• Out of 524 people who worshiped with us on March 1^st, 319 took the survey (an excellent response).
• 92% of survey respondents indicated they attend Sunshine Cathedral worship services 2 or more times per month.
• 16% of the respondents had attended less than 1 year, while 40% had attended from 2 to 5 years. 43% attended for 6 or more years.
• 54% of the respondents were between the ages of 45 and 64.
• 12% of the respondents were women, 4% were Black / African American, and 7% were Hispanic. Because of the way the question was framed, however, we actually believe the number of Hispanics to be higher than reported.
• 89% of respondents said they usually or always experience inspiration and joy in worship.
• 91% of respondents said that church activities help them with daily living.
• 89% identified as progressive (either very liberal, liberal, or moderate… with liberal being the largest group).
• 75% agreed that “all the different religions are equally good ways of helping a person find ultimate truth.” 12% were neutral or unsure.
• 87% said their spiritual needs were being met at Sunshine Cathedral.
• 91% said “there is a good match between our congregation and our pastor.”
• 89% felt the congregation had a clear vision, goals, and direction for ministry (and 79% indicated they were personally committed to the vision and goals).
• 72% of respondents indicated they travel less than 20 minutes to get to church.
• About a fourth of the respondents indicated they were involved in group activities in the church, and compared to two years ago, 25% of congregants are participating MORE in activities of the church while 48% are participating at the same level they did 2 years ago.
• Almost a third of respondents claimed to have leadership roles in the congregation.
• More than two-thirds of respondents said they have close friends in the congregation.

We want to thank everyone who participated in the survey for helping us get a clearer picture of what we are doing well and what we still need to do better. You can read the full reports and analysis of the reports by clicking here.

“Often we hear someone say, ‘I will doit when my ship comes in.’ And I always like to ask, ‘Did you send one out?’ Inother words, as you give, you receive; as you serve, you benefit.” IrwinGregg

We are already well into autumn. Soon, the Liturgical Year will begin againwith Advent and not longer after that there will be the Season of Lent. Adventand Lent both remind us about service, stewardship, worship, and daily prayer.But the truth is those disciplines benefit us year round! When we volunteer forministries or social service, when we contribute generously and consistently tothe place where our spirituality is nourished, when we give to other goodcauses, when we gather with others for a shared experience of worship, and whenwe enter into the Silence each day to commune with the God of ourunderstanding, we are sowing seeds of love and hope, and those seeds are boundto take root and return to us an abundant harvest of fulfillment and joy. As wegive, we receive. As we serve, we benefit.

“…the star is seen to be our star. It is the star of Jesus but he came that we might see it as our star.” Albert Grier

Magi, the story goes, saw a star and followed it to alife-giving and life-changing experience. In ancient times, it wasbelieved “new stars” appeared when special people were born. We may nottake the story literally. After all, we must surely have doubts that anactual star rested only a few feet above a dwelling place like theTexaco star sign elevated near a gas station! But as an allegory, thestory may be very true. The story tells us that as we seek and followthe light of Truth, wherever it may come from and wherever it may lead,we will find ourselves discovering what is empowering, life-giving,nurturing, and joyous for our lives. The magi represent the divineWisdom within us, leading us always to seek and follow signs that pointtoward our greater Good. The star of Jesus, the Epiphany star is ourstar…the symbol of our spiritual growth and evolution.

In this episode of Sharing the Light,Sunshine Cathedral’s Senior Pastor Durrell Watkins speaks with LightUniversity Academic Dean Robert Griffin and Michael Diaz, VolunteerCoordinator / Miami Outreach Coordinator. We invite you to join us foran enlightening conversation on Sharing the Light.

Question: Why did Jesus say he was dying for his friends? What doesthat mean?

Answer: I have no idea if Jesus said he was dying “for” his friends.Remember, Jesus didn’t write the gospels. People wrote those stories 40 – 70years after Jesus’ death, so lots of words have been put in Jesus’ mouth thatJesus probably never said.

