Rev. Alison Duren-Sutherland is Saltwater’s contract minister for the 2023-24 church year, operating in a hybrid/remote capacity from her home in Southern Oregon and onsite at Saltwater one week per month.
The 6th Unitarian Universalist Principle calls on us to affirm and promote, “the goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all,” and the proposed UU values statement “declare[s] that every person has the right to flourish with inherent dignity and worthiness.” Rev. Alison will share how her commitment to peace and non-violence … Continue reading Peace Like a River
Ours is a joyful community made up of members and friends who come together of our own free will to put our mission into action. Today, we’ll experience the joy of co-creation during our Sunday service, making an art installation together in real time, guided by Miriam Woito. No artistic talent or experience required! With … Continue reading Joyful Community
The Equinox, where day and night are equal in length, is an in-between time of balance on the wheel’s turning throughout the year. As we gather to honor this pagan holy day, we will explore the beauty of the both/and that Equinox brings, and celebrate the ascendancy of daylight, growth, and new life that comes … Continue reading Rising Green: Celebrating Spring Equinox
We are proud to claim as a foremother Universalist Rev. Olympia Brown, one of the first women to serve as a minister in the US. But Rev. Brown achieved her ordination in the 1860’s in spite of barriers put in her way by the Universalist religious establishment. On the first Sunday of Women’s History Month, … Continue reading Rev. Olympia Brown’s Legacy
We are Saltwater UU Church! Come join us as we welcome new members, acknowledge our dedicated volunteers, and celebrate that all of us have freely chosen to be part of this beloved community.
Join Rev. Alison and author and activist Kokayi Nosakhere as they share lessons and practices from Resmaa Menakem’s book My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies. This service offers an understanding of the way racialized trauma is passed down through generations — and practical tools we can use … Continue reading My Grandmother’s Hands
Join Saltwater Church’s Covenant of UU Pagans and Rev. Alison to honor the cross-quarter holy day of Imbolc, half way between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. At this time, sacred to the Celtic Goddess Brigit, we begin to see evidence around us that spring is coming even in the heart of winter. Let … Continue reading Celebrating Imbolc: The Promise of Spring’s Return
Today, when we ought to be celebrating the 51st anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade decision, Rev. Alison will share the ways that her work in reproductive healthcare made her a Universalist and informed her life and her ministry.
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, like Black American Christians before and after him, found in the Bible the seeds of their liberation from oppression. Rev. Alison will help us look beyond the ways Christianity has been used to oppress and find the message of liberating love that inspired Dr. King and countless other Black … Continue reading Finding Liberating Love in Christianity
Rev. Alison explores our monthly theme “Liberating Love” drawing from our Universalist ancestors who believed that God loves us too much to condemn us to hell.
