income inequality

The Race Elephant

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“…it simply is not true that one can believe anything and be a Unitarian.  This is not what creedlessness means.  One cannot be a racist and a Unitarian; be a Nazi and a Unitarian; a polygamist and a Unitarian; a bigot and a Unitarian.  In our zeal for growth, we must not sacrifice the character of our movement as a rational, idealistic, ethical religion.  Everybody is not, and cannot be a Unitarian regardless of their unethical behavior or prejudicial beliefs.” – A. Powell Davies

In all the years since the merger that created the Unitarian Universalist Association, one issue remains constantly at the forefront of our unaccomplished vision.  Year after year, we failed to adequately address institutionalized racism in our own churches, let alone in the world beyond our walls.  The irony is that we know the causes – privilege and whiteness.  The tragedy is that we have not yet developed the communal will to tackle these causes.  Our goal of affirming the inherent worth and dignity of every person will remain beyond our grasp until we destroy these pernicious attitudes.

Many in our ranks work with great dedication toward this end.  Some of our ministers and lay members represent models of allyship with People of Color.  However, the vast majority of Unitarian Universalists remain unengaged in anti-racism and anti-oppression work.  Like most of our social justice causes, we gently encourage members to educate themselves; we create painless ways to help ourselves feel like we are contributing to the greater good; and we provide a modicum of support to organizations committed to the cause.  In the end, however, our commitment as a faith body to erase racism is tepid.

Every time another young Black man or woman is murdered by the police or some heartless “stand your ground” zealot, we wring our hands and opine at the scope of the problem.  And yet, the solution is not only obvious, but one we have done before.

quote-life-is-just-a-chance-to-grow-a-soul-a-powell-davies-58-44-80The Reverend A. Powell Davies accepted the pulpit of All Souls Unitarian Church in Washington, D.C. in 1945.  Living in Washington showed Davies first-hand the realities of segregation.  He began by getting his own house in order, for while African-Americans had attended All Souls over the years, they were not welcomed as full members until 1950.  He pressured the Police Boys’ Club No. 10, housed at All Souls, to integrate.  They refused and ended their relationship with the church.  Davies then helped create the racially integrated Columbia Heights Youth Club.

But his most significant contribution came in 1953, when Davies launched a successful city-wide campaign to patronize only those restaurants that would serve all people regardless of race.  In his wonderful biography, George Marshall quotes Davies from his February 1953 sermon:

Suppose we said this – “I do not believe in segregation; it is unjust, unrighteous, unbrotherly; I intend to do what I can to end it.”  Well, that is our intention, a good intention, and it makes us feel like fine people.  We are very happy, very warm with self-esteem, and very safe within its shelter…Suppose we should say, “I will not eat a meal in any restaurant that excludes Negroes.”  Suppose we said further, “I will make it known to the managements of such restaurants.”  We might feel rather odd – and we might have to eat in unaccustomed places.  Our friends would raise their eyebrows – not much, but just enough for us to notice it.  “Isn’t that going a little far?” some of them would ask.  Which it surely is.  Because it is carrying a good intention to fulfillment…If America is to be a righteous nation, worthy of the greatness of its opportunity, it must come through righteous deeds, not lofty talk.  

Davies then made that commitment and called on the 1000+ members of the church to follow his example.  This call to end segregation in restaurants, hotels, and other entities spread across the country.

The time is long overdue to continue this work, to carry our good intentions to fulfillment by attacking not only the effects of racism, such as segregation, but its root causes.  We must take our lofty words and resolutions and turn them into denomination-wide actions that are not merely suggestions but mandates of a people of faith.  For you cannot be a Unitarian Universalist and a racist.

That means every one of us commits to understand and accept the role of privilege in our lives and to act and sacrifice to dismantle its effects.  Every one of us must stand against white supremacy is all of its forms, and drive the bigots from positions of power and influence.  We must defend victims of race-based violence as our brothers and sisters.  And we must pursue a realignment of social priorities in order to eradicate poverty and provide basic human rights for all people, especially if that means sharing the wealth we obtained through the fruits of privileged birth and station in life.

This is not a creed.  This is a test of our faith.

Let us resolve to take this opportunity afforded by the social effects of pandemic to reshape ourselves, our churches, and our society; to right historic wrongs; and to achieve the our dreams of equality, fairness, and justice.

God is Love

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97050-uuchurchofsmithtonAfter I finished my ministerial internship, I took a half-time contract position at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Smithton PA.  Looking back, this was perhaps my happiest time as a minister.

During my time in this tiny town of 400 souls, we celebrated the 150th anniversary of the congregation, one of last remaining Universalist churches in the Pennsylvania Convention.  Each member epitomized what I saw as the best of our faith tradition.  While interested in intellectual discourse, they most valued relevance of their church in their lives and in the greater community, and loving every person for who they were.  With nine members and a budget barely exceeding $10,000, they ran an LGBTQ coffeehouse in a conservative, rural area; they marched in Pittsburgh’s Pride Parades; and we reached seekers who lived far away because the message we delivered spoke to them.

