Jennie Stone, Board President
My name is Jennie Stone. I am a middle-aged, light-skinned, woman with salt and cinnamon hair, and glasses. My pronouns are she/her. And this is my last time delivering a Board Connection as your President.
I’m excited to be able to use this time to report on the results of the Open Question listening circles that were held last month. First, A special thank you to the circle facilitators and scribes that made this process possible, and to Pam Anderson for initial data analysis. And thanks to all of you who contributed your interest, ideas and insights. A total of 60 members and friends participated, either in groups or individually, to respond to the question “What does it mean for UUCCH to put Love at the Center and live into the new expression of our values?”
This is the new diagram representing our stated values. The first part of the Open question asked what does it mean for UUCCH to put Love at the Center? The responses made it clear that putting Love at the center implies three levels of relationship.
- Bringing love to ourselves – staying grounded in our individual values and our own spiritual journey, being aware of these and having integrity enough to realize that another person’s opinion and unique journey doesn’t define their worthiness any more than our own opinions and journey define ours. Individually we can be centered and at peace even if others are sowing chaos.
- Bringing love to the relationships within the church – practicing openness and curiosity while staying true to who we are, being willing to look for common goals while respecting the values of others, giving grace as we hope to receive it, recognizing with humility that there is more than one way to accomplish a goal.
- Giving love a voice in the community – using kindness as the expression of our love for others, seeking opportunities for others to tell us what they need so we may work to help fill those needs; creating space in our church community to being open to other communities and how we can intersect with them; and working passionately to bring about positive change.
The second part of the Open question asks how we express our love in the context of our new stated values. This is not an easy question with simple answers. Each person touched on multiple themes with their response. There is some overlap between the values, one might say interdependence, so how an answer is categorized could vary based on one’s interpretation. But we hope you’ll agree that the responses express the full range of these values.
This word cloud helps illustrate some key concepts that emerged as people talked about our values.
The value of Generosity was expressed by nearly half of people in words of caring and support: we recognize that our church creates spaces of nurturing and safety for each other so we can spread our compassion to others. People appreciate how good we are at this, and want us to be even better. This is our love expressed as an invitation to give and receive care.
The value of Justice was also expressed by nearly half of people. This is our love in Action: working with and for other communities, trying to meet others where they are to help with what they need, seeking other communities for us to join and inspiring others to join us.
The value of Interdependence rounds out our top 3. This was expressed as suggestions to build community, such as building our ability to communicate with kindness, openness and awareness of impact, even as we hold our own boundaries and acknowledge areas of disagreement. This is Love in Relationship.
Forty percent of our responses talked about wanting UUCCH to be a place where all gender identities, skin colors, lifestyles and religious backgrounds are welcomed and respected. It’s important to us that we use our love to represent and encourage a Pluralism of diverse beliefs and backgrounds, cultures and journeys.
The value of Equity is one of the areas where people noted the importance of intergenerational spaces. We imagine creating a community with equal access and respect for the inherent worthiness and dignity of all people, without converting, convincing, or fixing them; recognizing that each person has strengths and challenges, and that it’s important to love each, as one person put it, “as a unique and beautiful flower.”
Equity and Transformation each earned 25% of responses. People noted how important it is to continue learning and growing, both personally and collectively. Being flexible and learning to adapt allows for grace. Learning to negotiate change in this loving church environment brings transformation.
The Board hopes you’ll agree with us that this was a remarkable response to our Open Question, covering the whole range of our values, and beautifully expressing how you want to be with each other and be in the world. It was clear that Love is our guiding light, our mission, our passion, our center. As one person put it:
“There is an implication of putting head, heart, action together: the feelings of being cared for, then the actions that manifest what we hold dear. Love is a foundation, invitation and responsibility that each person brings with them”
So what happens now? The Board wants to acknowledge that this open question represents a snapshot in time. We have not discarded the results of last year’s open question, and we plan to ask another open question next year. So this year’s results will be taken in context.
From the Board, or Governance, perspective, the results of these questions are used to help inform our short- and long-term strategic paths. Last year, the results helped bring us Rev Eric and contributed to this year’s Annual Vision of Ministry. This year, the results continue to influence the way we write our policies, and will be used as we form next year’s Annual Vision of Ministry and future long term strategic goals.
From the Ministry, or Staff and Teams, perspective, the results will be used to look at potential programming and priorities for action.
One thing about asking big questions is that it generates more ideas and more questions. There were some issues that emerged from the listening circle process that led to further meaningful questions for reflection…
- How do we navigate the tension between standing for justice and maintaining relationships with those with whom we disagree?
- What tools can help us engage in meaningful activism, dialogue and transformative growth?
- How do we strengthen and widen our church community to be more inclusive and loving?
- How do we bring our vision of what the world can be to the community conversations we have?
- How do we continue to transform our church culture in ways that promote our values?
If you are interested in exploring these strategic questions, I urge you to consider running for a seat on the Board of Trustees in June. Several of us have terms that are ending, and we need new voices interested in doing this important service.
Now here’s my personal reflection. I want to point out a word in the word cloud that wasn’t very big: the word was Fierce. Although this word wasn’t specifically mentioned in the notes very often, I want to tell you how strongly this mood, this commitment, came through the responses. We find ourselves in an external environment where actions are being taken daily that go against every value, principle and ethical standard we have and represent. And you all are fired up! Every day is an assault on what we hold dear, but you are saying you want to resist, protest, join with others, listen with an open mind and take action with an open heart.
You and we feel that our church is a safe space, a welcoming space, a space to recharge our batteries, give and receive care, and make connections so that we have the renewed energy for the next week of chaos. We have an obligation as members of this congregation to ensure its continued health. We have the responsibility to live our covenant with each other to keep UUCCH a healthy nurturing community. We need each other, now more than ever, to lift each other up as we do the work of our shared ministry together. Dr. King said that Power is the ability to achieve purpose. WE have the power if we work together to achieve our purpose.
Words are important, whether on a document, a flier, a slide or a banner. But THIS word at the center – LOVE – is absolutely critical to our mission. It is the power that drives our purpose and keeps us together. It is the foundation we stand on. Be Fierce in your love. Let it shine so bright that it lights the whole world! Love IS the Answer.