Wednesday Evening Service

Peace rarely arrives as a single grand event. More my be built from small choices we make in how we listen, how we speak, and how we hold space for one another. This July, five voices from our community offer their own way into that practice, each bringing a different instrument to the symphony. We open the month with Discovering Your Peaceful Voice on July 1, with Dr. Edward Viljoen. Some obstacles to peaceful communication hide in plain sight, disguised as ordinary habits. This talk traces one path toward noticing them, and toward the voice that waits underneath. On July 8, Rev. Siota Belle leads us into Drumming To a Different Beat . There's a rhythm to peace that doesn't always match the pace the world moves at. This gathering explores what it means to find our own tempo, and to trust it even when it differs from the beat around us. July 15 brings Practicing Your Peace with Rev. Russ Legear. Peace as an idea can sound lovely. Peace as a daily practice asks something mo...

Have you ever walked away from a conversation wishing you could have those last five minutes back? Something small happened. A sentence was interrupted. An opinion arrived too quickly. A well-intentioned suggestion given before understanding had a chance to grow. Most of us don't set out to communicate that way. Yet it slips in. Peaceful communication might begin earlier than the words we choose. It might start in the space before we speak. This evening we'll explore a simple shift that has changed the way I listen, respond, and connect with others. It starts with something ordinary, something so familiar it often goes unnoticed. Yet it holds the power to change the quality of conversations at home, at work, and within ourselves. If you've been longing for a little more ease in your relationships, or a quieter way of moving through the world, this evening's gathering may offer something worthwhile. We'll also enjoy fresh baked bread, tea, beautiful music, and the wa...

Summer at the Center is moving. Two more Wednesdays in June bring us close to the heart of what this season holds, and July opens a theme that will carry us all the way to August. Finishing June On June 17, Lawrence Edwards, RScP, leads us into one of the most honest questions a person can ask: What Do I Do With the Mad That I Feel? Anger is rarely welcomed in spiritual community, yet it asks to be met thoughtfully. Lawrence brings his practitioner's sensibility to a feeling that deserves more than suppression. This is also our special Summer Solstice / Juneteenth Potluck, so come early, bring something to share, and stay for community. On June 24, Rev. Siota Belle offers The Gifts of Grief. Grief does not only arrive with loss. It also arrives with change, with love, with transition. Siota's gift is creating space where the full range of feeling is welcomed. July: How To Be An Instrument for Peace July's series takes its inspiration from a question worth sitting with: what...

  Emotions are a big part of being human. They're with us before we can even speak. Their power is that they can communicate in ways that often transcend words. There's no ambiguity in the joyful smile of a baby, nor in the tears that often accompany sadness and loss.  This is the idea we are going to explore in June: that when we build a strong, compassionate relationship with all of our emotions, we deepen our experience of life and equip ourselves to walk confidently along life's path. And the best part is that when we learn to love all our emotions, we can learn how to direct them as fuel to accelerate our spiritual practice.  Join me at 7 pm at the Center tonight. We're going to get emotional! -Russ

  When I was a kid I was in love with attics. They were these secret places that held within them such treasures. That may be why I loved going to the antique store with my grandma so much--to me, it was just a big attic where everything was for sale.  I've noticed that my mind can be that way. Sometimes, things get placed in my mind and end up in the attic, often forgotten. Except, in this case, these are thoughts and ideas and beliefs. If I lose track of them, just like I would lose track of things stored in an attic, that can cause me problems. But I've learned there are ways to explore the attic of my mind so I can rediscover the treasures it holds.  Join me for our Wednesday Evening Service tonight where I'll talk all about the attic of the mind, and how we can open it up to go on our own mental antiquing adventure.  See you soon! -Russ

People tend to think of human nature as something fixed and a little suspect, something to overcome or manage. That may be too small a container for everything human nature is and can be. This Wednesday evening, Rev. Russ Legear takes up the question of what we actually are when we are most fully ourselves. It is a topic that opens onto everything: how we relate, how we grow, how we understand the impulse toward something greater that seems to be part of the human package. Wednesday evenings at the Center are an intimate gathering. We sing. We reflect. We share tea, snacks, and bread fresh from the oven. There is no formality here, only good company and the kind of conversation that stays with you. Wednesday, April 22 at 7:00 PM Center for Spiritual Living, Santa Rosa