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As we continually hear distressing stories of violence and oppression from around the world, we may benefit from reminding ourselves of times and places when human beings did organize themselves into durable just societies. In this talk Dr. Reimers will discuss some of these times and places: from the world's first cities in 4000 BCE, to the Indus Valley civilization, widely revered as the most advanced society of 2000 BCE, to the small democratic city states in Central America, which held off the encroachments of the Aztec empire for centuries, to the peaceful coexistence among Christians, Jews and Muslims in 12th-century Andalusia, which lit the spark for the European Renaissance a century later. Dr. Reimers will discuss what principles and strategies they used to organize their societies, how they ended, and how their experience may inform our ideas of justice today.
Dr. Mark Reimers is a quantitative neuroscientist who has worked at the National Institutes of Health, the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, and Michigan State University. He was the leader of the Richmond Humanists in Virginia and UU forum in Lansing Michigan. He has lectured on a wide variety of scientific, humanist, religious, and behavioral subjects.
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Third Saturday Worship Service
"The Enlightenment Values of Freedom, Reason, Tolerance; Advancing the Human Condition Materially and Spiritually; Our Core Strengths"
Date: Saturday, January 18th
Time: 10 AM Pacific Time / 1 PM ET
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January's monthly worship service will focus on the Enlightenment Values of Freedom, Reason and Tolerance, the very same values that were adopted by the NAUA and that stand at the core of Western liberal tradition. The full service title is: "The Enlightenment Values of Freedom, Reason, Tolerance; Advancing the Human Condition Materially and Spiritually; Our Core Strengths." The worship team will make this a group effort. Join in exploring and honoring the primary core values of our liberal faith.
The service will take place on Saturday, January 18th at 10 AM Pacific Time / 1 PM ET. We always have a lively breakout room discussion after the service, where you can meet both new and long time friends.
A suggestion is to cut and paste the Zoom link below (that will be used for this and other recurring 3rd Sat. services), into your calendar to avoid scrambling to find the address on Saturday!
From our website (https://naunitarians.org): "North American Unitarian Association is a member service organization dedicated to supporting and promoting the practice of liberal religion by embracing freedom, reason, and tolerance—rooted in our commitment to the inherent worth and dignity of every person and all peoples."
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January NAUA
Book Club Meeting
Date: Thursday, January 23rd
Time: 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM
Pacific Time
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A friendly gathering on the last Thursday of each month. All are welcome. Starts at 7:30 PM (EDT) 4:30 PM (PDT).
This month features a discussion of Cosmic Sage: Imaoka Shin'ichirō, Prophet of Free Religion by George Williams. The topic of the book is the Unitarian Universalist movement in Japan.
"Cosmic Sage attempts to weave together Imaoka Shin’ichirō’s life story and his message. It will reveal the spiritual pilgrimage of a Bodhisattva-Kami-Christian-Unitarian-sage, the Emerson of Japan. Each chapter will provide a setting from which Imaoka's thought and insights can be understood. However, his thought and their expressions were never put together in extended studies or systematically developed. Metaphor, paradox and wordplay merit him being compared with Emerson. This book has been written to explore his influence on liberating religious traditions of Japan, to probe the paradoxes in having multiple religious identities, to follow the faith journey of a 'student of life.' Each segment of his life was 'like a school, a place of learning with its time for graduation,' as Imaoka-sensei would say. Each graduation was to be valued as it had contributed to one’s life and growth."
If you are interested in attending please email Ed Hudak (bookclub@naunitarians.org).
Date: Thursday, January 23rd, 2025
Time: 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM Pacific Time
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Monthly Ministers' Support Group
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On the fourth Thursday of each month, a week earlier this month due to Christmas holiday) NAUA ministers and ministerial friends attend a regular meeting meant to foster support, collegiality, and learning. Periodically, there are also longer ministerial gatherings that include unique programs and professional development. It is important that members of this group maintain confidentiality and anonymity. If you are a Minister and would like to explore or join this group, please email president@naunitarians.org.
Date: Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025
Time: 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM Pacific Time, (1:00-2:00 PM Eastern Time).
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How to Become a Member of the NAUA
The Membership Team has been getting inquiries lately about how to become an official member of the NAUA. Some folks who have been receiving our electronic publications and attending our numerous events assumed they were already Members, but you aren’t considered a Member of the NAUA until you fill out the online Membership form. This form is accessible from our Main Menu under the Membership tab. Just click on Join Us and then enter a few personal identifiers. Be sure to use the same email address you received this email with while filling out the form to prevent the creation of a duplicate contact record. There is no harm in rejoining as a member if you are already a member, so if in doubt, just go ahead and join us.
Our only membership requirement is to check the box that says “I agree to join the NAUA in good faith with a sincere interest to support its Mission”. We do occasionally make the contact info of members available to other members who are looking to connect with members in the same geographic area. If you do not want your contact info shared for such purposes, check on the “Do Not Share” box at the bottom of the form.
That’s all it takes to become a member! Membership is required to vote at our Annual Meeting and to receive correspondence for members only. At some point we may require a minimal contribution in order to verify the identity of our members for voting purposes, but at this point, your contributions are welcome but not required.
Follow NAUA on Social Media
In addition to all latest NAUA news, program information in Liberal Beacon, and our online video archive of past events (available at www.naunitarians.org), we are now posting “news” items to a variety of sources, including Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/ If you have news items you think might be of interest to other Unitarians, please share it (along with a photo, if possible) to web@naunitarians.org
Contact Us:
Many NAUA volunteers and board members are pleased to talk to you over the phone or correspond via email.
However, for privacy reasons we do not publicize private emails or phone numbers on this website. Please send your email to the following address with an appropriate subject header and we will respond: info@naunitarians.org.
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