Sunday, March 31 ~ 11:00 am (In person and on Zoom)
Sunday’s very special service features David Conte’s Invocation and Dance, a reflective and resplendent celebration of death and life, featuring the poetry of Walt Whitman, and scored for choir, 4-hand piano, xylophone, vibraphone, and glockenspiel. Other highlights include Rev. Kim and Rev. Beth in the pulpit together, a visit from the Easter bunny, and Mark David Buckles and the Arlington Street Choir leading us in our favorite Easter hymns.
In Person: The sanctuary is mask-optional. Please click here for more on our latest COVID safety protocols.
On Zoom: For those who would like to participate in Sunday Worship on Zoom, please meet us in the Arlington Street Zoom Room! Join with video at tinyurl.com/ASCZoom or participate by phone by dialing (929) 436-2866. For either option, the meeting ID is 895 886 6876.
Saturday, May 4 ~ 6:00–9:00 pm
On Saturday night, May 4th, you are invited to our big, sparkly gala — delicious food, signature cocktails and mocktails, jazz, fabulous auction items, and dancing with a live DJ! We’ll be celebrating Rev. Kim’s 35 years of ministry: It’s going to be wonderful! Get your tickets now at https://givebutter.com/c/ASCgala. Please come!
Join the Arlington Street Zoom Room
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Service coming soon
Fill the
Virtual Collection Plate
Submit Candles of Joy &
Sorrow
Watch Past Sermons and Full Services
A Personal Reflection from John O'Connor
offered on Sunday morning, February 11th, 2024
For the past 34 years, Arlington Street
has been my spiritual home. In stormy
times, it has been a place of shelter. I
remember in 1990, standing at this very
podium, offering my very first candle. I was
shaking with rage. A group of us had just
attended an AIDS fundraiser in the South
End when were attacked by a gang,
wielding broken bottles and bats, screaming
anti-gay slurs. Several ended up in the
hospital with serious injuries. And so I, a
young lawyer, ended up as a witness in a
Federal Hate Crimes trial. And Arlington
Street was my support.
Arlington Street has also been a
community of joy and celebration. I never
expected I’d be a bride in a traditional
church wedding . . . well, sort of traditional!
And Arlington Street has been a
community of learning, where I have been
challenged to become the best possible
version of myself. Whoever would have
thought that the angry young lawyer who
came up to this pulpit 34 years ago would
later decide to go to Divinity School to study
for the ministry?
For those of you new to Arlington Street,
stick around . . . There’s magic in this place.
Every Monday ~ 12:00 pm (Zoom)
Led by Rev. Kim
Come for a half hour of Mettā (lovingkindness meditation), sending lovingkindness to ourselves and to the world. No meditation experience necessary. Bring your open heart!
Join with video at tinyurl.com/ASCZoom or participate by phone by dialing
(929) 436-2866. For either option, the meeting ID is 895 886 6876.
Poems to Go On
Every Monday ~ 4:00 pm (Zoom)
Led by Rev. Kim
"You can use a poem the next time your life threatens to become too crowded or too empty, or too anything, to give you some feeling of order or companionship. A spell against 'chaos and old night.' I hope some of these will do you some good." ~ Vermont poet James Hayford Please come whether or not you think you like poetry! Feel free just to listen or bring a favorite poem. We'll have the opportunity to read aloud and share what these poems mean to us. All are welcome! Join with video at tinyurl.com/ASCZoom or participate by phone by dialing (929) 436-2866. For either option, the meeting ID is always 895 886 6876.
Please come whether or not you think you like poetry! Feel free just to listen or bring a favorite poem. We'll have the opportunity to read aloud and share what these poems mean to us. All are welcome!
Join with video at tinyurl.com/ASCZoom or participate by phone by dialing
(929) 436-2866. For either option, the meeting ID is 895 886 6876.
Buddha's Belly ~ The Buddhist Book Discussion
The 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month ~ 6:00 pm (Zoom)
Led by Rev. Kim
Are you curious about Buddhism? Buddha's Belly gatherings are an opportunity to read books by contemporary Buddhist teachers and discuss The Four Noble Truths, the Eightfold Path, the Four Heavenly Abodes, the Five Hindrances ... and to ask your burning questions about meditation (e.g., where do I put my legs?).
We're reading Jack Kornfield's A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life. For our gathering on April 9th, please read through Chapter 4, up to page 56.
Join with video at tinyurl.com/ASCZoom or participate by phone by dialing (929)436-2866. For either option, the meeting ID is always 895 886 6876.
Arlington Street Meditation Center
The 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month ~ 7:00 pm (Zoom)
Led by Rev. Kim
Our gathering includes seated meditation, a brief reading from Buddhist teachings, and conversation. Beginners and experienced meditators from all traditions (or none!) are warmly welcome. If you'd like to print out the words to the Mettā (Lovingkindness) phrases, which we repeat together at the close of the Arlington Street Meditation Center gathering, you'll find them here. If you don't, no worries; even if you don't know them as we begin, you'll know them by the time we finish!
