RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION:
UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST SOCIAL JUSTICE HISTORY
A Tapestry of Faith Program for Adults
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION:
UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST SOCIAL JUSTICE HISTORY
A Tapestry of Faith Program for Adults
BY BY REV. COLIN BOSSEN AND REV. JULIA HAMILTON
© Copyright 2011 Unitarian Universalist Association.
Published to the Web on 9/29/2014 11:11:41 PM PST.
This program and additional resources are available on the UUA.org web site at
www.uua.org/tapestryoffaith.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Rev. Colin Bossen, a graduate of Meadville-Lombard Theological School, was ordained by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Long Beach in 2007 and currently serves as minister of the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland (Ohio). Colin is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist and a longtime social justice activist. He is a co-founder of the human rights and indigenous solidarity organization Colectivos de Apoyo, Solidaridad y Accion (at www.casacollective.org) and a veteran of union organizing efforts in several cities. Colin is the co-author, with Dawn Starr Borchelt, of The Bridging Program (UUA, 2004). He, his wife Sara, and their two children live in the Coventry neighborhood of Cleveland Heights.
Rev. Julia Hamilton, a Harvard Divinity School graduate, was co-ordained in 2010 by the Unitarian Church in Summit (New Jersey) and the Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York. Currently director of the Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of New Jersey, a statewide action network, in May, 2011 Julia begins serving the Santa Monica congregation as assistant minister. Previously, she was a WorshipWeb coordinator for the Unitarian Universalist Association and has preached in congregations in Massachusetts, New York, Louisiana, and New Jersey. Raised a Unitarian Universalist in New Orleans, Julia has returned to lead volunteer groups working to rebuild the city. Prior to ministry, Julia worked in theater and television, living in Los Angeles and New York City. Julia, her husband Adam, their daughter Cassia, and their cat Smeagol live in the historic downtown of Jersey City.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We would like to thank Neil McLean for setting us down the path of studying our Unitarian Universalist social justice legacy. Without him this program would never have come into being. We are grateful for our editor, Gail Forsyth-Vail. Without her patience, hard work, and helpful criticism, this project would be the lesser. The Rev. Dr. Mark Morrison-Reed, the Rev. Farley Wheelwright, the Rev. Victor Carpenter, and the Rev. Gordon Gibson all read and offered advice on segments of this program. We appreciate their wise counsel; any mistakes that remain in the manuscript are wholly our own. We thank the family of the Rev. Albert D'Orlando and the First Unitarian Universalist Church in New Orleans, the Rev. Jack Mendelsohn, and Michael Ferber for sharing their stories with us.
Much of this work depended on information from the Unitarian Universalist archives at Andover Theological Library and the indispensable help of librarians Fran O'Donnell and Gloria Korsman. Additionally, we appreciate the support of our congregations and employers: the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland, the Unitarian Church in Summit (New Jersey), and the Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of New Jersey. Last, but not least, we thank our families for all the encouragement and love they have given us to complete this project.
We gratefully acknowledge the use with permission of the following material:
"Sharing the Floor: Some Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation (at www.uua.org/religiouseducation/adults/151805.shtml)," by Judith A. Frediani, from the website of the Unitarian Universalist Association.
"Embattled Faith," by Neil Shister, which appeared in the July/August 2003 issue of UU World.
"Prophetic Nonviolence" by Paul Rasor, which appeared in the Spring 2008 issue of UU World.
Fundraising brochure prepared by the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles in 1954.
"The Church and the Draft Resisters," a sermon preached by the Rev. Jack Mendelsohn on October 22, 1967 at Arlington Street Church, Boston.
Albert D'Orlando obituary from a March 3, 1998 New Orleans Times-Picayune article by Mark Schliefstein. The article (at www.ahaha.com/d%27orlandoalbert.html) is reprinted on the website of the annual D'Orlando Lecture on Social Justice.
"Southern Unitarian Universalists in the Civil Rights Era — A Story of Small Acts of Great Courage," edited and excerpted from a presentation by the Rev. Gordon D. Gibson under auspices of the Unitarian Universalist Historical Society at the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association, June 23, 2000, Nashville, Tennessee.
"Characteristics of Racially Integrated Unitarian Universalist Congregations" by the Rev. Dr. Mark Morrison-Reed.
"Honor Thy Womanself — The Caucus" and "Freedom," written by the Arlington Street Church Woman's Caucus and published in the "Honor Thy Womanself" program by the Unitarian Universalist Woman's Federation, 1973.
"Thirty Years of Feminist Transformation (at www.uuworld.org/ideas/articles/23905.shtml)" by Kimberly French which originally appeared in UU World, Summer 2007. Copyright Kimberly French 2007.
"There was a Young Woman who Swallowed a Lie," by Meredith Tax, from the text of the Arlington Street Church Women's Caucus worship service.
"From Liberation to Health: The New UUA Sexuality Curriculum," by Dan Kennedy, originally published in UU World Sept/Oct 1999. Copyright 1999 by Dan Kennedy. All rights reserved.
"Loving Our Whole Lives," a sermon preached at the Unitarian Church of Montreal by the Rev. Diane Rollert, March 1, 2009.
"The Welcoming Congregation" by Donald E. Skinner, originally published in UU World, June 2, 2006.
"Benediction" from Telling Our Stories, Celebrating Ourselves by the Women and Religion Task Force. Published by the Pacific Central District, UUA, 1998.
PREFACE
Certain names and events related to our social justice legacy have become familiar to many Unitarian Universalists, even if we cannot recite the details: The March to Selma during the Civil Rights movement, the abolitionist stance of ministers like Theodore Parker and Ralph Waldo Emerson, the work of women like Susan B. Anthony toward gender equality. However, these "high-profile" cases provide just a glimpse of the rich and complicated history of Unitarian Universalist engagement with social change. This program moves beyond familiar stories into a deep exploration of our history. It provides an opportunity for those who are interested in transformative justice work to delve into primary source material, to hear stories less commonly told but just as important, and to make connections between this history and modern Unitarian Universalist practice.
Playwright Tony Kushner once said, "We must participate in the historical mistakes of our time." Unitarians, Universalists, and Unitarian Universalists have always been subject to the events, cultures, and understandings of the times in which we live and the struggles that define our era. We can find patterns of engagement and theological growth and examples of personal courage and institutional strength in the stories from our social justice history. We also find failures, disappointments, and ignorance. We can learn from it all. This program leads Unitarian Universalists to ask the justice questions that pertain to our lives, congregations, and society today, and provides models of action that inspire us to take on the social justice challenges of our era.
THE PROGRAM
Once upon a time we were
Now we are
And some day (Hallelujah!) we shall surely become. — from "Some Day" by Margaret Williams Braxton
This program helps Unitarian Universalists delve deeper into the heart of their faith. Many people come to Unitarian Universalist congregations because of our movement's reputation for engaging in social justice work as a matter of faith. Too often, they learn little about the history of that engagement beyond what is taught in a new member class or offered in an occasional Sunday sermon. Unitarian Universalists who have grown up in this tradition may remember only a few pieces of our social justice history from children and youth religious education programs. Resistance and Transformation presents stories from our social justice history never before gathered in one place. Activities and questions for engagement and reflection deepen participants' understanding of the place social justice work holds in Unitarian Universalist heritage, culture, and identity.
This program is neither an all-inclusive history of the Unitarian Universalist social justice legacy nor a how-to primer on social activism. Rather, it offers a selection of stories, resources, and activities that synthesize ideas and action and blend history, theory, and practice. Participants will come away from these workshops with more knowledge about our past and a sense of how it continues to shape current Unitarian Universalist identity. The program offers vision and inspiration for future social justice work.
Resistance and Transformation consists of 16, 90-minute workshops that can each be extended to two hours. The workshops revolve around the stories of Unitarian, Universalist, or Unitarian Universalist people and congregations' involvement in social justice struggles. Each workshop encourages participants to think about their own involvement in social justice work and how the challenges, struggles, and choices of our religious forebears can inform our own choices today. Themes include:
The workshops unfold events, issues, and challenges in our social justice history, telling the truth as best we know it and acknowledging that our forebears have at times acted in ways that make us proud of our tradition and at times made choices or acted in ways that are not in line with our religious values as we understand them today. This program challenges participants to engage with events and individuals from our history by asking good questions and discerning meaning for our own time. The concluding workshop affirms there are more Unitarian, Universalist, and Unitarian Universalist social justice themes and stories to uncover and invites participants to name some. May this program offer both inspiration and understanding as Unitarian Universalists faithfully face the challenges of our own time in our ongoing struggle for justice in the world.
GOALS
This program will:
LEADERS
This program is well suited to being led by a team of two or more adults that includes a minister or religious education professional, but anyone with a passion for this material and a willingness to facilitate non-judgmental discussion can be a successful leader. Consistency of leadership offers many advantages; however, every workshop need not be led by the same facilitators.
While leaders need not be scholars of Unitarian Universalist history to lead this program, they will need basic knowledge of Unitarian Universalism. In addition, consider choosing workshop leaders who are:
PARTICIPANTS
This program is for adults and older youth who want to learn more about the history of Unitarian Universalism, have an interest in social justice, and want to deepen their understanding of Unitarian Universalist identity.
Workshops can accommodate any number of participants, with six participants an ideal minimum. Workshops of fewer than six participants may do small group activities in the full group, or choose to do only a portion of those activities. The suggested maximum number of participants is 25; you will need at least three facilitators to accommodate a large group.
INTEGRATING ALL PARTICIPANTS
People with obvious and not-so-obvious disabilities need accommodation in order to participate fully. As a presenter, you may or may not be aware of a participant's need for accommodations. In addition to accommodating the accessibility needs of participants who request them, you are urged to follow these Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters for every activity.
The Unitarian Universalist Association website and staff can offer guidance for including people with specific disabilities; consult the Accessibility section of the Leaders' Library (at www.uua.org/leaders/leaderslibrary/accessibility/index.shtml)on the UUA website. In addition, some workshop activities suggest specific adaptation under the heading "Including All Participants."
Participants bring a wide range of learning styles and information processing preferences. With this in mind, the workshops offer a variety of activities. Review each workshop's Alternate Activities. Plan each workshop to best suit the group.
PROGRAM STRUCTURE
Resistance and Transformation is flexible. Tailor the program to meet the needs and interests of your congregation. The full program comprises 16 90-minute workshops, organized thematically. Each workshop offers alternate activities allowing you extend the time of the workshop, explore certain topics in more depth, or choose alternate topics. It is strongly recommended that you plan at least 90 minutes for each session. However, if you will only have an hour for each workshop, consider distributing handouts and stories in advance of the workshop time and shortening discussion times during the workshop.
You can offer all 16 workshops over a time span appropriate for your congregation. Alternately, you may wish to present one or more subsets of workshops. In all cases, it is recommended that you begin with Workshops 1 and 2, which set the framework. Here are suggested thematic groupings for the remaining workshops:
Strategies for Resistance |
Workshop 3: The Response to Slavery Workshop 4: The Nineteenth Century Women's Peace Movement Workshop 5: Just War, Pacifism, and Peacemaking |
Parallel Strategies and Communities |
Workshop 6: Religious Freedom on the Margins of Empire Workshop 7: Utopianism Workshop 8: Counter-Culture |
The Right to Dissent |
Workshop 9: Free Speech Workshop 10: Taking Politics Public |
Expanding the Franchise: The Quest for Racial Justice |
Workshop 11: Civil Rights Workshop 12: Responding to Calls for Black Empowerment |
Expanding the Franchise: Gender and Sexuality |
Workshop 13: The Women's Movement Workshop 14: Sexuality Education as a Justice Issue Workshop 15: Beyond Binaries — The Struggle for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Equality |
Wrap-up |
Workshop 16: Is There More? |
Structure of Individual Workshops
All workshops follow the structure described below:
Introduction. The Introduction summarizes the workshop content and offers guidance for implementing the workshop.
Goals. The goals provide the desired outcomes of the workshop. As you plan a workshop, apply your knowledge of your group, the time and space you have available, and your own strengths as a leader to determine the most important and achievable goals for the workshop. Choose the activities that will best serve those goals.
Learning Objectives. The learning objectives describe specific participant outcomes that the workshop activities are designed to facilitate. They describe what participants may learn and how they may change as a result of the experience of the workshop.
Workshop-at-a-Glance. This useful table lists the core workshop activities in order and provides an estimated time for completing each activity. It also lists the workshop's Faith in Action activity and Alternate Activities.
Workshop-at-a-Glance is not a road map you must follow. Rather, use it as a menu for planning the workshop. You will decide which elements to use and how to combine them to best suit the group, the meeting space, and the amount of time you have.
Keep in mind that many variables inform the actual completion time for an activity. Whole-group discussions will take longer in a large group than in a small group. Consider the time you will need to form small groups or relocate participants to another area of the meeting room.
Spiritual Preparation. Under the heading Spiritual Preparation, each workshop suggests readings, reflections, and/or other preparation to help facilitators grow spiritually and prepare to facilitate with confidence and depth.
Part of growing as a leader is learning to pay attention to the accessibility needs of workshop participants. Review Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters, in the Integrating All Participants section of this Introduction, before each workshop.
Workshop Plan. The workshop plan presents every element of the workshop. The workshop elements are:
Welcoming and Entering. This section offers steps for welcoming participants as they arrive, before the workshop begins. It is recommended that you complete the preparations in the Welcoming and Entering section 15 minutes before a workshop's scheduled beginning. You may wish to set out beverages and snacks for participants.
Opening. Each workshop begins with a short ritual, including a chalice-lighting, a song, and a reading or question to focus attention on the topic of the workshop. Shape the opening ritual to suit your group and the culture and practices of your congregation.
The opening ritual includes singing a social justice-themed hymn. You might work with your music director to use this program as an opportunity to expand your congregation's repertoire of social justice hymns.
Activities. Several activities form the core content of each workshop. To provide a coherent learning experience, present the activities in the sequence suggested. Workshops offer a variety of activities to address different learning styles. Generally, the activities in a workshop balance listening with talking and include individual, small group, and whole group explorations. Each activity presents the materials and preparation you will need, followed by a description of the activity:
Materials for Activity — List of the supplies you will need.
Preparation for Activity — "To do" list that specifies all the advance work you need to do for the activity, from purchasing supplies or inviting a guest speaker to writing questions on newsprint just before participants arrive. Look at the preparation tasks several weeks ahead to make sure you have ample time to obtain items and make any special arrangements.
Description of Activity — Detailed directions for implementing the activity with your group. Read activity descriptions carefully during your planning process so you understand each activity and its purpose. Later, when you lead the group, use the description as a step-by-step how-to manual.
Including All Participants — Specific accessibility guidance is provided for activities that have unusual physical circumstances or for which a reminder about inclusion may benefit leaders.
Faith in Action. Each workshop suggests an activity to provide outside the regular workshop time. This is an opportunity for the group to put ideas and themes from the workshop into action for the transformation of our congregations, and our world. If your group will do a large number of the workshops, you might choose one or two "Faith in Action" activities that resonate with your group to do over the course of the program.
You can also download the Faith in Action section and combine it with the Taking It Home section as a handout or email to participants after each workshop. (Note: You can customize Faith in Action, Taking It Home or any other component of a Tapestry of Faith program. Download it to your own computer and edit it with your own word processing program.)
Closing. Each workshop offers a ritual that signals the end of the group's time together. During the Closing, participants have an opportunity to integrate some of their learning from the workshop, sometimes by writing in their journals. You are invited to introduce the workshop's Taking It Home and Faith in Action ideas, invite participants to share briefly, and offer closing words. Like the Opening, the Closing grounds a shared learning experience in ritual. Shape your closing ritual to fit the group and the culture and practices of your congregation.
Leader Reflection and Planning. After each workshop, have co-facilitators discuss these questions to strengthen your skills and build your understanding of the group.
Alternate Activities. Most workshops offer at least one Alternate Activity to substitute for a core activity or add to a workshop. An Alternate Activity may need more time than a parallel core activity, require access to technology, use a different approach to core material, or extend learning in a particular direction not covered by a core activity. Review Alternate Activities along with the core activities when planning a workshop. Select the activities you feel will work best for you and the group. Keep in mind the benefits of a well paced workshop that includes different kinds of activities.
Resources. Workshops conclude with three resource sections which provide all the materials you will need to lead any activity in the workshop.
LEADER GUIDELINES
Pay attention to your own spiritual preparation work, ahead of leading a workshop. You may want to set aside time for personal study, prayer, meditation, and journaling. Use the Spiritual Preparation section of each workshop as a guide.
Be attentive to the differences in life experience and historical knowledge participants bring to the group, particularly if their ages span a wide range. Some participants may be quite knowledgeable about Unitarian Universalist social justice history and able to add detail and new perspectives to the materials provided. Some participants may have been involved in some of the events described and willing to offer first-hand accounts. Others may be new to Unitarian Universalism or to the events explored in the workshops. Keep the pace and level of material balanced with participants' experience.
Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation
These suggestions are excerpted from "Sharing the Floor: Some Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation (at www.uua.org/religiouseducation/adults/151805.shtml)," by Judith A. Frediani, from the website of the Unitarian Universalist Association:
1. Group Covenant. It is invaluable for any group—whatever its primary focus—to agree on expectations for behavior in their work together. Whether you call those written expectations covenants, agreements, or guidelines, they may include a range of issues such as arriving on time, keeping confidentiality, the right to pass, and no "put-downs." Ongoing groups such as standing committees can review and renew their agreements annually, or whenever new members are added.
Short-form covenanting is a time-efficient way to help a group agree to guidelines. Prepare a draft on newsprint before the first meeting and ask participants to respond. Invite them to add, delete, or modify until everyone understands and accepts the expectations.
Long-form covenanting invites the group to generate its guidelines from scratch. Although it takes a little longer, it is more participatory and may foster more of a sense of ownership. One approach is to say something like: "Think of a time when you were a member of a productive and safe group. What would make this group productive and safe for you?" List responses and encourage discussion until consensus is reached. Then ask, "What do you think should happen if our behavior is not in keeping with our agreed guidelines?" Discuss.
A group covenant provides at least three benefits:
2. Begin on time. End on time. Take this responsibility very seriously. Promptness sends two important messages:
Modeling respect for the group fosters other expressions of respect within the group.
3. Model brevity. Leadership is not license to ramble. Make sure your thoughts are organized and succinctly presented. In check-ins and other sharing, be sure you share for less than the allotted time for each person.
4. Use a talking stick. Some groups use a "talking stick" (or feather, etc.) which one must be holding in order to speak. This practice discourages people from spontaneously (and repeatedly) sharing their thoughts out of turn. It clearly gives the floor to one person at a time, and encourages shared responsibility for participation, since the speaker, not the leader, must decide who to hand it to next. (If it is placed in the center of the circle after each speaker, participants, not leaders, must still take responsibility for who will speak next.)
5. Pass a watch. Sharing can consume much more time than planned. If the group has agreed to a number of minutes for each person's sharing (such as 2 or 5 minutes), pass a watch with a second hand around the circle. Each person times the person next to them, and gently signals them when their time is almost up. As facilitator, you go first. This device is only appropriate if the group has agreed to limit their sharing to a certain time period. And, of course, common sense should prevail if someone is sharing a painful or otherwise sensitive experience. In groups with a history of saying they want a short check-in yet do a long check-in, this is a consciousness-raiser that often does not have to be repeated.
6. Use a timed agenda. It is almost always helpful to post an agenda at the beginning of any meeting. People like to know what they are doing and where they are going. Next to each item, suggest a time, and do an agenda check with the group to get their agreement. This is no less important with support groups than with Board meetings, although the former will likely have a much less detailed agenda than the latter.
Use the timed agenda to enlist the whole group in taking responsibility for the process. If they fall behind in the timing, say "I'm concerned (or "I notice') that we are behind our agreed-on schedule. What do you suggest we do about this?" Let the group make suggestions. Usually, they volunteer that they need to be more focused and self-disciplined, particularly if you ask, "Shall we extend our meeting time by 45 minutes?"
Be aware that the group may decide it really needs to spend the entire time on one activity. If this is the consensus of the group, then it is what they should do, as long as it is an intentional group decision. Responsibility, not inflexibility, is the goal.
7. Form small groups. People like to talk. One way to give everyone more time to talk within a limited time frame is to divide participants into groups of two or more for discussion. When the whole group re-gathers, the small groups can share according to the time you have allotted—from as little as a word or phrase to a written report.
Use the promise of small group time to interrupt lengthy or tangential discourses, suggesting, for example, that the small group exercise will be a more appropriate place to share that story.
8. Post an unfinished business list. Post a sheet of newsprint. List people's questions and concerns that cannot be addressed in the program without derailing the schedule or focus of the group. As people go off on tangents that are important to them, but not germane to the task at hand, interrupt politely, affirm that their issue deserves attention, explain that it cannot be addressed now, write it on the newsprint and promise to return to it. Be sure to return to it at the time you have set aside, such as at the end of the workshop.
9. Leveling the playing field. Some people are quick to speak up; others need time for reflection. Some are comfortable competing for the floor; others are not, and will not. The result is that a few people consistently speak first, more often and at greater length. But only if the discussion mode is "survival of the fittest" (that is, most verbally aggressive). Here are some techniques to equalize opportunities to speak.
10. Process check. Schedule a five to ten minute group process check as a regular feature at the end of each workshop or meeting. Ask, "How was our process?" When you introduce this concept, make it clear that a process check is not an evaluation of the leader(s), but an invitation to everyone to reflect on their own participation and their experience of the group process as a whole. A process check encourages self-awareness, communicates that everyone shares responsibility for the process, and gives people an opportunity to voice their concerns or suggestions.
11. When all else fails. Usually participants are reluctant to confront each other and look instead to the facilitator to handle dominating members. If preventive strategies have failed, try these interventions:
Usually people respond by cooperating, and usually if the facilitator is willing to interrupt garrulous behavior, the garrulous become quieter, the quiet become bolder, and a rough equality evolves. If appropriate, appeal to the group guidelines and the agenda as objective references for behavioral expectations.
Hopefully, the participant will acknowledge their behavior and modify it in the future. If the behavior continues unabated, it is likely the person is not merely needy or thoughtless, but seriously hostile. Confronting the person may cause them to leave the group. This is the participant's choice, and if you have treated the person respectfully, you should not feel that their decision is your "failure."
Strategies for Brainstorming
Many activities in this program invite participants to brainstorm. There are many ways to lead this collaborative process, and not all of them involve shouting out ideas in a crowd! Here are some ways to vary the brainstorming in order to add interest or to better engage a particular group:
Word Cloud. This method works best to elicit general ideas about a topic when you expect one- or two-word answers, rather than phrases or detailed ideas. Use a pair of facilitators; have newsprint and markers in several different colors. Write the question or topic on newsprint. Invite participants to offer answers freely; one facilitator acts as scribe and the other solicits responses, listening and repeating the words, making sure everyone who speaks has their idea recorded. The scribe writes the words using different colors of markers, all over the page, in no particular order. Feel free to write sideways, big and small, randomly spaced. This keeps the words from forming a list or an implied hierarchy. If you run out of room, use a second sheet. When you are finished, allow the group a moment to look at the newsprint. Then post the newsprint so everyone can view it for reference for the duration of each workshop.
Lists. This technique works best when you have something to compare/contrast, or several connected questions. Answers may be a little more detailed than in the Word Cloud, but still should be short phrases. Write the questions or topics at the top of several sheets of newsprint. Post them around the room, if possible.
One facilitator asks for responses to the question or topic on the first sheet, while the other facilitator records. Then move to the second, then third, and so on. Make sure you allow a roughly equal amount of time for each sheet as for the first!
Sticky Notes. Sticky notes work best when every person might have several responses to record, when people need a bit of reflection time before answering, or when the group includes people who are reluctant to "shout out" but who need to be heard.
Post the question or phrase on a sheet of newsprint. Hand out large sticky notes and thick markers to participants, and give them time to consider their responses. Invite them to write the words in large, clear print on the sticky notes, using one note for each response they wish to offer. When the time is up, collect the notes and read them aloud as you stick them to newsprint. If there are repeating themes, or duplicate notes, stick these together as you read them aloud, allowing participants to see clusters of ideas emerge.
This technique also works well if there are multiple topics for response. Post a sheet of newsprint for each topic and invite participants to stick their responses to the appropriate piece of newsprint. Once everyone is finished, read the responses aloud.
Note Cards. This works well for collecting ideas before discussing them in more detail. This method includes those who are reluctant to speak up in front of the group and can offer some anonymity. Note cards can help each idea be considered without regard to who submitted it. Hand out identical blank cards and pens/pencils to the group. Ask the question, or give the topic ("Social Action Committee Fundraising Ideas") and give people a few minute to think about and write their response. Collect the cards and mix them up. Invite a co-facilitator to write the responses on newsprint as you read them aloud, without comment.
To vote on ideas, hand everyone sticky dots or stickers, one for each vote. Invite them to place a sticker next to the idea they like best on the newsprint.
IMPLEMENTATION
Every congregation has its own way of scheduling adult programming. Days and times vary to accommodate certain needs or preferences. Some congregations offer single workshops here and there, others prefer to present workshops as a series. Some congregations charge money and require pre-registration for adult courses. Many congregations will open their adult programs to all who wish to attend, regardless of whether they have attended previous workshops in the series.
The program design does not assume the same participants will come to each workshop. You can offer the workshops in a variety of combinations and sequences, according to the needs and wishes of your congregation. Please see the Program Structure section in this Introduction for details and suggestions. The 90-minute format is best suited to an afternoon, evening, or Saturday morning program.
Making the program accessible to a full range of a congregation's adults requires provisions for adults with children. It is strongly recommended that congregations offer workshops during time slots when religious education programming and/or on-site child care are available. Even with on-site child care, evening workshops may still be a challenge for parents of young children whose bedtime comes before the workshop's end.
Evening workshops can also be a challenge for participants who do not drive, who do not drive after dark, or who live a long way from the congregation. Arranging for carpools can help.
BEFORE YOU START
Determine the calendar schedule for workshops. Once you have determined which workshops you will offer, choose dates and times for all the workshops. Enter the information in the congregational calendar.
Choose a meeting space. Find a comfortable room that offers, or can accommodate, chairs for participants, tables for nametags, handouts, and creating artwork, a worship or centering table, a podium if you will use one, and a cordless microphone if you will use one. Make sure you will be able to display materials as digital slides or newsprint as you choose. Make sure the space is accessible for participants in wheelchairs. Reserve the space and any equipment you may need for all of the workshop dates and times you have chosen.
Arrange for child care. If child care is needed, make arrangements with qualified child care providers and reserve a room for child care.
Promote the workshops. Use newsletters, websites, printed and verbal announcements, adult religious education brochures, and special invitations to publicize the upcoming workshops. Offer personal invitations at worship, at visitor and new member orientations, and at other religious education program meetings. You may also choose to promote the workshops more broadly with a listing in your local newspaper or on your local community access television channel. If participants have pre-registered, you may wish to send reminder letters, postcards, or emails with the date, time, and place of the first meeting.
PRINCIPLES AND SOURCES
Unitarian Universalist Principles
There are seven Principles which Unitarian Universalist congregations affirm and promote:
Unitarian Universalist Sources
Unitarian Universalism draws from many sources:
FACILITATOR FEEDBACK FORM
We welcome your critique of this program, as well as your suggestions. Thank you for your feedback! Your input improves programs for all of our congregations. Please forward your feedback to:
Faith Development Office
Ministries and Faith Development
Unitarian Universalist Association
25 Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
religiouseducation@uua.org
Name of Program or Curriculum:
Congregation:
Number of Participants:
Age range:
Did you work with (a) co-facilitator(s)?
Your name:
Overall, what was your experience with this program?
What specifically did you find most helpful or useful about this program?
In what ways could this program be changed or improved (please be specific)?
Did you enrich the program with any resources that you would recommend to others?
What impact, if any, do you think this program will have on your life going forward?
What impact, if any, do you think this program will have on your congregation going forward?
PARTICIPANT FEEDBACK FORM
We welcome your critique of this program, as well as your suggestions. Thank you for your feedback! Your input improves programs for all of our congregations. Please forward your feedback to:
Faith Development Office
Ministries and Faith Development
Unitarian Universalist Association
25 Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
religiouseducation@uua.org
Name of Program or Curriculum:
Congregation or group:
Your name:
Overall, what was your experience with this program?
What specifically did you find most helpful or useful about this program?
In what ways could this program be changed or improved (please be specific)?
What impact, if any, do you think this program will have on your life going forward?
What impact, if any, do you think this program will have on your congregation going forward?
WORKSHOP 1: INTRODUCTIONS
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
I do not pretend to understand the moral universe; the arc is a long one... And from what I see I am sure it bends towards justice. — Theodore Parker, 19th-century Unitarian minister and abolitionist
This workshop invites leaders and participants to get to know one another, introduces the themes that run through the curriculum, and highlights the ideals that lead us, as Unitarian Universalists, to work toward the transformation of our society.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 15 |
Activity 1: Covenant | 10 |
Activity 2: The Good Samaritan Dilemma | 25 |
Activity 3: How Do We Respond? | 25 |
Activity 4: Journaling | 10 |
Faith in Action: Inspiring Stories | |
Closing | 5 |
Alternate Activity 1: Our Work | 20 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Hear your commission to love, to create community, and to heal. One at a time in personal relationships, ten at a time in covenant groups, hundreds at a time in our congregations, hundreds of thousands at a time in our religious movement, millions at a time as we take our commission deeper and deeper into humanity's heart as a justice-loving people who will transform the world. — Thandeka, contemporary Unitarian Universalist theologian
Meet with your co-leader(s) and discuss your leadership style. What do you think are your strengths in leading discussions? What are your growing edges? What makes you nervous? How can you work together, as leaders, to use your existing strengths while supporting each other's growth? To get your leadership conversation started, look back over your experiences as a participant in group discussions and workshops, asking:
Consider your current role as a facilitator:
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling..."
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition: "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
After the song, invite participants to introduce themselves and to share a bit about what brings them to the workshop. Allow ten minutes for introductions.
Read these words written by Clarence Skinner, a 20th-century Universalist theologian, minister, and social justice activist:
If there is anything which ought to be distinctive of religion, it is a feeling of active relationship between the self and a mystic, other, better world. There is no reason why this sense of relationship should be confined to a hazy realm where the soul visits after death. Can there not be a social and political mysticism which calls for an eager faith? Can we not visualize another better world which not yet real, but is capable of becoming a reality? The old mysticism was individualistic. But this other mysticism would contain a diviner urge and lay upon humanity a sense of something great to be done. Not to die for our faith as the saint of old, not to kill for it, as does the solider, but to live for it—to live splendidly, with utter devotion.
ACTIVITY 1: COVENANT (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Explain that behavioral covenants are a foundational aspect of liberal congregations, and that establishing a covenant will remind the group that these workshops invite us to grow, not just in knowledge, but also in faith and in our understanding of one another.
Invite participants to suggest guidelines for how they will be with one another during the program. Write all suggestions on the posted newsprint. After participant suggestions are exhausted, add any additional items from the list you prepared in advance.
Ask participants if there are any items listed about which they have concerns. Discuss those items and decide as a group whether to keep, modify, or eliminate them.
Post the second sheet of newsprint and rewrite the agreed-on items. Read the covenant aloud and ask for verbal assent from each participant.
Save the written covenant to post in future sessions.
ACTIVITY 2: THE GOOD SAMARITAN DILEMMA (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Share the story "The Good Samaritan," which is likely familiar to participants. Invite participants to think about this story in a different way. Have them move into groups of three and ask them to consider the questions you have posted on newsprint. Allow ten minutes for small group work.
After ten minutes, re-gather the large group and invite brief comments and observations about the small group conversations. Note that the questions named some, but not all, of the ways a person could respond to the situation faced by the Samaritan and the other passers-by. There is more than one way of doing the work of bringing justice into the world.
Invite the group to consider what we mean when we say "social justice." Lead the group to brainstorm a list of ideals that inspire social justice work, and write these words on a blank sheet of newsprint in a "word cloud" format. These might be words like "fairness", "compassion," and "peace." Allow two or three minutes for this brainstorm. Post the sheet of newsprint.
Now invite the large group to respond to the following questions:
ACTIVITY 3: HOW DO WE RESPOND? (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Description of Activity
Say, in your own words:
Now that we have created a list of ideals and explored some conditions necessary for social justice, let us think about our own personal social justice work. Where do we live up to our ideals? Where do we fall short? How do we discern the best response in a given situation?
Invite participants to pay careful attention to the actions and the thoughts of all three people who saw the injured man as you tell the story, "The Good Samaritan," a second time.
Afterward, invite participants to think of times in their own lives when they have been like each of the three people who approached the injured traveler. Are there times when our society as a whole behaves like the Levite or the priest, rather than like the Samaritan?
Explain that you will use a chime to signal three minutes for silent reflection and sound the chime again to begin a time for sharing.
Ring the chime. After three minutes, ring it again, and invite participants into a time for sharing. Acknowledge that thinking about the times when we are more like the Levite or the priest than like the Samaritan can lead to feelings of inadequacy, or it can energize us and give us new resolve. This program will offer stories from our history that will clarify and deepen understanding of our Unitarian Universalist tradition of working for justice and allow participants to examine their own engagement with social justice work.
If the group has eight or fewer participants, stay in the large group. With more than eight participants, form two or more groups.
Use a talking stick or other object and pass it from person to person, inviting each person in turn to speak. Ask others to refrain from commenting in any way until all have spoken. The talking stick method allows each participant to express their thoughts and feelings without others negating or denying them (e.g. "You shouldn't think that way. You do all sorts of great justice work!"). Be sure to tell participants they may pass if they do not wish to share. Allow 15 minutes for this portion of the activity and make sure all who wish to have a chance to speak.
After all have spoken in the circle, engage the group in conversation, using these questions:
Conclude with these words, by the Rev. Jack Mendelsohn:
The issue is never whether or not we possess power, or whether or not we can use it. We do, and we can. What is impossible is avoiding its use. Not to decide in the face of injustice is to let injustice stand. The issue, then, is always how best to decide on the side of our ideals, how best to incarnate in our actions what we stand for.
Including All Participants
Do not assume everyone in the room shares the same class background or economic circumstances. There may be more diversity than you think. If participants make statements that imply assumptions—for example, "Well, we can all afford to donate money to a cause"—gently redirect the group toward sharing their own, individual experiences rather than making assumptions about others.
ACTIVITY 4: JOURNALING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute journals to participants. Say the journals are theirs to use for the duration of the program and participants may keep their journals when the program concludes.
Invite participants to answer this question by writing or drawing in their journals:
How do you hope to be changed by participating in this program?
Tell them they will be invited to share with the group all or a portion of what they have written or drawn.
Including All Participants
Remind participants, words are only one way to express thoughts and feelings. Make certain participants understand they may use drawings, symbols, or any other form of expression in their journals.
CLOSING (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants, if they wish, to share a few words or a sentence from their journals.
Invite everyone to join in reading the closing words, by T.S. Eliot, Reading 685 in Singing the Living Tradition. Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: INSPIRING STORIES
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Convene a panel of activists from your congregation to share their stories of involvement in social justice projects and what motivates them to serve in this way. Following the panelists' sharing, invite questions from workshop participants to draw out the ways social action is connected to the panelists' spiritual and religious lives.
Afterward, gauge participant interest in working together on one of the panelists' projects or on another social justice initiative of the congregation. If there is interest, identify and assign next steps.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials for the workshop.
TAKING IT HOME
I do not pretend to understand the moral universe; the arc is a long one... And from what I see I am sure it bends towards justice. — Theodore Parker, 19th-century Unitarian minister and abolitionist
Reflect on your reasons for participating in this workshop series. What do you hope to learn or gain through your participation? What are your personal goals?
Take time to complete these sentences in your journal:
I hope this workshop series will offer me a chance to learn about...
I hope this workshop series will offer me...
I expect this experience to enhance my spiritual journey by...
Find a trusted conversation partner and share your personal goals for this workshop series. Arrange to check in with one another from time to time as the workshops proceed.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: OUR WORK (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Hand out the index cards, asking participants to take two.
Have each participant write on one card activities the congregation does that might be considered social justice work. Examples might include "We donate money to the shelter across the street" or "We are officially a Welcoming Congregation.").
On the next card, invite participants to write activities they do personally, or that another person in the congregation does, that could be considered social justice work. Tell them not to attach names, but to simply describe the activity—for example, "does pro bono legal work" or "volunteers at the animal shelter."
Have a facilitator collect the cards and mix them up. Now, read the cards aloud and have a volunteer record the responses on newsprint.
After you have read all the cards, help the group add any items that have been left off the list of congregational work. Engage participants in conversation, using these questions:
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 1:
STORY: THE GOOD SAMARITAN
A retelling of Christian scripture (Luke 10: 25- 37).
A lawyer asked Jesus, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Jesus answered, "What is in the law? What do you read there?"
The lawyer answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself."
Hoping to trick Jesus, the lawyer asked, "Who is my neighbor?"
Jesus responded with a story:
A Jewish merchant bid his family farewell and left Jerusalem early one morning to travel to Jericho, where he would bring his goods to market. He left early, his donkey laden with goods for the market. He was anxious because he had to travel over the eighteen-mile Jericho Road. The Jericho Road went through steep, rocky terrain that had plenty of places where robbers could hide and ambush unsuspecting travelers. The merchant wanted nothing more than to get to Jericho quickly and safely so he could sell his goods.
He had traveled a couple of hours and had reached a desolate section of the steep, rocky road when suddenly a gang of robbers jumped out from behind a rock. They stole his merchandise, and then went on to beat him and take his food, his water, and even the clothing off his back. They went away and left him for dead.
After a while, a priest chanced to walk down that road. He had finished his Temple service and was headed home for a well-deserved rest. When he saw the merchant, he was not sure at first if he was alive or dead. He paused for a moment to consider what to do. "If the man is dead," he thought, "then if I touch him I will be unclean. Purification rituals will take a week, and I will be unable to do my job at the Temple." He convinced himself that the man was either dead or near to it, and that it would serve no good purpose to get any closer to the man than he already was. He passed by, on the other side of the road.
A while later, a Levite, a Temple official, happened down the road. He, too, saw the merchant's body. He could see signs of shallow breathing, so he knew the man was alive. He considered stopping to help, but then he thought, "He is too badly hurt to just give him some water and food and send him on his way. He might very likely die in my arms, and then I will have a serious problem. I will need to do something about his body, and I will also be unclean and will have to purify myself before I can get back to my work at the Temple." He looked away from the man, and passed by on the other side of the road.
And then a Samaritan was traveling down the road and saw the man. He took pity on him, even though Samaritans and Jews generally hated one another. The Samaritan gave the Jewish merchant water, gently and slowly, and the man began to revive. The Samaritan poured oil and wine on the man's wounds and bandaged them. He gently put the man on his own donkey and brought him to an inn, where he cared for him for two days. When the Samaritan had to leave, he paid the innkeeper generously for the merchant's room and board while he recovered, saying, "If this is not enough, I will pay you the balance when I come back this way."
And Jesus asked the lawyer, "Which of these three was a neighbor to the man who fell among robbers?"
"The one who showed him mercy," he replied.
And Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 1:
HANDOUT 1: SCHEDULE
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Unit 1 -- Creating a Framework
Unit 2 -- Strategies for Resistance
Unit 3 — Parallel Strategies and Communities
Unit 4 -- The Right to Dissent
Unit 5 -- Expanding the Franchise: The Quest for Racial Justice
Unit 6 -- Expanding the Franchise: Gender and Sexuality
Unit 7 -- Wrap-up
FIND OUT MORE
On the website of the Unitarian Universalist Association, read "Inspired Faith, Effective Action: A Social Justice Workbook for Congregations (at www.uua.org/documents/washingtonoffice/ifea.pdf)" and find links to social justice resources (at www.uua.org/socialjustice/resources/index.shtml) and information on Unitarian Universalist social justice organizations (at www.uua.org/socialjustice/103543.shtml).
Richard Gilbert's book The Prophetic Imperative (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=663), 2nd ed.(Boston: Skinner House, 2000) is available from the UUA Bookstore. See information about the book (at www.uua.org/publications/skinnerhouse/browseskinner/titles/20446.shtml) and download a study guide (at www.uuabookstore.org/client/client_pages/propheticimperative_guide.pdf) online.
WORKSHOP 2: PROPHETIC, PARALLEL, AND INSTITUTIONAL
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
We would have every path laid open to Woman as freely as to Man. Were this done, and a slight temporary fermentation allowed to subside, we should see crystallizations more pure and of more various beauty. We believe the divine energy would pervade nature to a degree unknown in the history of former ages, and that no discordant collision, but a ravishing harmony of the spheres, would ensue. — Margaret Fuller, Women of the Nineteenth Century
This workshop introduces a framework for evaluating different strategies of leadership in times of resistance and transformation. Often, history is presented as a time line, highlighting the actions of extraordinary individuals and chronicling the events that shaped an era. However, not all change is effected in the same way. Even the most individualistic leader owes a debt to other people, communities, and ways of thinking. This program recognizes that there is more than one way to resist injustice, and more than one way to work for the transformation of our world.
This workshop introduces three strategies commonly found in social justice leadership and organization: the prophetic, parallel, and institutional voices that have shaped our history.
Each of the three approaches may be voiced by an individual, a group, or a movement, and individuals, groups, and movements may employ different approaches at different times. All three strategic approaches are grounded in the shared Unitarian and Universalist conviction that a free faith demands critical engagement with the world.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 10 |
Activity 1: Prophetic, Parallel, and Institutional | 5 |
Activity 2: The Prophetic Approach | 20 |
Activity 3: The Parallel Approach | 15 |
Activity 4: The Institutional Approach | 15 |
Activity 5: Complementary Strategies | 10 |
Activity 6: Journaling | 10 |
Faith in Action: Different Approaches | |
Closing | 5 |
Alternate Activity 1: Who Has Influenced Me | 10 |
Alternate Activity 2: Our Work | 20 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Read Handout 1, Parallel, Prophetic, and Institutional Voices. Reflect on the three strategies in your own life. Have you experienced these different ways of approaching justice issues? Do you tend toward one strategy over another? Why? How do you feel about the different approaches? Often we have very strong opinions about the "right" way to do things, and this can lead us to believe our way is the only way or the correct way. As you prepare to lead the workshop, consider how you will respond when participants value one approach over another. Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition: "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
Ask participants to think of a person or organization that inspires them in their own concept of social justice. Invite them to go around the circle, sharing their own names and the name of the person or organization that inspires them. Have them share just the name, to keep the workshop moving.
ACTIVITY 1: PROPHETIC, PARALLEL, AND INSTITUTIONAL (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Tell participants they will begin looking at different strategies for social justice work and examine a few case studies from Unitarian Universalist history.
Distribute Handout 1, Prophetic, Parallel, and Institutional Voices and invite participants to read it. Enlist three volunteers to read the definitions of each of the three approaches aloud.
Explain that they will examine these strategies one at a time, looking at a case study for each. Point out that the term "voice" can refer to either the voice of one person or the collective voice of a group representing one agenda.
ACTIVITY 2: THE PROPHETIC APPROACH (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce Henry David Thoreau as an example of someone who offered a prophetic voice and approach to social justice. Distribute Handout 2, Henry David Thoreau and project or pass around his portrait. Invite participants to read the handout to themselves, or read it aloud. Engage participants in discussion, using these questions:
ACTIVITY 3: THE PARALLEL APPROACH (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce Margaret Fuller as an example of someone who offered a parallel voice and approach to social justice. Distribute the story, "Margaret Fuller," and project or pass around her portrait. Read or tell the story to the group. Engage participants in discussion, using these questions as a guide:
ACTIVITY 4: THE INSTITUTIONAL APPROACH (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce A. Powell Davies as an example of someone who offered an institutional voice and approach to social justice work. Distribute the story and project or pass around Davies' photograph. Read or tell the story "A. Powell Davies" to the group or invite them to read it to themselves. Engage participants in discussion, using these questions:
ACTIVITY 5: COMPLEMENTARY STRATEGIES (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to reflect on the three strategies that they have just reviewed. Then, invite them to brainstorm other examples of these approaches to social justice leadership. Although examples can be from anywhere, encourage the group to find both historical and personal examples from within the congregation, from within Unitarian Universalism, and from the world at large. Write their examples in the columns participants indicate, but encourage discussion of alternate classifications. Point out that there are people or organizations who might fit in more than one column, or who might be working with people from another column. The point is not to divide the examples into hard-and-fast categories, but to begin to think about the different strategies that are available to us, and how those strategies can be complementary, rather than in competition with one another. If the conversation is spirited, give a three-minute warning before the end of the brainstorming activity.
ACTIVITY 6: JOURNALING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Description of Activity
Make sure participants have journals or writing paper, and something to write with. Invite participants to respond to the following:
Name a time in your life when you have been inspired by a social justice leader. How did this person or organization inspire you?
Let them know they will be invited to share their answer with others.
CLOSING (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants, if they wish, to share a few words or a sentence from their journals.
Invite everyone to join in reading the closing words, by T.S. Eliot, Reading 685 in Singing the Living Tradition. Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: DIFFERENT APPROACHES
Description of Activity
Take a moment to reflect on the diversity of approaches to social justice work in your own congregation. Do you feel indifferent about or uncomfortable with any of the social justice work in your congregation? At the next social gathering or coffee hour, seek out someone who is involved in a social justice project you have not been involved with. Explain that you are participating in the Resistance and Transformation workshops and you are interested in different approaches to social justice. Ask them about their work and what motivates them to take up a particular cause. This is an opportunity to set aside ideology and strategic preferences and really listen to a different perspective. You might ask the person how their cause fits into the larger life of the congregation. How does this work relate to their spiritual life? Do they feel supported? Marginalized? Was this cause something they brought with them, or did the congregation introduce them to the issue? Rather than debating with this person, use this conversation as an opportunity to reflect on the three social justice leadership strategies and the different approaches taken in your congregation.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials for the workshop.
TAKING IT HOME
We would have every path laid open to Woman as freely as to Man. Were this done, and a slight temporary fermentation allowed to subside, we should see crystallizations more pure and of more various beauty. We believe the divine energy would pervade nature to a degree unknown in the history of former ages, and that no discordant collision, but a ravishing harmony of the spheres, would ensue. — Margaret Fuller, Women of the Nineteenth Century
Reflect on the social justice work you have done in your lifetime. Make a list of all of the different ways in which you have taken a prophetic, parallel, or institutional approach to advancing justice and peace in the world. As you consider your list, ask yourself why, in each circumstance, you chose one approach over another. What factors did you weigh in making your decisions? Are there causes which inspired you to try multiple approaches? As you examine your own history of work on behalf of social justice, are there conclusions you draw or observations you make about your own preferred style and approach? About effective strategy?
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: WHO HAS INFLUENCED ME (10 MINUTES)
Description of Activity
This activity is designed to follow the Opening.
After participants have shared their own names and named inspirational figures, invite each participant to find a partner with whom they have not worked. Invite them to share with their partner some details about what they find inspirational about the person or organization they named. When did they encounter this person? How has this encounter affected their life? Allow eight minutes for partnered conversations.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 2: OUR WORK (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
If you generated a newsprint list of your congregation's social justice activities in Workshop 1, invite the group to reexamine that list using the framework of the three strategies introduced in this workshop. Go through the list one by one, asking the group to put each item in one of the columns. If new examples come to mind, feel free to add them.
If you have not yet generated such a list, invite participants to brainstorm a list of all the social justice activities connected with the congregation. Include activities explicitly sponsored by the congregation, activities that individuals undertake with the support of the congregation, and activities done by members of the congregation that are outside the scope of the congregation's social justice program. As activities are named, place them in one of the three columns.
Encourage the group to reflect on how these examples might fit in more than one column, or how they might be seen as complementary to one another. Are there individuals or groups using different strategies to achieve the same goal? For example, a Unitarian Universalists for the Ethical Treatment of Animals group that sponsors a monthly vegan potluck is employing a "parallel" strategy, while an individual in the congregation who works for animal rights may have preached a sermon calling for a "prophetic" stance on medical testing involving animals.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 2:
STORY: A. POWELL DAVIES
Arthur Powell Davies did not start out as a Unitarian minister. He came to the United States in 1928 from England, as a minister in search of a "freer" strain of Methodism. Once he found his home in the Unitarian movement, he became one of the leading figures in the American Unitarian Association (AUA) and was an advocate for institutional growth and change throughout his career. He advocated for a move away from the view of Unitarianism as just another sect of Christianity, proclaiming, "If we are 'just another Protestant denomination,'then we have no distinction and no justification for larger scale advance. If we are what Channing called 'the universal church' . . . then we must begin to be that church."
Davies was a popular and talented preacher who was greatly involved in the social and political issues of his day. He wrote extensively in favor of the American pursuit of freedom, and when McCarthyism ran rampant through the country, his well-known anti-Communist credibility allowed him to speak out against questionable governmental tactics without calling his own patriotism into question. By the 1950s, he was well established in Washington, D.C. as the minister of All Soul's Church, Unitarian, with influence that extended to several Supreme Court justices and even to the office of the President. Once he had been accepted as a powerful presence in Washington, Davies applied a "change from within" strategy to matters of racial desegregation. He worked to establish an integrated youth club and led a city-wide campaign to patronize restaurants that were racially integrated, while at the same time he maintained his membership in a prestigious whites-only gentleman's club, hoping to influence the power elite through institutional channels.
Meanwhile, under the leadership of Davies, the All Souls Church, Unitarian began spinning off "daughter" churches, planting new congregations throughout the greater D.C. area. He and his wife, Muriel Davies, nurtured these new institutions. His passion for his work kept him from slowing down even after major surgery in 1953. He died several years later, at fifty-five, from a blood clot that resulted in hemorrhaging.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 2:
STORY: MARGARET FULLER
Margaret Fuller was born in 1810, at a time when women could not attend institutions of higher learning. Although brilliant, she was denied the educational opportunities enjoyed by her father and her male peers. She persevered in her education, on her own terms. She refused to accept the limited role of women in American society, and was a pioneer on issues of women's rights.
Both members of the Transcendentalist circle, Fuller and Ralph Waldo Emerson were intellectual sparring partners. She was an editor of and contributor to The Dial, the famous Transcendentalist journal of the era. Plagued by financial troubles after the death of her father in 1835, she took teaching positions to make ends meet. Her work as a teacher included time as part of the faculty of Bronson Alcott's experimental Temple School.
Unable to attend Harvard Divinity School as Ralph Waldo Emerson, William Ellery Channing and Theodore Parker had done, Fuller took it upon herself to create a place where women could discuss issues of ethics, education, theology, fine arts, and classical mythology, discussions that the male friends and husbands of her circle took for granted. She began holding salons primarily for women—events she called "Conversations"—in the Boston bookshop owned by her good friend Elizabeth Peabody. As topics for conversation, she often used the same books that were being discussed at the Divinity School. Fuller was able to support herself for a time from income generated through these salons, and was therefore able to write.
In 1845, Fuller's most influential work, Women of the Nineteenth Century, was published. Peabody's bookshop had become a meeting place for the growing women's rights movement, and Fuller's book encapsulated the work of that community. Horace Greeley, in his review of the book, stated, "It was the loftiest and most commanding assertion yet made of the right of Woman to be regarded and treated as an independent, intelligent, rational being, entitled to an equal voice in framing and modifying the laws she is required to obey, and in controlling and disposing of the property she has inherited or aided to acquire... hers is the ablest, bravest, broadest, assertion yet made of what are termed Woman's Rights."
