vimeo.com/.../445687004

♪("We Give Thanks")♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪We’ll build a land♪

♪where we bind up the broken.♪

♪We’ll build a land ♪

♪where the captives go free,♪

♪where the oil of gladness♪

♪dissolves all mourning.♪

♪Oh, we’ll build a promised land♪

♪that can be.♪

♪Come build a land♪

♪where siblings in spirit,♪

♪transformed by love,♪

♪may then create peace:♪

♪where justice shall roll♪

♪down like waters,♪

♪and peace like an ever flowing stream.♪

♪♪

♪We’ll build a land♪

♪where we bring the good tidings♪

♪to all the afflicted♪

♪and all those who mourn.♪

♪And we’ll give them garlands♪

♪instead of ashes.♪

♪Oh, we’ll build a land♪

♪where peace is born.♪

♪Come build a land♪

♪where siblings in spirit,♪

♪transformed by love,♪

♪may then create peace:♪

♪where justice shall roll♪

♪down like waters,♪

♪and peace like an ever flowing stream.♪

♪♪

♪Come, build a land♪

♪where the mantles of praises♪

♪resound from spirits♪

♪once faint and once weak;♪

♪where like oaks of righteousness♪

♪stand her people.♪

♪Oh, come build the land,♪

♪my people we seek.♪

♪Come build a land♪

♪where siblings in spirit,♪

♪transformed by love,♪

♪may then create peace:♪

♪where justice shall roll♪

♪down like waters,♪

♪and peace like an ever flowing stream.♪

♪♪

May we truly build a land of peace.

We invite you now to a time of meditation,

a moment of rest, or prayer, or quiet,

a time to take some deep breaths

to cleanse your mind, your heart,

your lungs, your spirit

as you breath in peace and breathe out love.

During this time of meditation

we invite you to share the first names

of those you wish to lift up in prayer

or send energy to this morning.

And as we enter into this time

of meditation, may we be reminded

of who we are and why we gather.

May we be reminded

that our time together is sacred

and may we recommit

today as Unitarian Universalists

who covenant to affirm and promote

the Seven Principles

and honor the Sources

of our religion.

May it be so and blessed be.

♪♪

♪For all that is our life,♪

♪we sing our thanks and praise;♪

♪for all life is a gift♪

♪which we are called to use♪

♪to build the common good♪

♪and make our own days glad.♪

♪♪

♪For needs which others serve,♪

♪for services we give;♪

♪for work and its rewards,♪

♪for hours of rest and love♪

♪we come with praise and thanks♪

♪for all that is our life.♪

♪♪

♪For sorrow we must bear,♪

♪for failures, pain, and loss,♪

♪for each new thing we learn,♪

♪for fearful hours that pass,♪

♪we come with praise and thanks♪

♪for all that is our life.♪

♪♪

♪For all that is our life,♪

♪we sing our thanks and praise;♪

♪for all life is a gift♪

♪which we are called to use♪

♪to build the common good♪

♪and make our own days glad.♪

♪♪

[Rev. Comer] Our wisdom readings today

come from Unitarian Universalism's

Seven Principles and Six Sources.

When we become a member of a UU church,

we covenant to observe

the Seven Principles

and to honor all the Sources.

Most churches follow a doctrine or dogma,

whereas UUs are united by our Principles

as a guide, and this means

we welcome many faith paths,

people from various religions

or none at all.

You can be a Christian UU, a Buddhist UU,

a Jewish UU, a Humanist UU,

agnostic, and on and on.

With the Principles as our shared guide

we journey alongside one another

on our various spiritual paths.

These are our Seven Principles.

Number one,

we honor the worth and dignity

of every person.

Number two, we practice justice, equity,

and compassion in human relations.

Number three, we accept one another

and encourage spiritual growth.

Number four,

we support the freedom

to search for what is true

and right in life.

Number five, we ensure

that all people have a vote

about what matters

and about what concerns them.

Number six,

we work for a peaceful, fair,

and free world.

And number seven,

we care for this planet Earth,

the home we share with all living things.

Unitarian Universalism also gives us

a children's version

of the Seven Principles.

Every person is important.

Be kind in all you do.

We're free to learn together.

We can search for what is true.