Join with video at tinyurl.com/ASCZoom or participate by phone by dialing (929)436-2866. For either option, the meeting ID is always 895 886 6876.
Tea with the Ministers
Every Wednesday ~ 4:00 pm (Zoom)
Led by Rev. Kim and Rev. Beth
Make a cuppa, find a comfortable seat, and come take a civilized late afternoon break with your ministers and one another. Our next discussion prompt is “The New Orleans based band Cha Wa sings, “Music is my medicine.” What’s your medicine?” All are welcome!
Join with video at tinyurl.com/ASCZoom or participate by phone by dialing (929) 436-2866. For either option, the meeting ID is always 895 886 6876.
Kundalini Yoga Class
Every Wednesday ~ 6:00 pm (Zoom)
Led by Jean Ko Stewart
Experience fun exercises and poses, breathing techniques, chanting, meditation, and deep relaxation in this unique class. Moving energy through your body brings positive change and growth. There is a $10 charge that goes to the church. All are welcome!
Note: This class is NOT in the Arlington Street Zoom room. Please email Office@ASCBoston.org for Zoom access.
Arlington Street Writes! Hosted by Trisha Zembruski
Every Thursday ~ 5:00 pm (Zoom)
Led by Trisha Zembruski
Trisha invites you to the spiritual practice of writing inspired by Zen meditation, based on Natalie Goldberg's Writing Down the Bones. No writing experience necessary – all you need is paper, pen, and willingness! All are welcome!
Note: This meeting is NOT in the Arlington Street Zoom room. Join by video at tinyurl.com/ASCWrites.
The Wednesdays: Louise Glück
Wednesdays, March 27, April 10, April 24 12:30-2:00 pm ~ Arlington Street Zoom Room
Louise Glück won the Nobel prize for literature in 2020. Professor Alan Helms and Rev. Kim invite you to join us in exploring three of her most successful books: The Triumph of Achilles, Ararat, and The Wild Iris. She’s a poet of many talents, with a keen eye for nature (“Early summer: fog covers the mountains. / Under each tree, a doily of shade”); a hardscrabble philosophy (“Why love what you will lose? / There is nothing else to love”); and a telling way with metaphor (“The brave are patient. / They are the priests of sunrise”). In the first three gatherings, we’ll discuss those three books, in that order; the fourth will be devoted to readers' choice.
Our text: Louise Glück, Poems 1962-2012 (There are many used copies at Amazon, starting at $7.00).
Ordination of John O’Connor
Sunday, April 7 ~ 3:00 pm (In person and on Zoom)
Please join us to celebrate the ordination of our own John O'Connor on Sunday, April 7th at 3:00 pm! Clergy, seminarians, and religious educators are invited to gather at 2:30 to robe. The service will be followed by a reception. Please click here to RSVP for in-person attendance. To attend via Zoom, join with video at tinyurl.com/ASCZoom or participate by phone by dialing (929) 436-2866. For either option, the meeting ID is 895 886 6876.
Only A Child Annual Fundraiser
Sunday, April 14, 1:30 pm ~ American Legion, Newton
Only A Child will be hosting its annual spring fundraiser on Sunday, April 14 at 1:30 pm. This year’s event will be held at a new location - The American Legion Nonantum Post 440, located at 295 California St. in Newton MA. The hall has handicap access, including both a ramp and an elevator, to provide easy entrance to the event. This year's fundraiser will feature a luncheon buffet, with Guatemalan cuisin e, dessert, a raffle featuring prizes both Guatemalan and local to New England, and a presentation by Only A Child founder, Arlington Street’s own George Leger. Tickets can be purchased in advance or at the door and cost $35 for general admission or $25 for seniors and students. For more information, please visit www.onlyachild.org.
Discover a Secret Treasure: Come Ring the Steeple Bells!
Every Sunday morning ~ 10:30 am
Meet in the back of the sanctuary
Installed in 1860, the bells in the Arlington Street steeple were played until the United States entered WWII, after which they were neglected and nearly forgotten.
George Whitehouse didn't forget. Twenty years later, he and a friend restored the bells in secret. On Christmas Eve of 1961, people coming to services were surprised and delighted when "O Come, All Ye Faithful" rang out across the city, played on bells they didn't even know existed.
For many years now, the bells have largely been the domain of George (Master of the Bells) and Doc (Assistant to the Master of the Bells). They are pleased to announce the formation of the Arlington Street Bellringers Guild! Their aim is to foster a cadre of people they will train to become experienced bellringers and who will learn to do small repairs.
