News: October 17, 2025
Last Saturday’s installation service was an incredible affirmation of our shared ministry. Along with many First Unitarian Universalist members and friends, we were joined by many community leaders including the new President of Rothko Chapel, the Chair of Rice University’s Department of Religion, members of S.H.A.P.E.’s Council of Elders, and staff from The Metropolitan Organization. Judge Hidalgo’s office even came by with a proclamation to celebrate the event and declare September 27, 2025 as Reverend Dr. Colin Bossen Day! And while the introvert in me was a bit overwhelmed, all the support was an outpouring of love and I’m very grateful.
It was also wonderful to see so many friends and family in from out of town. If you’ve not seen the service itself, I recommend viewing it (insert link). The same goes with Rev. Dr. Marlin Lavanhar’s powerful Sunday sermon (insert link). Thanks again to everyone who planned and participated in the many celebrations and events last weekend.
This marks a new phase of our ministry together. While the congregation called me last October and my contract as settled minister started January 1st, the installation service set us forth on the path we hope to travel together in the next years. Now, fortified by the strength of our relationships to each other and our shared future, we can love, fight, and pray alongside the wider Houston community and continue to celebrate the beauty of the world.
Even with all the celebration and the new phase of our relationship, I know that the challenges of the summer continue to have an impact. If you are still processing events from this past summer, I hope that you will take part in the healing circles scheduled for October 5th and 20th. Participating in the circles is a way that we can honor that impact while continuing to move forward together.
Over the course of the coming month, we will be doing what we can to live into this mission of widening love’s circle and exploring what it means be a dissenting religious tradition. This coming Sunday I’ll be leading a service title “Is There No Holy Land” reflecting on the second anniversary of the October 7th massacre and the start of the most recent war on Gaza. On October 12th, I’ll be giving the next sermon in our series on religious dissent titled “Paradise, Now or in the Next World?” In this service, we will explore our theological roots amongst those who opposed the alliance between Christianity and reactionary politics that began in the 4th century CE. On the 19th, our intern Nina will lead a worship on “Bearing Grief, Breathing Liberation.” In it she will focus on exploring how, in a time where human activity is decisively and harmfully reshaping our shared ecosystems, we can turn to our rituals to strengthen us as we lead and love through change. Finally, at the end of the month, I will offer reflections on “Radical Family Values: Dissent as an Intergenerational Practice.” I hope to see you at our Sunday worship services!
And please join us for some of the many workshops and programs that we will be hosting throughout the month. A few highlights: Texas Impact is hosting two events on voter justice (October 5th and 12th); we are again building an ofrenda in advance of Dia de los Muertos (October 12th); and are honored to host the acclaimed artists and activists Charlotte Hill O’Neal (October 19th) and Julia Alekseyeva (October 26th).
As always, it is a great time to be part of the First Unitarian Universalist community.
