Midland

Funeral for the Death of the Middle Class

/ uurevjeff

At our Occupy Midland demonstration today, we had a funeral for the victims of corrupt politics and failed economics. Here is the text of the eulogy.

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Dear Friends,
 
Welcome to this solemn occasion, and join together in loving community as we lay to rest our dear brothers and sisters. We assemble today, people of all ages and races, men and women of all backgrounds and identities, spirits of all faiths, united in common cause against insidious invaders intent on destroying the America of our founders.
  • Let us treasure the memory of Participatory Democracy and an economic system that benefited all who built this nation, conquered on all fronts by politicians bought and sold by corporate “persons” and by hijacked elections.
  • Let us remember our pursuit of Life, Liberty, and Happiness, murdered by the unfettered corporate control of our media and unregulated financial institutions.
  • Let us recall the once healthy and vibrant American Dream, victim of spiraling medical costs, disproportionate distribution of wealth, and cruel repressions against immigrants desperately seeking to follow the lead of our own ancestors.
  • Let us mourn our Homes, Retirement Savings, and Safety Nets being sacrificed in order to maintain colonialism and unlawful military actions across the globe.
  • And lastly, let us especially grieve our dying Earth, whose pillaging, defacement, and reckless abandonment through oil spills, fracking, waste contamination, and violent abuse leave us homeless of spirit, and without anchor in our chaotic universe.
But, let us not grieve so deeply that we fall into a melancholy of inaction. For new children stand ready to take the place of these, our dearly departed. The 99% does not seek two-car garages, but equality and fairness. The 99% pursues not personal glory and isolation, but revels in teamwork and action with our neighbors. The 99% opens their arms to all willing to work side-by-side in peace and nonviolence, leaving no one behind. The 99% warmly hugs every tree, bush, and stone of our Mother Earth, knowing that living in partnership with our environment benefits all.
 
The forces opposing us are wealthy and determined. But, in the end, they fight only for the illusion of money. For power is only ours to keep or to give away. Let us leave this sad occasion with a new resolve to retain the power of self-determination, of mutual concern, and of fairness and love.
 
Let it be so. Amen. Shalom. Salaam Aleikum. Om. Blessed Be. Namaste.

Where is our Port Huron Statement?

/ uurevjeff / 15 Comments

I have had a number of spirited conversations in recent weeks over the Occupy movement.  While I think the movement has been unfairly criticized for lacking focus or specific suggestions for change (it’s not even two months old!), I do believe that we need to start thinking about this direction.  For years, I have watched individuals and agencies all fighting for their individual causes, and found the lack of a unifying progressive agenda in this country frustrating.

So whenever this topic arises regarding Occupy, I can’t help but think of the Port Huron Statement, the manifesto of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) completed on June 15, 1962.  Whatever one thinks about the 60’s and how the movement eventually went astray, I still find this Statement a compelling articulation of the liberal, progressive mind of America.

Now that I find myself in Midland, Michigan – home of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy – I yearn even more strongly for a voice of fairness, compassion, and reason.  What is stopping us from gathering together our best minds and our most passionate leaders to take the New York General Assembly statement to the next level of clearly explaining our vision for a future America?  What is stopping us from creating a plan of action for the next decade?

The beauty of such a statement today is that the Port Huron document was the reflection of only one generation.  The Occupy movement could  bring together literally every demographic in this nation.  And today, the technology certainly exists to bring together people of every socioeconomic group without a concern over travel expenses and lost wages.  We could even use the New York General Assembly Statement as an outline to frame the document that could eventually be distributed and ratified by General Assemblies in countless cities.

I want a Declaration of Independence for 21st century America – independence from the corruption of the democratic ideal, from the perversion of capitalist economy that our corporate complex has created.

Occupy!

/ uurevjeff

I am normally not much of an “in-your-face” protester, and my body does not take kindly to long marches. But, the Occupy movement speaks so viscerally to so many people, that I jumped at the opportunity to get involved.

Occupy Midland held its first protest on Monday in front of a Bank of America branch at the corner of Ashman and Eastlawn here in Midland. About 50 people participated and I am proud to say that about a quarter of them were members and friends of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Midland.

I wore my Standing on the Side of Love shirt and we picketed as literally hundreds of drivers passing by honked their horns and waved encouragement.

Occupy Wall Street movements take hold in Mid-Michigan: Occupy Midland makes the top story.

