 And these are all your terms. They're all your terms. And next question. Do you know what sort of response would you have to be able to spend some time on a man who lives here? Do you think that would be fun? Yeah. Do you think that would be fun? Yeah. I'm so surprised. Yeah. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I had a boy to see me live in Japan. I'm worried about him. I mean, he's been really, really excited. Now what am I supposed to say? We've been on a business trip. We've been here for a long time. We've been here for years. We've been here for a long time. We've been here for a long time. I don't know if you're saying that. Since you're a body-to-sand, so we're without this movement towards your own experience Thank you. Good morning. Thank you. I'm not sure what you're thinking but that's just here. Yeah, so my parents here are coming for Christmas and they're coming to my streets and no one has been here. So we're going to turn it into a surprise. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Welcome to the First Unitarian Society of Madison. We are a community where curious seekers gather to explore spiritual, ethical and social issues in an accepting and nurturing environment. You use support the freedom of conscience of each individual as together we seek to be a force for good in the world. My name is Karen Rose Gredler and on behalf of the entire congregation I offer a special welcome to any visitors and newcomers with us this morning. As a welcoming congregation we celebrate the presence of all among us. We sincerely hope our service will spark your mind, touch your heart and enrich your spirit. It's a great time to silence cell phones as we take a few quiet moments to become fully present with ourselves and one another together at this time. Good morning. Please rise and body your spirit and sing with me, hymn number 162. I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield. Gonna lay down my sword and shield down by the riverside. Down by the riverside. Gonna lay down my sword and shield down by the riverside and study war no more. Gonna study war no more. Ain't gonna study. Gonna study. Gonna study my burden. Gonna lay down my. Down by the riverside. Down by the riverside. Down by the riverside. Gonna lay down my burden. Down by the riverside. Gonna study. Gonna study. Gonna study. Gonna study. Gonna shake hands around the world. Gonna shake hands around the world. Everywhere I roam. Gonna study. Last chance let him hear it. Ain't gonna study. Gonna study war no more. Ain't gonna study war. Waiting for our opening words and our chalice lighting, spirit of life, come to us to break down barriers, widen horizons, to make us less judgmental, help us see the larger picture and the kinder conclusion to love and let live, to embrace and forgive, to sustain and care. And now, as our worship associate lights our chalice, will you please join me in the chalice lighting words printed in your order of service, as together we say. We light our chalice to illuminate the world we seek. In search for truth may we be just. In the search for justice may we be loving. And in loving may we find peace. I invite you to turn towards each other and offer a warm greeting. The children can come forward, the young and young at heart are welcome to join us up front. Hello, Milo. Hi, kid. Hello, Liam. Hey, Elliot. Elliot. Entity of space for everyone. How's your week? We have some books. Good. We have some special things to show you, so be sure to gather round. We will try and make sure everybody sees them. We are going to talk about peace today. The theme of this month is peace. And Karen and I were thinking, huh, what can we talk with you all about peace? And then we realized that we have some things in our life that mean peace to us. And so we want to show you those this morning. The first thing we have, can you see it? What is it? A candle. And why might a candle remind us of peace? Yeah, because right here on our pulpit is a candle which is related to our unitary universalist chalice, which we light every Sunday to remind us of the peace in our hearts and in our world. Nice. I have this, which is one of my favorite things. Do you know what this is? I already made it go. A singing bowl. Have you ever seen a singing bowl? Mom has one. Oh, thank you for the candle. Thank you. It goes with this one. Lovely. All right. Well, let's see how this works. Are you ready? Let's see if I can, let's see if I can do it. Ready? Let's see. I think we can make it sing, so we're going to really listen. Can you still hear it? So why do you think I might bring this out for peace? Because music can be peace. Beautiful. Yeah. It makes really calm to hear that noise and to just breathe and focus on that noise can make us really calm. Yeah. All right. I have something next. Can you see what it is? Oh, it's a paper crane. Yes. This is an origami crane, and Reverend Kelly wrote a newsletter article about how you can make your own cranes, and in Japan there's a tradition about making 1,000 paper cranes and then being able to make a wish, and we often wish for peace. So this paper crane was made by a friend of this congregation out of part of the order of service. So if you want to get creative with your order of service today, I have a thank you card. It says thank you very much, and I put a thank you card in here to remind me about gratitude, that