Unitarian Universalist Church of Reading

06/10/2026

Click here to learn more about how to help: https://www.uusc.org/action/pride-in-action/

This Pride Month, put your values into action.

The UUSC: Unitarian Universalist Service Committee the UUA, and Trans Religious professional UUs Together (TRUUsT) are inviting people and congregations to submit public comments opposing a proposed HUD rule that would make federally funded shelters less safe for transgender, nonbinary, two-spirit, and intersex people.

Every unique comment helps build the case for protecting access to safe shelter and housing with dignity. You can also host a Coffee and Comments event with your congregation or community using the campaign's downloadable guide and resources.

Learn more about the proposed rule, why it matters, and how to participate at the link in comments.

Public comments close Monday, June 28.

06/08/2026

We are excited to announce that UUCR will be a host for this year's Reading Porchfest. Stop by and listen to UUCR members Bob Cook, Jeremy Wahlman-Krogh, and Rose McAuley perform with their band, Scratch! They will be playing from noon until 2pm on Saturday, June 27th!

Thank you, Reading PorchFest for organizing this great community event again this year! We look forward to being a part of it.

06/06/2026

Don’t miss our last Sunday with our monthly guest minister, Rev. Fred Small! This week he will lead a service entitled “In Defense of Hope.”

With escalating threats of violence, authoritarianism, and ecological and social breakdown, some argue that hope has become a harmful distraction — “hopium,” they call it. But the more we are tempted by despair, the more we need hope to sustain us through hard times.

The UUCR Choir will be singing two anthems this week. The anthems will feature the entire choir and the poetry of Robert Frost. The titles are “Choose Something Like a Star” by Randall Thompson and “Come In” by local composer Andy Campbell.

As the church year comes to a close, we would like to invite you to reach out to our Music Director, Dr. Bonnie Anderson, if you are interested in joining the choir next year or playing a solo, duet or trio!

There are no religious ed classes for the remaining two weeks of the church year, but Free Play will be available in Sawyer and children are always invited to stay in the sanctuary with their families during service.

Join us after service for Town Tables, a fun opportunity to connect with UUCR members who live in your community, discover local favorites, and explore ways to build neighborhood connections beyond Sunday mornings.

06/06/2026

The 6th Annual Reading Pride Parade and Celebration is TODAY! 🌈

Hosted by Reading’s POP Huddle and made possible with a grant from the Reading Cultural Council, the event kicks off at 3:00pm at the Town Common.

Come show our pride, love and support for our LGBTQ+ neighbors and friends... there are lots of fun activities planned for the day!

Community Invited to Volunteer, Sign Support Letter, and Join Pride Sign-Making Party Ahead of Annual Event Reading, MA — It’s time to mark your calendars for the 6th annual Reading Pride […]

06/04/2026

So much beauty in bloom on our church campus lately. A gentle reminder to pause and appreciate what is growing around us🌸

06/01/2026

Happy Pride Month! 🌈

This beautiful piece by Hannah Roberts Villnave reminds us that Pride has always been both a protest and a party. It is a time to honor those who came before us, celebrate who we are and recommit ourselves to the work of love and justice.

We invite you to take a moment to read, reflect, and carry its message with you this month:

A Protest and a Party

People sometimes ask:
Is Pride a protest
Or a party?

And the answer is
Of course
Yes.

And why not?

Why not
Rejoice as we resist
Dance as we demand change
Celebrate as we create community that delights in
All of who we are?

So bring all of that
With you this morning.

Bring your policy demands
Bring your glitter
Bring your supreme court broken heart
Bring your rainbow socks
Bring the emptiness you feel
For our siblings gone too soon.

Bring your Gloria Estefan remix
Bring your tender hope for change
Bring your most garish eyeshadow
Bring your spirit, tattered and battered
By a world that seems insistent on
Choosing fear and hate.

Gather up all these things
And bring them here
To a place where we don’t
Have to shoulder these burdens
Or celebrate these joys
Alone.

Come, let us worship
Together.

By Hannah Roberts Villnave

06/01/2026

This year’s Ware Lecture at General Assembly will feature The Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde — Episcopal Bishop of Washington, D.C., and a nationally recognized voice for compassion, justice, and human dignity.

From speaking out in defense of immigrants and trans children to joining multifaith clergy resisting violence and fear, Bishop Budde’s ministry continues to speak powerfully to this moment. We are honored to welcome her as the 2026 Ware Lecturer.

Join us Saturday, June 20 at 8:00 p.m. EDT as UUs gather online and in person for one of the signature events of GA 2026.

The Ware Lecture is available exclusively to registered GA attendees and is not open to the public.

Read more in UU World and register for GA 2026 at the link in the comments.

05/31/2026

This morning, our semi-annual Congregational Meeting was held. Our democratic process is part of what gives our faith its identity, and we appreciate all the members and friends who joined us for this important expression of self-governance in action.

We were also delighted to welcome a very special guest - our new full-time minister, Rev. Laurel Gray. Together we celebrated a unique year of tremendous growth and looked ahead to a new year filled with possibility and hope.

And, of course, there was cake! 🎂

05/31/2026

It has never been easy to be a person of progressive faith, especially in a time when Christian Nationalist ideas are so pervasive and religious practice can be manipulated in service to power and greed. Even in these painful times, let us remain steadfast in our Unitarian Universalist identity, confident in our knowing that our covenantal faith and practices, grounded in shared values, offer so much of what is needed to minister to this beautiful and struggling world.

As a people of a freely chosen faith centered on love, what spiritual teachings keep us grounded in the work? What comforts us in times of struggle? What moves us to make room for others’ perspectives and experiences in our own understandings of life? Treasure those resources. Celebrate them for the spiritual development that they offer. Above all else, share them with each other, for we become more than we were when we journey together.