All people need a voice.

Build a fair and peaceful world.

And care for the Earth.

Our Sources come from what we call

a living tradition of wisdom

and spirituality.

They are as diverse as science, poetry,

scripture, personal experience, and more.

The First Source is the direct experience

of that transcending mystery and wonder,

affirmed in all cultures,

which moves us to a renewal of spirit

and an openness to the forces

which create and uphold life.

Our Second Source is made up of

words and deeds of prophetic people

who challenge us to confront powers

and structures of evil

with justice, compassion,

and the transforming power of love.

Our Third Source is the wisdom

from the world's religions

which inspires us

in our ethical and spiritual life.

And our Fourth Source,

specifically our roots

as Unitarians and Universalists,

Jewish and Christian teachings

which call us to respond to God's love

by loving our neighbors as ourselves.

Our Fifth Source comes from

Humanist teachings that counsel us

to heed the guidance of reason

and the results of science,

and warn us against idolatries

of mind and spirit.

And finally, our Sixth Source,

spiritual teachings

of Earth-centered traditions

that celebrate the sacred circle of life

and instruct us to live in harmony

with the rhythms of nature.

These are our Principles

and these are our Sources.

Welcome, everyone.

Our theme for the month of August

is the call to love one another.

In one of our Zoom meetings this week,

we opened with a chalice lighting

written in response to Covid-19

by Rev. Amy Carol Webb

and I’d like to share

that chalice lighting with you.

She writes:

"We light this flame

for the art of sacred unknowing.

Humbled by all that we cannot fathom

in this time,

we come into the presence

of what we do know,

perhaps the only thing we can ever know:

that Love is now and forever

and the only answer to everything

and everyone in every moment.

May that be so.

As I have preached for years now,

my religion is one

based on love and kindness,

and these two things are

among the most powerful forces,

most powerful transformative forces

in existence.

All the world's religions share

this same message of love and kindness,

Islam, Judaism, Christianity

and many others,

and so it makes sense

as Unitarian Universalists

as we draw from all

these religious sources

that we would focus on the power of love

and not just something

that brings us fulfilment as human beings

but as something that we can be moved by

as individuals, as groups,

as institutions, and as cultures.

Moved to a healthier place of being,

moved toward justice,

reconciliation or conciliation,

forgiveness and to transformation.

The basis of love and kindness

has led us as a denomination

to be a very justice-oriented group

for many years.

But we haven’t always made

all the right decisions along the way

as a religious body

or as a denomination.

I think the beauty

of Unitarian Universalism is this:

that each year, we come together

in the form of the General Assembly

to reconsider who we are

and where we are as a people,

as a denomination.

Each year, there is a focus

on an area of activism--

one issue or more that needs transforming

in our culture or in our world.

This year at GA, General Assembly,

it was about the history and rights

of indigenous people.

One year it was about coal mining.

One year attendees in Arizona,

at the GA there,

traveled to protest at Tent City,

to protest the conditions

of the outdoor prison in the desert there.

We come together as a voting body

with each church sending a number

of delegates each year based on the size

of the congregation, and this year

we had four voting delegates.

Every year we have something called

an Action of Immediate Witness

or Actions of Immediate Witness.

Several are proposed

and some come to the table for vote.

We vote to make needed changes

in our own system sometimes.

If you were here with us last week,

you listened to the young UU minister

and chaplain, Rev. Jami Yandle,

speak about how they were instrumental

in having the language

of one of our Sources changed,

one of the Sources you heard earlier

in our wisdom reading that referred to

the collective wisdom,

the prophetic voices

of women and men.

But we’re at a place in our history now

where we realize this should also

include children and youth,

and we realize also

through the help of science

and brave activists

that a binary system

of gender is not sufficient

to describe what has never been

a binary system in nature.

We’ve voted to uphold the rights

of marginalized groups,

to support marriage equality.

We have voted over the years

in favor of transgender rights.

And this year at General Assembly,

There were two Actions of Immediate Witness.

Number one, to address 400 years

of white supremist colonialism

and to address the European invasion

of this continent.

That's not how we've heard that referred to

in our history books, is it?

But to address the European invasion

of this continent,

the genocide of original people,

and the ongoing destruction of this Earth.

