Welcome friends!
Welcome to your church, to your religious community.
I invite you to enter, rejoice and come in to this sacred place.
In this place we open our ears to the song of sanctity within each of us.
We open our hearts to the love that binds us together.
We fear no change for with change comes growth.
May the light of this chalice symbolize our joy with being together in our church.
OPENING WORDS by Sheila Harvill
Our theme this year is “Walking the Paths Together: Companions on the Journey” and our four goals are the following:
- Continue the Strategic Planning Effort that was begun last year under Allen Kesiwetter’s leadership
- Define and expand (and I might add model) the concepts of team and shared ministry
- Safeguard and celebrate our religious, as well as ethical and spiritual, diversity
- And deepen our commitment to social action and social justice.
In the past this service was called the “Board Worship Service. This year it is the “Trustees’ Worship Service.” This change reflects the time and energy we devoted at our April retreat to truly identify, understand, and embrace our roles and responsibilities as Trustees of UUCA. You have entrusted us with the vital decisions that determine our future as a church, and you trust that we will make the best decisions for our religious community. At the same time, we trust that you will give us the support we need to accomplish the vision of this Church.
At our Retreat, we made also a commitment to translate the very successful and energizing team ministry to our time together as Trustees this year, and thus “Board as Team” is a very exciting work in progress. Therefore, rather than having a homily, we will address our four goals as a team in five-minute segments throughout the service. Although Karen Brewer, Madelyn Campbell, and Carol Hopper very much regret not being able to be here today, they were very involved in the team’s planning of the service and the presentations, so their thoughts and creative spirits are very much in evidence as we worship together.
Through communal readings, dance, and other movement this morning, we symbolize our work as team, with each other and with you, and express the joy and fulfillment we experience in our shared ministry of service to this community.
Goal #1: Team Ministry / Shared Ministry
George:
Two years ago, as a part of our search for a new minister, the UUCA adopted a new model of ministry - Team Ministry.
This new model defines the relationship of our ministers - to each other, to the professional staff, and to the Trustees - not in terms of rank and hierarchy, but in terms of partnership and shared goals.
Sheila:
Recently, teams have received lots of “press” as they emerge as an increasingly effective way for all kinds of organizations to accomplish their goals.
We know that teams outperform individuals - especially in settings that require multiple skills, judgments and experiences. Given our commitment to religious diversity, inclusiveness and democratic processes - the concept of team is a powerful tool to help us expand and strengthen the UUCA community.
Kathie:
The model of team ministry is evolving into a broader notion of Shared Ministry. Shared Ministry embraces and depends on each and every one of us. It is exemplified not only by Michael and Joan, but also Linda Topp, Ray Killean, Bill Peters, our wonderful office staff, our Trustees and the countless committees, task forces and support groups that ARE the life blood of our religious community.
New initiatives and groups are emerging out of the notion of shared ministry, including: worship associates, pastoral associates and covenanting groups - just to name a few.
The concept of teams and shared ministry calls us to be ever mindful of our collective common purpose, as well as our individual perspectives. We believe that our community will be greatly enriched if each of us commits to becoming partners and co-creators in this quest.
Please join me in responsive reading # 444.
Goal #2: Celebrate and Safeguard Intellectual, Spiritual, and Religious Diversity
Sheila: Please join us in reading the introductory paragraph from the salmon-colored cards located in the pew racks:
“Unitarian Universalism is a liberal religion that emerged from a Judeo-Christian heritage and includes a recognition and respect to all religions. Our members hold a range of theological views, from the theism of liberal Christianity to a broad spectrum of humanism (from atheism to agnosticism), and varied forms of spiritual expression.”Sheila: The following are some of the different voices that we have heard in our faith community:
George: I am Unitarian Universalist, and I walk the path of Buddha. I am searching for inward peace and love unrestrained, without hate or enmity.
Diane: I am Unitarian Universalist, and my daughter's path is Christian. I honor her commitment to serve others less fortunate than herself.
Michael: I am Unitarian Universalist and am searching for meaning. Help me.
Sheila: I am Unitarian Universalist and the Earth Mother is my inspiration. I dedicate myself to protecting her.
Kathie: I am Unitarian Universalist and Humanism is my path. I join the peoples of the world in seeking the ways of understanding.
Robin: I am Unitarian Universalist and I can't quite define my source of inspiration; however, I know that I honor the interdependent web of all existence and believe in the inherent worth and dignity of every person.
Sheila, Robin, and Diane at the front of the Sanctuary continue:
Sheila: As part of our Retreat this spring, we spent a lot of time talking about the rich intellectual, spiritual, and religious diversity that enlivens our congregation.
Diane: Our common bonds as Unitarian Universalists are our seven principles. Our various intellectual, spiritual, and religious paths are the sources of inspiration that nourish our efforts to become ethical people who try to fulfill these principles in our daily lives.
Robin: There are many ways that we can help each other find meaning as we travel along our different paths. We are finding ways this year to highlight and participate in celebrating and safeguarding that diversity. Some of the ideas that our community of faith is considering for the coming year are:
A forum on the religions we have left behind, how they have enriched our lives, and how to find ways to deal with the shadow side of our former religious experiences.
An event sponsored with the American Humanist Association
A Labyrinth Conference that will support us in examining and experiencing healing and forgiveness in our lives
A sermon series on different ethical and religious approaches to life and how those beliefs inspire action
Programming offered through our Spiritual Center, such as the recently instituted Wednesday evening Vespers.
Sheila: Our goal this year, working with the professional and volunteer team here at UUCA, is to make certain that we offer an ethical and spiritual banquet that provides sustenance for the life journey of each of us.