A self-proclaimed atheist, my first exposure to the church was a wooden plaque hanging near the pulpit proclaiming, “God is Love.”  This artifact of the church’s Universalist roots brought me shockingly face-to-face with a seminal philosophy that my largely Unitarian exposure had for the most part ignored.  I wrote a sermon in which I posed the question, “What exactly do we mean when we proclaim that ‘God is Love’ from a Unitarian Universalist pulpit?”  I used that sermon to promote the then new Standing on the Side of Love campaign.

Today, however, my answer to that question would be very different.  Today, saying “God is Love” from a Unitarian Universalist pulpit does not emulate the First Epistle of John the Apostle that says, “Since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another.  No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us…God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.”

Modern Unitarian Universalism treats love as a desirable commodity; a commendable practice, but not truly fundamental to being Unitarian Universalist.  Love is something we do on weekends when we are not too busy.  We love when it doesn’t really cost us much time, or energy, or money.  We love so long as it makes us feel good.

I know that sounds harsh.  But these words only hurt because we have yet to realize the true depths of love and what power lies in that love.  We Unitarian Universalists proudly proclaim long lists of “famous” people in our history, including scientists, politicians, reformers, and authors.  But for me, our single most noteworthy figure was none of these.  She was not famous, or influential.  She was not rich or highly educated.

Viola Liuzzo was an average person – a wife and mother raising her family in Detroit – when she heard the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King’s call for people of faith to come to Selma.  She answered the call.  Weeks later, she was shot to death by Klansmen as she drove with another volunteer.

I am not saying we must die for our beliefs.  For love to have meaning, however, it must involve sacrifice.  Parents often sacrifice greatly for their children.  Children sometimes sacrifice to care for their elders.  But how much do we sacrifice for the stranger?  How many of us would willingly enter a Covid-19 ward day after day, living apart from our loves ones, with inadequate personal protection to protect the lives of strangers?

Siding with love means education and advocacy; it means service and action.  But siding with love ultimately must mean being willing to give up anything, perhaps everything, to abide in love and to let that love abide within us.  Through this, love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.

Let us resolve to become a religion that loves unconditionally and without limits.  Let us abide in love so that love will abide in us whatever trials we face.  Without that love, science cannot fix our brokenness, money cannot buy solutions that heal us, and reason cannot unite us as one human family.

Our Saving Message

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Since my time in seminary, one question has haunted my ministry – what is our saving message?

David-BumbaughThis question was posed to us by David Bumbaugh, who I consider the wisest teacher I ever learned from.  He spoke with sadness that the compelling faith of Universalism died with the merger and that the ensuing new denomination never articulated what he called a “saving message.”

Of course, as seminarians newly inspired to devote our lives to ministry, we found his concern perplexing.  Here was someone who devoted nearly 50 years to our vocation, only to find himself wondering whether the faith he dedicated himself to was indeed lost.  I worked hard to develop my own statement of faith that expressed such a message for the current generation of Unitarian Universalists.  As a newly minted minister, I entered the pulpit confident that I could voice a saving message for our faith in the 21st century.

I was wrong.

I now believe that the problems David Bumbaugh addressed – far more tactfully than I ever could – do exist and have transformed our denomination into something incapable of providing the message of love and hope that Universalism held out in previous centuries.  And I have come to the conclusion that barring seismic changes in the way we “do” church, Unitarian Universalism will inexorably devolve into little more than religious justification for much of what ails America – racism, elitism, and classism.

Now, one could easily dismiss my concerns as the disgruntled rumblings of a malcontent – an argument not without merit.  But as we deal with a pandemic that will change our society forever, I believe we have received a great gift – the chance to rethink our institutions and how we view our relationships with each other, with the world, and with God.

There, I said it.  The “G-word.”  This is perhaps our first major step.  We must get over our pointless hesitation to use the term that uniquely defines what sets churches apart from other social organizations in this country and elsewhere.  Professing a belief in God betrays nothing and brings us to the table of billions of adherents across the world who accept the existence of forces we cannot explain, will likely never completely understand, and may possess some form of consciousness.

On the nature of the divine, the 2004 report Engaging Our Theological Diversity stated, “We agree that the universe is an interdependent web, held together by a force (or forces) that can be understood in a variety of ways.  We disagree concerning how that force (or forces) should be named, and whether or not it possesses consciousness.”  The fact that this issue exists for us makes me question whether Unitarian Universalism is indeed a religion, or simply a support mechanism for sophists, nonconformists, and lost sheep wishing to reclaim the baby they threw out with the bath water.

In my time serving congregations, I met many amazingly intelligent people.  So often, I watched them argue with eloquence and seemingly unassailable logic that belief in God was misguided and threatened the core tenets of our faith.  As much as I love and respect these individuals, such academic bullying serves little purpose beyond self-aggrandizement and often hurts people seeking meaning and purpose in their lives beyond soulless polemics and unemotional erudition.  Love and logic can co-exist.  In the end, however, love must dominate our faith relations, especially because logic cannot provide answers to all our questions – especially our most important questions.