there are so many things in this life that we have to be thankful for, and when we are thankful and our hearts are filled with gratitude, that can lead us to peace. Okay, what's next? A pine cone and water. So this water actually comes from our water communion earlier this year when everyone brought the water of their lives together. And this pine cone reminds me of walking in the woods. So both of these things remind me of, yeah, nature, exactly, and being in nature, whether it's with my pets or with the animals outside or with the elements, that makes me feel peaceful and relaxed. All right, let me, Karen, did you forget breakfast this morning? I think I have Karen's breakfast in here. I'm not, Karen, why would we have croissants in our basket? I remember, because one of the ways that we can find peace with other people is when we eat, when we break bread together, when we share food with other people, sharing food has a lot to do with breaking down differences and barriers between people. When we sit down for a cup of coffee or a croissant, which I shouldn't throw around because it just might be Karen's breakfast. So we can remember that one of the ways to find peace between each other is to share a meal. And I have a couple of things that go together here. A rainbow scarf reminds me of LGBTQI rights. And a little dove with a button that says fight racism. So I'm thinking about justice and equity and things that are fair and how they all, the more justice and equity we have in our lives and in our world, the more peace we will have because sometimes conflict comes out of things that are unfair. So when we work towards fairness, we have more peace. Hmm. Okay. We've got one, oh, well, I'm not sure why this is in here. Karen's going to have to tell us why. And since it's my turn, I guess I'm the one who's going to have to put it on. So Karen, I'm not sure what Karen was thinking here. Anybody have any ideas? I was, yes. Being goofy, sometimes we just need to laugh together in order to feel love and peace with and for each other. And that actually reminds me, Kelly, of a joke I know. Oh, I love jokes. Do you all like jokes? All right, let's hear it. Kelly, did you, have you heard why Christmas trees are really bad knitters? Really bad knitters. You know me. I love a good knitting joke. Why would a Christmas tree be a really bad knitter? It couldn't knit itself. What? It has needles, but why would that make it a bad knitter? Too many needles. That could be a car. And why is a Christmas tree a bad knitter? Because it keeps dropping its needles. Oh. Thank you all for joining us to see some things that are peaceful to us. We're going to sing you out to your classes with Go Now In Peace. Go now in peace, go now in peace. May the love of God surround you everywhere. One more time. Go now in peace, go now in peace. May the love of God... Let's do that again. One more time. Go. It's starting to sound good. Go now in peace, go now in peace. And now we'll sing hymn number 164 together. If you'll turn back in your hymnals to that number. The peace not past our understanding. A peace not past our understanding falls to some... Be seated. This month we've been exploring through words and song the theme of peace. And this morning we continue our exploration with readings that speak to each of our worship team members and our own reflections on finding peace in these days. So our first reading from Jan Tadeo. The storm outside echoes the storm raging within my soul. So many people in need, so much pain, so much grief. Too many causes and campaigns fill my mailboxes, sap my energy, beg for my money. Three things I must do. Only three things? You've got to be kidding. Which three do I choose? Books and letters, magnets and movies implore me to dance as if no one is watching. Turn seven habits and make four agreements. Give generously, vote often, express myself. Yet hundreds, thousands, millions live with hunger and thirst in poverty, enduring violence and disease. Did Mother Teresa, Martin and Gandhi cry out with despair from the darkness of overwhelm? What three things did they choose? Three things, three things we must do. Is it to act in kindness, serve justice, love God and your neighbor even as you love yourself? But where do I start? So much thoughtlessness, hatred and fear. Too little justice, too much selfishness. Where is God? Who is my neighbor? Three things, seven principles, ten commandments, twelve steps. All number of things speak to us and yet we must choose. We must choose to do something. So three things may be the right number, not too few, not too many. But which three things shall I do, will you do? Here's an adage I've always liked. Don't just do something, stand there, stand in the surf or sit on a rock or lay your body across the earthy loam and be quiet, very quiet. Do you hear it? That still small voice, the echo of your soul reverberating with the call to your own true self to emerge, then the calm within becomes the calm without. The storm blows over, the sun recovers its position of strength and that glorious symbol of hope and unity emerges across the sky. At the end of this rainbow, a treasure, the three things you must do. Go outside yourself and know the needs of the world. Go within and discover your life given gifts. And arch yourself like a rainbow bridge between the two and create a more beautiful world. These words from Jan