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Recently Added
- UUYO Members Help Plant Community Gardens as Part of Farm to Family All-Church Project
- Sunday, May 20 – Gathered Here Discussions
- Sunday, May 20, Service – “Singular Experience”
- Sunday, May 20, Adult Forum – “Update on the Farm-to-Family All-Congregation Project”
- Mother’s Day “In Care and Conscience” Led by Rev. Mary Grigolia, Audra Carlson, Tim Raridon, and Becky Harker
- Students in UUYO Religious Education Classes Doing Artwork
- Sunday, May 13, Service – “In Care and Conscience”
- Sunday, May 13, Adult Forum – “New ‘Simple’ Solutions to Life’s Love Problems
- All Church Auction Saturday June 2 – 6 pm
- Introduction to Healthy Congregations – CANCELED
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 Matt Alspaugh This is a selection of sermons recently preached at First UU Youngstown. Not all sermons are represented here — some speakers do not speak from a text, and some who do have not provided the text for publication. Note that the sermons are copyright by their authors — please contact the authors to reprint or re-present these sermons.
To Find Older Sermons:
If you know something about the sermon (keywords, author, searchable text), you can use the ‘Search this Site’ on the left sidebar to locate the sermon.
If you know the month it was delivered, you can use the ‘Older Items’ selector on the left sidebar to select all posts for that month, and then locate the sermon within that list.
I want to let you know that this Earth Day sermon is environmentally correct. It meets the 3 R’s — reduce, reuse, and recycle, of waste management. Well, let me be clear, — this is not about waste management, I hope. But I am going to reuse a reduced — shorter — form of this sermon at Park Vista [Retirement Community, where several congregants live] this afternoon for the two worship services there.
Two Kinds of Christianity
The Time Magazine cover story for Easter week was called “Heaven Can’t Wait”. In that article, Jon Meacham explored how ideas of heaven influence many Christians in good and bad ways. Talking about belief in heaven, he said,
Continue reading Sermon: Earth Day: Awake In the Web of Life
April 15, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
Pope Nicholas V
Once to every soul and nation comes a moment to decide. So our opening hymn tells us.
For Pope Nicholas V, that moment was the 18th of June, 1452, when he stamped his bulla, or papal seal on the bottom of a document, a papal bull known as Dum Diversas.
Now Pope Nicholas V is positively remembered for several things: he encouraged the development of humanism, which earlier had been feared by the church as a source of heresy and schism, and linked with paganism. He encouraged many building projects in Rome, including repair of aqueducts that had been destroyed as the Roman Empire collapsed into the dark ages.
But Nicholas V is most remembered for one minor bit of realpolitik, an instant of political expediency, as he tried to manage both the growing power of the Portuguese king and the threat of the Ottoman Empire. And that was Dum Diversas.
Continue reading Sermon: Doctrine of Discovery
April 8, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
A Divine Life
I want to start today by speaking of the life of one amazing man who lived twenty centuries ago.
“Before he was born, his mother knew he would not be a normal child. An angelic visitor told her that her son would be divine. His birth was accompanied by miraculous signs and wonders and as a child, he was religiously precocious. As an adult, he left home to engage in an itinerant preaching ministry, teaching his good news that people should live for what is spiritual, not the material things of this world. He gathered disciples and performed miracles .…[But] he raised the ire of many of those in power, who had him brought up on charges before the Roman authorities. But even after he left this world, though, his followers claimed that he had ascended to heaven and that they had seen him alive afterwards. They wrote books about his life, and some of these writings still survive today.
I doubt, though, if any of you has ever read them, and I doubt if many of you have even heard the name of the man I’ve been describing: Apollonius of Tyana. He was a famous neo-Pythagorean philosopher of the first century AD, a worshiper of pagan gods.”[1]
I’m thankful to biblical scholar Barth Ehrman for that summary of Apollonius.[2] So Jesus was not the only ancient teacher to be resurrected as a god; there were others.
