Dear Ones,

What a joy it was to experience our first Sunday in UCC’s Sanctuary! The sun shone brightly, and smiles were brilliant, as we greeted folks who are now able to attend in the daytime. We are so grateful to our friends at the United Church of Christ in Wayne for their gracious partnering with us and making us feeling completely welcome. Part of the pleasure is in each congregation greeting each other, as we arrive to set up just as they are completing their fellowship time.

It is when we open our hearts, minds, and souls to one another that we can see the Beauty in all, finally recognizing the Divine within the human, and experiencing the deep Unity of all Life. As God is Omnipresent, you and I can never be outside this Presence, although we can feel separation when we forget Who and Whose we are. As we return from our “Spiritual Amnesia,” we recognize the Omnipotence of the Divine and employ that indwelling Power for Good to establish wholeness, abundance, love, and creativity in our lives and in the world.

Our theme for 2025 is, “Deeper Understanding; Greater Aliveness.” This month, we continue reviewing the basics of our teaching, as found in the first four introductory chapters of Ernest Holmes’ Science of Mind. We focus this Sunday on, “Court the Presence; Direct the Law,” and it’s based on Introductory Chapter III. You may wish to come to the Meditation Room at 12:30 P.M. to join our Practitioner of the Day, prior to the 1:00 P.M. Celebration in the Sanctuary. We will livestream our Celebration at 1:00 P.M. Eastern Time on our YouTube channel.

Our Licensed Professional Practitioners are available for spiritual support and can meet with you in person or on the phone. They also honor your requests placed in the Prayer Chest. Look them up on the Practitioner Page of our website: www.cslphilly.org

With great love and appreciation,

Dr. Maxine

Dear Ones,

Rev. Mike and I are so grateful to have enjoyed and celebrated another beautiful year with you, our Beloved Community, and happily anticipate a Bright New Year for all of us, as we “Thrive in 2025!” We have moved through many important changes, individually and collectively, and are more than ready to continue to deepen and expand consciousness, as we look forward to walking and working together in the months to come. This is a Sacred Place of Community, where we rest from the outer world with each other, loving and lifting one another, then bringing the overflow of our love and intention out into our homes, our communities, and the world.

Please join us in as many classes and activities as you can, as your presence and participation make a divine difference in our gatherings. I will be teaching a four-week, love offering class on, “The Four Kingdoms of Consciousness” each Tuesday in January on Zoom from 6:30 to 8:30 P.M. Eastern Time. This class offers effective tools for understanding and moving through the four phases of consciousness we all experience. Click here to register.  

Do plan to join us for the Community Visioning on Sunday, January 12th at UCC’s Fellowship Hall from 2:00 to 4:00 P.M. Eastern Time for a wonderful opportunity to open our hearts and minds to Spirit’s Vision for GPCSL in the years to come, as well as forming your individual visions. Your input is valuable, as we co-create together a New Possibility for ourselves, personally, and for our Beloved Community. We expect to invite our distant friends and members via Zoom, as we wish everyone’s participation.  Click here to register.

Our theme for 2025 is, “Deeper Understanding; Greater Aliveness.” This Thursday, January 2nd begins the month of “A Firm Foundation,” in which we review the basics of our teaching, as found in the first four chapters of Ernest Holmes’ Science of Mind. We focus that evening on, “The Ground of Being,” and it’s a great way to begin the new year. If you wish to arrive at 6:30, you may join a Practitioner in the Meditation Room, then enjoy a warm and wonderful evening in the Sanctuary at 7:00 P.M. Of course, it will be aired on our website www.cslphilly.org next Sunday at 10:30 A.M.

Our Licensed Professional Practitioners are standing by to assist with any concerns or challenges you may be facing. Contact any of them on the Practitioner Page of our website.

With great love and respect,

Dr. Maxine

Dear Ones,

What a wonderful Winter Solstice we enjoyed last Saturday, with several interfaith presenters, great music, and a delightful crowd of warm, bright and appreciative folks from many faith traditions. Our philosophy celebrates Unity in Multiplicity, and we are honored to facilitate such opportunities to come together, as we learn about and love each other.

It feels lovely that Christmas and Hanukkah are being celebrated at the very same time this year. I love Rabbi Jonathan Sacks’ statement: “For my faith is not yours and your faith is not mine. If we are free to light our own flames, together, we can banish some the darkness of the world.” Let’s all let our lights shine brightly, warming and blessing our environment, and joining with other lights in the world.

We would love to have you with us the evening after Christmas, this Thursday, December 26, as we wrap up this year, look forward to 2025, and “Celebrate Everything!” If you wish to arrive at 6:30, you may join a Practitioner in the Meditation Room, then enjoy a warm and wonderful evening in the Sanctuary at 7:00 P.M. Of course, it will be aired on our website https://www.cslphilly.org next Sunday at 10:30 A.M.

Our Licensed Professional Practitioners are standing by to assist with any concerns or challenges you may be facing. Contact any of them on the Practitioner Page of our website.

With great love and respect,

Dr. Maxine

Dear Ones,

Whether or not all the greeting cards have been sent, decorations are up, gifts wrapped, meals and baked goods planned, etc., we are just about a week away from Christmas and Hanukkah!  Sometimes, simply enjoying the lights and décor of our neighbors or downtown merchants seems sufficient to bring a smile to our faces.  You see, it can be wonderful to let others delight us, not always needing to be the ones who bring the joy.

After all, each giver requires a receiver, so everyone is blessed when we open our hearts to each other and let the Divine Circulation flow! As we relax into the sweetness of the season, we encourage each other to enter more deeply into happiness, especially when difficult circumstances may be present. Let’s all add to one another’s wellbeing, greet everyone with an authentic desire for hearts to be lifted and goodwill to prevail.

Be sure to attend our Thursday Celebration this week, as two beautiful practitioners and dear friends from Center of Peace share the pulpit at UCCVF, speaking on, “A New and Glorious Morn!”  Hazel Spears and Zulma Gonzales have just returned from a marvelous, Spirit-filled adventure in Egypt and have much to share with you, while Rev. Mike and I spend a few days in Bethlehem (PA!) A very special evening is planned for you, so arrive at 6:30, if you wish to join in the Meditation, then enjoy a beautiful evening in the Sanctuary at 7:00 P.M.  Of course, it will be aired on our website www.cslphillyorg next Sunday at 10:30 A.M.

Our Annual Winter Solstice this Saturday, December 21^st, is a MUST-SEE, as five bright and caring interfaith leaders will present their faith tradition’s views on “Honor the Darkness; Rejoice in the Light,” and Ray Adkins and Jim Wade will thrill us with their music.  Doors to the Sanctuary open at 6:00, and it begins at 6:30 P.M. with delicious refreshments following.

Although we are all able to contact our Source and work prayerfully through challenges, our practitioners are always standing by to assist when we may be too close to a problem. Contact any of them on our Practitioner Page to receive spiritual mind treatment and a raising of consciousness.

With great love and respect,

Dr. Maxine