In 1846, Fuller traveled to Europe on a writing assignment. Once there, she became enmeshed in the uprisings in Italy and found a freedom that had eluded her in New England. She and a young Italian nobleman, Giovanni Ossoli, had a child together in 1848. Uncertain of what her reception might be back in New England, she and Ossoli set out with their son to return to the United States in 1850. On the voyage home, the ship was wrecked on a sandbar off of Fire Island, New York, and the entire family, along with most of the passengers, was killed. Upon hearing of the wreck, Emerson sent Thoreau out to the beach to see if any of Fuller's writings could be recovered, but nothing was found.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 2:
HANDOUT 1: PROPHETIC, PARALLEL, AND INSTITUTIONAL VOICES
Often, history is presented as a time line, highlighting the actions of extraordinary individuals and chronicling the events that shaped an era. However, not all change is effected in the same way. Even the most individualistic leader owes a debt to other people, communities, and ways of thinking. There is more than one way to resist injustice, and more than one way to work for the transformation of our world.
This workshop introduces three strategies commonly found in social justice leadership and organization: the prophetic, parallel, and institutional voices that have shaped our history.
Each of the three approaches may be voiced by an individual, a group, or a movement, and individuals, groups, and movements may employ different approaches at different times. All three strategic approaches are grounded in the shared Unitarian and Universalist conviction that a free faith demands critical engagement with the world.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 2:
HANDOUT 2: HENRY DAVID THOREAU
Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison. — Henry David Thoreau, "Civil Disobedience"
In July of 1846, Henry David Thoreau was jailed for refusal to pay his taxes. Although he spent only one night in prison, this experience was the motivation for Thoreau to write one of his most influential works, "Civil Disobedience."
I do not hesitate to say that those who call themselves abolitionists should at once effectively withdraw their support, both in person and in property, from the government of Massachusetts, and not wait till they constitute a majority of one, before they suffer the right to prevail through them. I think that it is enough if they have God on their side, without waiting for the other one. Moreover, any man more right than his neighbors constitutes a majority of one already. If a thousand men were not to pay their tax bills this year, that would not be a violent and bloody measure, as it would be to pay them and enable the state to commit violence and shed innocent blood.
In "Civil Disobedience," Thoreau outlined a rationale for resistance to a corrupt state, a rationale that profoundly influenced figures such as Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., the Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy, as well as many others who sought a non-violent response to governmental oppression.
Sir, I do not wish to be considered a member of First Parish in this town.
Though raised Unitarian, Thoreau renounced formal membership in the institutional church as an adult. Thoreau was perhaps the most individualistic of an iconoclastic group who called themselves Transcendentalists, a group which included Unitarians such as Emerson, Fuller, and the Alcotts. He was unconcerned with the niceties of social existence, choosing instead to focus on discerning the higher moral law that was, in his estimation, often obscured by society's pressures. As Emerson said in his eulogy for Thoreau, "It seemed as if his first instinct on hearing a proposition was to controvert it, so impatient was he of the limitations of our daily thought." This urge to push beyond the boundaries of conventional thought and habit was what drove Thoreau to his "experiment" chronicled in Walden, a two-year effort to live a closely-examined life in the woods outside of Concord, Massachusetts. His deep ecological sensibility was also unique for his time, and Walden is arguably one of the most influential works for the modern environmental movement. In his own day, Thoreau was not hailed as a revolutionary social prophet. He was often considered simply an eccentric individual who followed his own conscience in all things, religious and otherwise.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 2:
LEADER RESOURCE 1: HENRY DAVID THOREAU, PORTRAIT
From the Library of Congress.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 2:
LEADER RESOURCE 2: MARGARET FULLER, PORTRAIT
From the Library of Congress.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 2:
LEADER RESOURCE 3: A. POWELL DAVIES, PHOTOGRAPH
From the Unitarian Universalist Association archives.
FIND OUT MORE
Read biographies of Margaret Fuller (at www25-temp.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/margaretfuller.html) and A. Powell Davies (at www25-temp.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/arthurpowelldavies.html) in the online Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography.
Information about Thoreau can be found in Thoreau as Spiritual Guide: A Companion to Walden for Reflection and Group Discussion (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=637), by Barry M. Andrews (Boston, Skinner House, 2003).
WORKSHOP 3: THE RESPONSE TO SLAVERY
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
As the Unitarian denomination should be ashamed of its antislavery conduct as a religious body, so it should be justly proud of the men and women who as individuals chose love of freedom over thoughts of expediency. — Douglas Stange, in "Patterns of Antislavery among American Unitarians, 1831-1860"
This workshop explores how Unitarians and Universalists responded to the issue of slavery in the mid-19th century. Although in modern times, we have come to praise the Unitarian and Universalist leaders who were outspoken in their support of abolition, the Unitarians and Universalists of the era were, in fact, very divided on the issue of slavery. The Unitarian minister William Ellery Channing struggled with his growing unease over the issue, and although he spoke out against slavery, he advocated a gradual approach. Other Unitarians and Universalists had different ideas; the Unitarian minister Theodore Parker and the Universalist minister Adin Ballou advocated radically different responses to the question of emancipation. This workshop will present examples of how Universalists and Unitarians answered a fundamental question in social justice work: How do we resist and redress state sanctioned violence and injustice?
Theodore Parker was known for his fiery abolitionist preaching and his willingness to take up arms in resistance to slavery. Adin Ballou, convinced that there was no way to participate in society at large without being complicit in the slave trade and yet unwilling to resort to violent revolution, attempted to create an entirely alternative culture. Channing sought a balance between condemning the absolute moral wrong of slavery and offering pragmatic solutions that might appeal to all sides. Using the models for social justice work explored in the Workshop 2, this workshop will explore Channing's confidence in a pragmatic, gradual solution, the utility of Ballou's work in creating an utopian institution, and Parker's efforts at prophetic leadership.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 10 |
Activity 1: The Response to Slavery | 15 |
Activity 2: Values in Conflict | 30 |
Activity 3: Nonviolent Resistance to Slavery | 15 |
Activity 4: Journaling | 10 |
Faith in Action: Multiple Strategies | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: Imaginary Debate between Parker and Gannett | 30 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
After you read the workshop plan, return to Handout 1, Collaboration or Confrontation? Are you comfortable with the different responses Unitarians and Universalists had toward slavery? Why or why not? Do you think that your feelings are at all similar to the feelings of 19th-century Unitarians and Universalists? Reflect on how you have responded to complicated social justice issues. Did you choose to ignore an issue or engage with it? Have you ever experienced a conflict with someone close to you as a result of a disagreement over a social justice issue? As you prepare to lead this workshop remember that people often have strong opinions about justice issues. Encourage participants to be sympathetic to the different historical figures that they learn about. Choices that seem reasonable at one point in time might seem immoral at another.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition: "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
After the song, go around the circle and invite everyone to share their names. Ask if any followed the suggestion in the Workshop 2 Faith in Action activity, reaching out to someone with a different social justice interest and discovering their social justice strategy. Invite participants to share any good or unexpected conversations that resulted.
Then read the following words, written in 1833 by Unitarian Lydia Maria Francis Child in her book, An Appeal in Favor of That Class of Americans Called Africans:
The personal liberty of one can never be the property of another. All ideas of property are founded upon the mutual agreement of the human race and regulated by such laws as are deemed most conducive to the general good. In slavery there is no mutual agreement for in that case it would not be slavery. The negro has no voice in the matter—no alternative is presented to him—no bargain is made. The beginning of his bondage is the triumph of power over weakness, its continuation is the tyranny of knowledge over ignorance. One man may as well claim an exclusive right to the air another man breathes, as to the possession of his limbs and faculties. Personal freedom is the birthright of every human being. God himself made it the first great law of creation; and no human enactment can render it null and void.
Tell participants that this workshop will explore how different strategies for social justice work were developed and practiced during the struggle to end slavery.
ACTIVITY 1: THE RESPONSE TO SLAVERY (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Tell the group they will begin with a basic review of the historical context of the struggle for the abolition of slavery. Distribute Leader Resource 1, or project the portrait of Channing. Distribute the story, "Channing and the Response to Slavery." Invite a volunteer to read the story aloud. Engage a discussion, using these questions.
ACTIVITY 2: VALUES IN CONFLICT (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 1, Collaboration or Confrontation? Explain that you will shift from discussing Channing's struggle about speaking against slavery to a conflict between Theodore Parker and Channing's successor, Ezra Stiles Gannett, over the Fugitive Slave Law. Project Leader Resources 2 and 3 or pass around printed copies of the Parker and Gannet portraits. Give the group time to read the handout silently or invite two volunteers to share reading the handout aloud.
Invite participants to move into groups of three to examine the values and priorities of both Gannett and Parker. Give each small group newsprint and markers and invite them to list the values Parker and Gannett prioritized. Ask small groups to consider whether they find parts of either person's rhetoric or actions troubling. Allow ten minutes for small group work, and then invite each group to post their list.
Re-gather the large group and examine the newsprint lists together. Are there are areas of disagreement among the small groups? What were common concerns about the strategies, rhetoric, and actions of either Gannett or Parker?
Lead a brief, large group discussion, using these questions:
Conclude your discussion by inviting participants to name contemporary social justice issues that polarize Unitarian Universalists. What lessons can be drawn from Gannett and Parker's conflict?
ACTIVITY 3: NONVIOLENT RESISTANCE TO SLAVERY (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 2, Adin Ballou and Christian Non-Resistance. Invite participants to read the handout to themselves, or have volunteers read it aloud. Engage participants in discussion, using these questions as a guide:
Allow ten minutes for large group conversation.
ACTIVITY 4: JOURNALING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Make sure participants have journals or writing paper, and something to write with. Invite participants to reflect on the discoveries they made today about the Unitarian and Universalist responses to slavery and abolition, and to respond to one or more of the posted questions in their journals. Let them know that they will be invited to share part of their writing with others.
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to share a few words or a sentence from their journals.
Read this quote, from Reinhold Niebuhr:
Nothing that is worth doing can be achieved in our lifetime; therefore we must be saved by hope. Nothing which is true or beautiful or good makes complete sense in any immediate context of history; therefore we must be saved by faith. Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone; therefore we are saved by love. No virtuous act is quite as virtuous from the standpoint of our friend or foe as it is from our standpoint. Therefore, we must be saved by the final form of love, which is forgiveness.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: MULTIPLE STRATEGIES
Description of Activity
Form groups of three. Invite each group to choose a contemporary social justice issue. You might suggest equal marriage, peacemaking, ethical eating, fair housing, or another issue important to your community and congregation. Give each group newsprint and markers and invite them to list a variety of strategies currently used by people who wish to advance justice with regard to the issue, and then to identify those strategies as prophetic, parallel, or institutional. Further, can the groups think of strategies which have not, to their knowledge, been tried, and identify these strategies as belonging to one of the three categories?
Allow the groups ten minutes to work, and then invite each to share their list with the larger group. Ask, "Does listing multiple strategies help you consider how you might best contribute to justicemaking?"
What strategic actions will your group take in support of one of the issues named and explored?
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
As the Unitarian denomination should be ashamed of its antislavery conduct as a religious body, so it should be justly proud of the men and women who as individuals chose love of freedom over thoughts of expediency. — Douglas Stange, in "Patterns of Antislavery among American Unitarians, 1831-1860"
Reflect on the justicemaking work you do in the world. What kind of strategic approach do you generally favor? Are there any changes you would like to make in the way you spend your time, talent, and financial resources in justicemaking efforts?
Consider trying a different strategy or model for justicemaking than you are accustomed to using. You might try using your prophetic voice (writing a letter to the editor is one example), supporting/joining a parallel organization or movement (eating locally is one example), or working within an institution to make change (promoting antiracism education in the congregation is one example).
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: IMAGINARY DEBATE BETWEEN PARKER AND GANNETT (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to witness a re-enactment of the Theodore Parker/Ezra Stiles Gannett debate about slavery, as presented by two persons, chosen ahead of time. Explain that the aim of this debate is not necessarily historical accuracy, but rather to present the main arguments from each side with passion and sympathy.
Assign audience roles—some pro-Parker, some pro-Gannett, and some neutral observers. Tell the group each actor will have five minutes to make their case, and then the floor is open for five minutes for questions and rebuttals from the audience. Encourage the group members to ask questions of the debaters make their own statements in support of their assigned position.
After the debate, ask the group to reflect on the experience:
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 3:
STORY: CHANNING AND THE RESPONSE TO SLAVERY
Slavery has often been called America's original sin. Yet, white American Unitarians, like most white Americans, were slow to speak out against slavery as an immoral institution. The Unitarian minister William Ellery Channing (1780-1842) was no exception.
Channing was a major voice for American Unitarianism in the early and mid-19th century. He served as the minister of the prestigious Federal Street Church in Boston from 1803 to 1842. In 1819 Channing preached the sermon "Unitarian Christianity" at the ordination of Jared Sparks in Baltimore. This sermon claimed the label Unitarian for the liberal Congregationalists who affirmed the use of reason in religion, rejected the idea that human nature was depraved, and believed that the Bible was written by human beings.
Throughout his career, Channing's sermons explored the relationship between humanity and the divine, put forth Jesus as a great moral teacher, and rejected the Trinity as non-biblical. As a result of both his stirring sermons and commitment to pastoral care, Channing's congregation grew significantly during his ministry. Eventually, the congregation was able to call an assistant minister to work with him.
In his youth, Channing had been exposed to the institution of slavery while he worked as a tutor for a slave owning family in Virginia. What he saw sickened him. It also led him to conclude that slaveholders were as much damaged by the institution as the slaves.
Channing was slow to speak out against slavery. His position among the Boston elite and the marginalization he knew he would face if he spoke out led him to proceed cautiously. In 1825, when he finally began to put forth an anti-slavery position, he made it clear that while he was against slavery, he was also opposed to the radical rhetoric of the abolitionists.
Because the Federal Street Church membership included many of Boston's most powerful industrialists, who did not approve of Channing's anti-slavery position, Channing for the most part did not speak publicly on the matter. Conversations with the abolitionist and author Lydia Maria Child and with Unitarian minister Samuel J. May, both friends of Channing, caused him to change his course. In 1835, Channing published the book Slavery and began to advocate publicly for the gradual abolition of slavery.
Channing's book affirmed the human rights of slaves and argued that slaves "have the same rational nature and the same power of conscience" as those who are not enslaved. Slavery was a sin against God, in Channing's view, because it prevented both slaves and slave-owners from following the ethical teachings of Jesus and perfecting their human nature. This view met strong disapproval from the powerful Bostonians in Channing's congregation. The matter came to a head in 1840 when abolitionist Charles Follen, a close friend of Channing, died in a maritime accident. Channing preached a powerful sermon following Follen's death, and was then asked by the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society if a memorial service could be held at his church. When the congregation's Standing Committee rejected Channing's request to hold the memorial service at Federal Street Church, Channing essentially resigned as the congregation's minister. Although he and the congregation did not formally end the relationship, he relinquished his salary and ceased to act as their minister. He preached only once more to the congregation before his death in 1842.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 3:
HANDOUT 1: COLLABORATION OR CONFRONTATION?
The passage of the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 caused considerable conflict among the Unitarians of Boston. The Fugitive Slave Law required that runaway slaves be returned to their so-called masters. It also criminalized anyone who aided or harbored runaways. The legislation was enacted in an effort to preserve the union of the Northern and Southern states in the lead-up to the Civil War. It was opposed by some Unitarians as immoral and supported by others as a necessary compromise to prevent the nation from splitting apart over the conflict about slavery.
One of the most prominent opponents to the Fugitive Slave Law was the minister Theodore Parker (1810-1860). Parker was a Transcendentalist and one of Boston's leading social reformers. He began his career as a Unitarian minister, but his radical theological views caused many of his Unitarian ministerial colleagues to ostracize him by refusing to exchange pulpits with him. In 1845 he left the Unitarian Church of West Roxbury to become minister of the independent Twenty-eighth Congregational Society of Boston. His congregation grew rapidly and at its peak as many as three thousand people gathered for a Sunday worship service. This represented almost two percent of the population of Boston at the time! Some of those who attended were among the most prominent anti-slavery and social justice activists of their time, including Senator Charles Sumner, educator Horace Mann, and abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison.
Parker called repeatedly for non-compliance with the Fugitive Slave Law. In a sermon he preached immediately after the passage of the law, he said, "It is the natural duty of citizens to rescue every fugitive slave from the hands of the marshal who essays to return him to bondage; to do it peaceably if they can, forcibly if they must, but by all means to do it."
Parker's views were not held by those in leadership positions within the American Unitarian Association. One notable supporter of the Fugitive Slave Law was Ezra Stiles Gannett (1801-1871). Gannett was a founder of the Association, serving as its first Secretary and later its President. He also served the Federal Street Church in Boston, first as William Ellery Channing's assistant and later, starting in 1842, as Channing's successor. In the 1830s Gannet had cautioned Channing against speaking out about slavery, knowing that his senior colleague's views were not shared by many powerful members of the congregation.
Gannett reluctantly supported the Fugitive Slave Law because he felt it was necessary to preserve the Union. Perhaps more importantly, many of the officials charged with enforcing the law were members of his congregation. According to the abolitionist Samuel J. May, Gannett had stated, "he should feel it to be his duty to turn away from his door a fugitive slave, —unfed, unaided in any way, rather than set at naught the law of the land."
Gannett's feelings were shared by other members of the Unitarian establishment. Parker publicly took Gannett to task for his support of the rendition of Thomas Sims, a man who had escaped from slavery in Georgia and resided at the time in Boston. In April of 1851, Sims was kidnapped on the streets of Boston by policemen and returned to slavery in the South. Unitarians from Gannett's congregation played a role in Sims' kidnapping.
In a public address to mark the one-year anniversary of Sims's adduction, Parker accused his fellow ministers of celebrating "the sacrament of kidnapping." Shortly beforehand, at a ministerial meeting, Parker had lambasted Gannett for "calling on his church members to kidnap mine." At the same time, Parker claimed, "I have in my church...fugitive slaves. They are the crown of my apostleship, the seal of my ministry." He told his fellow ministers, probably hoping that they would pass the message along to their congregants, that he would use violence to prevent the seizure of other fugitive slaves. He is famous for claiming that he wrote his sermons with his pistol by his side. Parker went on to assist many other fugitive slaves, and ultimately provided money to support John Brown's attempt to start a slave insurrection in Virginia, defending a slave's right to violence as a means of liberation. After a long illness, he died in 1860, with no show of sympathy from the Boston Unitarian establishment.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 3:
HANDOUT 2: ADIN BALLOU AND CHRISTIAN NON-RESISTANCE
Adin Ballou (1803-1890) was in varying turns both a Unitarian and a Universalist minister. He was actively involved in the movement to abolish slavery beginning in the late 1830s, until the abolition of slavery following the Civil War. He was also a leading theorist for the New England Non-Resistance Society, which argued for the abolition of slavery through non-violent means. The passage of the Fugitive Slave Law caused Parker and many other abolitionists to call for violent resistance to slavery. Adin Ballou, however, remained steadfast in his conviction that slavery could be best ended through the use of non-violence.
The problem of slavery was in Ballou's opinion not a political one but a moral one. He wrote, "Slavery is the baleful offspring of sin. It originates in contempt of God, and hatred of brother man." The only way slavery would be ended was if people obeyed "the law Eternal" which required "fraternal love in every soul." Rather than focus on political reform in the hopes that it would eventually end slavery, Ballou choose instead to engage in moral reform.
This philosophy led him to found the utopian society of Hopedale in 1841. The community was to serve as a model of the moral life he envisioned. He wrote, "The Hopedale Community was a systematic attempt to establish an order of Human Society based on the sublime ideas of the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man, as taught...in the Gospel of Jesus Christ." The community was organized as a joint stock company and members worked together in various industries that were collectively owned. They agreed to practice non-violence even as they worked for social change. The community harbored fugitive slaves and was frequently visited by abolitionists such as Frederick Douglas, who left an escaped slave in the community's care.
Ballou's pacifist views brought him into conflict with other leaders in the anti-slavery movement. As the Civil War approached, he refused to moderate his position. Unlike Parker and other many other prominent abolitionists, Ballou did not call for the use of violence in resisting the Fugitive Slave Law. In fact, he placed his pacifism as "higher and purer" than anti-slavery. He believed that even after the work of the abolitionists was done there would still be a need to work to end violence. This position left him isolated from other abolitionists and sidelined by the movement. The Hopedale community dissolved shortly before the outbreak of the Civil War. Ballou felt himself to be failure, both for his inability to build a lasting utopian community and for his lack of success at spreading his gospel of non-violence.
The pacifist views of Ballou did not gain widespread in his lifetime or afterward. However, late in his life he corresponded with the Russian author and philosopher Leo Tolstoy. In the process of writing The Kingdom of God is Within You, his master work on non-violent theory, Tolstoy consulted with Ballou about his thoughts on and experiences with pacifism. Tolstoy's book went on to have a significant impact on both Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. Through Tolstoy's writing, Ballou's influence has continued to this day.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 3:
LEADER RESOURCE 1: WILLIAM ELLERY CHANNING, PORTRAIT
From the Unitarian Universalist Association archives.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 3:
LEADER RESOURCE 2: THEODORE PARKER, PORTRAIT
From the Unitarian Universalist Association archives.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 3:
LEADER RESOURCE 3: EZRA STILES GANNETT, PORTRAIT
From the Unitarian Universalist Association archives.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 3:
LEADER RESOURCE 4: ADIN BALLOU, PORTRAIT
From the Unitarian Universalist Association archives.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 3:
LEADER RESOURCE 5: IMAGINING A PARKER-GANNETT DEBATE
You will present a mock debate between two great Unitarians of the 19th century, Theodore Parker and Ezra Stiles Gannett. Both men were esteemed preachers who spoke eloquently and passionately for their cause. Review their arguments for and against the Fugitive Slave Law, and dive in! Remember, this is an imaginary debate, not a historical re-enactment, so do not feel pressured to get it "right." Instead, try to portray Gannett or Parker as a principled, well-intentioned man making his best case for the betterment of society.
Ezra Stiles Gannett
Theodore Parker
FIND OUT MORE
Find brief biographies online, in the Unitarian Universalist Historical Society's Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography:
Learn more about Ballou on the Friends of Adin Ballou website (at www.adinballou.org/).
Here are links to key writings by Ballou, Channing, and Parker:
WORKSHOP 4: THE NINETEENTH CENTURY WOMEN'S PEACE MOVEMENT
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
Oppression and war will be heard of no more
Nor the blood of a slave leave his print on our shore,
Conventions will then be a useless expense,
For we'll all go free suffrage, a hundred years hence. — Frances Dana Barker Gage, in her 1875 hymn "A Hundred Years Hence"
This workshop explores Unitarian and Universalist contributions to the American peace movement, and in particular, the work of generations of Unitarian and Universalist women who worked for peace through the 19th and into the 20th century. Many women who were ardent abolitionists were also horrified by the carnage of the United States Civil War. After the war, women who had honed their skills organizing for equal rights in the mid-1800s turned their eye toward peace and became leaders in a multigenerational effort that sought to make peace an international focus.
As the quote at the beginning of this workshop demonstrates, concern about the violence of war overlapped with the abolition and woman suffrage movements. Although many women in these movements are familiar to us and others are not, all belonged to a large, organic network of activists, free religionists, theological thinkers, and prophetic speakers who influenced one another over time and across eras. The origins of this movement can be traced back to the late 1700s, and its influence was felt well into the 20th century.
This workshop will investigate the organic emergence movements from other movements, and examine how the overlap of ideas, theologies, and conversations can empower one generation to fulfill the dreams of their forebears. Participants explore the nature of peace work and consider how a position of resistance might be taken and a goal of transformation realized in a contemporary context.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 10 |
Activity 1: On the Frontlines | 15 |
Activity 2: Personal Experience and Justicemaking | 10 |
Activity 3: Generations of Action | 25 |
Activity 4: Web of Influence | 20 |
Faith in Action: Generation to Generation | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: The Battle Hymn of the Republic | 20 |
Alternate Activity 2: In Barton's Footsteps | 20 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Think about where you received your inspiration to lead this workshop. Who or what influenced you to facilitate this program? Why have you undertaken this work now?
If you have a connection to someone who is serving, or has served, in the military, or if you yourself have served, consider how this might influence the way you approach issues of peacemaking. If you do not have direct experience with the military, try to speak with someone who does. Ask them how their experiences have changed their understanding of war and peace.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition: "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
After the song, share the Mother's Day Peace Proclamation written in 1870 by Unitarian Julia Ward Howe, which appears as Reading 573 in Singing the Living Tradition:
Arise, then, women of this day!
Arise, all women who have hearts!
Whether your baptism be of water or of tears!
Say firmly: "We will not have questions answered by irrelevant agencies,
Our husbands will not come to us, reeking with carnage,
For caresses and applause.
Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn
All that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience.
We, the women of one country,
Will be too tender of those of another country
To allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs."
From the voice of a devastated Earth a voice goes up with
Our own. It says: "Disarm! Disarm!
The sword of murder is not the balance of justice."
Blood does not wipe our dishonor,
Nor violence indicate possession.
As men have often forsaken the plough and the anvil
At the summons of war,
Let women now leave all that may be left of home
For a great and earnest day of counsel.
Let them meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead.
Let them solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means
Whereby the great human family can live in peace,
Each bearing after his own time the sacred impress, not of Caesar,
But of God.
In the name of womanhood and humanity, I earnestly ask
That a general congress of women without limit of nationality,
May be appointed and held at someplace deemed most convenient
And the earliest period consistent with its objects,
To promote the alliance of the different nationalities,
The amicable settlement of international questions,
The great and general interests of peace.
Explain that this workshop focuses on the development of the peace movement during and after the Civil War, a movement that was grounded in the organizing work of women who also worked for abolition and women's rights. This workshop also invites participants to look at the connections in our own lives and imagine how this web of relationships shapes our work for justice.
ACTIVITY 1: ON THE FRONTLINES (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Project or pass around the portrait of Clara Barton. Read aloud the biographical information about Barton and her letter, or invite volunteers to do so. Ask participants to try to imagine Barton's emotions as she wrote the letter to Gage. Ask them to consider how Barton linked issues of war and peace with women's suffrage. Point out that the start of her opposition to war was the suffering she had witnessed on the battlefield. Ask:
ACTIVITY 2: PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AND JUSTICEMAKING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to consider the ways our personal experiences influence our justicemaking actions. Ask: What experiences have led you to take action on behalf of peace and justice?
Invite participants to quietly recall those who have influenced them in justicemaking work or who have shared justicemaking activities with them. Explain that after two minutes of silence, they will be invited to say aloud the names of those influential people. Ring the chime.
After two minutes, name a person who has influenced you, to model for others to follow. Hold the space until all names are spoken aloud, and then ring the chime again.
ACTIVITY 3: GENERATIONS OF ACTION (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute or project Handout 1, Transformative Relationships — A Map. Distribute Handout 2, Women in the Peace Movement.
Point out that the women listed here are only some of the many women—Unitarian, Universalist and others—who were active reformers in the 19th century. Allow participants a few minutes to examine the map and read the handouts.
Distribute the prepared index cards (some with quotes attached), so each participant has a card with a name. If the group is small, give more than one card to each person. Say:
We're going to move around a bit in order to better understand the connections between the many women listed on these handouts.
Explain the activity:
As you go through the names on the cards, invite participants to refer to the relationship map (projected or handed out) to illustrate friendships and working relationships.
Conclude by inviting participants into conversation, using these questions:
Including All Participants
If the group includes participants who cannot move easily from one cluster to another, invite other participants to cluster around them during the activity. Or, gather the group at a large work table for this activity and invite participants to move the index cards into clusters in response to the cues.
ACTIVITY 4: WEB OF INFLUENCE (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to create their own relationship map. Explain that they will create a diagram that includes all the people and events they think have influenced their own understanding of peacemaking and justicemaking.
Distribute large sheets of paper, and markers to share. Invite participants to write their name in the middle of a page and to list the connections in their own lives, with a few words about each person or event they add to their page. For example, a participant might draw a line to the name of their father, who worked for a union and passed on his strong values about social justice. They might write down the name of their Unitarian Universalist congregation, and then draw a line to all the people in the congregation who have influenced their perspectives on justice. Perhaps they attended a conference that influenced them, or heard a speaker that they admired. Things like books read, classes taken, the work of great-great grandparents, or the work of children and grandchildren may all be considered influences in the relationship web. Move around and help participants brainstorm if they get stuck. Ask questions about the relationships that are already on the paper, to see if they lead to other relationships.
After ten minutes, invite people to finish their work on the map. Invite them to move into groups of three and share their maps with one another.
Allow ten minutes for sharing. Then, re-gather the group and lead a conversation about the activity: What did participants learn about themselves through this activity? What surprising connections surfaced in these maps? Were there elements in common among the maps?
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to respond in their journals, to these questions:
Are there people whom you have influenced due to your actions on behalf of peace and justice? What would you like your own justicemaking legacy to be?
Allow five minutes for writing.
Read this quote from Mary Livermore:
We are approaching the era when war shall be no more. The world is ready for it. Unconsciously, and unintentionally, the powers that be have been preparing for it. For they have increased the destructive power of the enginery of war so marvelously, that the nations employing it against each other will both suffer almost irreparable injury. When a handful of men can blow up a navy, and another handful can annihilate an army, war ceases to be war, and become assassination. If we should wake tomorrow to find that all civilized armies were to be disbanded, all fortifications to be dismantled, and the giant battleships transformed into vessels for peaceful uses, how much the world would gain by the change!... The prophecy of two thousand years ago that there should be "peace on earth and good-will to [all]" would begin to be verified. Between two and three billions of dollars, now wrung annually from the people for military purposes, would not then be called for, and would increase the resources of the masses, and add to their material comforts. How the certainty that war had ceased forever would loosen the brakes now held down on the wheels of the world's progress!
Distribute Taking It Home and encourage participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say the following words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
FAITH IN ACTION: GENERATION TO GENERATION
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Gather as a group with youth from your congregation for a conversation to share hopes and dreams for the future as well as experiences in justicemaking work. The program participants may wish to join with the youth group or Coming of Age group to work on a project that is important to them.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the materials for the next workshop. Are there any questions, or things that need to be researched between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for preparation tasks for the workshop.
TAKING IT HOME
Oppression and war will be heard of no more
Nor the blood of a slave leave his print on our shore,
Conventions will then be a useless expense,
For we'll all go free suffrage, a hundred years hence. — Frances Dana Barker Gage, in her 1875 hymn "A Hundred Years Hence"
Few of the early women's suffrage activists lived to see women achieve the right to vote. Julia Ward Howe said of her vision for an international Peace Conference, "The time for this was at hand, but had not yet arrived." What dreams of justice do you harbor that may not come to fruition in your lifetime? Jot some ideas in your journal about what you would like to see. Then think of the next generation, of young people you know who might take up the cause. Write down their names in your journal. Sometime in the next week, make it a point to talk to at least one younger person about your hopes for the future. It can be as simple as asking your ten-year-old niece if she thinks there will ever be a woman president of the United States, or taking time to talk with a college student about their feelings about war and the role of the military in our nation. Next time you are at a conference, or a rally, or a worship service, notice and engage with the next generation of social justice leaders.
The PBS documentary Not For Ourselves Alone (at www.pbs.org/stantonanthony), directed by Ken Burns, chronicles the story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony. Watch it with friends and family.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: THE BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Description of Activity
Share this background about the origin of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," from the online Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography (at www25-temp.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/juliawardhowe.html):
On a trip to Washington in 1861, (Julia and Samuel Howe) went to watch a Union army review which was suddenly dispersed by a Confederate attack. On the way back to the city in their carriage surrounded by retreating troops, the Howe party began to sing patriotic songs, including the popular "John Brown's Body." James Freeman Clarke, one of the party, suggested to Julia that she write new and better lyrics for the tune. At the hotel late that night, the words to "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" began forming in her mind. Careful not to wake the children, she groped in the dark for pencil and paper and wrote the poem. In the morning she made only one or two changes. In February, 1862, The Atlantic published "The Battle Hymn," paying its author 5 dollars. Gradually the song caught on until it swept the North.
Pass out Handout 3, The Battle Hymn of the Republic and sing (with accompaniment, if possible) all of the verses. Discuss the lyrics by asking:
Distribute Singing the Living Tradition and invite everyone to turn to Reading 573, "Mother's Day Proclamation." Have the group read it in unison, or invite a volunteer to read.
Follow with this quote from Howe about the creation of the poem:
I was visited by a sudden feeling of the cruel and unnecessary character of the contest. It seemed to me a return to barbarism, the issue having been one which might easily have been settled without bloodshed. The question forced itself upon me, "Why do not the mothers of mankind interfere in these matters, to prevent the waste of that human life of which they alone bear and know the cost?" I had never thought of this before. The august dignity of motherhood and its terrible responsibilities now appeared to me in a new aspect, and I could think of no better way of expressing my sense of these than that of sending forth an appeal to womanhood throughout the world, which I then and there composed... The little document, which I drew up in the heat of my enthusiasm, implored women, all the world over, to awake to the knowledge of the sacred right vested in them as mothers to protect the human life, which costs them so many pangs.
Discuss the difference between the Mother's Day poem and "The Battle Hymn of the Republic:"
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 2: IN BARTON'S FOOTSTEPS (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce the activity with these or similar words:
Clara Barton and others from the 19th-century peace movement saw no contradiction between opposing war on moral grounds and supporting the soldiers who fought in wars by providing them with nursing care, clothing, blankets, and other humanitarian assistance. They did not view it as a moral failing for men to go to war; rather they saw war itself as the moral failure that claimed soldiers as victims. Many contemporary Unitarian Universalists try to hold the same stance as Clara Barton and other members of the 19th-century women's peace movement—that is, supporting soldiers while opposing a particular armed conflict in which soldiers must fight.
Ask:
Are we following the example of the peace activists of the 19th century?
Ask for a show of hands for all those who know someone currently serving in the military. Ask for a second show of hands for all those who know a Unitarian Universalist who is serving or has served in the military now or in the past.
Distribute Handout 4 and allow participants five minutes to read it through. Then, invite participants to move into groups of three or four to share responses to Handout 4 and discuss the questions you have posted on newsprint.
After ten minutes, re-gather the large group. Invite comments and observations. Ask: Did your conversations point to anything our congregation might want to do differently in regard to supporting military personnel and their families? In the ways we speak out for peace?
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 4:
STORY: CLARA BARTON
Clara Barton was born on Christmas Day, 1821, in Oxford, MA, into a Universalist family.
She was living in Washington, D.C. when the U.S. Civil War landed at her doorstep. She began nursing wounded soldiers in her sister's home, visiting the army camps, and was soon orchestrating the delivery of supplies from numerous Ladies Aid societies. After a short time, she began working on the front lines, delivering supplies and tending to wounded soldiers. Despite occasional bouts of illness, she continued her efforts, working alongside a host of women volunteers that included Dorothea Dix, Frances Dana Barker Gage, and Mary Livermore. Frances Gage became a close friend, and when Barton expressed frustration at the barriers women faced in her line of work, Gage introduced Barton to the women's rights movement. Barton and Gage also discussed their shared Universalist faith, which they both credited with influencing their work.
After the Civil War ended, Barton visited Europe and learned of the International Red Cross, an organization which had been established by the Geneva Convention. She returned home determined to start an American chapter, struggling against the prevailing political mood to advocate for the organization. In 1881 the American Red Cross was founded, but the first few years of the organization's existence were difficult. Barton's own health was often compromised by overwork, and although she was a passionate advocate for the agency's relief work, her lack of administrative skills often caused problems. She persevered, however, and served as the President of the Red Cross until 1904, when she retired at the age of 83. She died eight years later in 1912.
Here is an excerpt of a letter to her friend Frances Gage, written in 1870:
My Dear Fannie,
I can never see a poor mutilated wreck, blown to pieces with powder and lead without wondering if visions of such an end ever flitted before his mother's mind when she washed and dressed her fair skinned baby. Woman should certainly have some voice in the matter of war, either affirmative or negative and the fact that she has not this should not be made the ground on which to deprive her of other privileges. She shan't say there shall be no war—and she shan't take any part in it when there is one, and because she don't take part in war, she must not vote, and because she can't vote, she has no voice in her government, and because she has no voice in her government, she isn't a citizen, and because she isn't a citizen, she has no rights, and because she has no rights, she must submit to wrongs, and because she submits to wrongs, she isn't anybody, and "what does she know about war—" and because she don't know anything about it, she mustn't say or do anything about it."
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 4:
HANDOUT 1: TRANSFORMATIVE RELATIONSHIPS — A MAP
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 4:
HANDOUT 2: WOMEN IN THE PEACE MOVEMENT
Frances Dana Barker Gage (1808-1884) was a Universalist, a lecturer, activist, novelist and journalist who was passionate about rights for women and for the abolition of slavery. Gage's account of Sojourner Truth's famous "Ain't I a Woman?" speech at the second Women's Rights Convention has become the authoritative text of the event. Gage exchanged views about Universalism with Clara Barton during the Civil War, while they both served on the Sanitation Commission at Paris Island and at Hilton Head.
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Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815-1902). Although strictly neither a Unitarian nor a Universalist, Stanton worked with many notable Unitarians and Universalists of her time. She was one of the organizers of the first women's rights convention at Seneca Falls. She organized and co-edited a book of liberal women's biblical commentary, "The Women's Bible," with three Universalist ministers: Phebe Hanaford, Augusta Chapin, and Olympia Brown.
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Lucy Stone (1818-1893) was a noted Unitarian feminist and abolitionist, known as the first woman to keep her own name after marriage (to Henry Blackwell).
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Julia Ward Howe (1819-1910) was a Unitarian author, poet, abolitionist, women's rights and peace activist. Most famous for writing "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" and the Mother's Day Proclamation, she was unsuccessful in her attempts to promote an international Women's Peace Congress.
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Mary Livermore (1820-1905) was a Universalist with considerable talent at organizing. She was a highly sought lecturer, known as "The Queen of the Platform."
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Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) was born to British Unitarian parents and credited with the foundation of modern nursing following her experiences with the Crimean War. She had many connections to American Unitarians.
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Susan B. Anthony (1820-1906) was born a Quaker and later became a Unitarian. She was the most famous public voice of the early women's rights movement, and was arrested for casting a vote in the 1872 presidential election.
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Elizabeth Blackwell (1821-1910) and Emily Blackwell (1826-1910) were Unitarian (raised Episcopalian). These sisters were the first two women to graduate from medical school in 1849. They were sisters-in-law to Lucy Stone and Rev. Antoinette Brown Blackwell.
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Louisa May Alcott (1823-1888) was a Unitarian best known as a writer of Little Women. She was associated with the Transcendentalists and served as a nurse during the Civil War.
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Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825-1911) attended both AME and Unitarian churches in Philadelphia. She was a writer, lecturer and activist, a free-born African American woman who worked for abolition and women's rights.
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Rev. Olympia Brown (1835-1926) was a Universalist minister, and in 1863 became the first woman ordained within an organized denomination in the United States. Toward the end of her career, she preached for peace during World War I.
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May Wright Sewall (1844-1920) was a Unitarian women's rights activist and reformer.
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Anna Garlin Spencer (1851-1931) was a Free Religionist associated with the Unitarians. She was the first woman to give the Berry Street lecture in 1929. She was married to a Unitarian minister, and was herself a minister (non-affiliated).
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Lucia Ames Mead (1856-1936), although not a Unitarian, had friendships and working relationships with many Unitarian peace activists. She was a leading pacifist and social reformer.
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Harriet Stanton Blatch (1856-1940) was born in Seneca Falls, became a Unitarian, and was a key player in the push to ratify women's right to vote in 1920. After her first-hand experiences in Europe following WWI, she wrote "A Woman's Point of View — Some Roads to Peace."
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Alice Stone Blackwell (1857-1950). A Unitarian, and daughter of Lucy Stone, she was instrumental in the reconciliation between the National Women's Suffrage Association and the American Women's Suffrage Association, who had split because of differing views on issues and tactics, primarily around race, following the Civil War. She was the editor of the Women's Journal for thirty-five years.
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Carrie Clinton Lane Chapman Catt (1859-1947), a Unitarian, was a reformer, women's rights activist, pacifist, and organizer of the League of Women Voters.
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Jane Addams (1860-1935) was born a Quaker, but attended Unitarian services in Chicago. She was the founder of Hull House, one of the first "settlement houses" providing services for working class women and men. She was a founding member of the ACLU, and she was also the first U.S. woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931 for her international peacemaking efforts.
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Emily Greene Balch (1867-1961) was a Unitarian who became a Quaker after the AUA refused to support pacifist ministers. She was a delegate in 1915 at the International Congress of Women at The Hague. An ardent pacifist, she met with Woodrow Wilson, promoting the concept of mediation between nations. She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946 for her work.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 4:
HANDOUT 3: THE BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord:
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword:
His truth is marching on.
(Chorus)
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.
I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps,
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps:
His day is marching on.
(Chorus)
I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of steel:
"As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal;
Let the Hero, born of woman, crush the serpent with his heel,
Since God is marching on."
(Chorus)
He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment-seat:
Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! be jubilant, my feet!
Our God is marching on.
(Chorus)
In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me:
As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.
(Chorus)
He is coming like the glory of the morning on the wave,
He is Wisdom to the mighty, He is Succour to the brave,
So the world shall be His footstool, and the soul of Time His slave,
Our God is marching on.
(Chorus)
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 4:
HANDOUT 4: EMBATTLED FAITH
Excerpted from the article "Embattled Faith," by Neil Shister, which appeared in the July/August 2003 issue of UU World. Used with the author's permission.
The Naval Surface Warfare Center, three thousand acres of expansive wetland and scrub bordering the Potomac at Indian Head, Maryland, is where smokeless gunpowder was invented a century ago, a landmark event that transformed "fog of war" from the literal description of a battlefield to a strategic metaphor. These days propellants and pyrotechnics are manufactured at Indian Head, explosives for rockets and missiles, "things that go fast and boom." But on the morning after the war in Iraq began in March, it was worship that brought together some hundred members of the base community. And it was a Unitarian Universalist Navy chaplain, the Rev. Cynthia Kane, leading them.
The occasion was the National Prayer Breakfast, an annual armed forces event that traces its origins to the Continental Congress's call for a day of "public humiliation, fasting, and prayer" in the early days of the American Revolution. For Kane, presiding in the dress uniform of a Navy lieutenant, the setting was replete with special symbolism. The guest of honor was the Rev. William G. Sinkford, president of the Unitarian Universalist Association, invited at her behest. The presence of the UUA's "top brass" impressed the rank-conscious audience, especially when Sinkford announced that besides being a minister he was also the father of an Army Ranger in the elite 82nd Airborne Division recently returned from Afghanistan.
Rising to speak after pancakes and scrambled eggs, Sinkford embodied the dual and, for many, contradictory strains that characterize the relationship between Unitarian Universalists and, if not the military itself, then the exercise of military power. "I come here with a great sense of gratitude," he began. "Thanks for the work you do, the protection you afford us, the democracy that you help us preserve." But, he continued, he was also "one who stood the peace vigil," one whose fervent position was that "the United States should operate only with the blessing of the international community," which at that moment it clearly did not have.
Sinkford celebrated the United States as "a work in progress" built around the dream of a community of equality. For the sake of promoting such a dream, he concluded, many Unitarian Universalists, himself included, were willing to go to war. He qualified his stance with a somber proviso, given the events that were just beginning to unfold: "War is not our first choice and, in some sense, it always represents a failure."
Most Unitarian Universalists would likely resonate with Sinkford's words, as well as the emotionally charged paradox he finds himself living: troubled by his government's actions and fearful for his son, yet supportive of the troops. In the first weeks after the Iraq campaign began, the dominant sentiments I heard in my conversations with other Unitarian Universalists were variations on a theme of resigned ambivalence. There were, to be sure, voices of unqualified dissent, like that of the Rev. Robert Hardies. "I will not allow myself to be counted among the coalition of the willing," he told his congregation at Washington's All Souls Church, Unitarian, on the first Sunday of the war. "I will not allow myself to be counted among those in whose name innocent lives are taken. I will not allow myself to be counted among those who call the loss of innocent life 'collateral damage.' ... I will not allow myself to be counted among those who fall in line just because hostilities have begun." But even Hardies, like so many others opposed to the politics of the war, said he respected the men and women charged to wage it and prayed for their safe return.
"Am I in favor of this war?" said the Rev. David Hubner, director of ministry and professional leadership for the UUA and a Naval officer before entering the ministry. "Hell no! Do I want to support the people who are fighting it? Yes. We don't want to demonize them and render harm like we did to the people who fought in Vietnam by turning them into outcasts."
What I began to experience, as I kept hearing responses like Hubner's on my reporter's journey, was a gnawing sense of a disconnect. What does it mean to say that the war was bad, but our soldiers good? Can a war be unjustified but its actors blameless? How bad does a war have to be before the soldiers themselves are wrong to fight it? In my conversations I was looking for the foundations that helped other Unitarian Universalists decide whether to support the war and support the troops, but I felt precariously balanced on a moral tightrope with no margin for misstep. Wasn't there, I kept wondering, a Unitarian Universalist point of view that provided more solid footing, one that could ground the choice between war and peace in something other than a provisional answer? I presumed that other religious traditions offer authoritative doctrinal guidance, but how do Unitarian Universalists find their way out of this dilemma?
Unitarian Universalism is not often identified as a martial tradition. At the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington, Virginia, which sits almost in the shadow of the Pentagon, church leaders were hard-pressed to name any members who were active military personnel. But, of course, there are Unitarian Universalist soldiers. According to Lt. j.g. Eric Johnson, a Navy Reserve chaplain candidate and founder of Unitarian Universalist Military Ministries (at www.uumm.org/), there are approximately 550 Unitarian Universalists serving in the U.S. armed forces around the world.
Johnson, a student at Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago, asked military personnel on the "UUMil" email list: "Is it enough that most UUs 'support the troops' but do not support the mission?" He reported that many servicemen and women appreciated the gesture—"the older ones say that's such a change from Vietnam"—but did not always feel supported. One soldier left his church, Johnson said, after a fellow congregant told him, "You are an instrument of murder."
In Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters to the Atlantic fleet and seat of the largest operating base in the United States, the Rev. Danny R. Reed of the Unitarian Church reckons that about 10 percent of his 230 members are military personnel. Shortly before war began, Reed convened a gathering of military families who wanted to talk. "They kept mentioning the tension they feel in church," he said. "Nobody said they weren't welcome, but there was discomfort in being in a church where there is so much opposition to what they do. One soldier said he seeks church as a refuge: He takes the notion of sanctuary seriously to be fortified for the week ahead. But as he walks through the door somebody flips him a leaflet about the peace march that afternoon."
Ironically, Unitarian Universalist soldiers can be made to feel like outsiders among their military colleagues because of their religion. "The common assumption service guys share is that everybody is more or less the same when it comes to religion," Reed explained. "So when they ask you about your faith—and bear in mind that common misunderstanding that 'In our churches you can believe anything you want, there are no rules'—the fear is that your patriotism will be called into question, that 'Somehow you're not American.'"
Reed added, "It's taxing on the spirit to always be on the defensive and have to explain oneself."
Indeed, when Cynthia Kane decided to join the military two years ago, she took grief from fellow UUs. "Now I know what it must feel like to be a Republican in the UUA," she said. Base commander Captain Marc Siedband had never even heard of Unitarian Universalists when she arrived. (There are two other ordained Unitarian Universalist ministers serving as military chaplains: Col. Vernon Chandler, senior rear chaplain for the Army's Fifth Corps in Heidelberg, Germany, and Col. William Grace, an Air Force chaplain at Kelly Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas.)
Among Kane's charge of some 500 military personnel and 200 dependents, there is but a single Unitarian Universalist family. When asked what kind of a chaplain she is—Catholic? Protestant? Jewish?—her stock response is, "A really good one!" Now, a year after Kane arrived, Captain Siedband has become an enthusiastic fan. "Unitarianism turned out to be a great match," he says. "Chaplain Kane's message is, 'Reach out to everybody; inclusion; touch people's hearts.' I'm surprised there aren't more UU chaplains in the military." (Eric Johnson and 2nd Lt. Rosemary Frances, an Air Force reservist also studying for the Unitarian Universalist ministry, hope to join her.)
Kane sees no inconsistency between her faith and her duty. "A lot of my work as a Navy chaplain is no different than when I was in civilian ministry," she says. "People come to me for support and I provide companionship. My job is to affirm and to promote the integrity of the individual and then counsel them to conscience." Indeed, the spiritual truth that led her to Unitarian Universalism, that "God is too big to be limited to one concept of divinity," plays well in adhering to the motto of the Chaplains Corps: "Provide for your own, facilitate for others, care for all."
Kane's journey into the military required fourteen years of what she calls "a circuitous discernment process." Despite being a pacifist, she has long felt a calling to be a Navy chaplain. The logic of her choice still remains unclear. ("It was an argument I ultimately lost with God!" she laughs. "As if I really thought I had a chance!") Her internal conflict seethed over last year when she was a student at the Navy War College studying the military strategist Karl von Clausewitz, famous for his dictum that "war is merely a continuation of politics by other means" and must thus be accepted as an eternal fact of life. Leaving a lecture one evening, she caught sight of the rows of soldiers' graves in Arlington National Cemetery glimmering in the amber light of the setting sun—human testimony to Clausewitz—and began crying. "I threw my hands up to a seemingly impassive heaven and asked, 'What am I doing?'" The answer that soothed her was the acknowledgement that if military conflict is, indeed, etched into the social fabric, then "to do the work of peace, I must understand the making of war."
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 4:
LEADER RESOURCE 1: CLARA BARTON, PORTRAIT
From the Library of Congress.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 4:
LEADER RESOURCE 2: TRANSFORMATIVE RELATIONSHIPS
Frances Dana Barker Gage (1808-1884)
There came a time when Universalists refused to go with me as an abolitionist, an advocate for the rights of women, for earnest temperance pleaders... Then it came to me that Christ's death as an atonement for sinners was not truth, but he had died for what he believed to be truth. Then came the war, then trouble, then paralysis, and for 14 years I have not listened to a sermon because I am too great a cripple. I have read much, thought much, and feel that life is too precious to be given to doctrines.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815-1902)
Lucy Stone (1818-1893)
Julia Ward Howe (1819-1910)
I did not doubt but that my appeal would find a ready response in the hearts of great numbers of women through the limits of civilization. I invited these imagined helpers to assist me in calling and holding a congress of women in London ... My first act was to have my appeal translated into various languages, to wit: French, Spanish, Italian, German, and Swedish, and to distribute copies of it as widely as possible. I devoted the next two years almost entirely to correspondence with leading women in various countries... . I was very sorry to give up this special work, but in my prosecution of it I could not help seeing that many steps were to be taken before one could hope to effect any efficient combination among women. The time for this was at hand, but had not yet arrived.
Mary Livermore (1820-1905)
During the war, and as a result of my own observations, I became aware that a large portion of the nation's work was badly done, or not done at all, because woman was not recognized as a factor in the political world.