Continue reading Easter Sermon: Stories of Resurrection and Hope
April 1, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
“Every sermon better than the next.” That is how one of my colleagues said she felt as she began to reach the end of the church year. I worry too, am I living my life now as a long string of sermons, every one better than the next one?
Today, I return to one of the themes of one of the earliest sermons I preached to a Unitarian Universalist congregation. April Fools day, 2007. Just five years ago. Once again, April Fools falls on a Sunday, and I feel compelled to return to this topic, the Journey of the Fool. My journey, updated. Maybe, perhaps, a commentary on all of our journeys.
Continue reading Sermon: Journey of the Fool
March 18, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
The French composer Claude Debussy said “Music is the space between the notes.” I read a commentator on this quote who said, “Some of the best musicians, I’m told, play fewer notes than you actually hear. They play in such a way–and leave enough space–that your mind fills in more.”[1] But, she acknowledged that it was a DeadHead that told her this, so it may be tinged with alternate reality.
Continue reading Homily: Music is the Space Between the Notes
March 11, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? The words of the song we sang came from Paul Gauguin’s famous 1897 triptych by the same name, on the screen. Today we want to look at the middle question: what are we? — not the whole question, but just the tiny part: what are we as Unitarian Universalists.
What are we? as a community, as a church? What animal labels might fit us? I mean, many Christians speak of themselves as ‘part of the flock’, as sheep being led by a shepherd, but I know that many if not most of us object to being compared to a flock of sheep.
Continue reading Sermon: We Are UUs: What Are We?
February 26, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
When I was in Puerto Rico a couple of weeks ago — yes, I know, while it was snowing here! — I had the chance to attend an Evangelical Christian church service. This was interesting on many levels, not the least of which was it was held in a building that had no walls, but had great views of the ocean on all sides. So I was reassured that if I got bored with the sermon, I could look past the preacher to these great vistas, and be satisfied.
The preacher was preaching on Luke chapter 18, the story of the rich man. You know the story, a rich man asks what he must do to be saved. Jesus tells the rich man to sell everything he has and give the money to the poor, and follow him. And when the man becomes sad at this thought, Jesus says “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God. Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God”.
I was very interested to see how this preacher would handle this text. I’ve heard of many conservative, evangelical, fundamentalist twists on this story, knots — tangles really, as preachers try to acknowledge that it is OK, and even virtuous to be wealthy. One classic take on the story suggests that the eye of a needle is not a sewing needle’s eye, but really a door in the wall of an ancient city which a camel could pass through, with some effort. So if you’re rich, you can still get through, you can still find salvation![1] I wondered, where would this preacher go with the rich man and his camel?
Continue reading Sermon: Occupy America
February 19, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
This homily was preceded by brief presentations by five people from five generations.
Conflict between young and old has always been with us, it seems. I remember seeing a poster that had these words on it: “I see no hope for the future of our people if they are dependent on frivolous youth of today, for certainly all youth are reckless beyond words… When I was young, we were taught to be discreet and respectful of elders, but the present youth are exceedingly [disrespectful] and impatient of restraint”, and attributed (falsely, it turns out)[1] to the Greek poet Hesiod, twenty seven centuries ago.
Of course it goes both ways. In my generation, the tagline was, “don’t trust anybody over 30.[2]” So disagreement based on age, maturity, stage of life, has been going on a long time.
Continue reading Homily: Generation to Generation
February 5, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
Intro
In some of the discussions in our Resilience Circle group, we’ve contended with the issue of how we help one another — or how we don’t. We talked about how our American society so discourages helping one another. It’s better to buy than to ask for help. In one discussion, we realized how it is easier for most of us to go buy a tool at Harbor Freight or Bed, Bath and Beyond than to borrow one from a neighbor. We’re encouraged to hire a pro rather than ask a neighbor to show us how to do minor home or car repairs. Our society tells us that being neighborly, helping and caring for each other, sharing, is passé. As spiritual teacher Ram Dass tells us, “we cling to notions of independence – it is the name of our national holiday – as if it were an essential condition of our well being.”[1]
And yet, at the same time we want to find some connection, to help each other, to share, to care for each other. So it’s complicated.
