We are pleased to announce that on December 15 at 4 pm, the Pipes Distinguished Lecture Series is bringing exceptional organist Jeffrey Parola to UUSM for an organ recital in our sanctuary.
Jeffrey Parola is an accomplished organist, conductor, and vocalist, who recently made his Walt Disney Concert Hall debut in the World Premiere performance of the David Lang sleeper’s prayer for boy soprano and organ.
Our monthly potluck Second Sunday Supper, will be held after the concert in Forbes Hall, on the Third Sunday this month. It will be hosted by the Music Committee, the Choir, and the Pipes Lecture Committee. Everyone is warmly invited to participate.
About the Pipes Distinguished Lecture Series
The Pipes Lecture Fund was established in 1991 to honor Rev. Ernest D. Pipes upon his retirement after 35 years in the Santa Monica pulpit. The founding members of the committee (Leonard & Elizabeth Adler, Ray & Betty Goodman, Patrick McGuire, and Marguerite Spears) collected monies for an annual free Pipes Distinguished Lecture Series of renowned guest speakers. The series has continued yearly since 1991 with one interruption in 2018.
The series began with William Schultz, President of the Unitarian Universalist Association, and has included luminaries such as Ramona Ripston, Patt Morrison, Arianna Huffington, Michael Dukakis, George Takei, Father Gregory Boyle, and Reza Aslan. It resumes this year with an organ recital — something Ernie has always desired because our organ was hand picked in Italy by the Goodmans to complement the acoustics of our Sanctuary. The committee has also been able to provide money to repair our ailing organ.
Contributions to the Pipes Lecture Fund are welcome to support the tradition of a free, wide-ranging, public lecture series including the topics of public service, government, social justice, religion and ethics, environmentalism, and the media. Please contact the church office to make a contribution. office@uusm.org; (310) 829-5436. Anyone who wishes to become a member of the Pipes Lecture Committee or has a suggestion of someone they’d like to hear speak should contact Patrick McGuire.
Previous Speakers in the Ernest D. Pipes Distinguished Lecture Series
| 1st | 1991 | William Schulz, President of the Unitarian Universalist Association | “Religion In The 21st Century” |
| 2nd | 1993 | Deborah Prothrow-Stith, M.D., Expert on community violence | “Adolescent Violence and Its Impact On The Community” |
| 3rd | 1994 | Rev. Peter Kreitler, Episcopal Minister, Historian/Educator | “The Environment and the Church” |
| 4th | 1995 | Ramona Ripston, Executive Director of the ACLU Foundation of Southern California | “Equal Justice Under The Law” |
| 5th | 1996 | Patt Morrison, L.A. Times and KCET Journalist and Commentator | “Bumper Sticker Politics and Hair Spray News” |
| 6th | 1997 | Rep. Anthony Beilinson, former member of U.S. Congress | “Politics: Past and Future Perspectives” |
| 7th | 1998 | John B. Anderson, former member of U.S. Congress; 1980 candidate for U.S. President | “Why A Livable World Requires A Restructured and Empowered United Nations” |
| 8th | 1999 | Kennard Lipman, Ph.D., University of Judaism | “The Dancing Cosmos: What I Learned About God from Buddhism” |
| 9th | 2000 | Robert Sheer, L.A. Times Journalist and Commentator | “Sex, Politics, and Sheer in the 21st Century” |
| 10th | 2001 | Margo Reeg, League of Women Voters of California | “Make Every Vote Count” |
| 11th | 2002 | Charles Haskell, M.D., Chief Ethics Officer, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs | “Health Care Ethics” |
| 12th | 2003 | Arianna Huffington, Chief Editor of Huffington Post | “How Corporate Greed and Political Corruption are Undermining America” |
| 13th | 2004 | Erwin Chemerinsky, USC School of Law | “Civil Liberties And The War On Terrorism” |
| 14th | 2005 | Tom Plate, UCLA School of Public Policy | “America and China, Odd Couple or Fatal Attraction?” |
| 15th | 2006 | Michael Dukakis, former Governor of Massachusetts; 1988 candidate for U.S. President | “The Health Care Crisis, 45 Million And Counting” |
| 16th | 2007 | Dr. Gary Small, UCLA Center on Aging | “Strategies For Living Better Longer” |
| 17th | 2008 | Mike Farrell, Actor/Activist | “Where Do We Go From Here?” |
| 18th | 2009 | Tim Rutten, L.A. Times Journalist and Commentator | “Does News Have A Future?” |
| 19th | 2010 | George Takei, Actor/Activist | “Embracing Change” |
| 20th | 2011 | Father Gregory Boyle, Executive Director of Homeboy Industries and anti-gang activist | “The Power of Boundless Compassion” |
| 21st | 2012 | Reza Aslan, PhD in Religions, author or No god but God, and founder of AslanMedia.com | “Islam in the 21st Century” |
| 22nd | 2013 | Steven D. Goodman, PhD, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco | “Opening the Heart of Compassion: Buddhist Reflections” |
| 23nd | 2014 | Sandy Banks L.A. Times Journalist and Commentator | “Foster Care: Behind the Headlines – The Pain and Promise of Broken Families” |
| 24th | 2015 | James Dusenberry from Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project | “Climate Change! Global Warming! CO2 Emissions!” |
| 25th | 2016 | Rev. Dr. William Schulz, Executive Director of Amnesty International USA, President and CEO of the UU Service Committee | Seeing the Garden, Not Just the Wall” |
| 26th | 2017 | Rev. Judith Meyer, UUSM Minister Emerita | “Falling Out: Alienation and Community in Divisive Times.” |