Florence Nightingale (1820-1910)
Susan B. Anthony (1820-1906)
Elizabeth Blackwell (1821-1910) and Emily Blackwell (1826-1910)
Louisa May Alcott (1823-1888)
Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825-1911)
Rev. Olympia Brown (1835-1926)
From her sermon "Permanent Peace:"
War is not possible where [people] recognize that all are alike God's Children Can we teach this great lesson to the people of the warring world? True it will require time, it will be a matter of education to prepare the way for such a civilization, but can we not begin today? We have sacrificed 50,000 men to make the world safe for Democracy, can we not send 1,000 consecrated preachers who shall teach the foundations of Democracy? Now is the time to begin, when men are tired of war, when women are heart-sick, when the nations are impoverished and overburdened, when all the people everywhere are wishing for something better. ... What a glorious opportunity for any denomination to be the exponent of a new civilization which should express itself in love for (humanity)! To make a new world in which [people] can dwell together in peace.
May Wright Sewall (1844-1920)
Since 1899... the International Council of Women has stood ready to be used for the noble purposes of the promotion of social Peace, the reduction of Armaments, the substitution of an International Tribunal of Justice for warfare, and the establishment of a permanent International Parliament which shall legislate for the world, as the congress or parliament of each of its constituent parts legislates for a single nation... Our... ultimate object is the cessation of all warfare by the extinction of all competitions, by the supplanting of competition by co-operation, by the displacement of hate, all international hate and international envy, by international affection.
Anna Garlin Spencer (1851-1931)
Lucia Ames Mead (1856-1936)
Harriet Stanton Blatch (1856-1940)
My opposition to war was not because of the horrors of war, not because war demands that the race offer up its very best in their full vigor, not because war means economic bankruptcy, domination of races by famine and disease, but because war is so completely ineffective, so stupid. It settles nothing.
Alice Stone Blackwell (1857-1950)
Carrie Clinton Lane Chapman Catt (1859-1947)
Jane Addams (1860-1935)
Emily Greene Balch (1867-1961)
FIND OUT MORE
Clara Barton
Read "Unitarian and Universalist Roots of the American Red Cross (at www.uuworld.org/ideas/articles/2178.shtml)" in the January/February 2002 issue of UU World.
Women in the Peace Movement
The Swarthmore College Peace Collection (at www.swarthmore.edu/Library/peace/) is a fantastic resource with many original documents and photographs.
Women in Unitarianism and Universalism
See the online resource "Unitarian and Universalist Women: Writing Liberal Religious Women Back into History (at womenshistory.about.com/library/lists/bl_uu_women_list.htm)."
"Let Us Now Praise Universalist Women (at www.uuwhs.org/letusnow.php)" is the text of a worship service created by the Unitarian Universalist Women's Heritage Society and presented at General Assembly, 1993.
Unitarian Universalists in the Military
Read about the Unitarian Universalist Association's Process for Endorsement and Support of Military Chaplains and Chaplain Candidates (at www.uua.org/leaders/leadership/ministerialcredentialing/militarychaplaincy/index.shtml).
Explore the Church of the Larger Fellowship Military Ministry (at clf.uua.org/military/).
WORKSHOP 5: JUST WAR, PACIFISM, AND PEACEMAKING
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
...the citizen, before fighting, is bound to inquire into the justice of the cause which he is called to maintain with blood, and bound to withhold his hand if his conscience condemn the cause. — William Ellery Channing
This workshop explores a range of stances Unitarian Universalists have taken in response to war. Unitarian Universalism has never been a "peace church." Our tradition has embraced advocates for the use of military power in international disputes, proponents of just war theory, pacifists, and those who hold a variety of positions in between. This workshop presents these different positions, and through them, helps participants answer the question: How does our religious tradition call us to respond to war?
After guiding participants through discussions of just war and pacifist theory, the workshop examines a time when Unitarians disagreed publicly about how best to respond to war. During World War I, Unitarian minister John Haynes Holmes and William Howard Taft, former President of the United States and president of the General Conference of Unitarians and Other Christian Churches clashed over Unitarian support for the United States war effort. Holmes adhered to a pacifist position while Taft believed that Unitarians must support their government during a time of war. Taft won the debate. Subsequently, the American Unitarian Association decided to deny aid to congregations with pacifist ministers, causing most pacifist ministers to lose their pulpits.
The workshop concludes with an exploration of the theories of peacemaking, peacekeeping and peacebuilding currently being developed by Unitarian Universalist ethicist Sharon Welch and theologian Paul Rasor.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 5 |
Activity 1: Defining Just War | 15 |
Activity 2: Understanding Pacifism | 15 |
Activity 3: The Taft-Holmes Debate | 25 |
Activity 4: Peacemaking | 20 |
Faith in Action: Acting on Justice Resolutions | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: Role Playing the Taft-Holmes Debate | 15 |
Alternate Activity 2: Envisioning Alternatives | 15 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Read Handout 1, Just War Theory; Handout 2, Pacifism; and Handout 3, Peacemaking. Consider these strategic and philosophical approaches to the issue of war. Do any resonate more strongly with you than the others? Why? What values do you think are behind each approach? What is compelling about each approach, and what are its drawbacks? If you strongly agree or disagree with one of these approaches, how do you feel about people who advocate another?
Throughout our liberal religious tradition people have held widely divergent views on war and what we should do about it. Our tradition contains both militant pacifists and strident militarists; people at these poles of thinking often find it difficult to dialogue with others whose views they oppose. As you prepare to lead this workshop, be mindful that participants in the group may have very diverse approaches to issues of peace and war. Make room for everyone to have their say. Be alert for moments when the group seems to prefer one voice over another, and guide them to listen deeply to points of view that differ from their own.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Have a participant light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition: "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
Introduce the workshop by explaining that a Statement of Conscience titled "Creating Peace" was adopted by the 2010 General Assembly in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The adoption of this statement came after a four year process during which congregations and districts were invited to explore the topic, confront it, reflect on it, learn about it, respond to it, comment on it, and take action, each in their own way.
Briefly share the contents of the Statement of Conscience, from Leader Resource 1.
Tell the group that the UUA provided congregations with a study/action guide called "Peacemaking," which began with this question:
Should the Unitarian Universalist Association reject the use of any and all kinds of violence and war to resolve disputes between peoples and nations and adopt a principle of seeking just peace through nonviolent means?
Say:
This workshop explores the history of liberal religious responses to war.
ACTIVITY 1: DEFINING JUST WAR (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 1, Just War Theory. Either invite a volunteer to read the handout aloud or ask the group to read it silently. Then, invite participants to take a few minutes to consider what circumstances, if any, justify going to war. Invite them to list those circumstances in their journals or write about why they do not believe that war is ever justified. Allow participants five minutes to write. Then invite comment and conversation.
ACTIVITY 2: UNDERSTANDING PACIFISM (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 2, Pacifism and either for ask a volunteer to read the handout aloud or invite participants to read the handout silently. Once everyone has finished reading, engage participants in discussion, using these questions:
ACTIVITY 3: THE TAFT-HOLMES DEBATE (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Project Leader Resource 2 or distribute the copies you have made. Distribute the story and read it aloud.
Then, post the questions and read them aloud. Invite participants to form groups of three or four and discuss the posted questions, reminding them that their small group may well include different points of view. Allow 15 minutes for small group conversation. Then invite the small groups to rejoin the larger group to share comments and observations.
Refer participants to Workshop 2, Handout 1, Prophetic, Parallel, and Institutional Voices. Distribute copies if participants do not already have them. Invite participants to consider whether Taft or Holmes represents institutional, prophetic, or parallel voices for social justice.
ACTIVITY 4: PEACEMAKING (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Explain that contemporary Unitarian Universalist thinkers such as Sharon Welch and Paul Rasor promote strategies of peacemaking, peacekeeping, and peacebuilding as alternatives to pacifism and just war. Distribute Handout 3, Peacemaking and invite three volunteers to read it aloud. Then, invite general responses to the "third way."
Invite participants to find a conversation partner. Post the questions you have prepared and invite pairs to respond. Allow five or six minutes for this conversation.
Re-gather the group and lead a conversation about peacemaking, using these questions:
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to respond, in their journals or on writing paper:
Describe a situation in your life when adopting one of the approaches we learned about today might have changed your actions. Which theory would you have found helpful in that situation and why?
Allow five minutes for writing.
Share this quote from Proverbs of Ashes; Violence, Redemptive Suffering and the Search for What Saves Us by Rita Nakashima Brock and Rebecca Ann Parker:
Violence denies presence and suffocates spirit. Violence robs us of knowledge of life and its intrinsic value; it steals our awareness of beauty; of complexity, of our bodies. Violence ignores vulnerability, dependence, and interdependence. A person who acts violently disregards self and other as distinct, obliterating the spaces in which spirit breathes.
We can resist and redress violence by acting for justice and by being present to one another, present to beauty, present to the fire at the heart of things, the spirit that gives breath to life.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: ACTING ON JUSTICE RESOLUTIONS
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Should the Unitarian Universalist Association take positions on specific wars?
Congregational delegates to the General Assembly sometimes affirm a position on a conflict or war. These positions guide the associational staff, but are not binding on individual congregations. Many congregations and individuals do choose to support the resolutions of the General Assembly and use them to determine their own justicemaking priorities.
Explore recent social justice statements and resolutions regarding wars, conflicts, and peacemaking (at www.uua.org/socialjustice/socialjustice/index.php) passed by the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association. Which statements are in line with justicemaking work you or your congregation are already engaged in doing? Are there statements that surprise you? Resolutions that make you proud? With which you agree wholeheartedly? Are there some with which you have disagreement or about which you have questions? You are invited to view the social justice statements as invitations to action on your own or as part of a Unitarian Universalist group, in a small or large way. Discuss how your faith and the statements passed by the General Assembly inspire your actions on behalf of justice.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
...the citizen, before fighting, is bound to inquire into the justice of the cause which he is called to maintain with blood, and bound to withhold his hand if his conscience condemn the cause. — William Ellery Channing
This week, when reading, watching, or listening to the news, pay attention to stories about wars or other armed conflicts that are happening in the world today. Do the news reports mention any of the peacemaking or peacebuilding strategies we discussed in this workshop? Do reports include any pacifist or nonviolent perspectives on the conflict? How much media attention do advocates for peacebuilding receive, in comparison to advocates for military strategy?
Talk with a friend or family member. Explain that you are learning about different philosophies of peace and war and ask if they favor a particular approach. Is war ever justified? If so, under what circumstances? Make the conversation an opportunity to reflect on the strategies this workshop introduced.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: ROLE PLAYING THE TAFT-HOLMES DEBATE (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Explain that you (or two volunteers) will present a mock debate between John Haynes Holmes and William Howard Taft about the United States' response to World War I. The focus of this debate is not necessarily historical accuracy, but to present the main arguments from each side with passion and sympathy.
Assign participants in the audience to act as pro-Holmes, pro-Taft, or neutral listeners.
Give the debaters three minutes each to make their case. Then allow five minutes for questions and rebuttals from the "audience." Encourage audience participants to ask questions of the debaters. Direct the debaters to supply their own answers in support of their assigned position. Afterward, ask participants to reflect:
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 2: ENVISIONING ALTERNATIVES (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Participants apply the concepts of just war, pacifism, and peacemaking to a contemporary conflict. If time allows, use this activity to extend the workshop.
If needed, distribute handouts. Invite participants to review them. Allow a few minutes if the group has not seen these handouts before. Explain that the group will apply these three approaches to a current world conflict. Present the positions, as you understand them, of the major antagonists in the conflict. Invite participants to briefly offer their input into the positions of the antagonists. Explain that it not necessary for the purposes of this activity to get the nuances of positions exactly correct. The focus of the activity is to try and imagine how the approaches explored in the workshop might be used to address the conflict. Lead the group to brainstorm ways to apply each approach to the conflict. Ask questions such as:
If the conversation becomes heated, remind participants that the purpose of the activity is not to find right or wrong answers. Rather, it is to explore how the approaches discussed in the workshop might open new possibilities for addressing conflict.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 5:
STORY: THE TAFT-HOLMES DEBATE
The United States entered World War I in April 1917. Shortly afterward, Congress passed the 1917 Espionage Act. The act made it a crime for people to speak out against the country's involvement in the war or to encourage draft resistance or conscientious objection. As a result of the act, several hundred people were arrested. Peace and social justice organizations, minority political parties, and radical labor unions were repressed. Against this backdrop, the General Conference of Unitarian and Other Christian Churches met in Montreal, Canada for its biennial meeting.
Events at the conference challenged the Unitarian tradition of free speech and dissent. In advance of the meeting, John Haynes Holmes, minister of the Church of the Messiah in New York City, prepared an official report outlining different attitudes found among Unitarians toward the war. The report, though authored by Holmes, was presented on behalf of the Conference Council, an official body designated to assess the state of Unitarianism between meetings of the conference.
The report asserted that there were "varying attitudes maintained by Unitarians towards this war." Holmes identified four groups. The first were those who agreed with President Wilson, "that the Allies are battling...to make the world safe for democracy" and held Germany and its allies to be the aggressor. The second supported the war effort, but were less certain about with whom the fault lay. The third felt that the war must be brought to an immediate end even if that meant "peace without victory." The final group, a small minority to which Holmes belonged, were pacifists and opposed to not just the current war but "war in general." The remainder of the report was split between a plea that "nothing is more important at this time than opportunity for full, free, and fair statement of all points of view" which argued for the right for people to hold dissenting opinions, and Holmes's hope that churches could develop a "ministry of reconciliation" and create a "gospel of peace."
After hearing the Report of the Council, the president of the conference, former United States President William Howard Taft, was outraged. He expected Unitarians to line up firmly behind the war effort. In an effort to make the position of the Unitarian denomination clear, he made a motion stating: "Resolved, that it is the sense of this Unitarian Conference that this war must be carried to a successful issue to stamp out militarism in the world; that we, as the Unitarian body, approve of the measures of President Wilson and Congress to carry on this war, restrictive as they may be..."
Taft's resolution resulted in a debate between Taft, Holmes, and others as to the appropriate response to the war. Holmes stated, "I am a pacifist, a non-resistant, I hate war, and I hate this war; and so long as I live I will have nothing to do with this or any war." He was not trying to force his opinion on others. He only wanted to show that there were many different opinions held by Unitarians.
In response, Taft argued that it was necessary for the Unitarians to show that there was only one opinion among them. Doing otherwise would not respond adequately to "the great issue that is being fought for, for which the blood of our dearest is being shed." At such a time as when "our house is afire" it is not proper to consider "whether the firemen are using the best kind of water," Taft orated.
Taft's motion was carried by a vote of 236 in favor to 9 opposed. Over the next few months the Board of the American Unitarian Association (AUA) voted to deny aid to congregations with ministers that did not support the war. As a result most of the Unitarian ministers who had taken pacifist positions in opposition to the war lost their pulpits. In protest, Holmes resigned his fellowship with the American Unitarian Association and convinced his congregation to rename itself the Community Church of New York.
Throughout the rest of his life, Holmes remained a steadfast pacifist and an outspoken critic of the United States government. In addition to playing a central role in the founding of the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Association for the Advancement for Colored People, and the War Resisters League, he is remembered for his part in introducing Mohandas Gandhi widely in the United States. After his retirement from ministry, Holmes resumed fellowship with the American Unitarian Association. Today the Unitarian Universalist Association honors his memory through the annual Holmes-Weatherly Award, which is "given to an individual or organization...whose life-long commitment to faith-based social justice is reflected in societal transformation."
More important than Holmes's reconciliation with the AUA is the fact that the General Assembly of the Association decided, in 1936, to recant its denial of aid to congregations with ministers who did not support the war. In World War II and subsequent wars, the AUA and the UUA have supported conscientious objectors and those who have spoken out against governmental policy.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 5:
HANDOUT 1: JUST WAR THEORY
This summary is based on information from God's War by Christopher Tyerman (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2006).
In the 4th century BCE, the Greek philosopher Aristotle outlined what he considered to be acceptable categories of warfare. In his work, Politics, he declared that war was never to be an end unto itself, but was legitimate when waged under certain circumstances: as a form of self-defense, to secure an empire, or to enslave non-Hellenistic peoples. Later, the notion of war waged for the sake of a peaceful, prosperous, and secure state was enshrined in Roman Law, and the concept of "just war" was born.
This Greco-Roman concept of just war was not explicitly religious in nature. Early Christians developed their own theological understanding of war. Some Christians derived the concept of war by divine right from the Judaic tradition, whose scriptures tell stories of the Israelite people going to battle with God on their side. There were also Christian theologians who rejected the morality of war, favoring a more pacifist stance. Among them was Origen, a 3rd century CE theologian who argued that the battles of the Hebrew scriptures were allegorical in nature.
The definition of "just war" changed with the conversion of the Roman state to Christianity in the 4th century CE. The idea of war fought for God and with God's approval became merged with the political definition of a just war. Augustine of Hippo, in the 5th century, stated that sin was the cause of war, but that sin could also be combated by war, as long as the intent of the conflict was to establish a Christian peace. He established four essential components of just war: a just cause, an aim of defending or recovering rightful property, sanctioning by a legitimate authority, and fighters who are motivated by right intent.
The concept of divinely justified war had a powerful influence during the period of the Crusades and the Inquisition (beginning around 1100 CE). During that period, the image of Christ was often transformed into a warrior-hero, the model of a righteous soldier. Thomas Aquinas, in the 13th century, made important contributions to the development of Christian just war theory, and the Catholic church has since added these elements to their doctrine:
The damage inflicted by the aggressor on the nation or community of nations must be lasting, grave, and certain; all other means of putting an end to it must have been shown to be impractical or ineffective; there must be serious prospects of success; the use of arms must not produce evils and disorders graver than the evil to be eliminated. The power of modern means of destruction weighs very heavily in evaluating this condition. — Catechism of the Catholic Church (at www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c2a5.htm)
Just war theory is not only a Roman Catholic doctrine, however. It has been heavily debated across the spectrum of Christianity. After World War II, the concept of a just war was reexamined in light of the Holocaust. Twentieth-century theologian Reinhold Niebuhr speaks for many modern just war theorists when he says:
It has since become quite apparent that tyranny would have conquered the world if the material resources of civilization had not been organized and harnessed so that force could be met by superior force. — from Love and Justice, part III, section 41)
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 5:
HANDOUT 2: PACIFISM
The exact meaning of the term "pacifism" can be difficult to pin down. It is used to refer to perspectives ranging from absolute rejection of violence of any kind to a principled refusal to engage in military activity and a belief that conflict among nations should never be resolved through war. Although pacifism is often tied to antiwar movements and its adherents may utilize nonviolent methods of resistance, pacifism as a theory implies a dedication to a way of life or a world view that sees the application of force as the root of the problems in society and never the solution. Pacifism, in this workshop, is defined as a political and/or religious stance that rejects all forms of violence against persons.
Christianity has been an important influence in the development of theories of pacifism. Articulations of pacifism rooted in Christian tradition can be traced back to the first centuries of the early church, to theologians, including Origen, who argued that much of the violence in the Bible was allegorical in nature. Grounded in a belief that the Christian struggle is spiritual, not physical, and a view of Christ as a model for nonviolent action, Christian pacifism is an integral part of the Quaker, Moravian, Mennonite, Amish and other faiths.
Modern pacifist theory in the United States dates back to the abolitionist movement, and Unitarians and Universalists played no small part in its development. In 1814, Unitarian minister Noah Worchester wrote a well-circulated pamphlet entitled "A Solemn Review of the Custom of War," the first significant work of American pacifism. Universalist Adin Ballou converted to Christian pacifism in 1838 and founded the pacifist Hopedale Community in 1840. Henry David Thoreau was strongly opposed to the 1848 Mexican-American War and advocated nonviolent civil disobedience. Many Unitarian abolitionists joined the journalist and reformer William Lloyd Garrison in founding the New England Non-Resistance Society, which states in its founding document:
We register our testimony, not only against all wars, whether offensive or defensive, but all preparations for war; against every naval ship, every arsenal, every fortification; against the militia system and a standing army; against all military chieftains and soldiers; against all monuments commemorative of victory over a fallen foe, all trophies won in battle, all celebrations in honor of military or naval exploits; against all appropriations for the defense of a nation by force and arms, on the part of any legislative body; against every edict of government requiring of its subjects military service.
These early pacifists influenced generations of social justice reformers, including Leo Tolstoy, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King Jr. Pacifism is not necessarily rooted in a religious orientation, and pacifism in various forms can be found among socialist movements throughout history and among some anarchist groups of the early 20th century. Pacifism as theory and practice enjoyed a resurgence after World War I, as reports from the battlefields inspired many to reject the ultimate utility of war.
Expressions of pacifism often generate utopian or secessionist movements, such as Adin Ballou's community of Hopedale, when adherents find they cannot continue supporting a government that supports violence. John Howard Yoder, a 20th-century theologian from the Mennonite tradition, argued that the church's responsibility is not to transform the sociopolitical order through direct engagement, but rather to establish its own community, one that is "in the world, but not of it." One ongoing tension within pacifism is that between personal conviction and governmental authority. Today, many people continue to align themselves with this rich and evolving tradition.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 5:
HANDOUT 3: PEACEMAKING
The 2006-2010 Study/Action Issue for the Unitarian Universalist Association asks the question: "Should the Unitarian Universalist Association reject the use of any and all kinds of violence and war to resolve disputes between peoples and nations and adopt a principle of seeking just peace through nonviolent means?" This Study/Action Issue was proposed as an effort to develop an alternative to both just war theory and pacifism. As the Unitarian Universalist theologian Paul Rasor writes, "we should avoid getting caught up in a debate between just war and pacifism." Unitarian Universalist ethicist Sharon Welch agrees and suggests that "a third way" exists that includes "joint efforts to prevent war, stop genocide, and repair the damage caused by armed conflict."
Welch calls this third way peacemaking and Rasor describes it as prophetic nonviolence. Whatever its label, the strategy seeks to "move beyond old divisions and adopt a position that integrates critical elements from both traditions." Welch identifies the third way as having three components:
This third way calls for the use of violence only as a last resort. It draws some of its inspiration from earlier Unitarian and Universalist thinkers such as William Ellery Channing and Adin Ballou. Channing advocated 19th-century versions of just war theory and observed that "peace without can come only with peace within." Ballou's pacifism was deeply nuanced; he advocated for the use of "uninjurious force" in cases of self-defense or to protect society from violent criminals.
Peacemaking or prophetic nonviolence seeks to position itself as an alternative to both just war theory and pacifism. It is a relatively new theory, and one to which Unitarian Universalists are making an important contribution. Whether it is able to provide an alternative path and help bring stability and peace to our planet remains to be seen.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 5:
HANDOUT 4: TAFT AND HOLMES
You will present a mock debate between two great Unitarian figures from the 20th century, William Howard Taft and John Haynes Holmes. Both men were passionate orators and spoke eloquently for their positions. Review their arguments, read the online materials on Taft and Holmes, and get ready to stage your debate. Remember, this is an imaginary debate, not a historical re-enactment, so do not feel pressured to get it "right." Instead, try to portray Taft or Holmes as a principled, well-intentioned man making his best case for the betterment of society.
John Haynes Holmes
William Howard Taft
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 5:
LEADER RESOURCE 1: STATEMENT OF CONSCIENCE — CREATING PEACE
This statement was passed on June 25, 2010 by the delegates to the 2010 General Assembly in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Unitarian Universalist theologians Dr. Sharon Welch, Dr. Dan McKanon, and Rev. Dr. Paul Rasor were consultants in the crafting of the statement, and all three spoke in support of it before the General Assembly.
We believe all people share a moral responsibility to create peace. Mindful of both our rich heritage and our past failures to prevent war, and enriched by our present diversity of experience and perspective, we commit ourselves to a radically inclusive and transformative approach to peace.
1. Our commitment to creating peace calls us to the work of peacebuilding, peacemaking, and peacekeeping.
Peacebuilding is the creation and support of institutions and structures that address the roots of conflict, including economic exploitation, political marginalization, the violation of human rights, and a lack of accountability to law.
Peacemaking is the negotiation of equitable and sustainable peace agreements, mediation between hostile parties, and post-conflict rebuilding and reconciliation.
Peacekeeping is early intervention to prevent war, stop genocide, and monitor ceasefires. Peacekeeping creates the space for diplomatic efforts, humanitarian aid, and nonviolent conflict prevention through the protection of civilians and the disarmament and separation of those involved in violent conflict.
2. We advocate a culture of peace through a transformation of public policies, religious consciousness, and individual lifestyles. At the heart of this transformation is the readiness to honor the truths of multiple voices from a theology of covenant grounded in love.
3. We all agree that our initial response to conflict should be the use of nonviolent methods. Yet, we bear witness to the right of individuals and nations to defend themselves, and acknowledge our responsibility to be in solidarity with others in countering aggression. Many of us believe force is sometimes necessary as a last resort, while others of us believe in the consistent practice of nonviolence.
4. We repudiate aggressive and preventive wars, the disproportionate use of force, covert wars, and targeting that includes a high risk to civilians. We support international efforts to curtail the vast world trade in armaments and call for nuclear disarmament and abolition of other weapons of mass destruction. We repudiate unilateral interventions and extended military occupations as dangerous new forms of imperialism. In an interdependent world, true peace requires the cooperation of all nations and peoples.
5. For Unitarian Universalists, the exercise of individual conscience is holy work. Conscientious discernment leads us to engage in the creation of peace in different ways. We affirm a range of individual choices, including military service and conscientious objection (whether to all wars or particular wars), as fully compatible with Unitarian Universalism. For those among us who make a formal commitment to military service, we will honor their commitment, welcome them home, and offer pastoral support. For those among us who make a formal commitment as conscientious objectors, we will offer documented certification, honor their commitment, and offer pastoral support.
6. Our faith calls us to create peace, yet we confess that we have not done all we could to prevent the spread of armed conflict throughout the world. At times we have lacked the courage to speak and act against violence and injustice; at times we have lacked the creativity to speak and act in constructive ways; at times we have condemned the violence of others without acknowledging our own complicity in violence. We affirm a responsibility to speak truth to power, especially when unjust power is exercised by our own nation. Too often we have allowed our disagreements to distract us from all that we can do together. This Statement of Conscience challenges individual Unitarian Universalists, as well as our congregations and Association, to engage with more depth, persistence, and creativity in the complex task of creating peace.
II. Historical and Theological Context
Our Universalist faith in the oneness of the whole human family teaches us that peace is necessary; our Unitarian faith in the sacred potential of each person teaches us that peace is possible.
A. Historical Practices
For two hundred years, Unitarians and Universalists have worked to build peace by removing the underlying causes of war. As early as 1790, Universalists gathered in Philadelphia declared, "Although a defensive war may be considered lawful, yet we believe there is a time coming, when the light and universal love of the gospel shall put an end to all wars." The Massachusetts Peace Society, founded by Unitarians Noah Worcester and William Ellery Channing during the War of 1812, helped launch the first peace movement to include both those repudiating all violence and those supporting defensive wars, to welcome members of all religious persuasions, and to affirm that nonviolence is humanly possible as well as divinely commanded. Since that time, Unitarian and Universalist peace efforts have continued to be informed by those principles. Though we have always held diverse views on the justification of defensive and humanitarian wars, at our best we have worked together to end the violence of slavery, to promote international law, to liberate Jews and others from Nazi tyranny, and to build the United Nations and other institutions of international cooperation. This Statement of Conscience builds on this tradition by challenging individual Unitarian Universalists, as well as our congregations and Association, to engage in a variety of nonviolent and peace building practices.
B. Theological Principles
This Statement of Conscience is grounded in the following Unitarian Universalist theological principles:
The fundamental unity and interdependence of all existence. The interdependence we have long affirmed has become the daily reality of our globalized world. Our interdependence makes it both possible and necessary that we see the peoples of the world as one community in which the security of each nation is entwined with the security of all others.
The transforming power of love. We affirm the reality of love as a dynamic power within and among us. This power moves us to create relationships of compassion, respect, mutuality, and forgiveness; to love our neighbor; and to recognize everyone as our neighbor. We stand on the side of love when we work for peace.
The inherent worth and dignity of all persons. All human beings have the right to a meaningful and fulfilling life, including physical safety and economic and social well being. All have the responsibility to work on behalf of the dignity of others.
Human freedom. Most human beings are free moral agents with the capacity to make choices and are accountable for these choices. Human freedom may be used creatively or destructively. These possibilities are expressed not only in our individual choices and actions, but also in the institutions and social structures we create. Peace is the product of human choices that empower human agency and extend the possibilities for human freedom.
Rejection of moral dualism. We reject as false the sharp separation of good and evil, refusing to assign individuals and nations into one category or the other. Moral dualism can blind us to our own and our nation's capacity for evil and to the inherent worth and dignity of those whom our nation labels as enemies. In the midst of ambiguity we can build peace by cultivating the goodness in ourselves and others.
Cooperative power. Power is created and expressed in complex networks of human relationships. Power can be used to create or destroy, to liberate or oppress. Preventing war and creating nonviolent alternatives require the use of cooperative power—power with, not power over. Cooperative power is grounded in a commitment to mutual persuasion rather than coercion.
Justice and peace. Justice concerns the fair ordering of human relationships, including social and political relationships. War signals the breakdown of fairly ordered human relations. Peace is an attribute of relationship; it is a process, not a stagnant state. Peace emerges as our social and political institutions become more cooperative and more just. Lasting peace rests on just relationships.
Humility and open-mindedness. We affirm an open-mindedness that makes us suspicious of all claims of finality, including our own. Humility allows us to take strong stands while remaining open to the possibility that we are wrong or that future circumstances may call for a different position.
III. Calls to Action
Creating peace calls for action at all levels of human interaction. To be effective, our actions must be incorporated into existing structures and institutions, and new systems must be created.We support the Unitarian Universalist Peace Ministry Network in its work of identifying resources, disseminating information, and evaluating methods to create a culture of peace on all levels.
Creating Peace in Our World
We covenant to advocate vigorously for policies and participate in practices that move our nation toward collaborative leadership in building a peaceful, just, and sustainable world, including:
Creating Peace in Our Society
We covenant to act in the wider community in reducing the causes of institutional and structural violence by:
Creating Peace in Our Congregations
We covenant to create peace through worship, religious education, and social action by:
Creating Peace in Our Relationships
As individuals we covenant to:
Creating Peace within Ourselves
We recognize that peace begins with each person and covenant to:
In reverence for all life, we covenant to practice peace at all levels of human interaction.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 5:
LEADER RESOURCE 2: JOHN HAYNES HOLMES AND WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT, PHOTOGRAPHS
Holmes (left), from the Unitarian Universalist Association archives. Taft (right) from the Unites States Library of Congress.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 5:
LEADER RESOURCE 3: BEYOND JUST WAR AND PACIFISM
From an article, "Prophetic Nonviolence," by Paul Rasor, which appeared in the Spring 2008 issue of UU World. Used with the author's permission.
I believe we can move beyond this old divide by adopting an integrated model I call prophetic nonviolence. To move "beyond just war and pacifism" is not to abandon either tradition; it is to recognize that both perform important roles in our ongoing efforts to reduce the violence of war.
I begin with a fundamental commitment to nonviolence. Unitarian Universalists have always affirmed peace as among our most basic values. We have always worked to create the kinds of just communities out of which peace emerges, and we have long supported the use of nonviolent methods of conflict resolution. This is the legacy we share with pacifism.
At the same time, Unitarian Universalism has always been an engaged religion, one that tries to make a difference in the world. An important part of this engagement is our tradition of speaking prophetically—of bringing reasoned judgment and critique to bear on the social conditions that generate injustice and violence. In the context of war, this commitment has been well served by the just war model.
My proposal for prophetic nonviolence links our deep commitment to nonviolence with our historical practice of prophetic critique, and it is supported by several commonalities between the pacifist and just war traditions. Both share a presumption against war, a presumption based in part on a moral duty not to harm. Both put peace in the center of their ethical thinking and relegate war to the margins. Keeping peace in the center helps focus our critique and reminds us of the importance of peacemaking and other violence-prevention strategies.
In addition, both just war and pacifism are concerned with the limits of loyalty to the state. This is more obvious in religious pacifism, which often speaks of a higher loyalty to God. But this concern is also present in the just war model. By placing the burden of proof on those who would justify the use of force, the presumption against war reflects a basic suspicion of official claims. Ethicist Joseph Fahey says: "Today's nation states presume that young men and women are willing to kill other young men and women for their flag." This presumption is reflected in our national policies toward conscientious objectors, for example, who must make a case for not taking up arms. Both the pacifist and just war traditions take a principled stand against the official presumption that young people must be prepared to kill at the behest of the state.
Finally, the recent trend toward pacifism in many non-peace churches suggests a growing convergence of the two traditions. Roman Catholic teaching now recognizes just war and nonviolence as "distinct but interdependent methods of evaluating warfare" for both individuals and states. Fahey notes a similar shift in the liberal and mainline Protestant churches, which traditionally have depended on the just war model. "[T]he return in the late twentieth century to pacifism," he writes, "is perhaps the most notable feature of contemporary Christian teaching on war and peace." Our denominational study process may tell us whether Unitarian Universalists are moving in a similar direction.
Bases for critique
In our prophetic critique of the government's justifications for war, we will naturally draw on the just war criteria. These have a built-in familiarity and a rich set of interpretive traditions that make them extremely useful for this purpose, and public discourse about particular wars is likely to be carried on in just war language. However, as helpful as these criteria may be, we must remember that our real criteria—the true bases for our prophetic critique—are our own theological principles. Our critique must be our critique, grounded in our religious values and historical practices. Unitarian Universalist theological principles relevant to a UU response to war include these:
These principles suggest that in addition to applying the just war criteria, we must ask questions such as: Does this military action promote or inhibit unity among peoples? Does it express love and compassion toward our neighbors, or does it reflect fear and hate? Does it increase or restrict the possibilities for human freedom and fulfillment? Does it contribute to the creation of right relationships and just social structures, or does it harm these relationships? What kinds of power are being used, and by whom? These kinds of assessments will add power and depth to our prophetic practice.
Our challenge
Whatever position we adopt as a denomination, we need to be as clear and as theologically grounded as possible. Clarity will best serve individual members and congregations in their own discernment processes, and it will provide the most effective basis for strong prophetic critique. Any stance we adopt will be ineffective if it is simply a reaction to the current political situation. Instead, it must be a genuine expression of our Unitarian Universalist theological principles and religious values.
We need to honor the differences that exist among us. Any statement worth making will surely provoke disagreement. This is not a reason to avoid the issue or to take so noncommittal a stance that we don't really say anything. But we need to be careful to welcome and honor those who hold different views, and perhaps to remind ourselves that one of the tenets of liberalism is that nothing is ever finally settled.
We must avoid the dangers of political correctness. We don't have a very good record on this count. The ostracism suffered by those who held minority positions during World War I and the Vietnam War reflects an unfortunate streak of illiberal self-righteousness that runs deep, as any Republican in our midst can testify. By drawing on the commonalities between the just war and pacifist traditions and by emphasizing our Unitarian Universalist theological principles, I have tried to show that it is possible to formulate a position that can be endorsed by pacifists and just war advocates alike. My own proposal is surely not the only possible synthesis. Yet a question that haunts me is whether our members who serve in the military would feel less welcome if my proposal were adopted as a denominational stance. I truly hope not.
Whatever our individual views, we need to treat each other with compassion, respect, and love as we move through this process. However inclusive our intentions and our language, we cannot eliminate all disagreement, nor should we try to do so. The very process of discussion through disagreement can help clarify our ideas and make us aware of the unintended consequences of our own words. At the same time, we need to remember that we belong to a shared religious tradition and that our disagreements reflect our deeper levels of agreement—our shared theological principles and our shared commitment to peace.
Our current study process presents an opportunity to clarify our thinking, to air some long-hidden differences, and to make a strong public statement in support of our deepest values on one of the most important issues of our time. May we accept the challenge in a spirit of love and grace.
FIND OUT MORE
Holmes and Taft
Find biographical information for John Haynes Holmes and William Howard Taft in the Unitarian Universalist Historical Society's online Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography (at www25.uua.org/uuhs/duub/index.html).
The "Third Way"
Read more here:
"Beyond Just War and Pacifism: Toward a Unitarian Universalist Theology of Prophetic Nonviolence (at www.meadville.edu/LL_JLR_v8_n1_Rasor.htm)" by Paul Rasor, Journal of Liberal Religion, Vol. 8, Number 1
"Prophetic Nonviolence (at www.uuworld.org/ideas/articles/68490.shtml)" by Paul Rasor, UU World, Spring 2008
"'Memo to Obama from Sharon Welch: On Enduring Security, Sustainable Peace (at www.uua.org/news/newssubmissions/128128.shtml)" by Sharon Welch
UU Peacemakers Ministry Network
The UU Peacemakers Peace Ministry Network (at www.uupeacemakers.org/), formed to promote and support the UUA Statement of Conscience — Creating Peace after the 2010 General Assembly, provides resources and news updates.
WORKSHOP 6: RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ON THE MARGINS OF EMPIRE
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
...though we are forced to dissent from them in matters of church discipline, yet our dissent is not taken up out of arrogance of spirit in ourselves, whom they see willingly condescend to learn of them, neither is it carrier with uncharitable censoriousness towards them, both which are the proper and essential characters of schism, but in meekness of wisdom... — from The Cambridge Platform
Unitarianism first appeared as an institutional movement in Poland and Transylvania, two countries some distance from Europe's centers of political and religious power. Far from authorities, dissenting religious communities were able to form pockets of resistance to dominant authority. Later, Congregationalism, which held to the idea that every congregation is its own ecclesiastical authority, flourished on the margins of the British Empire and would one day give rise to Unitarianism in America. How has our religious ancestors' relationship with power and authority shaped our religious identity as dissenters? How has it informed our understanding of social justice work?
This workshop explores how responses to political and religious power and authority have been integral to the development of our tradition. It offers a brief history of the Socinian movement in Poland, a theologically Unitarian movement that existed from 1565 to 1650. It explores the 1648 Cambridge Platform, a document foundational to our present day practice of congregational polity, which was developed as a response to the English Parliament's attempts to regulate churches during the English Civil War. The workshop also asks whether issues of religious freedom are social justice issues.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 10 |
Activity 1: Power and Authority | 25 |
Activity 2: Challenging Religious Authority in 16th-century Poland | 15 |
Activity 3: The Cambridge Platform and Congregational Polity | 30 |
Faith in Action: Using Your Congregation's Power | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: Are Freedom, Reason, and Tolerance Enough? | 20 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
As Unitarian Universalists living in a religiously pluralistic society, we are quite used to being able to discern our own beliefs and to choose (or not choose) a faith tradition to follow. After you read the workshop plan, imagine yourself living in a time and place when you did not have the power to determine your own beliefs and choose your own faith tradition. How would your life be different?
How important to you is the freedom to follow the dictates of your own mind and heart? How do your imaginings help you empathize with and understand the situations our religious ancestors in Poland and New England? As you lead this workshop, continue to reflect on your own relationship to religious power and authority, and encourage participants to do the same.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition: "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
After the song, invite participants to silently recall times in their lives when they have been aware of their own power to discern their own religious understandings and to recall times when they did not believe themselves to have such power. Allow a few minutes for silent reflection, and then tell participants this workshop explores liberal religion's relationship to power and authority through the stories of the 1648 Cambridge Platform in New England and the 16th- and 17th-century Socinian movement in Poland.
ACTIVITY 1: POWER AND AUTHORITY (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Post blank newsprint and invite participants to brainstorm words, ideas, and concepts that come to mind in response to the word "power." Write responses on newsprint.
Post the definition of power. Ask participants whether or not they agree with this definition and invite them to suggest ways to make the definition better. Write comments and additions under the definition of power.
Post the definition of authority. Invite the group to reconsider their brainstorming list of words, ideas, and concepts that came to mind in response to the word "power" and decide if any of the words pertain more to authority than to power.
Invite participants to turn their attention to the roles of power and authority in matters of faith and religion. Ask them to bring to mind their reflections from the Opening, and identify a moment in their lives when they were aware of religious authority (either in their own lives or in the life of another) and remember how they responded to that awareness. Also, invite them to identify a time when they were aware of their own power, or agency, in discerning matters of their faith and belief. Ask participants to take a minute to think, and then to turn to a partner and share both stories.
Allow five minutes for pairs to share their stories, and then re-gather the large group.
Pose the question: Is individual freedom to discern matters of faith a social justice issue? Why or why not? Allow ten minutes for large group conversation.
ACTIVITY 2: CHALLENGING RELIGIOUS AUTHORITY IN 16TH CENTURY POLAND (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Explain to participants that they will explore the relationship early Polish Unitarians had with power and authority. Distribute Handout 1, Socinianism. Give the group time to read the handout silently or invite a volunteer to read it aloud.
Lead a discussion, using these questions:
ACTIVITY 3: THE CAMBRIDGE PLATFORM AND CONGREGATIONAL POLITY (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to consider the question of religious authority in contemporary Unitarian Universalist congregations. Say:
While we may trace our tradition of locating the power to discern religious belief with the individual from the Socinians in Poland, we must turn our attention to 17th-century England and North America to discover the historic roots of our system of congregational governance and authority.
Distribute the story "The Cambridge Platform" and invite participants to read it silently or invite volunteers to read it aloud.
Invite participants to move into groups of four. Give each group blank newsprint and markers.
Post the questions you have prepared, and ask groups to respond and to write their responses on newsprint.
Allow ten minutes for groups to work. Then, invite participants to post their newsprint and rejoin the large group. Have each group share highlights of their group discussion. Affirm that participants have discovered and highlighted some of the complexities of congregational polity.
Read aloud these words from the 1997 Commission on Appraisal Report to the Unitarian Universalist Association:
It cannot be emphasized enough that Unitarian Universalism entails not only the right and responsibility to come to our own theological understanding—a freedom of belief—but that freedom of belief also calls us, demands us, to participate in social justice work... The "rightness" of our theological beliefs cannot be understood without our involvement in trying to make the world reflect the values we hold. For that reason, social justice, in particular collective social justice, are required for a full understanding of Unitarian Universalism.
Invite large group responses to the quote. Do they agree that collective social justice work is required for a full understanding of Unitarian Universalism? If the conversation stalls, you might ask:
If the congregation, and not just its individual members, must be involved in work that advances our values and ideals, does that mean a congregation can and should speak as a body on social justice matters, whether or not every member is in agreement?
As the conversation comes to a close, you may discover that some participants wish to explore the issues further and to examine congregational policies and practices in regard to acting and speaking collectively for social justice. Encourage them to do so! You might plan a time for volunteers to bring their findings back to the group.
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to respond, in their journals or on writing paper, letting them know that they will be invited to share their response (briefly) with the group:
Have you ever been challenged or marginalized because of your religious faith? Or, have you ever felt out of step with your Unitarian Universalist congregation on a social justice issue? How did you handle the situation?
Allow five minutes for writing.
Now invite participants, each in turn, to offer a word, a phrase, or a brief sharing from their journaling that captures their thoughts or feelings as the workshop ends.
Have a volunteer come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and encourage participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: USING YOUR CONGREGATIONS POWER
Materials for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to consider power in their congregation, using these or similar words:
Remembering the definition of power—the ability to achieve purpose—make some notes in your journal about the way power is held and expressed in your congregation. You might use pictures, diagrams, paragraphs, poems—whatever facilitates your thinking. Consider concrete expressions of power, such as any building that your congregation owns, endowments or other legacies. Think about intangible assets that amplify power, such as the socio-economic or racial privilege of members, the educational background of members, the influence wielded through members' and staff's political affiliations or social networking opportunities, or the children who participate in the religious education program. What about the power of conviction? The role Unitarian Universalist faith plays in the lives of the members? Where and how does your congregation have power in your community?
Help the group outline some of these places of power in the congregation. Then, invite the group to think about how the congregation uses its power—its resources—to address issues of social justice in your community. Perhaps you are already involved in activities that transform your congregation's power into action. If so, name them. What additional ways could your congregation use its power to address social justice issues? For example, a congregation with a large building might work with local homeless services to offer shelter over the holidays. A congregation with a large endowment might create a nonprofit granting organization. A small congregation might use some of the educational resources of its members to organize a tutoring program. Encourage participants to list big dreams, or small steps, the congregation might take to use their power and resources for the transformation of our world. Decide together which ideas should be suggested to the congregation and its leadership, and make a plan to present the ideas.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
...though we are forced to dissent from them in matters of church discipline, yet our dissent is not taken up out of arrogance of spirit in ourselves, whom they see willingly condescend to learn of them, neither is it carrier with uncharitable censoriousness towards them, both which are the proper and essential characters of schism, but in meekness of wisdom... — from The Cambridge Platform
In this workshop, you have considered your personal relationship to power, based on the idea that everyone has some ability, position, and/or resources that empower them to act in the world. Start a conversation at home about this idea. Share your reflections on this issue and challenge friends or family members to reflect on their own power, where it comes from, and how they use it in the world.
Explore your congregation's practices and policies in regard to speaking or acting collectively for social justice; contact the minister or a lay leader to begin your research.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: ARE FREEDOM, REASON, AND TOLERANCE ENOUGH? (20 MINUTES)
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Read aloud these words of the historian Earl Morse Wilbur, from A History of Unitarianism; Socinianism and its Antecedents (Boston: Beacon Press, 1945, 1972):
It is intended here, therefore, to present not so much the history of a particular sect or form of Christian doctrine, as to consider broadly the development of a movement fundamentally characterized instead by its steadfast and increasing devotion to these three leading principles: first, complete mental freedom in religion rather than bondage to creeds or confessions; second, the unrestricted use of reason in religion, rather than reliance upon external authority or past tradition; third, generous tolerance of differing religious views and usages rather than insistence upon uniformity in doctrine, worship or polity.
Explain that Wilbur held that the values of freedom, reason, and tolerance are the unifying values of the Unitarian tradition. Wilbur claimed that the adherence to these shared values placed both the American Unitarians and the Polish Socinians in the same movement. Lead a conversation using these questions:
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 6:
STORY: THE CAMBRIDGE PLATFORM
Unitarian roots in North America stretch back to Puritan New England. Many of the original Puritan congregations, the oldest Protestant churches in the United States, are now Unitarian Universalist communities. Although Unitarian Universalists reject much of the theology of our Puritan ancestors, we continue to use their system of governance, called congregational polity. Congregational polity views each congregation as autonomous and its members bound to one another by voluntary agreement called covenant. Congregational polity was first articulated in the 1648 Cambridge Platform.
The Cambridge Platform was written in Cambridge, Massachusetts as a statement of religious freedom and a declaration of ecclesiastical independence from the Church of England. It was written during the English Civil War, a time of enormous social, economic, and political turmoil in Great Britain. Charles I had been executed and Oliver Cromwell and the English Parliament had replaced the English monarchy. As part of a movement to bring order and stability to England under the Puritan Cromwell regime, 109 "divines" and 24 Members of Parliament met in 1648 to determine the theology and system of governance of the Church of England, of which the Puritan churches in New England were members. The resulting Westminster Confession called for a presbyterian system of governance, whereby authority over the local congregation rests with a council made up of representatives drawn from all congregations. The New England Puritans disagreed strongly with the Westminster Confession. They believed each religious community should be self-governing and that religious authority lay with the members of the congregation, not an external body. The New England Puritans gathered in 1648 to reject the confession. When they articulated the principle of congregational polity in the Cambridge Platform, they effectively seceded from the English Church. The physical distance between the New England Puritans and the English Puritans was so great that the English government, with its limited resources, could do little to prevent the succession of the New England churches.
Though written in a time of turmoil, the Cambridge Platform has stood the test of time. In its particulars, the document no longer accurately describes either the governance or the theology of modern Unitarian Universalist communities, but the principle of congregational autonomy and self-governance it articulates and the movement for religious freedom it represents still profoundly influence on how we organize our congregations today.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 6:
HANDOUT 1: SOCINIANISM
Unitarianism first developed as an institutional movement during the Protestant Reformation in Europe. Transylvania and Poland, the countries where Unitarianism initially appeared, were far from the power centers of both the Catholic Church and the Magisterial, or mainstream, Reformation. It was precisely because of the distance from the power centers of Christian orthodoxy that early European Unitarianism was able to thrive. The fate of the Polish and Transylvanian Unitarian movements rose and fell with the relationship of those countries to the Catholic Church and the Magisterial Reformation.
The case of the Unitarian movement in Poland is particularly instructive in this regard. In 1565, the Reformed Church of Poland, a Calvinist body, split over doctrinal issues. The orthodox members of the Reformed Church held to a trinitarian understanding, believing that God the Father, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus Christ were all part of one divine being. The liberal members rejected trinitarian theology, in favor of a variety of different understandings of who Jesus was. Some liberals believed Jesus was fully human and not divine at all. Others argued that he was divine in some way but not equal to God the Father. All of the liberals agreed that the traditional Trinitarian views promoted by the orthodox lacked scriptural basis, and defied reason.
Despite these theological disagreements, the Polish liberals appealed for church unity. They argued that there should be room within the Reformed Church for a variety of viewpoints. The orthodox disagreed, and refused to affiliate with the liberals.
Once separated from the orthodox, the liberals quickly organized their own body, which they called the Minor Reformed Church of Poland. The church tolerated a wider divergence of views than many other churches of its day. Views of Jesus, for instance, ranged from those held by the minister Simon Bundy, who regarded Jesus to be fully human and as such did not invoke his name during worship, to others who affirmed Jesus' divinity but did not place him as an equal to God.
Members of the Minor Reformed Church sought a middle path between the social teachings of radical Anabaptists, who urged non-compliance with secular authorities and absolute pacifism, and those who argued that Christians must obey their government. Under the guidance of Faustus Socinus, the church's major theologian, the Minor Reformed Church developed a code of behavior that encouraged participation in the government as long as it was not in conflict with the teachings of Jesus or the individual's own conscience.
The Minor Reformed Church flourished from 1565 until 1660, at which time the power of the Catholic Church in Poland was again on the rise. The liberal Reformed community was suppressed by the Polish government and its members exiled.
During its brief existence, the Minor Reformed Church emphasized that living a Christian life was more important than adhering to a specific set of beliefs. The Minor Reformed Church's greatest accomplishments lie in the realm of education and theology. The founding members established the community of Rakow, near the Polish city of Krakow, as the unofficial headquarters of the Minor Reformed Church. In Rakow, they built a college and installed a printing press. The college became a center for liberal thinkers from across Europe; at its peak, about a third of its 1,000-member student body came from outside Poland. The printing press began to publish and disseminate the radical religious ideas of the movement. The Racovian Catechism (at www.uua.org/re/tapestry/adults/river/workshop2/workshopplan/handouts/175667.shtml), a document which outlined the basic teachings of the Minor Reformed Church, was translated into Latin, Dutch, English, and German within only a few years of its publication. As a result, the Polish catechism had an impact on religious thinkers throughout Europe, and helped influence the development of Unitarian thought in England.
FIND OUT MORE
For more information about Socinianism, read Faustus Socinus defined early Unitarianism (at www.uuworld.org/2004/06/lookingback.html) by Phillip Hewett, UU World November/December 2004.
The complete text of The Cambridge Platform (1648) can be found here (at books.google.com/books?id=aSkPAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Cambridge+Platform,+1648&hl=en&ei=l4awTZ--IITEgQeTkYT5Cw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false).