Two points I made that didn’t make the televised interview were these.  The Occupy movement is expressing the rage and frustration of hundreds of millions of Americans who feel betrayed by their institutions and politicians.  What better place for ministers to be in this time of national distress.  Second, the emphasis of the Occupy movement spans all demographics, including religion.  Every religion teaches that the love of money and the pursuit of wealth only leads to unhappiness and despair.  Every religion teaches the value of charity and being our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers.  Every religious person is part of the 99%.

Not Dead Yet

/ uurevjeff

As a lifelong book collector (a.k.a. nut), I have bemoaned the death of so many used book stores in recent years, not to mention chains like Borders.  One of the few disappointments I experienced during my year in New York City was the scarcity of stores once so plentiful in Manhattan.  I’m not knocking Ebay and Amazon.com.  I have accumulated considerable customer ratings without ever selling anything online, so I am just as much to blame for the trend as anyone.

But with the birth of Kindles and the immense growth of online texts, I worry for the future of the printed word.  Only a warm and loving caress can beat the security and ambiance of shelves packed with one’s favorite novels, histories, and art books.  And nothing has me whipping out my wallet faster than to purchase a desired hardback.

So, imagine my surprise going to my first library book sale up here in Michigan.  Library book sales are big business in Western Pennsylvania, and the collector must develop sharp elbows to brush aside the hoards of dealers crowding the front of the line upon opening.  But, here in Mid-Michigan, I thought that perhaps the competition might tax my resolve – and require fewer body checks – less than I was accustomed to. 

I arrived my customary hour early, and saw the expected handful of dealers already waiting on the windy sidewalk.  I eyed my competition, to better plan my attack on the tables of waiting titles.  I chatted with the people alongside me in line.  One was an older fellow looking for mysteries; the other a young mother who had once lived in Japan looking for picture books for her child’s school – excellent, no competition from them!  I was so engaged in conversation, that the appointed hour crept up unexpected.  When I glanced back, I saw a line of people stretched as least 50 long down the sidewalk and around the corner.  And, these were all people actually paying $10 for Friends of the Library memberships in order to gain access to the sale a day early.

Once inside, I went into fast scan mode.  Early in a sale, taking time to actually read titles wastes valuable time, so the collector learns to look for books by appearance and keywords.  For instance, as a collector of accounts of Nazi Germany, the word “quisling” caught my eye on one book – a biography of Vidkun Quisling who assisted Nazi Germany as it conquered his country of Norway…snatch.

Going upstairs, I found the specially-priced books and was shocked to see some nice modern leather-bound editions I was familiar with.  I nabbed the titled I wanted and then walked away before I talked myself into books I really didn’t want simply because the price was right.  Literally a minute later, the dealer I had spied at the front of the line came up and cleaned out all of the titles I had left behind.  You know, beating out a book dealer is not equivalent to a fine meal, or a warm hug…but it sure is close.

I left the book sale more upbeat about the future of my favorite medium.  I had found some cool additions to my library.  Even better, though, that finding neat books for myself is finding books for other folks.  Looking through the Religion section, I found a book about Shinto temples in Japan – exactly what the young mother and I had been talking about.  I found her over by the kids tables and handed her the book.  Nothing beats connecting a person with just the right book.

No, the book is not quite dead yet.

Extreme Welcoming

/ uurevjeff

In my travels among different congregations, I have found many healthy, happy churches.  Unfortunately, finding them often takes a good deal of work on the part of the searcher.  We have many wonderful religious communities in our denomination.  But, too often we make the task of locating and entering those communities onerous.

The consequences of our inattention to outreach ministry was struck home to me last week when I attended a local folk music festival.  The odyssey started with driving to the fairgrounds and entering one of the two main entrances.  I shortly found myself facing a barricade with no indication of exactly where I was supposed to park my car.  After crawling around two such obstacles, I found a grassy area with cars and stopped.

Seeing no obvious starting point for the event, I walked over to the main building.  Inside I found an information table and some vendors selling instruments and music.  However, there was no starting place and no obvious location for the visitor to talk to someone about the schedule of events.  In fact, quite the opposite, no one spoke to me, offered assistance, or even said hello.

I walked around the room and was again astonished at the lack of interaction or interest in my presence at all.  When I did talk to people, their interest waned quickly when the realized that I was not “one of them.”  And although the posted information indicated that food was available, I found nothing but one small table selling bags of popcorn.

The event could have been very interesting.  Perhaps the group might have engaged me in what could have become a long and fruitful relationship.  Instead, I doubt that I will ever have much interest in the organization or its events again.

It saddens me to think of the many times I have heard similar stories from people visiting our churches.  Knowing how I felt that day, I would never wish that feeling of unwelcome on anyone, particularly someone looking for a religious home.

