Interim Minister’s Column
The late UU minister John Wolf expressed some of the reasons why we would want to support a Unitarian Universalist congregation:
You want to support it because it has a free pulpit. Because you can hear ideas expressed there which could cost any other minister his or her job. You want to support it because it is a place where children can come without being saddled with guilt or terrified of some ‘celestial peeping-tom,’ where they can learn that religion is for joy, for comfort, for gratitude and love…You want to support a Unitarian Universalist church because it is more concerned with human beings than with dogmas. Because it searches for the holy, rather than dwelling on the depraved…You want to support a Unitarian Universalist church because it can laugh…You want to support it because it insults neither your intelligence nor your conscience, and because it calls you to worship what is truly worthy of your sacrifice.
For these and so many other reasons, we who enjoy the great heritage of religious liberalism need to support our religious communities as generously as we can, so that we can continue to sustain vital and healthy congregations that embody our Unitarian Universalist values, care for and serve our members, and bring our message to the larger world.
As we move toward the annual pledge drive here at Starr King Church, which we will launch with a dinner on March 12th—the night before Canvass Sunday—may you be mindful of the many gifts and blessings that this congregation and its members bring into your lives: friendships and social connections, the religious education of your children, learning opportunities and activities for adults, Sunday morning services that bring the community together to celebrate life, care for one another, inspire action and provoke thought, and opportunities for service to the larger community through and beyond the organizations we support—community organizations such as South Hayward Parish, Family Emergency Shelter Coalition, Faith Alliance for a Moral Economy and the new Eden Area Interfaith Council. In supporting this congregation, you are supporting and strengthening our unique Unitarian Universalist voice and our cherished principles of equality and justice, world community and human dignity, the open quest for truth and meaning, the democratic process, and deep reverence for the interconnected web of life on this fragile and beautiful planet.
Please consider making your annual pledge a generous one, to support the programs, activities and values of this congregation as it enters a new phase in its ongoing congregational life. Thank you in advance for your support.
Joy