A saving message cannot grow from a pip of pedantry.  A saving message must bloom from seeds nurtured in caring, with respect for the power of natural forces that sometimes exceed our human capacity to quantify.  In future posts, I will discuss ways that I believe Unitarian Universalism could, and should reform in order to meet the needs of this new post Covid-19 society, starting with this:

Let us resolve to embrace everyone regardless of the name they apply to the forces of all existence and to end, once and for all, our energy draining and valueless debate over using language of reverence.

Here’s What You Can Do

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Whenever I speak about social justice and social action, this question invariably pops up: “But, what can I do?”

20190212_111001This morning, we met Lois Martin, an 84-year old who moved to Tucson 10 or so years ago to work on immigration justice.  She is a member of No More Deaths, an initiative of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson.  No More Deaths is a humanitarian organization based in southern Arizona working to end death and suffering in the Mexico-U.S. borderlands through civil initiative.  Their work focuses on direct aid (such as water drops in the desert), witnessing and responding, cons iousness raising, and promoting humane immigration policy.

Lois is an amazing person.  She has traveled extensively through Central America and has served as an election observer in Honduras and Guatemala.  She minced no words – the violence people are fleeing in these countries came about and continues because of American support of illegal regimes.  For the last century, groups like the United Fruit Farmers and a handful of wealthy landowners have terrorized the compesinos into fleeing for their lives.  And the U.S. has used these countries as staging points for immoral acoins in El Salvador and Nicaragua.

She taught us about our government’s goal to criminalize migration and to deter migration through death and imprisonment.  She explained how people caught by the border patrol agents (who perform police functions without proper police training) are remitted to the criminal justice system, not the immigration system.  Border patrol can hold migrants for 72 hours with no guarantee of even the basic services such as bedding. Claims of asylum are ignored and victims are processed through Operation Streamline, which results in a criminal record and immediate deportation.

Since the hearings take place in federal court, victims are not provided any translators but Spanish.  As a result, defendents (who may be members of many indigenous people’s with their own dialects) may have no understanding of what is happening to them.

We then spent the afternoon at the federal courthouse watching close to 100 people led into the courtroom in shackles.  Looking confused and frightened, shuffling because of the ankle chains, groups were led before the judge charged either with misdemeanor illegal entry or felony re-entry after removal. Pleading guilty to the former means immediate deportation and a criminal record.  All of the latter cases made plea bargains resulting in dropping the felony charge, but serving 30 to 180 days in prison.

20190212_161651Only after the hearing are migrants remitted to immigration services, where claims of asylum may be heard.  But, often the only person who may hear the claim is the bus driver taking them to Nogales, or an officer who simply chooses to ignore it.

The futility and inhumanity of this charade of justice was brought home by one man.  The judge asked if he had been in her court before.  He affirmed her recollection.  She told him, “I don’t want to see you here again, because next time it will be a felony.”  He replied, “Not anymore…what’s the point?”

What is the point?  What can you do?  See.  Think.  Plan.  Act.  Reflect.  And repeat.

The Elephant

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Americans marched last week. Across the country, millions expressed fear of a neo-Fascist in the White House, and solidarity in seeking change in our political system.

ct-womens-march-national-pg-20170121People marched for many reasons. They marched for equal rights for women, People of Color, immigrants, LGBTQIA individuals, and others. They marched for our planet, recognizing that human action harms our global climate. They marched for a fair and just society that truly offers complete access to the American Dream for all.

And many marched for reproductive freedom – the issue that represents the key lynch pin to every political discussion in this nation. People will vote against their own self-interest when it comes to taxes, jobs, immigration, schools, the environment, even national security. But the one issue on which most voters will not compromise is abortion. Any candidate claiming to be “pro-life” running against another candidate labeled as “pro-choice” can count on thousands of committed votes regardless of any other political stand they take.

The majority of white American women just voted for a President who believes women are property to be mauled, who mocks the disabled, who opposes living wages, and who casually banters about nuclear war. But, he claimed to be pro-life, and he now sits in the White House.

“Pro-Choice” is a myth

In my experience, women who support reproductive freedom do not simply support abortion on demand. In fact, many would like to see the need for elective abortions reduced to zero. However, our laws and social systems remain heavily anti-woman. Abuse of women remains at shockingly high levels. The objectification of women in the media trains girls and boys from an early age that striving toward an unachievable norm of beauty defines a woman’s worth. The continued acceptance of our rape culture leaves women living in constant, daily fear of discrimination, molestation, assault, and worse.

