Our library in Hewett Centre is open every Sunday after service during Coffee Hour in Hewett Centre, and our Library Team offers related reading lists based on the topic of the Sunday service. Here is their list for the upcoming service featuring Rev. Shawn Gauthier on Sunday, August 24, 2025 at 11 a.m. All are welcome in Hewett Centre after the Sunday service to check out some books and to have coffee and conversation.
VanU library books related to this Sunday’s sermon:
1. A Faith for All Seasons: Liberal Religion and the Crises of Life, by William R. Murry, 1990, 288 MUR [From GoodReads: “A liberal religious understanding of the pain and suffering in life which mirrors a Unitarian Universalist philosophy. It is a refreshing approach to the crisis of life that will help many people deal with their feelings of blame and guilt when a loved one dies. This book is a solid reference for those dealing with providing comfort to those grieving. It deals with providing meaning and purpose to individuals who can’t find it in their lives”].
2. Salted with Fire: Unitarian Universalist Strategies for Sharing Faith and Growing Congregations, by Scott W. Alexander, 1994, 289.13 ALE [Published by Skinner House Books].
3. Challenge of a Liberal Faith, George N. Marshall, 1988, 289.1 MAR [From Goodreads: “Here is a faith that is not external, but internal. The Unitarian Universalist church makes no other offer than this: to help a person develop the faith that is in him.”].
4. Faith Without Certainty: Liberal Theology In The 21st Century, by Paul Rasor, 2005, 230.04 RAS [Published by Skinner House Books. From LibraryThing: “This innovative critical analysis of religious liberalism probes the dynamic tensions of a theology that is committed to individual freedom and autonomy on the one hand and a greater sense of community on the other. Much more than a primer, Faith Without Certainty lays out the basic characteristics of liberal theology, delving into historical and philosophical sources as well as social and intellectual roots. Clear-eyed but ultimately hopeful, Rasor explores the ambiguous and creative nature of liberal theology today. Ideal for readers who want a better understanding of liberal theology, a religious tradition that is rooted not in authority but in one’s own experience and conscience.”].
5. A Holy Curiosity: Stories of a Liberal Religious Faith, by Bruce T Marshall, 1990, 288 MAR [Gift of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Huntington].
6. Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith, by Anne Lamott, 2008, 921 LAM [From LibraryThing, the publisher description: “Wherever you look, there’s trouble and wonder, pain and beauty, restoration and darkness–sometimes all at once. Yet amid the confusion, if you look carefully, in nature or in the kitchen, in ordinariness or in mystery, beyond the emotion muck we all slog through, you’ll find it eventually: a path, some light to see by, moments of insight, courage, or buoyancy. In other words, grace. Lamott knows and lives by this belief, most of the time. In these essays, she recounts the missteps, detours, and roadblocks in her walk of faith”].
7. How We Learn to Be Brave: Decisive Moments in Life and Faith, by Mariann Edgar Budde, 2023, 179.6 [From LibraryThing: “… During her prayer service for Donald J. Trump’s second inauguration, Bishop Budde addressed the president directly, imploring him “to have mercy on the people in our country who are scared now,” from those who are part of the LGBTQ+ community to immigrants and refugees. But for Bishop Budde, this moment was the culmination of a lifetime spent thinking about those pivot points when we’re called on to push past our fears and act with strength. With How We Learn to Be Brave, she teaches us that being brave is not a singular occurrence; it’s a journey that we can choose to undertake every day. Here, Bishop Budde explores the full range of decisive moments, from the most visible and dramatic (the decision to go), to the internal and personal (the decision to stay), to brave choices made with an eye toward the future (the decision to start), those born of suffering (the decision to accept that which we did not choose), and those that come unexpectedly (the decision to step up to the plate). Drawing on examples ranging from Harry Potter to the Gospel According to Luke, she seamlessly weaves together personal experiences with stories from scripture, history, and pop culture to underscore both the universality of these moments and the particular call each one of us must heed when they arrive. … will provide much-needed fortitude and insight to anyone searching for answers in uncertain times.”].
8. On Being Human Religiously, by James Luther Adams, 1976, 230 ADA [Published by Beacon Press. From LibraryThing: “Adams speaks passionately and lucidly on religion’s ties to everyday life.”].
9. Three Prophets of Religious Liberalism: Channing Emerson Parker, Introduction by Conrad Wright, 1961, 288 WRI [The Julian Fears Library. Published by Beacon Press. From LibraryThing: “Three landmark addresses in the history of American Unitarianism in one convenient volume. Edited by one of the leading UU historians.”].
10. Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning, by James W. Fowler, 1981, 234.2 FOW [From LibraryThing: “… He has talked with men, women, and children of all ages, from four to eighty-eight, including Jews, Catholics, Protestants, agnostics, and atheists. … Faith, as approached here, is not necessarily religious, nor is it to be equated with belief. Rather, faith is a person’s way of leaning into and making sense of life. More verb that noun, faith is the dynamic system of images, values, and commitments that guide one’s life. It is thus universal: everyone who chooses to go on living operated by some basic faith. Building on the contributions of such key thinkers as Piaget, Erikson, and Kohlberg, Fowler draws on a wide range of scholarship, literature, and firsthand research to present expertly and engagingly the six stages that emerge in working out the meaning of our lives–from the intuitive, imitative faith of childhood through conventional and then more independent faith to the universalizing, self-transcending faith of full maturity. Stages of Faith helps us to understand our own pilgrimage of faith, the passages of our own quest for meaning and value.”].
11. The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason, by Sam Harris, 2005, 200 HAR [From LibraryThing: “An impassioned plea for reason in a world divided by faith. … Harris offers a vivid historical tour of mankind’s willingness to suspend reason in favor of religious beliefs, even when those beliefs are used to justify harmful behavior and sometimes heinous crimes. He asserts that in the shadow of weapons of mass destruction, the world can no longer tolerate views that pit one true god against another. Most controversially, he argues that we cannot afford moderate lip service to religion — an accommodation that only blinds us to the real perils of fundamentalism. While warning against the encroachment of organized religion into world politics, Harris also draws on new evidence from neuroscience and insights from philosophy to explore spirituality as a biological, brain-based need. He calls on us to invoke that need in taking a secular humanistic approach to solving the problems of this world.”].