One of the things I love about my church is the sense of joy and great good humor that abounds. I have never in my life laughed during a church service, until I came to Emerson. Where else would you have a Sunday service structured around the question, "How many UUs does it take to change a light bulb?" Done antiphonally, no less, with the minister in the pulpit and the lay worship leader in the back.

And then there was the time that the welcome music was ragtime. Sunday (to go along with the theme of stars) it was "When You Wish Upon a Star" and Debussy's "Claire de Lune."

We have our serious, activist side, of course, but the humor and fun lends a leavening that keeps us from taking ourselves too seriously.

Jane Fonda? She was added to Sunday's Pageant as a little joke. She was born in December, was an anti-war activist (Vietnam was our war) and, after all, she's a star, isn't she?

P.S. I think the best description of Unitarian Universalism is that we are a community of seekers, not a church of believers. We come from many different faiths originally--Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, Wiccan--but what we all have in common is that we do not adhere to a rigid dogma. We are a community of people who covenant to seek knowledge in freedom; we say that love is the doctrin of our church; and we work to support each other and improve the world around us. We proclaim the worth and dignity of every person. This the serious side of UU.