Each month, a member of the board will share a reflection on the Soul Matters monthly theme. The theme for October is Heritage. This month’s post is offered by Janna Sperry Sundby. 

For any of you who are participating in the October Soul Matter conversations, the focus is on Heritage. How is Heritage different from Ancestry?  Heritage is what we have accepted as gifts from those who came before us. Heritage is our inheritance of land, language, ecosystems, knowledge, and culture.  Yes.  Heritage includes physical objects, monuments, and sites, as well as intangible beliefs, customs, and traditions. That includes religion. Wow.

When looking into my personal ancestry, I came from mostly Irish and Scottish ancestors. I don’t think much about that heritage even though I visited and enjoyed the beauty of the stone walls, green grass, dark beer, and rolling seas. When I think about heritage, I first think about what the Native Americans taught us about loving nature and caring for her, not abusing, owning or taking her for granted. I also realized, while discussing this with friends, heritage is something that we should consider adjusting as we become more educated. There are things we all learn as we get out into the world, meet new people, read, take classes, watch movies, and learn about other cultures. 

Ah, and that is exactly what the UUA is doing with Article II, which is essentially our new way of describing our faith. It’s been adjusted, in a smart, more current way. Please review it via the link above.

An educated, diverse group of volunteers reviewed the original seven Principles  and the additional newer 8th Principle and elected to do the work to see if the “Heritage” could be improved. I think they did a great job. They did not reject the past and the foundational pieces of wisdom; they studied them and considered where the world is today. The UUA Principles were based on European perspectives and it’s time to adjust that. We need to put our beliefs into action by saying, yes, we can improve, and we can be inclusive, and we can be less patriarchal. We say that everyone needs a voice. That should mean everyone has a chance to speak, but as a democracy, we must commit to our collective beliefs. I think the amendments to the constitution are living examples of that. We should update foundational beliefs based on new knowledge gained, not necessarily accepting the wording or perspectives written 200+ years ago. We need to listen to the current voices, write down a current collective view, and put them into action. Here’s the rationale of the smart group (Article II Commission) who took on the task of updating the UUA beliefs:

“Throughout this process, we have been guided by the idea of the Living Tradition. As James Luther Adams has said, “a living tradition is not bequeathed through some law of inheritance; it must be earned, not without dust and heat, and not without humbling grace.” Throughout the dust and heat, we have been humbled by the grace extended to us by all those who participated in our process. In our work, we sought to honor the work of those ancestors who came before, and to envision all of us Unitarian Universalists as good ancestors to those who follow us in the future. We hope this revision nurtures that living tradition so that it continues to flourish, and we look forward to that future time when another Commission takes up this work to make it speak for their age.”

—Article II Commission

I’m really pleased to point out that were three people involved in the commission that I, and some of you longer-term members, might recognize:

Satya Mamdani, Youth/Young Adult Commissioner (2020-2023), is a member of First Universalist Church of Minneapolis, Minnesota, where she was active as a religious education teacher and worship associate. Satya is currently a freshman in college in Hartford, Connecticut.  She is Rev. Arif Mamdani’s daughter. Arif was part of the Troika Interim Ministry Team at UUCM with Rev. Meg Riley and Rev. Terri Burnor from 2018-2020. Also, supporting the Commission is Rev. Meg Riley from the Troika, and Kathy Burek, whose home congregation is Michael Servetus Unitarian Society in Fridley. Kathy was very helpful to me, as part of the Transition Ministry, as we were figuring out the best type of Minister for UUCM, which led us to choose a “Developmental Minister” and we were matched with Rev. Lisa Friedman.

All of this is to say, I think we are wisely using our education to adjust and update what we focus on, so it is in tune with what’s happening now while keeping an eye to the ever-briskly-changing future. I’m thrilled with the new focus we and the UUA are looking at and through, in 2023-24, called Article II, which is wisely centered around Love. 

Again, give it a read if you haven’t, you’ll be glad you did. Article II

— Janna Sperry Sundby

UUCM Board of Trustees President