So, while you may be perfectly happy with your own congregation, take a moment and examine it through the eyes of a visitor, a stranger.  How welcome would you feel?  How would you want to be treated upon entering the space and in the days after?  Are the things you would want really all that extreme, or simply practices that should be commonplace?

Some Assembly Required…

/ uurevjeff

That’s a phrase every parent has dreaded at one time or another (especially at 4:00 a.m. on Christmas Eve as the bicycle lies strewn in uncooperative pieces on the floor).  Lately that phrase has run through my mind as I construct my new life here in Midland.  From the metaphorical (assembling new relationships with congregants and a new town) to the literal (a desk, three bookcases, an office chair, and a still-not-quite-functional filing cabinet) my life lies in pieces on the workbench waiting for Geppetto to assemble the puppet who would be a boy.  I’ve put together quite the collection of Allen wrenches and instruction manuals.

As much as I like to receive packages, I am beginning to yearn for some end to the chaos.  Something in me wants at least one room in my life to be finished.  Just once, I want to look around me and be satisfied.  As one of my favorite movie bad guys once said, “When Alexander saw the breadth of his domain, he wept for there were no more worlds to conquer.”

The real problem, though, is believing in the illusion of completion.  There really is no such thing as being finished with anything.  Just as the elements that comprise our universe are in a constant state of flux, so our lives consist of an endless stream of shifts and changes.  I suppose if I ever got everything that I think I want, I would immediately identify some new desire or place for improvement.  I’ve come to believe that enlightenment is not a stagnant state of serenity and wholeness, but rather an attitude that nothing is permanent and that no current state of anything really matters at all.

In the meantime, I’ve got piles of unsorted books beckoning for my attention, a sad recliner due to fall apart suddenly as I sit to watch the next episode of Hell’s Kitchen, and a garage full of shipping boxes awaiting the next “heavy item” garbage pick up day.  Until I achieve a transcendent state, I will seek that balance between the nirvana of the perfect home and a disorganized and unmanageable hovel.  And I will continue to embrace the many opportunities before me to assemble my life.

My Life as My Books

/ uurevjeff

I don’t suppose a therapist would classify this an addiction, but I am inordinately fond of books.  Having just moved to a new home in Midland, I find most of my time consumed by organizing books, buying shelves for books, and grieving the loss of a handful that fell victim to a spill in the moving van.

People ask why I want to possess so many books.  Why do I keep books I have already read?  Why do I buy books easily available in libraries, even online?  And why would I keep a book that I am entirely unlikely to ever read?

I will admit that my bibliophilia borders on the obsessive.  I do use libraries liberally and love the growing availability of documents on Google Books and other resources.  Logic certainly would not explain the contents or size of my personal collections.

But, there are reasons for my madness.  I am comfortable around and among books.  Sometimes I feel smarter or more insightful just knowing that all of that collected knowledge resides in immediate proximity.  There is an art to the library, from dust jacket illustrations to bindings.  And, the symmetry and line of rows of texts appeals to my design sense.

The primary reason for my peculiar compulsion, however, is how my books help my spiritual practice.  Just as I love to saunter along streets and pathways, I also love to walk among ideas in my mind.  I cannot count the number of times a worship service design changed direction after a casual glance at a neighboring book, or the coincidental discovery of a text related (often in an obscure way) to the subject of my sermon.  I know that virtual libraries will in time replace my beloved stacks.  But, I will miss wandering among the towering shelves of Dewey-decimalled dusty tomes.

General Assembly: Opportunities

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This amazing week of talking, singing, listening, and worshipping continues here is Charlotte.  Yesterday, we heard a number of reports during the Plenary sessions that gave me great hope.  Both reports gave me tasks to pass onto my new congregants at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Midland as possible new initiatives.

During his report on the activities of the UU-UNO (Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office), Bruce Knotts related the enormous impact we have in that body.  From women’s rights, to the safety of children, to the protection of LGBT individuals, Unitarian Universalists are at the forefront of United Nations efforts.

Our office in the UN works with a network of congregational representative network of Envoys.  Envoys connect the congregation to the UU United Nations Office and get important information on current UN activities.  They receive information on our program initiatives and then plan events in their congregation to promote the program.  Envoys are extremely valuable to the UU United Nations Office because they are the link between the office and the global UU community.

As someone committed to the work and purposes of the United Nations, I hope to enlist someone in my new congregation willing to serve this important function.  Being connected to the United Nations is one important way to stay in touch with the entire world, bringing our message to people everywhere and helping people in need or whose rights are being abused.