American men take little responsibility for sexual relations. We routinely expect women to control the use of contraception and yet men often overrule women to suit their desire for sexual gratification. Birth control is expensive, hard to access, and has many side effects. We label men who bed many women as virile and desirable role models. We label sexually active women as promiscuous sluts and whores unworthy of marriage and motherhood.

planned-parenthood-about-us-who-we-are-mission-1920x1080Even when women take every possible precaution, this pernicious double standard too often produces pregnancies where the men bail out and leave the woman alone to bear a life-long responsibility with little if any support. The legal system does little to hold men accountable as equal partners in procreation, but hurdles mountains to control a woman’s body and medical choices.

Pro-choice does not equate to pro-abortion. Many women – and I believe most women – see abortion as a tragic last step necessary only because our country lacks proper education and affordable access to birth control. Most women accept the necessity of abortion only because our commitment as a nation to the rights of men over the dignity and worth of women leaves women without viable alternatives.

In a perfect world, elective abortions would disappear because the circumstances that lead to unwanted pregnancies would not exist. What would this world look like?

  • No man would ever dream of forcing himself on a woman.
  • Women and men would be true equals from birth through school to the workplace and into retirement.
  • Beauty would be defined by one’s character, goodness, authenticity, and conviction – not body shape.
  • Every child would know the facts of human reproduction, and learn the complexities of loving relationships.
  • Government would play no role in determining what any person chooses to do with their body.
  • Individuals’ personal religious beliefs regarding personhood would be respected, but no one would be permitted to discriminate against others on the basis of those personal beliefs.

So, “pro-choice” does not mean pro-elective abortion at will. Pro-choice means supporting a society with reproductive justice – the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities.

“Pro-Life” is a myth

ireland17For years, Congressman John Moolenaar has staunchly defended what he calls the “sanctity of life.” This week, Harvard researchers revealed that the repeal of the Affordable Care Act without a replacement program will result in 44,000 unnecessary deaths each year. It is irrefutable fact that more than 20 million Americans will lose their health insurance if Republicans repeal and do not replace the ACA, an action Moolenaar voted to approve.

Can a person legitimately call themselves pro-life if they only apply their moral standards of sanctity of life to fetuses? No. In fact, voting to repeal the ACA without a replacement represents an “anti-life” action. Other anti-life attitudes include:

  • Sending men and women into combat, but fail to provide them world-class mental and physical medical treatment once they return from the trauma of war;
  • Using drones that indiscriminately kill innocent men, women, and children in search of a possible enemy target;
  • Murdering prisoners convicted of crimes, given the inordinate number of mistakes that have been made in capital punishment sentencing, its inherent racism and classism, and the cruel processes used to take those lives;
  • Cutting funds for food stamps, school lunch programs, early childhood education initiatives, and public education of equally high quality for all, when more than enough is available in our bloated federal military budget to easily meet these needs;
  • Passing into law the most intrusive and medically unnecessary invasion of a woman’s body, while offering young people little realistic education about sex and obstructing their access to birth control;
  • Denying victims of incest, rape, and medical complications threatening the life of the mother with means to terminate those pregnancies;
  • Failing to speak out in opposition to “slap on the wrist” punishments for rapists and those committing domestic violence and sexual assaults on women, and excusing the behavior of beasts for violating a woman by blaming her for the crime; and
  • Failing to be repulsed that this nation has done absolutely nothing to create mandatory background checks for all gun purchases, or to limit access to weapons whose sole purpose is the mass murder of humans — and not pressuring you legislators to do so.

If these apply to you, then stop calling yourself pro-life. You are not pro-life – you are pro-birth and anti-woman.

Reclaiming American citizenship

The seeds of America spread wide through the soil of injustice and tyranny. Our ancestors fought for a host of freedoms and civil rights. They proclaimed those rights publicly in documents central to our national core. For the Founders, being American meant supporting the full American agenda, a social system unmatched in history.

How long would America last if citizens based their vote solely on a single issue? That kind of thinking led to a bloody civil war that decimated our nation. That kind of thinking condoned the genocide of millions of indigenous peoples whose descendants still suffer our oppression. That kind of thinking normalized the incarceration of thousands of Americans of Japanese descent, along with the theft of their property and livelihoods. That kind of thinking supported segregation, lynching, Sundown Towns, and continues supporting a racist criminal justice system.

Make no mistake; Donald Trump is unfit to serve as President of the United States. If you voted for him because Hillary Clinton supports a woman’s right to choose, then you have contributed to the possible decline of our nation and our way of life. I understand your feelings about the unborn. Most people do. But electing a President already committed to destroying our environment, eliminating key safety net programs for the poor, taking health care away from millions, and dismantling industry regulations is an act of social suicide.

If you marched last Saturday, I implore you to reach out to those who oppose abortion. Engage in dialogue with them on the realities of conception, fertilization, fetal anomalies, and religious belief. Help those seeking to defend the rights of the unborn understand that you agree with their cause as part of a larger package of social programs that defend the right of all persons to life.

