“I can always tell when you’re speaking, because the parking lot is full. ”
~Sally, UUF of Greater Cumberland, MD
“Thank you so much, JD, for the inspiring service! Would we had a speaker like you every week!”
~Mary, FMUU, Fargo, ND
JD Stillwater is a UU Lay Speaker
JD Stillwater is a frequent speaker and preacher at UU congregations in the Central East region and around the country; past President and Trustee of the Unitarian Church of Harrisburg PA (UCH); active in UCH music ministry; Worship Team; certified OWL facilitator (grades 7-12); father of UU Minister and Navy Officer Rev. Robin Stillwater; repeat contributor for Braver/Wiser. As President of UCH, JD shepherded the congregation through the process of purchasing a second campus in inner-city Harrisburg.
A veteran science educator (25 years), JD speaks on topics of science, spirituality, and cultural change. JD is listed at the UUA’s Guest In Your Pulpit site, and his work is encouraged and supported by UU legends Michael Dowd, Connie Barlow, Peter Mayer, and Jim Scott. Below is a list of past UU host congregations.
Is it a talk or a sermon?
Every experienced UU worship leader knows that there’s no difference between a great UU sermon and an engaging and heartfelt talk—both have “soul” and both take diverse audiences to someplace new, someplace inspiring. All JD’s talks and workshops are designed to do this, not in a preachy “sermonizing” way, but as a passionate sharing from the heart, enriched by science, filled with personal stories and reflections that invite the audience in.
In a UU context, they are sermons. Anywhere else, they are “talks”. “Sermon” is still a loaded term, especially for refugees from traumatic traditional church experiences. [new word—Traugmatic: when dogma hurts 😬]
To see what JD offers churches, the Talks and Workshops page is the right place. Just keep in mind that except for the flagship workshops, all the other offerings were first created as 20-minute sermons, embedded in one-hour UU services. They still are, and they have each been expanded into deeply-involving personal growth workshops and RE offerings for youth and adults.
Not JUST a Sermon…
JD says: “When I guest-preach, I like to work with your Worship Team or Worship Associate to ensure that the whole service is a cohesive and engaging experience. I provide suggestions for service elements that are in good alignment with the sermon/message. I also work with you to ensure that what I bring aligns well with any ongoing worship themes, relevant holidays, and congregational activities like stewardship, search, etc.
Most of my sermon offerings are multimedia because my teaching career taught me that a message is more engaging and inspiring if visuals augment what’s spoken.
Both in-person and remote, I can usually stick around for coffee hour, conversing about the service, meeting people, and personalizing the message.
I say all that to let you know that with me it’s never “just a sermon”! I tend to fall in love with the many congregations I visit, and I want my work to advance their missions, and improve members’ lives.”
“Thank you, JD, for yet another uplifting, provocative service! The sanctuary was abuzz with conversation about collective trauma, epigenetics, and the connections between Julia’s affirmations and the proposed changes to the UUA bylaws. The conversation crept into the Sustainable Rogue Valley meeting on Sunday afternoon and the Book Club conversation on Monday afternoon. I suspect we’ll be finding and discussing connections to this service for a long time.”
~D.S., UU Grants Pass, OR
For leading a service, JD asks $400, but can sometimes accept your usual honorarium. He wants his work to be accessible for all.
For workshops and RE presentations/discussions, there are lots of options for compensation. Generally, JD asks $500 for a workshop in UU spaces.
For fees in other settings, click here.
The general info page for hosts.
Past UU communities that have hosted JD’s work:
Those gorgeous cast-bronze chalices you see at so many UU gatherings were created by beloved old friend Mordecai Roth who, with me and dozens of others, spent 1986 walking from Los Angeles to Washington DC, on The Great Peace March for Global Nuclear Disarmament.
Mordecai was already retired (from dentistry); I was a naive young man.
To me, Mordecai was a friend, mentor, and emergency dentist. He and his loving spouse Lenore still serve as role models for Ann and me. I miss them.
Seeing Mordecai’s chalices in UU gathering places all around the country always brings both joy and tears. A UU World article about Mordecai.
[If you’d like one of Mordecai’s bronze chalices, his son and granddaughter have a few still available. Call or email Danielle Byerley for more information.]
I’m also missing dear friend, mentor, and inspiration Rev. Michael Dowd, so soon gone, with so much he still wanted to do. Michael and his spouse Connie Barlow spent many a Sunday in UU spaces, offering the “gospel” of cosmic evolution as a source of unity and revelation.
Their* book, Thank God for Evolution, was a huge impetus in my entry to this work. It is his footsteps I try to follow. I miss you, Michael. The work continues.
*[Michael is the nominal author, but he told me it would never have happened without Connie’s critical editorial input. I can relate.]