From the Minister

May is the month for our Fellowship Annual Meeting (May 19). Planning for the meeting, and the participation of many of us which even this small democracy requires, has been underway for several months. Not everyone quite gets this juxtaposition between the religious life of the congregation (and our own religious lives) and the necessity of participation in sustaining it. I suppose it is an acquired taste, and at the very least it takes practice. All of the team, council and board meetings about the budget, the bylaws, the goals and plans, evaluation of current work, all of the challenges and struggles and learning about new ways to communicate and interact – ALL of this is how we sustain this local and unique democracy. It may seem quite boring to some, even passe, yet in these days there is nothing more important.

The extent to which our national democracy is in danger and to which all of our highest values are at stake (even more than in 2016) cannot be overstated.
It is nearly unbelievable how precarious the system is right now. It could very well be that the collective mindset of those who believe that something different is needed – authoritarianism at the very least – is so deep and wide that it is like a tsunami wave building. Certainly there is a wave. Anything and everything we do, here and in the wider circles of community, to practice and sustain democratic structures, makes a difference.

Many of you know more than I do, and have much more articulate political opinions. I am no political pundit. Nevertheless I am convinced that given the possibilities we need to begin now to plan for how we will organize our congregational life to take care of each other, and others who will be at even more risk, should the worst-case scenario come to pass. If this is something you can help with, please let me know. And for all you are already doing to help sustain democratic ideals – thank-you!

Some decades ago, a well-known and seasoned UU minister wrote a sermon about joining a UU congregation. His summary was this: There is only one reason to join a UU congregation; you join in order to support it! That perspective has fostered lots of conversation over many years, and the longer I consider it, the more I agree with it. Since our approach to religion is both liberal and free, since there is no prescribed creed or test of belief, our highest goals are about creating true community. Learning to not only live together and be together, but to be good with and for each other and for all living things (for all the Earth!).

This is a very high aim, and often we lose sight of it. Support includes many things. For example our presence, our participation, our time and money. Our care and concern for specific people and programs and for the congregation as a whole (which is what shared ministry means). Our willingness to seek more than personal satisfaction, more than mere comfort, more than confirmation of our biases. All of these are why we engage in religious learning and growth, spiritual practices, shared ceremonies and rituals – we do these things to help us support the constant creation and care of a community. (And not just “community” as an abstract idea; this very real and very specific community, with all its unique and particular characters and characteristics.)

The annual stewardship pledge drive is one specific way we support the Fellowship – by making a pledge of annual financial support. This week the stewardship team is still waiting to hear from most members of the Fellowship – are you one of them? Our annual meeting is another important way we support the Fellowship, by taking part in the annual discussion of Fellowship business, by being an active part of this specific democratic process which belongs wholly to us.

The Fellowship has been a vibrant, welcoming and consequential religious congregation for nearly 70 years because of the support of so many people who have shared a commitment to its wellbeing. All of us who are here now a recipients of that long and beautiful tradition. Though our support, may we do our best to keep it healthy, moving and growing, for ourselves, for each other and for all those who will come after us.

April is Stewardship Month at the Fellowship, among other good things (like Earth Month and Poetry Month…) This means it’s the time we each consider our role as part of the congregation, as part of the covenant, as part of this living tradition. It’s the time when we make pledges of support – of our time, our talents and our financial resources.

The UUFC is sustained by pledges, which are not the same as contributions. Contributions are always welcome, but the Fellowship depends upon pledges, which are commitments of financial support for our shared work. If you are accustomed to simply contributing, I strongly encourage you to make a meaningful pledge this year. If you have never pledged before, let this be your good beginning!

The beautiful thing about being part of this community is that we support our work together, each according to their means and situations, yet all joining in. All of us. The most important part of the stewardship pledge drive is that all of us participate, together.

Pledging can be a spiritual practice – an activity we choose to engage in which over time helps us grow in wisdom, compassion and love. To pledge and regularly pay that pledge calls one toward greater generosity.

Each Sunday we say together these words: “From the countless gifts we each have been given, gifts of life, and love, and sustenance, we bring these small portions to share in the works of love, which none of us can accomplish alone.” Our pledges are much the same: we each bring our portions, and together we share in the great works of love which the UUFC can accomplish. As a congregation and a community we can do more together than we can individually.

Making a pledge of support for the Fellowship has never been more important, so take some time during the next week to thoughtfully consider your pledge, and then make a pledge that signifies how and why the UUFC is important, to you and to the world. Make a pledge that you can feel good about, because you know you are making a commitment to your highest values. Make a pledge which makes a difference.

We know that the world needs us, and we know that we need each other in this work. Together we can accomplish so much more than any of us can accomplish alone. Thank-you for joining this year’s stewardship pledge drive.

The Jewish and Christian traditions are foundational in the long evolution of stories which have shaped Unitarian Universalism. It is now the season for two of the most important of those stories: the exodus of the ancient Hebrew people from Egypt – the Passover story, and the death and resurrection of Jesus – the Easter story.

