Speaker: Rev. Dr. Neal Jones

Neal joined Main Line Unitarian Church as Senior Minister on August 1, 2015.

A native of North Carolina, Neal earned his B.A. in political science from Wake Forest University, his M.Div. from Southeastern Theological Seminary, and his Psy.D. at Baylor University. He has served as the minister of a United Church of Christ and a Moravian church in North Carolina and of two UU congregations – the UU Fellowship of Waco, Texas, and the UU Congregation of Columbia, South Carolina. He was also the clinical psychologist of the Pastoral Counseling Center in Columbia.

Neal preaches and lives a practical spirituality that seeks personal wholeness, relational respect, social justice, and ecological responsibility.

Cracking Another Shell

Hatching is an apt metaphor for going through a transition, whether as an individual, a society., or a congregation. As you and I face our transition together, let’s take note of the traits needed for a successful hatching.

The Unitarians Won!

As reliable as Christmas itself, we once again hear accusations from the Religious Right of a “war on Christmas.” Fortunately, that war has been fought and won … by Unitarians!

What We Do Best

I will describe what I believe MLUC does best as a church (sorry, I won’t give it away beforehand).

Music: Keith Herron, Trumpet

The First Thanksgiving

The real history of the first Thanksgiving deviates sharply from the rosy image many of us grew up with. We’ll look at that history as realistically as possible, with an eye on what we can learn from this history lesson.

Music: Hope Linton, violin Wendy Schmid, … read more.

Thanksgiving

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All are invited to have a favorite bread (or other food you are grateful for) and beverage (apple cider, water, whatever you’re thankful for) on hand for this interactive, gratitude focused ritual service.

 

 

 

Moving Beyond Mourning

A sequel to last Sunday’s sermon, we will focus this time on healing from our grief. Mourning does not occur on a schedule; it proceeds at its own pace. However, there are some things we can do to facilitate our healing from loss.

Music: Domenic Salerni, … read more.

The Faces of Grief

My departure at the end of the year is eliciting grief in many of you and in myself. Throughout life, we encounter losses, and our grief is experienced and expressed in various ways. We’ll look at some of the faces grief wears.

Music: Michael and Theresa … read more.

The Politicizing of Shame

In this sequel to my prevous sermon, we’ll look at how shame is being weaponized in the public sphere. When we shame our opponents, we may win the battle, but we lose the war.

Music: Vincent Craig

Ain’t That a Shame

The Biblical story of Adam & Eve provides a lens to examine one of life’s most excruciating emotions. We’ll discuss shame’s origins, some of the fig leaves we use to cover it, and how to heal it.

 

Music: Meadowlark: Jansen Wendell, fiddle Elisa Lang, banjo, Donna … read more.