Jacob Remembered; Undodiaid Cymru The Welsh Unitarian contingent at the annual Unitarian and Free Christian General Assembly meetings presented a tribute to the abundantly talented and richly blessed Minister Rev’d. D Jacob Davies whose centenary year this is. Wales has made a huge contribution to Unitarianism and Davies was rightly proud of his place in … Continue reading General Assembly report – Rev’d. Jacob Davies

In the early 90’s high in the mountains of Southern Mexico a self defence movement was formed by the Indigenous Mayan Indians. They were under attack from Government and corporate forces which sought to drive them from their ancestral lands. Their motto became ‘Ya Basta’ - Enough. After a few years of one sided skirmishes … Continue reading Palm Sunday; Ya Basta! A poetics of resistance.

I saw on a tv programme a young woman being interviewed for a role in the customer services arm of a large corporation. She said I’m passionate about customer services interface. I wondered how we have come to a place in our culture where language can depart so decisively from its meaning? I suppose what … Continue reading An Affirming Flame – Sermon for Passion Sunday

Mothering Sunday may be a major revenue source for card manufacturers and flower arrangers but the custom has a curious history. Some have pointed out that the reading given for the fourth Sunday in Lent in the book of common prayer is Galatians 4.26 But Jerusalem which is above, is free, which is the mother … Continue reading Freedom is the mother of us all

Whether we address a personal God, a divine presence or entity, or if we are more agnostic and less literal and simply acknowledge that there is something ultimate and central to us which we can access through reflection and contemplation, our prayer life is that which speaks most clearly of faith - this is one … Continue reading Addressing Prayer (3rd Lent)

Did everyone remember to mark one of our most pious and crucial holy days Pancake day on Tuesday? On Wednesday we entered Lent. Here at chapel it was a rather sombre day as we marked the untimely passing of a lovely local man, just a lad really thirty six years old. But its a rather … Continue reading Service Feb 14th (first Lent)

We began our service today with a line from the Hebrew Scriptures the second line of the book of Genesis. Genesis 'Bereshith' in Hebrew means in the beginning, at the head or the start, and in the beginning of The beginning we read: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Now the … Continue reading Wringing in the Year – a New Year’s sermon

Over the month of November we ‘ve been looking at the idea of transcendence in religion and Transcendentalism in our own tradition. The notion that God crosses boundaries and is perceptible throughout creation led Transcendentalists like John James Taylor, one time minister of Mill Hill, and his more famous contemporaries like Emerson and Wordsworth to … Continue reading 1st Advent

We heard Bernard O Donoghue’s poem Westering Home, (read it here) the story of the poet driving home to Ireland through Wales and how he senses that Ireland becomes present the further west you go: “driving west through Wales Things start to feel like Ireland…” but its not the chapels or the buzzards, not the … Continue reading Neither here nor there

what a long gap - between Whitsun and September, no design in this, just too busy to fulfil my intention to make available each week the message/address or sermon of that Sunday morning service. Well, I'll begin again... with this post from the service on Sunday 30th Sept. Our reading this morning was a poem … Continue reading A kind of return