“Life’s Big Questions: Are There Miracles?” Susan Ryder

READINGS
John 20:30 Now Jesus did many other signs and miracles in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

 Ralph Waldo Emerson– “The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.”

Albert Einstein“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” [Read more…]

“Life’s Big Questions: What Can We Learn from Our Mortality?” Bob Ryder

READINGS
Henry David Thoreau, Walden “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation. From the desperate city you go into the desperate country, and have to console yourself with the bravery of minks and muskrats. A stereotyped but unconscious despair is concealed even under what are called the games and amusements of mankind. There is no play in them, for this comes after work. But it is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things.”

Voltaire “God gave us the gift of life.  It is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.”

Reinhold Niebuhr “God, give me grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, courage to change the things which should be changed, and the Wisdom to distinguish the one from the other.” [Read more…]

“Life’s Big Questions: Is There Life After Death?” Susan Ryder

This morning we continue our series on life’s big questions as we consider what happens after we shuffle off this mortal coil. Is there life after death? We begin with a couple of short readings.

READINGS
Genesis 3:19“You are dust and to dust you shall return.”

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. [Read more…]

“Life’s Big Questions: Is There A God?” Bob Ryder

READINGS
Proverbs 1:7 – The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Psalm 14:1 – “Fools say in their hearts, ‘There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is no one who does good.

Thomas Jefferson – The Declaration of Independence – “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Jim Palmer “No matter how bad it gets, we have stories embedded in our psyche that tell us there is hope and love. If you go deep enough, you will find them.” [Read more…]

“Chew on Life’s Big Questions,” Susan Ryder

READINGS:
Proverbs 18:2, 4, 6-8
A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,
but only in expressing personal opinion.
The words of the mouth are deep waters;
the fountain of wisdom is a gushing stream.
A fool’s lips bring strife,
and a fool’s mouth invites a flogging.
The mouths of fools are their ruin,
and their lips a snare to themselves.
The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
they go down into the inner parts of the body. [Read more…]

“Things That Make You Go Hmmm…” Bob Ryder

READINGS
Do not believe anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it. (Attributed to Siddhartha Gautama – the Buddha)

“You never get to the bottom of it.” Tom Teasley [Read more…]

“Pluralism Sunday,” Susan Ryder

READINGS

John 10:14-16
“I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.”

Rumi “Christian, Jew, Muslim, shaman, Zoroastrian, stone, ground, mountain, river, each has a secret way of being with the mystery, unique and not to be judged.” [Read more…]

“Gratitude for Teachers,” Bob Ryder

Buddhist Proverb – When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.

“Can you read this?  You’re welcome!”  (message on a sign carried by demonstrators at the Arizona “Red for Ed” March soliciting increased funding for teachers’ compensation and school funding) [Read more…]

“In Living Color,” Susan Ryder

READINGS

Galatians 3:28
There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.

Original Point #8 – Eight Points of Progressive Christianity
Recognize that our faith entails costly discipleship, renunciation of privilege, and conscientious resistance to evil – as has always been the tradition of the church. [Read more…]

“As it Is,” Bob Ryder

READING
Psalm 23 (Bay Bok of Psalms)
The Lord to me a shepherd is,
Want therefore shall not I,
He in the folds of tender grass
Doth make me down to lie
To waters calm he gently leads
Restore my soul doth he
He doth in paths of righteousness
For his name’s sake lead me.
Yea though in valley of death’s shade
I walk none ill I’ll fear,
Because thou art with me, thy rod,
and staff my comfort are. [Read more…]