Tadeo deeply resonated with me this week perhaps because I have been living in the land of overwhelm with no sense of peace in sight. School concerts, Cub Scout caroling, holiday preparations, all living alongside the ongoing concerns of the world outside my four walls leading me to think peace is for some other person in some other time. Yet this is the season of peace, of sacred rest, the growing dark, planting seeds and dreaming new dreams. So what do we do when we know our time is fleeting and precious and that the messiness, the complexities of this world are not going away? What do we do and how do we choose? I often think of the words of the Dalai Lama when he said we often talk of world peace and this is very important. But it needs to begin with mental peace, with genuine tranquility, individual transformation and a good heart is the foundation. I think this is what Jan is trying to tell us as well. In the chaos of the world we need to find the calm within because the calm within can become the calm without. Peace doesn't need a serene perfect environment. It can happen anytime, anywhere, even in the chaos, even in the messiness. It can happen in the heart that truly commits to it. We need to be aware of the pain and the suffering in this world and in order to take that in we must recognize the deep and true well of peace that lives deep within us. So in the days ahead may you take a moment to connect with that peace living within you, to stand in the surf or sit on a rock or lay your body across the earthy loam and be quiet. And from that place even in the busiest and the messiest of times may you arch yourself like a rainbow and create a more beautiful world. Peace my heart, let the time for the parting be sweet. Let it not be a death but a completeness. Let love melt into memory and pain into songs. Let the flight through the sky end in the folding of wings over the nest. Let the last touch of your hands be gentle like the flower of the night. Stand still oh beautiful end for a moment and say your last words in silence. I bow to you and hold up my lamp to light you on your way. That poem by Rabindranath Tagore speaks of a good and peaceful death of passing, of transitioning from life into death and the idea that in order for that to be a good moment that there must be peace. In order to move forward sometimes we must reconcile with others, I think we call that closure. As hard as this is though it can be easier than reconciling with ourselves. Peace between is a symptom of forgiveness and sometimes of selective forgetfulness. And more than that peace between is a symptom of peace within. When we make peace with our past we may have peace in our future. We can let our endings be what we need our beginnings to be. Sometimes making peace with our past means growing beyond what we were given. In his poem Mending Wall Robert Frost writes, there where it is we do not need the wall. He is all pine and I am all apple orchard. My apple trees will never get across and eat the cones under his pines I tell him. He only says good fences make good neighbors. Spring is the mischief in me and I wonder if I could put a notion in his head. Why do they make good neighbors? Isn't it where there are cows but here there are no cows? Before I built a wall I would ask to know what I was walling in or walling out and to whom I was like to give offense. Something there is that doesn't love a wall that wants it down. I could say elves to him. But it's not elves exactly and I would rather he said it for himself. I see him there bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top in each hand like an old stone savage armed. He moves in darkness as it seems to me. Not of woods only and the shade of trees. He will not go beyond his father's saying. And he likes having thought of it so well he says it again. Good fences make good neighbors. It is good to sometimes rely on the wisdom of the ages but when we do not question it peace is delayed another generation. Some people are more comfortable letting walls create a false sense of security than they are of doing the hard work of peace. Which begins invariably looking inward. This next reading this morning comes from the Unitarian Universalist Minister of the Reverend Aday Karaba, a poem entitled This Holiday Season. Let this holiday season be a time for engaging heart to heart. For those who, like the innkeeper, turned us away. For holidays that didn't live up to our expectations. For ghosts of Christmas past that haunt us. For those who gave us gifts but never their presence. For gifts we yearned for but did not receive. For things we received but never wanted. For those who offered us cheer when we needed comfort. For those who offered us love that we could not accept. For those we rejected offering no room in our homes or hearts. For ourselves who could not give through the fear. For the times we saw a star in the east but failed to follow it. For times we followed the star but it did not lead where we hoped. For miracles gone unnoticed. For wise men and women whose gifts we rejected. For all these we remember. We forgive. We love. In doing so may we be granted an abiding peace. Oh to be granted an abiding peace. But ghosts of Christmas past do indeed haunt me at times. Do they haunt you? Here's a story about one of my ghosts, just a little one. The year I was eight or nine years old and I woke up that