Dear Colleagues,
As I look forward to the coming year, I'm filled with anticipation for the journey that we are on together! I'm glad to share my reflections with you in this, my first column as your new President.
As a denomination, as a nation and as part of the global community, we stand on the cusp of change and are also immersed in many changes that are already well underway and which are forever altering our religious environment and our lives.
One of the clearest among these is that the religious landscape is changing across all mainstream denominations and, indeed, across the Western world. It's no secret that many congregations, particularly the smaller ones, are less robust in membership and financial outlook than they used to be.
This does not mean that spiritual needs are less pressing or even less keenly felt in the world we live in.
Indeed, "spiritual but not religious" is the fastest growing category of religious identification in our present society, as the plethora of interest groups, workshops, retreat centers, books and websites addressing this population attests. A great many of these folks identify with the values we covenant to affirm and promote in our UU Principles and Purposes.
How do we reach them? By boldly, visibly and proactively engaging and supporting the work these religious progressives want to be about.
In the largest sense, the work before us is to contribute to the network of religious progressives which spans secular and interfaith settings. This is where the most crucial work of our time is taking place. I identify that work as contributing to the creation of the "tipping point" that will take us through our interlocking global crises.
The tipping point I refer to is the creation of viable networks through which psycho-spiritually mature and socially active leaders can initiate and guide dialogues leading to viable solutions in the service of life. Having a fulfilling, meaning-centered spiritual life oneself is at the center of this capacity, and religious movements must orient themselves to addressing this need.
Community ministry is and will be at the forefront of this sea change, as UUSCM has long understood.
Institutions on the whole tend to be backward looking, seeking to solve the problems of the present by tweaking the solutions of the past. That approach will not take our world over the tipping point. UUSCM is actively forward-looking, envisioning and supporting diverse, inclusive, creative paths to living and working through which spiritual depth and healthy interdependence can flourish.
We have gathered around the fire circle to support one another since the beginning of human history. The future lies with religious communities that are less isolated, self-contained entities, and more hubs through which energy flows within and between a network of settings where the work is going forward - in and "beyond the walls."
Community ministries, both lay and ordained, are crucial conduits of such energy exchange.
The re-visioning and revitalization of congregational life around this new paradigm is already happening in some parts of our movement, and community ministry has many roles to play in that shift.
One is through our affiliated community clergy who are a link between religious work in the congregation and the wider world. Continuing to educate congregations and their leaders about the gifts affiliated community ministers have to offer remains an important part of our work.
Another way is through strengthening and lifting into recognition our lay leaders who are increasingly understanding their work in terms of ministry. There is a pioneering movement in our faith for the Commissioning of our lay leaders in which their commitment to service in and beyond their congregations is given official recognition and blessing. UUSCM is at the forefront of this movement.
A third way is in supporting our lay leaders who are already fully credentialed in their own fields of work, such as many of our chaplains, but who need some form of denominational endorsement in order to step into full professional recognition and impact.
Still another is to network with other UU organizations aligned with these goals.
As your new President, I am already taking steps towards these ends.
In May, I was invited by the UUA to participate in a "think tank" in Denver focusing on Life-Cycles of Ministry. At GA this year I anticipate meeting with the leaders of many of our UU organizations to brainstorm about work we could do to support one another's mission and vision.
In the fall, I will ask the Board to consider some concrete proposals for expanding our support of lay ministry. I will also be reaching out to parish colleagues, lifting up the value of parish and community ministers working in concert. UUSCM welcomes parish clergy interested in this vantage point into membership, and we are delighted that the Rev. Suzanne Marsh, an active parish minister, serves on our Board as Good Officer, a portfolio I held for five years.
As I take up this work, my deep gratitude goes out to other UUSCM members who have served on this Board, both during my six year tenure and before.
Today I changed my email signature from UUSCM President-Elect to your UUSCM President! I'm honored, humbled and excited to have this opportunity to serve you and the faith we love.
May we go forward inspired by the opportunities - and with good cheer!
With You on the Path,
Cat
