Symbolism, ritual, and presidential politics

Things on the Internet never die

LinguistFriend, posting at "The Chaliceblog" in response to UUA President William G. Sinkford's Fall 2008 UU World column, "Learning from the Interfaith World," takes issue with what he sees as a suggestion that UUs need to become comfortable saying the Lord's Prayer.

[I]t strikes me as illegitimate to adopt the forms of a worship in which one does not believe, outside of cases of compulsion or some extreme pastoral situations. Where a worship form takes place with which one cannot honestly agree, an alternative is simply to be silent and wait for something in which one can more comfortably share. To adopt such forms insincerely is no compliment to those who do believe in that worship, and it is easily imaginable that such quasi-worship could backfire in interaction with other religious groups. (July 8)

Reaction to General Assembly continues

The Rev. Thom Belote continues to add reflections to his report on General Assembly; he is currently up to June 24 ("RevThom," July 2).

The Rev. Dan Harper deconstructs the UUA's new public witness campaign, "Standing on the Side of Love," and invites others to join in ("Yet Another Unitarian Universalist," July 6).

UUA presidential politics

LT, the minister who writes "thelivelytradition," complains that the presidential campaign was too nice (July 8).

The Rev. Victoria Weinstein leads off a lively discussion of UU culture, growth prospects, and priorities:

Unitarian Universalism is the local congregation. It is not its president. Let us look to the strength, goodness and integrity of our own houses. There’s work enough to do there. ("Peacebang," July 7)

And the Rev. Scott Wells launches a lively (and multi-blog) discussion of the laying-on-of-hands that concluded the installation of the Rev. Peter Morales as the next president of the UUA during the closing ceremony at General Assembly. Wells complains that the symbolic laying on of hands belongs to the ordination of a minister, not the installation of a president. "Using a ceremony that necessarily ties the presidency of the UUA with the ordained ministry frames who can be president, apart from our own established rules. It is thus an abuse of our polity, and should be abandoned" ("Boy in the Bands," July 7).

At "PeaceBang," Weinstein argued, "We cannot just perform rituals ’cause we like them or they feel cool. We are responsible to tradition, to meaning and to integrity" (July 8). The Rev. Kit Ketcham, meanwhile, finds laying on of hands appropriate:

It surprises me that there's some resistance to the ritual of the laying on of hands, as done for our new UUA president, the Rev. Peter Morales, as he took office recently. Here's what Wikipedia has to say, and it's pretty clear that the ritual is not only for ordination but also to bless and to confer authority. Boy, if there's anything the UUA prez needs, it's blessing and authority! And he might need a bit of that healing property too at some point. ("Ms. Kitty's Saloon and Road Show," July 8)

Jess Cullinan takes exception to those taking exception:

It is notable that the most vocal critics weren’t there, and that watching the video doesn’t even begin to convey what really happened in that room. . . .

Leading our Association of Congregations is ministry, plain and simple. It’s a different incarnation than ordained ministry in the congregation, but it is ministry. And I for one would hope that the individuals who seek that office of President of the UUA are indeed called to serve our movement prayerfully, authentically, and with a deep sense of responsibility not just to the administration but also to the vision and mission of Unitarian Universalism. ("Jess's Journal," July 8)

Kim Hampton, however, was present for Morales's installation but was uncomfortable with the symbolism:

If you look at our closest religious cousins (at least polity-wise), the Disciples [of Christ] and the [United Church of Christ], you will notice that they have a position called something like “General Minister AND President.” We, my friends, do NOT have that. We have a President. By that very word, it means that the position is PRIMARILY administrative, NOT pastoral. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that being President cannot be a ministry. It can be. But, it is ADMINISTRATIVE. The twain do not meet, at least in our associational structure. ("East of Midnight," July 8)

In response to all these blog posts and comments, Steve Caldwell quotes the UU Ministers Association's "Code of Professional Practice"—"I will stand in a supportive relation to my colleagues and keep for them an open mind and heart . . . . I will not speak scornfully or in derogation of any colleague in public. In any private conversation critical of a colleague, I will speak responsibly and temperately"—and asks "if a public blog conversation about these issues is appropriate" ("Liberal Faith Development," July 10).

Moving ahead

Weinstein continues themes raised in her earlier blog posts and reflects on the responsibility of ministers to help lay speakers giving sermons to reach beyond political passion:

Again, our lack of theological education and reflection is the culprit. It’s very likely that no one has helped these lay people connect our Unitarian and Universalist theological tradition to their convictions, except in the most generic way. “Please give a talk about why you care so much about Issue X” is a good beginning. But it is only a beginning. “How does this connect with our Unitarian Universalist principles?” might come next, or “What makes this a religious commitment for you?” ("Peacebang," July 10)

Meanwhile, Hampton worries about incorporating Quaker-style silence into the worship service she is leading ("East of Midnight," July 11).

OWL and 'O'

Courtney from "Feministing" (a non-UU blog) posts about the article on Our Whole Lives that appeared in O Magazine, and her commenters make the UUs above look pretty tame (July 8).

Non-blog interdependent web

The Rev. Scott Wells at "Boy in the Bands" suggests following the Unitarian Universalists in Hong Kong on Twitter.

David Pyle of "Celestial Lands" alerts UUs to the new CLF Unitarian Universalist Military Ministries presence on Facebook.

And in a move to make it easier on your memory, you can now find UU World on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/uuworld.

The interdependent web at General Assembly

GA for those who don't go

Just because some bloggers can't go to Salt Lake City doesn't mean they aren't part of the Interdependent Web at General Assembly—and of course they vastly outnumber those who do! The Rev. Cynthia Landrum writes:

I'm sad that I can't be at General Assembly this year. I miss seeing my colleagues from other districts. I feel more out of touch with the latest ground-breaking events of our association and the newest books or creative thoughts. Every year I've missed I've planned to watch videos or live feeds of it, but I rarely do. Perhaps this year will be the first. They're certainly making virtual attendance at GA more possible. Hopefully soon we'll be able to vote from afar on more than just the president. ("Rev. Cyn," June 23)

GA is not just GA

Easily the most prolific blogger at GA so far is Kari Kopnick at "Chalice Spark." She is actively blogging GA, starting with pre-GA events and with a focus on LREDA, the professional organization for religious educators:

Quick, think of the longest, most boring meeting you've ever sat through. Now, double the length, but turn it around into a deeply meaningful, hilarious and wildly productive work session.

That's what today's LREDA Board meeting was like. Long. Deep, and a lot of fun. (June 22)

Spanish-language hymns and 'polyvocal dialogue'

The Rev. Ricky Hoyt was glad to hear about a new Spanish-language hymnal supplement: "This is a desperately needed resource in my Los Angeles congregation, and in our movement as a whole" ("One More Step," June 24).

Meanwhile, Paul Oakley reflects on a "polyvocal dialog" on the hymn "We'll Build a Land" during worship:

If every single hymn becomes part of some dialogic struggle, can we ever do anything without holding a series of workshops on it or, worse, killing it dead on the spot by positioning and explanation of every move we make rather than actually doing worship? And yet... dialog is certainly necessary. ("Inner Light, Radiant Life," June 25)

More perspectives

The Rev. Anthony Lorenzen is attending the Governance track of UU University ("Sunflower Chalice," June 26).

GA speaker Kate Clinton is featured on "Beacon Broadside" (June 26).

The UUA is using Twitter to write 140-character micro-reports on GA, and so are others.

UU World staff are posting photos to our Flickr stream.

And, of course, we also have our GA blog, written by UU World staff, and the UUA has a GA blog written by other UUA staff and volunteers.