We were called to be in solidarity

with indigenous-led movements and struggles.

And a second proposed

Action of Immediate Witness was called

Amen to Uprising:

A commitment to call and action to engage

in the large movement

to end anti-blackness

and to defund state-sanctioned

police violence as we create

or commit together to create

authentic justice.

Others that were proposed,

a religious response to Covid-19,

pointing out that this pandemic

has highlighted the incredible gap

in economic and social justice

that shapes our health

and our healthcare in the United States.

This action called for health equity

in the face of systemic oppression.

Each year proposals are submitted

and end up on the ballot,

and, as Karen Hutt said in a recent sermon

she gave in June,

I have never been more proud

to be a Unitarian Universalist.

In our UUMA,

our UU Ministry Association Days

prior to the week of GA,

we also met to vote on issues.

We voted that week to remove

the gendered language from our documents.

We also voted to hold our association

to a higher standard of ethical conduct,

changing previous standards

that made it difficult to report on

misconductors in ministry.

In the past, we were discouraged

from ever speaking negatively

about colleagues at all,

but this meant a level of protection was

built into the system

that would sometimes squelch the truth.

A level of protection

built into a system

that protected bullies,

it protected the dishonest,

and for those with inappropriate

boundaries with congregants,

it protected them,

even sexual misconductors.

And so this change this year

chipped away at a rule

that was born out of a system

of patriarchy and oppression.

We changed that rule.

And so, over time, we have made

improvements and adjustments.

There are two other things

that I’d like to share with you this morning

about this year's GA.

Number one, we had record numbers

of ministers attend Ministry Days.

For one vote, we had

over 660 ministers in attendance

to participate and that was a record.

I don’t wanna say the pandemic

made this possible,

but indirectly it did.

Because we had to meet online,

the cost of Ministry Days

and of General Assembly

were drastically reduced.

And for the first time since I’ve been

a Unitarian Universalism,

both of these events were affordable

in a way they have not been before.

Many UUs have been challenged

by the cost-prohibitive nature

of attending GA

because normally, it meant

traveling to a large city,

possibly flying,

sometimes to the West Coast.

It meant the expense of a hotel,

a conference hotel, for a week.

In addition to the food and travel expenses,

there was also the ability,

or I should say the privilege,

people had to take a week off

to travel to be at GA.

So it could easily cost $2000

to participate in a week of GA

in former years, in previous years.

But this year, it was $150,

which is much closer

to what accessibility for all

would look like.

One of the issues left to deal with

in UUism is our classism.

And finally, I want you to know

that some churches have already adopted

an Eighth Principle to be added to

the seven that we read earlier in our service.

One of our congregants mentioned this

to me a couple of years ago,

and I felt sure we would vote on this

as a denomination the following year.

It is likely to come to pass

in 2021, but some congregations

have already voted on this issue.

Black Lives of UU or BLUU,

the organizing collective encourages

all Unitarian Universalists to advocate

for the formal adoption

of an Eighth Principle,

articulating a commitment

to the dismantling of white supremacy

within the stated Principles of our faith,

and this is the proposed Principle:

“We, the member congregations

of the Unitarian Universalist Association,

covenant to affirm and promote,

journeying toward spiritual wholeness

by working to build

a diverse multicultural Beloved Community

by our actions that accountably

dismantle racism and other oppressions

in ourselves and in our institutions.”

It’s not enough to say or to feel

“I’m not racist.”

There are so many layers to this

that we don’t realize

because we’ve been socialized into it

because it's the water that we swim in.

We have to be anti-racist.

We have to actively dismantle racism

in all its forms.

And so how do we do that?

By loving one another,

by changing the systems,

and by living into who we say we are

as Unitarian Universalists.

May that be so for us, beloveds,

and may that vote come to pass for us

at GA or perhaps even sooner

for our congregation.

Blessed be today.

And now our Board President, Becky Schisler,

will share some of her highlights

from GA.

Thank you, Becky.

Hi, everyone.

For those of you who don't know me,

I am Becky Schisler,

and I am currently serving

as your Board of Trustees President.

Today I'd like to share with you

a little bit about my experiences

at the UU General Assembly

this past June.