For a thorough, scholarly exploration of the challenges and opportunities of congregational polity, read The Lay and Liberal Doctrine of the Church: The Spirit and the Promise of Our Covenant (at minnslectures.org/archive/wesley/wesley.htm), 2000 Minns Lectures by Alice Blair Wesley.
Read an in-depth report that traces the history of congregational polity and explores contemporary challenges posed by this system of governance: Interdependence: Renewing Congregational Polity (at www.uua.org/governance/polity/index.shtml), the 1997 Commission on Appraisal Report to the Unitarian Universalist Association.
WORKSHOP 7: UTOPIANISM
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
Those of us who are alive in these times have a clear and evident mission. We have a compelling moral purpose that can direct our lives and our energies: We are about saving the world. So what is our part? The place is to begin at home- that is, with ourselves. Notice what is life-denying and resist it. Live with the moral authority that comes from compassion and non-violence. Form communities of people who will sustain you in living as you wish to live, whether they are study groups or alternative living arrangements or socially responsible, sustainable businesses. Our congregations must be central gathering places for such community. — Marilyn Sewell, "Reclaiming the American Dream," in A People So Bold
Simply defined, "Utopianism" is the belief that a vision of righteousness can be actualized in time and space. One can describe as "utopian" a community in which usual social norms are annulled as a means to reach a higher standard for human life in community. Four well known utopian communities are part of our Unitarian and Universalist histories: Rakow, in 17th-century Poland, and Brook Farm, Fruitlands, and Hopedale in mid-19th century New England. None of these communities lasted more than a couple of decades; most collapsed within a short time. Despite their brief existence, these communities have had lasting impact on Unitarian Universalism. Prominent Unitarian and Universalist theologians, literary figures, and activists including Faustus Socinus, Margaret Fuller, Adin Ballou, and Nathaniel Hawthorne were inspired by and involved with them. This workshop explores how these utopian communities have shaped Unitarian Universalist tradition and examines the relationship between Unitarian Universalist theology and utopian thought.
The workshop defines utopianism and its opposite, apocalypticism, before offering a brief history of Brook Farm and its relationship to the Transcendentalist movement. As participants learn the history of Brook Farm, they consider whether or not utopianism is an effective strategy for building and sustaining social justice movements. The workshop closes with a reflection on the ongoing relationship between utopianism and Unitarian Universalism.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 15 |
Activity 1: Utopianism and Apocalypticism | 25 |
Activity 2: Brook Farm — A Utopian Experiment | 20 |
Activity 3: Utopianism, Apocalypticism, and Environmentalism | 20 |
Faith in Action: Contemporary Utopian Movements | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: Your Utopian Community | 25 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
After reading the workshop plan, consider any experiences you have had with a utopian community. Have you ever been part of a cooperative living arrangement (even a temporary one, such as a summer community, a dormitory experience, or a youth conference)? What was it like? Did it have a lasting impact on you?
Read the definitions of utopianism and apocalypticism offered in Activity 1. Have you ever before explored utopian or apocalyptic thought in religion, philosophy, sociology, or political science? Can you observe ways utopian or apocalyptic ideas have influenced your life choices, perhaps including your choice of a religious community? Do you find one perspective more attractive than the other? Why or why not? As you lead this workshop, continue reflecting on the ways in which utopian and apocalyptic thought have driven your choices and actions. Encourage participants to do the same.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 in Singing the Living Tradition, "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the social justice hymn you have chosen.
After the song, invite everyone to reflect quietly on a time in their lives when they felt part of a community that lived by their values and modeled those values for others. After a minute, invite them to form pairs and describe their community experience to their partner. Explain that each person will have five minutes to speak uninterrupted. Ring a bell after five minutes and request that partners change speakers. After another five minutes, ring the bell and re-gather the large group.
Share this quote from George Ripley, founder of the Brook Farm utopian community:
I can imagine no plan which is suited to carry into effect so many divine ideas as this. If wisely executed, it will be a light over this country and this age. If not the sunrise, it will be the morning star... I wish to see a society of educated friends, working, thinking, and living together, with no strife, except that of each to contribute the most to the benefit of all.
Explain that this workshop will explore the concept of utopianism in Unitarian Universalist history, through the story of Brook Farm.
ACTIVITY 1: UTOPIANISM AND APOCALYPTISM (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 1, Utopianism and Apocalypticism. Allow participants a few minutes to read it silently. Then, invite comments, observations, and questions about the handout.
Have participants form small groups of three or four. Give each small group newsprint and markers and ask them to list examples of utopian and apocalyptic thought. Encourage them to consider contemporary examples, from both from within and outside Unitarian Universalism.
After about ten minutes, re-gather the large group.
Post a new sheet of newsprint, head two columns "utopian" and "apocalyptic," and invite each small group to post their newsprint and share. As each group presents, record their examples in the appropriate column. Ask if participants see any patterns. What major differences do they see between the examples of utopian and apocalyptic thought? Are there any similarities?
ACTIVITY 2: BROOK FARM — A UTOPIAN EXPERIMENT (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Have the volunteers read the story aloud.
Then, lead a discussion with these questions:
ACTIVITY 3: UTOPIANISM, APOCALYPTISM, AND ENVIRONMENTALISM (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Explain that this activity invites participants to explore how utopian and apocalyptic thought influence the contemporary environmental movement. Invite volunteers, one at a time, to read the quotes from Leader Resource 1, Environmentalism Quotes.
Lead a discussion using these questions:
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to respond, in writing:
What changes have you made in your life to implement your vision of a better world? What role does the vision you hold play in sustaining your actions?
Allow five minutes for writing.
Then, read this quotation—the same one that opens this workshop—from Marilyn Sewell, in "Reclaiming the American Dream" in A People So Bold (Boston: Skinner House, 2009):
Those of us who are alive in these times have a clear and evident mission. We have a compelling moral purpose that can direct our lives and our energies: We are about saving the world. So what is our part? The place is to begin at home—that is, with ourselves. Notice what is life-denying and resist it. Live with the moral authority that comes from compassion and non-violence. Form communities of people who will sustain you in living as you wish to live, whether they are study groups or alternative living arrangements or socially responsible, sustainable businesses. Our congregations must be central gathering places for such community.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: CONTEMPORARY UTOPIAN MOVEMENTS
Description of Activity
Home schooling is gaining popularity in some Unitarian Universalist communities. It could be argued that the home school movement is a type of utopian movement. Do you agree with this? If so, why? Do you home school? Does someone else in your congregation? Organize a conversation in your congregation about home schooling.
OR:
With your congregational social justice committee or another appropriate group, examine your congregation's work on environmental issues to discern apocalyptic thought and utopian thought. What rhetoric, imagery, and approaches to action have been most effective in calling your congregation to action on environmental issues? How might you increase the effectiveness of what already is working well and change what is not? How can using a utopian or apocalyptic approach help? Volunteer to contribute your insights and action to congregational efforts to preserve and protect the environment.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
Those of us who are alive in these times have a clear and evident mission. We have a compelling moral purpose that can direct our lives and our energies: We are about saving the world. So what is our part? The place is to begin at home—that is, with ourselves. Notice what is life-denying and resist it. Live with the moral authority that comes from compassion and non-violence. Form communities of people who will sustain you in living as you wish to live, whether they are study groups or alternative living arrangements or socially responsible, sustainable businesses. Our congregations must be central gathering places for such community. — Marilyn Sewell, "Reclaiming the American Dream," in A People So Bold
Pay attention to the formation of communities that sustain you in living as you wish to live. Are there such communities in your life? Would you like there to be? How might you go about forming or sustaining one? Invite members of your congregation and other friends to join you in paying special attention to the nurture of sustaining communities.
Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel The Blithedale Romance presents a fictionalized account of life at Brook Farm. Check it out from your local library and read it!
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: YOUR UTOPIAN COMMUNITY (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Participants imagine what their own utopian community might look like.
Distribute paper and set out writing and drawing implements to share. Invite participants to take 15 minutes to write or draw a description of a utopian community they envision.
After 15 minutes, ask participants to move into pairs and have each partner take five minutes to describe the community they have imagined.
Sound the bell or chime after five minutes and invite the second partner to take their turn. Sound it again after another five minutes.
Re-gather the large group and lead a discussion:
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 7:
STORY: BROOK FARM
Brook Farm is probably the best known of the three utopian communities started by Unitarians or Universalists in the mid 19th century. Instigated by the Unitarian minister and Transcendentalist George Ripley (1802-1880) and his wife Sophia (1803-1861), Brook Farm was an effort to, in Ripley's words, build a "city of God, anew."
The community lasted only six and a half years. During that time, it occupied an important place in various mid-19th century reform efforts, including associationism (an early form of socialism), abolition, women rights, and the Workingmen's Movement.
Brook Farm achieved fame because of its many prominent Transcendentalist and literary residents, supporters, visitors, and critics. Nathaniel Hawthorne was an early resident and penned his novel The Blithedale Romance as a satire of the community. Margaret Fuller, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Henry David Thoreau all visited Brook Farm.
In a letter to Emerson, George Ripley outlined his original vision for the community. He wrote:
Our objects, as you know, are to insure a more natural union between intellectual and manual labor than now exists; to combine the thinker and the worker...to guarantee the highest mental freedom, by providing all with labor, adapted to their tastes and talents...to do away the necessity of menial services, by opening the benefits of education and the profits of labor to all; and thus to prepare a society of liberal, intelligent, and cultivated persons, whose relations with each other would permit a more simple and wholesome life, than can be led amidst the pressure of our competitive institution.
The community was to include a farm and a school, which featured George Ripley and his friends as teachers.
Support for the new community was widespread but not universal. Emerson was invited to join Brook Farm but declined. Reflecting on his decision in his journal, he wrote, "I do not wish to remove from my present prison to a prison a little larger." Emerson suspected that communal living would not allow him to "find myself more than now" and that Brook Farm would be incapable of reforming or transforming its members. Such, transformation was, in his view, an individual project and he believed the individual's "solitude is more prevalent and beneficent than the concert of crowds."
Brook Farm launched on shaky financial ground. The Ripley's raised money by organizing the community as a joint-stock venture. To be a full member of the community, one had to purchase or pledge to purchase at least one 500 dollar share. Even though 24 shares were purchased or pledged, the money raised through the sale of stocks was insufficient to launch the enterprise—due, in part, to the fact that almost half the money pledged by stockholders was never paid. The balance of the money for start-up capital and the purchase of a dairy farm in West Roxbury, Massachusetts came as loans from the friends and neighbors of the Brook Farmers. The farm was immediately mortgaged to raise more funds.
Community members hoped to support themselves through their farming efforts and Brook Farm's boarding school. The reputation of the school rose quickly. Its students included Margaret Fuller's younger brother, Theodore Parker's ward, Emerson's nephew, and the children or charges of other prominent New Englanders.
The population at Brook Farm increased, reaching over 70 within a year of the community's founding. However, the success of the school and the growing population of Brook Farm did little to improve the community's finances. Several new buildings had to be built to accommodate new members, and the money for these building efforts was almost entirely borrowed. By its second year, Brook Farm was more than 15,000 dollars in debt.
The community's financial situation led the Brook Farm leadership to cast about for new sources of support. They quickly settled on the Associationist, or Fourierist, movement, inspired by the French socialist Charles Fourier (1772-1837). The Fourierists advocated the creation of highly ordered cooperative communities called phalanxes. Each phalanx was to be organized around a phalanstere, a massive four-story building that included living quarters, community space, and workshops. Phalanxes were to combine industry and agriculture and eliminate the social tension due to poverty by ensuring that each person's basic needs were met. Fourier thought the unusual living arrangements he envisioned would liberate women from what he viewed as the oppression of traditional family life.
To transform into a Fourierist community, Brook Farm had to de-emphasize the community's agricultural work and focus on the development of industry. The community launched several efforts, including the manufacture of shoes and pewterware and the creation of a printing press. By 1844, the new direction of Brook Farm had led to the resignation of most of the remaining founding members of the community (Hawthorne and others had left Brook Farm within the first year). The ranks of Brook Farm, however, were replenished by craftspeople who joined the community inspired by the Fourierist vision.
The community's debts continued to mount as efforts were directed to the construction of a phalanx. To raise Brook Farm's profile in the Fourierist movement and to increase the community's revenues, Ripley started to publish The Harbinger, an official periodical of the Fourierist movement, in 1845. The journal brought in some income and its literary and cultural pages received attention, yet it did not significantly alleviate the community's financial situation.
Brook Farm began to collapse in late 1845 when a smallpox epidemic broke out in the community. Parents and guardians withdrew their children from the school, effectively eliminating Brook Farm's one significant source of income. In early 1846, the community decided to concentrate its remaining resources on finishing the phalanstere in the hopes that completing the massive structure would win Brook Farm the financial support of the larger Fourierist movement. These hopes were dashed when a fire destroyed the building shortly before its completion.
The phalanstere was without insurance and its loss brought financial ruin. Within a year, Brook Farm was disbanded and the community's property sold to pay some of its debts.
George and Sophia Ripley moved to New York City where George Ripley became a respected journalist. The community was memorialized in fiction by Hawthorne and has been the subject of widespread scholarly interest.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 7:
HANDOUT 1: UTOPIANISM AND APOCALYPTICISM
Whether implicitly or explicitly, much of radical political thought falls within established patterns of either utopian or apocalyptic thought. Utopian thinkers believe a better society can be created in a particular place and time. They sometimes put this theory to the test by retreating to utopian communities where they seek to develop their vision of a perfect society free from the constraints of the dominant culture. Apocalyptic thinkers, however, believe a better society will come after an event which reorders human social structures. Progressive thinkers—including many Unitarians, Universalists, and Unitarian Universalists—have been influenced by both of these ideas in greater and lesser ways.
Utopian thinkers believe social transformation can take place in the present moment when people change the way they relate to each other. Rather than waiting for a new society to be born as a result of events in some distant future, they seek to create a new society by acting as if the new world has already arrived. The thought of such utopian thinkers might be best summed up by the peace activist and pacifist A.J. Muste who proclaimed:
There is no way to peace. Peace is the way.
Some utopian thinkers, such as the Jewish theologian Martin Buber and the Sufi Hakim Bey, argue that the utopian experience is by its very nature temporary. The vision of society utopians seek to create can never be realized for all time. It can only be approached in the moment when people live and act in accordance with their highest ideals.
Utopian practice and thought can be found in the efforts of our Unitarian and Universalist forebears to create utopian communities, including Rakow in 17th-century Poland, and, Hopedale, Brook Farm and Fruitlands in mid 19th-century New England. Utopian thinking informed a number of social justice movements and religious thinkers in our history. Henry David Thoreau, who refused to pay taxes to support the United States government's war with Mexico, can be understood as a utopian thinker. In his essay "Civil Disobedience," he argued that ending slavery did not require the changing of any laws but simply a choice on the part of people to refuse to cooperate with the laws that upheld slavery. In his view, noncompliance with the laws—acting as if they did not exist—would render such laws irrelevant and produce the abolition of slavery.
By contrast, subscribers to an apocalyptic worldview believe a better society will only come into being after some event causes a fundamental reordering of social and economic relations. Both secular and religious movements have underpinnings in apocalyptic thought. Secular adherents to apocalypticism believe that a human-created event, such a revolution, can bring about a new era of human relations. Believers in a religious apocalypse think a divine event, such as the coming of the Messiah, for example, will transform both humanity and the natural world.
By its very nature, early Universalist thought was a form of religious apocalypticism. Early Universalists believed either after death or at the end of times, all people would be transformed, and united with God. Apocalyptic thought appeared in the abolition movement when people such as John Brown and his supporters, among them Unitarians Theodore Parker, Thomas Wentworth Higginson, and Samuel Gridley Howe, sought to spark a revolution that would destroy slavery. Unitarians, including William Howard Taft, who argued for fighting World War I because it was a "war to end all wars," held a kind of apocalyptic world view. They claimed that permanent peace would come after the war's conclusion. In 1861, Unitarian Julia Ward Howe offered an apocalyptic vision in the famous lyrics of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic:"
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored.
He hath loosed the fateful lightening of his terrible swift sword.
His truth is marching on.
Though often presented as opposites, utopian and apocalyptic notions can sometimes be complementary. The contemporary environmental movement has both utopian and apocalyptic tendencies. Fears of catastrophic global warming, rising oceans, mass hunger, and extinction of species all have at least a tint of apocalypticism to them, offering a vision of environmental destruction as a way to spur a change in human behavior. Some of the proposals for delaying or avoiding these cataclysmic events are utopian in nature, asking people to live in a sustainable manner in the present moment, for example, decreasing behaviors that generate large amounts of carbon dioxide. Thus, a change of behavior in the present moment inspired by apocalyptic fears could alter, forestall or prevent a cataclysmic change in the environment, bringing humankind closer to living an environmentally utopian vision.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 7:
LEADER RESOURCE 1: ENVIRONMENTALISM QUOTES
(Humankind) ...has lost the capacity to foresee and to forestall... (and) ...will end by destroying the earth. — Albert Schweitzer
__________________________________________________________
We need to develop a sense of gratitude so deep that we are willing to consider our every action—large or small—every day—and make critical positive decisions for the health of our planet. We need to understand our direct dependence on Earth. If we continue on our current path, Descartes' words, "The unexamined life is not worth living," take on profound implications for our continued presence as a species on earth. — Judy Moors, Unitarian Universalist Church of Davis (California)
__________________________________________________________
A reduction in beef and other meat consumption is the most potent single act you can take to halt the destruction of our environment and preserve our natural resources. Our choices do matter. What's healthiest for each of us personally is also healthiest for the life support system of our precious, but wounded planet. — John Robbins, author of Diet for a New America
__________________________________________________________
All life is created in love, and thus in the depths of every human being lies a good heart. Some have lost their path from this love, so it up to us to show them the way. — Julia Butterfly Hill, environmental activist
___________________________________________________________
Every day is Earth Day. — author unknown
FIND OUT MORE
See the online Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography entries on Brook Farm (at www25.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/brookfarm.html) and George Ripley (at www25.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/georgeripley.html).
UU Ministry for Earth (at uumfe.org/about_uumfe) is an affiliate organization of the UUA whose purpose is to inspire, facilitate and support personal, congregational and denominational practices that honor and sustain the Earth and all beings.
Investigate ways to form and support sustaining communities, within and outside of your congregation:
Common Security Clubs (at commonsecurityclub.org/index.php) are secular communities whose purpose is to learn together, provide mutual aid, and engage in social action.
Small Group Ministry or Covenant Groups (at www.smallgroupministry.net/start/index.html) in congregations are intentional lay-led small groups whose purpose is to build strong relationships, engage with meaningful issues, develop leadership, and inspire action.
WORKSHOP 8: COUNTER-CULTURE
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
Those who find the more conventional communities unsatisfactory sometimes band together to form a new kind of community—an experiment. The kibbutz, Brook Farm, Amana, and Summerhill are diverse examples of such communities.
On a limited basis, LRY is also an experimental community. Sharing interests, ideas, many of the same problems and visions, we try to relate to each other, and through each other, to the society beyond. — from the "Concepts of Community" in the Liberal Religious Youth 1968 Continental Conference program
The autonomous Unitarian Universalist youth movement Liberal Religious Youth (LRY) was heavily influenced by and involved in the counter-culture of the 1960s and early 1970s. Members of LRY challenged gender norms, organized against the Vietnam War, experimented with drugs, and rejected many accepted social standards. Often they organized conferences and other gatherings where conventional social norms were temporarily suspended. Some experienced these events as brief utopian spaces—what the author Hakim Bey calls temporary autonomous zones—where a new society could be glimpsed and even experienced. Sometimes what happened at these events influenced not only Unitarian Universalism but the larger culture. For example, Tom Wolfe's book The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test recounts the story of a Unitarian Universalist conference that took place in the mid-1960s in Asilomar, California that was one of the starting points of the decade's psychedelic drug culture. Eager for Unitarian Universalism to be at the vanguard of social change, including the use of psychedelic drugs to heighten spiritual experience, a group of ministers called the Young Turks invited Ken Kesey and his Merry Pranksters to the conference. The group shared both their lifestyle and drugs with many of the youth and adults in attendance. However, incidents like the one at Asilomar were not typical.
Today, creating temporary community where typical social conventions are suspended is still appealing to many Unitarian Universalists, in our youth movement and beyond. Unitarian Universalists of all ages report that their experiences at camps and conferences allow them to escape the norms of the dominant culture and explore an alternative value system. Some claim their experiences at camps and conferences are life-changing. Using the Unitarian Universalist youth movement as a case study, this workshop asks: Are these counter-cultural experiences actually transformative? Do Unitarian Universalist camps and conferences give us opportunities for social experiment and revitalization not available elsewhere? How much have they shaped contemporary Unitarian Universalism? Do they help us share transformation outside our movement? How are they a manifestation of a parallel approach to social justice work?
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 5 |
Activity 1: The Temporary Autonomous Zone | 30 |
Activity 2: LRY, Cons, and the Counter-Culture | 25 |
Activity 3: Counter-Culture and Unitarian Universalism | 20 |
Faith in Action: Sharing Camp Experiences | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: The Love Feast | 30 |
Alternate Activity 2: Creating Safe Space | 30 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
After reading the workshop plan, ask yourself if you have had an experience with a temporary autonomous zone. What was it like? Did it have a lasting impact on your life? Did it occur in a Unitarian Universalist context? Was the temporary autonomous zone created intentionally or did it develop spontaneously?
If you have not had experience with a temporary autonomous zone, can you imagine what such an experience might be like? Why, or why not? As you lead this workshop, articulate how you understand temporary autonomous zones and their role in social justice work. Encourage participants to do the same.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition: "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
After the song, read these words of Jason Happel, quoted in We Would Be One by Wayne Arnason and Rebecca Scott:
We always talked about the otherworldiness of youth group, the sense of community—which, for us, meant a feeling of acceptance by others. Ask anyone who was involved in youth conferences and they will remark on the intensity of the experience. We were free from all social conventions and labels. It was an experience of revolutionary freedom that would haunt me for the rest of my life.
Tell participants that this workshop explores the concept of temporary autonomous zones, brief utopian spaces where normal social rules are suspended and people live according to their values. The workshop examines the relationship between the Unitarian Universalist organization Liberal Religious Youth (LRY) and the 1960s counter-culture, and explores the role of temporary autonomous zones in contemporary Unitarian Universalist life.
ACTIVITY 1: THE TEMPORARY AUTONOMOUS ZONE (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 1, The Temporary Autonomous Zone. Read it aloud, or invite participants to read it silently to themselves.
Invite questions or comments. Then, post blank newsprint and lead the group to brainstorm examples of temporary autonomous zones, recording their contributions. Allow five minutes for this part of the activity.
Now, invite participants to consider whether they have had any personal experience with a temporary autonomous zone, or been part of a group that temporarily suspended social norms. If these are not listed on newsprint, suggest: a political affinity group, a consciousness raising group, an outdoor concert, or even a group of friends that meet regularly to share meal preparation. Say:
If you have ever participated in such a group, please offer your experience as an example.
Now post the questions you have written on newsprint. Invite participants to take five minutes to recall their experiences or respond to the posted questions, making notes in their journal.
After five minutes, have participants move into groups of three to share their reflections.
Allow ten minutes for small group sharing. Then, re-gather the large group and invite participants to add to the brainstormed list of temporary autonomous zones.
Invite participants to name some emotions, observations, and questions that have emerged from their conversation about temporary autonomous zones. Engage conversation, using these questions:
ACTIVITY 2: LRY, CONS, AND THE COUNTER-CULTURE (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce the activity by explaining that participants will examine an example of a Unitarian Universalist temporary autonomous zone. Distribute Handout 2, LRY, Cons, and the Counter-Culture, and invite participants to read the handout silently. When everyone has finished reading, invite questions and comments. Engage the group in discussion using these questions:
ACTIVITY 3: COUNTER-CULTURE AND UNITARIAN UNIVERSALISM (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Participants examine the extent to which Unitarian Universalism belongs to the dominant culture and the extent to which it is counter-cultural.
Invite participants to brainstorm a list of the values and activities of the dominant culture. Record their responses on newsprint. After about five minutes, or once the list appears complete, direct the group's attention to the second sheet of newsprint and share:
Religious scholar Mark Oppenheimer defines a counter-culture "as offering a self-sustaining alternative model of culture.
Invite participants to name values and activities that counter the dominant culture. Record their responses on the second sheet of newsprint. Encourage discussion when participants disagree about the list on which a value or activity belongs. Add the item to both sheets if the group cannot come to agreement.
When the lists seem complete, invite participants to consider which items on both lists are also part of Unitarian Universalist culture. Give each participant ten sticky dots and ask them to place a dot next to items they believe to be part of Unitarian Universalist culture. Some items will receive multiple dots and others fewer, or none. When all dots have been placed, examine the lists together. Lead a discussion using these questions:
Including All Participants
If any participants have mobility challenges, replace the sticky dot activity by inviting the group to indicate by a show of hands which items on each list they perceive to be consistent with Unitarian Universalist culture; tally the responses on the newsprint.
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite everyone to respond, in their journals:
What place do you think temporary autonomous zones have in your work for social justice?
Allow five minutes for writing.
Share this quote, from the catalog of Rowe Camp, a workshop and retreat center that attracts many Unitarian Universalists:
... magic is never far away. It's just around the corner, just down the wooded path, in the radiant eyes of the person across from us at lunch, in the Aha! of a sudden insight. This is the wonder of the ordinary miraculous, and it's everywhere. We take it in every time we breathe in and send it back into the universe with each exhalation.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: SHARING CAMP EXPERIENCES
Description of Activity
Invite some children, youth, or adults who have attended a Unitarian Universalist camp or conference to come and share their experiences and impressions with the group. Explore these questions:
Alternatively, attend a Unitarian Universalist youth conference or camp as an adult advisor or chaperone. Keep a journal of your experiences and meaningful conversations you have. Reflect: Do you think the experience is, or will be, transformative for you? Was it transformative for the youth? Did you learn anything about social justice? Did the conference create a temporary autonomous zone? If so, what rules of the dominant culture were suspended? How did the suspension of norms shape the atmosphere of the conference? Its effect on you?
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
Those who find the more conventional communities unsatisfactory sometimes band together to form a new kind of community—an experiment. The kibbutz, Brook Farm, Amana, and Summerhill are diverse examples of such communities.
On a limited basis, LRY is also an experimental community. Sharing interests, ideas, many of the same problems and visions, we try to relate to each other, and through each other, to the society beyond. — from the "Concepts of Community" in the Liberal Religious Youth 1968 Continental Conference program
Plan a small dinner party or another social event, inviting people who might be interested in creating a temporary autonomous zone. Explain the concept and invite your guests to consider together suspending certain norms from the dominant culture and creating a temporary community where a new kind of society can be glimpsed, or even experienced.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: THE LOVE FEAST (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to place their food contributions on the table when they arrive.
Introduce the activity with these or similar words:
A love feast is a ritual meal sometimes shared during a youth conference. The objective of the meal is to build intimacy and community among the participants. The ambiance of the love feast can add a lot to the experience. Sometimes the ritual features special music and decorations. Sometimes participants feed one another with their fingers and other times with utensils, although utensils and/or toothpicks will likely make an adult group more comfortable.
Begin the love feast by reading the story aloud. Explain that the love feast operates with one simple rule: You may eat whatever you like as long as you do not feed yourself. Invite all to participate. The ritual ends whenever everyone has finished eating.
If you have time, invite participants to share their impressions or experiences of the love feast. Alternatively, encourage them to write about the love feast in their journals.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 2: CREATING SAFE SPACE (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce the activity using these or similar words:
The term "safe space" has come to define a community or a physical location where people from culturally marginalized groups such as BGLT (Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender) people and People of Color can speak freely about their identities and issues that affect their lives. Camps and conferences have sometimes functioned as safe spaces for Unitarian Universalists. This is particularly true for Unitarian Universalist youth. Many youth have found the chance to speak openly and honestly with other Unitarian Universalist youth and youth-friendly adults to be vital to their spiritual development. At times, the atmosphere of tolerance that often pervades camps and conferences has been challenging for some youth who are not developmentally ready for the freedom and responsibility of youth-led events. With this in mind, congregations, UUA districts, and Unitarian Universalist camps and conference centers have done much work in recent years to address those issues and assure safe space for youth.
Post blank newsprint and invite participants to identify the characteristics of a safe space. Brainstorm and record their contributions.
Invite participants to move into groups of three or four. Give each group newsprint and markers and invite them to come up with a definition of safe space. After ten minutes, re-gather the large group and invite each small group to share their definition. Lead a discussion, using these questions:
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 8:
STORY: THE LOVE FEAST
Medieval Jewish story, told in John A. Buehrens and Forrest Church, A Chosen Faith (Boston: Beacon Press, 1998).
A rabbi spoke with God about heaven and hell. "I will show you hell," God said, and they went into a room which had a large pot of stew in the middle. The smell was delicious, but around the pot sat people who were famished and desperate. All were holding spoons with very long handles which reached to the pot, but because the handles of the spoons were longer than their arms, it was impossible to get the stew back into their mouths. "Now I will show you heaven," God said, and they went into an identical room. There was a similar pot of stew, and the people had identical spoons, but they were well nourished and happy. "It's simple," God said. "You see, they have learned to feed one another."
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 8:
HANDOUT 1: THE TEMPORARY AUTONOMOUS ZONE
The history of Brook Farm (see Workshop 7) demonstrates the difficulty of creating a successful and lasting utopian community. However strong the desire to do so, the likelihood is small that a community can sustain itself when it is organized around values different from those of the dominant culture. Financial and other outside pressures are often too much to bear. Most efforts to create enduring utopian communities have failed within a few years.
However, the experience that utopian communities seek to create—a vision of justice and equality realized in a particular time and place—happens more often than many suspect. These experiences occur whenever two or more people gather and treat each other with equity and compassion. The Sufi writer Hakim Bey has named this phenomenon the "temporary autonomous zone."
Temporary autonomous zones are places where—for however brief a time—a community flourishes by experiencing and embracing values counter to those of the dominant culture. Rather than just conceptualizing a community where members live according to their values, participants in a temporary autonomous zone actually embody those values in their interactions with each other. The experiences that people have in temporary autonomous zones can be transformative. Such experiences suggest that another world, one with different values and social norms, is possible. Some people believe so because they have lived in it, even if only briefly.
In his work "The Temporary Autonomous Zone," Bey argues that temporary autonomous zones come in many forms and have occurred at many times throughout human history. He posits that communities as widely varied as revolutionary communes, 18th-century pirate enclaves, contemporary all night dance parties and the common dinner party can all be described as temporary autonomous zones.
Many people experience temporary autonomous zones at Unitarian Universalist camps and conferences. The conferences offer a week-long or weekend space where participants create a transient community that reflects Unitarian Universalist values. Many report that such experiences are transformative. For some, especially youth, the time spent in the transient and temporary communities of camps and conferences is as central to their understanding of Unitarian Universalism as their participation in a congregation. This suggests that, for at least some Unitarian Universalists, temporary autonomous zones play an important part in supporting their ongoing faith development.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 8:
HANDOUT 2: LRY, CONS, AND THE COUNTER CULTURE
The 1960s were a time of turbulent social change. Movements in opposition to the Vietnam War and for the rights of racial minorities, women, gays and lesbians, and other culturally marginalized groups grew alongside a youth culture that experimented with drugs, challenged social norms, and created new art forms and music.
Many young Unitarian Universalists were deeply involved in both the emerging youth culture and the movements for social change. One of their principal vehicles for engagement was the Unitarian Universalist youth organization, Liberal Religious Youth (LRY). LRY existed between 1954 and 1982 and was organized on the congregational, federation, and continental levels. Federations were groups of congregational youth groups that joined together to hold periodic conferences. Called rallies, or cons, these overnight youth-organized events lasted anywhere from a single night to a week or longer.
Conferences could be life-changing experiences for participants. They were almost entirely youth-organized and -directed and were often the first experience -LRYers had away from parental supervision. One former conference participant described the events this way:
Ask anyone who was involved in youth conferences and they will remark on the intensity of the experience. We were free from all social conventions and labels. It was an experience of revolutionary freedom that would haunt me for the rest of my life.
Another member of LRY wrote about his conference memories:
...there was a feeling that years of experience were being compressed into a mere twenty-four hours. There was the getting out of a sleeping bag and discovering fields and the early morning sound of the stream and friends, real friends, stepping out with a shout of morning to each other. Here was everyone in a fresh world, free because we had made our own rules and were building our own society, if only for a week.
The freedom that LRY afforded meant that youth sometimes engaged in behaviors they might not have done under the watchful eyes of their parents or other adults. It was possible at conferences to shed social norms and sometimes, despite community rules to the contrary, experiment with sex and drugs. For some, these experiences were transformative. Others experienced them as unsafe, abusive, or damaging.
At least one intergenerational conference helped spark the 60s drug culture. A group of young Unitarian Universalist ministers calling themselves the Young Turks invited Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters to a week-long conference in Asilomar, California. The Merry Pranksters travelled across the country promoting psychedelic drug use, non-conformity, and personal and societal transformation. (In the mid-1960s, substances such as the hallucinogenic LSD had not yet become illegal.) The presence of the Merry Pranksters at the conference quickly divided participants, largely along generational lines. There were those who were "on the bus" with the Merry Pranksters and those who were "off the bus." By the end of the week, some LRYers had experimented with drugs and the Young Turks had become convinced that Unitarian Universalism needed to be transformed to meet the needs of the younger generation. As a movement, Unitarian Universalism had taken a step closer to the counter-culture.
Incidents like the conference at Asilomar were rare. The majority of youth-organized events focused on youth empowerment and autonomy. Rule breakers and drug users were usually prohibited from participating in LRY events. For many participants, including former LRYer and recent UUA President Bill Sinkford, LRY "offered opportunities for leadership, empowered me, and offered me a place where I 'fit.'" It provided a community where young Unitarian Universalists could push the boundaries of both social conventions and their own developing personalities.
LRY was dissolved in 1982, and replaced by a new youth organization, Young Religious Unitarian Universalists (YRUU), which served Unitarian Universalist Youth for 27 years. In 2009, the UUA Board and General Assembly received the report of the Youth Ministry Working Group, a report that resulted from a four-year process of re-examining ministry to Unitarian Universalist youth. Among other recommendations, the report called for youth ministry that is spirit-filled, congregationally-based, robust, flexible, and diverse. Much has changed about Unitarian Universalist youth culture since the days of LRY, but youth still long to be part of temporary communities that invite and allow them to live Unitarian Universalist values. In local youth groups, at camps and conferences, at district and regional events, on social action or mission trips, or at General Assembly, the youth community, a temporary autonomous zone, can provide an important vehicle for growing faith and Unitarian Universalist identity.
FIND OUT MORE
The Temporary Autonomous Zone
Liberal Religious Youth (LRY)
WORKSHOP 9: FREE SPEECH
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
We consider the House Committee's inquiry into speakers, meetings and activities of the church an attack upon our institution and on all organized religion and our nation's tradition of the free conscience and the open mind. — Paul Kelley, chairman, in a statement from the First Church Los Angeles Board of Trustees, September 1951
The right to speak one's mind is one of the founding principles of the United States of America. "Free speech" is secured by the First Amendment to the Constitution alongside freedom of religion, of the press, and of assembly. These principles are basic to the society in which we live. But is it the work of religious institutions to safeguard these key freedoms?
There are certainly many religious traditions that do not consider "free speech" to be fundamental to their work. In Unitarian Universalism, however, we have a long tradition of open debate. Many take it for granted that Unitarian Universalists ardently support the right to free expression, regardless of the political context. However, it is not always so cut-and-dry.
This workshop examines a time in our history when the issue of free speech was the focus of both national and intra-religious debate. In the anti-Communist fervor of the mid-20th century, the United States House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) actively pursued anyone who might be considered a Communist or "fellow traveler." The Rev. Stephen Fritchman of the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles was the first member of the clergy HUAC called to testify. Although many in the Unitarian world, including the president of the American Unitarian Association (AUA), supported Rev. Fritchman's refusal to answer questions or name associates, there was much debate in Unitarian circles about how best to deal with the perceived threat of Communism.
In 1951, First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles refused to sign the loyalty oath imposed by the Levering Act in the State of California and, as a result, temporarily lost their tax-exempt status. The congregation was one of several to fight the imposition of the loyalty oath on religious groups all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States, where the congregations eventually prevailed.
Fritchman and the congregants of First Church considered free speech to be a defining issue of their time. Through first-person accounts, this workshop invites participants to consider the importance of free speech as a social justice issue today.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 5 |
Activity 1: Introduction to HUAC | 25 |
Activity 2: The Levering Act | 30 |
Activity 3: Is Free Speech Fundamental? | 20 |
Faith in Action: Freedom of Speech as a Social Justice Issue | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: Script — A Transcript from a HUAC Hearing | 15 |
Alternate Activity 2: The Right Not To Speak | 15 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
If you were born before 1950, you may have experienced the era of Senator McCarthy and intense anti-Communism first-hand. If so, recall what it was like for you. What is your understanding of the "Red Scare?" What impressions did you get from the media at the time? Did you know your family's opinions? Did you agree, or disagree?
If you did not live through this era yourself, talk with someone who did. It is easy to forget the sense of imminent danger from Communism that prevailed after World War II. Read the first-hand accounts in the workshop handouts, and assess your reaction to their emotionally charged language and passionate engagement. Because events explored in this workshop likely occurred during the lifetimes of some members of the group, some may wish to share personal experiences; workshops such as this one sometimes generate unexpected emotional responses. Encourage participants to claim their own stories without imposing them on others. Be ready to respond with compassion and without judgment.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 in Singing the Living Tradition, "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
After the song, explain that this workshop focuses on the idea of free speech and uses a case study from the 1950s, when a national fear of Communism, the enforcement of loyalty oaths, and the publicized hearings of the House Committee on Un-American Activities reached deep into the heart of our religious life.
Share this quote from a resolution passed by both the UCA (Universalist Church of America) and the AUA (American Unitarian Association) at their respective meetings in 1951:
Whereas certain men have persecuted many innocent persons with accusations of disloyalty, and in their fear, many are trying to censor free speech, free teaching, and communication, we resolve to affirm loyalty to the freedom of the mind to believe and of the tongue to speak what the mind believes. We condemn all persecution of persons for belief without evidence of treason, all enforced submission to doctrine, religious or political. And we assert that national security is guarded more through freedom and constructive criticism than could ever be through the silence of conformity and fear.
ACTIVITY 1: INTRODUCTION TO HUAC (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
This activity offers a snapshot of the House Un-American Activities Committee and its relationship with American life, and liberal religion in particular. It invites participants to form an impression of HUAC and the experience of those who testified, rather than inviting them into a discussion or conversation about it. Some may want more of a verbal debate, as this topic often stirs up strong opinions. Encourage participants to try and let go of the need to "discuss" these events and assure them that there will be more in-depth conversation later on in the workshop.
Distribute Handout 1, Rev. Stephen Fritchman and the House Un-American Activities Committee. Give participants a few moments to read it. Take one or two minutes to discuss any factual questions that come up. You are not expected to be an expert on this topic, and there may be questions to which you do not know the answer. Post a sheet of newsprint and have a volunteer from the group record unanswered questions for you or a volunteer to research later. If the conversation veers away from a basic understanding of the events, remind participants there will be time later in the workshop to talk in more depth.
Invite participants to get comfortable in their chairs, or find a spot on the floor if they choose, and prepare for a short guided reflection. Explain that you will read a first-hand account of testimony at a HUAC hearing. Invite them to close their eyes. Ring the bell or chime. Slowly read Leader Resource 1, What Was It Like? A First-hand Account of HUAC aloud. Allow about 30 seconds of silence at the end of the reading. Then ring the chime or bell as a signal that the reflection time is over.
Invite participants to turn to a partner and share their responses to the meditation. After five minutes, re-gather the group. Engage them in conversation about the experience of going before HUAC. Possible questions include:
ACTIVITY 2: THE LEVERING ACT (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Indicate the two sheets of newsprint you have posted. Share Leader Resource 2, The Levering Act with the group as your co-facilitator or a volunteer records items from the reading that belong under the newsprint headers. For example, "Rev. Fritchman" will be listed as a key player and "tax-exempt" as a key term. Pause as you are reading, to allow the group and scribe to make note of these pieces of information.
After the reading, invite participants to suggest additional items for the two lists.
Invite participants to form two groups, calling them Group A and Group B. Groups need not be equal in number, as long as there are some people in each. Once participants have moved into groups, explain that they will stage a mock board meeting at a congregation faced with signing the California Loyalty Oath.
Distribute Handout 2, The California Loyalty Oath. Explain that the "board" must decide at this meeting whether or not to sign. Individuals in Group A will argue against signing, and individuals in Group B will argue in favor of signing. Explain that they will not act as a team, but rather as a group of board members with differing opinions and perspectives. Invite participants to take a few moments to read the handout and think over their positions; suggest they use the newsprint lists as a guide.
Begin the mock board meeting by reading aloud Handout 2, The California Loyalty Oath. Invite participants to express their assigned opinions and make arguments to justify their positions. Act as the board chair, keeping discussion moving and inviting all to participate. Be sure these points are considered in the course of the discussion:
After ten minutes of discussion, call for a vote and end the meeting. Invite reflection on these questions:
Distribute Handout 3, This Could Happen Here. Explain that the First Unitarian Church in Los Angeles used this brochure to raise money for their fight against the loyalty oath. Invite participants to comment on the brochure.
ACTIVITY 3: IS FREE SPEECH FUNDAMENTAL? (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce the activity with these or similar words:
Many Unitarians disagreed with Rev. Fritchman and First Unitarian's position. Correspondence from the period, including letters to the American Unitarian Association and to the denominational magazines, shows many people thought there were more important issues at stake than free speech. As Mary Lake of the Unitarian Church of Albany wrote, "This small group of Unitarians, because they are so vocal, get the headlines and are deemed by many as the spokesmen for our Unitarian fellowship. They certainly are not making a salutary contribution to our public relations, or to the advance of the Unitarian movement." Some argued that the time and money spent fighting the loyalty oath could be better spent on more concrete social justice actions, such a feeding the hungry.
The Rev. Donald Harrington, minister of Community Church in New York and a strong social justice advocate, joined many others with his belief that tolerating or permitting any hint of Communist sympathy in the church would lead to the erosion of liberal principles.
Read aloud this excerpt from Harrington's January 19, 1947 letter, which he called "How Communists Aid Fascists:"
The main point is that the liberal movement in this country has been rendered largely ineffective in its fight against fascism by the infiltration of the Communists into it. The Communists have rendered the liberal movement vulnerable because of their slavish devotion to Moscow... Until the liberal movement has purged itself of its Communists, it will be unable to carry on effectively the fight against fascism... Bill (the person to whom the letter is responding) would defend the right of a Unitarian to be a Communist. That is all right if that Unitarian is a schizophrenic. Let us recall that the Communists believe in dictatorship and the suppression of freedom of speech, and of the press, and of strikes, and of free labor, and of freedom from arbitrary search and arrest. If any Unitarian believing in the principle of the free mind and cherishing the methods of democracy can be a Communist, he must also be either a schizophrenic or a Communist conspirator, trying to use Unitarianism for Communist purposes. Anyone who knows what a Unitarian is and what a Communist is knows that you can't be both at the same time.
Invite participants to respond:
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to respond, in writing:
Would you defend, or have you defended, the right of free speech for an organization or person that you, personally, abhorred? Recall and describe a circumstance or time in your life when your understanding of the right to "free speech" presented a moral dilemma or a decision that made you feel conflicted.
Allow five minutes for writing.
Invite participants to briefly share any closing thoughts about the workshop or their journal entries.
Ask a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: FREEDOM OF SPEECH AS A SOCIAL JUSTICE ISSUE
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to consider any social justice activities they are involved with personally or through the congregation that depend on their right to free speech or freedom of expression. What insights or cautions from the responses of Unitarians in the McCarthy Era offer help with today's social justice work? Join your congregation's efforts on a free speech or freedom of expression project.
And/or, work with your congregation's formal or informal historians to discover congregational stories and additional information from the McCarthy Era. Post the list of questions created during Activity 1 or generate a new list of questions about the era and your congregation's responses; assign volunteers to research the answers. Arrange a time and a process for researchers to report their findings to the group and to the congregation as a whole.
Note: FBI files on congregations are available through the Freedom of Information Act. A request for information on your congregation might turn up some interesting events. Consider contacting the FBI (at foia.fbi.gov/) and making this request.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
We consider the House Committee's inquiry into speakers, meetings and activities of the church an attack upon our institution and on all organized religion and our nation's tradition of the free conscience and the open mind. — Paul Kelley, chairman, in a statement from the First Church Los Angeles Board of Trustees, September 1951
Although the accusation of being a "Communist sympathizer" may not lead to a prison sentence anymore, it still could ruin a politician's chance at elected office. Keep your ears open for other words and phrases that people use today to silence debate—words that discourage an open exchange of ideas. Hot-button issues like race, class, and political affiliation are breeding grounds for terms that provoke an immediate emotional response. Take note of when and where you hear such terms, whether you think they can sometimes be useful, and when you might use them yourself.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: SCRIPT — A TRANSCRIPT FROM A HUAC HEARING (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite the volunteer actors to present the transcript.
Afterward, ask them to briefly say how it felt to read their parts.
Invite participants to respond to the presentation:
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 2: THE RIGHT NOT TO SPEAK (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce the activity with these or similar words:
Often when we think of "free speech" we think of the right to say what we want without government censorship or retribution. But free speech is also about the right not to speak, the right to refuse to support the government's actions, to incriminate ourselves, or to endorse a document with which we disagree. In the case of the McCarthy hearings, people were imprisoned for what they did not say. The refusal to cooperate with the Committee was interpreted as "contempt" and brought jail sentences of up to a year for witnesses who would not name associates. In the case of the Levering Act, the refusal to sign the loyalty oath brought the congregation in Los Angeles into conflict with the state.
Call attention to the posted questions and invite participants to break into groups of three to respond. Allow 10 minutes for small group sharing. Sound the chime when 10 minutes have passed.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 9:
HANDOUT 1: REV. STEPHEN FRITCHMAN AND THE HOUSE UN-AMERICAN ACTIVITIES COMMITTEE
The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) was established in 1938 as a special investigating committee of the House of Representatives, and after World War II became a standing committee of the House. Originally intended to investigate people who may have been involved in Nazi or Klu Klux Klan activities, HUAC became better known for its pursuit of those who were suspected of being members of the Communist Party and sympathetic "fellow travelers" of Communists. It was abolished in 1975.
During the late 1940s and early 1950s, anti-Communist sentiment was at a peak. This was the era of Senator Joseph McCarthy, blacklisting, and the infamous Hollywood Ten (members of the film industry who received prison sentences for refusing to cooperate with the Committee). During this time, the Rev. Stephen Fritchman had two encounters with HUAC.
In October of 1946, Rev. Fritchman was serving as the editor of The Christian Register, the official publication of the American Unitarian Association. He had already come under fire for giving the Register a bent, which many found pro-Communist. He was outspoken in his dislike of HUAC and had authored a letter for a mass appeal for funds to campaign for the abolition of the Committee. He was subpoenaed to appear before the Committee on October 23 and testify under oath. He was asked about his attitude toward Communists, Communist organizations, and "Communist-front" organizations. Fritchman told the Committee he was not in close communication with any of these and that he resented the question.
Five years later, Fritchman was called before HUAC a second time, after he had been ousted as editor of the Register and while he was serving as the minister of the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles. This time, Fritchman was prepared to "take the Fifth" and be considered an uncooperative witness. This meant risking a year of jail time for being in contempt of Congress. During his interview, he was asked to repeat the names of the Trustees of the Church, to describe the organizations who had rented space at the church, and to identify certain people who the Committee suspected of Communist affiliations. Finally, Fritchman was asked point blank if he was a member of the Communist Party. In a response that created much controversy in Unitarian circles, Fritchman refused to answer one way or another.
This lack of a denial caused years of speculation within the Unitarian establishment. Although Fritchman referred to his 1947 testimony as his definitive statement about his lack of ties to Communist groups, his unwillingness to give a clear "No" to this question was fodder for his critics and those who believed Communism was a dangerous ideology and a threat to freedom. While many Unitarian leaders deplored the actions and activities of HUAC, they also opposed Communism on moral and religious grounds and were uncomfortable with Fritchman's position and action.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 9:
HANDOUT 2: THE CALIFORNIA LOYALTY OATH
Paragraph 32. DECLARATION OF LOYALTY UPON CLAIMING EXEMPTION: EFFECT OF FAILURE TO DECLARE LOYALTY
Any statement, return, or other document in which is claimed any exemption, other than the householder's exemption, any property tax imposed by this State, or and county, city, or county, city, district, political subdivision, authority, board, bureau, commission, or other public agency of this state shall contain a declaration that the person or organization making the statement, return, or other document does not advocate the overthrow of the Government of the United States or of the State of California by force or violence or other unlawful means nor advocate the support of a foreign government against the United States in event of hostilities. If any such statement, return or other document does not contain such a declaration to person or organization making such a statement, return or other document shall not receive any exemption from the tax to which the statement, return, or other document pertains. Any person or organization who makes such a declaration knowing it to be false is guilty of felony. This section shall be construed so as to effectuate the purpose of Section 19 of Article XX of the Constitution. (Added by Stats. 1953 eh 1503 paragraph 1).
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 9:
HANDOUT 3: THIS COULD HAPPEN HERE
Brochure prepared by the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles in 1954. Used with the congregation's permission.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 9:
HANDOUT 4: TESTIMONY BEFORE HUAC
Excerpted from more than 10 hours of testimony given by Bishop G. Bromley Oxnam of the Methodist Church. Transcript published in U.S. News and World Report. August 7, 1953 and available in full on the Internet Archive website.
Rep. Velde of Illinois (chairman of the Committee) Mr. Kunzig (prosecutor for the Committee) Rep. Jackson of California (member of the Committee) Bishop Oxnam
Public Hearing: Tuesday, July 21, 1953. United States House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities, Washington D.C.
Rep. Velde: Mr. Counsel, will you please call the witness.
Mr. Kunzig: Will Bishop Oxnam please step forward?...
Mr. Kunzig: Do you know Rev. Stephen H. Fritchman?
Bishop Oxnam: Yes, I do.
Mr. Kunzig: Did you, on occasion, speak at Rev. Stephen H. Fritchman's church in Los Angeles?
Bishop Oxnam: Mr. Chairman, I am going to answer this and I think you are going to reprimand me, sir, but this is a very vicious procedure. Dr. Fritchman held a very high position in the Unitarian Church. He was the editor of the Christian Register. He subsequently became —
Rep. Velde: Would you be good enough to answer the question?
Bishop Oxnam: I cannot answer it without doing myself damage and there has been enough of that.
Rep Velde: The reason I ask you this is that is has been standard procedure to ask the witness to answer the question first and not make —
Bishop Oxnam: Yes, sir, I did.
Mr Kunzig: Was that on April 4, 1952?
Rep Velde: Now will you proceed?
Bishop Oxnam: Yes sir. Dr. Fritchman was the editor of the Christian Register, which was the official paper of the Unitarian Church. He, I believe, was dismissed from that office. He became the pastor of the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles. When I lived in Los Angeles I knew the minister of that church who was named Bacchus. I had hoped we could have good relationships between the churches called the Unitarian and the Trinitarian.