Continue reading Sermon: “Who Cares!”
January 29, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
Introduction
About a week ago, on This American Life, Ira Glass talked with Erin, a 14 year old Glenn Beck supporter about global warming. She responded to Glass, “Global Warming is propaganda”[1]
Glass brought Roberta Johnson, a scientist who studies global warming at National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, on to talk about the science of global warming.
Even though the scientific evidence presented was thorough, Erin, said in the end, “I think I understand most of it. … “I can see where there were discrepancies, but ‘eh’…”
Continue reading Sermon: Science and Anti-Science
January 22, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
On last Saturday the Patriots pummeled the Broncos 45 to 10, and I was secretly pleased, even though I’d lived in Denver for many years and generally root for the Broncos. I’m sure many of you were pleased too, using that logic ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend’ after Pittsburgh’s loss to the Bronc’s the week before. No, as a religious leader, I was glad to see the end, at least temporarily, of Tebow-mania, happy to see some order restored to the world.
Continue reading Sermon: “A God for Unitarian Universalists”
January 15, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
About five years ago, I had the opportunity to participate in a congregational study trip to Guatemala, sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. About twenty of us stayed in a small, traditional hotel in Antigua, which was our base camp for part of the trip. From there we traveled to visit many small groups working for social justice, and to talk with individuals who had been witness to the genocide that Molly described in her chalice lighting reflection.
On the last day of our trip, we had dinner with the proprietor of our hotel. Hugo was a quiet man, very polite, speaking good English, but a little uncomfortable telling his story. During the early days of la violencia, Hugo had worked as a newspaper reporter for one of the more liberal papers, but when his life became endangered, he fled, crossing the border into Los Angeles. There, he worked as a bellhop for one of the larger hotels, gradually learning other aspects of the business. When it was relatively safe to return to Guatemala, he did so, and opened his hotel. He still maintains a low profile, since, as a former journalist, he knows too much about the ‘hidden powers’, the corruption that still remains in Guatemala, and his life could still be in danger.
Continue reading Sermon: Doors Open for Everyone
January 8, 2012
Matt Alspaugh
This sermon was presented as a candidating sermon, even though I have served the UUYO congregation two and a half years, as consulting minister. The congregation did vote to call me at the annual meeting after the service. — Matt
Introduction
I’ve shared with many of you how I came to find Unitarian Universalism. It was through a recommendation — actually the opposite of a recommendation. I was thinking of trying to find a church, mainly as a way to meet people, to become part of a community, and yes, maybe even find romance — and I asked people at work about some of the churches in town. I asked one young woman, “What about the Unitarian church I pass on the way to work?”. She said, “That’s the devil church, you wouldn’t want to go there.”
The devil church! I decided I needed to check that place out!
Continue reading Sermon: “Where Are We Going? State of the Church and Ministry”
“Resolutions, Conflict, and Interconnectedness”
January 1, 2012
Mark Debruin and Sarah Jordan
Preamble
Mark: Some of you may know that I used to teach high school. In teaching you learn to repeat the message several times. So I am going to tell you what I am going to tell you. If you listen closely you will learn the secret to having riches, learn how to resolve or minimize conflict, and learn how to strengthen New Year’s Resolutions. All in one service.
Sarah: Several year’s ago Mark DeBruin was the treasurer at the UU church in Reynoldsburg, a suburb of Columbus. He attended training from the Ohio-Meadville District about changes that churches experience, especially when they transition from a smaller church size to a larger church size or when the demographics of a church dramatically change. Usually these changes result in a lot of conflict. We will explores some of the lessons learned that can hopefully deepen your relationships here. Theoretically, if you can understand where the other person is coming from, then that will help minimize the likelihood of conflict.
Continue reading Sermon: “Resolutions, Conflict, and Interconnectedness”
December 24, 2011
Matt Alspaugh
Readings and Reflection – The Gospel Birth Stories
Introduction
About once a month I go over to the religious community at Villa Maria to make a silent retreat — just a day away from the office and the internet where I can think about larger things than this week’s sermon. There, earlier this month, I encountered a display of some 250 nativity scenes, acquired over the years by the sisters and staff of Villa Maria.