I was lucky enough

to attend for the first time

as a delegate of our church,

and the theme of this year’s GA assembly

was "Rooted, Inspired, and Ready!"

The virtual sessions that resonated most

with me definitely fell

into the “rooted” category.

As described by the UUA,

“To know where we are headed,

we must be in touch with our theological

and historical roots.”

I was encouraged by the intentional

centering and lifting of Black,

Indigenous, and Persons of Color's voices

and the Assembly’s programming

and focus on anti-oppression work.

I’d like to share with you

just a sample of what I learned

and found inspiring.

Because I couldn’t possibly

include a comprehensive summary

of all of the workshops that I attended,

I will make available a document

with references and links

for further reading and exploration

for you that can be shared out

through our church's communication

and in our coffee hour.

Okay, so let's get started.

During one of the General Sessions of GA,

Elandria Williams and Rev. Barb Greve

presented the final report

of the UUA Commission

on Institutional Change called

"Widening the Circle of Concern."

This report analyzes structural

and systemic racism

and white supremacy culture

within Unitarian Universalism

and makes recommendations

to advance long-term change.

Why is this important?

Because the consequence of failing

to address issues of injustice

is living out of integrity

with our UU values.

Attendees of this session were asked

to imagine what it is like

to be a Black, Indigenous,

or Person of Color

and feel encouraged by UU messages,

only to find

when you get to the congregation,

the work of anti-oppression

is not being done.

This happens all too often,

therefore we are being called

to widen the circle

and to not continue to fall short.

You can find more on this report

on the UUA website under

"Congregations and Communities."

In a workshop titled,

"Why We Want and Resist Diversity,"

the Reverends Keith Kron and Patrice Curtis

spoke to the long-term commitment required

for congregational transformation

in terms of working to become anti-racist.

They stressed the need

for continuous effort to maintain progress;

we must do the work until it becomes

not what we do, but part of who we are.

(child makes noise)

(laughs) I have a helper.

Mommy's doing a video, can you hold on?

The first step is taking stock

of the congregation and gauging

where folks are in their thinking

and where they may be on their journey

toward anti-racism.

(door closes)

Rev. Kron encouraged attendees

to visualize four concentric circles.

The outer circle, number four,

is made up of folks who,

either consciously or unconsciously,

don’t want change in the congregation.

The next circle in, number three,

is made up of those

who welcome diversity

but expect assimilation

into the church’s culture.

The next circle in are the folks

who proclaim, “All are welcome!

As long as I don’t have to change

and as long as the same folks continue

to hold power.”

And that next circle in, number one,

represents those open to doing the work

to be truly inclusive.

So the people in the first

and second circles often wanna

change those outer two circles,

the threes and fours,

but this doesn’t tend to work

because they are essentially

speaking different languages

and talk right past one another.

So what has been found to be more effective

is if folks in adjacent circles

talk to each other

to initiate change.

Attendees were encouraged

to remember that becoming anti-racist

is a huge goal and it must be broken down

into bite-sized pieces.

Self-compassion during this process

is also important, as is the need

to refrain from reducing any community

to a single story.

And the First Unitarian Universalist

Congregation of Ann Arbor demonstrated this

through their in-depth 2050 Vision Project,

or Vision 2050 Project, actually.

This was a process that took place

over about 15 months.

Now this is a huge congregation.

They have around a thousand people

and over 300 of their congregants

participated in this process.

Elandria Williams, who is a UUA staff member

and one of the founding members

of Black Lives of Unitarian Universalism,

or BLUU, consulted with them and helped them

throughout the process of developing questions,

data gathering, and data analysis.

Elandria also worked with two other UUA

representatives to document

the visioning process that UUAA is piloting

so that it can be used

in other UU congregations.

I encourage all of you to go to uuaa.org

and read through

their Congregational Vision Report

as well as their Theory of Change document,

which identifies the three priorities

the congregation is committed

to engaging with.

These include Radical Welcome,

anti-racism and anti-oppression work,

and climate justice.

And speaking of climate

and environmental justice,

I’m going to use that to segue into

a brief highlight

of Dina Gilio-Whitaker’s lecture on

"Indigenous Knowledge

in the time of Pandemics."

I found this presentation fascinating

because it introduced completely new ideas

and concepts to me.

