Covenanting
Covenanting is at the heart of the practice of Unitarian Universalism. Our religious ancestors created our tradition as a faith community bound not by allegiance to a particular creed — that is, specific beliefs — but rather by faithfulness to a covenant — that is, a set of mutual promises to each other and to something greater than ourselves.
Over time, the practice of covenanting in many congregations has been reduced to behavioral covenants and used as a way to monitor behavior between individuals. This leaves out so many important aspects of covenanting: living our commitments to Spirit, Justice, Love, Earth; to ancestors and generations to come; to other UU congregations who are part of our Association.
Spiritual Leadership calls us to remember that covenanting is a practice, not a product. There are ways to practice covenanting that are multidimensional and liberating, and that help us learn skills needed to contribute to liberation in the world.
"Covenanting" Posts From Our Practice Makes Possible Blog
Displaying 11 - 16 of 16.
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Here I was thinking everything had already been said. That there were no other words to say (again) what we all already know: here we are, still in pandemic life. And yet, a shift has arrived and there are ideas being shared that can bring comfort, illumination, and insight. So, I wanted to share...
By Hilary Allen | September 22, 2021 | From Practice Makes Possible Blog -
September is County Fair season in much of New England. In our UU congregations, September is also Ingathering time; water communion time; returning-to-church-time after far-flung summers laden with small jars of water from our travels and foot-long zucchinis from overflowing gardens....
By Wren Bellavance-Grace | August 23, 2021 | From Practice Makes Possible Blog -
A congregational board member called to ask what their church might do about their building. Like so many New England churches, theirs is old, labyrinthine, mostly inaccessible, and larger than they need now....
By Meck Groot | July 22, 2021 | From Practice Makes Possible Blog -
As we have engaged UUs around New England in reflecting on living in covenant, we on regional staff have noticed an assumption so foundational that it is often revealed in storytelling but rarely said directly. That is: We can be either in covenant or in conflict, but not both at the same time....
By Erica Baron | June 23, 2021 | From CovenantingTagged as: Covenant -
We understand covenants as being an attempt to make promises together that are grounded in a shared understanding of something unenforceable but to which we want, collectively, to be faithful or obedient. However, lots of other stuff can tend to creep into our covenants, too...
By New England Region of the UUA | October 27, 2020 | From CovenantingTagged as: Covenant, Covenant -
So, friends, let’s practice together. I invite you to engage in some reflection about whether and how you are bringing that individualism into your practice of covenant and what a deeper practice of covenant can make possible for us.
By Erica Baron | September 21, 2020 | From CovenantingTagged as: 6th Principle (World Community), Christianity, Covenant, Covenant, Judaism, Six Sources