate lives through spiritual growth and just action. That sentence sums up the ideals and values of our...