WINTER SOLSTICE:
The Longest Night: A Contemplative Gathering and Sound Healing
Sunday, December 21, 2025 • 4:00-5:00 PM
Step outside the holiday busyness. Mark the turning of the year.
On the winter solstice—the longest night—we gather at dusk for a contemplative service as darkness falls and light begins its return.
This is not a traditional church service. This is an ancient human practice: honoring the darkness, releasing what no longer serves, trusting that light returns.
For seekers, questioners, all spiritual paths. For those tired of forced holiday cheer. For anyone who needs permission to simply be where they are.
The Flow of the Evening
Our gathering unfolds over one contemplative hour, designed to guide you from the day's busyness into deep presence with the earth's turning. As we gather at 4:00 PM, daylight still filters through our sanctuary windows. By the time we close, darkness will have fallen—and we will have witnessed the actual transition together.
Opening & Pastoral Reflections (10 minutes)
Rev. Laurie Manning opens our circle with words that name what's real—acknowledging where we are as individuals and as a world. No platitudes. No pretending. Just honest grounding in this moment, preparing us to go deep together. This is your invitation to arrive fully, to set down whatever you're carrying, to give yourself permission to simply be.
Solstice Teachings & Element Invocation (15 minutes)
Rev. Dr. Isa Gucciardi guides us in understanding what's actually happening in the cosmos on this night—our relationship to the earth and sky, the movement of the sun, and why humans have gathered on this longest night for millennia. She then invokes the four elements that hold us: Earth beneath our feet, Water that flows through us, Air that we breathe, Fire that warms us, and the Spirit that moves through all things. This isn't theater—it's a practice of remembering our place in the living world.
Sound Healing Meditation (20 minutes)
Laura Chandler offers deep healing with crystal singing bowls. You're invited to lie down on the floor, sit in a chair, or find whatever position allows your body to fully receive. This isn't entertainment or background music—this is medicine for the soul. The vibrations of the bowls work on levels beyond our conscious awareness, releasing what's held tight, opening what's been closed, allowing the body to remember its own wisdom. Many people report going somewhere they didn't know they needed to go. Trust the process. Allow yourself to receive.
Darkness Falls: Sacred Songs, Silence, Candlelight (15 minutes)
As we move into the final portion of our time together, watch through the sanctuary windows as darkness falls. This is the moment—the actual turning. We light candles together, honoring the return of light that is promised even in the deepest darkness. We sing simple chants that anyone can join. We sit in silence, held by community. We mark this threshold not with words but with presence.
Who's Creating This Gathering
Rev. Laurie Manning
Laurie serves as Pastor of Skyline Community Church (UCC), where she has been creating space for progressive, contemplative Christianity for nearly two decades. Her ministry weaves together social justice, interfaith dialogue, and creation-centered theology. She holds degrees from Union Theological Seminary (M.Div.), Harvard (M.Ed.), and University of Michigan (MBA), and serves as Climate Justice Representative for the Northern California/Nevada UCC Conference. Laurie believes deeply in the wisdom of earth-based rhythms and in creating spiritual gatherings that welcome people across all faith traditions and none.
Rev. Dr. Isa Gucciardi
Isa is the Founding Director of Sacred Stream, a contemplative spiritual center in San Francisco that has been offering depth psychology, Buddhist-Christian dialogue, and spiritual formation programs for over 25 years. She holds a Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology and has trained extensively in shamanic practices, Buddhist meditation, and Christian contemplative traditions. Her work bridges ancient wisdom traditions with contemporary spiritual practice, honoring the sacred in all paths while creating spaces for deep personal transformation.
Laura Chandler
Laura is a sound healer who works with crystal singing bowls to facilitate deep healing and transformation. Her practice recognizes that sound vibration can access parts of ourselves that words cannot reach—releasing trauma held in the body, opening pathways for healing, and allowing us to drop beneath the noise of everyday consciousness into profound rest and restoration.
The Elements We'll Invoke
In indigenous and earth-based traditions across the world, the four elements—Earth, Water, Air, and Fire—are understood as the fundamental forces that sustain all life. On the solstice, we intentionally call on these elements, remembering that we are not separate from the natural world but woven into it.
Earth grounds us, holds us, reminds us we are bodies in a physical world. Water flows through us, teaches us about change and cleansing. Air is the breath we share with all living things, the invisible force that connects us. Fire is transformation, warmth, the light that returns even after the longest night. And Spirit—the fifth element—moves through all of it, the mystery that holds everything together.
Rev. Dr. Isa Gucciardi will guide us in this invocation, teaching us how to honor these forces that are always present but rarely acknowledged in our daily lives.
The Significance of Winter Solstice
December 21 is the longest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere—the moment when darkness reaches its fullest and the sun is farthest from us. For thousands of years, humans have gathered on this night to mark the turning: tomorrow, the days begin to lengthen. Light returns. Not because we earned it, but because this is the nature of the cosmos.
This is older than any religion. This is human. This is earth-based wisdom that connects us to the cycles of nature, the movement of the planets, and the ancient practice of trusting that even in the deepest darkness, light will return.
"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness cannot overcome it." — John 1:5
Practical Information
When: Sunday, December 21, 4:00-5:00 PM (arrive by 4:00 to settle in before we begin)
Where: Skyline Community Church, 12540 Skyline Boulevard, Oakland Hills, CA 94619
What to Bring: Yoga mat or blanket if you wish to lie down during sound healing
RSVP: Helpful but not required — office@skylineucc.org
Cost: Free and open to all
Free Will Offering: While this gathering is free, we welcome donations to support the ongoing work of Sacred Stream in bringing contemplative practices and spiritual formation to our community. Offerings can be made at the gathering or online.
Parking: Available on-site
Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible, chairs available for those who cannot sit on floor
Who This Is For
This gathering welcomes:
Anyone seeking meaning beyond holiday commercialization
People from all spiritual paths—Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Christian, humanist, seeker, or none of the above
Those who feel disconnected during forced holiday cheer
Anyone wanting to honor the earth's natural rhythms
People who need permission to not be "fine"
Contemplatives, activists, mystics, and questioners
All are welcome. Ecumenical. Non-dogmatic. Come as you are.
Questions You Might Have
What if I'm not religious? Perfect. This gathering welcomes humanists, seekers, and people from all backgrounds. No beliefs required.
What if I don't know anything about solstice traditions? Also perfect. Dr. Isa Gucciardi will teach us. Come curious.
Can I just sit in a chair? Yes! You can sit, lie down, stand—whatever your body needs.
Is this only for people who are grieving? No. While some may be grieving, this is for anyone wanting to step outside busyness and mark the turning with intention.
Can I bring a friend? Please do! For more info, call our office: 510 531 8212.
RSVP: office@skylineucc.org • (510) 530-1618 skylineucc.org
A partnership between Skyline Community Church (UCC) https://skylineucc.org/
and Sacred Stream https://www.sacredstream.org/
Progressive Christian. Ecumenical. Welcoming all.