2013-02-08-perezIf you opposed the march last Saturday, I implore you to look at the broad picture of what it means to be an American citizen. Standing up for the rights of those who cannot defend themselves is courageous, noble work. But the defenseless include not only fetuses, but refugees, children of undocumented parents, innocent people dead due to excessive police violence, and victims of institutionalized racism, gender bias, homophobia, and other forms of bigotry.

Whether you consider yourself pro-choice or pro-life, you are an American. Our American principles demand of us a high standard of citizen participation. We are called to resist authoritarian rule and defend the civil rights of all. We are called to expose acts of foreign agents seeking to undermine our most precious liberties. We are called to hold our elected officials accountable when they lie, obstruct the search for truth, hide pertinent information, and behave in foolish and reckless ways.

Resist those who would divide and conquer us. Refute the false dichotomy of pro-life/pro-choice. Replace stereotypes and unfounded generalizations with facts and grounded beliefs acceptable to all. Let us unite as Americans, agreeing to disagree when needed, but in solidarity regarding the values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Dear Mr. Trump

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Congratulations on your upcoming inauguration. Many of us voted for you despite your lack of experience holding public office. So, on behalf of the hundreds of millions of us you now serve, I want to take this opportunity and offer you some advice as you enter the Oval Office. Please forgive us if some of these suggestions sound simplistic, even obvious. Given your public discourse to date, however, we have confidence that you will find value in them.

trump-meryl1. Think. Our mothers taught us, “If you can’t say something nice about someone, then don’t say anything at all.” We Americans can be obnoxious, even rude. But, we look up to the Office of the President largely because it stands for the highest level of decorum and class in our society. Our President should be better than us, and should model for us the best human behavior. We all understand the satisfaction derived from beating someone in a war of words. But, we need our President to rise above personal pettiness and insulting retorts in response to criticism.

2. Listen. Like many of us, you have decades of life experience. But, you can now access thousands of people with unbelievable knowledge about every topic imaginable at a moment’s notice. You are smarter than most of us – otherwise you would never have succeeded in the election. You are still a human being, however, and we do not expect you to know everything. Please listen to people the way you expect us to listen to you.

3. Review. We admire your spontaneity. In a complex world, however, every word spoken by our President matters. When you tweet without subjecting your words to careful review…you frighten us. We don’t see grammatical mistakes, factual errors, and statements revealing a lack of knowledge of basic governmental functions as amusing signs of a delightfully quirky leadership style. They scare us. They scare us because they are mistakes that we would make – but we are not President. We fear the consequences of your unedited statements, and need to see that you understand our feelings and the power your words wield.

4. Respect. We respect the Office of the President like no other position in the world. Likewise, we need the person filling that office to respect us. We elected you. So, we logically expect you to respect our intelligence and wisdom. When we feel disregarded by our President, we can delude ourselves with false hopes; we begin forming unrealistic expectations of a nation already responsible for unprecedented historical achievements; and we allow our fears to override our reason. The American people will follow your example. We need you to display the respect for us that you expect from us in return.

5. Awaken. Citizen Trump owned every privilege available. Unlike most of us, you were born a white, straight, male, Christian, healthy and wealthy American citizen. But we need President Trump to represent people of color and women; gay and transgender people; Muslims, Buddhists, Jews, and Atheists; and people suffering from physical and mental illnesses. We need our President to serve all the people, whether they live in mansions, houses, apartments, or packing crates. Whether we work as executives or lawyers, nurses or plumbers, cashiers or migrant farmers, we must feel that you empathize with our lives and acknowledge our inherent worth and dignity.

6. Mature. To be honest, many of us voted for you because you acted like us. You said things we might say and acted in ways we might act. But we know that we don’t always say the right things, or act in the right ways. Candidate Trump was an adolescent – a malignant narcissist and expert self-promoter. And many of us loved that persona. We now need President Trump to heed the lesson we learned on TV from that great philosopher Spock of Vulcan, who said, “Having is not nearly so pleasing a thing as wanting.”

You wanted our ultimate position of celebrity and we gave it to you. But with ownership comes tremendous responsibility. Billions of lives across the world now depend on you owning every attribute of a great leader, qualities such as wisdom, integrity, and humility. Perhaps most important, we need you to show the courage to make decisions that might make you unpopular, but that are morally correct choices. Sadly, there isn’t a kinder, more gentle way to say this. Now that we have entrusted you with the most important office in our nation, we need you to grow up.

In his first letter to the church in Corinth, the apostle Paul wrote, “If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal…Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” Every one of your constituents – regardless of skin color, gender identity, sexual orientation, theological persuasion, ability, or legal, social and economic status – can agree with these sentiments.

His letter continued. “When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.”