Right at the beginning of the lecture,

Dina stated that environmental justice

needs to be indigenized

and that environmental justice

begins with the concept

of environmental racism.

I learned the term ecocide,

which is the killing of ecosystems,

often through land theft.

So, an example of this would be

the uranium mining

on Navajo Nation and Lakota Nation land.

History teaches us that ecocide

is parallel to genocide.

Eighty percent of the world’s biodiversity

is controlled by indigenous people

and the bottom line is:

Indigenous knowledge is key

to planetary sustainability.

To learn more about this topic,

please check out two

of Dina Gilio-Whitaker’s books:

"All the Real Indians Died Off

and 20 Other Myths about Native Americans"

and "As Long as Grass Grows:

The Indigenous Fight

for Environmental Justice,

from Colonization to Standing Rock."

And finally, I’d like to touch on

some take-aways from the Fahs Lecture,

"Reflecting on Teachings

about Indigenous Peoples,"

with featured presenters,

Dr. Jean Mendoza and Dr. Natalie Martinez.

This lecture stressed the importance

of not only making land acknowledgements –

for instance, I acknowledge that

I reside and am making this video

on Catawba land--

but it's also important

to make a commitment

to social and political action,

not just make those land acknowledgements.

A very introductory place to do this

is with media and literature.

Reflect critically on the stories

about Native Americans

you were likely taught in school

and grew up with.

Consider how seemingly innocent phrases

like "the New World” perpetuate

the narrative of unpopulated land.

Learn to recognize and disrupt

colonial settler narratives

that are prevalent in textbooks

and mass media

and are guilty of misrepresentation,

appropriation, sexualization,

romanticization,

and erasure of indigenous peoples.

If you are looking for recommended

literary works by indigenous peoples,

you might start with,

"An Indigenous People’s History

of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz,

there's also a version of that book

for young people,

and "Our History Is the Future"

by Nick Estes.

There are also many, many, many

children’s books such as

"Nibi is Water,"

"We are Water Protectors,"

and "Standing Strong."

and I’ll include links to these and more.

And if you plan to purchase

any of these books, which you should,

I encourage you to consider buying

from a POC-owned bookstore.

So, in closing,

Rev. Kimberly Hampton shared

a reflection question

during one of her presentations

about "Accountability, Agility,

and Good Governance" that stuck with me:

"What are the stories

that have been hidden?"

Now she didn’t offer an answer

to this question,

but she followed up with,

“Accountability is bringing

the complete story.”

I am full of gratitude to be part

of a religious organization

that is dedicated to doing the work

of bringing the complete story.

Please feel encouraged to send me an email

with any questions about my experiences

at GA at [e-mail].

I hope you all have a wonderful day.

Thank you!

[Rev. Comer]This is the time

during our service when we invite you

to share of your gifts

to support our congregation

and community.

As always, we are so grateful

for your generosity

and if we were in the sanctuary

together today,

we would pass the literal offering plates

from hand to hand,

but because we are unable to meet,

along with churches all over the country,

we are experiencing a bit of a lull

in our plate offering.

And so we ask that if you are able

to bridge that gap

because of the effects

of simply our absence

and also because some of our congregation

has been affected

in terms of their income,

we ask that you would help us

bridge that gap.

We can meet all of our needs,

we can meet our budget

between now and the end of the year,

we can absolutely do that together

if we give from a place of generosity.

And so today we give to remind ourselves

how many gifts we have to offer.

We give to remember that we are part

of something bigger than ourselves.

We give because we believe in music,

and sacred space and one another.

We give with the faith that together

we do have enough.

May it be so.

And this month we share our offering plate

with Happy Roots.

Happy Roots is an organization

in Rowan County and Salisbury schools.

They partner with many organizations

in Rowan County and they provide

nature-based therapeutic

and educational services to enhance

the wellness of the community,

the children, and the environment.

Again, thank you for your generosity.

[Rev. Comer] With much gratitude

for your presence

and your participation today,

we now extinguish our chalices

but we carry their warmth, their light,

their meaning with us

until we meet again.

Go in peace, beloveds,

and walk in love.

♪♪

Amen.

♪("We Give Thanks")♪

♪♪