Rev. Kevin Mann (he/him/siyá)
The late civil rights activist John Lewis called us to: “Not get lost in a sea of despair and to never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.” Week after week, year after year, Unitarian Universalists gather to build the Beloved Community that centers Black, Indigenous, People of Color, fosters collective liberation, and reminds us that we are not alone in our quest for life saving liberal religion. Come and get in good trouble with me!
Kevin Alan Mann serves as a Chaplain with Sequoia Hospice. As a Queer Unitarian Universalist whose parents immigrated from the Philippines, Kevin’s ministry is rooted in centering people from the margins and growing solidarity towards the Beloved Community. He received his Master of Divinity and Social Change from Starr King School for the Ministry in 2016 and completed his Chaplaincy Residency at California Pacific Medical Center in 2018. Kevin serves on the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization’s Diversity Advisory Council and was recently ordained by the First Unitarian Church of Oakland on October 1st, the first day of both Filipino American and LGBTQ History Month.

October 15, 2023: Dance as Religion: Uniting the Sacred and Secular
Rev. Jojo V. Gabuya (they/them)
Some of us practice dance as religion. More people of varying ages, genders, beliefs, races, and statuses crowd at the dance halls weekly rather than sit in church pews on Sundays. Scholars in the field marvel at how it is common for people nowadays to perceive dance and religion as mutually exclusive activities. Dance unites the sacred and secular.
Reverend Jojo V. Gabuya is a Filipinx non-binary/transgender interfaith minister, Blessed Tomorrow Ambassador, and a diversity and inclusion leader. They are practicing the Dao philosophy and Veganism to create a healthier, safer, and more stable world for ALL. Rev. Jojo is currently training as an InterPlay Leader: Unlocking Body Wisdom. They is also participating in the Empowering Faith Leaders Program, which addresses Addiction and the Overdose Crisis.

October 22, 2023: What a Fish Knows
Rev. Dr. Carrie Knowles (she/her)
Rev. Dr. Carrie Knowles offers a fresh look at fishes in their remarkable diversity and beauty. These creatures conduct courtship rituals and develop lifelong bonds, they plan and hunt cooperatively, use tools, curry favor, deceive one another, and punish wrongdoers.
Rev. Dr. Carrie Knowles describes herself as a recovering psychologist and recovering attorney, who graduated from Starr King in 2011 and was ordained to UU ministry in 2013. Along with providing pastoral care at BFUU and preaching at Bay Area churches as a guest speaker, she writes poetry, short stories, and is working on a memoir.

October 29, 2023: Buddhist Approaches to Just Peace
Rev. Kosho Finch (he/him)
*Special Zoom-only Worship Service*
The Buddha’s teaching is often regarded as inward looking practice, disconnected from world affairs and concerns. However since its inception it has taken a quiet role in guiding societies and leaders to finding alternatives to past forms of government and encouraging peace among people. In this talk Rev. Finch will survey from ancient times to modern social justice movements influenced by Buddhist thought, and share how the Buddhist teaching is uniquely positioned to assist us in achieving just peace for our communities.
Rev. Kosho Finch is the head minister of the Henjyoji Shingon Buddhist Temple in Portland, Oregon. Originally from Detroit Michigan, Rev. Finch studied International Relations and East Asian Languages at Michigan State University. His language studies led to him to live in work in northeasters China after graduation. While there he encountered his first Buddhist teacher, a Tibetan Lama teaching in secret. That Lama encouraged him to move to California to pursue his interests in the Buddhist teachings. In 1999, he began his study of Shingon Buddhism, under the tutelage of Rev. Seicho Asahi at the Northern California Koyasan Temple in Sacramento. He took novice ordination in 2000, and final ordination in 2006 in Japan. He later attend Willamette University College of Law, graduating with a Juris Doctorate. He has since served as a minister with the Koysan Shingon Buddhist Mission of Hawaii. He is currently working on his masters thesis in religion with a focus on Buddhism and Government.