In another report Bill Schulz, former President of the Unitarian Universalist Association and subsequently President of Amnesty International, reported on new initiatives being undertaken by the UUSC (Unitarian Universalist Service Committee).  As Schulz powerfully articulated, the UUSC is involved in basic and simple efforts to help people access potable water, find economic justice, and end torture across the world.  He announced the creation of the College of Social Justice, designed to give all Unitarian Universalists the chance the opportunity to live out their religious values through an institution founded on UU values through learning on on-site service opportunities.  I hope to encourage every member of my new congregation to join the UUSC in its important work.

So, get ready Midland.  We are going to rock the world!

General Assembly: Reconnecting

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The first time one attends General Assembly, the worship services dazzle and the vast array of programs impress.  In my 10th General Assembly, it’s all about reconnecting with dear friends, past acquaintances, and valued colleagues.

During the Ministry Days programs, I chatted with cherished friends from Meadville Lombard Theological School, some still finishing their course of study.  Others, like me, are newly minted ministers facing the challenge of settled positions in new congregations.

Walking through the exhibit hall, I rediscovered fellow curriculum writers at the UU Curriculum and Resource Developers booth and others like my good friend Jennifer who prefers to be called an “extremist” (rather than “fanatical”) vegan and animal rights advocate. 

At the Mid-American region meeting, I ran into long-time acquaintances from youth and religious education work who are now serving as district staff for either Heartland (my new district), Central Midwest, or Prairie Star.  And I found my two on-site delegates from my new congregation, Judith and Sara, from the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Midland.  I am proud that we also have two more delegates participating off-site, back home in Midland.

Then, at the banner parade, I met old pals from the Unitarian Universalist Congregation at Shelter Rock, from my original home congregation, the First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh, and from other miscellaneous travels over the years in UU circles.

Reconnecting with people makes General Assembly special and reminds me of the critical role churches play creating and fostering relationships.  In our modern world, where the focus is so often on individual over community, “me” versus “us,” our religious homes ground us in valuable and often lifelong relationship with others.

Days like this remind me of the origin of the word “religion,” which shares the same root as the word “ligament.  Re-ligio means to bind together again and again.  For me, reconnecting in meaningful relationship is the key to successful congregational and denominational life.

General Assumbly: Ministry Days

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I spent most of the morning over my keyboard as my sermon muse arrived early.  I have learned to never ignore her visits, and so dutifully attended until my July 3 piece was completed.  I had a basic theme for this sermon in my head already, an important message since it will be my last visit to my home congregation, the First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh.  I welcome the opportunity to say goodbye to old friends and long-time acquaintances.  This will also be for me a sort of pre-launch to my new called ministry position in Midland.

In the evening, the ministers gathered together to socialize, worship, and listen to the President of the Unitarian Universalist Association, Peter Morales.  While I do not consider myself much of a social butterfly, these events reunite me with dear friends from seminary – fellow travellers on this crazy path to ministry.  The food was great, the drinks pricey, and I could have done without having a glass of wine spilled on me by a senior colleague!

During President Morales’ talk, one theme struck me again and again.  We are a denomination with an opportunity to grow, to reach out to millions of people in search of our message who no longer find solace in traditional religions.  But, for the most part, congregations are on their own to address this opportunity.  The root “grassroots” arose many times, indicating that we should not expect a lot of help from the UUA in terms of funding or extensive staff support in order to expand programs and reach out to our communities.

While I do not welcome the content of this message, I do accept its honesty.  I very much want to see this religious movement grow in membership and influence on our society.  As a minister, I will be a primary mover and shaker in my community.  But, my principal task will be to encourage, harness, and support my congregants to become ambassadors of Unitarian Universalism.

In the search process, one observation appeared over and over again to me.  Our churches are often fantastic places – if one actually manages to find us.  It is natural that we build loving communities and then work to sustain them, even against perceived threats that new blood might visit upon us.  But, we must shed our fears and address those thousands (I would argue millions) of people out there who need us.  We must open our religious homes to the stranger out there desperately searching for spirituality, for comfort, and for the chance to make the world a better place.

Will reaching out to others change our congregations?  I hope so!  Will we lose what we love so much about our religious communities?  Not if we work with intention, with love, and with commitment to sustain them.  So, while I wish we had vast resources to fund innovative efforts and broad-reaching programs, I accept the challenge laid before us.  The task of changing the world and offering the hand of fellowship to our friends and neighbors is ours to accept or to ignore.  And I vote that we embrace that grassroots challenge.