inherent worth and dignity of everyone;
Justice, equity and
compassion;
Acceptance of one
another
Encouragement to
spiritual growth;
Respect for the
interdependent web
peace, liberty and
justice for all
All of them
Which of
the UU Sources fills your spirit so that you can cope with the chaotic world we
live in?
Experiencing
transcendent mystery and wonder
the world's
religions;
Jewish and Christian
teachings;
Humanist teachings;
Earth-centered
traditions.
Multiple Sources are
profound and enlightening
The whole set
together.
Meditation.
None, yet.
What
social justice issue most calls to your heart?
Immigration
Noticing people are
more than default humans
Our democracy
treating other beings
as equals
Social Justice is a
state of being
Just Economic
Community
Climate change
Women’s rights
Reducing gun violence
Helping people get a
job
Helping people with
basic needs
Racial inequity
Voting rights
How does
being a member of this church impact your daily life?
People here share similar values to mine;
My friends
my family
my tribe are here
Helping others here
Being helped to
develop a healthier moral compass
Nurtured a more open
and understanding world view in me.
Being supported
being cared for
by members of this
congregation
It hasn’t affected my
life, yet.
Holding members of
the congregation in my heart with love
Their positive effect
on my children
What was
your most moving moment here at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of
Miami?
Praying with people of color
Little moments and
memories
Certain speakers
preachers
services
The Memorial brick
dedications.
Celebrating life’s
transitions here,
weddings,
child dedications,
celebrations of life,
renewing vows,
anniversaries
Helping me grow as a
person
Christin: Having Indivisible meet here, 350 people in this
sanctuary
Imagine
coming to this church five years from now.
Tell me about what you hope to see.
More people,
younger people,
diverse people,
people of color,
More families
We are more cohesive
and cooperative
More welcoming
More compassionate
More contemporary
music
More involved in
Miami-Dade community
Being a liberal
religious hub for the larger community
Better use of our
property
More deep and soulful
communicating
Imagine a
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Miami superhero.
An open loving person
Those who keep this
congregation going
A bubble of white
light around the whole grounds
Humble
non-grandstanders who give more than they take.
She would be Hispanic
and tri-lingual
Quiet effective
people, making a difference in the world
Their name would be
friend because they are all of us
The many unsung
heroes here
A Unitarian
Universalist Miami avatar of our best selves.
Someone who is
personable
positive
compassionate
and enthusiastic.
Some of
you might know that I grew up Catholic.
I was very involved in the church.
I was an altar boy, went to CCE—Catholic Religious Education, completed
all the sacraments asked of me: confession, communion, confirmation. I was active in the CYO, a youth officer in
the Diocese, and led retreats for Youth.
When I was in Junior High, I decided I wanted to be a priest. I wanted to share the experience of feeling
connected to something greater than myself with others. I told my mother about my desire, and she
said “I would prefer you didn’t; I want to have grandchildren.”
And so being a good son, I put away that
dream. It went out of my consciousness,
but not our of my heart.
From
then on I floundered in my choice of vocation.
I started down the path to computer science, but wasn’t really sure that
was for me. I changed my major 5 times
in college and eventually chose psychology because my friends thought I would
be good at it. I was the one people came
to talk to in order to reflect on their problems.
While a
psychotherapist, I went many different directions. Teaching, leading seminars, counseling,
consulting, managing employees, designing inpatient and outpatient mental
health programs. All these were fulfilling
experiences, but didn’t quite fill my soul.
In my late thirties, I experienced my call to ministry. I could have approached this call with
disappointment or regret, dwelling on how much time I hadn’t been able to live
my call.
Instead I reflected back on all
the diverse experiences my work life and church life, and realized how much those
experiences would underpin, inform, and enrich my ministry.
In the
weeks before I joined you, I centered my reflections around the Unitarian
Universalist Congregation of Miami, and realized how many things we had in
common, you as a congregation and I as second-career minister. 75 years members of this congregation set
themselves on a journey. A journey that
at times may have not resulted in the most direct path toward a goal. 40 years ago, I too, set myself upon a
journey that did not always result in the most direct path toward my goal. And yet I walked in faith with purpose and
intent. I
journeyed from the path, in hope that someday I would set
my feel on it again. You, too, as a
congregation, have been walking with purpose, and intent, and in hope and in
faith, and as a congregation you have come to the proverbial fork in the
road. And now you are ready to name your
path.
I
believe that once you name that path—
that road you are going to consciously
choosing to take—you will find your past experiences, your connections, and
resources will underpin, inform, and enrich your congregation.
You
heard some of the responses to the questions I put the congregation earlier in
the service. To say this is a diverse
congregation would be an understatement.
But I did notice a few common themes.
It is
clear that you each feel very connected to this congregation and to Unitarian
Universalism. Many of you were able
share stories of your connection to other people here, people who helped you
and people you helped. Also I was
pleasantly surprised how many of you knew the Principles and Sources of
Unitarian Universalism. For those of you
who are new, you heard many of the Principles and Sources when I was asking
questions earlier in the service. You
will also find the Principles on the back of your order of service. Most of you very clearly affirm and promote
Unitarian Universalism.
