You, Me, Them and Us

Martha Hodges - 2006-01-15

What a day in the history of this congregation! Today, you will elect the people you want to represent you in the search for your new minister. Today you will also be asked for your vote of confidence in a new model of self-governance. Together, these two votes will take you that much closer to the opening of a new chapter in your story. As your interim minister, I have faith that you are ready to thrive in this new environment that you are creating.

My faith in you is based on the three months that I have spent with you so far --months in which I have seen your individual talents and generosity at work. Ministers and congregational leaders talk about the “time, talent and treasure” that individuals contribute to a church.

But there is more than that going on in this congregation. There is passion and commitment. For what motivates this personal generosity if not a thirst for community, a deeply felt need for connection with others? I believe it is this vision of beloved community that inspires those who have offered to serve on your Ministerial Search Committee. I have no doubt that it is commitment to this vision of beloved community that has motivated your leadership to create the new model of governance that will be presented to you today.

Talent offered without love is mere grandstanding. Time given without vision is a mere chore. And treasure shared without commitment is a mere tax deduction. There is no question that you make these contributions to MVUUF because of your love and commitment to a vision of a community that allows individuals to grow in ways that they cannot do alone.

We need one another to help us discover ourselves. We need to give to each other in order to nurture our spiritual, moral and emotional lives. You understand this, I know. I see this vision enacted among you every day.

So what do I see as your challenge in the months and years ahead? To open up the boundaries of this community. To deconstruct the walls that our prideful individualism build among ourselves -- but much more than that, to radically redefine who we mean by “ourselves.”

In the months to come we will talk about what this would mean -- how “community” might be redefined, if we opened our doors, our minds and our hearts more fully to the stranger among us. If we recognize that we are all strangers, in that we are all separate and unique mysteries, struggling to overcome the barriers between ourselves and others -- if we recognize this, then the distinction between us and them becomes meaningless. And inclusivity is, paradoxically, what this tradition of Unitarian Universalism, with its emphasis on individuality, calls us to desire and to put into practice.

Today you will take steps toward your future -- a future that, if you choose to make it so, will be one of inclusivity, of a radically re-understood idea of “us.” Your new governance model is a tool to help make this happen -- a tool designed to help this congregation grow. Your new minister will be the person to lead you toward this vision of a more loving and universal community. So today we have much to celebrate. It is the beginning of a new chapter in your story. A chapter that is all about your passion and your commitment to make this church the beloved community that our very human nature longs for.

May this vision guide you in the months and years to come.