In ancient Greek culture, warriors who died defending the city-state weresaid to have “died for the people”. Perhaps the gospel writers saw Jesus inthis way — willing to put himself on the line to make changes in the world andto empower people on the margins. While he was defending the sacred value ofall people, he was killed like a warrior dying for his people.

When Dr. King was killed in Memphis, didn’t he die for the sins of racism,violence, and classism? Didn’t he live and die to improve the lives of others?It doesn’t mean God wanted him to be harmed; it just means that the love of Godwas so powerful in him that he was willing to risk death to bless people’slives. Maybe that’s what the writers of the gospel were suggesting about Jesus.

“[Human-beings are] Life and Intelligence expressed.” Myrtle Fillmore

Early this summer, Rev. Robert Griffin was invited by Micah Fink of PBS to take part in a taping of HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean specifically focusing on homophobia and religion in Jamaica through the outreach of Sunshine Cathedral in Jamaica.

The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting in association with the M∙A∙C AIDS Fund and the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism made this project possible as they focused on stigma and discrimination that prevents people around the world from accessing HIV prevention, care, and treatment services they need. This is particularly true in areas of the Caribbean, such as Jamaica, where anti-sodomy laws and concerns about violence put vulnerable populations at extreme risk.

The first of the five-part series will begin airing on the PBS series World Focus on Tuesday, September 22^nd; please check local listing for timing. Also, web videos of all five pieces are also going to go live on the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting website early next week as well. The videos will, we believe, be available internationally at http://pulitzergateway.org/the-glass-closet/.

For our associates in the New York area the series will kick off on Tuesday with two events, a viewing of the series at the Columbia University’s School of Journalism at 4:00 PM followed by a reception/panel discussion at the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism. Seating is limited so if you plan to attend please RSVP to RSVP@pulitzercenter.org.

We are uncertain as to how much of Sunshine Cathedral will be presented in this special; however we invite you to watch the series.

Micah Fink is an Emmy-nominated producer specializing in international affairs, public health, national security, and environmental issues. Micah’s work has appeared on Wide Angle, Frontline, National Geographic Television and ABC News. He has written for print, magazines, and the web. His recent work, Glass Closet, explores the intersections among homophobia, violence, stigma, religion and the disease in Jamaica.

Question: You preach a message of optimism and self-esteem. But how do you account for biblical messages like the one in Isaiah, chapter 64 that says, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags”?

Answer: There are at least three contributors to the Book of Isaiah. They each speak from their own perspective. The second contributor to Isaiah, for example, believes that a day of healing from Yahweh is on the way. The third contributor, however, is sometimes hopeful and other times desperate. “Third Isaiah” (the last ten chapters of the book) is the writer of the passage you mention, and he has a hard time maintaining a positive outlook. His gift to us is his honesty about his struggle. That doesn’t mean we should emulate his despair.

The writer believes that God has been unfairly harsh in punishing people for their mistakes and the harshness of God’s punishments cause the people to doubt God’s goodness, and their doubt leads to more mistakes. What a vicious cycle! I don’t believe God punishes people for their mistakes (though choices have consequences… we may be punished “by” our mistakes, but nor “for” them), and even Third Isaiah knows that. He says, “Yet, O God, you are our Parent; we are the clay and you the potter — we are all the work of your hands” (v.8). When he’s thinking clearly, he knows that God is good. When he focuses only on the hardships of life, he blames God for those hardships, saying things like, “No other god would treat its servants in such a way!” (v. 4).

Yes, one of the three writers of Isaiah during a moment of crisis believes that God isn’t terribly fair. But he shows us how such defeatist thinking doesn’t serve him, and how his natural bent is to hope anyway. In a weak moment, Third Isaiah may have imagined God was treating him like dirty rags, but that isn’t the big picture of Isaiah, or of the bible.

In this episode of Sharing the Light, Sunshine Cathedral’s Senior Pastor Durrell Watkins speaks with Light University Academic Dean Robert Griffin and Michael Diaz, Volunteer Coordinator / Miami Outreach Coordinator. We invite you to join us for an enlightening conversation on Sharing the Light.

This past week, the LGBT community around the globe learned of yet another horrific attack on a gay man that resulted in his death.