Christmas morning remembering that I had forgotten to get a gift for my oldest sister, LaWanna. I went to my mother in tears. Tears of frustration, tears of embarrassment, tears of disappointment, yes indeed this was not the holiday I wanted it to be. My mother did not seem at all phased by this situation. Somehow I calmed down enough to listen to her and agree to her solution. But before I tell you how we solved this problem I have to reveal an important cultural fact about my family of origin. We placed a high value on disguising presence. The fun part of gift giving was in stumping the gift receiver so they couldn't guess what was in the present. In this case creating a handmade gift certificate and putting it in an envelope would not have been sufficient. But my creatively-mighted mother, she had been around the block by then. And here's what we did that morning. We took an empty toilet paper tube. We put the cash in it. And then we wrapped it up, pretty simple. But I tell you that what I got that Christmas was more than gift giving. As I reflect back on this solution I see the wrapping materials as symbols. Like we were talking about symbols of peace. These are symbols of the verbs mentioned in the reading I read for you earlier. We forgive. We love. And in doing so we are granted an abiding peace. The wrapping paper was forgiveness. My mom surrounded me with forgiveness for my falling short in the gift giving department. She didn't belittle me or my family for messing up on the timing. It was not a blame and shame moment. I was already forgiven before the gift was even offered. And the toilet paper tube was love, strong, durable, giving shape and form to our time together. It was a functional love for each other. An infinite circle surrounding me and my family. And inside all of it was a little bit of peace. Peace to be at ease with the circumstances. To be okay with the outcome. Peace to just let it be. So more than receiving some cash that Christmas or giving it. My sister and I got peace. Through forgiveness and love we experienced peace in a whole new way. So my wish for you is that you have the forgiveness and love at those places in your life that you too can experience peace. For my reading I would like to gain your assistance. If you would take out the gray hymnal and turn to number 602, 602. This reading is so much better when other voices join me. Our reading for my reflection is taken from the writing of Lao Tzu and if you would respond in 602 to the italicized text I would be very grateful. If there is to be peace in the world there must be peace in the nations. If there is to be peace in the nations there must be peace in the cities. If there is to be peace in the cities there must be peace between neighbors. If there is to be peace between neighbors there must be peace in the home. If there is to be peace in the home, there must be peace in the heart. One of the most unwinnable and pointless arguments that I have been baited into a thousand times is between or in the spirit of finding the superiority of someone who champions the peace in the heart versus those who passionately work for peace in the world. Again and again I have been in that argument and yet we know so many things that remind us that that argument is such a waste of air and energy. It is hardly a new idea. In the fifth century, before the Common Era, Lao Tzu wrote what we just read together and reminds us that in the work of moving away from violence and bringing in a deep sense of justice and equity in our lives, there is not one single destination or one point but a continuous and interdependent set of relationships and moments that ask us in almost every realm of existence to find that right relationship, to gain that sense of what it means to be more deeply connected with ourselves, with each other, with all that is. We know that in each of those points from the world all the way to the heart and the family and the neighborhood and the country, that peaceful work is never fully done. One person, and it has happened throughout time, can spend their entire life working on one segment and that task will not be completed. In number three, we know in so many important things that we human beings are strongly situated in our aptitudes, in our perspectives, in the realms that appeal to us, in the life realities that we live and deeply shape what we perceive, in what we are attracted to or what bothers us, what we do well, and what is even our sphere of influence in which to do our most meaningful work. To me it is clear that if the task is larger than any one person can achieve and we each are always in every segment of our life in some way working for peace and if we each have our own set of wonderful gifts of energy and skill and perspective then we are called again and again to do the same thing that I ask you to do as we entered into this complicated month of December. Begin where you are, begin with who you are, whether it's how to make your way through this month full of so many expectations and emotional difficulties as well as moments of excruciating possibility or deciding what it might mean when you are deeply afraid or frustrated by what you hear on the news or the incredible animosity you experience in your workplace or the way that you can't sit at the breakfast table anymore with a person you love most without feeling some deep energy of hatred towards