By Jay Leach, Minister
“Breathing Ground I” mixed media art by Patricia Raible
We are completing our third year of the core group experience. We’ve had dozens of our members engaging with curiosity and commitment, setting aside preconceived assumptions and past learnings so we can reflect more deeply on concerns that lie at the intersection of our Vision’s call for spiritual, societal and environmental transformation.
Many of us now hear, read, and consider the latest news in a much broader context. Some who’ve encountered our “racism triangle” find themselves less inclined to think of George Floyd’s murder as the act of four “bad” cops and more as a reflection of the kinds of historic and structural racism that are far more potent than individual racism. Some who’ve had long commitments to care for the earth now find themselves able to be advocates for both environmentalism and for environmental justice. These are just two examples of how our ongoing commitment to listen and learn is transforming us as individual members and, increasingly, as a congregation.
For those unable or not yet ready to commit to the demands of a core group, there have been other opportunities to reflect on the issues that we’re increasingly able to see as related to both spirituality and justice. In extensive programming for children, youth and adults we’re continuing to engage with, as we say in our Mission, the “challenge” of “our liberating faith.”
You’ll find in this issue of Soundings glimpses into the kinds of learning that has been happening in this congregational year. As we’ve given our attention to “What We Hold Most Dear”
these reflections call us anew to those deep values that inform and inspire us as a community. They attest to what we are creating together as we move ever more deeply into alignment with our Board of Trustee’s “Call to Action.”
We’ve come a long way in these three years. We admitted when we set out that this would be the journey of decades. We’ve left the safety of how we used to be and are now more willing to recognize and accept that this will, indeed, be a long and often challenging journey of transformation. Along the way, we’ll continue to pause, reflect and celebrate. Join me now in celebrating what is being shared with us in this latest issue.