I received an invitation to lecture at a forum which was held at the First Unitarian Church. I also lectured at the Santa Monica forum and at the Westwood Hills Methodist Church. I had no knowledge whatsoever that Mr. Fritchman was in any way related to the Communist Party.
May I say this, that since that time and I will not name the men, but two prominent officials of the Unitarian Church have conferred with me and gave me information that gave me grave doubts concerning Dr. Fritchman, and had I known what they informed me I would, of course, not have lectured at his church. I did not know before that time what they alleged and I take it what is going to be done now is going to be the same procedure that somebody is going to say that he was identified by somebody else as a Communist and they will be begin to draw inferences as far as I am concerned in the matter of lecturing in his church. I think that that is basically unfair and I respectfully request that that kind of procedure, if it is a procedure, end.
Rep. Jackson: I will say this, that in all of the City of Los Angeles there is perhaps no individual who has been as closely associated with the Community Party of Communist front organizations over a period of many years as has Reverend Fritchman. He appeared before the Committee and declined to answer questions as to his membership in the Communist Party on the grounds of the Fifth Amendment. His record has been so spectacular that is seems almost unbelievable that even the most cursory examination of a few preliminary questions to almost anyone on the street corner could have elicited the information that he had appeared before the committee and had declined to answer.
Bishop Oxnam: How did he appear, please?
Mr. Kunzig: How?
Bishop Oxnam: When was it, I mean?
Mr. Kunzig: September 12, 1951.
Rep. Jackson: Because of the fact that he is connected with the organizations which I have just mentioned and his file has been declassified by the committee and I do not want to go into detail on what his testimony was, but he refused to co-operate and had taken refuge behind the provisions of the Fifth Amendment, which he had every right to do.
Bishop Oxnam: I have stated all the facts that I know in this matter. I don't know whether we can abbreviate this or whether we have to go through the long process of all of this and never get to the questions I came to consider.
(discussion of other topics)
Mr. Kunzig: I have a document marked Oxnam exhibit number 41 which was back when we were discussion the Fritchman situation which was the listing of Bishop Oxnam being at Fritchman's church, and I should like now to offer it into evidence.
Bishop Oxnam: I stated I spoke there.
Rep. Velde: Without objection, it will be so admitted.
(discussion of other topics)
Mr. Kunzig: I have a photostatic copy marked Oxnam Exhibit Number 43 —
Bishop Oxnam: I have been a lot of trouble to this committee. I am sorry. Forty-three exhibits is amazing.
Mr. Kunzig: Let me first ask, did you know Dr. W.E.B. DuBois, a Negro leader?
Bishop Oxnam: No, I simply cannot say. I am afraid I don't know. I have heard his name.
Mr. Kunzig: Did DuBois ever speak at your church?
Bishop Oxnam: I think not.
Mr. Kunzig: Can you explain this exhibit marked Oxnam Exhibit Number 43?
Bishop Oxnam: What year are you talking about?
Mr. Kunzig: Let me show it to you. It states that he was listed to speak. The questions I asked was did he ever speak at your church?
Bishop Oxnam: Frankly, I cannot answer that. It is way back. This was in 1927. I would have to check the records of the church. I do not recall ever having met Dr. DuBois. I cannot answer that.
Rep. Velde: At the present time your recollection is that Dr. DuBois —
Bishop Oxnam: I have no recollection of it, but when somebody brings up a document that is twenty-eight years back, that is a little difficult for anybody, even from this committee, to answer.
Rep. Velde: I think the chair would defer receipt of that until the Bishop has had an opportunity to check it.
Mr. Kunzig: I think it should be withdrawn.
Bishop Oxnam: Mr. Chairman, I am leaving for Europe, I hope it will not be a discourtesy if I have to get this information after I get back. I do not think I could do it in a day or two before I go.
Rep. Velde: I am sure the committee will wish you godspeed upon your journey.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 9:
LEADER RESOURCE 1: WHAT WAS IT LIKE? A FIRST-HAND ACCOUNT OF HUAC
Edited excerpt from a letter by the Bishop G. Bromley Oxnam of the United Methodist Church, who testified before the committee on July 21, 1953.
My dear, dear friends,
... I thought you might be interested in just what happened at the hearing of the House Committee on Un-American Activities...
(We) went over to the House building about half past one... The room had been filled before lunch and there was a line extending down the stairs and out into the street... We had to push our way through the crowd... There was the customary battery of cameras, including the television apparatus... I said to the reporters at the close of the day, which really was early in the morning of the next day, that I thought the individual members of the Committee had sought to be courteous... I did say to reporters, however, that the procedures were of such a nature that the reputation of any one could be ruined.
You may be interested in the physical set-up that a witness faces... (I) was confronted by 49 exhibits, I think, that were presented one after another by the Counsel. These exhibits were in the nature of letterheads or statements upon which my name appeared, newspaper clippings, and the like, and the question would be in each case, "Did you sign this? Were you a member of this particular organization? Is this the correct account in the newspaper?" Then the Counsel would immediately... read into the record page after page of material that had nothing whatsoever to do with me. When I stated that I did not belong to an organization, instead of recording that answer and calling it a day, the Counsel would then insist upon reading into the record all that the Committee had upon that organization even though I had never belonged to it. It was clear the attempt was to build up a cumulative document which would have so much material concerning Communist Front organizations and the Communist Party that it would appear that I must have had some relationship somewhere to these agencies. At least, so it seemed to me... I am... dealing with a procedure wherein a man is damned publicly before he is heard.
... Mr. Parlin (Oxnam's counsel) and I sat at a table. There were perhaps half a dozen microphones in front of me, so placed that it was impossible for me to have my papers before me in any way that gave easy access to the documents... In addition to that, the bright lights necessary for television were directly behind the Committee and therefore were shining in my eyes during all the time they were on throughout that long day. It meant that when I lifted my eyes to look toward Committee members, I was almost blinded by the lights which again made it difficult when I sought to read from documents... There are nine members of the Committee seated on the bench. Before you is the Committee Counsel with his assistant and, in turn, another assistant. That means twelve. Then, the investigators of the Committee were sitting there, how many I do not know. I was alone, except for Counsel. If Mr. Parlin, with his brilliant legal equipment, had been able to interpose objections or to make suggestions, he could have been most helpful. But the rules of the Committee denied to the Counsel the right to say a single word. All he was permitted to do publicly was to state his name, his address, and that he was a member of the New York Bar. In a word, an individual is placed before a Committee possessing all the powers the Congress had granted it. He must strike a balance all day between answers that will convince and answers that may antagonize. A group with power that is antagonized can become very, very difficult...
I sat through nearly ten hours of grueling before I could even get to the matter that had brought me here...
In these hearings, there is no real attempt to understand an individual's life or his contribution to a church or to his country... Of course they say they are not a court, but an investigating body... The Committee members can lecture you from the bench. They can state that you were "a sucker". You can't answer back...
There is a severe physical strain upon an individual. Ten hours of talking is difficult from the standpoint of voice. Sitting in bright lights, having to move from one file to another—all of this is something that needs to be thought out if we are interested in an investigation that really gets to the truth...
However, after a long day, upon the motion of Mr. Clyde Doyle of California... the Committee voted unanimously, as follows: "I move that the record in these hearings show that this Committee has no record of any Communist Party affiliation or membership by Bishop Oxnam."
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 9:
LEADER RESOURCE 2: THE LEVERING ACT
In 1950, Harold Levering, a California assemblyman from Bel Air, proposed an amendment to the state constitution that would require all religious institutions to sign a loyalty oath or lose their tax-exempt status (see Handout 2, The California Loyalty Oath for exact wording). The demand for a loyalty oath already applied to all public employees of the state, but this was the first time in the history of the United States that a government imposed such an oath on a religious group. It was passed into the California state constitution by popular vote in 1952. Religious institutions had until March of 1954 to decide whether or not they would comply.
Most houses of worship signed the oath. The American Unitarian Association and its legal counsel, in a memo distributed to all California Unitarian Societies on March 15, 1954, recommended that Unitarian "churches should make the necessary affidavits and thereby retain their rights to tax exemption" but reserve the right to question the constitutionality of the law. That is to say, sign the oath but think about fighting it in court.
Several congregations, however, decided to break from the majority and refused to sign. Among them was the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles. At a special membership meeting on February 21, 1954, the congregation voted 206 to 31 in favor of not signing the declaration. The minutes state:
The new Levering Declaration is rejected, not for its content primarily (for neither this church nor any religious bodies known to us advocate the use of force or violence or other unlawful means of overthrowing the government), but because we do not propose to be a party to violating the U.S. Constitution... Once the right of the state to invade the church is granted by the signing of this present declaration, the entire issue is lost.
Fritchman, in his autobiography, states that he was surprised by the vigor and commitment the Los Angeles congregation exhibited, and he had "refrained from pulpit persuasion" until the motion was passed by the Board. Once passed, he spent the next several years as an outspoken opponent of the law, adding this case to his fight for free speech in the face of government intervention and internal institutional criticism.
According to the provisions of the law, the congregation's tax-exempt status was indeed revoked. Refusing to sign the oath meant the congregation incurred the costs of both the legal battle and the property taxes it was charged until the law was overturned. Committed to this fight, the congregation engaged in special fundraising to cover the costs of this endeavor (see Handout 3, This Could Happen Here).
Along with several other California congregations of Unitarians, Methodists, and Quakers, the congregation fought all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1958, the Levering oath was declared unconstitutional and taxes paid were refunded to the congregation.
First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles's stance was by no means endorsed or supported by all Unitarians. Rev. Fritchman was believed by many to be a Communist agitator, and although the AUA passed a series of statements condemning the government's infringement on free speech between 1950 and 1960, the Association also made it clear that ministers were expected to denounce Communism. Fritchman's refusal to publicly do so put him at odds with many leading Unitarian voices of the day. The minister of the First Unitarian Church in San Diego wrote to A. Powell Davies and Frederick M. Eliot, expressing his fears that Fritchman's personal influence "is extending far out beyond his own church and involving many Unitarians willy-nilly in the public eye." There were concerns from many that the oath was overshadowing all other Unitarian endeavors, and that, as one letter to the editor of the Christian Register stated, "(the oath) has been blown up to a degree of prominence and attention out of all proportion to its real importance as compared with other domains of the church... is this a church or a political action arena?"
We may be inclined, as contemporary Unitarian Universalists, to be proud of the victory at the Supreme Court and the courageous stance of the congregations that risked financial ruin to stand up for freedom from governmental censorship. However, it is important to remember that many respected and admired Unitarians disagreed with that stance, as a matter of values, and as a matter of strategy.
FIND OUT MORE
Online, you can request information from the FBI (at foia.fbi.gov/) under the Freedom of Information Act. Learn about the Freedom of Information Act on the American Civil Liberties Union (at www.aclu.org/) website.
Find biographical information on the website of the Harvard Square Library, under Notable American Unitarians:
Rev. Stephen Fritchman (at www.harvardsquarelibrary.org/unitarians/fritchman.html)
Rev. Donald Harrington (at www.harvardsquarelibrary.org/unitarians/harrington.html)
Read a Time magazine (May 26, 1947) article about Fritchman, "Religion: Liberalism Goes Too Far (at www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,793750,00.html)."
WORKSHOP 10: TAKING POLITICS PUBLIC
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
Our religious teachers, ministers and lay-men alike—from Thomas Jefferson to William Ellery Channing to Adlai Stevenson—have urged us to honor always the primacy of conscience over any external authority which we believe to be immoral... Thus it is natural that some of our young men must regard military duty as a violation of their deepest commitment. And if for some reason their draft boards do not recognize them as having legal C.O. status, they are answerable primarily to their own conscience still. The Unitarian Universalist Association must support them in their moral stand and religious conviction. — Dana McLean Greeley, President of the Unitarian Universalist Association, 1961-1969
On October 16, 1967, Arlington Street Church held a public, interfaith worship service, during which over 300 draft cards were collected, in direct violation of federal law. Some young men chose to burn their cards during the service. Michael Ferber, a lifelong Unitarian and a graduate student at Harvard at the time, was subsequently indicted along with four others for conspiracy to resist the draft. Ferber was tried along with pediatrician Benjamin Spock and William Sloane Coffin, Jr. in one of the notable events of the draft resistance movement during the Vietnam War. All were convicted, although the conviction was overturned on appeal a year later.
The Vietnam War was divisive for many Unitarian Universalist congregations. While some congregations actively supported draft resistance, provided sanctuary for draft resistors, and worked to help young men establish conscientious objector status, many Unitarian Universalists did not support overtly political actions like the one at Arlington Street Church. This workshop explores the questions that faced Unitarian Universalist congregations and the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) during the time of the Vietnam War, highlighting dilemmas that recur for Unitarian Universalists: How do we handle political dissent or witness in the context of congregational life? Are we able to live with a plurality of political and social opinions within our congregations? What is the appropriate way to "honor always the primacy of conscience over any external authority which we believe to be immoral," as Greeley says in the quote that opens this workshop?
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 10 |
Activity 1: Turn-in and Burn-in | 25 |
Activity 2: Supporting Draft Resistance | 25 |
Activity 3: Dissenting Voices | 20 |
Faith in Action: Public Witness | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: Turn-in and Burn-in — Sermon | 30 |
Alternate Activity 2: Conscientious Objectors | 20 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
The Vietnam War era was a dynamic, emotional, and contentious time in our nation's history. If you participated in events during this time, take a moment to revisit your involvement.
Whether or not you were politically active at the time, you probably have opinions about the United States' involvement in Vietnam. If you were not subject to the draft, perhaps because of your age, gender, or an exemption, consider what your response might have been had you been drafted to serve in Vietnam. Take a moment to reflect, using the questions you will pose in this workshop. Discus your reflections with your co-facilitator.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling..."
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition, "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
After the song, explain that this workshop looks at the Unitarian Universalist response to the Vietnam War, focusing on the issue of the military draft. Note that the war in Vietnam ended in 1972, during some of our lifetimes; many have knowledge of the issues we will focus on today. Tell participants you will make a series of statements and they may raise their hand if a statement applies to them:
I have seen photos or film footage of the Vietnam War.
I have seen at least one movie set during the Vietnam War.
I am from Vietnam.
I was drafted to fight in the Vietnam War.
I served in the Vietnam War.
I made every effort to avoid serving in the Vietnam War.
I resisted the draft and refused to comply with my draft orders.
I left the United States to evade the draft.
I have friends who served in the Vietnam War.
I actively protested against the Vietnam War or the draft.
I have immediate family who served in Vietnam.
I studied the Vietnam War in school.
Point out that the workshop will be enriched by the variety of perspectives and experiences participants bring.
ACTIVITY 1: TURN-IN AND BURN-IN (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Read aloud:
On October 16, 1967, Arlington Street Church held a public, interfaith worship service, during which over 300 draft cards were collected, in direct violation of federal law. Some young men chose to burn their cards during the service, but most of the cards were bundled and dropped off in Washington, D.C., as part of a nationwide draft resistance movement. Michael Ferber, a lifelong Unitarian and a graduate student at Harvard at the time, was indicted for conspiracy to resist the draft along with four others. The subsequent trial of Ferber, along with pediatrician Benjamin Spock and William Sloane Coffin, Jr., was one of the notable events in Vietnam War draft resistance. All were convicted, but the conviction was overturned on appeal a year later.
Introduce the story:
The Rev. Dr. Jack Mendelsohn, minister at Arlington Street Church at that time, preached a sermon the following week addressing what had happened at the October 16 interfaith worship service. This is an abridged version of the sermon.
Read the story.
Engage a discussion of the Mendelsohn sermon. Some questions to consider include:
Distribute Handout 1, The Church and the Draft Resisters — Full Text for participants to take home.
Including All Participants
Be aware of personal experiences participants may have revealed during the opening activity. If any participants were subject to the draft or fought in the war, or their parents, siblings, or other family members were directly involved, they may voice very strong opinions. Others, perhaps those who are too young to have first-hand knowledge of the Vietnam era, may hesitate to speak up. Be intentional about inviting all to join the conversation. Also, be sure to respect the boundaries of any participants who may have first-hand experience they do not wish to share.
ACTIVITY 2: SUPPORTING DRAFT RESISTANCE (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 2, UUA Resolutions on the Draft. Have volunteers read aloud the 1967 and 1968 resolutions having to do with the Vietnam War and the military draft.
Invite the group to identify concrete actions supported by the resolutions, and write those actions on the newsprint. Lead a conversation, asking:
Introduce the next portion of the activity using these or similar words:
The process of adopting resolutions has changed a bit over the years. We are going to take a look at the current model for adopting resolutions at General Assembly. Many people invest significant time in crafting General Assembly resolutions to respond to important social justice issues. However, after a resolution passes at General Assembly, congregational responses to it vary. Some view such public statements by the Association as a critical part of our ability to be effective agents for change in the world. Others take little notice of social justice resolutions from General Assembly, preferring to set their own social justice priorities.
Distribute Handout 3, Social Witness and the UUA. Read aloud the explanation for each category. Ask if anyone has participated in a recent General Assembly and been a part of the social witness process, and invite them to share their experience. Look again at the summary of the 1967 and 1968 statements and compare them with the current process. Ask:
ACTIVITY 3: DISSENTING VOICES (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Opposition to the Vietnam War was by no means universal in Unitarian Universalist congregations. Many people believed that supporting and upholding the law was more important than supporting an individual's right to resist the draft. There were some who, regardless of their personal feelings about the war, believed the church had no business getting involved in what they considered to be a political decision. For many, the long Unitarian tradition of supporting the separation of church and state meant the church should stay out of politics, just as the government should stay out of the church.
Distribute Handout 4, This Letter is to Express our Personal Disapproval. Explain that the handout includes letters between Rev. Mendelsohn and two parishioners (whose names are not included). The parishioners sent copies of these letters to the Prudential Committee (Arlington Street Church's governing board) as well as to Dana Greeley, president of the UUA, so they are part of the UUA archives.
Invite the volunteers to read the letters, in dialogue with each other. After the letters are read, invite the group's response with these questions:
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to respond, in writing:
Is there a way for a congregation to take a stand and yet make a place for those who believe a religious organization should remain apolitical?
Allow five minutes for writing in journals.
Invite participants to briefly share any closing thoughts about the workshop or their journal entries.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: PUBLIC WITNESS
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Most Unitarian Universalist communities have at least one issue, large or small, that brings into question the role of the congregation in public witness. Attaching the name of your congregation to a public display of political influence, whether it be through hosting a voter registration event, carrying a banner in a gay pride parade, or raising money for a local homeless shelter, requires thoughtful action. Lead the group to consider: How does our congregation decide when to take a public stand? Do we take action through a congregational vote, a board decision, the autonomous work of a social action committee, or a combination of measures? What criteria do we have for supporting a cause? Talk about any recent actions of public witness in your community. If your congregation does not currently have a policy around public witness, what would you like to see in place? How could this group work toward implementing it?
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
Our religious teachers, ministers and lay-men alike—from Thomas Jefferson to William Ellery Channing to Adlai Stevenson—have urged us to honor always the primacy of conscience over any external authority which we believe to be immoral... Thus it is natural that some of our young men must regard military duty as a violation of their deepest commitment. And if for some reason their draft boards do not recognize them as having legal C.O. status, they are answerable primarily to their own conscience still. The Unitarian Universalist Association must support them in their moral stand and religious conviction. — Dana McLean Greeley, President of the Unitarian Universalist Association, 1961-1969
If you lived through the Vietnam era, find some time to discuss your experiences with someone of a younger generation. Share the experiences you remember from that time, and, in particular, the political climate as you remember it. If you were a Unitarian Universalist then, this might be a good time to share with youth in your congregation what it was like for you at that time. Ask if they have had any similar experiences today. If you did not experience the Vietnam War era directly, ask your family, friends, or members of your congregation about their memories from that time. Did they participate in a religious community during the late 1960s and early 70s? Do they remember if their congregation took a stand about the war or the military draft, and how they felt about that?
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: TURN-IN AND BURN-IN — SERMON (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
This version of Activity 1 is designed for a group that has a member interested in publicly presenting the Rev. Dr. Jack Mendelsohn's sermon in full.
Gather the group to hear a sermon. Say:
On October 16, 1967, Arlington Street Church held a public, interfaith worship service, during which over 300 draft cards were collected, in direct violation of federal law. Some young men chose to burn their cards during the service, but most of the cards were bundled and dropped off in Washington, D.C., as part of a nationwide draft resistance movement. Michael Ferber, a lifelong Unitarian and a graduate student at Harvard at the time, was indicted for conspiracy to resist the draft along with four others. The subsequent trial of Ferber, along with pediatrician Benjamin Spock and William Sloane Coffin, Jr., was one of the notable events in Vietnam War draft resistance. All were convicted, but the conviction was overturned on appeal a year later.
The Rev. Dr. Jack Mendelsohn, minister at Arlington Street Church at that time, preached a sermon the following week, addressing what had happened at the October 16 interfaith worship service.
Then, introduce the presenter.
After the presentation, distribute Handout 1, The Church and the Draft Resisters — Full Text so participants can refer to it during a discussion of the Mendelsohn sermon. Consider these questions:
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 2: CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 5, Conscientious Objection and the Draft. Explain this was a packet the Unitarian Universalist organization Liberal Religious Youth (LRY) assembled for young men considering seeking conscientious objector status during the Vietnam War. Invite participants to turn to a partner and discuss the packet and the posted questions.
Allow ten minutes for paired discussions. Then, re-gather the group and invite volunteers to share some of what they discussed. Ask: Are there comparable movements today? What do you think about the UUA or its affiliated organizations supporting conscientious objectors in this way?
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 10:
STORY: THE CHURCH AND THE DRAFT RESISTERS
Sermon delivered by Rev. Jack Mendelsohn on October 22, 1967 at Arlington Street Church, Boston. Abridged version; used with permission.
A hue and cry has arisen over the sixty young men who burned their draft cards in the chancel of Arlington Street Church. No matter that 280 young men took the more solemn and perilous step of turning in their draft cards for transmittal to the Justice Department... It may come as surprising news to some that I react very negatively to the burning of draft cards. It is too flamboyant for my taste, too theatrical, too self-indulgent... What happened here on Monday, October 16, was conceived, organized and implemented by a remarkable group of students and seminarians who, in the most serious and open-eyed manner are relinquishing their draft immunity and inviting arrest in order to disavow the American war in Vietnam. The integrity and moral depth of the young leaders of this Resistance are extraordinary. ...One by one, some 280 of them walked up and handed their draft cards to four clergymen and a non-religious philosophy professor in the chancel. The clergymen who accepted the cards—Catholic priest Father Robert Cunnane, Yale Chaplain William Sloane Coffin, Harvard Divinity School professor George Williams, and myself—did so in full knowledge that by this symbolic act of solidarity with the students, we too were assuming the risks of civil disobedience. The cards have since been deposited at the Justice Department so that the names of all who participated are now known to the authorities.
...There is not really much more to be said to those who are enraged, lacerated or confounded by the draft card burning. Time and continuing dialogue will clarify perspectives. Meanwhile, there is an inevitable polarization of feeling, as illustrated by two letters which reached me. They represent remarkably well the contradictory reality with which we are dealing. The writers of these letters have similar cultural backgrounds and enjoy similar economic and social status. The first says: "Dear Dr. Mendelsohn: I have no further interest in supporting the Arlington Street Church when you as the leader have apparently permitted and encouraged the burning of draft cards on the altar. It is unforgivable in my estimation. I think you will find many old friends feel the same way. I am not writing this on the spur of the moment but only after many conversations, trying to prove to myself that I was wrong. Please remove my name from mailings."
This correspondent, as you now know, is right in assuming that I permitted the draft card burning, but is wrong in assuming that I encouraged it. Among the many conversations which he refers to, there was not one with me. I hope there will be, however, and I will seek it. The second letter goes as follows: "Dear Reverend Mendelsohn: I attended the service in your church on Monday, October 16. I am one of the people who hasn't been in church in years. I don't know whether I can express the feeling that I have that at that time, in that place something happened that was sacred in any sense of the word. The hymns, the prayers, the responsive readings, the speakers and most of all, the restrained courage of the young men resisting the draft contributed to an event that I shall never forget. Thank you for so much."
I appreciate but take no personal pride in the gratitude of this correspondent. It is the policy of our church to place in my hands final decisions about public assemblies to take place here. Of course I consult with lay leadership and staff. Of course we strive to inform, as this congregation was informed last Sunday both of the Resistance service to be held here, and of the outlook of those sponsoring it. But in the end I am responsible for the decision... One does not lightly commit an institution to lend the prestige of its facilities and senior clergyman to the launching of a premeditated, long-range program of civil disobedience.
First I had to determine whether or not I could commit myself to such a program. I decided I could. Then, after consultation, I had to judge whether or not this church could constructively incorporate into its ongoing life the tension, controversy and stress inevitably to come. No other church was available. It was this one or none... For me, it came down to this. I had to decide that either this church could bear the pressure and grow stronger because of it, or that it could not, in which case it would have been necessary, in light of my own convictions, to support the students but resign my post here...
Harvard graduate student, Michael Ferber...said what many a clergyman or layman might wish to have said: "There is a great tradition within the church and synagogue which has always struggled against the conservative and worldly forces that have always been in control. It is a radical tradition, a tradition of urgent impulse to go to the root of the religious dimension of human life. This tradition in modern times has tried to recall us to the best ways of living our lives: the way of love and compassion, the way of justice and respect, the way of facing other people as human beings and not as abstract representatives of something alien and evil. It tries to recall us to the reality behind religious ceremony and symbolism, and it will change the ceremony and symbolism when the reality changes..."
The radical tradition is still alive: it is present here in this church...
Last Monday, this church, as a living, vital organism, said yes to the radical religious tradition Michael Ferber so eloquently evoked; it said yes to religious dimensions of human life so urgent that they include for some the passionate compulsion to burn draft cards. Let us make no bones about it: moral passions are not, never will be, subject to complete rational control. If it is unassailable rationality we require in our morally aroused young, it would be better, believe me, to be perfectly honest about it and write the church off once and for all as a significant force in their lives...
Civil disobedience is a harsh, ghastly, contaminating business. It is morally credible only when there is irredeemable disillusionment with the lawful processes of protest and dissent... Sadly, it seems to matter little that some of those who are now most outraged by this present group of civil disobeyers would not be here at all except for the civil disobedience of their ancestors. Or that this nation would not exist but for the civil disobedience of its founding fathers. Or that the abolition of our vile system of slavery was spurred by civil disobedience. Or that the voting franchise for women was fueled by civil disobedience.
...Will civil disobedience make the kind of impact needed? Will it so shock the nation that a drastic shift in our policy will occur? Frankly, I don't know. I rather doubt it.
Why then undertake it? Because, as Robert McAfee Brown testifies in his article in a current issue of LOOK, "there comes a time when the issues are so clear and so crucial that a man does not have the choice of waiting until all the possible consequences can be charted. There comes a time when a man must simply say, "Here I stand, I can do no other, God help me."...When an issue of this magnitude is joined, when there are those who, having exhausted without effect every lawful means of opposing the monstrous crimes being committed in their name by their government, who cannot accept silence or inaction, and choose instead the Gethsemane of civil disobedience, how is the church to respond?
That was the question posed to this church. You know how it was answered last Monday. But the continuing answer, the one that really counts, is yours.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 10:
HANDOUT 1: THE CHURCH AND THE DRAFT RESISTERS — FULL TEXT
A sermon by Rev. Jack Mendelsohn, delivered October 22, 1967 at Arlington Street Church, Boston, full text. Used with permission.
A hue and cry has arisen over the sixty young men who burned their draft cards in the chancel of Arlington Street Church. No matter that 280 young men took the more solemn and perilous step of turning in their draft cards for transmittal to the Justice Department. No matter that much of the hubbub was irrational and uninformed. The love and honesty human beings owe to one another require that the question be dealt with lovingly and honestly.
It may come as surprising news to some that I react very negatively to the burning of draft cards. It is too flamboyant for my taste, too theatrical, too self-indulgent. Anyone who thinks I encouraged it is wrong. But that is beside the point. I did not forbid it, and under similar circumstances I would not again. What happened here on Monday, October 16, was conceived, organized and implemented by a remarkable group of students and seminarians who, in the most serious and open-eyed manner are relinquishing their draft immunity and inviting arrest in order to disavow the American war in Vietnam. The integrity and moral depth of the young leaders of this Resistance are extraordinary. I told them how I felt about draft card burning, and they listened. But in the end they listened more to their responsibilities as democratic leaders, which is as it should be. The overwhelming majority of the Resisters neither burned their draft cards nor encouraged others to do so, but they recognized that the moral outrage felt by a minority of their fellows drove that minority to the extreme gesture of card burning, and they made orderly, respectful provision for it. Indeed the relatively few who burned their draft cards did so with such dignity and solemnity, I was almost converted. But not quite. The action of the others, the great majority, was truly awe-inspiring. One by one, some 280 of them walked up and handed their draft cards to four clergymen and a non-religious philosophy professor in the chancel. The clergymen who accepted the cards—Catholic priest Father Robert Cunnane, Yale Chaplain William Sloane Coffin, Harvard Divinity School professor George Williams, and myself—did so in full knowledge that by this symbolic act of solidarity with the students, we too were assuming the risks of civil disobedience. The cards have since been deposited at the Justice Department so that the names of all who participated are now known to the authorities.
And I must make the point again. The cards of the burners were not carried to Washington for the obvious reason that they could not be. In terms of putting a life on the line, it was not the burners who made the more passionate gesture; it was the others.
There is not really much more to be said to those who are enraged, lacerated or confounded by the draft card burning. Time and continuing dialogue will clarify perspectives. Meanwhile, there is an inevitable polarization of feeling, as illustrated by two letters which reached me. They represent remarkably well the contradictory reality with which we are dealing. The writers of these letters have similar cultural backgrounds and enjoy similar economic and social status. The first says: "Dear Dr. Mendelsohn: I have no further interest in supporting the Arlington Street Church when you as the leader have, apparently permitted and encouraged the burning of draft cards on the altar. It is unforgiveable in my estimation. I think you will find many old friends feel the same way. I am not writing this on the spur of the moment but only after many conversations, trying to prove to myself that I was wrong. Please remove my name from mailings."
This correspondent, as you now know, is right in assuming that I permitted the draft card burning, but is wrong in assuming that I encouraged it. Among the many conversations which he refers to, there was not one with me. I hope there will be, however, and I will seek it. The second letter goes as follows: "Dear Reverend Mendelsohn: I attended the service in your church On Monday, October 16. I am one of the people who hasn't been in church in years. I don't know whether I can express the feeling that I have that at that time, in that place something happened that .was sacred in any sense of the word. The hymns, the prayers, the responsive readings, the speakers and most of all, the restrained courage of the young men resisting the draft contributed to an event that I shall never forget. Thank you for so much. "
I appreciate but take no personal pride in the gratitude of this correspondent. It is the policy of our church to place in my hands final decisions about public assemblies to take place here. Of course I consult with lay leadership and staff. Of course we strive to inform, as this congregation was informed last Sunday both of the Resistance service to be held here, and of the outlook of those sponsoring it. But in the end I am responsible for the decision. I consult and listen, but I am charged with the final judgment. Most such decisions require little soul-searching, and no real sweat. In one sense this one didn't either. I knew that the overwhelming majority of the congregation would support it, even though some would disagree with the basic premises of the students, and others, like myself, would deplore the card burning, no matter how reverently done. I knew too that the institution as such would not be penalized: that for every one who opted out on a wave of exasperation there would be two or more who opted in on a wave of exultation.
But in another sense this was a very tough decision because I was so keenly and personally aware of what was involved. I am not talking now about the momentary furor over the emotional gesture of draft card burning. As the furor was easy to anticipate, so was it easy to foresee its rapid dissipation, to be replaced by the really crucial issue, that of civil disobedience against the Vietnam and Selective Service policies of our government. One does not lightly commit an institution to lend the prestige of its facilities and senior clergyman to the launching of a premeditated, long-range program of civil disobedience.
First I had to determine whether or not I could commit myself to such a program. I decided I could. Then, after consultation, I had to judge whether or not this church could constructively incorporate into its ongoing life the tension, controversy and stress inevitably to come. No other church was available. It was this one or none. There were many sympathetic Clergymen. At least a hundred participated in the service here. But none had an established milieu capable of sustaining such use of their premises.
For me, it came down to this. I had to decide that either this church could bear the pressure and grow stronger because of it, or that it could not, in which case it would have been necessary, in light of my own convictions, to support the students but resign my post here.
I made the decision I did because I was persuaded of its rightness.
But I have been wrong many, many times, and I may have been wrong again. I have no reason as yet for believing that, but time, in its inexorable fashion, will tell.
There is a tremendous amount at stake for organized religion. The second letter I read to you, described the correspondent as "one of the people who 'hasn't been in church for years.''' Only those who were fortunate enough to attend the Service of Conscience and Acceptance can fully grasp the significance of that phrase.
What was by far the service's most impressive statement was made by Harvard graduate student, Michael Ferber, who said, " ... here we all are in a church, and yet for some of us it is the first time we've been inside one for years. Here we are receiving the help of many clergymen, and yet some of us feel nothing but contempt for the organized religions that they represent. Some of us, therefore, feel a certain hypocrisy in being part of this service."
Michael confessed that it would not surprise him if many of the clergymen felt "some of the same contempt for organized religion." These clergymen, he said, "know better than we do the long and bloody history of evils committed in the name of religion, the long history of compromise and ... subservience to political power, the long history of theological hair-splitting and the burning of heretics, and they fee! more deeply than we do the hypocrisy of Sunday (or Saturday) morning.
"Perhaps," Ferber continued, "the things that made some of us leave the church are the very things that made some of them become ministers, priests, and rabbis, the very things that bring them here today. Many of them will anger their superiors or their congregations by being here but they are here anyway."
Ferber then said what many a clergyman or layman might wish to have said: "There is a great tradition within the church and synagogue which has always struggled against the conservative and worldly forces that have always been in control. It is a radical tradition, a tradition of urgent impulse to go to the root of the religious dimension of human life. This tradition in modern times has tried to recall us to the best ways of living our lives: the way of love and compassion, the way of justice and respect, the way of facing other people as human beings and not as abstract representatives of something alien and evil. It tries to recall us to the reality behind religious ceremony and symbolism, and it will change the ceremony and symbolism when the reality changes...
"The radical tradition is still alive: it is present here in this church. Those of us who disregard organized religion ...are making a mistake if they also disregard this tradition and its presence today. This tradition is something to which we can say Yes."
Last Monday, this church, as a living, vital organism, said yes to the radical religious tradition Michael Ferber so eloquently evoked; it said yes to religious dimensions of human life so urgent that they include for some the passionate compulsion to burn draft cards. Let us make no bones about it: moral passions are not, never will be, subject to complete rational control. If it is unassailable rationality we require in our morally aroused young, it would be better, believe me, to be perfectly honest about it and write the church off once and for all as a significant force in their lives. What matters in a world as close as this one to Armageddon is not a shallow distinction between the pure and the impure, but the truly searching distinction between the person whose moral feeling drives him to self-transcending political action and the person whose moral feeling leads only to a self-buttressing sense of "sinlessness." Or, as Ernest Hocking once put it, it is the distinction between those who are willing to take on the costly contaminations of genuine political involvement and those who yearn to remain stainless and chaste.
As it is for individuals, so it is for the church.
Civil disobedience is a harsh, ghastly, contaminating business. It is morally credible only when there is irredeemable disillusionment with the lawful processes of protest and dissent. Because I hover so tremblingly close to this point, I can appreciate what it means to the young to be prepared to accept the ruination of their careers, ridicule, harassment, imprisonment, death. Sadly, it seems to matter little that some of those who are now most outraged by this present group of civil disobeyers would not be here at all except for the civil disobedience of their ancestors. Or that this nation would not exist but for the civil disobedience of its founding fathers. Or that the abolition of our vile system of slavery was spurred by civil disobedience. Or that the voting franchise for women was fueled by civil disobedience.
In truth, no example of civil disobedience past, no matter how inspiring, can sanctify the awesome extremity of undertaking it anew.
Yet, given the total spectrum of possibility within which this nation might end its Vietnamese escalation and slaughter short of nuclear holocaust, given the stark reality that none of the protests, none of the appeals to conscience, none of the thousands of editorials, none of the dozens of Senate speeches, none of the petitions or NEW YORK TIMES advertisements, none of the expositions of the credibility gap, none of the documented incidents of our deliberate sabotaging of peace initiatives, none of the voluminous testimony to our folly of scholars and experts on Asian affairs—given the sickening realization that none of these, and I have hardly begun to call the roll, has reversed the escalation, or the slaughter, or the vaulting toward worldwide nuclear war, how can any sober person wonder that there are those whose moral revulsion has come at last to civil disobedience?
Has anything short of it worked? The answer is an agonized no.
Will anything short of it work? Again the agonized answer has to be that there is a moral vacuum within both of our political parties portending the bleakest of prospects.
Will civil disobedience make the kind of impact needed? Will it so shock the nation that a drastic shift in our policy will occur? Frankly, I don't know. I rather doubt it.
Why then undertake it? Because, as Robert McAfee Brown testifies in his article in a current issue of LOOK, "...there comes a time when the issues are so clear and so crucial that a man does not have the choice of waiting until all the possible consequences can be charted. There comes a time when a man must simply say, 'Here I stand, I can do no other, God help me.' There comes a time when it is important... (to) be recorded that in an era of great folly, there were at least some ... who recognized the folly for what it was and were willing, at personal cost, to stand against it. There comes a time when... one has to oppose evil even if one cannot prevent it, when one has to choose to be a victim rather than an accomplice."
When an issue of this magnitude is joined, when there are those who, having exhausted without effect every lawful means of opposing the monstrous crimes being committed in their name by their government, who cannot accept silence or inaction, and choose instead the Gethsemane of civil disobedience, how is the church to respond?
That was the question posed to this church. You know how it was answered last Monday. But the continuing answer, the one that really counts, is yours.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 10:
HANDOUT 2: UUA RESOLUTIONS ON THE DRAFT
Resolutions adopted at the 1967 and 1968 UUA General Assemblies.
Draft Reform and Conscientious Objection
Resolution passed at the Unitarian Universalist Association General Assembly, May 5, 1967. Adopted by greater than a two-thirds majority vote.
Noting that present administration of the Selective Service System has resulted in many iniquities and uncertainties for the young men facing service, and
Noting, also, that the right of conscientious objection to military service has long been recognized as lawful if based upon religious belief and that the Supreme Court has affirmed that an ethical and moral philosophy is parallel to belief in a Supreme Being and thus qualifies under the definition of religious belief,
The Unitarian Universalist Association:
Recommends that Congress, in considering renewal of the Selective Service Act, affirm, as nearly as possible, the principle of equality of sacrifice and should:
1. Reduce the discretionary powers of local draft boards by establishing uniform regulations regarding deferments;
2. Provide that those granted educational deferments, upon termination of those deferments, be subject to the same chance of induction as all others eligible, without regard to age, marriage, or offspring;
3. Provide for educational deferment for part-time students upon their demonstrating that they must work to finance their education;
4. Prohibit use of the draft to punish for unlawful acts punishable by civil authority;
5. Require the selection of draftees by lot from among those presently eligible for military service;
6. Broaden the concept of conscientious objection in the law to include all those opposed to military service on ethical and moral grounds.
7. Require that local draft boards be representative of the ethnic~ social and economic composition of the community.
8. Recognize that objection to participation in a particular war can be central to the belief of an individual, and therefore constitute valid grounds for conscientious objection, as does opposition to all war.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That the 1967 General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association:
1. Calls upon the Department of Social Responsibility to cooperate with the LRY and SRL in providing all possible information, encouragement, and assistance to our ministers, churches, and fellowships, to ?insure effective counseling of draft eligible youth and youth approaching draft age;
2. Recognizes the responsibility of Unitarian Universalists to youth who have secured conscientious objector classification and who prefer to fulfill their alternative service requirements under the sponsorship of the Unitarian Universalist Association or its affiliated organizations;
3. Calls upon the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee to increase immediately its alternative service programs in order to help a significant number of applicants;
4. Encourages youth who are conscientious objectors to war to apply for conscientious objector status under the provisions of the Selective Service Act.
5. Extends our support to those persons who in the exercise of their moral choice and through the demands of their individual consciences refuse to register for Selective Service or refuse classifications which are contrary to their consciences.
Right of Dissent
Resolution passed at the Unitarian Universalist Association General Assembly, May 29, 1968. Adopted by greater than a two-thirds majority vote.
Be it resolved: That the 1968 General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association:
1. Reaffirms its call for the abolition of the House Committee on Un-American Activities and all similar inquisitorial committees.
2. Calls upon Congress to resist legislation which could repress the moral and constitutional rights of citizens to petition.
3. Calls upon the Congress and Administration to refrain from equating dissent to war with the lack of patriotism.
4. Encourages its members to act according to their consciences with respect to the draft. We recognize and respect the religious conviction that impels all forms of non-violent resistance whether by destruction or return of draft cards or refusal of induction, or other acts of non-violent resistance to the machinery of war. Inasmuch as some of our churches have recently acted in support of young men of conviction and the UUA Board of Trustees has offered help to Michael Ferber, Unitarian Universalist and member of the Resistance, we, therefore, urge all our congregations to assist in the following ways:
by offering symbolic sanctuary at time of arrest;
by offering church facilities for services of resistance in the tradition of the one held at Arlington Street Church on October 16, 1967;
by establishing a ministry to resisters by men trained in draft and prison counseling;
by assisting in the provision of legal aid to men who in conscience resist the draft;
by encouraging and conducting local efforts in schools, churches, and other community organizations to inform young men who have attained, or who will be attaining draft age, of their rights under the provisions of the Selective Service Act, consequences for disobedience and procedures for foreign residence.
Canadian congregations to offer all possible assistance to programs for members of the Resistance seeking draft evasion in Canada.
5. Recognizes that conscience is the essential ground of dissent and therefore acknowledges that the draft itself is a violation of the conscience of many who find that for them it constitutes involuntary servitude in violation of the Bill of Rights, discriminates against the poor and the Black, or otherwise conflicts with the claim of conscience and consequently calls upon Congress to reform the Selective Service System in accordance with the resolution of the 1967 General Assembly.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 10:
HANDOUT 3: SOCIAL WITNESS AND THE UUA
Currently the UUA has two main ways to address issues of social witness:
These are presented each year at General Assembly and are voted up or down by the delegates present at the convention.
Congregational Study/Action Issue (CSAI)
An invitation for congregations and districts to take a topic of concern and confront it, reflect on it, learn about it, respond to it, comment on it, take action—each in their own way. A CSAI is NOT a statement—it is a question. The text is intended to frame the issue. If the General Assembly passes a CSAI, a statement is developed over several years: After three years of study and action, the General Assembly delegates may adopt a Statement of Conscience (SOC) on the subject... Adopted Statements of Conscience serve to focus the efforts of congregations and other UU groups on the topic, shape the meaning of contemporary Unitarian Universalism, and inform the priorities and projects of the Multicultural Growth and Witness Staff Group.
Statements of Conscience passed by the General Assembly from 1999-2007
Actions of Immediate Witness
People come with a wide range of issues, engage one another in conversation, sign petitions, debate the issues, vote, and bring to life the Principles of Unitarian Universalism, all within the span of one General Assembly (GA). Unlike a Statement of Conscience, an AIW does not carry the full authority of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA); rather, it expresses the conscience of the delegates at the GA at which it is passed... The AIW process allows Unitarian Universalists to respond quickly to social issues deemed urgent. AIWs adopted by a GA are used by congregations in local efforts and empower the Washington Office for Advocacy to take action and recommend action through other departments of the UUA and other UU groups.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 10:
HANDOUT 4: THIS LETTER IS TO EXPRESS OUR PERSONAL DISAPPROVAL
The following letters were exchanged among a pair of members of Arlington Street Church (Boston), the board of the congregation (Prudential Committee), and the congregation's minister, the Rev. Jack Mendelsohn.
5 November 1967
Arlington Street Church Prudential Committee
355 Boylston Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02116
Gentlemen:
This letter is to express our personal disapproval of the method of protest that was demonstrated within the sanctuary of Arlington Street Church on October 16.
We do not deny that people have a right to protest against actions of our government of which they disapprove. We, too, disapprove of the war this country is engaged in in Vietnam. However, we strongly believe that the method of protest demonstrated in Arlington Street Church on October 16 and in Washington, D.C. on the following weekend does nothing to hasten the end of that war. Rather, we believe such demonstrations serve only to provide aid, comfort and encouragement to North Vietnam in prolonging the war and refusing to discuss any reasonable basis for ending the conflict.
It seems to us that the only reasonable, proper and effective means of protest that we have in this democracy is direct communication of our views to our duly elected representatives in both houses of congress and in the White House. We believe those people do pay heed to the advice they receive by letter and telegram from their constituents.
We believe that conscientious objection does not give an individual the right to choose in which wars he is willing to be selected for service and in which wars he is not willing to be selected for service. A true conscientious objector should conscientiously object to all violence and warfare. Conscientious objection should, as the words imply, be an individual decision of the conscience. That decision should not be influenced in either direction by mass hysteria.
It would be presumed that a decision to permit such a controversial demonstration to take place within the confines of Arlington Street Church would be made by the Prudential Committee representing the church membership. Perhaps it would have been in order to take a vote of the membership to permit, or not permit, such a demonstration within the church.
Our protest is such that we now notify you of our intention to withdraw our financial support of Arlington Street Church for the balance of the current fiscal year. The money still due on our current pledge will be donated to other worthy causes with which we now have more favorable feelings. When the new fiscal year arises, we shall reassess our position and at that time may, or may not, reestablish our financial support of Arlington Street Church.
Sincerely,
___________ and ___________
cc to: Dr. Jack Mendelsohn, Arlington Street Church
Dr. Dana M. Greeley, 25 Beacon Street, Boston
Response from Rev. Mendelsohn:
November 9, 1967
Dear ___________ and ___________:
I have read your letter to the Prudential Committee with the most profound feelings of disappointment and sadness. It would have never occurred to me that you would write such a letter without troubling to acquaint yourselves with the total context of the October 16th service at the church and without doing me the simple, rudimentary courtesy of a personal chat.
I am acquainted with a quotation often found in church literature which reads as follows: "If one supports the church because he hears what he likes, and withdraws support when he no longer hears what he likes, he is offering the church a bribe. There is only one legitimate reason for supporting a church, and this is commitment to its goals."
You have an unquestionable and unqualified right to express your dissent concerning specific activities of the church, and to do so in the most vigorous fashion. But I don't think anyone has a right to exercise financial coercion on an institution he is voluntarily a part of.
I have no desire to effect a change in your course, but I do feel that you owe it to yourselves to read the enclosed sermon. I am utterly convinced that if you had been at church on Sunday, October 22, and experienced the full service, or if you had taken the trouble to talk with me at any time since October sixteenth, you would not have used a financial sledge hammer to make a point which belongs solely in the realm of conscience and free faith.
Sincerely Yours,
Jack Mendelsohn
cc: Arlington Street Church Prudential Committee
Reply to Rev. Mendelsohn:
November 12, 1967
Dear Jack:
Thank you for your letter of November 9.
We had read your October 22 sermon before. It did not alter my feeling of disappointment and sadness that my church had been so deeply involved in the October 16th demonstration.
I do not wish to enter into a debate on this matter. Let us allow it to remain as it is, a difference of opinion within our religion.
Time has cured some of my shock and revulsion. The form of protest cited in our recent letter was perhaps a hasty decision. We have strong personal ties to Arlington Street Church. We are Unitarians. You are right in reminding us that we have the right to express our dissent, but not necessarily the right to exert financial force to back up that dissent. We shall comply with our current financial pledge.
Sincerely,
____________
cc to: The Prudential Committee
Dr. Dana M. Greeley, 25 Beacon St., Boston
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 10:
HANDOUT 5: CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION AND THE DRAFT
Published by Liberal Religious Youth and distributed by the Unitarian Universalist Association in April, 1967.
FIND OUT MORE
Learn more about the Unitarian Universalist Association's Study Action Issues and Process (at www.uua.org/socialjustice/issuesprocess/index.shtml) and explore a searchable list of social justice resolutions and statements (at www.uua.org/socialjustice/socialjustice/index.php).
Current information from the UUA about being a conscientious objector:
Conscientious Objectors and the Draft (at www.uua.org/documents/washingtonoffice/conscientiousobjectors_brochure.pdf) brochure (dated Oct 16, 2008)
Read Rev. Jack Mendelsohn's reflections in his book Being Liberal in an Illiberal Age: Why I am a Unitarian Universalist, (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=551) second edition (Boston, Skinner House, 2006).
WORKSHOP 11: CIVIL RIGHTS
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
I am more sorry than I can say that your fellowship is again being caught in the grinders of the advance of history in the south. I hope desperately that the group will not suffer unduly as the result of the events in which our people are participating in Jackson and Mississippi. On the other hand, I do not see how we could really avoid participating in this as we do have a stake in this with those people being persecuted and we must stand at this point or allow ourselves to be classified with the group of those who look on, but do very little. — Reverend Clifton Hoffman, writing to the president of the congregation of the First Unitarian Church in Jackson, Mississippi in 1966
Many Unitarian Universalists are familiar with the work of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, the 1965 march in Selma, Alabama, and the violent deaths of African American civil rights protester Jimmie Lee Jackson, Unitarian Universalist minister Rev. James Reeb, and Unitarian Universalist laywoman Viola Liuzzo. Many Unitarian Universalists know that hundreds of ministers and laypeople from around the United States traveled to the South to participate in marches, protests, and the "Freedom Rides" that heralded the first big push to end legal segregation in America. We are rightly proud of the many Unitarian Universalists who realized their belief in the inherent worth and dignity of all people made working for civil rights a moral imperative. However, congregations and ministers in the South faced a set of choices that went beyond individual conscience and discernment. Threats of physical violence and financial ruin loomed over any effort to integrate public spaces. Organized opposition to integration was part of the system, from the street-level violence of the Ku Klux Klan to the legal violence perpetrated by many county courtrooms. Faced with these dilemmas, Southern congregations responded in many different ways. As the Rev. Gordon Gibson wrote in his history of Southern Unitarian Universalists in the Civil Rights era:
There were places where Unitarian Universalists folded their tents and silently stole away in the night. There were Unitarian Universalists who accommodated deeply to the dominant society, maintaining only a mild and intensely private religious deviation from the social norm. The most typical response, however, was for Unitarian Universalists to learn how to live in some degree of tension between their core beliefs on the one hand and, on the other hand, the beliefs and practices deemed acceptable by southern society. If the society was closed, we were a place of openness. This stance was not easy to maintain.
This workshop looks at some ways Southern Unitarian Universalist congregations responded to the struggle for integration and civil rights. Participants explore the consequences of taking a public stance in a deeply divided society and ask how much they or their congregation might risk to take a position of conscience on a divisive social issue?
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 10 |
Activity 1: Integration Case Study — New Orleans | 20 |
Activity 2: The Very Real Danger | 20 |
Activity 3: The Cost | 25 |
Faith in Action: Our Congregation's History in the Civil Rights Era | |
Closing | 15 |
Alternate Activity 1: Small Acts of Great Courage | 25 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Read Leader Resource1, Southern Unitarian Universalists in the Civil Rights Era. How much of this history were you aware of?
