Sunday  Services

Our Sunday Services and Religious Education are at 10:30 a.m.

They are open to all.  Infant and toddler care are available.  

8/1            Bill Sasso: “A Universalist Pioneer: Eli Gilbert”

                        In anticipation of the time-travel theme of this year’s Summer Weeklong Awesome Program (SWAP), we’ll do a bit of time travel ourselves! We’ll go back in time and meet a Universalist pioneer, Eli Gilbert, who traveled with his large family from New England to southern Illinois. We hear about their journey, their lives, and their Universalist religion.

8/8            Bill Sasso: “The Gospel According to Robert (Ingersoll)”

                        Southern Illinois can lay at least partial claim to one of the 19th century’s greatest religious critics, Colonel Robert Ingersoll, who lived in Marion for several years as a young adult. Ingersoll called himself an agnostic, yet he was also someone in whom a rational spirituality took root and grew. Join Bill to learn more about this intriguing figure from our region’s past!
                       
8/15            Darren Sherkat: "Bad Samaritans? The Role of Religion in Immigration Issues"

                        Darren will examine different religious views of controversies over American immigration, and how religious connections, and lack thereof, often influence who goes where, and whether they are welcomed or shunned. This topic will begin our work in response to the Congregational Study Action Issue on “Immigration Justice” adopted by the 2010 General Assembly, our national meeting of representatives of UU congregations.

8/22            Marleen Shepherd: “Making a World of Difference: a View from the 2009 Parliament of the World’s Religions”

Marleen Shepherd, one of four people from Carbondale attending the 2009 event in Australia, will speak about her experience in Melbourne and worldwide religious trends. She is a ministerial intern at the First Christian Church, and starting in the fall will be a student at Phillips Theological Seminary.  She is presently Vice President of the Carbondale Interfaith Council. Ken Starbuck will coordinate the service.  

8/29            Bill Sasso: “Unitarian Universalist Integrity”

            What does religious integrity mean to you, to me, and to us together? Within the framework of “liberal” or “progressive” religion, how do we offer each other freedom while maintaining a sense of community? Bill will struggle with these and related questions that might bring us closer to a better understanding of the integrity of the Unitarian Universalist religious movement.

And coming up . . .

9/5            The Sharing of the Waters

                        Our children will join us in this intergenerational service that celebrates our connections throughout the world, sharing waters, rocks, and possibly other items that symbolize our travels. And after the service, plan to attend our annual CEDAR LAKE beach picnic!

**Last update 07/26/10 by ymp**