Dear Ones:
When describing what Unitarian Universalist congregations do, Patrick Murphin (a UU from Wood-stock, IL and long-time peace and justice activist) says, “We build temples in the heart.” In a poem of that same name he writes: Yes here we build temples in our hearts. Side by side we come, scavenging the ages for wisdom, cobbling together as best we may the stones of a thousand altars, leveling with doubt, framing with skepticism, measuring by logic, sinking firm foundations in the earth, as we reach for the heavens. Here we build temples in our hearts—a temple for each heart, a village of temples, none shading another, connected by well-worn paths, built alike on sacred ground.
As we rapidly approach our 2011 annual appeal, I offer you this image for why we give as generously as we can to our congregation and to Unitarian Universalism: We build temples in the heart. Yes, we give generously because we want a congregation that provides excellent religious education programs for our¬selves and our children. Yes, we give generously because we want a congregation that can move the wider community towards peace and justice. Yes, we give generously because we want excellent music—both op¬portunities to hear it and perform it! Yes, we give generously because we want worship that moves us— moves our minds, our hearts, our spirits. But at the center of it all, what are we doing? Building temples in our hearts. That is, building our capacity to recognize and celebrate the sacredness of life; building our ca¬pacitity for connecting with that sacredness and orienting our lives to it; building our capacity to make wise, ethical decisions and engage in wise, ethical living; building that capacity together in loving spiritual com¬munity. In Murphin’s words, we are building a village of temples, none shading another, connected by well-worn parths, built alike on sacred ground.
Our congregation is in good financial shape. We are currently operating at a smaller loss than antici¬pated. We have decent reserves due to the excellent financial management of our building project and our receiving of a grant from the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund. Still, we are setting ambitious goals for the next few years. We want to make sure we are fully funding our mortgage payments. We want to radically expand our adult religious education programming. And, perhaps most importantly, we want to expand our staff in order to meet the needs of this vibrant, thriving liberal religious haven on Elm Hill in Manchester, east of the Connecticut River. For these reasons, please consider making as generous a pledge as possible. Let us continue building temples in our hearts.
Thank you.
With love,
Rev. Josh
