Drop-In Discussions
In-person drop-in discussions are held on the first Sunday morning of each month in the Chalice Room on the second floor of our church, starting at 9:15 am. during the regular church year (off during the summer months), and virtual drop-in discussions are held on Tuesday evenings via Zoom. Sometimes our discussions are based on certain books or articles, but you don’t have to read anything or do any advance preparation to participate. Just drop-in. People of all viewpoints are welcome to make presentations or join in the discussions.
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Do you have a topic for us? Please contact DropInDiscussion@uuroc.org.
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Drop-In Discussions are virtual!
We meet on Tuesday nights from 6:30-7:30pm.
We are also having in-person discussions on the first Sunday of each month in the Chalice Room at First Universalist.
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Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87535284436?pwd=ckI4NGdUVXVLVGJKYXdMMEx0RHFZdz09
Meeting ID: 875 3528 4436
Passcode: 665971
April 2024
Tuesday, April 2: Open Topic Nite
In response to continued support, let’s have another Open Topic discussion. (John Lukes leads.)​
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Tuesday, April 9: Spiritual Tools for Living in the In-Between
Our bi-monthly theme of “Living in the In-Between” invites us to explore what spiritual tools, practices, and gifts help us to stay in-between, rather than rushing towards endings and beginnings. Rev. Lane-Mairead will share some ideas for practices and tools and invites you to bring some to share.
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Tuesday, April 16: Moving On
During a recent trip to Vietnam, I was surprised by the warm welcome extended to me as an American. What might we learn when former enemies welcome us into their homes? (Karen LaBrocco leads.)
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Tuesday, April 23: How Christian Were The Middle Ages?
The stereotype of the Middle Ages is of a deeply Christian period of history, dominated by the Holy Roman Empire. But, as Voltaire once stated, the Holy Roman Empire was neither Holy, nor Roman, nor an Empire. Historians studying this period tend to view the characterization of the Middle Ages as Christian as a type of historical oxymoron. Our guest presenter, Dr. Joseph Scalzo, will lead a discussion addressing the question of how ‘Christian' were the Middle Ages?
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Tuesday, April 30: Paying it Forward: Striving for Equal Access Through Music
The Music Committee and our Music Director, Dr. Brock Tjosvold, will lead a session about their new "Paying it Forward" partnership with ROCmusic. This session will re-introduce Rachel Mills, Executive and Artistic Director of ROCmusic. Rachel will talk about the mission of ROCmusic, which is to provide "equal access to exceptional music education and performance experiences to youth residing in the city of Rochester."
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In-person Drop-In Discussions:
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Sunday, January 7 at 9:15am in the Chalice Room *In-Person* - Living in a Science Fictional World
We live in a world in which science fictional tropes - space colonization, artificial intelligence - are actual goals. Can yesterday’s science fiction become tomorrow’s reality?
Sunday, February 4 at 9:15am in the Chalice Room *In-Person* - "What This Country Needs Is…"
Suppose you were running for President and were certain to be elected. What would your platform be? Ignore the present candidates. What do you think the country actually needs?
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Sunday, March 3 at 9:15am in the Chalice Room *In-Person* - What will the next 100 years bring?
In the last 100 years, the world has changed immeasurably. What do you think may happen in the *next* 100 years? What kind of changes do you foresee in the areas of cultural awareness, submission to climate change, genetics, technology, artificial intelligence (AI), communication, and more? Will we have Utopia or Dystopia? Join David Damico as we discuss and share our thoughts and feelings.
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Sunday, April 7 at 9:15am in the Chalice Room *In-Person* - What Makes You Happy?
Leo Tolstoy said happy families are all alike and unhappy families are unhappy in their own way. Is this true? Are there different kinds of happiness? We’ll share what makes each of us happy and see what we come up with.
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Sunday, May 5 at 9:15am in the Chalice Room *In-Person* - The Forever Wars
We in the United States have come to accept perpetual war as normal. Hundred of thousands of people have died in these wars, including thousands of Americans. What purpose does the U.S. war policy serve? Is it sustainable? Can it be stopped?
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Sunday, June 2 at 9:15am in the Chalice Room *In-Person* - Open Forum & Planning Meeting
We’ll discuss topics for coming meetings, whether or not to continue the in-church meetings through the summer and anything else that is on our minds.
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Phil Ebersole is facilitator unless otherwise mentioned. Topics are subject to change. If you have a topic you would like discussed or, better still, would like to lead a discussion, speak to Phil Ebersole.
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Have you read or written a book or article, attended or presented a workshop or talk, or have a topic that you would like to share with us? Is there a topic you would like to learn more about? Please contact Drop-In Discussion Committee: DropInDiscussion@uuroc.org
If you have an outside speaker in mind that you think should be invited, have a topic you’d like discussed or, better still, would be willing to lead a discussion, please contact