Consider this statement of the Reverend Gordon D. Gibson:
These stories do not mean, "Unitarian Universalists led the civil rights movement." The Movement was a movement of, by, and for African Americans, only some of whom were Unitarian Universalist. An accurate history of the Movement could be written without using the words "Unitarian Universalist."
In this workshop, keep in mind the differences between the daily life of the Unitarian Universalists, mostly white, who supported civil rights, and the lives of the African Americans, both Unitarian Universalist and not, who lived under segregation. Think about the ways your life situation has affected the way you have engaged with social justice issues. Have you ever felt compelled to take up a cause when doing so would radically alter your day-to-day existence? If so, in what ways was that liberating and empowering for you? In what ways did it constrain you? Discuss these questions with your co-facilitator.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition, "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
Introduce this workshop using these or similar words:
This workshop explores the history of work for integration and civil rights in Southern Unitarian Universalist congregations, particularly in New Orleans, Louisiana (and Jackson, Mississippi, if the group will do Alternate Activity 1.). No matter where they lived during the 1960s, people had many reasons for participating or not participating in civil rights work. This can be a very emotional subject, especially for those who lived through it. Remember, we are all on a journey of learning about ourselves and our shared history. It can be difficult to let go of judgments about what we personally, or others, should or should not have done responding to the cry for integration and civil rights, but we ask that you do just that as we begin this workshop today.
Invite participants to close their eyes for a moment and consider the feelings and images that arise when they hear the term "desegregation." Ask participants to keep their eyes closed and share aloud one- or two-word responses. What feelings do participants associate with this era? What memories of places, names, or events arise?
Invite everyone to open their eyes. Then, read aloud this quote from the Rev. Gordon D. Gibson:
There were places where Unitarian Universalists folded their tents and silently stole away in the night. There were Unitarian Universalists who accommodated deeply to the dominant society, maintaining only a mild and intensely private religious deviation from the social norm. The most typical response, however, was for Unitarian Universalists to learn how to live in some degree of tension between their core beliefs on the one hand and, on the other hand, the beliefs and practices deemed acceptable by southern society. If the society was closed, we were a place of openness. This stance was not easy to maintain.
ACTIVITY 1: INTEGRATION CASE STUDY — NEW ORLEANS (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Say, in these or similar words:
The question of racial integration in Southern Unitarian Universalist congregations was raised before the Supreme Court 1954 school desegregation decision in Brown v. the Topeka Board of Education, and long before the 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery. The First Unitarian Universalist Church in New Orleans accepted its first black member in 1949, but only years later did the congregation adopt an official policy of welcoming all people, regardless of race.
Distribute Handout 1, The New Orleans Story. Explain that the handout is drawn from documents written by a minister, the late Reverend Albert D'Orlando, to describe the process by which the congregation he served in the 1960s became an officially integrated church. Read the handout aloud. Then, solicit questions, comments, and observations about the process of integrating the New Orleans congregation, using these questions:
Allow ten minutes for this discussion.
Then, share the information that the vote to adopt a policy of integration was not the end of the story. Tell the group that in 1958, some members, feeling, among other things, that the congregation had gone too far in its engagement with the issue of civil rights, left to found another Unitarian fellowship in the city.
Share two quotes from Rev. D'Orlando. The first is from his Annual Report of 1959, describing the split in the congregation:
In the process of exploring there will be times when although we will stand shoulder to shoulder in the creative faith that is ours, we may not always see "eye to eye" on every issue. One of the wonderful things about the Unitarian movement is that it can encompass so many varying points of view and still be creative. It is in this spirit that the past year has seen the formation of a new Unitarian Fellowship in New Orleans. We are pleased for its members that their group is now underway, we wish for them all success in their effort, and we acknowledge that whatever else this represents, it cannot help but add to the strength of religious liberalism in our city.
The second quote is from Rev. D'Orlando's 1965 summary of his life's work. In it he explained the congregational split:
For the first eight years of my ministry here, the congregation was divided between a large majority anxious to fulfill its responsibility to the community and a small, but vocal, minority which felt that the church should not be involved in community issues, particularly in the sensitive area of race relations. Finally, in 1958, a group of 40 left the church to form its own Fellowship in the city. While we regretted their departure, and while we did all we could to prevent the split, we had no alternative but to grapple with the larger issue.
Ask participants to reflect:
Does knowing the New Orleans congregation later split change your response to the question: What does it mean to support a radical shift in congregational culture?
ACTIVITY 2: THE VERY REAL DANGER (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
If you have made copies of the story, distribute them and invite the group to read it. Or, present the story aloud.
Invite the group to take a minute to consider how the activities of Rev. D'Orlando and the First Unitarian Universalist Church of New Orleans put the congregation, its members, and its minister at risk. After a minute, lead participants to name these risks. List them on newsprint.
Engage the group to discuss the potential danger of social justice work, using these questions as a guide:
ACTIVITY 3: THE COST (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Have participants brainstorm, on newsprint, a list of congregational social justice efforts that have cost the congregation money, either directly or indirectly. Then, invite each participant to pick an activity from the list and share why they think the effort was worth the money spent.
Distribute Handout 2, The Cost. Invite participants to read it silently. After all have finished, invite comments and observations about the financial costs that the New Orleans congregation faced as a result of their justice work. Point out that these efforts almost bankrupted the congregation, threatening its survival as an institution. Facilitate a discussion on the financial costs of justice work, using these questions:
CLOSING (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Make sure each participant has their journal and something to write with.
Invite participants to respond:
Think about the choices you have made in your life regarding engagement with social justice issues. How has your life situation—your age, your family situation, your gender, your gender expression, your ethnicity, your employment—affected the form your engagement has taken? Have you ever felt compelled to take up a cause, even though to do so might radically alter your day-to-day existence?
Allow ten minutes for writing in journals.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: OUR CONGREGATION'S HISTORY IN THE CIVIL RIGHTS ERA
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Most congregations have stories about their involvement in efforts to build racial equality. What did your congregation do in the 1960s and 70s? More recently?
Research your congregation's history by visiting the congregation's archives and speaking with the minister and long-time members. You may wish to record your interviews and add the recordings to the archive.
Conversations about race can be difficult, and at times volatile. Consult with your minister about your findings and how best to present this information to the congregation at large. The group might prepare a newsletter or website article, a small group discussion after coffee hour, or even part of a worship service.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
I am more sorry than I can say that your fellowship is again being caught in the grinders of the advance of history in the south. I hope desperately that the group will not suffer unduly as the result of the events in which our people are participating in Jackson and Mississippi. On the other hand, I do not see how we could really avoid participating in this as we do have a stake in this with those people being persecuted and we must stand at this point or allow ourselves to be classified with the group of those who look on, but do very little. — Reverend Clifton Hoffman, writing to the president of the congregation of the First Unitarian Church in Jackson, Mississippi in 1966
Watch one of these award-winning documentaries about Unitarian Universalist involvement in the Civil Rights era:
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: SMALL ACTS OF GREAT COURAGE (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
If participants do not already have Handout 3, distribute it and invite them to read it. Encourage them to underline, make notes, and write down questions.
Invite initial questions or comments. Then ask participants for their reactions to this quotation from the handout:
These stories do not mean, "Unitarian Universalists led the civil rights movement." The Movement was a movement of, by, and for African Americans, only some of whom were Unitarian Universalist. An accurate history of the Movement could be written without using the words "Unitarian Universalist." I think it would be missing some of the details, because there were small but crucial contributions by individuals and congregations which were Unitarian Universalist, but it could be done.
Lead a discussion:
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 11:
STORY: THE REVEREND ALBERT D'ORLANDO FOUGHT RACISM IN NEW ORLEANS
Excerpted from a March 3, 1998 New Orleans Times-Picayune article by Mark Schliefstein as reprinted on the website of the annual D'Orlando Lecture on Social Justice.
... The Rev. (Albert) D'Orlando fought racism and segregation for many years and later opposed the Vietnam War. His house and church were firebombed in 1965. "He was a tremendous role model who believed that faith means nothing if you don't put your beliefs into action," said Martha Kegel, former executive director of the Louisiana chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. "He was a New Englander who came South and fought racism, and eventually, he became the conscience of the New Orleans community."
A native of Boston, the Rev. D'Orlando graduated from Tufts University in Medford, Mass., with a master's degree in theology. After his ordination in 1945, he was named the minister of two small churches in New Hampshire. He came to New Orleans in 1950 and almost immediately moved to integrate his Jefferson Avenue church. Although a number of church members resigned, Kegel said, "He made the Unitarian Church into virtually the only place in white New Orleans where whites and blacks could meet together."
In 1956, he helped found the Louisiana chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. In 1958, he was ordered to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee after being identified as a member of the Communist Party by a New Hampshire homemaker. After the closed hearing, the Rev. D'Orlando said he had never been a member of the party. "His getting dragged before the committee clearly related to his civil rights stance," Kegel said. "At that time, any person who stood up for civil rights was a communist in (the committee's) eyes."
In 1960, as New Orleans prepared to deal with court-ordered school desegregation, the Rev. D'Orlando had his congregation set up a Freedom Fund to provide legal and other assistance to those fighting for desegregation. Within a few weeks, the fund had collected 25,000 dollars, largely from other Unitarian churches throughout the nation.
Also at his urging, the church's youth group participated in sit-ins at lunch counters on Canal Street, said his daughter, Lissa Dellinger. Two youngsters were arrested and charged with criminal anarchy; they were found guilty of criminal mischief and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Through the Rev. D'Orlando's leadership, the church raised money to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, where the convictions were thrown out, Dellinger said.
When the first black children integrated white public schools, the church provided financial assistance to white families who continued to send their children to school with the black children. In 1962, the church paid some of the legal expenses of two black students who filed a federal suit to integrate Tulane University. When Tulane officials agreed to admit the students, the church paid their registration fees and for their books. The church later paid the expenses of a New Orleans lawyer who represented civil rights workers in Mississippi.
The Rev. D'Orlando's civil rights activities resulted in many threats to himself and his family, he said in a speech several years ago. "It was not at all unusual for us to receive phone calls at 3 in the morning warning us that if we did not leave the house within 15 minutes, a bomb would destroy our home," he said. At midnight one Saturday in March 1965, his house was fire-bombed while he was working on a sermon he planned to deliver the next morning condemning similar bombings in Alabama. Two months later, the front of his church was destroyed by dynamite. The bombings were two of more than a dozen that occurred in New Orleans that spring. Authorities tied the bombing of his house to members of the United Klans of America, a wing of the Ku Klux Klan. Three men were convicted in the incident and sentenced to five years in prison.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 11:
HANDOUT 1: THE NEW ORLEANS STORY
Excerpts from "Albert D'Orlando: A Resume," "The New Orleans Story," and "The First Unitarian Church of New Orleans" by Rev. Albert D'Orlando. These documents are located in the "Albert D'Orlando" file at the Andover Harvard Library.
... The First Unitarian Church of New Orleans was born out of the heresy of Parson Theodore Clapp in 1833 (Parson Clapp had formerly been minister of the First Presbyterian Church of this city)....
New growth in the New Orleans church brought with it the problem that every liberal southern church must face; that of racial integration within the congregation itself, as well as in the larger community... Let me emphasize that this became a crucial issue at a time when it was still difficult for southerners to take an open stand on any aspect of racial integration. — from "Albert D'Orlando: A Resume")
First Church, New Orleans, had accepted its first Black member about a year before I arrived on the scene (1949). This was Mr. J.P. Bennett, who came from a long line of Unitarians in Providence, Rhode Island... On arrival in New Orleans he appeared at church one Sunday morning with a letter of recommendation from 25 Beacon Street.
Needless to say, this posed a considerable problem to the membership. At that time the church was not only segregated, it also had direct ties to Civil War ancestors, which, is understandable since the war had ended only 80 years earlier...
... Several months after my first sermon as new minister, two additional blacks appeared in church, together with letters transferring their membership from other Unitarian churches to First Church, New Orleans. One of them was J. Westbrook McPherson, a life-long Unitarian who had come from Phoenix to assume the position of Executive Director of the Urban League Chapter here. The other person was Miss Vernetta Hill, who had come from Omaha, Nebraska, to assume the position of Executive Director of the Black Branch of the Y.W.C.A...
It was the presence of McPherson and Hill that precipitated the ensuing controversy, because whereas Bennett was a shy, retiring sort of person who always sat in the rear pew (as the people here said at the time: "He knew his place, and kept to it"), McPherson and Hill sat wherever they pleased, much to the irritations of the 'die-hards.'" — from "The New Orleans Story")
Albert D'Orlando described the process and problems of integrating the church as follows:
I. Integration of the church. This occurred early in the 1950's, arousing the concern and opposition of some members of the congregation as well as anxieties and tensions of the entire membership.
Problems Involved:
A. The question of granting Blacks full membership, with all rights and privileges. This especially manifested itself by:
a. Opposition to having Blacks sit wherever they chose during Services.
b. Opposition to having them attend after-service Coffee, church dinners and other social activity.
c. Padlocking of the doors in China-closet, so that Blacks would not use Alliance China at social functions.
d. Cancellation of the Thanksgiving Day Dinner by President, after 2 Blacks had purchased tickets for the event.
B. Question of "how many Blacks shall we accept"... with the Board giving serious consideration to drawing a line at a given figure.
C. Opposition of enrollment of Black children in the Church School.
D. Drive to have members reduce pledges to 2 dollars, thus hoping to cripple the budget. — from "The First Unitarian Church of New Orleans"
The outcome of all this was a final report by the Denominational Commission (in 1954 or 1955) pointing out that in many ways we were not as far advanced on this matter as we had thought, and calling on societies throughout the association to move more forcefully on the issues. Meanwhile, our local Committee, with one dissenting vote, issued a report which pointed out to the Congregation that during the two years it had been studying the matter, integration had indeed become a fact in the church. Blacks had joined in considerably larger numbers; they were now participating in every aspect of church life... and were now genuinely accepted by all... with the exception of some of the original protesters... the Congregation, in a special meeting, voted with one dissenting vote... that "Henceforth membership in this congregation is and shall be open to all, regardless of race, point of origin or color of skin." — from "The New Orleans Story"
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 11:
HANDOUT 2: THE COST
From the minutes of an annual meeting of The First Unitarian Universalist Church of New Orleans, date unknown (sometime after 1966).
This financial information was provided to the congregation at an annual meeting, in order to explain the need to refinance the mortgage on the building. It describes the financial costs incurred by the congregation as a result of its social justice activities. Lines in italics are clarifications not found in the original document.
13.60 dollars per week for 7 years to finance a radio program, starting in 1950.
25,000 dollars Freedom Fund (This money was raised from outside sources, primarily from Unitarians across the country who donated to the cause.)
50,000 dollars from Arthur Miller and others to pay for civil rights cases (Ben Smith, a New Orleans lawyer and member of the congregation, was one of the only attorneys in the city who would take up civil rights cases. The congregation took an active role in legal action surrounding desegregation.)
100,000 dollars for a "Black Cultural Organization" (acted as a fiscal sponsor) (Because the church was one of the few places where blacks and whites could meet and share a meal together, the church building became a home to any number of organizations that could not find meeting spaces anywhere else.)
By 1965 Freedom Fund was exhausted.
Other considerations:
Summary: In 1967, the congregation had only 17,000 dollars in savings and owed 56,000 dollars.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 11:
HANDOUT 3: SOUTHERN UNITARIAN UNIVERSALISTS IN THE CIVIL RIGHTS ERA — SMALL ACTS OF GREAT COURAGE
Excerpted and edited from a presentation by the Rev. Gordon D. Gibson under auspices of the Unitarian Universalist Historical Society at the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association, June 23, 2000, Nashville, Tennessee. Used with permission.
What was it like to be a Unitarian Universalist living in the Deep South in the Civil Rights era? For many people on many days it was much the same as being a Unitarian Universalist anywhere in the U.S. during the 1950s and 1960s. But sometimes it became more complicated and less comfortable than that.
When Paul and Thelma Worksman moved from the Washington area to Mississippi they bought a house in Clinton, just west of Jackson. Paul was on the front lawn, supervising the unloading of the moving van, when a car pulled up. A man emerged from the car, walked up to Paul and introduced himself as the minister of the Morrison Heights Baptist Church. He invited the Worksmans to attend Morrison Heights Baptist. Paul thanked him for the invitation but said that they would be attending the Unitarian Universalist Church in Jackson. The man hesitated a moment and then said, "You know they shot the minister of that church." (Rev. Donald Thompson was shot by the Ku Klux Klan and wounded in August 1965).
We all remember the Rev. James Reeb, fatally injured during the voting rights campaign in Selma, but some southern Unitarian Universalists have especially vivid and poignant memories. The Rev. Charles Blackburn, a native southerner serving the Huntsville, Alabama Fellowship, remembers telling northern colleagues, including Reeb, that they were safe within the neighborhood right around Brown's Chapel A.M.E. Church but not outside it; a few hours later Reeb was attacked after eating in an African American restaurant outside that immediate neighborhood. Jean Levine of Atlanta remembers that Reeb had his suitcase in the trunk of her car that afternoon, ready to go back to the Atlanta airport, but then pulled the suitcase out to stay another day or two. H.A. "Bob" Ross, then of Miami, remembers sitting at dinner with Reeb, but turning left as he departed the restaurant and later hearing on the car radio that Reeb, who had turned right, had been attacked and critically injured.
A 1955 service held by the Baton Rouge Unitarians on the lynching of Emmett Till, (a 14-year-old Chicago boy murdered in Mississippi after reportedly whistling at a white woman), was attended by about ten "southern gentlemen," dressed in dark suits and dark hats. That was almost half the attendance that day. A few months later the YWCA told the congregation that the space they had been renting (from the organization) for (Sunday) services was needed for YWCA programming [and they would have to vacate], although there was no evidence of the Y doing any new programming in that space for years to come.
In Knoxville in 1952 the Ohio State Symphonic Choir, scheduled to sing at the University of Tennessee, could not be fed on campus because it was an integrated group. The Tennessee Valley Unitarian Church fed the visiting choir.
Those are a few vignettes. What was the larger picture?
If you looked at the Deep South—the states that had formed the Confederacy—a century or a century and a half ago, you would have seen a scattering of Universalist congregations in each state, but many states with no Unitarian presence. This meant that the South in the 1950s and 1960s, the Civil Rights era, was to a great extent just beginning to encounter Universalist and Unitarian ideas and persons with much frequency. This was a fateful time for liberal ideas and principles to be coming to the fore in this part of the world. The dominant social ideas of the South in the 1950s and 1960s were of control, continuity, conformity, hierarchy. The ethos and core of Unitarianism and Universalism elevated values of freedom, personal responsibility, unfettered truth-seeking, and affirmation of human dignity. The dominant values of this religious movement were, to put it mildly, in conflict with the dominant values of the region. That conflict is what I will be talking about.
... the South, ruled by a white power structure and pervaded by an ideology widely shared by its white residents, was facing a crisis in ideas and in social patterns at just the time that Unitarians, Universalists, and soon Unitarian Universalists began to be a visible and contrarian presence after World War II. The white South felt besieged and was in a mood to strike back at those perceived as agents of change, as "outside agitators," or as "traitors." Persons operating on the principles that were inherent to Universalism, Unitarianism, and then Unitarian Universalism were almost inevitably a challenge to southern mores and social patterns.
What was the result of this conflict? The result could have been Unitarian Universalists fading away, retreating yet again from the South even as the Unitarians in particular had previously avoided the South.
The result could have been Unitarian Universalists finding that accommodation to society was really more important than their own professed values; this was certainly something that had happened in many other religious traditions.
Either of these results would have been understandable, and in some instances one or both happened. There were places where Unitarian Universalists folded their tents and silently stole away in the night. There were Unitarian Universalists who accommodated deeply to the dominant society, maintaining only a mild and intensely private religious deviation from the social norm.
The most typical response, however, was for Unitarian Universalists to learn how to live in some degree of tension between their core beliefs on the one hand and, on the other hand, the beliefs and practices deemed acceptable by southern society. If the society was closed, we were a place of openness.
This stance was not easy to maintain. It led some congregations and many individuals to what I would characterize as "small acts of great courage."...
The ministers who served these congregations in this era are heroes of mine. They stood tall when it would have been easier to keep their heads down. They lived and mostly thrived in places that most of their colleagues avidly avoided. They grew vibrant congregations.
... Donald Thompson served the First Unitarian Church of Jackson, Mississippi, 1963-65. In August of 1965 he was shot by the Ku Klux Klan and critically injured. A few weeks later the settlement director in the UUA Department of Ministry wrote inquiring whether "you think the time is now for you to move to a more comfortable situation or a different climate." Don replied from his hospital room:
Thanks for your offer of assistance in placement. If any of the Miss. congregations feel that my presence is a danger to them, I'll take advantage of your offer. Otherwise, I feel that I ought to try to stay here for the next seven or eight years. ("I should live so long.") I realize that the same night riders may be out to finish the job, but why have a successor who would also be a target. The Klan probably is quite upset because, for once, their execution didn't take. Maybe they'll do something about it. Yet one cannot live on the basis of fear... It takes courage in Jackson to join a liberal church. Yet I believe that my continuing after the shooting incident might attract some worthwhile members.
As it worked out, a couple of months later Don accepted the advice of local friends, corroborated by the FBI, and left the state of Mississippi on a few hour's notice before the Klan again attempted to kill him.
... (Stories like this) continue through the Carolinas and Virginia, over into Louisiana, down into parts of Florida. In most of the places where there were Unitarian Universalists there were at least some of these stories.
These stories do not mean, "Unitarian Universalists led the civil rights movement." The Movement was a movement of, by, and for African Americans, only some of whom were Unitarian Universalist. An accurate history of the Movement could be written without using the words "Unitarian Universalist." I think it would be missing some of the details, because there were small but crucial contributions by individuals and congregations which were Unitarian Universalist, but it could be done.
Although the overwhelming thrust of the Movement was the liberation of African Americans, there was a secondary effect, and that was the liberation of European Americans. Unitarian Universalists were among the first liberated, and among the key liberators.
What these stories—stories of congregations, stories of individuals, stories of acts, small and large, of great courage—what these stories do mean is that Unitarian Universalists often provided an early crack in the "closed society" of the white South. In response to an ideology allied with religious fundamentalism, we were religiously open and tolerant. In response to an ideology that depicted some people as of great worth and others as of little worth, we proclaimed the worth and dignity of all persons.
We were a crack in the "closed society," but not without cost. What was done was often at a high price for some. Those of us who are white were often too radical to have much of any support from other whites. But we were also too white to merit much support or attention from African Americans. There were psychological scars. There were family ties sundered. There were jobs lost. There were sometimes physical attacks. Those are very real costs.
But there were benefits as well. The benefits were less tangible, but they were real. At base, I think the benefit obtained by Unitarian Universalists, young and old, lay and clergy, was the sense that they were in fact living out their faith. Their integrity was intact. They were making real some small part of the ideal world that they imagined.
FIND OUT MORE
Online, find "Southern Unitarian Universalists in the Civil Rights Era — A Story of Small Acts of Great Courage (at www.uuhs.org/CustomContentRetrieve.aspx?ID=1142391&A=SearchResult&SearchID=304014&ObjectID=1142391&ObjectType=35)," a presentation by the Rev. Gordon D. Gibson under auspices of the Unitarian Universalist Historical Society at the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), June 23, 2000, Nashville, Tennessee.
Read "Living in Nineveh (at uuma.site-ym.com/resource/collection/20FCD5D4-D494-4817-93F4-D4264C5B8ACD/BirminghamLecture4.3.pdf)," a lecture by Rev. Gibson at the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association Convocation, March 10, 2002 in Birmingham, Alabama.
Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Movement 1964-1985 is an award-winning, 14-hour documentary series executive-produced by the late Henry Hampton, founder of Blackside, Inc. media production company and a former public information director of the UUA. Visit the PBS website for viewing and ordering information (at www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/eyesontheprize/) and a wealth of supplementary materials.
Home of the Brave (at www.bullfrogfilms.com/catalog/hob.html), distributed by Bullfrog Films, is a documentary about Viola Liuzzo, the only white woman murdered in the Civil Rights Movement, and why we hear so little about her. Told through the eyes of her children, the film follows the ongoing struggle of an American family to survive the consequences of their mother's heroism and the mystery behind her killing. Learn more and order the film here. (at www.bullfrogfilms.com/catalog/hob.html)
Call to Selma: Eighteen Days of Witness (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=557) is a first-hand account by Richard D. Leonard (Boston: Skinner House, 2002).
WORKSHOP 12: RESPONDING TO CALLS FOR BLACK EMPOWERMENT
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
"Black Empowerment," "walkout," "racist"...the words we use, the language we have to describe the period of the late 1960s and early 1970s are loaded. Why, for example, do we use the term "Black Empowerment Controversy"? It seems to make the anguish of that period the fault of the relatively small group of African American Unitarian Universalists, rather than the result of the white Unitarian Universalist encounter with race and racism. The term "White Power Controversy" would be more accurate in many ways and would direct attention to the broad Unitarian Universalist movement, and its need for healing and transformation, rather than to the small, marginalized group of "black" people and their allies. — Rev. William Sinkford, in his introduction to Long Challenge: The Empowerment Controversy by Victor H. Carpenter
In the late 1960s, the Unitarian Universalist Association and its member congregations were faced with a changing philosophical and strategic landscape surrounding their social justice efforts. The Black Power movement was one of several empowerment and liberation movements that challenged the existing structures and priorities. This workshop examines how the "Black Power" movement affected our religious movement by focusing on two narratives—one the story of a congregation and one of the Unitarian Universalist Association. Both were torn apart by the pressures and tensions that arose as a result of their responses to the events of the time. In the late 1960s, the Unitarian Universalist Association experienced an institutional crisis called the "Empowerment Controversy" when leaders disagreed over the best way for the institution to respond to the growing demand for racial justice and equity in the Association and the wider world. During that same period, the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland, Ohio, responding to both national events and events within the UUA, deeded its building and half of its endowment to the Cleveland Black Unitarian Universalist Caucus in an effort to start an African American Unitarian Universalist congregation. The experiment was not successful, and what transpired has had a long-term impact on Unitarian Universalism in the Cleveland area.
The experience of the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland is unique in its particulars. However, many of our congregations, and the Unitarian Universalist Association as a whole, were significantly impacted by the struggles over and for racial justice that took place in the late 1960s and 1970s. This workshop explores why the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland was able to function as an integrated community in the 1950s and early-to-mid 1960s but could not support a primarily black congregation in the late 1960s. The workshop asks: has the way Unitarian Universalists "do social justice" been permanently affected by the black power movement and crisis of the late 1960s and 1970s?
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 10 |
Activity 1: The Empowerment Controversy | 20 |
Activity 2: The Black Humanist Fellowship | 30 |
Activity 3: The Long Journey | 20 |
Faith in Action: Your Congregation's History in Working for Racial Justice | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: The Charge of the Chalice | 35 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Read the workshop, and then investigate whether your congregation has had a significant conflict. When did the conflict take place? Does it continue to affect congregational life? What issues were at stake? Was the conflict an internal matter, or did it involve outside forces? Was it successfully resolved? If so, what was necessary for healing to occur? As you lead this workshop, reflect on the ways conflicts can continue to have repercussions many years after they take place.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition, "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
Tell the group in this workshop they examine the impact of the Black Power movement on Unitarian Universalism. The story that unfolds will highlight the relationships among local congregations, the Unitarian Universalist Association, and the wider world.
Read these excerpts from two General Assembly Business Resolutions:
Excerpt from the 1963 General Assembly Business Resolution: Admission of Members Without Discrimination excerpt:
Therefore Be It Resolved, that all member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association be charged to declare and practice their faith in the dignity and worth of every person and that all member congregations of our denomination are hereby strongly urged to welcome into their membership and full participation persons without regard to race, color or national origin...
Excerpt from the 1997 General Assembly Business Resolution: Toward an Anti-Racist Unitarian Universalist Association:
BE IT RESOLVED that the 1997 General Assembly urges Unitarian Universalists to examine carefully their own conscious and unconscious racism as participants in a racist society, and the effect that racism has on all our lives, regardless of color.
invite each participant to describe, In a sentence, the difference between the two resolutions.
ACTIVITY 1: THE EMPOWERMENT CONTROVERSY (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute the handouts. Have the two volunteers read Handout 1, The Empowerment Controversy aloud, alternating paragraphs. Then, ask participants to read Handout 2, Time Line of the Empowerment Controversy silently to themselves. Because the story is complex, help the group apprehend the facts before responding more deeply. After everyone is clear on what happened, go around the group, inviting each person in turn to respond, in a few words, to the story. Affirm the variety of responses and observations that are voiced.
Facilitate a discussion of the material in the handouts, using these questions:
ACTIVITY 2: THE BLACK HUMANIST FELLOWSHIP (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Explain that the group will explore how events at the Association level can influence events in a congregation, as participants examine the story of the Black Humanist Fellowship and the Unitarian Society of Cleveland. Distribute the story, the Black Humanist Fellowship. Read it aloud, or have the volunteers present it.
After the story, invite participants to form groups of three or four to respond to the story. Indicate the questions you have posted on newsprint, and invite small groups to use them as a frame for their discussion. Tell them that they will have 15 minutes; suggest that they allow enough time at the end of their small groups to focus on the last (starred) question.
After about 10 minutes, tell participants they have five minutes remaining for this part of the activity and suggest small groups move to the starred question, if they have not already done so.
After 15 minutes, re-gather the large group. Invite a representative of each small group to share something of their conversation and to name a lessos the group drew from the Black Humanist Fellowship story.
ACTIVITY 3: THE LONG JOURNEY (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to reflect on Unitarian Universalist efforts at racial justice since the Empowerment Controversy. Invite them to begin by considering how race relations have changed since then.
Distribute sticky notes so each participant has access to some of each color.
Designate one color of sticky note as the "improved" color and invite participants to think of:
Ask participants to briefly write their contributions on the "improved" color sticky notes and place those notes on the corresponding sheets of newsprint. Assure participants they need not add notes to all three sheets of newsprint—everyone's experiences and observations are unique.
Next, invite the group to think of and write, on a different color sticky note, areas in which race relations are still a challenge: at their own congregation, in the Association, and in the wider society. Once again, invite them to post their notes on the appropriate sheets.
Finally, invite the group to reflect on actions they could personally take to improve race relations: at their congregation, in the Association, and in society. Again, invite them to post contributions, using a third color sticky note, in the appropriate charts.
Allow ten minutes for writing and posting; save ten minutes to conclude the activity.
Once the notes are posted, invite a co-facilitator or volunteer to read them aloud. Invite participants to look for trends, similarities, and differing opinions. Are there any disagreements in how participants have assessed race relations progress and challenges?
Ask the group to consider the suggestions for personal actions in light of the events of the Empowerment Controversy. Were there times when one person made a difference? Were there times when institutional forces overwhelmed an individual attempt to influence events?
Including All Participants
If any participant may find it difficult to post items on the charts, offer to collect the sticky notes from them and post.
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Make sure each participant has their journal and something to write with.
Then, invite everyone to respond to these questions:
Allow eight minutes for writing in journals.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: YOUR CONGREGATION'S HISTORY IN WORKING FOR RACIAL JUSTICE
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Most congregations have stories about their involvement in efforts to build racial equality. What did your congregation do in the 1960s and 70s? More recently?
Research your congregation's history by visiting the congregation's archives and speaking with the minister and with long-time members. You may wish to record your interviews and add the recordings to the archive.
Conversations about race can be difficult, and at times volatile. Consult with your minister about your findings and how best to present this information to the congregation at large. The group might prepare a newsletter or website article, a small group discussion after coffee hour, or even part of a worship service.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
"Black Empowerment," "walkout," "racist"...the words we use, the language we have to describe the period of the late 1960s and early 1970s are loaded. Why, for example, do we use the term "Black Empowerment Controversy"? It seems to make the anguish of that period the fault of the relatively small group of African American Unitarian Universalists, rather than the result of the white Unitarian Universalist encounter with race and racism. The term "White Power Controversy" would be more accurate in many ways and would direct attention to the broad Unitarian Universalist movement, and its need for healing and transformation, rather than to the small, marginalized group of "black" people and their allies. — Rev. William Sinkford, in his introduction to Long Challenge: The Empowerment Controversy by Victor H. Carpenter
Watch Wilderness Journey: The Struggle for Black Empowerment and Racial Justice with the UUA 1967-1970 (at www.uua.org/documents/congservices/araomc/wilderness_journey_dvd.pdf) on your own or with a group from your congregation. Plan ample time for reflection or discussion afterward. Obtain the 75-minute DVD from your Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) district office or from the UUA Multicultural Growth and Witness staff group. The DVD includes first person accounts of events introduced in this workshop.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: THE CHARGE OF THE CHALICE (35 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Show the group Leader Resource 1, Video Segment — Davies Memorial Church, Camp Springs, Maryland, or the same segment on DVD. Then, lead a discussion about Davies Memorial's work to become intentionally multicultural and multiracial. Use these questions as a guide:
Allow ten minutes for discussion. Then, distribute Handout 3, Characteristics of Racially Integrated Unitarian Universalist Congregations. Tell the group these are some characteristics Unitarian Universalist minister, historian, and teacher Rev. Mark Morrison-Reed has identified as common to congregations that have successfully became more racially diverse. Ask: How do these characteristics help us understand factors that support racial diversity in our congregations today?
Invite participants to consider their own congregation in the light of the Davies Memorial story and the characteristics Rev. Morrison-Reed has identified. What practices are important for your congregation to emphasize or consider starting, in order to welcome, support, and sustain racial diversity?
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 12:
STORY: THE BLACK HUMANIST FELLOWSHIP
In 1951, the congregation of First Unitarian Church of Cleveland decided to move from its building at the corner of 82nd and Euclid in downtown Cleveland to suburban Shaker Heights. This move was motivated by the economic decline of the Hough (pronounced "how") neighborhood where the church was located. In 1904, when the church was built, the neighborhood had been one of the wealthiest in the entire country. By 1951, much of Cleveland's middle and upper class was moving out to the suburbs, and the neighborhood was in a slow and steady decline. African American families were moving in and white families were moving out.
Roughly 300 members of the 1200-member congregation opposed the move to Shaker Heights, believing it was important that a Unitarian voice remain in the City of Cleveland. They bought the downtown church building from First Church and organized the Unitarian Society of Cleveland.
The newly organized Society ordained and called the Reverend Jesse Cavileer as its first minister and engaged in the work of an urban church. By the time the Society called the Reverend Farley Wheelwright as its fourth minister in 1968 it had earned a reputation as a congregation that worked for civil rights, spoke out against the Vietnam War, and fought for social justice. It was also an integrated congregation with a membership that was about 10 percent African American.
By the time Wheelwright arrived, tensions had developed between the church and the neighborhood. In a May 21, 1969, letter to the Society's Board of Trustees, Wheelwright described the situation of the congregation this way:
The problem... our almost total lack of relationship with to (the neighborhood). In the past year we have had robberies, muggings, gun hold-ups, threatened rape... The building we acquired for the parking lot was set afire. Last Monday I was pelleted with empty coke bottles and told 'get out of the neighborhood!' I got.
In the same letter Wheelwright began to ruminate on a possible solution to the Society's problem. He wrote:
I think it might be possible for us to relate to this community by staffing the Unitarian Society with a Black Minister to the Community. He would be charged with building black liberal religious constituency and ministering to the neighborhood...
At the same time, the Unitarian Universalist Association was considering what they called an "Experimental Ghetto Ministry." In September, 1969, the UUA contracted with the Reverend John Frazier to "develop a meaningful, relevant and empowering religious community in the ghetto;" Frazier came to Cleveland shortly afterward to begin this ministry.
In Cleveland, Frazier organized the Black Humanist Fellowship of Liberation which was initially made up primarily of members of the local chapter of BUUC. BUUC, the Black Unitarian Universalist Caucus, was the local chapter of the national organization of the same name, an organization committed to the philosophy of Black Power or Black Nationalism. Members of this chapter of BUUC were African American Unitarian Universalists from the Unitarian Society of Cleveland and other area Unitarian Universalist congregations. Wheelwright continued to lead the Unitarian Society of Cleveland while Frazier led the Fellowship, a congregation within a congregation.
Wheelwright, a white man, was 50 in 1968. He had been active in the Civil Rights and anti-war movements. He knew Martin Luther King, Jr. (before his assassination, King had been scheduled to preach Wheelwright's installation sermon) and he was familiar with other nationally known civil rights leaders. He had come to Cleveland because he was interested in serving an inner city church with a social justice ministry.
Frazier was just 28 when he moved to Cleveland. He was fresh out of school and had never served a Unitarian Universalist congregation as its settled minister. Frazier, too, had been active in the Civil Rights movement, and had first met Wheelwright several years earlier when the two had been in Mississippi. Frazier had been impressed by the commitment of the Unitarians of Jackson, Mississippi to the struggle for racial equality and had joined the Unitarian church in Jackson. After finishing his undergraduate degree, Frazier had enrolled in Crane Theological School. While Frazier was in seminary, Wheelwright, who was serving a nearby congregation, became one of his benefactors and mentors. After Frazier's graduation, Wheelwright had raised money so Frazier could spend a year studying at Manchester College, the Unitarian seminary that is part of Oxford University in England.
Ordained in 1969, Frazier was one of the first dozen African Americans to serve as a Unitarian Universalist minister. Prior to coming to Cleveland, he had been considered for pulpits in Philadelphia and in Chicago Heights, Illinois. Correspondence between Frazier and one of the search committees indicates that racism on the part of some church members had at least something to do with why he had not been called to either of those congregations.
In the summer of 1969, just as Frazier was set to begin his ministry in Cleveland, the relationship between the Society and the Hough neighborhood deteriorated even further. Two women were attacked in the congregation's parking lot in June. People, particularly families with children, were resigning from the congregation's membership and Sunday morning attendance was dwindling.
Wheelwright drafted a memo to the Unitarian Society of Cleveland's governing board. In the memo, Wheelwright laid out several possible options for the congregation's governing board and membership to consider. The last one was to: "Turn the 82nd Street Unitarian Society of Cleveland over lock, stock and barrel to a Black Unitarian movement, with the initial leadership coming from BUUC."
At two consecutive congregational meetings in late 1969, the Unitarian Society of Cleveland voted, along fairly narrow margins, to give its building and a substantive portion of its endowment to BUUC and the Black Humanist Fellowship. A court case ensued, but on March 1, 1970 the deed was transferred from the Unitarian Society of Cleveland to BUUC. According to an agreement worked out between the two organizations, the Society was to be allowed to continue to meet in the church building as long as it wished to do so. BUUC and the Black Humanist Fellowship were to manage the day-to-day operation of the building.
Attendance at the Society's services continued to dwindle. By early 1971, a decision was made to move the congregation to Cleveland Heights. After the move, the Society's membership plummeted and by 1972 it was no longer able to retain a full time minister.
After taking control of the building in 1970, the Black Humanist Fellowship received significant financial support from the Unitarian Universalist Association and a number of other granting agencies. The Fellowship's first annual congregational meeting on November 29, 1970, recorded a membership of 96 adults and a youth program with about 30 participants. At that time the congregation's stated purpose was:
1) To be a summing point for community involvement; and
2) To create through the people, a seven (7) day a week religious model.
How the Fellowship would fulfill its stated purpose was never entirely clear. While the congregation was initially able to generate a lot of enthusiasm, it was never able to develop a focus. Within the first year a theater, a drug addiction clinic, a store for African art, clothes and literature, an educational program, and a counseling center were planned. Somehow, funding for most of these programs was secured. The National Endowment for the Arts supported the theater program. The Unitarian Universalist Association paid for the minister and administrator's salaries. The Fellowship staff grew to six people.
No plan was developed to raise the funds necessary to keep the Fellowship operating from year to year or to make its programs sustainable. The Fellowship sought grant money constantly, but members of the congregation were not required to make substantive financial contributions to the community; pledging goals were set at only one percent of members' monthly incomes. Several fund raising efforts were held—Lionel Hampton did a benefit concert—but none of these generated sufficient funds to pay for the congregation's operating budget, maintain the building, and support its staff. By the end of 1971, only twenty months after taking possession of the building, the Fellowship was actively trying to sell parts of it. Pictures of the church's four Tiffany windows were sent to auction houses and museums across the country. A plan was formulated to sell the pews and chancel. Because the congregation was unable to generate enough cash, its staff began to resign.
At the same time, the Fellowship was hemorrhaging members. The 1971 annual congregational meeting minutes report a membership of 36, only 14 of whom were present. Instead of adjusting the congregation's plans to its changing circumstances and resources, the projected budget ballooned. The planned budget for 1973 was over 130,000 dollars.
The congregation never developed a deep religious life. The worship services, when they happened, were greatly varied. More often than not they consisted of theater performances, drumming, and lectures by outside speakers. Alcohol was frequently served after the services. Throughout the minutes of the Fellowship's board meetings are frequent references to poor service attendance.
The Fellowship folded not long after its outside funding ran out. Frazier left Cleveland in 1974 and the Unitarian Universalist Association's last record of the Fellowship is from 1979. At that time it had 17 members.
Several factors help explain why the Fellowship collapsed so quickly. By the mid 70s, the Unitarian Universalist Association's interest in experimental urban ministries had declined. Funding was no longer available to pay Frazier's salary or support the activities of the Fellowship. The national mood had shifted and political radicalism had fallen into a decline. The Empowerment Controversy within the UUA had left many African Americans disheartened with Unitarian Universalism and uninterested in liberal religion. It would be years before the Association turned significant attention to healing these wounds.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 12:
HANDOUT 1: THE EMPOWERMENT CONTROVERSY
The involvement of Unitarian Universalist clergy and laypeople in the series of civil rights marches in and between Selma and Montgomery, Alabama in 1965 is often regarded as a high point in Unitarian Universalist social justice efforts. During this time, three people were killed by white supremacists. Jimmy Lee Jackson, a young African American, was shot defending his family from the Alabama State Police. The two others, Viola Liuzzo and the Rev. James Reeb, were both white Unitarian Universalists who were participating in the marches after Jackson's death. Reeb's assassination is credited by many with drawing national attention to the struggle for voting rights and prompting passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. President Lyndon Johnson sent yellow roses to Reeb's hospital room and Martin Luther King, Jr. preached Reeb's eulogy. King's eulogy summed up the vision of the integrationist arm of the Civil Rights movement, "He was a witness to the truth that men of different races and classes might live, eat, and work together as brothers."
That vision was tested over the next decade within the Unitarian Universalist Association, in what has become known as the Empowerment Controversy.
The controversy began in October, 1967 at the Emergency Conference on Unitarian Universalist Response to the Black Rebellion at New York's Biltmore Hotel. The conference had been called in response to the rising tide of violent protests and riots in America's inner cities. Shortly after the conference began, the majority of African Americans attendees withdrew from the planned agenda to form the Black Unitarian Universalist Caucus (BUUC).
The Caucus was immediately controversial. Some delegates to the Biltmore conference alleged that it was engaging in separatism or "reverse racism." After meeting, the Caucus demanded that the conference endorse, without amendment or debate, a series of proposals, calling for African American representation on the UUA Board of Trustees, Executive Committee, and Finance Committee, as well as subsidies for black ministers. Most remarkably, they called for the creation of a UUA-affiliated Black Affairs Council (BAC) to be financed by the UUA at $250,000 per year for four years. The Biltmore conference endorsed the proposals.
When presented with the proposals endorsed by the Biltmore conference, the UUA Board rejected them. Instead, the Board decided to fund a national conference for BUUC; at that conference, the more than 200 participants reaffirmed the Caucus's prior demands. The UUA Board response was to create a Fund for Racial Justice Now, with an annual goal of $300,000, to be administered by a newly created Commission for Action on Race. The Black Affairs Council (BAC)'s application for affiliate status with the UUA was also granted, but no promise was made to fund that organization.BUUC chairperson Hayward Henry charged that the Board's refusal to fund the BAC and allow the BAC to control such funding directly reflected "a traditional racist and paternalistic approach to black problems."
Over the next few months, as preparations were made for the 1968 UUA General Assembly, supporters organized to place a resolution to fund BAC on the Assembly's official agenda. Unitarian Universalists who opposed the BAC resolution formed Unitarian Universalists for a Black and White Alternative (BAWA) "to provide an independent denominational agency in which... black and white Unitarian Universalists ...can work together as equals."
The assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King shortly before the 1968 General Assembly changed the shape of race relations in the UUA and set the tone for the meeting. In the wake of King's death, BAC supporters became more militant and more explicitly linked to the growing, national Black Power movement. The General Assembly passed the motion to fund BAC by a vote of 836 to 326. Victor Carpenter wrote that this showing of support for BAC's agenda "gave the nation its first example of a denomination's making a significant 'reparational' response to the conditions of racism in America."
The action approved by the 1968 General Assembly soon ran aground. The Association's finances were in dire straits, a situation which at that time was known only to the UUA Administration and Board. In an attempt to relieve some of the financial pressure the Association faced, UUA President Dana Greeley tried to alter the financial outlay called for in the resolution, making an offer to BAC to divide the million dollar total payment over five years instead of four. Instead, the UUA Board reintroduced the issue of BAC's funding as part of the 1969 Assembly agenda. Their intention was to require reaffirmation of BAC's financial support each year.
These events set the stage for the most dramatic General Assembly in the UUA's history, in 1969 in Boston. It began with a struggle over the agenda. The official agenda placed the vote on the funding of BAC, now coupled with an additional $50,000 to fund BAWA, near the very end of the meeting. Members and supporters of BAC felt that this was not in keeping with the urgency of the issue and moved that it be placed at the beginning of the agenda. The vote to alter the agenda received a simple majority but did not reach the two-thirds majority required for an agenda change. In response, BAC chairperson Henry declared, "Unless the Assembly agrees to deal with these basic problems... now and not next Wednesday, the microphones will be possessed and the business of this house will come to halt." Sure enough, the floor microphones were seized by BAC supporters and the business session was forced to end with nothing resolved.
The next day, a motion was made to reconsider the order of the agenda. When the motion lost, Black Unitarian Universalist Caucus (BUUC) members quietly walked out. After talking with leaders of BUUC, the Rev. Jack Mendelsohn addressed the Assembly, stating, "Our Black delegates of BAC have now left the room. They have left this Assembly, and they have left our movement, because life and time are short ...the Assembly is returning to business as usual and to the position of Black people at the back of the bus." Mendelsohn invited those who shared his feelings to join him down the street at the Arlington Street congregation where he was minister.
In a show of solidarity with their black co-religionists, more than four hundred people, all white, joined Mendelsohn. The UUA leadership made overtures to those delegates, who rejoined the General Assembly the next day. The Caucus members remained in the Association and BAC won full funding by vote of the General Assembly delegates.
A few months later, the UUA Board, faced with the ongoing fiscal crisis and their own legal responsibility for the financial well being of the institution, voted to reduce the grant to BAC from $250,000 to $200,000 and spread the million dollars over five years instead of four.
BAC's members decided to disaffiliate from the UUA and attempted to raise money for the organization's programs directly from Unitarian Universalist congregations and institutions. Over the course of a few months they were able to raise as much as $800,000 from the Liberal Religious Youth, the UU Women's Federation, the First Unitarian Society of West Newton (Massachusetts), All Souls Church (Washington, DC), and the First Unitarian Congregational Society of Brooklyn (New York). The money was raised through bonds that were marketed primarily as an investment.
Despite this initial success at fundraising, the BAC, beset by internal strife over differences in strategy, direction, and loyalties, slowly faded from the Unitarian Universalist scene and many of its members left Unitarian Universalism altogether. In 1973, the BAC changed its name to the Black Humanist Fellowship. Shortly afterward, a three-year-long legal battle began between BAC member, over the money lost on the bonds and the legality of the BUUC meeting at which the name was changed. In time, the Black Humanist Fellowship dissolved and its demise marked the end of the Empowerment Controversy. However, the feelings these events caused remained raw. Not until 1979 did the UUA begin to explore what had happened and why, so the Association could again begin to move forward on the issue of racial justice.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 12:
HANDOUT 2: TIME LINE OF THE EMPOWERMENT CONTROVERSY
From a 2006 unpublished paper, "A Financial Picture of the Empowerment Era" by Julia Hamilton and Megan Lynes.
July, 1963 — Establishment of the Commission on Religion and Race
March, 1965 — Many Unitarian Universalist ministers respond to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King's call to join the March to Selma; UU minister James Reeb murdered in Selma.
October, 1967 — Emergency Conference on UU Response to the Black Rebellion (The Biltmore Conference). The Black UU Caucus (BUUC) formed by 30 out of 37 Black delegates to the conference. BUUC presented a list of "non-negotiable" demands to the UUA Board of Trustees:
1. Creation of a Black Affairs Council, funded at $250,000 for four years.
Continuing role for a Black Caucus within the denomination and our right to organize as Blacks amongst themselves.
2. Increasing number of Blacks on every decision making board within the denomination.
3. Such radical alteration in the ministry program that severe racism in this area would be wiped out.
November, 1967 — UUA Board rejects BUUC's non-negotiable demands in favor of the traditional process of negotiation, which results in the Board moving to reorganize the Commission on Religion and Race to "include substantial participation by non-whites." BUUC members and supporters feel betrayed.
November, 1967 — SOBURR formed, a group of whites from the Pacific Southwest urging the support of BAC and withdrawing financial support until the next GA.
February, 1968 — National Conference of Black Unitarian Universalists in Chicago, where 207 delegates represent 600 Black UUs. Following BUUC's recommendation, the Black Affairs Council (BAC) established with six Black members and three White members elected by BUUC.
March, 1968 — BAC invited to have affiliate status with the UUA. Establishment of the UU Fund for Racial Justice (formerly the Freedom Fund).
April, 1968 — FULLBAC (an outgrowth of SOBURR) formed, a group of White allies advocating full financial funding for the BAC.
April, 1968 — Rev. Dr, Martin Luther King Jr. assassinated.
May, 1968 — BAWA formed as a response to BUUC's perceived separatist agenda, in contrast to the integrationist model followed by several historically integrated UU congregations.
May, 1968 — Cleveland General Assembly. Resolution to fully fund BAC is passed 836 votes to 327. BAWA receives no funding. The atmosphere is highly emotionally charged. BUUC feels that progress had been made, given the promise of institutional funding.
June, 1968 — BAWA becomes a UUA affiliate.
June, 1968 — The UUA's unrestricted endowment fund is discovered to be depleted. The BAC's restricted membership (based on racial quotas) is challenged, but accepted.
May, 1969 — Board of Trustees meets, assigns $50,000 funding to BAWA. It should be noted that BAC funding was considered to be "reparational investments," an unprecedented action on the part of the denomination.
July, 1969 — BUUC walks out of GA, after a motion to move the BAC agenda item up from last in the order of business is rejected. Rev. Jack Mendelsohn, vice-chair of BAC, follows the Black caucus members to the Statler Hotel, persuades them not to leave until he has spoken on their behalf on the floor of GA, at which point he invites any interested parties to join him at Arlington Street Church.
Rev. Robert West elected president of the UUA.
The Assembly votes to fund BAC and not BAWA.
January, 1970 — Due to an impending financial crisis, the Trustees vote to change the BAC funding, resulting in $200,000 allocated per year for 5 years. This reduction in funding causes immediate uproar at the open board meeting. February, 1970 — Third annual BUUC meeting. Disaffiliation from the UUA is discussed, which would allow BAC to pursue independent fundraising.
