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Playing life on the hard setting
The Rev. Amy Shaw, who has hearing loss as well as other disabilities, recommends a recent WorshipWeb article explaining why microphones are needed.
What does it mean to be disabled in an ableist world? . . . .
I am playing life on the hard setting because life is optimized for the able-bodied. I'm not asking for the able-bodied to be given a handicap. I'm demanding to be given a game controller that allows me to play with everyone else. (Chalice Fire, September 16)
God and no-god
Liz James writes a playful description of what it’s like to have “no-God” rather than God.
No-God is a thing in and of itself. No-God is endlessly practical. She wears comfortable shoes, and fanny pack stocked with all kinds of things that are real and useful.
Not everything you’ll need, surely—life doesn’t give us everything we need. “Everything you’ll need” in a world where people starve to death is a message as is tippy and false tall as four inch heels. No-god is done with that kind of push-up bra control top pantyhose-ey message. (Facebook, September 18)
The Rev. James Ford offers a koan of sorts: Is God a whole or a hole? (Monkey Mind, September 15)
Wanting big things
The Rev. Dawn Cooley announces, “with deep sadness,” that she is leaving Indivisible Kentucky, an organization she cofounded.
With primarily white, middle-class, middle-aged people in leadership, the people of color who joined us were marginalized and tokenized. We did not center their voices or experiences. Time and again we proved ourselves to be the white moderate progressives who tone-police by telling those who are marginalized to not be so angry, or to just wait, or to follow our tactics. We were patronizing. We did not have enough voices at the table to help us make good decisions in what messaging to use. In short, we were bad allies. (Speaking of, September 21)
Doug Muder sorts through what it means that single-payer healthcare has joined the debate.
A political party that actually means something has to want Big Things, things that might take decades to achieve, like racial justice, gender equality, an end to a constant state of war, the elimination of poverty, a sustainable relationship with the rest of the biosphere—and healthcare for everybody. At the same time, wanting Big Things someday can’t be enough. We need to be achieving something today that takes us closer to those Big Things.
There’s no contradiction between envisioning a journey of a thousand miles and taking a single step. They’re part of the same whole. (The Weekly Sift, September 18)
And more
Adam Gonnerman describes the daunting transition from ministry in a non-UU tradition to becoming a UU minister.
Despite the fact that I intend to return eventually to full-time ministry as UU clergy, the thought of delivering a sermon to a UU congregation fills me with dread. In a Christian context I have the Bible to rely upon as a source text. Among UUs, virtually anything can be used as material for a message. This may seem liberating, but it certainly isn’t for me. My years of Bible study allowed little room to really explore the vast array of other literature available, from poetry to prose, in a multiplicity of genres. Then there are Broadway shows and film, both of which also serve as fertile grounds for UU homilies to be conceived. . . . Then there’s the matter of style! As an evangelical minister I preached from an outline, while UU clergy seem to read their sermons from a complete text. The only time I ever did that was the first time I ever preached, back in 1995, and it was my worst sermon. (Adam Gonnerman, September 18)
The Rev. Dr. Victoria Weinstein wears a white after Labor Day—an intentional choice to break a rule she knows.
If you’re going to break the rules, just make sure to think it through: why is the rule part of our culture? Why are you breaking it? Will you still be appropriately and respectfully dressed? Is there anyone with whom you seek to connect who might be distracted, put-off or offended by your choice? Do you care if they are? Can you afford to not care, if you don’t? Is your position in the organization or group so secure and respected that you can afford to not care about overturning cultural norms or traditions? (Beauty Tips for Ministers, September 18)
The Rev. Madelyn Campbell describes the way people of different generations often treat one another.
You can say that you had it tougher.
You can say they’re ruining everything.
And you can look to the generation before you,
and you can shake your head, because you know that
they just don’t get it. They never did get it and they never will.
You know that your generation is the right one.
And you can forget, if you want to, that you are
connected
to the generation before you
and the generation after you. (The Widow’s Mitey Blog, September 16)