A Rare Book A collector of rare books ran into an acquaintance who told him he had just thrown away an old Bible that he found in a dusty, old box. He happened to mention that Guten-somebody-or-other had printed it.“Not Gutenberg?” Gasped the collector.“Yes, that was it!”“You idiot! You’ve thrown away one of the first books ever printed. A copy recently sold…
Isaac Asimov, the renowned scientist, author, and humanist, has written a wonderful book called Isaac Asimov’s Guide to the Bible, an excellent resource for liberal thinkers. He describes a cartoon, showing a globe, blue, and green, poised in the middle of space. On the globe is portrayed a prominent tree, a bright red apple and around the trunk of this tree is…
A very rich and wicked old miser was dying. He seemed so worried that his family asked the pastor to come and comfort him.I wouldn’t mind dying so much, the old man said, if I could take my money with me and keep it safe.Don’t worry about that, the preacher came back. It would all be burned up anyway. In Texas some…
Happy New Year; may it be better than last year! Indeed maybe we should just ask fir it to be different than last year! Here’s a word about medical progress PROGRESS! 2000 B.C. – Here, eat this root1000 A.D. – That root is heathen. Here, say this prayer.1850 A.D. – That prayer is superstition. Here, drink this potion.1940 A.D. – That potion…
Opening WordsChristmas Childrenby Edward Frost I suspect that the Christmas Spirit is Memory–Personal, yet universal,Shared collections of shards of other daysPieced together in this season by common consent,making the otherwise commercial venture religious,Communal,making it Holy as,by Memory we are re-created,Born again.So the bittersweet of this time,Since Memory and that recalled are, at best,Mixed blessings.I sit before our Christmas treeWith years of former…
Second reading: “O Simplicitas” by Madeleine L’Engle; hymn — “What Child Is This” An angel came to meAnd I was unpreparedTo be what God was using.Mother was I to be.A moment I despaired,Thought briefly of refusing.The angel knew I heard.According to God’s WordI bowed to this strange choosing. A palace should have beenThe birthplace of a king(I had no way of knowing).We…
It seemed appropriate to use our favorite UU folksinger, Pete Seeger’s adaptation of Ecclesiastes in his song, ‘Turn, Turn, Turn.’: I always read from Ecclesiastes when I lead memorial services, and always point out something not usually addressed. But this passage ends with a question: ‘What gain has the worker from his or her toil?’ What is not usually included in funerals…
A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recent tournament victories. After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse. “But why,” they asked, as they moved off. “Because”, he said, “I can’t stand chess-nuts boasting in an open foyer.” Two young boys were walking home…
There is a story told about a traditional minister and one of his children around Xmas. One of the minister’s children wrote a 12 page anonymous letter to Santa, and the father was upset about the obvious greed of his young daughter, so he took her into the living room and sat her down in front of the Nativity scene. He then…
A mother tells a story of Xmas stress. Preparing for a large Christmas Eve family gathering, she had been giving orders like a drill sergeant: ‘pick up your things! Don’t get your clothes dirty! Put away those toys.’ Her four year old daughter had been underfoot, so she sent her to the next room to play with the Nativity set. As she…