Checking out a new space or community can be intimidating. So, we’ve put together a few things that you can expect to help you decide if this is the right space and community for you:

• We use different names for God - God, Universe, Source, Love, Life, Creator, Old Woman, and others;

• We recognize and use different pronouns for God (they/them; she/her; he/him) and we encourage people to be aware of and even challenge the pronouns that they use, especially if they use solely male pronouns;

• We explore spiritual practices from diverse traditions which reflects our belief that spirituality transcends religion and connects us to the One and one another;

• We share a land acknowledgement and invite people to look up and share in the chat the Indigenous nations whose traditional territories (ceded and unceded) they live on;

• We meditate together for 10-20 minutes as a way to get grounded and open us up to the message and discussion - meditation is a spiritual practice that we practice every week;

• We watch a short, thoughtful video to introduce the theme;

• We use Gracious Invitation - one person responds to a question and then invites another person by name until everyone has been invited; of course, people can share as much as they’re comfortable sharing or they can pass;

• We discuss real life and real issues in our lives and in our world; and

• *We record a portion of our services so that people can get a sense of how we gather and what we discuss before they ever join us online.

*Please note: All participants in the Zoom meeting will be asked if they consent to being recorded for the service (Part 1). If a persons says no, they will automatically be removed from the meeting.

If you’re uncomfortable with being recorded, here are a few ways you can protect your privacy and still participate:

• change your name (click on the top right corner of your video box and select “Rename”); and/or

• turn off your video during the recorded portion.