Rev. Julián Jamaica Soto (formerly Theresa) is a Unitarian Universalist minister and activist. They have worked in parish ministry, interim ministry, and hospital chaplaincy with veterans. Soto lives in the Pacific Northwest and seeks to serve the mission and values of Unitarian Universalism, along with the healing of the world.

“Rev. Soto’s book is a gift of lyric human realness. I have shared poems from this powerful volume again and again because they touch on something essential: that moment when you encounter words that snap your consciousness awake and make you say, ‘That’s IT!’ Words that make you say, ‘I know who needs to hear this.’ This is what language is for, and Reverend Soto uses it beautifully.” —Atena O. Danner, author of Incantations for Rest: Poems, Meditations, and Other Magic“Spilling the Light is a book of life. With every poem, read once, twice, we are reminded of our fragile and beautiful existence. There is no escaping healing in these pages. Take it all in and be transformed.” —JeKaren Olaoya, author of All the Pieces Fit: Collage Poems“This book does what the titles says: it spills light from every page. Rev. Soto carries a deep light within and when that light becomes word, it illuminates the world. We leave by feeling that we carry the sun inside of us.” —Dr. Cláudio Carvalhaes, professor of worship, Union Theological Seminary

• Spilling the lightHoly QuietThis cannot be enough America for mei have tried to write this three timesA Simple HopeWe offer you an imperfect welcomeSnowflakes: A GuideTaraxacumLet my life be forward-reachingFinding Our DreamsLet us say to our heartsA Charm for Hope: A Stringbeing universalist is likeBut Why This, Why NowBlessed Are the HungryAm I meant to call up courage?dear trans*, non-binary, genderqueer and gender-expansive friends and kin: (and those of us whose gender is survival)The Magic of an Empty PalmTo the people who have mistaken freedom for liberationNeither divisor nor dividendThe Spark BetweenThe Wonder of a Fist everything is still on fireI cannot prove to you that I am/we are humanShowing up for (F)friend(s)Being a person of color in America todayBring your broken hallelujah hereWe Hold Hope ClosePrevail: an etymologyThere are lots of ways to stay aliveThe Elephant in the Room, Every Single RoomThe AdviceNotes on a Napkin (White Supremacy)Boldly, you must hang your lightMy grandmother’s grinding stone/El molcajete de mi abuelitaThe part that is not waterWhen your best friend has four or so legs Codes/witchingWe Hold On The Name of TyrannyWhere Life Sends YouMitochondrial GiftBroken ShellsongSurvivor/shipRemembering the futureTime for the WorkReversals of Fortunethe butterfly effectA Rock in Our PocketThe Life Slow and PreciousAmerica, is this freedom? Siete principios de unitario universalista, bueno, más el primeroYou are not wrongStretchWhen There Is No Happy Ending