Winner of the 2016 UU History & Heritage Sermon Award, this sermon illuminates the 19th-century ministry of Rev. Joshua Young, who served many Unitarian congregations, including this one in the 1850s. A co-conductor with his wife of the Underground Railroad, the officiant at John Brown’s funeral, and a fervent supporter of the notion of collective liberation, Joshua Young still speaks to us today.

Rev. Karen G. Johnston is the settled minister at The Unitarian Society, a Unitarian Universalist congregation in East Brunswick, NJ. She grew up in Oregon and lived in western Massachusetts for several decades until moving to Central Jersey. Rev. Karen was ordained in June 2016 after a first career as a clinical social worker. She serves on the Board of UU FaithAction of New Jersey and is Vice President of the Metro NY chapter of the UUMA. Her spiritual practices are rooted in UU values and Insight Meditation, a Western form of Buddhism.