7. Love. Mr. Trump, on the morning of January 20, you will gaze into that golden mirror you caress so often. Our nation, all of us living and yet to be born, and the planet Earth that sustains us need you to see the full reflection of a President. We need that mirror to reflect a thoughtful, considerate, careful, respectful, aware adult. We desperately need that mirror to project an image of love. We know you love yourself and your family. We know you love your fans and supporters. As President Trump, we need you to share that love with every person equally.

trump-reporterWe need you to love every Black man looking in the rear view mirror at the flashing lights of a police car; the woman entering the Planned Parenthood office for a cancer screening because her insurance won’t pay for her to go to the local hospital anymore; the young gay man cast out of his parent’s home because of who he loves; the woman wearing the hijab being berated for her religious beliefs; the man publicly mocked for his congenital disability; the mother living in her car because her employers pay poverty wages; and the hard-working, courageous man seeking the same American dream for his children that our own ancestors sought.

We Americans can love deeply. But we will emulate our President. If our President displays impatience, arrogance, rudeness, and resentment, we will do the same. So, Mr. Trump, please model that love for us, for our nation, and for our planet as you become President Trump.

Christmas Message for Modern Times

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Billions across the earth celebrate the birth of a child. Some doubt the accuracy of factual details of the event. Others question on the nature of the child and the circumstances of his conception. Centuries of scholarship and spiritual contemplation failed to resolve different interpretations of the child’s purpose and of his eventual actions as an adult.

Nearly everyone can agree, however, on one thing. Whether you are a Christian, Muslim, or Jew, whether you follow Buddhist, Hindu, or no religious teachings at all, we can all agree on this specific aspect of the life of the man known as Jesus.

Early in his ministry, this wandering rabbi preached a message to the people. He preached from the hilltops and from the valleys. His message resonated with every person largely because other prophets had preached the same wisdom throughout the centuries. And in 21st century America, this message rings especially true.

Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.

Jesus lived in a world where the privileged held reign over the oppressed. He foresaw a time when all their wealth, power, and military might could not prevent their eventual downfall.

Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry.

Jesus called out the hypocrites, the policy makers who dined in fine style while the poor made do with the scraps. He preached fairness and equity for all the people.

Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep.

The arrogant leaders, distant from the faith and dedication of the people, thought they controlled the truth. Jesus did not mock or threaten others to serve as an inspirational leader.

Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you. Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

Truth is not whatever reality most benefits you. Truth is truth. Jesus showed that true leadership consists of honesty, openness, and candor regardless of the consequences.

Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.

Jesus spoke truth to power, never backing away from the challenges of scribes and Pharisees. He never sold his principles for comfort, advantage, or influence.

Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you.

The Golden Rule is the single most universal ethical belief of humanity. Jesus lived this ethic and taught others to do the same.

Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you.

Hold people accountable, but always do so with love and understanding. Jesus held malice in his heart for no one and yet stood on the side of love opposed to all oppressive authority.

castingoutmoneychangersNear the end of his ministry, Jesus demonstrated that we cannot achieve justice passively, and that we must sometimes meet oppression with active resistance.  Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were selling and buying…he said, “My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of robbers.”

After his active resistance to the corrupt bankers and priests, Jesus taught in the temple and healed those who came to him seeking cures. He told the crowds that the scribes and Pharisees tie up heavy, hard to bear burdens and lay them on the shoulders of others to carry. They exalt themselves, claiming great deeds and the best seats in the synagogue. Jesus called them blind guides and fools, for they valued the gold and not the sanctuary that made the gold sacred. Instead of tithing, Jesus called on the self-indulgent and greedy to practice justice, mercy, and faith.

Prophecy. Christmas celebrates a world-changing event in the past. But Christmas also commemorates the spirit of the man born under that star. Christmas proclaims the message of brotherhood and sisterhood among all people, and compassion for every person, whether poor or sick, hungry or hated.

So, honor the wonder of birth this Christmas season. May you see in every child the promise of a great life of service, a great love of others. Honor the child – wherever and whenever born – as the symbol of hope for billions born into poverty and oppression. Then, honor the person that child then grew and now grows to be; the one who then taught and will now teach the beatitudes of unconditional love; and who will always sacrifice everything to show us the meaning of justice, of mercy, and of faith. May we honor those teachings every day of the year and find the courage to stand up publicly for those principles.

Truth and Meaning: A Top 10 List That Matters

/ uurevjeff / 1 Comment

Last week, I talked about our love of top 10 lists. So, this week I offer my list of the top 10 things Americans need to do to restore sanity to our nation.

