Dear Ones:
We come to the end of the 2019-2020 congregational year. Our congregational life now slows down for a few months. I’m looking forward to time off for vacation (“staycation”) and study leave. I desperately need some time off at this point. And while using the world “desperately” in that last sentence, in a regular year, might seem overly dramatic, I trust you all understand that I— and all our UUS:E staff—desperately need some time off this summer. I am tired after these last three-and-a-half months of pandemic church. I am feeling raw, drained, worn out, worn down, not at my best self—not even close. Many of you feel these things too.
How could it be otherwise? We’re making our way through a global pandemic that will likely result in more than 200,000 American deaths—many that could have been prevented had we had competent national leadership. We’re making our way through the pandemic-related hyper-exposure of racial and class inequities in our nation, and vowing not to return to that old normal. And we are making our way through a national Black Lives Matter uprising in response to police violence, figuring out our place in it, figuring out how to work for substantive change. As liberal and progressive people of faith, we face these difficult and painful realities. They draw our attention, and we feel called to address them, called to engage, to struggle, to fight. This call is inherent in our seven UU principles. It is a central part of the mission of our UU faith. And of course, in order to pursue our mission, in order to uphold our principles, we also have to run the day-to-day operations of our congregation, manage the finances, maintain the building, educate our children, tune our pianos. And since March we’ve had the added challenge of working with new technologies, dealing with weak Wi-Fi signals, figuring out how to teach classes online, how to organize food drives, how to respond to a local police shooting, how to keep in touch with each other. So, yes I am feeling tired, raw, worn down, worn out, etc. How could it be otherwise?
But I also feel pride. I’m proud of our UUS:E staff for responding with grace to the realities of the pandemic. None of our staff has been perfect, but what they’ve given us is better than perfection. They’ve given us devotion, patience, heart, creativity, and love. I am so proud of them, and grateful too.
I’m also proud of our lay-leaders, our Policy Board and Program Council members, who have kept us moving along as a congregation under very difficult and quite novel circumstances. No, they have not been perfect either. But like our staff, they’ve given us better than perfection. They’ve given us commitment, flexibility, optimism, and love. They’ve made hard decisions. I’m proud of all of you for rolling with us through these frightening, unnerving, technologically challenging and isolating times. The trust you have put in the UUS:E staff and lay-leaders have been critical. The support you’ve shown us has made all the difference.
And, last but not least, I’m proud of myself. It’s been a rocky ride. I’ve made mistakes. I’ve not been my best self. But I look back now on everything that’s happened, including an 11-day sun-up to sun-down fast to urge the legislature back into session, and I feel pretty darn good about it. Raw, worn-down, worn-out, not my best self—yes. But I am beaming we pride too. Please know that about your minister.
Have a great summer friends! I will definitely “see” you along the way; and I look forward to the coming year. It will also be exhausting, but full of opportunity, full of ministry. With love,
—Rev. Josh