To ring the bells, you need to be able to climb three flights of steep stairs, be possessed of an elementary sense of rhythm, and be available a half hour before some Sunday services.
At 10:30 on any Sunday morning, please meet Doc at the foot of the staircase to the left as you enter the sanctuary so you can climb up into the belltower all together! Questions? Contact Doc at kinnerc@gmail.com.
Flowers on the High Pulpit
Would you like to make a gift of flowers for the entire congregation to enjoy on a Sunday morning? You can make your dedication in memory, in honor, or in celebration of someone or something you love. You can have flowers delivered orbring your own (a minimum of two dozen flowers is perfect for our huge space). Please email office@ASCBoston.org, to claim your date! Thank you!
Letter from Kim
Dearly Beloved,
Happy spring! Director of Music Mark David Buckles; collaborative pianist Hyunju Jung; soprano Hannah Shanefield; Hannah’s partner, double bassist Christopher Hernandez; Jazz Artist in Residence Joe Della Penna; and I have thoroughly enjoyed collaborating to bring you this Sunday’s service in celebration of Purim, the joyful holiday celebrating the great biblical hero, Esther!
My colleague Elie Weinstock, president of the New York Board of Rabbis, explains that the theology scaffolding this holiday is the teaching that “the physical world … simply [masks the hand of G*d] in everything; [the spiritual work is] to see behind the mask to the hidden face, symbolizing the ‘hidden face' of G*d.” Though many Unitarian Universalists wouldn’t use that language, we can certainly engage the possibility that there is mystery everywhere; sometimes, we’re in the right place at the right time to tap into it — and even, to bring the magic! My sermon — lifted from the most famous line in the Book of Esther — is called For Such a Time as This.
*
And a reminder: No one seems to know where we came up with the expression “to put on the dog,” and no one seems to be able to explain just how the date for Easter is determined (hint: it’s not just the Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox; it involves a computus — a medieval set of tables for calculating astronomical events and movable dates), but both are going to happen at Arlington Street on Sunday, March 31st: We’ll be putting on the dog for Easter!
Faithfully yours, with love,
Kim
To read Rev. Kim’s pastoral letters to the congregation, please click here.
Our Shared Responsibility During the Global Pandemic
Friends, these are extraordinary times that call for extraordinary generosity. Many
income-generating events and rentals have had to be cancelled or postponed, putting a huge strain on the
Arlington Street budget. Our ministers and staff are continuing to work; our goal is to continue to pay them.
Please help sustain the church by making a special online gift or by texting GIVE to (617) 300-0509. Also, please consider setting up automatic payments via bank
transfer or credit card to pay your pledge. Our treasurer, Liz Teixeira, (treasurer@ascboston.org) would be happy and grateful to assist you
with this process! Together though apart, we can thrive! Thank you for your steadfastness and support!
If you are new to Unitarian Universalism,
“Voices of a Liberal Faith — Unitarian Universalists”
is a great introduction. Click here to watch
this ten minute video!
Please consider making a secure
donation to further the work of Arlington Street Church in the world.
Thank you for your support!
Join us this Sunday in person or on Zoom. Senior Minister, Rev. Kim K. Crawford Harvie's sermon is "For Such a Time as This." All are welcome!
Candles can be submitted online by Arlington Street Church members and friends and will be included in our weekly Candles of Sorrow & Joy ritual during the Sunday morning worship service.
Click here to fill out an online Candle Card.
Give and Take Read Watch [March 5, 2023]
The Light’s Bounty on Familiar Things Read Watch [December 11, 2022]
Enlightenment to Follow Read Watch [December 4, 2022]
Enjoy recordings of past services and sermons by visiting our podcast, YouTube channel, and Worship Archives.
Click to open in iTunes.
These podcasts are made possible by the generosity of the congregation of Arlington Street Church.
Welcome to AmazonSmile!
Thank you for supporting Arlington Street Church! If you're shopping on Amazon, always start at smile.amazon.com, type in Arlington Street Church, and Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases! Thank you!
Welcome to Arlington Street Church, gathered in love and service for justice and peace. We're so glad you found us! Unitarian Universalists believe that personal experience, conscience, and reason are the final authorities in religion. Instead of subscribing to a single religious creed or doctrine, we keep an open mind to the religious questions people have struggled with in all times and places, and we honor a diversity of answers. Join us! All are welcome!
Virtual Tour Now! Take this
360° virtual tour of our sanctuary and chapel.
Get Married! We have beautiful settings for weddings and commitment ceremonies, and conveniently located space for meetings and events for reasonable fees!
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Thanks to our wonderful friends across the river at First Parish in Cambridge (Unitarian Universalist) for
sharing their Covenant of Right Relations with us! With the guidance of our Transformation Team for
Racial Justice, we're beginning to consider how to make it our own. Click here to read.Your
insights are welcome! Please email Transformation@ASCBoston.org.