The Silent Vow Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church March 7, 2021 Perhaps the most compelling task we face as humans is that of sorting out what truly belongs to ourselves, and what the world imposes upon us.  Over our lifetimes, we are constantly moving:...

To Walk Together Reverend Janet Parsons, Gloucester UU Church February 28, 2021   There comes a time, when a person has started attending seminary, that attending parties starts to become a little bit weird. Old friends aren’t quite sure what to say to you, so they...

An Orientation of the Heart Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church February 14, 2021   “We will rebuild, reconcile, and recover. And every known nook of our nation and every corner called our country, our people diverse and beautiful, will emerge battered and...

Where We See Everyone’s Face Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church February 7, 2021 It’s hard to talk about Beloved Community these days.  It’s hard to imagine it, to summon its ideals, its grace, and its promise of unconditional love. It’s hard to consider...

Imaginings – Rev Janet Parsons and Karl Frank Jan 31, 2021 We have such an unusual and interesting service for you this morning! Thank goodness we have five Sundays this month. There has been a theme all month, but we’ve barely been able to scratch the surface of it...

What’s Stopping Us? Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church January 17, 2021 (Martin Luther King Sunday)   It’s still a scene that I love to watch, and that still can bring tears to my eyes: the scene in Grant Park in Chicago, on November 5, 2008, when Barack...

Reimagining a Country © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church January 10, 2021   “They left for their own country by another road.”   So ends the tale of the Magi, the Wise Men, the astronomers from the East who saw a new star and followed it to find...

Hope Arising Reverend Janet Parsons January 3, 2021   This has likely been the most anticipated, the most consequential New Year since the turn of the century 20 years ago now. This New Year, I found myself feeling as though it wasn’t enough to just watch the ball...

Reflection: The Old Year Has Now Passed Away In past years, the Sunday after Christmas was often a quiet one with fewer people in church than usual after the buildup of Advent, the concerts, pageants, parties and finally the arrival of Christmas Day with large,...

Opening to Joy © Reverend Janet Parsons Gloucester UU Church December 13, 2020   I sat quietly, allowing this homily to emerge from my head and heart, through my fingers and onto the page, and as I sat, I was accompanied by the sound of rain pounding on the roof...

This Sunday our congregation will be joining our friends at the UU Society of Rockport for their service.  Their service begins at 10:30 a.m.  Join Zoom Meetinghttps://zoom.us/j/91158913840? pwd=MGlCNUJyM2xDWVVtMUZ1R3U3K3dsQT09

What Grounds Us?        November 29, 2020  Rev. Janet Parsons, Charles Nazarian, Lucille LePage  Rev. Janet  It’s hard, during this year like none other in our lifetimes, to hold on to what centers us.  I am reminded frequently of the well-known line in William Butler...