Wisdom

"Forgiveness is Giving Up the Possibility of a Better Past". - Unknown.

Buddhism

In Buddhism, forgiveness is seen as a practice to prevent harmful thoughts from causing havoc on one’s mental well-being.^[3] Buddhism recognizes that feelings of hatred and ill-will leave a lasting effect on our mind karma. Instead, Buddhism encourages the cultivation of thoughts that leave a wholesome effect. "In contemplating the law of karma, we realize that it is not a matter of seeking revenge but of practicing metta and forgiveness, for the victimizer is, truly, the most unfortunate of all.

Christianity

The Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christian Churches teach that God's forgiveness is received through personal repentance in conjunction with the ministry of the Church, that is, the Body of Christ. In these churches, and in some Anglican communities it is customary to make formal confession of sins individually in the presence of a priest, and to obtain absolution as a formal expression by the church of God's forgiveness.

Hinduism

The concept of performing atonement from one's wrongdoing (Prayaschitta — Sanskrit: Penance), and asking for forgiveness is very much a part of the practice of Hinduism. Prayashitta is related to the law of Karma. Karma is a sum of all that an individual has done, is currently doing and will do. The effects of those deeds and these deeds actively create present and future experiences, thus making one responsible for one's own life, and the pain in others.

Islam

Islam teaches that God (Allah in Arabic) is 'the most forgiving', and is the original source of all forgiveness. Forgiveness often requires the repentance of those being forgiven. Depending on the type of wrong committed, forgiveness can come either directly from Allah, or from one's fellow man whom received the wrong. In the case of divine forgiveness, the asking for divine forgiveness via repentance is important. In the case of human forgiveness, it is important to both forgive, and to be forgiven.

Judaism

In Judaism, if a person harms one, but then sincerely and honestly apologizes to the wronged individual and tries to rectify the wrong, the wronged individual is religiously required to grant forgiveness:

• "It is forbidden to be obdurate and not allow yourself to be appeased. On the contrary, one should be easily pacified and find it difficult to become angry. When asked by an offender for forgiveness, one should forgive with a sincere mind and a willing spirit. . . forgiveness is natural to the seed of Israel." (Mishneh Torah, Teshuvah 2:10)

Popular recognition of forgiveness

The need to forgive is widely recognized by the public, but they are often at a loss for ways to accomplish it. For example, in a large representative sampling of American people on various religious topics in 1988, the Gallup Organization found that 94% said it was important to forgive, but 85% said they needed some outside help to be able to forgive. However, not even regular prayer was found to be effective. The Gallup poll revealed that the only thing that was effective was "meditative prayer".

Psychological theories about forgiveness

Only in the last few decades has forgiveness received attention from psychologists and social psychologists. Psychological papers and books on the subject did not begin to appear until the 1980’s. Prior to that time it was a practice primarily left to matters of faith. Although there is presently no consensual psychological definition of forgiveness in the research literature, a consensus has emerged that forgiveness is a process and a number of models describing the process of forgiveness have been published, including one from a radical behavioral perspective.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forgiveness

"I think I already understand about life: pretty good, some problems" - Sam Lamott, at age seven.

Service Time

Worship services are held every Sunday morning in the church sanctuary—visitors are always welcome! From September through June there are two services each week, at 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.; from mid-June through Labor Day we offer a single service each Sunday, at 10:00 a.m. Worship services vary a bit from week to week, but they almost always include readings, a meditation, and a sermon, as well as a variety of live music, and frequently a story for all ages.

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Plan to join us after each service for coffee hour, downstairs in Emerson Hall. In addition to coffee and snacks, there are always opportunities to learn more about our church and Unitarian Universalism, and to meet church members and friends.

"If you want to be a person of great spirit, you can't do life alone. If spirituality matters to you, you can't do spirituality alone, either. To really grow as a human being you need other people." -- Daniel Homan OSB "Radial Hospitality"

This story spoken by our ministers, Tricia Hart & Peter Newport, with the help from our choir.

Anne Lamott is the author of six novels including, Hard Laughter, Rosie, Joe Jones, All New People, and Crooked Little Heart (the sequel to Rosie), as well as four best-selling books of non-fiction, Operating Instructions, an account of life as a single mother during her son’s first year and Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life, a guide to writing and the challenges of a writer’s life, Traveling Mercies, a collection of autobiographical essays on faith, and Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith.

She has been honored with a Guggenheim Fellowship, and has taught at U.C. Davis, as well as at writing conferences across the country. Lamott’s biweekly Salon Magazine “online diary” Word by Word was voted The Best of the Web by Time magazine. Filmmaker Freida Mock (who won an Academy Award for her documentary on Maya Lin) has made a documentary on Lamott, entitled “Bird by Bird with Annie” (1999). Anne Lamott’s most recent essay collection is entitled Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith (March 2007).

http://www.amazon.com/Traveling-Mercies-Some-Thoughts-Faith/dp/0385496095/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1220921881&sr=8-1

You'll need to hear these readings prior to hearing the sermon.

Rev. Duane Fickeisen of The Unitarian Universalists of the Cumberland Valley.

The world as it should be is rooted in truth, love, and community.

In the world as it should be, the voice of conscience is heard.

In the world as it should be, people act according to the values of their faith.

In the world as it should be, fairness and mutuality reign.

The world as it should be is God's dream engaging the nightmare that the world has become."

-- Deniis A. Jacobson

"We Can Always Find Common Good"

The fact is that no matter how many reasons we can find to disagree with, or even dislike others, if we're patient and willing, we can always find common ground - Jason Black

P/S - "Where the Hell is Matt"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlfKdbWwruY

He is funny, you'll enjoy this YouTube video.