UUABQ Voice

First Unitarian Church of Albuquerque’s weekly sermon podcast. We are a liberal, non-creedal congregation grounded in love and justice, gathering in Albuquerque, Socorro, and the East Mountains. Welcome!

UUABQ Voice is a religion podcast hosted by uuabqvoice, with 100 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

uuabqvoice hosts UUABQ Voice, a religion show with 100 episodes published.

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  Episode #338

  August 23, 2026: “Life on Earth Is Hell Enough” Kelsey D. Atherton, Pulpit Guest

  Aug 25, 202653 min

  Kelsey D. Atherton’s Universalist grandfather defined his faith as “life on earth is hell enough,” a phrase that unlocked a central contradiction of Kelsey’s own Universalist faith journey: how can he reconcile a belief in universal salvation without believing in any hell worse than what is experienced on earth? His answer is in the world as we live it, one whose horrors need no exaggeration, and one where the holy work of care and repair is in the hands of everyone. What we do here matters, and the existence of suffering on earth is sufficient reason to work to alleviate it. Kelsey D. Atherton has been attending First Unitarian since his preschool days, and is a member of the interim transition team. He met his lovely spouse Alymay in a class talking about Our Whole Lives, and together they’re raising two fifth-generation Universalists, or at least will be once the toddlers can master sharing. He worked for a decade as a military technology journalist, before moving to work advocating for a kinder, more diplomatic, softer world. Music: Lydia Clark.

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  Episode #337

  August 16, 2026: “The Search Committee Won’t Save You” The Rev. Jake Morrill

  Aug 25, 20261h 7m

  It is tempting to believe that somewhere out there is the minister who will heal our wounds, solve our challenges, and secure our future. Yet thriving congregations are not built by exceptional ministers alone. They are built by ordinary people who take shared responsibility for the life they want to create together. The search ahead matters. But perhaps the most important work is already underway. Rev. Jake Morrill, a UU minister from East Tennessee, has consulted with this congregation throughout this year, supporting its resilience in a transitional time. A longtime UU minister, a former Chaplain in the US Army Reserve, and a licensed marital and family therapist, Jake is on the Faculty of the Bowen Center for the Study of the Family and is a consultant with the Family Business Consulting Group, through whom he helps family enterprises navigate challenging transitions. Jake and his wife, Molly, are the proud parents of two young adult children. Music: Lydia Clark.

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  Episode #336

  August 9, 2026: “The Bus as a Holy Place” Alymay Atherton, Pulpit Guest

  Aug 25, 20261h 8m

  Where in the City of Albuquerque do you encounter the divine search for truth and meaning? While many members of our congregation are returning to school in this new academic year, all of us can find new rituals for learning and spaces for connecting with our spirituality. For Alymay, one of the most holy spaces they experience outside of church is on the bus. They will share about how the bus became one of their most beloved spiritual places and how they bring Unitarian Universalist values on board with them and in the community as a bus rider advocate. This service will also include a Backpack Blessing for anyone interested. Bring your backpack, messenger bag, laptop sleeve (whatever represents your learning or work!) to receive a blessing. Althea “Alymay” Atherton (they/them) is a community-based homemaker, toddler parent, and current chair of the City of Albuquerque’s Transit Advisory Board. They signed their first congregational book at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Winchendon, Massachusetts as a teenage convert. Alymay has been a member of First Unitarian Church of Albuquerque since 2016, where they teach the faith-based sexuality curriculum Our Whole Lives (OWL) and serve on the UUABQ Religious Education Council. They also ride the bus. Music: Lydia Clark.

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  Episode #335

  August 2, 2026: "Social Justice for Introverts" The Rev. Erica Lea-Simka

  Aug 5, 202646 min

  “You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.” (Perkei Avot 2:21) Quotes like this are often shared with well-meaning “get out there and change the world” memes on social media. Many of us are not able to join large gatherings, or we have personalities and/or disabilities that make loud, public acts of social justice harmful to ourselves. How can we engage in bending the arc of the moral universe toward justice effectively while playing to our strengths? Inspired by the book Social Justice for the Sensitive Soul: How to Change the World in Quiet Ways by Dorcas Cheng-Tozun and 1 Corinthians 12:4-11. Rev. Erica Lea-Simka [LEE Sim-kuh]. Rev. Erica (she/they) is a pastor, peacebuilder, parent, partner, perseverer, pilgrim, and plant-based nut. Pastor Erica has served Baptist and Mennonite congregations, most recently as Pastor of Albuquerque Mennonite Church from 2017 to 2025. They are currently The Journey Project (Thriving Churches Initiative) Grant Director for the New Mexico Conference of Churches and Southwest Representative for Mennonite Women USA. Music: Lydia Clark

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  Episode #334

  July 26: “When Your Church Disappoints You: Reflections on Relationship, Repair, and Covenant” The Rev. Emily Wright-Magoon

  Jul 29, 20261h 9m

  Martin Buber said: “The human being…is the promise-making, promise-keeping, promise-breaking, promise-renewing creature.” Rev. Emily, our Board President Bill Miller, and members Judy Goering and Jan Lee will reflect on the transformative power of staying engaged in community despite disappointment and through conflict. Music: Sue Young, Rusty Nelson, and Vance Bass.

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