An archive of select sermons by former Ministers and award winners

Title	Date
Healing from the Center	10/9/16
Responding to the Prophetic Voice	1/18/15
Our History	12/14/14
In Appreciation	11/9/14
In the Movie Version	10/26/14
Longing to Belong	10/12/14
New Possibilities in an Uncertain World	9/28/14
To the Waters	9/7/14

 

And a 'few' sermons from the past ...

Title	Date
Standing on the Side of Love	9/20/09
Gluttony	11/30/08
The Courage to be Cheap	11/23/08
Accepting and Encouraging One Another	4/6/08
Easter Sunday: The Wonder Of It All	3/23/08
Enriching Our Programs, Enriching Our Lives	3/16/08
Justice, Equity and Compassion in Human Relations	1/06/08
Thanks Receiving	11/11/07
Anger	11/04/07
Inherent Worth and Dignity	10/28/07
What does a Person Deserve	7/15/07
Life from Death	4/8/07
The Shame of Darfur	3/25/07
Bringing God Home	1/28/07
Whither Thou Goest	1/21/07
From the Cradle of Montgomery	1/14/07
A brave new people (Hanukkah)	12/17/06
In Solemn Stillness	12/10/06
What the World Needs Now (AIDS update)	12/3/06
When the Eternal Light is Extinguished	11/5/06
Censoring Thought: On Free Speech and the Banning of Books	9/24/06
On the Errors of the Trinity	8/30/06
Fundamentalism, or On Having a Lack of Imagination	7/30/06
Hot Religion	7/9/06
The Beauty of Imperfection	3/26/06
A Magic Penny	3/12/06
Coming Out of Our Closets and Our Shells	1/22/06
The Challenges Ahead	1/8/06
Christmas Homily	12/25/05
Christmas Eve Homily	12/24/05
A Great Miracle Happened There	12/18/05
Intelligent Deception	11/27/05
Remembrance	10/30/05
To Set the Captives Free	10/16/05
Let’s Begin Again	10/9/05
We’ve Got All the Right Questions	9/25/05

 

 

The Richard Borden Excellence in Sermons Awards

In an effort to promote excellence in Unitarian Universalist sermons, The Richard Borden Sermon Award is an award to recognize excellence in sermon writing for Unitarian Universalist ministers.

These awards have been discontinued as of 2007.

The winning sermons and their authors for 2007 were:

First Place:
Learning the Principles by Heart
Leslie Becknell, Andover Newton Theological School

Second Place:
Can't We Get Along? Loving Your (Political) Opponent
Jessica Purple Rodela, Meadville Lombard Theological School

Runners Up:
(listed alphabetically by author)

Putting 'Labor' Back in Labor Day
David Breeden, Meadville Lombard Theological School

What We Can Do For Religion Today
Holly Anne Lux-Sullivan, Meadville Lombard Theological School

Embracing Our Aging
Catherine Senghas, Andover Newton Theological School

The winning sermons and their authors for 2006 were:

First Place:
• Sharing a Journey - Lisa Sargent, Starr King School for the Ministry
Runner-Ups :
• Getting Real About Food - Ana Porter, University of Chicago Divinity School
• Contemporary Slavery: You Can Make a Difference - Kathryn Ellis, Meadville Lombard Theological School
• Resisting Reasonable Atrocity - David Schwartz, Harvard Divinity School

The winning sermon writers and their sermons for 2005 are:

First Prize Winners:
* Music and Meditation: Resolving Conflict in a Warring World - Meadville Lombard ministerial candidate, Bret Lortie
* The Spiritual Imperative of Choice - Rev. Krista Taves, Interim, New Orleans
* Watch One Hour With Me - Rev Cynthia Frado, Westboro, MA

Second Prize Winner:
* A Not-So-Quiet Week in Lake Wobegon - Rev. Randolph Becker, Park Forest, IL

The extraordinary generosity shown by an anonymous donor providing funds for the Richard Borden Sermon Award highlights the importance of preaching ministry in our lives. This award will recognize the theological power and diversity of sermonic excellence in the Unitarian Universalist tradition.