them. Whoever you are, however you are, whoever you are, that is the place to begin. That is the only choice that you can make and to be in that place as fully as you can is the way forward always, whether it's peace or love or finding joy. In 1513 on Christmas Eve, Fra Giovanni, another name for a friar or a monk wrote these words. There is much I can give you which you do not have but there is much, very much, that while I cannot give you, you can take. No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in it today. So take heaven and no peace lies in the future which is not hidden in this present little instance and so take peace and the gloom of the world is but a shadow behind it yet within our reach always is joy. There is radiance and glory in the darkness if we could but see and so I beseech you to look and take joy wherever you are, whatever the season is bringing to you, whatever your predilection towards peace, you can only choose what to do with this one precious span of days and I beg you when offered the choice between anger and acceptance may you take acceptance and when you are asked to choose between retribution or peace may you find some small way to move towards peace. When you find yourself struggling between a feeling of isolation and love may you choose love in our one sweet, wild and precious life in our journeying in the midst of towards peace may we find our way to be a blessing in the world so may it be amen and blessed be in our choices again and again we find ourselves thinking about where we are what we have in our lives and what is important to us as we move into the time of our offering every week that is another moment of opportunity to really think about that relationship in all places in your life but especially how generosity may be calling you now and we offer you the opportunity again and again to practice that generosity this week in addition to supporting the work of this congregation you may support the work of community support network to find out more about their mission and their important work with adults with disabilities I invite you to turn to the red floors for more information as our offering is now given and received may it be a time of right relationship with all that is and may it be inspired in a spirit of generosity and abundance the offering will now be given and received we appreciate the many gifts that you give to this community your financial gifts the gifts of your time the gifts of your talents I especially want to thank those who helped make our worship this morning possible our greeters this morning were Kareen Perrin and Claire Box our ushers this morning were Jane Nelson Warrell Gail Bliss Marty Hollis and Brian Chanis our sound operator this morning is David Bryles hospitality is being provided by Sandra Plish and Blaise Thompson our lay ministers this morning are Dennis Collins and Anne Smiley if you would like to join us on a tour this morning John Powell will be leading a tour starting from up here at the ramp after service and at our welcome and information table we have Dorot Bergen I also want to point out that in your red floors there is a way to sign up to be a volunteer at one of our four Christmas Eve services you can fill that out and put that in the basket on the table right outside these doors in the comments also in the comments this morning you will find a table with information about the Bayside UU family camp and of course there is tea and coffee to enjoy together afterwards as well sorry about that when we gather together we offer support to those who need an armor on their shoulder or a prayer with them in mind today we keep in mind the following may all those homeless know that they are loved and cared about share the sorrow and the love of Charlotte Wolf who remembers her beloved Hal who left us nine years ago on December 15th and Gail Bliss writes I am grateful that although my sister's breast cancer is back after 22 years the treatments available have improved dramatically since the 1990s for all these and for all those joys and concerns too tender to share we give a kind thought and I would like to add one more care of the congregation and thank you and acknowledgement Christopher Allen thank you for joining us today on loot and also you may not have noticed we have a new piano and we are grateful to our member Bill Wortman who passed away and left us this wonderful instrument in his will it's been rebuilt and delivered to us and will be with us for many years would you join with me in singing him number 388 dono nobis pacem we'll sing it one time through go ahead and stand when you're ready we'll sing it one time through together and then we will break into three parts part one will be led by Reverend Doug part two by Karen and part three by Reverend Kelly so you can choose whoever whichever is closest or whatever criteria you prefer don't know let's do it one more time part one group two start again here we go if I were to wish you peace it would not be for long it would be peace to rest to reflect to make ready for the coming day that the full force of your creativity and love might be released and shared I do wish you peace we extinguish our chalice flame but not the warmth of love the light of compassion or the fire of justice these we hold in our hearts until we gather together again blessed be going peace and please be seated for the postlude