April, 1970 — The BAC is officially removed as a UUA affiliate.
June, 1970 — BUUC/BAC boycott GA. The motion to restore the $50,000 in BAC funding is defeated. This phase of the "Empowerment Controversy" is finished.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 12:
HANDOUT 3: CHARACTERISTICS OF RACIALLY INTEGRATED UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CONGREGATIONS
By the Rev. Dr. Mark Morrison-Reed. Used with permission.
The following are characteristics of congregations that have successfully opened their doors to and attracted substantial numbers of African Americans.
Having African American leadership is a significant element in successfully becoming a racially diverse congregation, but it is not as important as these other factors. Historically, Community Church in New York began to integrate in 1909 but did not have its first African American minister until it called an Associate Minister in 1948; Chicago began to integrate in 1947 but did not call an African American associate minister until 1973. Washington, D.C had an African American religious educator beginning in 1958, eleven years before the arrival of David Eaton, their first African American senior minister.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 12:
LEADER RESOURCE 1: VIDEO SEGMENT DAVIES MEMORIAL CHURCH, CAMP SPRINGS, MARYLAND
From Breakthrough Congregations 2007, produced by the Unitarian Universalist Association. Used with permission.
Video Segment Davies Memorial Church, Camp Springs, Maryland (at www.uua.org/videos/index.php?movie=tapestry/20100315_breakthrough2007_daviesmemorialmd.mp4)
FIND OUT MORE
The Long Challenge: The Empowerment Controversy (1967-1977) (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=389) by Victor Carpenter (Chicago: Meadville Lombard Press, 2004)
The Arc of the Universe Is Long: Unitarian Universalists, Anti-Racism and the Journey from Calgary (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=1044) by Leslie Takahashi Morris, James (Chip) Roush, and Leon Spencer (Boston: Skinner House, 2009)
Black Pioneers in a White Denomination (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=553) by Mark Morrison-Reed (Boston: Skinner House, 1992)
Crisis and Change: My Years as President of the Unitarian Universalist Association, 1969-1977 (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=575) by Robert Nelson West (Boston: Skinner House, 2007)
Wilderness Journey: The Struggle for Black Empowerment and Racial Justice within the Unitarian Universalist Association, 1967-1970, a DVD available from the UUA’s office of Multicultural Growth and Witness (at www.uua.org/leaders/idbm/index.shtml), includes Unitarian Universalist leaders first-hand recollections of the Empowerment Controversy.
WORKSHOP 13: THE WOMEN'S MOVEMENT
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
Something changed during that program at the church; we added our music to the women's movement. Singing together as women created something very special. We went into the service thinking of ourselves as a political activist group and came out of it singing! — Audrey Drummond, "Honor Thy Womanself"
Many of us are familiar with the famous women of Unitarian Universalism's history: our foremothers, ordained as early as the 1860s; the women who marched for suffrage, worked tirelessly for social justice, and advocated for an increased role for women in the public sphere. However, it was not until the latter half of the 20th century that the full participation of women and full inclusion of women's perspectives became imperatives embraced by Unitarian Universalism as a whole. The embrace of women in our religion has, in many cases, meant true change—a fundamental reexamination of the construction of tradition, theology, community, and power in our congregations.
The first official call for an Association-wide soul-searching about gender was the Women and Religion Resolution passed in 1977 at General Assembly, examined in this workshop. The resolution's call bubbled up from the work of hundreds of women and men who formed caucuses, consciousness raising groups, and other feminist spaces during the 1960s and '70s.
One striking aspect of this movement was the creative ways it found to express women's voices and experiences, outside traditional, male-dominated spaces like the pulpit and the chairmanship of the Board. This workshop explores art as a method of transforming society, showing how creating music together became an essential piece of the women's liberation movement for one group of Unitarian Universalists from Boston's Arlington Street Church.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 10 |
Activity 1: A Resolution and a Revolution | 30 |
Activity 2: The Caucus | 20 |
Activity 3: Freedom | 20 |
Faith in Action: Music Supporting Resistance and Transformation | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: There Was a Young Woman Who Swallowed a Lie | 20 |
Alternate Activity 2: Bread and Roses | 20 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Take time to think about your own experiences of feminism and gender-based oppression. Does your religious background affect the way you view women and their role in society? What are your expectations about women's role in Unitarian Universalism? Are these expectations met, in your congregational life? Discuss this with your co-facilitator before the workshop.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition, "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing "Spirit of Life" by Carolyn McDade.
Explain that this workshop focuses on the women's movement in the late 20th century and how it was expressed in the culture of Unitarian Universalism. Tell the group they will examine the Women and Religion Resolution that General Assembly passed in 1977 and a case study from Arlington Street Church, where a women's consciousness raising group transformed itself through music into a tight-knit sisterhood of revolutionary thought and action. Invite participants to consider: Other than at worship services, are there places and times where you regularly sing aloud?
After a minute for reflection, invite participants to briefly share their responses.
ACTIVITY 1: A RESOLUTION AND A REVOLUTION (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Share this brief introduction from Leaping from Their Spheres: The Impact of Women on Unitarian Universalist Ministry, an unpublished collection of essays distributed by the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association:
Some of the first women to serve as ordained clergy in the United States were Universalist and Unitarian ministers, women such as Olympia Brown and Antoinette Blackwell, ordained in the 1860s and '70s. There was a brief surge in the 1890s when the Universalists extended credentials to 46 women and the Western Conference of Unitarians was heavily influenced by the work of women in the ministry. During the late 1800s there were many women leaders involved in social justice issues, working the lecture circuits and drawing crowds of thousands. Unitarian and Universalist women were at the forefront of the first wave of feminism and worked tirelessly for a woman's right to participate in the public sphere, from the pulpit to the ballot box. Unfortunately this trend did not last, and the women in religion movement suffered greatly in the first half of the 20th century. By 1968, out of 616 full ministers listed in the UUA's directory, only 17 were women.
Explain that second-wave feminism came roaring into Unitarian Universalism in the 1960s and 70s, along with social change related to race, gender, sexuality, and other aspects of American culture, many of which are discussed in other workshops in this program. By 1977, Unitarian Universalists were ready to adopt the resolution to examine the roots of patriarchal attitudes that existed both personally and institutionally.
Invite participants to share briefly what they know about 1960s and 1970s feminism on Unitarian Universalism. Some participants may have experienced events the workshop will address; others may have heard about them. Allow about five minutes for participants to share what they know. Then, distribute Handout 1, 1977 Women and Religion Resolution. Invite participants to read the handout silently, and then invite a volunteer to read the resolution aloud. Lead a discussion using these questions:
Allow ten minutes for this part of the activity.
Then, ask participants to reflect: In your life and spiritual development, have you ever felt called to examine your personal religious background or belief system as it relates to gender? Invite them to consider the question for a minute and then turn to a partner to share their responses. Encourage participants to choose a conversation partner of another gender. Allow pairs five minutes.
Re-gather the group and explain that two concrete results of the 1977 resolution were a rewriting of the Principles and Sources and a re-examination of the hymnbook. Many "supplemental" hymnbooks featuring more inclusive language circulated until Singing the Living Tradition was published in 1993.
Distribute Handout 2, Thirty Years of Feminist Transformation. Invite a volunteer to read the article aloud. Ask: Why is the wording in the songs we sing so important? Invite responses, comments, and observations.
ACTIVITY 2: THE CAUCUS (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce the activity using these or similar words:
One way women began to find their voices was by caucusing with other women. Often called "consciousness-raising" groups, these meetings were a chance for women to discuss their experiences of living in a world where gender-based oppression was a fact of daily life. For many, this was the first time they were able to freely discuss the details of their own stories in a safe space.
Invite participants to form groups of three, maintaining as much gender diversity in each group as possible. Distribute the story and invite participants to read it. Then ask participants to share in their small groups, responding to this question and ensuring that each person has a chance to speak:
Allow ten minutes. Then, re-gather the large group.
Point out that the description of the caucus ends with this statement:
Meetings are often ended with singing. If discussion becomes intense, singing offers a way to release tensions and bring the group together.
Invite comments, observations, and responses about the role of song in both the women's caucus groups of the 1960s and '70s and in contemporary, gender-based small groups.
ACTIVITY 3: FREEDOM (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute the Handout 3, Freedom—an explanation of what "freedom" meant to one member of the Arlington Street Women's Caucus. Read the first paragraph aloud, then have the two volunteers alternate reading the bulleted items. Lead a discussion with these questions:
If you have a multigenerational group, encourage conversation between people who experienced the 1960s and '70s as adults and those who were children or not yet born. Be intentional in including the perspectives and experiences of people of all genders.
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Make sure that each participant has their journal, and something to write with. Invite everyone to respond to this question:
How has music been a part of your own resistance and transformation or social justice work?
Allow five minutes for journaling. After five minutes, invite volunteers to share a word, phrase, or sentence from their journal entry.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
FAITH IN ACTION: MUSIC SUPPORTING RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute copies of Singing the Journey. Invite participants to find hymns that support the work of social justice, resistance, and transformation. Try singing some together. Ask your music director to teach the congregation one or two of these hymns if they are not already familiar to the congregation.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
Something changed during that program at the church; we added our music to the women's movement. Singing together as women created something very special. We went into the service thinking of ourselves as a political activist group and came out of it singing! — Audrey Drummond, "Honor Thy Womanself"
Make a point of talking with Unitarian Universalist women whose life experiences are significantly different from yours—women from different generations, different places of origin, different family backgrounds, and racial and/or ethnic identities different from yours. How have they experienced the role of women in Unitarian Universalism? Are there particular workshops, worship services, or other congregational experiences they remember that have been important to them as women?
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: THERE WAS A YOUNG WOMAN WHO SWALLOWED A LIE (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 4 and tell the group it is a parody of the children's rhyme and song "There was an old woman who swallowed a fly." Remind the group of the pace and basic tune. Invite the group to read or sing the song together, encouraging loud and enthusiastic participation!
After reading/singing the song, invite reflection on the content. Were there any references they did not understand? Younger participants may not know who Dr. Spock was, for example, or that there was controversy in the 1960s about the birth control pill. If questions arise, see if participants can provide answers before sharing your own knowledge or research.
Post a sheet of blank newsprint. Invite participants to name the stereotypes mentioned in the poem; have a volunteer list them as they are mentioned. Some things that might come up include "women are nurturing," "wedding is when a woman is 'princess for a day,'" "girly things are 'fluff.'" Ask if any of these stereotypes are still part of our culture today. Have we as a society overcome or changed our views about any of these expectations of women? Invite the group to consider their congregation. Are any of these masculine/feminine roles evident in the way things are done? What is the gender breakdown among religious education leaders, for example? What about the people who set up and clean up coffee hour? What about the Board?
Finally, ask participants: What is the "lie" that she swallowed in the first place?
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 2: BREAD AND ROSES (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Read the following quote from Audrey Drummond, a member of the Arlington Street Women's Caucus:
Increasingly we found ourselves turning to music as our primary method of expression. Ruth recalled how music floated over and around and in and among us, songs, and words becoming part of our lives. Ruth wasn't one of our musical members and there simply had been no music in her life. A few old hymns, some Girl Scout Songs, a chorus or two of the "Star Spangled Banner;" that was it. As the Caucus began singing together, music suddenly became part of her life. It was, she said, "gorgeous music, flowing music" setting her life into the same gorgeous rhythms while the words urged her to revolution.
Distribute Handout 5, Bread and Roses and invite people to follow along with the words. Play the song, allowing a few moments of silence when it ends.
Say, in your own words:
"Bread and Roses" is one of the songs recorded by the Arlington Women's Caucus. The song itself is much older—it was written after a strike in a textile factory in Lawrence, Massachusetts in 1912. The workers were mostly women, and they took on the slogan "Bread and Roses" for the strike. Ask the group to remember that in 1912, women did not yet have the vote and many working class women were functionally illiterate, having been forced out of school and into the workforce at an early age. Singing was useful to the movement not only because it lifted the spirits of those on strike, but because a catchy song communicates the issues and aims of a movement.
Ask participants to name other labor, civil rights, or other justice movement songs they know. Encourage them to sing them! Lead the group to share knowledge about civil rights movements that used music as a primary feature of public demonstrations and contemporary movements that use song in the same way. Consider modern songs, rock songs, folk songs, traditional music, hip hop, and rap.
Play "Bread and Roses" again and invite participants to sing along! Ask everyone to sing with gusto.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 13:
STORY: HONOR THY WOMANSELF — THE CAUCUS
Written by the Arlington Street Church Woman's Caucus and published in the Honor Thy Womanself program by the Unitarian Universalist Woman's Federation, 1973. Used with permission.
Meetings of the Caucus are open to all women and their friends. Mothers and daughters come. Women from other UU churches drop in and have come back. Women with no church affiliation have joined the group.
The Caucus usually meets in private homes in a geographical location that is accessible by public transportation. (Rides are provided, too.) The members bring their children, food to share, books and articles, and musical instruments.
Good communication seems to be central to the cohesive nature of the Caucus. The telephone is in constant use. Meetings are well-publicized in the church newsletter, and the elected chairwoman sends the most active members a sisterly reminder each month when they have made a commitment to do something for the group. One active member has taken on the task of putting together an occasional newsletter that is sent to any woman who has attended a meeting or voiced an interest in the activities of the Caucus.
Meetings are held monthly on Saturday afternoons from 1:00pm to 5:00pm. Members feel free to come and go at any time during that period. The children feel free to dash in and out, but for the most part, prefer to have their own caucus.
Discussion at meetings is generally unstructured. What is happening at Arlington Street and where the Caucus can effectively support other groups in the church are topics that usually come up. Plans are made for support activities with individual members volunteering for assigned tasks.
Most of the afternoon is absorbed in discussion about what has been happening to the members and topics generate from immediate concerns. As the Caucus has evolved, members have felt freer to discuss more personal problems and many have returned to the next meeting because of the quality of understanding and support they have felt from their sisters.
Some of the topics that have been discussed include: marriage, separation and divorce, relationships with men, other women, siblings, parents and children, male-female roles, the world of work for women, the education and socialization of women, legal rights, child care, welfare, therapy, women and their gynecologists, the aging process, living alone, self-image, alternative life-styles, and ways of effecting change.
Meetings are often ended with singing. If discussion becomes intense, singing offers a way to release tensions and bring the group together.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 13:
HANDOUT 1: 1977 WOMEN AND RELIGION RESOLUTION
This Business Resolution passed unanimously at the 1977 Unitarian Universalist Association General Assembly in Ithaca, New York.
WHEREAS, a principle of the Unitarian Universalist Association is to "affirm, defend, and promote the supreme worth and dignity of every human personality, and the use of the democratic method in human relationships"; and
WHEREAS, great strides have been taken to affirm this principle within our denomination; and
WHEREAS, some models of human relationships arising from religious myths, historical materials, and other teachings still create and perpetuate attitudes that cause women everywhere to be overlooked and undervalued; and
WHEREAS, children, youth and adults internalize and act on these cultural models, thereby tending to limit their sense of self-worth and dignity;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: That the 1977 General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association calls upon all Unitarian Universalists to examine carefully their own religious beliefs and the extent to which these beliefs influence sex-role stereotypes within their own families; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That the General Assembly urges the Board of Trustees of the Unitarian Universalist Association to encourage the Unitarian Universalist Association administrative officers and staff, the religious leaders within societies, the Unitarian Universalist theological schools, the directors of related organizations, and the planners of seminars and conferences, to make every effort to: (a) put traditional assumptions and language in perspective, and (b) avoid sexist assumptions and language in the future.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That the General Assembly urges the President of the Unitarian Universalist Association to send copies of this resolution to other denominations examining sexism inherent in religious literature and institutions and to the International Association of Liberal Religious Women and the IARF; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That the General Assembly requests the Unitarian Universalist Association to: (a) join with those who are encouraging others in the society to examine the relationship between religious and cultural attitudes toward women, and (b) to send a representative and resource materials to associations appropriate to furthering the above goals; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: The General Assembly requests the President of the UUA to report annually on progress in implementing this resolution.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 13:
HANDOUT 2: THIRTY YEARS OF FEMINIST TRANSFORMATION
Excerpted with the author's permission from the article "Thirty Years of Feminist Transformation" by Kimberly French, which originally appeared in UU World, Summer 2007. Copyright Kimberly French, 2007.
(In this section of the article, French describes the results of the 1977 Women and Religion Resolution)
With staff, funding, and ink backing them up, women across the Association began strategizing how to eradicate sexism from their own religion.
The first task was to change sexist language. Women and Religion groups charged that the UUA's Principles, written in 1961, failed to affirm women (with phrases like "the dignity of man") and failed to show respect for the earth. A revision process led to the 1985 Principles and Purposes, which substantially rewrote the previous six Principles and added a seventh: "Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part."
Activists also objected to language in Hymns for the Celebration of Life, the UUA's 1964 hymnal, which had sections titled "Man," "Love and Human Brotherhood," and "The Arts of Man." Interim hymnbooks circulated until a commission could complete Singing the Living Tradition in 1993, which uses more inclusive language.
One of the most visible changes spawned by the Women and Religion movement has been the rapid increase in women UU ministers—from about 5 percent in 1977 to about 50 percent today. That trend is expected to escalate, as 70 percent of UU retired ministers are men and 75 percent of those preparing for fellowship are women.
Along with more women in the pulpit, feminist theology has reshaped the tone of both UU worship and religious education. Many of the new worship forms designed by Women and Religion groups—such as the water ceremony, chalice lighting, and sharing of joys and sorrows—have been so wholly embraced by churches that UUs are often surprised to discover their relatively recent, and feminist, origins.
Women demanded and got curricula celebrating goddesses, women religious leaders, and women's spirituality: Cakes for the Queen of Heaven by the Rev. Shirley Ranck in 1986 (revised 1997) and Rise Up and Call Her Name by Elizabeth Fisher in 1994.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 13:
HANDOUT 3: FREEDOM
Written by the Arlington Street Church Woman's Caucus and published in the "Honor Thy Womanself" program by the Unitarian Universalist Woman's Federation, 1973. Used with permission of the Unitarian Universalist Women's Federation.
As a movement that touches my life, deeply, humanly, profoundly, the women's movement has to do with FREEDOM—freedom to become, to grow, to create, freedom to come to the following realizations:
1. I'm not a BODY, but a PERSON. I don't have to use my body to sell me, to anyone for any reason.
2. I have a right to be judged not as a sexual object, but as me, a person. I can get angry at catcalls, at dehumanizing advertising that uses women's bodies to sell its products.
3. At the same time that my body is freed as a sex object, I become free to appreciate it and to discover ways to experience a fuller sexuality in which I am an equal partner. I am freed from being a vehicle for a man's sexual enjoyment, and in so being, help to lead both myself and my partner toward a fuller sexuality.
4. I am free to become—whatever I want (given the confines of institutional sexism and a capitalistic society). I can pursue a career. My life does not depend in any way on finding a man to support me. I am independent, self-confident, and alive. I have a good and creative mind, and I can use it. I do not have to hide it to enable me to catch a man.
5. I don't have to play games with men, because I don't have to "catch" a man. I don't have to be anything but who I am and let the chips fall where they may.
6. This frees me to have a healthy and sharing relationship with men and women. I am not competing with women to "catch a man". I am not clinging dependently to a man for my life, my support or my interests; I can participate freely in a loving relationship. I am free from what my culture calls feminine—to be myself.
7. I can use and enjoy my body as a man can. I don't have to trap it in uncomfortable and fashionable clothes that advertising tells me I need to lure a man into my net. I can dress comfortably and functionally. I can run and laugh and yell and be alive. I am free to explore all of my emotions—anger, too.
8. I am free from what society says are my duties and ROLES. I am not a housekeeper, cook, and, eventually, mother—unless I chose freely to do those things. I expect my mate to share equally in those tasks. I am not confined to dull, unimaginative, service-oriented jobs. I am free to create, to lead, to express myself, to pursue a vocation that is a challenge to all of myself—to GROW and not become stagnant in society's roles.
9. Finally, I am free to help other women and men see the sorts of ROLES they are often trapped in—to help all of us become more able to relate to each other as human beings and to throw off the stifling roles of masculine/feminine.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 13:
HANDOUT 4: THERE WAS A YOUNG WOMAN WHO SWALLOWED A LIE
By Meredith Tax, from the Arlington Street Church Women's Caucus worship service. Used with permission. In the Women's Caucus worship service, lines 5 and 43 of the text read, "...live to serve others." At the author's request, we have restored her original phrase, "...live to serve men."
There was a young woman who swallowed a lie,
We all know why she swallowed that lie,
Perhaps she'll die.
There was a young woman who swallowed a rule,
"Live to serve men," she learned it in school;
She swallowed the rule to hold up the lie,
We all know why she swallowed that lie,
Perhaps she'll die.
There was a young woman who swallowed some fluff,
Lipstick and candy and powder and puff.
She swallowed the fluff to sweeten the rule,...
There was a young woman who swallowed a line,
"I like 'em dumb, baby, you suit me fine."
She swallowed the line to tie up the fluff,...
There was a young woman who swallowed a pill,
Might have said "no", but she hadn't the will.
She swallowed the pill to go with the line,...
There was a young woman who swallowed a ring,
Looked like a princess and felt like a thing.
She swallowed the ring to make up for the pill,...
There was a young woman who swallowed some Spock,
"Stay at home, mother, take care of your flock."
She swallowed the Spock to go with the ring,...
One day this young woman woke up and she said,
"I've swallowed so much that I wish I were dead.
I swallowed it all to go with the Spock,
I swallowed the Spock to go with the ring,
I swallowed the ring to make up for the pill,
I swallowed the pill to go with the line,
I swallowed the line to tie up the fluff,
I swallowed the fluff to sweeten the rule,
I swallowed the rule to hold up the lie,
Why in the world did I swallow that lie?
Perhaps I'll die."
She ran to her sister, it wasn't too late
To be liberated, regurgitate.
She threw up the Spock and she threw up the ring,
Looked like a princess and felt like a thing,
She threw up the pill and she threw up the line,
"I like 'em dumb, baby, you suit me fine."
She threw up the fluff and she threw up the rule,
"Live to serve men," she learned it in school.
And last but not least, she threw up the lie,
We all know why she threw up that lie,
SHE WILL NOT DIE!!!
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 13:
HANDOUT 5: BREAD AND ROSES
Song lyrics from a poem written by James Oppenheim, published in The American Magazine, 1911.
As we go marching, marching, in the beauty of the day,
A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill lofts gray,
Are touched with all the radiance that a sudden sun discloses,
For the people hear us singing: Bread and Roses! Bread and Roses!
As we go marching, marching, we battle too for men,
For they are women's children, and we mother them again.
Our lives shall not be sweated from birth until life closes;
Hearts starve as well as bodies; give us bread, but give us roses.
As we go marching, marching, unnumbered women dead
Go crying through our singing their ancient call for bread.
Small art and love and beauty their drudging spirits knew.
Yes, it is bread we fight for, but we fight for roses too.
As we go marching, marching, we bring the greater days,
The rising of the women means the rising of the race.
No more the drudge and idler, ten that toil where one reposes,
But a sharing of life's glories: Bread and roses, bread and roses.
Our lives shall not be sweated from birth until life closes;
Hearts starve as well as bodies; bread and roses, bread and roses.
FIND OUT MORE
Learn more about Cakes for the Queen of Heaven (at www.cakesforthequeenofheaven.org/), a feminist theology curriculum.
Read the full article "Thirty Years of Feminist Transformation (at www.uuworld.org/ideas/articles/23905.shtml)" by Kimberly French, in UU World, Summer 2007.
WORKSHOP 14: SEXUALITY EDUCATION AS A JUSTICE ISSUE
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
The sexuality education program is about wholeness and healing. It is about justice and equity. It is about responsibility to self and to others, and it's about enhancing the meaning and value of life itself, and those are all religious pursuits. — Judith A. Frediani, quoted in the 1999 UU World article "From Liberation to Health" by Dan Kennedy
The title of this program, Resistance and Transformation, also characterizes our Unitarian Universalist journey with sexuality education. Our advocacy for comprehensive sexuality education is rooted in our quest for justice and in our resistance to social and religious pressures that seek to limit information about and acceptance of the sexual aspects of what it means to be human. The transformation of Unitarian Universalist attitudes and actions concerning comprehensive sexuality education was a process that required years of study, theological reflection, and commitment to engaging with real world questions and concerns.
For centuries, Unitarian and Universalists have wrestled with Western Christian theological concepts relating to human sexuality—for example, the notion of original sin, the condemnation of homosexuality, acceptance of the virgin birth of Jesus, and the belief that our physical self is separate from and inferior to our mind or spirit. At times, these concepts fostered oppressive social and cultural standards regarding human sexuality and sexuality education. In the latter half of the 20th century, as our tradition began to assimilate ideas from the feminist movement and the sexual revolution and come to terms with problems like HIV/AIDS and sexual abuse, Unitarian Universalists have often found themselves at the forefront of transformative justice work around the issue of sexuality.
This workshop explores what "sexual justice" means in the context of our faith, presents the recent history of our comprehensive sexuality education, and examines the broader social reaction to the Unitarian Universalists taking a religiously grounded, liberal stance on sexual justice issues.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 10 |
Activity 1: Human Sexuality and Social Justice | 20 |
Activity 2: From About Your Sexuality to Our Whole Lives | 20 |
Activity 3: Sex and the Media | 30 |
Faith in Action: Sexuality Education and Sexual Justice Advocacy in our Congregation | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: In the Public Eye | 30 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
This topic has the potential to become intensely personal for you and participants. Read the workshop carefully and take note of any moments that trigger reflection on your own experiences. Keeping in mind the boundaries you must set to lead this workshop, make a plan for how you will handle these triggers in conversation with participants. Take time to discuss with your co-facilitator how you might re-direct the conversation if a participant begins to "overshare" personal details.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition, "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
Tell the group this workshop invites them to reflect: What does it mean to consider the work of fostering a healthy perspective on human sexuality a social justice issue?
Acknowledge that the topic of sexuality is intensely personal, and encourage participants to consider this issue as an object of public witness and theological reflection rather than personal disclosure. Remind participants that this workshop does not require anyone to share personal information or experiences.
Make sure that participants have their journals, and something to write with. Invite participants to engage in a journaling exercise to reflect on the difference between sexuality as a personal, private matter and sexuality as a matter of public witness and social, cultural, or religious expression. Give these directions:
Create two columns on a page in your journal. Label one column "Private" and the other "Public." Under "Private," write any aspects of sexuality you think are private and personal. Under "Public," write any aspects of sexuality you think are part of your social identity, in the public sphere, or otherwise related to society at large. You will not be asked to share this entry with the group.
Allow four or five minutes for participants to complete this journal entry.
ACTIVITY 1: HUMAN SEXUALITY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 1, Religion and the New Morality. Explain:
In June, 1967, Playboy magazine published an article called "Religion and the New Morality." The magazine convened a panel of leading liberal clergymen to debate the church's role in the sexual revolution, devoting 25 pages to this discussion. The quote in Handout 1, Religion and the New Morality, is from one of the pre-eminent Unitarian Universalist theologians of the 20th century, James Luther Adams, who was one of nine panelists.
Read the handout aloud.
Then, invite participants to respond to these questions and write their responses on newsprint:
Allow ten minutes for this part of the activity. If it does not come up, point out that this quote demonstrates both our ongoing understanding of sexuality education as a justice issue and our ever-evolving search for ways to understand human sexuality in the context of our faith.
Now, post the questions you have written on newsprint and lead a discussion.
ACTIVITY 2: FROM ABOUT YOUR SEXUALITY TO OUR WHOLE LIVES (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 2. Explain that it is an abridged version of an article from UU World magazine and participants can read the full article online if they wish.
Give participants ample time to read the handout silently to themselves. Or, if the group prefers, have volunteers read the handout aloud. Ask participants, as they read, to underline statements they think are significant about the differences between the About Your Sexuality (AYS) and the Our Whole Lives (OWL) curricula and to note any questions they have.
Once participants have finished reading, ask: What cultural changes do you think prompted the move from AYS to OWL? Lead a group discussion.
Share this quote, from the longer version of the article:
The UCC's Gordon Svoboda ... predicts slow going within his faith group. "We are going to start small and build out," he says. "We don't have a 30-year history of active sexuality education, as the UUA does. It's something of sacred history for the UUA, and we are not in the same spot. We have a great deal of tilling the ground to do."
Ask these questions:
ACTIVITY 3: SEX AND THE MEDIA (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Read aloud this quotation from the Rev. Sarah Gibb Millspaugh:
A long-term challenge for the Unitarian Universalist Association was the problem of keeping About Your Sexuality "in context." Materials in the curriculum, particularly the filmstrips, could be represented in sensational ways that were untrue to their role in the program. The filmstrips could be easily employed by the media for their shock value. It is likely that to the average American, the idea of showing full-color pictures of masturbation and sex to 12- to 14-year-olds would sound perverse, at best. In order to be understood, any media discussion of the filmstrips needed to be framed within the context of the curriculum and the congregation. However, this framing did not always happen to the Unitarian Universalist Association's advantage.
Tell the group the UUA has received positive as well as negative press about our sexuality education programs. For example, Oprah Winfrey's O Magazine in July, 2009 ran a very positive story which featured an adult OWL program at a Texas Unitarian Universalist congregation.
Have participants form groups of three to craft a press release about an issue or event related to the congregation's work on sexuality as a justice issue. It can be related to a real event or a hypothetical action. If people seem stuck, ask them to consider congregational public advocacy on one of these issues: comprehensive sexuality education, equal marriage, legislation against affectional orientation- or gender identity-motivated hate crimes, fair legal definitions of "family," safe access to reproductive counseling and health services, or another issue related to human sexuality.
Invite small groups to use the posted questions as they write their release.
Allow small groups to work for 15 minutes. Then, invite each group to present their press release. After every small group has shared, open the floor for discussion. Ask: If you were a member of the press, which statements would have the most impact on you? Which stories would you want to follow up?
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Make sure each participant has their journal and something to write with. Read this excerpt from the multi-faith Religious Declaration on Sexual Morality, Justice, and Healing:
Our culture needs a sexual ethic focused on personal relationships and social justice rather than particular sexual acts. All persons have the right and responsibility to lead sexual lives that express love, justice, mutuality, commitment, consent and pleasure. Grounded in respect for the body and for the vulnerability that intimacy brings, this ethic fosters physical, emotional and spiritual health. It accepts no double standards and applies to all persons, without regard to sex, gender, color, age, bodily condition, marital status or sexual orientation.
Invite participants to reflect on the notion of "a sexual ethic focused on personal relationships and social justice rather than particular sexual acts." Ask them to consider what they might do to support the development of such an ethic.
Allow eight minutes for writing in journals.
Distribute Taking It Home.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
FAITH IN ACTION: SEXUALITY EDUCATION AND SEXUAL JUSTICE ADVOCACY IN OUR CONGREGATION
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Before deciding to implement Our Whole Lives or the earlier About Your Sexuality programs, most congregations would engage in discussion about sexuality education in a religious context. Try to trace the history of this work in your congregation. When did the congregation first offer either About Your Sexuality or Our Whole Lives? What motivated people to begin this work? How has the congregation's sexuality education programming changed over the years?
If your congregation does not offer Our Whole Lives, is it under consideration? Has the congregation been involved with issues of sexual justice—for example, abortion rights, access to birth control, or family planning information?
Find a way to make this history visible, via a newsletter or website article, a display table during coffee hour, or as part of a worship service.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
The sexuality education program is about wholeness and healing. It is about justice and equity. It is about responsibility to self and to others, and it's about enhancing the meaning and value of life itself, and those are all religious pursuits. — Judith A. Frediani, quoted in the 1999 UU World article "From Liberation to Health" by Dan Kennedy
Because attitudes about sex and sexuality change over time, speaking with someone from a different generation may reveal a perspective different from yours. Identify a friend or family member from a different generation, either older or younger, with whom you would feel comfortable discussing social attitudes toward sexuality. Seek them out for a conversation, sharing some of your thoughts from this workshop. Ask them to share some of their experiences and understandings of sexuality as it relates to religious, social, or cultural expectations. Did they feel oppressed, challenged, or liberated by their experiences?
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: IN THE PUBLIC EYE (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
This activity tells some of the history of our sexuality education program and describes one congregation's interaction with the media around this topic. It is a good way to extend themes from Activities 2 and 3.
Distribute Handout 4, Loving Our Whole Lives, and invite the volunteer to read it aloud. Then, ask the group to consider three different spheres of engagement with sexuality education materials such as Our Whole Lives: personal, congregational, and public.
Indicate the newsprint labeled "Personal Response," and invite participants to identify ways an individual might respond to the sexuality education material in Our Whole Lives. These responses might be positive or negative. For example: A parent might come to an OWL leader with concerns about their child's reaction to the material; a parent might come to thank an OWL leader for their commitment to giving youth information and guidance. Allow five or six minutes for brainstorming, recording contributions on newsprint. Remind participants that when brainstorming, the group agrees to simply record ideas and not evaluate. The time to evaluate will come later.
Next, indicate the newsprint labeled "Congregational Response." Ask participants to identify ways, positive and negative, that a congregation might respond to a proposal to offer Our Whole Lives or to expand the offerings to a new age group, such as Kindergarten-First Grade or young adults. What committees or groups might have the formal authority to make this decision? Who might have the power to support or block it—for example, the governing board, the finance committee, the religious educator? Allow five or six minutes for brainstorming, recording contributions on newsprint.
Now turn to the newsprint labeled "Public Response." Invite participants to identify ways the congregation might interact with the larger community about a decision to implement or expand Our Whole Lives offerings in the congregation. For example, parents in your community who are not connected to the congregation might hear about this program and want to enroll their youth; someone might write a letter to the local newspaper critical of the program. Allow five or six minutes for brainstorming, recording contributions on newsprint.
After completing all three brainstorming lists, return to them one at a time, asking the group to consider the imagined situations. In each case, who is responsible for responding (the congregation's professional staff, lay leadership, a group or committee, the entire congregation)? What should they do? As the discussion unfolds, challenge participants to connect the responses they suggest with their understanding of sexual justice. As participants suggest actions, guide them to root their ideas in Unitarian Universalist theology and principles.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 14:
HANDOUT 1: RELIGION AND THE NEW MORALITY
James Luther Adams, quoted in the June, 1967 Playboy magazine article "Panel on Religion and the New Morality."
A significant number of college students are already developing what I would call a new ethos. They want to find a heterosexual relationship that involves a maximum knowledge both of the other person and themselves, in the context of authentic fellowship. They are making a serious effort to deepen the character of the boy-girl relationship and to broaden their range of perception and sensitivity. Some of these students stress only an intensity of interpersonal involvement, with little attention to consequence or durability. Others broaden the definition of involvement. They want to connect sex and love with concern for civil rights and other social-institutional issues. This second group doesn't confine itself to concern for merely interpersonal relationships; it is concerned with cultural criticism and with the institutional obligations of citizenship. This group represents a new trend in our youth culture, the trend away from an apolitical to a political orientation... We may have to wait a decade before we can know what this adds up to.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 14:
HANDOUT 2: FROM LIBERATION TO HEALTH
Abridged from "From Liberation to Health: The New UUA Sexuality Curriculum," by Dan Kennedy, published in UU World Sept/Oct 1999. Copyright (C) 1999 by Dan Kennedy. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
Two years ago, the First Parish (in Wayland, MA) was one of 20 UU churches that field-tested Our Whole Lives, or OWL, a brand-new comprehensive sexuality education curriculum that has just become available for general use. About 15 Wayland seventh-graders experienced—and helped evaluate—the first major updating to the Unitarian Universalist Association's sexuality education program since the early 1970s.
They learned about values. They learned about safer sex and date rape and the acceptance of homosexuality and bisexuality and transgenderism. They learned about—for lack of a better term—plumbing. They learned that it's all right to say no. And they learned that there's room for sexual experimentation without intercourse. That might not play well with the right-wing family-values crowd. But studies have shown that this kind of frank acknowledgment of reality does far more to prevent unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases than the "just say no" approach.
For Brad Keyes, who along with his wife, Susan Keyes, taught the course at the First Parish, Our Whole Lives was for them a chance to help kids deal responsibly with a topic that consumes their thoughts but is too often approached in ignorance and haste. "It allowed us to challenge the giggles," he says. "All of us—teachers and students alike." Susan Keyes remarks on how strange it is that many parents—by opposing comprehensive sexuality education—condemn their kids to learning about sex from uninformed peers and the commercial media.
(... )Our Whole Lives, developed jointly with the United Church of Christ, replaces About Your Sexuality (AYS), a groundbreaking sexuality education curriculum introduced by the Unitarian Universalist Association in 1971. About a third of the UUA's 1,000 churches have used AYS; the hope is that at least that many will use Our Whole Lives. Although AYS is widely viewed in Unitarian Universalist circles as retaining much of its usefulness, by the late 1980s it had been patched up and amended so many times that many Unitarian Universalists saw the need for an entirely new curriculum. When AYS was written, feminism was in its early stages, and AIDS was unknown. Supplements on AIDS and HIV, date rape, reproductive rights, and sexual abuse were added to the core curriculum, but they were an awkward fit. In contrast, these topics are an integral part of Our Whole Lives, reducing the possibility that students will receive mixed messages.
Another big difference is that AYS targeted only junior-high-school kids. Our Whole Lives is what's known as a life span program: there are five separate units, aimed at kindergarten and first grade students; fourth and fifth graders; seventh, eighth, and ninth graders; high school students; and adults. However, the junior high curriculum is OWL's centerpiece. The material for grades seven through nine, written by the noted sexuality educator Pamela Wilson, was the first to be released. It is also by far the most ambitious, with 54 hours of material spread over a recommended 27 sessions.
"Each age that we're addressing is important, but there's something crucial about the early adolescent age group," explains Judith Frediani, the UUA's curriculum development director. "By that age they're receptive, and it's early enough for them to prepare for the decisions they'll soon be making about sexuality. OWL will help them prepare in healthy and responsible ways for decisions that most of them haven't yet had to face."
There is one other crucial difference between AYS and Our Whole Lives. About Your Sexuality was a product of the late 1960s and early 1970s, when—under the influence of the sexual revolution—autonomy, liberation, and self-actualization were held up as the highest ideals. As religious liberals, UUs continue to believe in those ideals, but three decades after Woodstock, we also better understand the downside of the sexual revolution. Thus Our Whole Lives heavily emphasizes respect. It teaches kids that abstinence is okay, that coercion is unacceptable, that sexually transmitted diseases are real and must be dealt with. As befits a program that emphasizes responsibility and UU values, Our Whole Lives invites parental involvement more explicitly than AYS did. The change reflects a subtle shift in UU cultural yearnings—from the radical individuality of the 1970s to a greater emphasis on connectedness, community, and mutual respect. "The sexuality education program is about wholeness and healing. It is about justice and equity. It is about responsibility to self and to others," says Frediani. "It's about enhancing the meaning and value of life itself, and those are all religious pursuits... The tone of About Your Sexuality was liberation. The tone of Our Whole Lives is health—physical, emotional, and spiritual health. Each is the best we had to offer in its time and place."
(... )Our Whole Lives is based on a concept known as "comprehensive sexuality education," which can most easily be defined by explaining what it is not: the abstinence-only education favored by the religious right and frequently chosen by timid elected officials and school administrators. In a comprehensive program, students learn that sexuality is an essential part of every person; they learn the details of contraceptive use and sexually transmitted diseases; they learn about different sexual orientations in a nonjudgmental way; and they learn skills that can help them act responsibly. According to the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, a New York City-based educational group, studies show that comprehensive sexuality programs work much better than abstinence-only programs at helping teenagers delay intercourse and avoid unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease. The same studies show that most parents favor a kind of sexuality education for their children that is more balanced than the right-wingers' abstinence-only programs.
It was because of political concerns that the Sexuality Education Task Force decided to split OWL into three discrete components. The first—the OWL curriculum itself—is primarily for use in UU and UCC religious education. But because it takes a secular approach, it can also be used in other settings: by agencies like Planned Parenthood that serve sexually active teenagers, in private schools, and even in public schools—although everyone involved with OWL agrees that few if any public schools will be using the curriculum unless the current political climate changes.
The second component, Sexuality and Our Faith, is explicitly religious and supplements the secular curriculum with spiritual values. Separate versions have been written for the noncreedal UUA and the liberal Christian UCC. The UUA version strongly emphasizes four Unitarian Universalist Principles: "the inherent worth and dignity of every person"; "justice, equity, and compassion in human relations"; "a free and responsible search for truth and meaning"; and "the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all." "We understand the value of the faith-deepening opportunity more than we did with AYS," says Cynthia Breen. "It's very carefully tied in with our values and principles." Significantly, only Sexuality and Our Faith and its UCC counterpart—and not the main curriculum—use the line drawings, which depict anatomy, masturbation, and lovemaking.
The third, and perhaps most intriguing, OWL component is the Advocacy Manual for Sexuality Education, Health, and Justice, subtitled Resources for Communities of Faith. Edited by UU Sarah Gibb, outreach coordinator for the Sexuality Education Task Force, the manual aims at building community support for comprehensive sexuality education. The manual, a resource for OWL instructors and others, shows why people need comprehensive sexuality education and offers advice on working with allies in the religious community and dealing with the media. The manual also includes case studies on, for example, a United Church of Christ congregation in Henderson, Kentucky, that sponsored a women's health clinic despite religious right opposition, and a successful campaign by religious liberals and moderates in Hemet, California, that replaced an abstinence-only AIDS/HIV curriculum in the public schools with one that offered more complete—and medically accurate—information. Gibb says she hopes her manual will empower people to speak out at public forums like school-board meetings and let the public know that the religious right doesn't speak for most religious people.
"Some very conservative people of faith . . . have gotten their message out about how they feel about sexuality," Gibb says. "The advocacy manual is for people of faith who believe in comprehensive programs that celebrate abstinence as a good choice but also give information on how to make healthy decisions on contraception and safer sex."
As an indicator of the acute need for resources such as the advocacy manual, its development was funded in full by the Ford Foundation. Margaret Hempel, a former deputy director at Ford who is now with the Ms. Foundation for Women, hopes the manual can be used, in a modest way, to help propagate OWL to faith groups beyond the UUA and the UCC, and perhaps even to help public school sexuality educators to articulate their students' needs and offer ideas on how best to meet them.
(... )One especially valuable feature of OWL (and, before it, AYS): in the face of high rates of suicide among gay and lesbian adolescents, it introduces teenagers to healthy models of all kinds of sexuality. In fact, guest speakers from the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender communities are a vital part of OWL.
Paul Barron, (one of the OWL field test facilitators at South Valley UU society in Salt Lake City), puts it this way: "I'm a gay man, and when I first taught the AYS program in the late '80s, I was scared to death to tell the kids I'm gay." Since then, however, South Valley has become a Welcoming Congregation, and gay teens, whether they're out or not, can look to him as an example of a successful gay man. Or take Sue O'Connell, associate publisher of a gay newspaper, co-host of a gay radio show, and one of several gays and lesbians who spoke with the Wayland kids last winter. "You have the feeling you're just saying stuff that's not connecting," says O'Connell. "But you realize that a year later or a month later or whenever the teens need the information, they will have access to it, and then they will connect."
For Unitarian Universalists, diversity and acceptance are so ingrained that it's sometimes difficult to step back and see how radical we look to many others in the community. Consider what happened on October 8, 1997, when the CBS news magazine Public Eye (a Bryant Gumbel vehicle since canceled) discovered that the About Your Sexuality program was showing kids photos. In church! Of people having sex! The Rev. Roberta Nelson, now minister of religious education at Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church, in Bethesda, Maryland, defended UU values in a live interview with Gumbel, who was noticeably agitated by the notion of church-based sex educationthat didn't merely order kids to say no.
In the Wayland church, Brad and Susan Keyes recently learned how committed they are to diversity. Last spring, an antigay activist named J. Edward Pawlick, who runs a radical-right web publication called the Massachusetts News, sent a mailing to everyone in Wayland and several surrounding communities that denounced homosexuality and sex education and singled out Unitarian Universalists for vilification, accusing us of creating the false public impression that we are Christians and of promoting acceptance of gays and lesbians. (To the latter charge, of course, the defendants plead guilty.)
"Although most churches are teaching their children about God, the Unitarians are obsessed with sex. This is directly related to homosexuality," wrote Pawlick, who identifies himself as a former Unitarian. Following a sensational description of UU churches' showing pictures of "a male couple having anal and oral sex and a lesbian couple using a dildo," Pawlick then takes direct aim at OWL: "They are now preparing, 'A Lifespan Sexuality Education Series,' which is designed for use in religious and secular settings. It will cover sex for everyone from kindergarten to adults."
Pawlick's had little effect in Boston's liberal suburbs. The Rev. Kimi Riegel, co-minister in Wayland, wrote a letter to the local weekly newspaper denouncing Pawlick's attempt to stir up animosity toward UUs, as did several other Wayland residents. In nearby Newton, which Pawlick also targeted, the local human rights commission sponsored a well-attended public forum where pro-tolerance sentiment prevailed. Still, if one has been the subject of an outburst like Pawlick's, it's hard to be blase.
Susan Keyes recalls mainly that his actions filled her with fear—and ultimately defiance and a renewed commitment to her Unitarian Universalist principles. "When I started reading (Pawlick's) comments about sexuality education in the Unitarian church, it scared me," she says. "It's frightening to think you might have been targeted. Then I hoped that my mother wasn't going to get (Pawlick's mailing). But you know the truth? It made me feel Unitarian for the first time in my life, and I was brought up in this church. It made me realize that there isn't one ounce of this curriculum that we shouldn't be teaching."
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 14:
HANDOUT 3: PRESS RELEASE
PRESS ADVISORY — FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date:
From: (your congregation's name)
Contact: (name, title, and phone number)
Heading:
Text:
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 14:
HANDOUT 4: LOVING OUR WHOLE LIVES
From the sermon "Loving Our Whole Lives," preached at the Unitarian Church of Montreal by the Rev. Diane Rollert, March 1, 2009. Used with permission.
(Rollert describes her experience in an Our Whole Lives facilitators training.)
... Many of us had come of age during the sexual revolution of the early 1970s before the spectre of AIDS. We enjoyed the freedom and we lived with the scars of our experiences.Many of us had a lot to face as we prepared to teach: latent homophobia, past wounds, struggles to answer the question "why would you teach about sex in church?" By the end of the workshop, the group had faced many demons and celebrated many joys. David (Rollert) and I came back ready to teach.
The program was, and still is, brilliant. We found that our students were more concerned about their own physical and emotional changes than anything else. They wrestled with questions about making good decisions. There were activities that got them to see where their own knowledge was lacking; that got them to think about honouring and loving who they were, rather than living by what the media or peers demanded of them.
As their teachers, we didn't have to moralize. The youth figured it out for themselves. That was the miraculous part. There was always this transformative moment when the students would begin to see each other as equally human and equally vulnerable. They became an ethical support network for each other. What better way to come of age in a challenging world?
To teach this program was an honour and a blessing. Our students were thoughtful, deep and fun. They were inspiring. As we went along, we did learn a lot ourselves. When as an adult do you get the time to talk about these things? In 1996, when I became the director of religious education at First Parish in Concord, David and I were both sorry we had to let our teaching go. My role shifted to recruiting and supporting other teachers.
During my first year as the new director, we had a very large class of 13 and 14 year olds participating in the program: 22 students with two teachers. Midway through the year, two sets of parents became upset about some of the program's visual materials. It was a story that began in our small town and ended on national TV. Yes, national TV.CBS.
In those days, the program for teens included a series of filmstrips. Filmstrips, for those of you too young to remember, were these long strips of film that were passed through a projector, one frame at a time—pretty much like looking at a slide show. No movement, just still photographs. Among these visuals, there was a filmstrip on anatomy, as well as several filmstrips on lovemaking. Yes, these were explicit, and yes they included straight, gay and lesbian couples.
For a series of complex reasons, we had failed to show these materials to the parents. We had made a mistake, but by the time we rectified the situation it was too late. These two parents had launched a campaign to discredit the program, the minister, the chair of the religious education committee and me. It was a hard time. Angry, accusing letters were sent all over town. Explicit details of the materials were printed in the local papers, and became a source of gossip on the soccer fields, at cocktail parties and coffee klatches. Everyone, I mean everyone, was talking about the Unitarian church and sex.
That summer we got word that a new television "news" magazine called Public Eye hosted by Bryant Gumbel had decided that a story involving a church, sex and teens was the perfect foil for raising their ratings and viewership. Hello 15 minutes of infamy. Here we were in the heart of Puritan country, in a church with a history that went back to 1636, and we were about to be literally and figuratively exposed.
I'm proud of how the congregation handled the situation. We formed a task force.We began showing the filmstrips to all the adults in the congregation.We put the visuals into the context of the program and explained all the good reasons why these materials were used.That was a fearful time.What if the congregation was shocked and appalled by what they saw?What if this crisis pulled us apart?We lived in a puritanical and homophobic world.The conflict could have destroyed us.
As the congregation saw these materials and discussed them, the response was overwhelmingly positive and supportive.Yes, there were those who expressed their discomfort.But the majority remarked how wonderful it was to see normal people, not airbrushed, not frighteningly thin, expressing their love.How wonderful it was that we were speaking openly to our youth and providing them with accurate information.
Debbie McLean Greeley, the widow of Dana McLean Greeley (former minister and president of the American Unitarian Association), must have been in her eighties by then.She stood up during an information session and pounded her walking stick on the ground. "We should have offered this program 50 years ago!"Another member, also in her 80s, told me that she wished she'd had access to such information when she was younger."I wouldn't have had six kids!"These were prim and proper New England ladies—so much for my assumptions about the stereotype.
In the end, 19 students remained in the class.When Public Eye made it clear they were only planning to interview the two aggrieved families, our task force succeeded in getting the producer to also interview the other families.The day the film team arrived in our fellowship hall, they were shocked to find ten parents and ten teens waiting for them. They'd never had to mike so many people for sound before.
Of course, sensational TV is sensational TV, and as contrived and biased as you can imagine.Out of an interview that lasted more than an hour, only a less-than-flattering sound byte or two remained.All the thoughtful comments of our youth and their parents were dropped on the cutting room floor.
A week or so before the show was to be broadcast we called an open congregational meeting.We set up two microphones at the front of the sanctuary so that anyone could share their thoughts or concerns about the program and the upcoming broadcast.David and I had tears in our eyes as a large group of our former students presented a signed document to the community expressing their support. "We have gained a greater understanding of our lives, sexuality and religion... We are proud to say our church has stood for open-mindedness for generations."
The next week, the staff and other members of the church gathered to watch our 15 minutes of fame.In a flash, it was over. The next thing we knew, the whole world was busy analyzing the meaning of the word "it" and the relationship of Bill Clinton to an intern named Monica Lewinsky.We were quickly forgotten. Though not entirely...
Suddenly, there were new families crossing our threshold."Are you the church that isn't afraid to talk to kids about sexuality?Help! Our kids are so bombarded by sexual information on TV and the Internet we don't know what to do.When can we sign them up?"
"Are you the church that is open enough to talk about homosexuality with your children?Thank you.I can't imagine how different my life would have been if my church community had told me that I am loveable, that I have inherent worth and dignity."
