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“A Rainbow of Neighbors”          Rev. Laura Fitzpatrick-NagerText: Luke 10:25-37 I was taking a quick walk in my neighborhood last week when I met up with one of my neighbors. I had a slim margin of time in between my “to do” lists to get my steps [...]

“Many Mansions”         Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitTexts: John 14: 1-4; Philippians 2: 3-7       Every year at this time we’re presented with the dilemma of how to merge our lives and stories once again. We’ve heard from a variety of different voices throughout the summer, [...]

“The Things that Make for Peace”                Rev. Dr. Paul C. Hayes (Madison, CT)Scriptures: Luke 19:41, 42; Mt 5:43-48; Revelation 21:1-7           I’ve spent a great deal of my life engaged in the art of peacemaking. I’ve done this, not through official diplomat channels as some do, [...]

“Stepping Out”                Rev. Cathy ZallText: Matthew 14:22-33      Alan Watts an Anglican priest who later became a Buddhist observed that what people were most deeply seeking in religion was not a collection of doctrines, rituals, symbols or even moral precepts but rather a pathway to a [...]

“None Of Us is Ordinary”                Rev. Dr. Gary Comstock  Sometimes we make things more complicated than they really are. We seek a solution that’s much greater than the problem we face. We overlook what’s simple and obvious and look for something that may be more complex, meaningful, [...]

“In Search of Heart Knowing”                Rev. Cathy Zall and Mary VillaText: Psalm 139:1-12 “In Search of Heart Knowing”        Always such a pleasure to join in worship at FCCOL.  This congregation has played such a central role in my spiritual life and continues to be [...]

“Surrender to the Day and Let Life Happen”                The Rev. Rebecca Crosby Text: Isaiah: 55:10-12, Ephesians 4:1-6                I love telling stories and sharing my experiences in a story format. Stories shape our lives and guide our understanding of our fellow human beings and the [...]

“Exophony: On the Borderlands of Language”                Rev. Dr. Gary Comstock Texts: Book of Samuel II  1:25-27, Gospel according to Matthew 22:37-40 “Is It Just a Breeze?” I grew up in a tiny Congregational church in the western hills of Essex, in a village of 900 called Ivoryton. [...]

“Exophony: On the Borderlands of Language”                Rev. Dr. Steven Jungkeit Texts: Judges 12: 1-6; Acts 2: 1-12        Here is something that has filled me with life over the past several years: in painfully slow increments, morning by morning, I have been learning to speak [...]

“Come Away With Me: Visions of Rest and Jubilee”       Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitTexts: Leviticus 25: 1-5, 8-10; Matthew 11: 28-30 Come Away With Me: On Sabbaths and Jubilees        I begin with a passing reference to a popular song from Norah Jones. “Come away with me [...]

“Why Does the Caged Bird Sing?: Inspiration from Maya Angelou”” The Rev. Rebecca CrosbyText: Psalm 130: 1-2, 5-6; Acts 16:16-26; Philippians 1:12-14, 18b-20, 27  Why Does A Caged Bird Sing?:  Inspiration from Maya Angelou        Maya Angelou, one of the most influential literary voices of our time, died [...]

“The Garden of Humanity” Rev. Dr. Steven Jungkeit Texts: Genesis 2: 8-15 (Selections); John 20: 15-16; Revelation 22: 1-3   Of Soil and Soul: Gardens and the Ethics of Care  “They were careless people – they smashed up things and creaturesand then retreated back into their money or their vast [...]

“Something To Do With Paying Attention,” With a Nod to David Foster Wallace Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitTexts: I Corinthians 13   “Attention, taken to its highest degree,is the same thing as prayer.It presupposes faith and love.Absolutely unmixed attention is prayer.”-Simone Weil Some of the most often heard words of Scripture, [...]

“Everything Else in the House of God”  Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitTexts: Mark 16: 14-15, 19-20; Titus 1: 15; John 14: 2 “In my Father’s house, there are many mansions.” -John 14: 2        The weeks after Easter present a preacher with a mere handful of stories about Jesus [...]

“This Is the Moment We Have Been Waiting For”  Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitText: John 21: 15-19 Not long ago I heard a story about a form of theater in Japan that originated in the 17th century. It’s called Kabuki Theater, and it’s one of several traditional Japanese arts that I [...]

“Mary”  The Rev. Catherine ZallText:    John 20:1, 11-16April 12, 2026 Always such a pleasure to return to FCCOL.      In these challenging times I feel a special urgency to continue to engage the profound, mysterious, claims of Easter.    That the spirit present in Jesus was not defeated [...]

“On the Way to Galilee”  Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitText: Matthew 28: 1-10Easter Sunday Worship Service         A few years ago, after we were through with our Easter services and after I had gone home, our family gathered around the table for Easter dinner. I felt good about [...]

“Discerning Voices: Miriam’s Question”  Rev. Dr Steven JungkeitTexts: Numbers 12: 1-16; Numbers 20: 1; Hebrews 13: 13 Discerning Voices: Miriam’s Question Let us then go to him outside the camp… Hebrews 13:13        Many of us have been immersed in a year long read-through of the Bible, and [...]

“Discerning Voices: Miriam by the Seashore”  Rev. Dr. Steven Jungkeit Texts: Exodus 15: 1-3; Exodus 15: 20-21      I’ve been hearing an insistent and important question over the past several months, as many of us have been making our way through the Bible. The question is this: where are [...]

“The Depth Dimension of Existence”  Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitTexts: Matthew 7: 24-27; Romans 8: 31-39; Hebrews 6: 19-20 “The Depth Dimension of Existence”              A year and a half ago I shared with you what happened when Rachael and I were due to drop our daughter Sabina off for her [...]

“What In Us Is Dark, Illumine”  Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitTexts: Isaiah 14: 12-15; Matthew 4: 1-4; “On Mr. Milton’s Paradise Lost,” by Andrew Marvell   What in me is dark, illumine… -John Milton, Paradise Lost  Having entered the season of Lent, it is necessary to spend at least a little [...]

“Bearing Witness: How to Speak Love in a Storm”  Rev. Laura Fitzpatrick-NagerTexts: Exodus 23: 9, Mark 4: 34-41 Walking into a detention center is a surreal experience. You hand in your driver’s license, sign paperwork, lock your belongings in a locker and pass through a metal detector with your shoes [...]

“A Sublime Madness”  Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitTexts: Isaiah 58: 1, 6-9; Jeremiah 20: 9 “A Sublime Madness”     One of the sharpest minds the United States has ever produced happened to be a minister, a theologian, and a social theorist in the denomination to which we belong – the United [...]

“The World is Lit By Lightening”  Rev. Dr. Steven JungkeitTexts: Exodus 19: 1-2, 16-19; Matthew 24: 23-27; John 1: 1-5   “Blow out your candles, Laura.Nowadays the world is lit by lightning.” -Tennessee WilliamsThe Glass Menagerie               Years ago our family spent a summer in Vermont, in a town [...]