Order of Service:  

Minister: Rev. Elizabeth Nguyen

Music Director: Robbie Pate

Readers: Zoe Johnston, Dr. Rashid Shaikh, Lindsay Donnelly-Bullington

Greeters + Offertory: Rev. Dr. Leonisa Ardizzone, Rev. Daniel Lawlor

Themes: Being yourself, ancient and connected, oceans and deserts

A Welcome Message from Rev. Leonisa Ardizzone & Rev. Daniel Lawlor

Rev. Leonisa: Welcome to the Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth Solstice Celebration!

Today we celebrate the sacred darkness, and look to the good in this world.

May we find strength to be ourselves, to honor the ancient and connected pathways of life, and to feel those connections amidst the oceans and deserts of our time.

Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth wants to thank you for all the ways you have made 2022 possible – from World Water Day to Biodiversity Sunday, from partnerships in Florida and New York, from Earth Day to the the UN Climate Summit, from Spiritual Grounding to Book Clubs, from advocacy in Congress to one on one conversations.

Rev. Daniel: We are humbled by the witness of UU Congregation of Queens to work for environmental justice and their trust with a special gift to our ministry of $150,000 for our work. We are grateful to the Unitarian Universalist Association’s Side with Love for being a co-sponsor of this celebration tonight. We are inspired by you all- through your volunteering, your witness, your advocacy, your community, your sharing gifts of time, talent and treasure. We are humbled by all of your gifts of support to grow UU Young Adults for Climate Justice, UU BIPOC Caucus on Climate Justice, Monthly Spiritual Groundings, foster the the May You Survive and Thrive Curriculum, and so much more!

Tonight, we are honored to welcome Rev. Elizabeth Nguyen, Robbie Pate, Zoe Johnston,  Lindsay Donnelly-Bullington and Dr. Rashid Shaikh, who are offering a beautiful moment to mark this evening for us all. 

Welcome to Salt & Solstice.  With your support, UUMFE will be able to continue to grow in 2023 to feed spirit, challenge your mind, and galvanize your heart.

Invocation – A Selection from “The Growing Edge,” by Rev. Dr. Howard Thurman, from Meditations of the Heart, read by Zoë Johnston

“… fresh blossoms, green fruit. Such is the growing edge! It is the extra breath from the exhausted lung, the one more thing to try when all else has failed, the upward reach of life when weariness closes in upon all endeavor. This is the basis of hope in moments of despair, the incentive to carry on when times are out of joint, the source of confidence when worlds crash and dreams whiten into ash.… Look well to the growing edge!”

Music – Variation on Singing the Living Tradition,  #55 Dark of Winter, Singing the Living Tradition, offered by Robbie Pate

Chalice Lighting – Rev. Elizabeth Nguyen

Land acknowledgement – by Anna Maria De La Rosa, read by Lindsay Donnelly-Bullington

Music – #391 Voice Still and Small (x2), Singing the Living Tradition, offered by Robbie Pate 

Reading/Poem– “Ode to Salt,” by Pablo Neruda, read by Dr. Rashid Shaikh

This salt
in the salt cellar
I once saw in the salt mines.

I know
you won’t
believe me
but
it sings
salt sings, the skin
of the salt mines
sings
with a mouth smothered
by the earth.

I shivered in those
solitudes
when I heard
the voice
of
the salt
in the desert.

Near Antofagasta
the nitrous
pampa
resounds:
a
broken
voice,
a mournful
song.

In its caves
the salt moans, mountain
of buried light,
translucent cathedral,
crystal of the sea, oblivion
of the waves.

And then on every table
in the world,
salt,
we see your piquant
powder
sprinkling
vital light
upon
our food.

Preserver
of the ancient
holds of ships,
discoverer
on
the high seas,

earliest
sailor
of the unknown, shifting
byways of the foam.

Dust of the sea, in you
the tongue receives a kiss
from ocean night:
taste imparts to every seasoned
dish your ocean essence;
the smallest,
miniature
wave from the saltcellar
reveals to us
more than domestic whiteness;
in it, we taste infinitude.

Music – Let Love Continue, #129 Singing the Living Tradition

Prayer–  Rev. Elizabeth Nguyen

Music – Spirit of Life (x2), #123 Singing the Living Tradition, offered by Robbie Pate 

Reflection + Ritual – Rev. Elizabeth Nguyen

Invitation to Offertory Gift- Rev. Daniel Lawlor

THANK YOU! You sustain our ministry- and invest in growing circles of support!

There are several ways to give to UU Ministry for Earth:

• You can donate directly on our website.
• Mail a check to UU Ministry for Earth, 1034 SW 13th Ave, Portland, OR 97205
• Our Tax ID is #: 02 – 0530982

Instrumental Music – Robbie Pate

Closing Benediction-  Rev. Elizabeth Nguyen

Closing:  Love Will Guide Us,  #131 Singing the Living Tradition, offered by Robbie Pate 

Postlude: Instrumental