Drag shows and clergy collars are not phrases you typically hear at church, but you’ll hear this and more on Sunday morning, Aug. 3, at the Pagosa Unitarian Universalist (UU) Fellowship.
We will share a streamed lecture entitled “Hope is an Unfinished Story” by the Rev. Sean Neil-Barron, associate minister at Foothill Unitarian in Fort Collins, Colo. The Sunday service will begin at 10:30 a.m.
Neil-Barron explores the spiritual practice of hope-making — where faith isn’t belief or proof, but the stubborn insistence that we belong to each other, and we’re not letting go.
In this sermon originally shared at the 2025 UU General Assembly in June, Neil-Barron shares that we need to remember how to make hope follow us when the way forward disappears under our feet.
He addresses the question “how do we trust that what emerges through raw, real relationship will transform us through trust, rupture, and repair, into something the world desperately needs?”
This message is not to be missed. It is at the heart of the gospel of Unitarian Universalism. We invite all those with curious minds and hearts to join us at 10:30 a.m. for this enlightening talk.
August schedule
Following is the August schedule for the Pagosa UU Fellowship Sunday Services and Programs.
• Aug. 10, 10:30 a.m.: Going Deeper Sharing Circle.
This facilitated, small-group setting is where we invite sharing and deep listening practice. We explore the themes of recent topics and leave space for reflection and for whatever else is on our hearts. Come make friends and practice the art of listening with others. Light refreshments are offered.
• Aug 17: “Love at the Center,” by Mary Ocken, lay leader of the UU Fellowship of Durango. Love is at the center of our UU values. Love is also central to many of the spiritual traditions. We will explore love as a key spiritual value and how it is fundamental to who we are as human beings.
• Aug 24: There will be no programming this week. Practice acts of kindness. We are on hiatus from our Action Sunday. Stay tuned for future programming.
• Aug 31: Rest Sunday. A time for rest and renewal, and an invitation to ask yourself, how does it feel when gratitude and hope reawaken the heart to what’s around you?
In keeping with these mindfulness practices, we also offer space for weekly meditation with a trained teacher of Buddhist meditation. We are grateful for the expertise Dan Dempster brings to our community of spiritual practice. He states that building regular practice with these simple yet profound practices can assist in cultivating peace of mind; calmness of body; developing patience, kindness and awareness; and to diminish pain, conflict and stress. New-to-meditation and experienced practitioners are welcome.
Every Sunday at 7 p.m., the summer schedule is as follows:
• First and third Sundays — 7 to 7:45 p.m. (a shortened meditation only practice).
• Second and fourth Sundays — 7 to 8:30 p.m. (meditation practice and dharma talk).
For more information about this and other programs that take place during the month, we encourage you to visit PagosaUU.org. Once there, you can email to be added to our mailing list or the meditation email list to receive notices about the schedule.
We are located at Unit B-15 of the Greenbriar Plaza, 301 N. Pagosa Blvd., on the north side facing the Pagosa Peak. Pagosa UU Fellowship is a Welcoming Congregation, we believe that all of who you are is sacred, and all of who you are is welcome. Find out more at https://www.uua.org/lgbtq.
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