Some of these creches are stunning — I particularly liked the nativities from South America and Africa with their vivid colors and unusual interpretations of the characters in regional clothing, and others are kitschy — let’s face it, mirror walls just aren’t a part of my image of the birth scene in Bethlehem.
But all of them, it seems by definition, include the required characters, Jesus, Mary and Joseph, a cow and a sheep or two, some shepherds, some angels, the three kings, maybe a few camels.
As I looked at these numerous sets, I felt a nagging unease. Something wasn’t right. And it wasn’t only that the baby Jesus was present in all of these — this was before Christmas after all. Something else wasn’t right. I had my doubts about those camels, for sure. But I’m no longer able to picture the birth story as such a big gathering, a party with lots of guests — two leg or four leg — present.
Maybe it was time to go back to the original stories — the two birth stories that are present in the Bible, in the Gospels attributed to Matthew and to Luke.
Continue reading Service: Christmas Eve
December 11, 2011
Matt Alspaugh
t was a surprise to me and it may be a surprise to you that we live in the most peaceful time in history. Not only that, overall trends indicate that peace will continue to break out worldwide, and that levels of violence will continue to decline.
When I first heard a variation of this thesis that war is declining that peace is a real possibility — I was in the car, driving somewhere in Minnesota, listening to Fresh Air or some other program on the radio, and the speaker is long forgotten — I was dumbstruck. This hope for peace seemed incredibly naive and farfetched, a lovely religious sentiment, especially at this time of year — peace on Earth and goodwill to all, and all that. But there is actually evidence to support this idea.
Continue reading Sermon: Is It Possible to Live in Peace?
December 4, 2011
Matt Alspaugh
Advent and Waiting
As you may have figured out by the choice of hymns today, we’ve entered into the season of Advent. Little mentioned in most Unitarian Universalist circles for a long time, the liturgical season of Advent seems to have been rediscovered in many of our churches. Maybe some evergreen boughs are hung, maybe a little purple cloth, the color of Advent, covers the altar.
In our circles, Advent is seen as a time of waiting, a time of hopeful anticipation for Christmas and all that day brings. But that’s not what Advent means to many Christians who celebrate the season. But to understand Advent, we need to start with Christmas.
Continue reading Sermon: “Evergreen Christmas”
November 20, 2011
Matt Alspaugh
At the most wonderful concert last night, James Durst[1] commented briefly on how folk music evolves as folk artists borrow each others songs and modify them, rearrange them, add verses, which he calls the ‘folk process’. And which he freely admits some call ‘stealing’.
I immediately thought of how at times, the ‘sermon process’ happens when a person, let’s call him Matt, is stuck on a topic, and goes to the internet to borrow from others sermons, modify their ideas, rearrange them and add verses. Today’s topic — grace — is certainly one of those themes which required full engagement of ‘the sermon process’.
Grace is one of those words whose meaning has been distorted by so many flavors of Christianity that it is hard to use the word without confusion. It joins words like faith, evil, salvation, words which themselves have been twisted into knots and overloaded with multiple meanings.
Continue reading Sermon: Everyday Grace
November 13, 2011
Matt Alspaugh
A few weeks ago I was at the board meeting of the Ohio Meadville District, and we were deciding whether we wanted to adopt the Unitarian Universalist Association’s board’s Ends — sort of their Vision Statement — as our own. We got stuck on one of the first sentences, which reads:
“Grounded in our covenantal tradition, the UUA will inspire people to lead lives of humility and purpose, connection and service, thereby transforming themselves and the world.”[1]
Someone immediately said, “I have a problem with that word Humility.” “How is that?” Another volunteered, “From the feminist perspective, the idea of humility has led to the abuse of a lot of women. That idea of the suffering servant that so many of us have run from.”
Continue reading Sermon: Humility and Purpose
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