The members of this congregation that I talked to so
far find that the Unitarian Universalist Principles
help provide some moral guidance. And some of you find that by living the
Principles in this community, you have a more open and understanding world view
in your everyday lives.
Many of you stated that the most important, most
foundational Principle of our faith is affirming and promoting the inherent
worth and dignity of every person. Think
about that for a moment. The people
around you hold that their personal and your personal worth and dignity should
be reflected in how we share our lives with one another. And based on what I have seen and heard, affirming
and promoting inherent worth and dignity forms a basis for the work that many people
in this congregation do in the world to make it a better place.
Every person I talked with had thoughts about the goal
of a world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all, and most of you
are acting on those thoughts—going down to Homestead to fight the incarceration
of immigrant children, teaching English as a Second Language, teaching our
children in religious education so that they will be grounded ethical and
spiritual beings.
Another common theme I want to reflect back to you is
that many, if not most of you, have personal spiritual practices. This is so important to the members of this
congregation that you hired a person to lead a yoga group three times a week, you
invited a person to provide a monthly sitar meditation, and you have had meditation
and mindfulness groups for years. You,
my friends, are taking care of yourselves, in the face of the stress that
affects you personally and communally.
Also, many of you are also taking the Principle of a
free and responsible search for truth and meaning to heart. Most of the people I talked with spoke easily
about their beliefs, where they derived them from, and how they live those
beliefs in their lives. Many people here
are embracing earth-centered traditions and nature to provide spiritual
substance in their daily lives
Many of
you have had very personal, uplifting, inspiring moments in this congregation. You heard the list of some of them. You value your connections with each
other. You’re quick to offer help where
it’s needed, and able to receive help when it’s offered. You’ve had deep affirming, inspiring,
spiritual moments that still sparkle in your hearts, years after they occurred.
So
here’s the last question. How do we pool
all these diverse experiences, thoughts, and feelings to help you name a path
forward? How do we distill moments of success, moments of connection, moments
of spiritual nourishment to discern a path forward? For me the path led to the vocation of
ministry. For this congregation, the
path you name to guide you forward will be grounded in your beliefs,
experiences, values, resources, and connection with one another, your past and
present, with an eye toward the future.
Reflecting on the answers to the questions I asked can
help you focus. For what we focus on
becomes our reality, becomes how we share our lives with one another, becomes
our impact on the larger community and becomes our future.
What I
am inviting you into as a congregation is a deep engagement with the answers to
the questions. I asked these questions so that you might begin envisioning possibilities. But here’s the thing, this process of naming
a path will take you, as many of the people of this congregation as possible,
to talk and to listen to one another. These
discussions will lead into something--a provocative proposal/a
vision/goals/dreams. I will help
facilitate these discussions and mirror back some of the provocative proposals,
visions, goals and dreams, until a path is named.
“The point [of
this process] is to involve as many congregants as possible in remembering the
power of the blessings of the church, [reflecting on what these blessings] have
brought them, and from their hearts, to project those blessings on to who will
come after them.” (In the Interim:
Strategies for Interim Ministers and Congregations by Barbara Child and Keith
Kron)
Questions
might arise throughout this discernment process like: “How is what we name
consistent with our Unitarian Universalist Principles and Sources?” “How can our past be remembered and honored
as we move into the future?” “How will
this new journey, vision, dream become a reality in this congregation?” “What will we need to let go of to move
forward?” “ What new ways of being together will we need to try on, then live? “
Bart Frost (5 Things I Learned in (almost) 5 Years)
who served as the UUA Youth and Young Adult Ministries wrote: “Of course,
there’s a balance of tradition and innovation…Traditions for traditions’ sake
isn’t useful pedagogy, especially when no one knows the stories. We can carry
our ancestors while still dreaming up new rituals and new traditions that meet
our needs and are meaningful to us today.”
I don’t know the stories of this congregation and I would guess there
are many here who don’t know them either.
So how will you decide which stories and traditions to carry forward? I encourage you to look to the heroines and heroes
of the congregation and share their stories with new people who join us. I encourage you to look at the traditions and
ways of governing this congregation and ask what purpose have they served? Are
they still serving that purpose? Are
there new ways to serve that purpose? With
the people we have here now today, is our governance model still effective?
Change can be scary.
It can feel overwhelming. But I
tell you today, you all have all you need to name a new path forward. You already have all you need to walk that
path successfully. This community has
the resources, connections, and experiences needed for the journey ahead. And you have a minister who will walk with
you, encourage you, inspire you, and remind you of the path you have named. I will hold the safe space you need as you
innovate. I will reflect back to you the
stories of those who came before you and the traditions and governance that has
held this congregation together, even as you create new and different ways to
embrace the journey that calls you forward.
Naming your journey is the first step. You “are called to be sailors; for many
worlds exist waiting to be discovered. And not the least of these worlds are
within ourselves [and within this congregation]. It takes as much persistence,
courage, and curiosity to look into our own depths, … to see ourselves in new
and larger ways without being dishonest about our limitations…” ("It’s Not Easy Being a Unitarian Universalist" by Charles Magistro) Let us continue the naming process, and let’s
take these first steps together, arm in arm and shoulder to shoulder.
No comments:
Post a Comment