Diane: We hope you will join us in intentionally celebrating and safeguarding our intellectual, spiritual, and religious diversity. Help us support each other as companions on the journey. If you have ideas about how to make this goal come true, and want to join us in this effort, just let us know.
Goal #3: Social Justice
Speaker #1 (George):
Dare we dream of a more perfect union?…A more just, a more compassionate, a more caring community in Arlington, in Northern Virginia, in our United States, even globally?
Dare we must…It is who we are…We are dreamers, but we are doers…
Speaker #2 (Kathie):
We have always had such dreams…dreams that we have made real time and time again - when, for example, we answered the call for racial justice in the 1950’s; when we sponsored, supported in the 1960’s and now help sustain Culpepper Gardens;when we opened our building to the homeless in the 1980’s; when we declared ourselves and then became a welcoming congregation in the 1990’s; and even when the young among us have delivered cookies to shut-ins as our 2nd graders often do as part of their RE classes.
Speaker #3 (Diane):
“Hold fast to dreams
for if the dreams die
life is a broken-winged bird
that cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
for when dreams go
life is a barren field
frozen with snow.” Langston Hughes
Speaker #4 (Kathie)
Today the call for social action still sounds. But there is a louder call; it is the demand for social justice that clamors as it rarely has before. How shall we answer that call?
Speaker #4 (Diane) :
Not only with a dream, though dreams may carry our hopes. Not only with a vision statement, though words may convey our aspirations. Not only with moments of good deeds well done, though such moments may make all the difference to many lives. We believe that we must answer with a worthy, visible, boisterous, and enduring demonstration of our commitment to social justice. How shall it be done?
Speaker # 5(George):
Shall we build our endowment fund to $1million dollars and commit a significant portion for social action? From this fund, we could support a new pre-school for some the neediest of Northern Virginia’s families - or perhaps we could create and fund a mobile health van for a community in need. Perhaps we could fund a human rights advocate, activist right here in Arlington. All this we could do and more…
Speaker #6 (Kathie):
Shall we stand and work with our fellow UU minister Don Robinson at Beacon House, a low income community on Edgewood Terrace in Northeast D.C. Don has little time for dreams, but his vision of and commitment to providing a better life for the people the Beacon House community is bold and daring. He needs our help.
Speaker #7 (Diane):
How shall we respond to call of the Task Force Against The Death Penalty? What can we do to support the efforts of the Housing Task Force as they quite literally help others build new lives in decent affordable housing? And as we join Jubilee Sunday here in mid-October to decry racism and injustice, what shall we do on the next Monday, the next Sunday to live out our convictions?
Speaker # (George):
There is much to do…But we are many…And as we each do our individual deeds so too we would together collect our common concern to promote peace and do justice close to home and abroad. We can do no less. And all this we must do if we are to redeem and renew our dream of social justice.
Speaker #8 (Diane):
In the end, can we - this church, our community, acting together - make a mark? Can we know we have made a difference in this place, in our world? We know that we will be known for many things. For the tolerant and free spirits that we are; for being in that big and handsome building on the corner of George Mason and Arlington Blvd.; for having a great choir and wonderful music. But will it also be said, “Isn’t that the church that started the new pre-school, or funds that mobile van or made the difference at Beacon House.” May that too be part of our vision for ourselves. May this too be a path we walk together - companions on a journey of social action for social justice.
Goal #4: Strategic Planning
Speaker #1 (NANCY):
We are ready to make a leap of faith…Not a free fall into some unforeseen future…But a significant step forward toward a place where our aspirations and hopes for this congregation, our community, can be more fully realized and experienced not only by those present today, but by many more that we would welcome into our midst.
Speaker #2 (GEORGE):
But where precisely is that place and in what direction shall we leap? How shall we get there? What can we do to prepare for this journey? Is this the right time? Who shall lead? What will it cost? How will we know when we have arrived? Are we truly ready? Do we have companions for this journey?
Speaker #3 (ROBIN) :
“I am being driven forward
Into an unknown land…
A wind from my unknown goal
Stirs the strings of expectation.
But still the question.
Shall I ever get there..
There where life resounds…” Dag Hammerskjold
Speaker #2 (GEORGE):
As Lincoln said, “If we are to know where we are going, then we should understand where we have been.” Let us then affirm who we are and what we have done… We are a caring and concerned people…We are of a free faith where questions bring not confusion but opportunities for exploration. We challenge complacency, welcome ambiguity, and create possibilities, possibilities for growth, for understanding, for service, for insight into who we are and what we might become.
Speaker #5 (ROBIN):
What we might become then is our best selves. But what we might become can and must be chosen, carefully considered, responsive to our dreams, and planned for…planned for strategically, intentionally, honestly, openly, and ardently. So we together this year will and must embark on a strategic plan. It is not a wholly new endeavor. We have embarked on this path before. Over the last decade, it has led from into an understanding of our Mission and Covenant to one another and onto the New Century Report.
Speaker #6 (GEORGE):
It is our time now to pick up the thread, to weave our own design of the future that we shall both inherit and bequeath to those who shall follow. Where then shall our leap of faith take us? Where shall we land? What will our future together in this community look like? Let us imagine…We will grow…but how, where, when. We will make a difference in our larger community…but how, where, when….We will provide a path and a beacon for spiritual growth and deeper commitment…We will use our building to provide a space for the inner spirit to grow and reach beyond our selves.
Speaker #7 (NANCY):
There are many questions that demand our answers - but we will walk this path together: companions on this journey to create and to discover our own future. In seeking solutions, we shall strive to build our community on the foundation laid by those who have responded in prior time to this same imperative. We shall strive to take our own leap of faith toward a future that offers continuing challenges. And then where shall we land? Not in the promised land, but in a place of potential, of possibilities, and of promises still to be discovered.
