Leslie’s Logos – October 2024

Purpose. Possibility. Passion

Something is afoot this fall in the gatherings of our community. Something different and yet familiar something of this time and rooted in our legacy. Since coming back in August, I have sensed a renewed commitment, determination, and engagement. Whether it’s in the people traveling to do election work in other states, the folks educating on critical California ballot measures or the folks staying a little later to meet someone new at Connection Hour or arranging to meet a few friends on Sunday mornings, I am grateful for the vibe. This autumn has a special something…..

When we feel powerless as we have so many times in recent years, when we are hit by the unexpected and the tragic and the unwanted, sometimes we lose our sense of being agents in our own lives. Many of us have long known that we don’t have complete control, and others of us have learned that in recent years, and yet that grieving and powerless feeling that we have been stuck in for these last years seems to be changing into a wiser willingness to engage as we can, even knowing we cant be guaranteed the outcomes. 

We do not know what will happen after this month, and I am delighted to see how many people are putting their time into doing what they can:  writing postcards, giving money, giving time and reaching out to those generations feeling the most dispossessed.  Something is in the air at MDUUC this fall. Even amid the anxiety and fear is renewed engagement, commitment, purpose, and passion as well as that refusal to give up a sense of possibility.  Such gratitude for all those listening to others, showing up to create a larger whole with one another, holding together what is too large to hold alone, and witnessing to one another over and over. For those who are still feeling that hesitancy and that lack of power, I invite you to take a step in into community and commitment and caring, for yourself and for others and for our world.

Let’s stay passionate, purposeful, and in pursuit of possibility. And let’s do it together. See you soon on campus or online.

With faith and perseverance, 

Rev. Leslie Takahashi

Rev. Leslie serves as the Lead Minister of the congregation and is available for appointments on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Sign up through Calendly, https://calendly.com/revlesliemeet