10. Labor – Establish a minimum wage that is a living wage. The endless attacks on labor undermine our economy and our democracy. No one should suffer wage or job discrimination for any reason and anyone willing to work should be able to live above the poverty line.
9. Health Care – Provide a basic level of medical and mental health care to every American once and for all. We should demand that politicians stop using our health and well-being as a political football.
8. Corporate Responsibility – Demand that the private sector pay its fair share of taxes and be held accountable when it misbehaves. Congress should overturn the Citizens United decision. The idea that a corporation has the rights of a person is not only illogical, it is social suicide.
7. Election Reform – Guarantee the unencumbered right to vote for every citizen by removing all restrictions to voting rights and making Election Day a national holiday. Enact comprehensive campaign finance reform and abolish all partisan gerrymandering, replacing current redistricting tools with common sense and reason.
6. Environment – Stop making the irresponsible assumption that petrochemical resources are unlimited. We should plan for a future where all people have access to food and clean water, and where we live sustainably.
5. Racism – Judging people by their skin color, ethnicity, or culture is a concept that has overstayed its welcome. Our mass incarceration of people of color in increasingly profit-oriented prisons is obscene. Immigrants need a clear and affordable path to citizenship.
4. Stupidity – People are free to ignore the overwhelming scientific evidence on any given topic. But we should keep such people out of positions of authority and decision making. We have tolerated know-nothings and deniers in our public discourse for too long. The Earth is round and circles the sun. Climate change is real. Sexual orientation is largely determined at birth. Evolution occurs. The world is billions of years old.
3. Guns – End our insane worship of guns. We have allowed violence and killing to be our number one national priority for far too long. We should make universal background checks mandatory and impose strict limits on automatic and semi-automatic weapons. Open Carry and Stand Your Ground may have worked on the 19th century frontier — they do not work for 21st century America.
2. Life – We should become a truly life-sustaining nation. That means no more war, an end to capital punishment, zero tolerance for police brutality, and contraception and comprehensive sex education for all so that every child is wanted. More important, it means caring about the born — eliminate hunger, provide equal education opportunities, and provide jobs, housing and social safety nets for everyone.
1. Revolution – We cannot accomplish needed changes through incrementalism. We should seek nonviolent ways to catalyze large-scale changes quickly and effectively. That means grassroots movements for policy change, boycotts, dissent and other tools the people have at their disposal. And it especially means voting for the highest quality candidates and not just for anyone who happens to have a “D” or an “R” next to their names.

Truth and Meaning: Real Love

/ uurevjeff

So, another Valentine’s Day is upon us. My message today is simple. You are loved.

Even if you get no cards in the mail, you are loved. If no one buys you chocolates or flowers, you are loved.

Whether you are Christian or Muslim, Atheist or Jew, you are loved. Whether you are conservative or liberal, rich or poor, you are loved. Whether you are gay or straight, you are loved.

I know this because I love you. As a Unitarian Universalist, I affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person, and compassion in human relations. Because I love you, I fight for your civil rights and for your freedom from discrimination. Because I love all of you, I advocate for a living wage, better public school funding, and clean air and water. Because I love every person, I dedicate my life to being my brother’s and my sister’s keeper, to justice for all, and for an end to violence and war.

And because you are loved, you do not need the roses or the heart-shaped boxes of sweets. You do not need to buy love at the store. And you do not need to buy the lies sold by the hate mongers and fear peddlers.

Despite the awful tragedies happening every day, the world is a pretty terrific place. In spite of our failures and heartaches, there is much to be said for living. But our lives are only as good as we make them, and we can all try harder to help those who are less fortunate to have a voice and a vote about things that affect them.

The best way to do this is to express your unconditional love proudly and publicly, without any expectation of any benefit in return. Love without judgment. Love with no strings attached. Love simply for the sake of loving.

Do I believe human nature causes us to be hurtful, distrustful and prejudiced? Not for a second. Am I a doe-eyed, naive Utopian? You bet. Love will do that for you. Love helps you see the innocent child in every person before life teaches them to be afraid and angry.

I am blessed to be married to a woman who reminds me every day of the power of love. And I am fortunate to be part of a religious community whose cornerstone is human beings caring for each other and welcoming all spiritual seekers regardless of their identities. May you feel that power within you on this Valentine’s Day, and every other day of the year.

Truth and Meaning: Are You Economically Free?

/ uurevjeff

According to the Heritage Foundation, economic freedom is “the fundamental right of every human to control his or her own labor and property.” In an economically free society, they argue, “individuals are free to work, produce, consume and invest in any way they please” and “governments allow labor, capital, and goods to move freely.” As you read this column, you might imagine that they are talking about you. You might logically think that they are concerned with your well being.

But are you truly free economically? If you lost your job tomorrow, how long would it take you to find a comparable job? Do you make enough money to plan for the future meaningfully? Are you really free to produce and consume as you please, or are you having trouble just keeping up with credit card payments, rising consumer costs, house and car repairs, medical bills, student loans and countless other expenses?

The problem is not with your understanding of work and money, but rather the hypocrisy of proponents of this skewed view of economics. Because, in reality, the Heritage Foundation could not care less about you, your home, your children or your future. All they care about are the handful of multi-millionaires who can invest more in one transaction than you will earn in a lifetime without any concern about losing it all. To the Heritage Foundation, you are not a person, you are a unit of labor, a commodity to be purchased, used and discarded.

Last Sunday, Northwood’s Timothy Nash explained in this editorial how America’s economy will suffer if we do not pass more pro-business tax reform and make it easier for the wealthy to trickle down their riches unimpeded. He based his recommendation on his concern that the ranking of the United States in the Heritage Foundation’s Index of Economic Freedom dropped from 6th to 12th place in the past five years. Let’s examine this hypothesis.

