About Rev. Lauren

Hi! I’m Rev. Lauren Levwood, an ordained Unitarian Universalist Minister.

If you’re visiting my website, you might be asking yourself whether I’m the right fit to minister to your community, whether it be to provide pastoral care, officiate your wedding, preach for your congregation, or facilitate a rite of passage. So, let me tell you a little about myself!

Spiritually, I am drawn to embodied and earth-based spiritual practices, religious naturalism, and experiences of awe and wonder arising from art, poetry, music, and the natural world.

I identify with ecohumanism and am drawn to the mystical branches of many religions. As a multi-religious person, I enjoy a deep connection with Jewish Renewal and Buddhist thought.

Professionally, I currently serve as a Unitarian Universalist minister for two UU congregations: the UU’s of the Blue Ridge (UUBRidge) in Sperryville, Virginia, and the UU Community Church of Washington County (UUCCWC) in Hillsboro, Oregon (virtual). I find this unique, bicoastal expression of UU ministry to be engaging and vital. I also serve as the Chair of the Board of Directors for the Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth.

Prior congregational experience includes serving as Ministerial Intern and Assistant Minister of Spiritual Formation at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Richmond, VA, a 650+ member urban congregation in the heart of the city. I was drawn to First UU because of its social justice history, including its impressive creation of “The Richmond Pledge to End Racism.” I was officially ordained to be a UU minister by First UU in November, 2022.

I also served as a hospital chaplain at two locations: first as a Chaplain Intern at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital in Tallahassee, FL, at a 772-bed acute care and Level II trauma center, from Aug-Dec 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic; and later as a Chaplain Resident at Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg, VA, a 471-bed regional and Level II trauma center, from Aug 2023-Aug 2024.

My background is in women’s health. For over a decade, I worked as a women’s health massage therapist, infant massage educator, birth and postpartum doula, and Birthing From Within mentor. From this background, I bring a healer’s heart, a love of science and physiology, a trauma-informed lens, and a cultivated ability to listen to others: body, mind, and spirit.

I am also a former professional modern dancer with a deep history in the field of somatics and embodiment. From this, I bring transferrable skills in embodied spiritual practice, intuitive ways of knowing, cultivating direct experiences of awe and wonder, listening and awareness that supports group collaboration and cohesion, leadership and director experience, performance expertise, ritual craft, worship creation, and fostering connection with our natural world.

As a longtime environmentalist, I have experience working in grassroots and nonprofit organizations. My journey has included living in two eco-spiritual communities in Oakland, CA: The Salt House, an ecumenical Christian community, and Roots & Branches, a contemplative Buddhist-based community that I helped to found. I also served as an Administrative Assistant to the Director and school teacher at the Living Education Center for Ecology and the Arts, and alternative middle-high school in Charlottesville, VA. From these experiences I bring skills in community organizing and patience for the tough but valuable work of being and building beloved community.

I hold a Master of Divinity from Starr King School for the Ministry, a progressive Unitarian Universalist and Multi-Religious seminary housed in Berkeley, CA (2020). In addition, I studied for a year as a merit scholar at Wake Forest University School of Divinity, a liberal and ecumenical Christian seminary in Winston-Salem, NC (2017-2018). I also earned a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Philosophy and Creative Writing and a Bachelor of Arts in Dance from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, VA (2002).

In addition to these accomplishments, I am honored to be the mother to an 11-year-old daughter, Haya, who is the light of my life.

As a seeker on the path, I am always open to new, enriching, and nurturing spiritual connections, and opportunities to share my gifts and serve the world. If you feel drawn to do so, please reach out … and let’s connect! It would be an honor to serve you on the journey.