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Our Sunday Services
by Bill Fahey
North Chapel Sunday Services are held in the Sanctuary at 10 am.
Service reflections will continue to be recorded whenever possible.
The videos will be available on our YouTube channel here and website below.
To receive our weekly newsletter InTouch, with a link to the reflection on YouTube please sign up here.
Last Sunday’s Reflections
Sunday, February 1, 2026
Reflection by Senator Joe Major
“The Slow Work of Faithful Progress”
In this reflection, Senator Joe Major explores progress not as a series of quick wins or political milestones, but as a slow, shared, and often uncomfortable process rooted in community, commitment, and care for one another. Drawing on personal experience, public service, and the spiritual practice of showing up—even when results are uncertain—he reflects on progress as alignment between values and action rather than certainty or speed. Framed by the image of glaciers shaping the land over time, the message invites listeners to trust that patience, love, and persistence are quietly transforming the world, even when change feels invisible.
Joe Major is a member of the Vermont State Senate representing the Windsor district. A native of Buffalo, New York, Major graduated from Howard University and served as an officer in the U.S. Army. He has been deeply involved in Vermont public service, currently serving as the Hartford town treasurer and a former vice chair of the Hartford Selectboard. Outside the Legislature, he is the executive Director of the Upper Valley Aquatic Center in White River Junction.
- Upcoming Service -
These notes are usually available on Thursday afternoons.
Sunday, February 8, 2026
Reflection by Rev. Leon Dunkley
“Unapologetically Hopeful”
Do you believe in empathy? Not everybody does. In Finding Beauty in a Broken World, Terry Tempest Williams wonders if it’s not just romantic but truly possible to feel the suffering of others. These days, it seems more powerful to wonder if the alternative is truly possible. Is it possible not to feel another’s pain? In Luke (6:31), we are all advised, “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” Clearly, in the wake of all we’ve been witnessing in recent weeks, we have been forgetting what Luke remembered that Jesus said…which is heartbreaking. What we need now is not the mountain of despair that Martin King spoke about, but the stone of hope that calls us to our best.
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We hope you will join us in supporting the North Chapel with your offerings of time, talent and treasure, as we work together to continue to grow as a strong and vibrant faith community.
The commitment of our members is critical to every aspect of the life of our North Chapel community.
Read about all the ways your generosity is needed and where your skills, efforts, time, and contributions
will be appreciated here.
For all financial donations, please use the form on our website here.
WORSHIP THEME
February, 2026
Progress
The road that lies ahead of us is a long one, and the pace of progress will sometimes feel glacially slow.
Never forget that glaciers over time can carve out grand canyons and great lakes.
Moving tectonic plates can rise up mountains over millennia, or they can explode awe-inspiring volcanoes in milliseconds.
Our commitment to love and justice can do the same.
By Israel Buffardi
Previous Sunday Services
Sunday, January 25, 2026
Reflection by Rev. Leon Dunkley
“Hold On, Here Comes the Dawn”
How does one let go of the weight of the world and be free? How can we learn to meet the world with grace enough to offer up some beauty. In Minnesota, they're singing a song by Heidi Wilson called “Hold On”. They're singing, "Hold on. Hold on, my dear ones. Here comes the dawn." We can hear them singing when we listen with our hearts. Even though we are separated from each other by 1,300 miles, the same Sun connects us every morning. When it seems so dark outside, hold on. Here comes the dawn.
Memorials and Tributes
We offer a place to honor those who have passed.
All are invited to send photos and stories to the office so that they can be included in the online tributes on this page of our website.
Contact Us
North Universalist Chapel Society 7 Church Street, Woodstock VT 05091 Directions/Map
Minister: Rev. Dr. Leon Dunkley can be reached by calling or texting 802-369-5104.
Administrative Assistant: Joanne Boyle can be reached at 802-369-9838 or northchapelcommunications@gmail.com
Director of Spiritual Education: Tatum Barnes can be reached at 646-675-9232 or tatumali1030@gmail.com