{"id":34417,"date":"2022-09-15T15:38:16","date_gmt":"2022-09-15T22:38:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/monkeymind\/?p=34417"},"modified":"2022-09-15T15:41:21","modified_gmt":"2022-09-15T22:41:21","slug":"second-thursdays-with-james-reflections-on-the-spiritual-life-with-unitarian-minister-and-zen-teacher-james-ishmael-ford","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/monkeymind\/2022\/09\/second-thursdays-with-james-reflections-on-the-spiritual-life-with-unitarian-minister-and-zen-teacher-james-ishmael-ford.html","title":{"rendered":"Second Thursdays with James: Reflections on the Spiritual Life with Unitarian minister and Zen teacher James Ishmael Ford"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

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Rev. James Ishmael Ford<\/a> returns to the First Unitarian Church in Los Angeles in a big way for the 2022-23 church year with Second Thursdays with James <\/i>starting tonight at 7pm PDT!\u00a0<\/i><\/div>\n
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This season he\u2019ll be exploring practical spirituality and covering a wide spectrum of spiritual topics.<\/div>\n
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His first topic \u201cFinding the Spiritual In and Beyond Religions<\/b>\u201d promises to be an exciting kick-off to the series. I got a sneak peek of his PowerPoint presentation for tonight and saw the following compelling titles:\u00a0Defining\u00a0Spiritual and Religious, Sin, Heaven, Reincarnation & Rebirth, Unseen Worlds, Superstition, Modernity, Science, Bare Materialism, Interfaith Approaches to Religion, Psychology & Religion, The Spiritual Quest Within and After Religions, Nonduality as the Secret Sauce, Christian and Buddhist<\/a> Atheisms, Looking Forward,<\/b>\u00a0and so much more!<\/div>\n
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HOW TO PARTICIPATE<\/u><\/b><\/div>\n
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We\u2019re also very excited to\u00a0offer this as a hybrid event (both in-person and online) tonight at 7pm<\/b>. Here are directions for each mode of participation:<\/div>\n
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In-Person<\/u><\/b><\/div>\n
Time:\u00a0<\/b>The church will open at 6:50pm and the event will start at 7pm<\/div>\n
Location:<\/b>\u00a0Channing Hall, First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles, 2936 W. 8th St., Los Angeles, CA 90005<\/div>\n
Parking:<\/b>\u00a0There is a ramp going down into the church\u2019s parking garage to the left of the church (when facing it). All are welcome to park there during the event.<\/div>\n
Covid Safety:\u00a0<\/b>When inside,\u00a0all guests are expected to wear masks.<\/b>\u00a0If you are feeling ill, we ask that you remain home<\/b>\u00a0and join us virtually<\/div>\n
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Online<\/u><\/b><\/div>\n
Time:\u00a0<\/b>At 6:55pm, the First Unitarian Network (FUN) Zoom room will officially open up for our virtual friends to join<\/div>\n
Zoom link:<\/b>\u00a0Please join us at\u00a0https:\/\/us02web.zoom.us\/j\/<\/wbr>83101737418<\/a>\u00a0(You can also find this link at\u00a0www.uula.org\/fun<\/a>)<\/div>\n
Submitting questions:<\/b>\u00a0We will try to set it up for members to ask questions out loud. At the very least, virtual members will have the opportunity to ask questions in the chat window of Zoom.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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FULL SERIES DESCRIPTION<\/u><\/b><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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And in case you\u2019re unaware, here is the full description of Rev. James\u2019s topics of discussion this season,:<\/div>\n
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Join our consulting minister Reverend James Ishmael Ford for Second Thursdays with James. In addition to being a UU minister who served our churches around the country for a quarter of a century, James is the first UU to be acknowledged as a Zen teacher, receiving dharma<\/a> transmission in two ancient lineages. He is the author of five books about spirituality, his six an exploration of the arc of the spiritual life is due from Shambhala Publications next year.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

Each month he will give a presentation and invite a conversation on a variety of subjects touching on practical spirituality.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

This season\u2019s topics include:<\/i><\/p>\n