We grew and strengthened as a community, and our children reaped the benefits.
...These days we need this program more than ever. When David and I first started teaching, our students had no access to something called the Internet.Within ten years, the landscape had completely changed.Suddenly all our children could access a host of distorted and disturbing images, no matter how hard their parents tried to shelter them.In case you are wondering, the new program replaced the old filmstrips with slides of beautiful line drawings. (My favourite is a couple in their twilight years, wrapped in each other's arms, smiling.) These days, parents tend to be grateful for the rarity of positive images of loving relationships.
...Why do we teach about sex at church?A religious community at its best should be about living our lives as caring and just human beings.A major part of how we live our lives is related to our sexuality.What is our identity?Who do we love? How do we love? How do we act as responsible human beings, caring for each other, caring for our young?Yet many of us come from religious traditions that taught us that sexuality was something evil or wrong.We were taught that there was only one kind of loving relationship or only one way to make decisions about our bodies.
You could argue that many religious traditions treat sexuality as taboo.Yet, in silence you areteaching something.In silence you can teach shame and fear.All religious traditions make a statement about sexuality, whether explicit or implicit.If we aren't direct in how we teach our children about sexuality, within the context of our values, I assure you that someone or something else will.Would we really want to leave our children's sexuality educationto someone else?
You could say that sexuality is something that needs to be taught at home, and this is true.But these are challenging times to raise children (I suppose all times are challenging).We need the support of our community to do it well.Believe me, the prevailing culture is strong. It envelops our children, whether we like it or not. Parents and those raising children need all the support they can get.
You could say that sexuality is something that should be taught at school, and when it is, this is great.Here in Quebec, teachers are expected to incorporate sexuality and morality education throughout the curriculum.Yet this assumes a level of comfort and training few teachers receive.
As Unitarian Universalists we affirm the inherent worth and dignity of each person.We honour the whole person.That means understanding our responsibility to ourselves and to others.That means providing accurate information to our children and youth that keeps them safe, helps them to feel whole, and value others.That means each of us learning how to communicate, make decisions, assert ourselves in healthy ways in order to create meaningful and respectful relationships. That's how we express our faith, our values and our love, our whole lives.
FIND OUT MORE
Read "From Liberation to Health (at www.uuworld.org/1999/0999feat3.html)" by Dan Kennedy, from the September/October 1999 issue of UU World magazine.
Learn more about Our Whole Lives (at www.uua.org/religiouseducation/curricula/ourwhole/index.shtml) sexuality education programs and resources.
The Religious Institute (at www.religiousinstitute.org): a multi-faith organization dedicated to advocating for sexual health, education, and justice in faith communities and society. Read the Religious Declaration of Sexual Morality, Justice, and Healing (at www.religiousinstitute.org/religious-declaration-on-sexual-morality-justice-and-healing) that many Unitarian Universalist religious professionals have signed.
Read "Adventures in Adult Sex Education (at www.oprah.com/relationships/Adult-Sex-Education)" by Amanda Robb, in O Magazine, July 16, 2009.
Find more resources on the website of SIECUS (at www.siecus.org/): Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States.
WORKSHOP 15: BEYOND BINARIES – THE STRUGGLE FOR LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, AND TRANSGENDER EQUALITY
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
The program presents the problems of the invisible minority as they face a society where the majority view homosexuality with confusion, fear and hostility. The emphasis throughout is on understanding and accepting all people as human beings of worth and dignity. — from the 1972 Leaders Manual for The Invisible Minority: The Homosexuals in Our Society, published by the Unitarian Universalist Association
The fight for marriage equality has been a success of modern Unitarian Universalist activism, which has been instrumental in changing marriage laws in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Iowa, and Washington, DC. Unitarian Universalists' work for marriage equality continues across the country, extending our history of working for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) rights. In 1969, Unitarian Universalist minister James Stoll was the first United States clergyperson affiliated with a religious denomination to publicly "come out." Unitarian Universalists ordained openly gay and lesbian ministers and officiated at same sex unions long before many other religious groups. In 1970, at General Assembly, the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) became the first religious denomination to decry discrimination against "homosexuals and bisexuals" and to acknowledge the presence of bisexual, gay, and lesbian clergy. By 2006, more than half the Association's congregations were designated as Welcoming Congregations—congregations with a commitment to be "inclusive towards bisexual, gay, lesbian, and/or transgender people."
Nevertheless, there are still Unitarian Universalist congregations, which, in practice, will not consider calling a LGBT minister or allow LGBT youth advisors. This workshop invites participants to reflect on their own congregation's work for LGBT rights and inclusion—the work that was necessary in the congregation to change attitudes about LGBT members and leaders, and the work which still needs to be done. Participants explore how the UUA's public position on LGBT rights has influenced the nation overall and strengthened the ability of the Association and its member congregations to advocate for social change.
The title of this workshop, Beyond Binaries, emphasizes that the movement for LGBT equality is, in part, about persuading people to think beyond the simplistic notions of gender and sexuality that pervade the dominant culture: male/female, gay/straight. Full, fair inclusion of LGBT people requires an understanding that expressions of sexuality and gender identity fall along a continuum and are fluid in nature.
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 20 |
Activity 1: Struggle for Equal Rights | 25 |
Activity 2: The Welcoming Congregation | 20 |
Activity 3: The Price We Pay | 15 |
Faith in Action: Standing on the Side of Love | |
Closing | 10 |
Alternate Activity 1: The Invisible Minority | 30 |
Alternate Activity 2: The UUA and the Boy Scouts of America | 30 |
Alternate Activity 3: The Common Vision Report | 30 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Think about how your Unitarian Universalist community has made you feel welcome and included, whether you grew up in the faith or have come to it as a youth or adult. Were/are there particular people who welcomed you? Is it the liberal religious message as a whole that makes you feel included? Is it the public stances that the Unitarian Universalist Association and/or your congregation has taken?
Talk with people who know your congregation's history with the LGBT community. Are there any events in that history that fill you with a sense of pride or leave you feeling a little unsettled? Is your congregation a Welcoming Congregation? Are LGBT issues something that causes emotions to run high within you or in your community?
Take time to center yourself so you are ready to be fully present and to respond appropriately to any challenging moments in the workshop.
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this workshop, I hope participants leave feeling..."
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition, "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
Make sure that each participant has their journal and something to write with. Invite participants to consider:
Recall a time when you felt marginalized or unwelcome in a situation because of who you are rather then because of something you did or said. What happened? Who was there? How did you feel? How did you respond?
Allow participants five minutes to reflect and make notes in their journals. Then, invite them to turn to a partner and share their story. Allow ten minutes for paired sharing.
Now share this quotation from Unitarian Universalist minister Jen Crow:
It is our calling, I believe, as people of faith to take off our armor—to remove to the best of our ability the fear that distances us from one another, to face hatred with calm and gentleness, to sing with love as we pass those who might call us an abomination, to stand together with all who are oppressed as we use own experience of wholeness and liberation to help liberate others. It is our calling, I believe, as people of faith, to create for others and for ourselves the conditions in our church and in our whole community in which we can all say—I believe in you, my soul—and know our uniqueness, and know our sameness—and feel our deep connection.
ACTIVITY 1: STRUGGLE FOR EQUAL RIGHTS (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
This activity gives an overview of Unitarian Universalist involvement in the struggle for the rights of sexual and gender minorities.
Because this history is relatively recent, some participants may have personal knowledge of some of the events described. If so, be sure to give those participants the opportunity to share their recollections and reflections.
Invite participants to work together to create a time line of Unitarian Universalist involvement in the struggle for LGBT rights. Explain that "LGBT" is shorthand for "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender."
Designate one marker color for events within Unitarian Universalism, one for events in the wider society, and one for events in your own congregation. Invite people to come forward and write, in the appropriate time period on the mural paper, important events that took place. Ask them to write the year if they know it. Encourage collaboration as participants recall events.
After a few minutes, distribute Handout 1, History of Unitarian Universalist Involvement in and Support of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues, to help move the activity along. If the group has trouble getting started or gets stuck recalling events from the wider culture or from your own congregation, prompt them with information you have researched about your congregation and/or from Handout 1, History of Unitarian Universalist Involvement in and Support of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues, and Leader Resource 1, History of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Rights in the U.S. since 1969.
After 10 minutes, lead a discussion, using these questions:
ACTIVITY 2: THE WELCOMING CONGREGATION (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute Handout 2, The Welcoming Congregation. Invite participants to read it and reflect on the meaning of Welcoming Congregation status in our Association and in the wider world. Lead a discussion using these questions:
ACTIVITY 3: THE PRICE WE PAY (15 MINUTES)
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Read aloud this November 24, 2006, article from UU World, written by Don Skinner:
Cedarhurst Unitarian Universalists, a congregation of 100 members in Finksburg, Md., has experienced at least three attacks of vandalism since late summer. In late August or early September, BB pellets damaged several plain-glass windows. In the weeks that followed, several hateful messages, including a swastika and two messages attacking the church's theological beliefs, were drawn upon an outside table. In the most recent incident a peace pole in the congregation's meditation garden was damaged when it was dismantled and defecated on. The youth of the church had just created the meditation garden during the spring and summer.
"In my mind, it's clear that these events were hate crimes," said the Rev. Henry Simoni-Wastila. "They were intended to send a theological message of hate about our beliefs, or better, a misunderstanding of our beliefs." Scrawled on the table was the message, "You don't believe in God. You (expletive)." There was also a message that the congregation should "want to be more Christian."
Simoni-Wastila said the congregation has spent a lot of time dealing with the incidents. "It's made people afraid and anxious," he said and some events have been cancelled.
Tell the group the experiences of the Cedarhurst congregation are more common than we would hope. Several other Unitarian Universalist communities have experienced similar vandalism. The First Unitarian Church of Rochester, New York, for example, had their gay pride banner ripped in half. The United First Parish Church (Unitarian) in Quincy, Massachusetts, had their gay pride flag stolen four times. The Unitarian Universalist Church of Delaware County in Media, Pennsylvania had their flag stolen and then returned burned and partially shredded. If you know of other examples, add them to these.
Lead a discussion using these questions:
CLOSING (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Make sure each participant has their journal and something to write with. Then, invite participants to respond to one of these questions:
Allow eight minutes for writing in journals.
Distribute Taking It Home and invite participants to continue to write in their journals between workshops.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
FAITH IN ACTION: STANDING ON THE SIDE OF LOVE
Description of Activity
The Unitarian Universalist Association developed the Standing on the Side of Love (at www.standingonthesideoflove.org/) campaign to serve as an umbrella for local actions and advocacy on behalf of justice and inclusion for all people. Find out about local efforts for marriage equality and join those efforts, or engage your congregation in an advocacy project of its own. If your congregation has not already done so, investigate the Welcoming Congregation program and begin a conversation with congregational leadership about participating. If your congregation completed the program some time ago, consider renewing your commitment to LGBT inclusion and equality. Use the resources in the Living the Welcoming Congregation (at www.uua.org/leaders/idbm/bglt/livingwelcoming/index.shtml) program or the Welcoming Congregation (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=691) program.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
Review the next workshop. Are there any questions to research or logistics to arrange between workshops? Make a list of who is responsible for which preparations and materials.
TAKING IT HOME
The program presents the problems of the invisible minority as they face a society where the majority view homosexuality with confusion, fear and hostility. The emphasis throughout is on understanding and accepting all people as human beings of worth and dignity. — from the 1972 Leaders Manual for The Invisible Minority: The Homosexuals in Our Society, published by the Unitarian Universalist Association
With friends, family members, or a group from your congregation, watch the 2008 Gus Van Sant movie Milk, which portrays the life and work of San Francisco gay activist Harvey Milk. Use Mark Belletini's "A Study Guide to Milk (at www.uua.org/documents/belletinimark/milk_study_guide.pdf)" to lead a discussion after the movie.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: THE INVISIBLE MINORITY (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Show Leader Resource 2, The Invisible Minority, explaining that the material you are showing is a part of a curriculum published by the UUA in 1972. Then, lead a discussion using these questions as a guide.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 2: THE UUA AND THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite the two volunteers to read aloud the correspondence in the story, "The UUA and the Boy Scouts of America." Then, invite participants to share their experiences and/or reflections related to this controversy.
Explain:
While the UUA still offers both the program (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=739) and the emblem (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=755) through the bookstore, "Religion in Life" is not sanctioned by the Boy Scouts of America. Individuals and congregations have responded differently to the controversy. Some ignore the stance of the national organization and complete the program as part of their scouting experience, while trying to change the position of the national organization. Some refuse to take part in or host Boy Scout troops. Some have formed a separate organization called the Unitarian Universalist Scouters Organization.
Engage a discussion, using these questions:
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 3: COMMON VISION REPORT (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Introduce the activity with these words from the introduction to the 1989 Common Vision report to the UUA Board of Trustees:
In the winter of 1987-88, the Common Vision Planning Committee conducted a survey of Unitarian Universalists to collect basic information about how UUs feel about the inclusion of gay and lesbian (and bisexual) persons in our religious movement. Responses were gathered through a four-page questionnaire in the December 1987 World and from direct participation in the survey by 37 UU societies... About 14 percent of the respondents were gay, lesbian, or bisexual; 86 percent identified themselves as heterosexual. Although most of the survey comprised agree-disagree statements, there were two short response questions that asked respondents to write how UUA Principles and Purposes or resolutions have affected their behavior relative to BGL persons (the survey did not include questions about transgender people).
Tell the group they will now listen to some of the voices of those who participated in the survey who identified themselves as heterosexual. Pass the basket and ask each participant to take a slip of paper and read it aloud without comment. Invite anyone who does not choose to read aloud to pass, and return their slip to the basket.
Continue until all slips have been read. Then, invite participants into a time of reflection. Share these prompts, one at a time, allowing two or three minutes of silence after each:
After reflection, invite participants to form groups of three and share some of their reflections, either about their own journey, or in response to statements from the survey. Allow ten minutes for triads to talk.
Re-gather the large group and invite comments and reflections based on small group conversations or on the survey. Ask: How have attitudes and assumptions changed since 1989 in our Association? Our congregation? The broader society? What work remains to be done?
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 15:
STORY: THE UUA AND THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
These letters are excerpted from correspondence between the Unitarian Universalist Association and the Boy Scouts of America. They detail a public controversy between the two organizations over the BSA's policies toward the LGBT community and atheists.
Letter to Lawrence Ray Smith, Ph.D., Chair, Religious Relationship Committee, Boy Scouts of America, from John Buehrens, President of the Unitarian Universalist Association, dated June 11, 1998
Our Youth Office received your letter of May 7 (1998) stating that Scouting youth may no longer be awarded the Unitarian Universalist Religion in Life award for Boy Scouts... You do this because our manual for the Religion and Life award includes statements designed to help Unitarian Universalist youth deal with the tension that they may feel between Unitarian Universalist religious principles and certain aspects of BSA current policy, particularly... discrimination against gay Scouts and leaders and... those whose conscientious ethical and spiritual principles may not include a belief in God.
Surely the Religious Relationships Committee of the Boy Scouts of America cannot intend to tell a religious group what we may teach with regard to our own religious principles. We teach our youth, as a matter of religious principle, that discrimination against people simply by virtue of their belonging to a particular category of human being is wrong. We cannot be expected to ignore the question of discrimination against gay scouts and leaders in our guidance to boys studying our religious principles and history.
Unitarian Universalism also has a special openness, ministry and mission to those who may have trouble with traditional ideas about God. This too is a matter of religious principle with us. We know that we are not alone in regarding doubt, as well as piety, as a part of faith. Moreover, if a good Buddhist Boy Scout said, "No, I do not believe in a God," would you exclude that child for following the teachings of his own faith?...
We will not acquiesce in such discrimination. We will not stop distributing a Religion and Life manual that reflects our religious principles. We will not stop providing Religion and Life awards to... Scouts and Scout leaders. If you and the BSA honestly believe that it will promote or defend Scouting to refuse our awards or to have Scout officials tear them off the uniforms of boys, I think that you are sadly mistaken. Most Americans will see such actions for what they are: blatant discrimination against children on the basis of their religion.
Yours regretfully,
John A. Buehrens
Open letter from Rev. John Buehrens, President, Unitarian Universalist Association, dated April 28, 1999
Dear Friends:
...the (UUA) has been involved in discussions with the (BSA).regarding the status of our Religion in Life award. In May, 1998, the BSA informed us that... we could not award the Religion in Life emblem to our scouts. We strongly protested this decision. It pleases me to tell you that this conflict has been resolved: the UUA has revised its Religion in Life manual to the satisfaction of the BSA without abandoning the UU values at its core. I want to share with you a portion of the letter... which I received from Thomas Deimler, Director of the Relationships Division of the Boy Scouts of America. The letter reads, in part:
Many thanks for your early response to matters concerning the revision of the Religion in Life booklet... I am very happy to report that the committee has unanimously expressed their endorsement of this new material... Thus the Boy Scouts of America now reauthorizes the awarding of the Religion in Life emblem (by the UUA) to Scouts and the wearing of that emblem on a Scout uniform...
... The new edition of Religion in Life will be available from the UUA Bookstore this summer. Along with each copy, the Association will separately provide a letter from me, along with resources appropriate to dealing with issues of homophobia and religious discrimination...
Yours faithfully,
John A. Buehrens
Letter to John Buehrens from Lawrence Ray Smith, dated May 7, 1999
Dear Dr. Buehrens:
It has come to our attention that you have posted on the UUA web site a letter... in which you state that the UUA has revised its "Religion in Life" manual to the satisfaction of the Boy Scouts of America, referring to a letter... from Thomas Deimler of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA).
Your letter goes on to say the following: "The new edition of Religion in Life will be available from the UUA Bookstore this summer. Along with each copy, the Association will separately provide a letter from me, along with resources appropriate to dealing with issues of homophobia and religious discrimination." Unfortunately, this simply reopens the entire issue of using boys as a venue to air your differences with the policies of the (BSA)...
Therefore, (the BSA) is not in a position to authorize the awarding of the Religion in Life emblem to Scouts and the wearing of that emblem on a Scout uniform.
Sincerely yours,
Lawrence Ray Smith
Open letter from UUA President John A. Buehrens, dated May 18, 1999
What has happened to Boy Scout honor?
The Boy Scouts of America have sent the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) yet another letter. This one rescinds the decision to reinstate Boy Scouts of America (BSA) recognition of our Religion and Life Award for UU scouts. Moreover, they have taken the initiative to contact the press on the matter... I have tried consistently to be cooperative with the BSA, while staying true to Unitarian Universalist principles... It was agreed that the UUA would issue a new edition of the Religion and Life manual; that the manual would contain nothing objectionable to the BSA; and that the UUA would then make available... some separate materials that would be helpful to our young people... Unitarian Universalism has long been a strong supporter of equal rights for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people, and we have a responsibility to our young people to instruct them in the religious values which underlie our commitment to this struggle.
This is all we have done. We have prepared a new manual, which they have accepted and which we will publish. We have also prepared some materials aimed at advising young people whose religion teaches "the worth and dignity of every person" how they might want to respond to slurs aimed at another person's, or their own, sexuality, or supposed sexuality. These materials are coordinated with our comprehensive new curriculum on human sexuality, Our Whole Lives...
In the course of this controversy I learned that the BSA actually knows that what it is doing in response to the so-called 'gay' issue has more to do with politics than with children's safety. The BSA knows the difference between pedophilia and homosexuality. It does training on the subject. Yet they continue to practice arbitrary discrimination. Ignorance is one thing. Knuckling under to anti-gay pressure groups is quite different, and entirely unworthy.
The UUA will continue to teach its religious principles and to help its young people to apply them. This is our religious duty...
Rev. John Buehrens
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 15:
HANDOUT 1: HISTORY OF UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST INVOLVEMENT IN AND SUPPORT OF LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, AND TRANSGENDER ISSUES
1967 Unitarian Universalist Committee on Goals conducts a survey on the beliefs about and attitudes toward homosexuality within the Association: over 80 percent of Unitarian Universalists believe that it should be discouraged.
1969 James Stoll publicly declares himself to be homosexual at a Student Religious Liberals Conference.
1970 The General Assembly passes a resolution to end discrimination against homosexuals and bisexuals. The resolution includes a call to congregations to develop sex education programs that promote healthy attitudes toward diverse forms of sexuality.
1971 The Unitarian Universalist Association publishes About Your Sexuality which attempts to teach positive attitudes about homosexuality and bisexuality; Richard Nash and Elgin Blair co-found the Unitarian Universalist Caucus (later Interweave Continental) to lobby for the creation of an Office of Gay Affairs.
1972 UUA publication of The Invisible Minority, an adult curriculum about homosexuality.
1973 The General Assembly votes to create an Office of Gay Affairs that will be staffed by gay people and be a resource to the Unitarian Universalist Association.
1974 The General Assembly votes to fund Office of Gay Affairs.
1975 Arlie Scott hired as first Director of Office of Gay Concerns.
1979 Rev. Douglas Morgan Strong becomes the first openly gay man to be called to serve a Unitarian Universalist congregation, All Souls Church in Augusta, Maine.
1980 The General Assembly passes a resolution calling for congregations and the Unitarian Universalist Association "to lend full assistance in the settlement of qualified openly gay, lesbian, and bisexual religious leaders."
1984 The General Assembly votes to affirm "the growing practice of some of its ministers of conducting services of union of gay and lesbian couples and urges member societies to support their ministers in this important aspect of our movement's ministry to the gay and lesbian community."
1986 The General Assembly passes a resolution calling Unitarian Universalists to work to end discrimination against people with AIDS.
1989 The General Assembly creates the Welcoming Congregation Program to help congregations become more inclusive of members of the LGBT community.
1992 The UUA Board of Trustees passes a resolution expressing disapproval of the Boy Scouts of America's policy of discrimination against gay and atheist scouts and leaders.
1993 The UUA endorses the March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Equal Rights and Liberation. Echoing its actions in Selma, Alabama, the UUA Board of Trustees adjourns its quarterly Boston meeting to reconvene in Washington, D.C., and attend the March. Later that year, the General Assembly passes a resolution supporting openly lesbian, gay and bisexual people in the military.
1996 The UUA Board of Trustees and the General Assembly pass a resolution in support of same-gender marriage; the UUA office becomes the Office of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Concerns to reflect the Association's commitment to the transgender community.
1997 The UUA sponsors its first training on transgender issues.
1998 The Boy Scouts of America informs the Unitarian Universalist Association that it will no longer allow Unitarian Universalists to earn the Religion in Life merit badge because it is "inconsistent with Scouting's values." The Boy Scouts specifically object the UUA's stances on "homosexuals."
1999 After more than a year of meetings and correspondence between the UUA and the Boy Scouts, John Buehrens, the president of the UUA, pens an open letter, "What has happened to Boy Scout honor?" In the letter he notes that the UUA and the Boy Scouts have failed to resolve their conflict over the Religion in Life badge and lifts up the religious principles of working for the "equal rights for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people." Later that year the General Assembly passes a resolution calling for an end to the Boy Scouts discriminatory practices.
2000 More than 25 percent of all UUA congregations have become Welcoming Congregations.
2002 Rev. Sean Parker Dennison is called to serve South Valley Unitarian Universalist Society in Salt Lake City, Utah, becoming the first out transgender person to be called to the Unitarian Universalist parish ministry; Rev. Laurie Auffant is called to serve Follen Church Society in Lexington, Massachuetts, becoming the first out transgender person to be called as a Unitarian Universalist Minister of Religious Education.
2004 UUA President William Sinkford legally marries Hillary and Julie Goodridge, lead plaintiffs in Goodridge v. Massachusetts Department of Public Health in Eliot Hall at the Unitarian Universalist Association; Living the Welcoming Congregation, a follow-up program to the Welcoming Congregation program, is launched. Also, the Unitarian Universalist Scouters Organization is formed, providing Unitarian Universalist scouts a way to earn the Religion in Life badge.
2006 More than 50 percent of all UUA congregations in the United States have become Welcoming Congregations.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 15:
HANDOUT 2: THE WELCOMING CONGREGATION
By Donald E. Skinner. Previously published in UU World magazine, June 2, 2006. Used with permission.
The Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations marked a milestone in its support for bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender people this week as a Georgia church become the 500th UU congregation to commit to welcoming (LGBT) people to all aspects of its life.
UU Metro Atlanta North, a congregation in Roswell, Ga., completed the UUA's Welcoming Program with a formal vote in a congregational meeting last week. The Welcoming Congregation program involves 18 months to two years of congregational study about being intentionally welcoming to (LGBT) people. The process culminates with a congregational vote.
The program began in 1989 when delegates at General Assembly approved a resolution drafted by Interweave (then known as UUs for Lesbian and Gay Concerns), the UUA-affiliated membership organization for bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender people and their allies. The Welcoming Congregation curriculum was created in 1990 and the first congregation was certified in 1991.
Reaching the 500 milestone means that almost half of the UUA's 1,017 congregations are now Welcoming Congregations. The halfway point will be reached when the 509th congregation is certified. That should happen sometime this summer, said the Rev. Keith Kron, director of the UUA's Office of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Concerns.
The Georgia congregation's minister, the Rev. Greg Ward, said parishioners' interest in becoming a Welcoming Congregation grew along with anti-gay rhetoric in the larger society, including passage of a Georgia law prohibiting same-sex marriage, until the commitment was made to engage in the program.
Kim Palmer, a Welcoming Congregation committee member, said the process changed the congregation. "I think we became more aware of (LGBT) issues generally," she said, "and many individuals grew personally in their knowledge, understanding, and acceptance of sexual orientation and gender-identification minorities." Janet Lacey, a co-chair of the committee, added that hearing gays' and lesbians' experiences as they came out to their families made evident the need for a place for (LGBT) people to feel safe and accepted.
"It was exciting to formally agree that we wanted to be that kind of place," Lacey said, adding, "I think the challenging part is still ahead of us, to continue to do the work of actively being a Welcoming Congregation."
Lacey cited several special moments during the process, including a commitment ceremony for a lesbian couple. She also cited the number of people who came forward to be on the committee and to facilitate the workshops. "After two years," she said, "we still have 10 people on the committee who are dedicated to this." The congregation has 192 members.
When an anti-gay-marriage amendment to the state constitution was proposed in 2004, members tied a rainbow ribbon around the church building, declaring it a hate-free zone, one of very few Georgia churches to take this step.
"We learned a lot—including that doing justice to this work was not nearly as simple as was first thought," Ward said. "We learned how to take risks, how to hold conversations that were safe for everyone, how it is difficult to always be conscious of making room for different identities, needs, and perspectives. I think we began to discover that the lessons at the heart of this program were not just applicable to sexuality and gender issues but were as valid when applied to our theological diversity, our program diversity, and even the range of diversity in our leadership styles."
The first Welcoming Congregation, certified in 1991, was the First Parish in Brewster, Mass. Gloria Davies and her partner Linda Bailey joined the congregation three or four years later and Davies is currently part of its Welcoming Congregation program. "It's been an incredible journey," she said.
"When we first started going to First Parish there were 10 or 12 of us who identified as gay to each other," she said. "Now there are 60 or 70 in a congregation of 600. And it's not just that we're welcome and accepted at services. The gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender community is totally integrated and visible everywhere in the church. The whole congregation has a sense of ownership about being welcoming to us."
Brewster has taken its support of (LGBT) people into the larger community. It is one of the sponsors of GAYLA, an annual dance open to (LGBT) people and others. "It started as a community-builder for (LGBT) folks and now it's an annual event the whole community looks forward to," she said.
Shortly after becoming a Welcoming Congregation, First Parish initiated a campaign to require the Town of Brewster to provide domestic partner benefits for employees. Most of the congregation attended a Brewster town meeting and the measure passed.
"I wish you could hear the testimonials at First Parish," said Davies. "You would hear the most heart-rending stories of people who found the church and were finally allowed to be themselves and reconnect with their own sense of spirituality. This is a religious community that is more than accepting, more than tolerant. It celebrates diversity. And has a real sense of pride about it."
Davies said the support she felt at First Parish helped her and Bailey decide to become one of the plaintiff couples in the lawsuit that culminated two years ago in Massachusetts becoming the first state to approve same-sex marriage. "If it weren't for First Parish we would not have joined that case," she said. "The whole congregation was very involved in that."
Kron said 80 percent of Unitarian Universalist congregations with more than 550 members have completed the program but that congregations with less than 100 members often struggle to muster enough volunteers to conduct the rigorous program. "Perhaps the group who should lead the process in small congregations is the board of trustees, who might do a little of the process at each board meeting," he said. "Very small congregations can also consider doing Welcoming Congregation segments as part of Sunday worship."
He said a turning point for many congregations came in 1998 when the brutal murder of Matthew Shepard, a young gay man in Wyoming, drew national horror. "A lot of congregations began thinking about hatred and bigotry and what they could do in response," said Kron. The current marriage equality movement has also inspired congregations to act.
An earlier inspiration came at the UUA's 1996 General Assembly in Indianapolis when, in support of an Interweave marriage equality resolution, UUA President John Buehrens invited all same-sex couples up on stage. "That provided a visual reminder of why we were doing this work—that there were people in our midst as well as the larger world who needed to be welcomed," said Kron. "The reaction to this was extremely positive. There were a few who thought that John was strong-arming the process, but it really was a group effort with our office and the public information office. We all decided it was the right thing to do." A photo of that event hangs in the lobby at UUA headquarters. How many people were there? "The stage was pretty full," said Kron.
He said people are constantly amazed at the power of Welcoming Congregation. "Doing the workshops leads people into conversations they've never had before," he said. "There's just a richness they didn't expect. To understand what LGBT people have gone through is extremely powerful."
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 15:
LEADER RESOURCE 1: HISTORY OF LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, AND TRANSGENDER RIGHTS IN THE U.S. SINCE 1969
1969 Stonewall riots occur in New York.
1970 LGBT rights marches held in New York and Los Angeles to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall riots.
1972 East Lansing, Michigan and Ann Arbor, Michigan and San Francisco, California pass the first ordinances offering homosexuals some protection under the law; the first openly gay and lesbian delegates to Democratic Convention advocate for the inclusion of gay rights plank in the Democratic Party Platform.
1973 The American Psychiatric Association removes homosexuality from its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, thus removing it from the list of mental disorders.
1974 Kathy Kozachenko becomes the first "out" lesbian elected to public office in the United States when she is elected to the Ann Arbor City Council; Robert Grant founds America Christian Cause, the first group to oppose the "gay agenda."
1975 Homosexuality is legalized in California; Elaine Noble, elected in November 1974, becomes the second "out" lesbian American to assume elected public office when she takes a seat in the Massachusetts State House.
1977 Harvey Milk is elected city-county supervisor in San Francisco, becoming the first openly gay man elected to public office; Dade County, Florida enacts a Human Rights Ordinance; it is repealed months later after a militant anti-gay rights campaign led by Anita Bryant.
1978 Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone are assassinated by former Supervisor Dan White; the first known use of the rainbow flag.
1979 First march on Washington, DC, for LGBT rights; thousands riot in San Francisco during the White Nights riots when White is convicted of voluntary manslaughter for his assassination of Harvey Milk and George Moscone.
1980 The Democratic Party includes the rights of homosexuals in its party platform; David McReynolds of the Socialist Party USA becomes the first openly gay man to run for President.
1981 The Moral Majority, founded by Jerry Falwell in 1979, begins its anti-LGBT campaign; first known case of AIDS.
1982 Laguna Beach, CA elects the first openly gay mayor in the United States; the first Gay Games is held in San Francisco.
1983 Gerry Studds "comes out" on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, becoming the first openly gay member of Congress.
1987 As the AIDS crisis grows, disproportionately affecting the LGBT community, ACT UP begins a campaign of direct action and civil disobedience to demand access to experimental AIDS treatment and a national policy to fight the disease.
1993 Minnesota becomes the first state to adopt laws protecting transgender people; the U.S. military adopts the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.
1996 The Defense of Marriage Act is passed by Congress, defining marriage, on a federal level, as "between one man and one woman."
1998 Matthew Shepherd is murdered; Rita Hester is murdered, inspiring the creation of the international Transgender Day of Remembrance.
1999 California passes a domestic partnership law, making it the first state to recognize the rights of same-sex couples.
2000 Vermont becomes the first state to legalize civil unions.
2003 The U.S. Supreme Court strikes down any sodomy laws still on the books.
2004 Massachusetts legalizes same-sex marriage. Eleven other U.S. states ban it through public referenda; domestic partnerships are legalized in Maine and New Jersey; James McGreevey becomes the first openly gay Governor (New Jersey), he "comes out" and resigns after it is revealed that he has had an extra-marital affair with another man.
2007 Civil unions are legalized in New Jersey; domestic partnership in Washington.
2008 Civil unions are legalized in New Hampshire; the California Supreme Court legalizes same-sex marriage only to have voters outlaw it with the passage of Proposition 8 months later; same-sex marriage becomes legal in Connecticut.
2009 New Hampshire, Iowa, and Vermont legalize same-sex marriage; the District of Columbia recognizes same-sex marriage; Maine passes a same-sex marriage law only to have it overturned by referendum; Nevada passes a domestic partnership law.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 15:
LEADER RESOURCE 2: THE INVISIBLE MINORITY
This is a portion of a 1972 curriculum, which consisted of filmstrips and LP records. This resource includes an audio file and a video file. There are beeps in the audio file indicating when to advance from image to image just as there were in the original.
Filmstrip Part 1 (at www.uua.org/documents/lfd/tapestry/invisible_minority1.ppt) (PPT)
Filmstrip Part 2 (at www.uua.org/documents/lfd/tapestry/invisible_minority2.ppt) (PPT)
Filmstrip Part 3 (at www.uua.org/documents/lfd/tapestry/invisible_minority3.ppt) (PPT)
Filmstrip Part 1 (at www.uua.org/documents/lfd/tapestry/invisible_minority1.pdf)(PDF)
Filmstrip Part 2 (at www.uua.org/documents/lfd/tapestry/invisible_minority2.pdf) (PDF)
Filmstrip Part 3 (at www.uua.org/documents/lfd/tapestry/invisible_minority3.pdf)(PDF)
Audio Part 1 (at s3.amazonaws.com/uuavideo/audio/tapestry/invisible_minority1.mp3)
Audio Part 2 (at s3.amazonaws.com/uuavideo/audio/tapestry/invisible_minority2.mp3)
Audio Part 3 (at s3.amazonaws.com/uuavideo/audio/tapestry/invisible_minority3.mp3)
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 15:
LEADER RESOURCE 3: COMMON VISION SURVEY RESPONSES
These are some responses to the Common Vision Planning Committee survey as reported to the UUA Board of Trustees, January 1989.
I try to be to be tolerant of it even though I’m not very comfortable about it. I try to be welcoming. I guess you could say my feelings and thoughts are inconsistent. Perhaps education could change my feelings.
By insisting on civil rights and screaming for attention and demanding acceptance, they ask more than the mere compassion they deserve… The UUA should concern itself with worthier issues (such as) civil rights of blacks, racial justice, hunger here at home, shelter, poverty.
…they make me proud of the UUA and more certain of staying in the Association.
I am very compassionate toward the blind, deaf, physically handicapped, poor, black, abused adults and children, but hardly see the need for compassion for gays, lesbians, or bisexuals… Of course, this is one way to reduce the population.
I don’t want the bedroom to enter the church. The sexual practices of a man and/or a woman should be left at home.
…it is love we’re talking about. In a world that tolerates the obscenity of nuclear arms, surely we can work out an accommodation for a way of love that differs from our own…
…Our minister is more than our religious leader. She is a symbol, she is our representative in the community. Publicly we are thought odd enough, without our symbolic leader openly, publicly proclaiming gay or lesbian preferences.
Their sexual behavior is abnormal and disgusting, no matter what they say! Compassion and counseling is needed for such people. I think everyone would be happier if you’d all stayed “in the closet.” I would leave a church headed by a gay or lesbian minister…
…my husband and I continue to learn and learn and appreciate and appreciate because (of our gay friends).
Dealing with “relationships” and “sexuality” as human issues will break down barriers between gays and non-gays… I want to make gays feel welcome as people, not “gays.”
I loathe them regardless. They actively prey on young people, have multiple sex partners daily and do spread AIDS. Sex is the over-riding concern in their tawdry lives; all else is meaningless. Many…are hate-filled anti-straight.
…(gays, lesbians and bisexuals) need relief from discrimination, and support for acceptance as individuals of inherent worth.
As a black person, I strongly resent any comparison of my racial group with the movement. The AIDS problem further complicates all aspects of this issue.
We are in an ideal position to offer acceptance and support of alternative family structures…
I cannot handle too many around me. I get uncomfortable. I feel they are unhealthy. Unclean…Let them stay in their space, and I’ll stay in mine.
I would like to see one’s sexual preference become immaterial, just like (maybe, finally, someday) the color of one’s skin… The fact that in our society love may be expressed only with a person of the right gender, at the right time, in the right place, and in certain forms is an outrage.
I make them uncomfortable and they make me uncomfortable. Let’s just be polite and stay away from each other as one does from other humans who make one uncomfortable.
Divergent sexual behavior exhibited by gays, lesbians and bisexuals needs to be accepted as a fact of life, both ancient and modern, but need not be approved of or offered as a role model pattern for children or young adults.
My denomination has gone beyond a paper endorsement of gay rights to a living endorsement in each member’s heart of a fellow person’s right to an equal quality of life.
FIND OUT MORE
Unitarian Universalist Association Office of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Concerns (at www.uua.org/leaders/idbm/bglt/)
UUA General Assembly Resolutions on Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Equality (at www.uua.org/socialjustice/socialjustice/)
Unitarian Universalist Scouters Organization (at www.uuscouters.org/), Welcoming Congregation (at www.uua.org/leaders/idbm/bglt/welcomingcongregation/index.shtml) and Living the Welcoming Congregation (at www.uua.org/leaders/idbm/lgbt/livingwelcoming/index.shtml) programs
The Welcoming Congregation Handbook: Resources for Affirming Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, and/or Transgender People (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=691)
Correspondence between the UUA and the Boy Scouts of America (at www.bsa-discrimination.org/html/uua-9899-letters.html),
Report and Recommendations of the Common Vision Planning Committee (at www.uua.org/documents/commonvision/1989_report_to_bot.pdf), January 1989
WORKSHOP 16: IS THERE MORE?
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
We come to a time when we realize that the faith we have inherited is inadequate for what we are facing...at such moments we have three choices: We can hold to our religious beliefs and deny our experience, we can hold to our experience and walk away from our religious tradition, or we can become theologians — Rebecca Parker, in Blessing the World: What Can Save Us Now
This concluding workshop looks back, into the stories told in this program, and forward, into ways contemporary Unitarian Universalists do and will seek to transform society. Participants apply the models of prophetic, parallel, and institutional social justice leadership, introduced in Workshop 2, to historical Unitarian Universalist stories of resistance and transformation and to our contemporary justice work. Where are we resisting unjust or oppressive social structures and patterns? How are we engaging issues of environmental justice?
To ensure you can help adults of all ages, stages, and learning styles participate fully in this workshop, review these sections of the program Introduction: "Accessibility Guidelines for Workshop Presenters" in the Integrating All Participants section, and "Strategies for Effective Group Facilitation" and "Strategies for Brainstorming" in the Leader Guidelines section.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | 0 |
Opening | 15 |
Activity 1: Parallel, Prophetic and Institutional | 20 |
Activity 2: Inspiration | 25 |
Activity 3: Is There More? | 15 |
Faith in Action: Sharing Inspiration | |
Closing | 15 |
Alternate Activity 1: Finding a Way Forward | 30 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Since this is the last workshop of Resistance and Transformation, take time reflect on your experience as a workshop facilitator. What did you learn about yourself? About Unitarian Universalism? Will anything from the program change the way you lead your daily life? Approach social justice work? View your congregation?
Before you lead the workshop, take time to complete this sentence: "At the end of this last workshop, I hope the participants leave feeling... "
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants enter, invite them to sign in, put on name tags, and pick up handouts. Direct their attention to the agenda for this workshop.
OPENING (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite a participant to light the chalice while you lead a unison reading of Reading 449 from Singing the Living Tradition, "We hallow this time together by kindling the lamp of our heritage."
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen.
Make sure that each participant has their journal and something to write with. Then, post the newsprint you have prepared. Invite participants to take ten minutes to respond in their journals. After ten minutes, ring a bell or a chime and read this quote from Isaac Newton:
If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.
Remind participants that this is the last workshop. Say they will use their time together to synthesize material from previous workshops, consider where Unitarian Universalist work for social justice is moving today, and identify where their own work fits in the ongoing Unitarian Universalist history of resistance and transformation.
ACTIVITY 1: PROPHETIC, PARALLEL, AND INSTITUTIONAL (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Distribute the handout. Lead a conversation to reacquaint participants with the three models for social justice work that were introduced in Workshop 2. Ask:
Post the newsprint on which you have sketched the four quadrants. Lead the group to brainstorm social justice leaders, actions, and movements from past workshops. As each is named, invite participants to suggest the quadrant into which each one's leadership style fits. If there is not consensus, enter the name in more than one place. Invite observations and discussion, using these questions to guide the discussion:
ACTIVITY 2: INSPIRATION (25 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to form small groups of three or four to share their reflections on which workshops, events, or people they found most inspiring.
After ten minutes, ring the bell and invite people to form new groups, mixing participants as much as possible. In their new groups, invite participants to briefly share the common themes that emerged from their previous small groups.
ACTIVITY 3: IS THERE MORE? (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Acknowledge that no program can include everything. Invite the group to brainstorm the themes, issues, and historical events this workshop series has not explored. Ask: Are there justice themes that are important to this congregation or to you personally that were not part of this workshop series? Are there areas not included in this program in which Unitarian, Universalist, or Unitarian Universalist individuals or congregations have done significant justice work?
Record the brainstorm results on a sheet of newsprint. Participants may name some themes that are in workshops you did not offer or themes that are not part of program at all.
Invite the group to consider using the workshops in this program as a model for bringing the congregation's own history of resistance and transformation into focus.
CLOSING (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Ring the bell or chime and invite everyone into a moment of silence to reflect on the most important thing they are taking away from program. Tell them it can be anything: a story, a song, a sense of connection, a new learning, or a curiosity for further study. After about a minute of silence, invite each participant in turn to share briefly, reminding them that they may pass.
Distribute Handout 1 and lead participants in the responsive reading; invite them to respond to your reading of the plain text by reading aloud the text in italics.
Invite a participant to come forward and extinguish the chalice as you say these words: "As we extinguish this chalice, may we let the light of our tradition kindle our hope for a better world."
Encourage participants to continue to use their journal for reflection.
If you have made copies of Handout 2, Social Justice Resources, distribute it along with Taking It Home.
FAITH IN ACTION: SHARING INSPIRATION
Description of Activity
Share with other members of your congregation the parts of the program you found to be most inspiring. You might do this through conversation during coffee hour, a worship service, newsletter or website articles, or a presentation as part of an adult religious education forum.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Take a few moments right after the workshop to ask each other:
TAKING IT HOME
We come to a time when we realize that the faith we have inherited is inadequate for what we are facing...at such moments we have three choices: We can hold to our religious beliefs and deny our experience, we can hold to our experience and walk away from our religious tradition, or we can become theologians. — Rebecca Parker, in Blessing the World: What Can Save Us Now
Share with friends or family members your reflections about who or what you encountered in this program that has inspired you. How has the program influenced or shifted your perception of justice work? How has it connected your Unitarian Universalist faith more fully with your justice efforts in the world? Perhaps you had a conversation that would not have otherwise happened, gained a new awareness regarding a certain issue, or experienced a personal revelation about a justice issue with which you were already engaged. Perhaps you have begun or deepened a commitment to a particular social or environmental justice cause. Tell your story, and invite others to tell theirs.
Research a social or environmental justice topic important to your congregation that was not covered by the program. Lead a workshop or forum on the topic.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: FINDING A WAY FORWARD (30 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Present your findings about the congregation's justice work. Invite participants to consider how the congregation's work is connected to the larger Unitarian Universalist history of resistance and transformation:
Allow fifteen minutes for this part of the activity.
Then, post blank newsprint and lead a brainstorming activity using these questions:
Allow three minutes for this brainstorm.
Now, post new newsprint for a second brainstorming activity. Ask: What are the needs of our surrounding community? Record contributions.
After three minutes, lead a large group discussion asking participants to consider how their congregation's gifts relate to the needs of the surrounding community. Ask the group what it might do to learn if its assessment of community needs is correct. Which community leaders might they talk to?
Finally, ask the group if they are interested in continuing to meet to discuss possible social or environmental justice projects to do together. Distribute Handout 2, Social Justice Resources and set a time to meet again.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 16:
HANDOUT 1: RESPONSIVE READING
Benediction from Telling Our Stories, Celebrating Ourselves by the Women and Religion Task Force. Published by the Pacific Central District, UUA, 1998.
May the truth that makes us free,
And the hope that never dies,
And the love that casts out fear,
Lead us forward together
Until daylight breaks
And shadows flee away.
While we toil amidst things as they are,
May our vision of things yet to be —
Strengthen and inspire us.
May faithfulness to the good of each —
Become the unfailing virtue of us all.
May our experience be enlightened by understanding —
Our love ennobled by service,
And our faith strengthened by knowledge.
Blessed be.
RESISTANCE AND TRANSFORMATION: WORKSHOP 16:
HANDOUT 2: SOCIAL JUSTICE RESOURCES
Books and Study Guides
The Arc of the Universe is Long: Unitarian Universalists, Anti-Racism and the Journey from Calgary (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=1044) (Boston: Skinner House, 2009) by Rev. Leslie Takahashi Morris, Rev. James (Chip) Roush, and Leon Spencer tells the recent history of the UUA journey toward becoming an antiracist, anti-oppressive, multicultural movement. Beginning with the 1992 passage of the racial and cultural diversity resolution at Calgary, Canada, the book traces developments through General Assembly 2006 using interviews and written records. The authors bring to life voices and stories of many perspectives, all addressing issues of race and ethnicity in our congregations and our Association.
Blessing the World: What Can Save Us Now (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=547) (Boston: Skinner House, 2006) by Rev. Dr. Rebecca Parker, a Unitarian Universalist Christian theologian, offers essays on how to face the "legacies of injustice that characterize our current world order."
Call to Selma: Eighteen Days of Witness (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=557) is a first-hand account by Rev. Richard D. Leonard (Boston: Skinner House, 2001). In 1965, Rev. Martin Luther King appealed to clergy across the nation to come join protestors in their struggle for voting rights. More than 200 Unitarian Universalists responded. Rev. Leonard, age 37, was minister of education at the Community Church of New York at the time he answered Dr. King's call. Leonard's journal, along with the recollections of others who shared the journey, presents Selma as a pivotal point in the advancement of civil rights, and a defining moment for Unitarian Universalism.
Common Fire: Leading Lives of Commitment in a Complex World (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=243) (Boston: Beacon Press, 2002) by Laurent A. Parks Daloz, et al. A landmark study reveals how we become committed to the common good and sustain our commitments in a changing world. Online study guide. (at www.beacon.org/client/uu_guides/2005dg.cfm)
Leader's Guide to Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North (at www.uua.org/documents/idbm/traces_trade_guide.pdf), a documentary film that chronicles the journey of nine descendants of the largest slave-trading family in the United States, as they probe the history of their New England ancestors and confront the legacies of slavery. This guide includes plans for a single-session program and for a four-part discussion series.
The Prophetic Imperative: Social Gospel in Theory and Practice (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=663), 2nd ed. (Boston: Skinner House, 2000) by Richard S. Gilbert explores the role of social justice work in the Unitarian Universalist denomination. In a historical review of justicemaking in Unitarian Universalism, explores the connections between spirituality and social action, with practical guidance to help congregations mobilize for justice work. Online study guide. (at #guides)
Soul Work: Anti-racist Theologies in Dialogue (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=14) (Boston: Skinner House, 2002). Papers and discussion transcripts from the Unitarian Universalist Association Consultation on Theology and Racism held in Boston in January 2001. Addresses such questions as: What theological or philosophical beliefs bind us together in our shared struggle against racism? What are the costs of racism, both for the oppressors and the oppressed?
Study Guide to Milk (at www.uua.org/documents/belletinimark/milk_study_guide.pdf) by Rev. Mark Belletini, in the UUA's Tapestry of Faith family of online curricula and resources. This guide for the 2008 film biography of Harvey Milk includes background information, discussion questions, and resources for putting faith in action. Milk, a leader of the 1970s Gay and Lesbian Rights movement, as an elected member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors was the first openly gay politician in the United States. Milk and San Francisco mayor George Moscone were assassinated in November 1978 by Dan White, also a member of the Board of Supervisors.
There is Power in Union: A Unitarian Universalist Guide to Supporting Worker Justice (at www.uua.org/documents/mcemrysaaron/power_union.pdf) by Rev. Aaron McEmrys. Why should Unitarian Universalists support worker justice and union organizing efforts? What are some ways they can do so? This practical guide tells how congregations can connect with the union movement and the broader struggle for worker justice. The author is a Unitarian Universalist minister and a former union organizer.
What Is Marriage For? The Strange Social History of Our Most Intimate Institution (at www.uuabookstore.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=218) (revised) (Boston: Beacon Press, 2004) by E.J. Graff. Will same-sex couples destroy "traditional" marriage, soon to be followed by the collapse of all civilization? E. J. Graff shows that marriage in the West has always been a social battleground, its rules constantly shifting to fit each era and economy. Online study guide. (at #guides)
ORGANIZATIONS
Unitarian Universalists for a Just Economic Community (at www.uujec.com/). The UUJEC is a dynamic, independent grassroots affiliate of the UUA. Their mission is to engage, educate, and activate Unitarian Universalists to work for economic justice, recognizing that as people of faith in the struggle for justice, we are supporting and renewing our spiritual lives.
Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministries. Currently (2010) legislative ministries exist in California (at www.uulmca.org/), New Jersey (at www.uulmnj.org/), Florida (at www.uulmf.org/), Maryland (at www.uulmmd.org/), Massachusetts (at uumassaction.org/), Michigan (at www.uujustice.org/), Minnesota (at www.muusja.org/), New Hampshire (at www.uuactionnetworknh.org/), Washington (at www.uuvoiceswa.org/) and Pennsylvania (at uuplan.org/). Legislative ministries seek to organize Unitarian Universalists to lobby elected officials on issues on which they have taken a moral stand.
Interfaith Worker Justice (at www.iwj.org/template/index.cfm). A network that calls on our shared religious values to educate, organize, and mobilize people of faith in the United States on issues and campaigns that will improve wages, benefits, and conditions for workers, and give voice to workers, especially workers in low wage jobs.
Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (at www.uusc.org/). A nonsectarian organization that advances human rights and social justice in the United States and around the world. UUSC engages Unitarian Universalists and congregations with two experiential learning programs, JustWorks (at www.uusc.org/justworks) and JustJourneys (at www.uusc.org/justjourneys), which introduce participants to the work of our domestic and overseas partners on the front lines of addressing social justice issues.
Unitarian Universalist Ministry for the Earth (at www.uuministryforearth.org/). UUME's purpose is to inspire, facilitate, and support personal, congregational, and denominational practices that honor and sustain the Earth and all beings. Visit their website to find resources about ethical eating/food justice, global warming, and the Green Sanctuary program.