About

My name is Herb Orrell. I hold Unitarian values close to my heart and I am very fortunate to be part of a wonderful UU congregation in Northern Colorado..

I have been a truth seeker most of my life and this pursuit has led me in many different directions. I was brought up as a Lutheran and attended Lutheran High School in New York. However, by the time I was a young teenager I had all but given up on church and religion. Then, fifteen years later, I found the United Methodist Church and decided to enter seminary and become an ordained minister. I graduated from Drew University in Madison New Jersey and then served churches in the southwest. I loved being a pastor but eventually I was thrown out of the Methodist church because of my support for gay rights.

After leaving the Methodist ministry I went to work in the corporate world where I specialized in organizational development and quality assurance. I am the author of two books, The Elephant in the Sanctuary, and Unspeakable: the Truth about Grief.

I know the pain of losing my religion, but I also know the joy of coming home to a faith that waited patiently for me all those years while I wandered. My hope is that this blog will play at least a small role in gathering and making accessible the rich collective wisdom of our Unitarian lay members so it can leveraged by others now and in the future. We need each other. I hope you’ll join us.

Best regards,
Herb Orrell