Nash’s use of this index provides a classic example of misusing statistics to make a dramatic point. First, the Index of Economic Freedom ranks nearly 200 countries, so a drop in rankings from 6 to 12 perhaps should not unduly concern us. But, who surpassed us in those rankings? Ireland, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Estonia and Mauritius. Do you even know where Mauritius is?

To benchmark the American economy against world peers, wouldn’t you limit the comparison to countries with a comparable economy? In 2013, there were only 15 countries in the world with Gross Domestic Products in excess of $1 trillion. Only two of the 14 countries other than the U.S. rank higher in the Index of Economic Freedom — Canada and Australia. Among the lowest ranking peer countries are Brazil (118th), India (128th), China (139th) and Russia (143rd). Other peers include Japan, Germany, France, England, Italy, Spain, South Korea and Mexico. Perhaps before we predict doom and gloom for the American economy, we should first benchmark ourselves only against appropriate peers.

Second, the Index of Economic Freedom includes an impressive array of data elements, all of which have some relevance to examining global economies. However, a longitudinal analysis of a manufactured index such as this must also take account of external events that might skew the numbers radically. This chart shows the Index of Economic Freedom for the United States as well as the average of the other 14 countries with GDP’s in excess of $1 trillion. Note that the U.S. consistently scores significantly higher than our peer group. Also, notice that the index for the U.S. was increasing noticeably until 2008 — the year of the biggest recession to hit this country since 1929. As one should expect, that colossal calamity of criminal fraud and greed took its toll on our ranking — a toll from which we are only now beginning to recover. Lastly, note that the index for the U.S. is now almost exactly at the same level as 15 years ago.

A key problem when using statistics is picking and choosing the numbers that support your assertion and then overemphasizing their importance. In this case, to cry wolf over a drop in economic ranking caused largely by the malfeasance of bankers, venture capitalists and high risk investors is unwarranted especially when we still outrank most of our true peers. And to recommend that America reward the very institutions that facilitated our financial collapse is utterly uncalled for.

Now, let’s get to the real point. The Index of Economic Freedom is not an objective analytic tool — it is a propaganda device to support radical economic views that support a few billionaires off the sweat and sacrifice of the majority of Americans. One hundred economists could create 100 different models using the exact same variables and produce wildly different results. A real Index of Economic Freedom would measure the freedom that workers truly have to change jobs, to learn new skills, to negotiate for better and fairer wages and benefits, and to provide opportunities for their children. A real Index of Economic Freedom would place people over investments, and healthy neighborhoods over quarterly profit statements. A real Index of Economic Freedom would measure the quality of an economy as much as the quantity of its output, the standard of living for the average citizen as much as the return on investment of a corporate “person.”

So, I challenge economists to craft a real Index of Economic Freedom. Included in such an index might be percentages of:
  • minimum wage earners living in poverty;
  • unemployed as well as those underemployed;
  • college graduates unable to find work in their fields;
  • the availability of public transportation and the average commuting distance to work;
  • vacation time, sick leave and paid family leave;
  • workers without medical insurance and other benefits;
  • employers restricting benefits on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity;
  • failed privatization efforts and the costs of corruption from privatizing schools, prisons, etc.;
  • income inequality for women and minorities;
  • incarceration of white collar criminals versus other offenders;
  • occupational safety violations and environmental “accidents;”
  • governmental spending on military versus human needs; and
  • individual taxes paid as a percent of actual gross income.
We don’t need to give Wall Street and the ultra-wealthy more freedom to wreak havoc on our economy. We need to give secretaries and teachers, managers and technicians, restaurant workers and occupational therapists more true economic freedom. We need to give women and minorities, and workers in our depressed cities more economic freedom. And we need to give our children the hope of economic freedom to attend college without crippling debt, to raise families without sacrificing leisure time and to plan for retirement secure in the belief that those funds will not disappear into an off-shore bank account.
 
Reject the statistical machinations of the Heritage Foundation and call for an American economy that truly cares about all human beings. Advocate for workplaces where workers are free to organize for their mutual benefit, and a marketplace free from gouging fees and interest rates. Tell our economists that every human person should be compensated fairly based on their labor, not on accidents of their birth and the privilege derived from inherited wealth or physical attributes. And remind our pundits, as people of faith, that human beings matter more than money, and that true freedom is measured by the way a society treats its most unfortunate, not its wealthiest.
 
With nearly one-quarter of the world’s GDP, no one should be jobless, homeless or hopeless in the United States. Parents should not have to worry about whether to pay the gas bill or feed their children. No one should have to worry about being fired because they are gay or transgender. Everyone should be paid fairly regardless of their gender. And no one working a 40-hour work week should be living in poverty. A fair and just society is not about wealth. Feed the hungry, quench the thirst of the parched, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, care for the sick and visit the prisoner. When we do these things, we will have all the freedom we need.