preached at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland, September 23, 2007 My message this morning is that it is possible to build a better world, a world decidedly more fair than the one we live in today. In such a world no one will go without food, without shelter, without education and each community will be able to decide how to best meet its own needs. This may sound like a utopian...
Pelagius, “Letter to Demetrias” and “On the Possibility of Not Sinning,” in B. R. Rees, The Letters of Pelagius and His Followers (Rochester, NY: The Boydell Press, 1991) Letter to Demetrias This letter was written by Pelagius to Demetrias, a young Christian (age 14) who has decided to take a vow of virginity. It emphasizes human agency and rationality in moral decision making. At the outset...
This is the first of a few thematic timelines of American history I am preparing for my general exams. Two others that I plan to complete in the next week and a half are on citizenship and state building. This timeline ends in 1866. The Reconstruction era will be part of the citizenship timeline. I welcome any and all feedback and corrections that people may have to offer. This timeline is...
Antonio Gramsci, The Antonia Gramsci Reader: Selected Writings 1916-1935, ed. David Forgacs (New York: New York University Press, 1999) Gramsci was an Italian Marxist who argued that Marxism was primarily a moral tradition based on the “categorical imperative… ‘Workers of the world, unite!’ The duty of organizing, the propagation of the duty to organize and associate, should therefore be...
Last week Harvard President Drew Faust made it clear that Harvard won’t be divesting its endowment from the fossil fuel industry. Faust’s statement on divestment runs several paragraphs long but it can probably be summarized in one sentence: Harvard, and society as a whole, is too reliant on the fossil fuel industry to divest. Environmental activist and Unitarian Universalist seminarian Tim...
Over the last year I have been functioning as a semi-itinerant minister. While the majority of my time has been spent on my graduate studies, I have been doing fairly regular pulpit supply, preaching on average of slightly more than once a month, and officiating the occasional wedding or funeral. This experience has increased my appreciation for my professional association, the Unitarian...
A couple of weeks back I wrote a post asking, “Can the UUA Divest from Fossil Fuels?” Apparently someone else has a similar idea. There’s an on-line petition circulating at the moment called “Divest the Unitarian Universalist Association’s Common Endowment Fund.” So far it only has about 700 signatures. There are roughly 150,000 adult Unitarian Universalists in the United States. If it was...
On Friday Peter Morales, the President on my religious association, the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations, issued a statement on possible strikes on Syria by the United States military. This Sunday, in my home congregation, excerpts of that statement were read during the worship service. It was heartbreaking. Morales’ words echoed the Obama Administration’s line on Syria...
President Obama’s August 31, 2013 speech suggests that his administration wants to attack the Assad regime for two reasons: to protect national security and to deter the future use of chemical weapons, both by the Assad regime and in future conflicts. Is United States military action an effective way to achieve the second of the Obama’s administration’s two stated goals? No...
I will be preaching at the Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson on September 29th. If you’re in the area I hope you can join me.