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The holidays are coming! How does a church that believes in the separation of church and state navigate the holidays and the federal privileges given to churches? How should we all? Rev. Sian Wiltshire of Orange Coast Unitarian Universalist Church will attempt to explain.

Rev. Sian Wiltshire has been serving as the minister of Orange Coast Unitarian Universalist church in Costa Mesa for almost 10 years. She's spoken on a wide range of topics, both religious and political, walking a fine line at times. She lives in Costa Mesa with her two beloved canines who walk her every day and is learning to play the Irish Tenor Banjo, with the emphasis on "learning."

Of her theology, Rev. Sian says that “it is unapologetically idealistic, but it also recognizes our brokenness. Buddhism believes that everyone is a Buddha (awakened), they just don’t know it yet; Christians believe that Jesus resides in each of us; and in Hinduism, that everyone is Brahman, the ultimate divine. Unitarian Universalists express this as the “inherent dignity and worth of all.” I like to think we are like those benevolent aliens from the movie Cocoon, where the aliens wear a “skin suit” so as to appear human, but underneath they are beings of light. This light, in fact, has wonderful healing qualities that bring out vitality and creativity. When I think of my fellow humans, I believe that we too are beings of light with amazing healing abilities if we could just bring them to bear. But our skin suit – our cultural and psychological baggage – keeps us from being fully ourselves; and it is part of our journey in life to uncover our light and let it shine.”