The Passover and Easter stories do not shy away from the hard realities of human suffering. They include graphic descriptions of plagues, armies, murder, brutality, loss, and devastation. They are stories which arise in times and places of oppression and violence, of the power of a state to use oppression and violence to sustain its greed. They are stories of people terrorized and killed and pushed to the edge of endurance, and they are stories of endurance and perseverance and un-extinguishable dedication to justice and love. Stories we can understand so well, because we live in these times too. The stories of Passover and Easter are stories for our time.

One thing I’ve learned from working with these stories for so many years is that I can’t fully understand what they mean on my own – I don’t meaning alone. I make meaning in relation to others – listening, hearing, considering. I need the perspectives of others, because there are so many pieces of truth. This is why we work together, why our justice and connections and learning work is led by teams.

I’ve also learned over and over again that the human story remains so much the same. Which is good, because the human story always includes new life, new ways, and the persistence of love and truth over and over again. What makes sense to me now has made sense to many others in the midst of times of devastation. Like so many others before us, in our lives now, we are called to let go of old ways and begin again. To be able and willing to accept new life as it comes, even if from the ashes of the old.

In April of 2020, just a few weeks into the world-wide pandemic shutdown, UU minister Kendyl Gibbons said this: “This Easter, as never before in many of our lifetimes, we are invited to seek the strength to let go of an old way of life, and discover what else might be possible.” May this be our aim this year as well.

Along with trees and bushes and bulbs, the Fellowship seems to be in a season of blooming! Events and activities abound – so many ways to get together with others, to share in religious learning and growth, to increase justice and peace step by little step. New formats and methods for communication are emerging. The Fellowship calendar suddenly feels full, as do the Sanctuary and the foyer and the Social Hall on Sundays. Tables are multiplying in the foyer – that’s a sign of activity and of the need for folks to invite other folks to join them. (Tables can also sometimes feel like obstacles – we’ll need to take care in how we use them.) It’s also a season of cleaning up and cleaning out – including some moldy carpets and furniture. We’re in preparation for renovation of the meeting wing of the building – finally, and we’re preparing for Stewardship season and Earth Month. It can feel very energizing and exciting and a little overwhelming at the same time.

Recently I found a prayer I wrote after a retreat of some sort, more than 15 years ago. It was like a gift to myself in this season of growth. May it be helpful to you as well.

“In the swirling of paradox in this moment, acknowledging my conflicting needs and aims, let me gather all the love I know, and give thanks.

May I hear the sound of today calling me, and may I never forget the call of all ages – may these calls from Life guide and steer me as I move.

May the path on which I move be a path toward more justice and peace: may it be as clear as possible and filled with enough curves to keep me from certainty.

As I move, may I be an instrument of the music at the heart of Life, ready and willing to be played and to melt into the song.”

May I wake up into more and more gratitude for each day that is given to me and for all that it offers.”

At the end of every OSU term I mark out ten to twelve hours on my schedule to have short one-to-one meetings with all the students in my class on World Religions. There are usually around 45 students, so it takes a while. I have learned that it is one of the most worthwhile things I do. I have a chance to hear from each student whether or not, in getting an overview of nine different traditions, they have learned anything useful (or surprising or helpful). This is my week for interviews, and once again, I am full of gratitude and awe. Students who never say anything in class become incredibly articulate. They describe how their perspectives have opened, how their horizons have widened, how what they thought was simply true is much more complicated and nuanced than they could have imagined. They appreciate knowing more than hearsay about Judaism and Islam, they are intrigued by the possibilities of Buddhist and Daoist practice. They recognize that even if they don’t consider themselves religious, nevertheless they too are in the process of trying to understand what it means to be human is, and how to live a good life.

I sometimes say that I continue to teach this class as my small contribution to world peace. And maybe that’s true. Maybe it’s also true that I’m still trying to understand what it means to be human and how to live a good live.

The Fellowship, and Unitarian Universalism, mean a lot of things to a lot of people. It isn’t always easy to describe what we do, because so much is done by so many, and because as the world changes we also change. At the very least, however, from my perspective, we are people who gather together as companions on the journey of life, trying to understand and do our best to be human through ups and downs, love and loss, fear and joy. We choose this specific liberal religious path, and this particular congregation for the freedom to ask our own questions and to share both questions and answers with others. We also choose this place because we understand that we can promise one another to take care of ourselves and of each other.

Being a Unitarian Universalist can look easy, as in “nothing is required.” But that is not quite right. Much is asked of us, including being responsible to and for each other, to and for the congregation, and to and for the world. All are welcome to come in and consider this path, yet it is so much more than a spectator sport (as I’ve said many times before). The religious life — this religious life as a Unitarian Universalist — is a life based on commitment. There is too much at stake in our lives and in the world for anything less.