"C.H.A.N.G.E."

A Sermon by the Rev. Daniel Charles Davis

For the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Winston-Salem, NC

December 3, 2006

At the last CHANGE Clergy Caucus I announced that the Unitarian Universalists were going to have a miracle Sunday, to pay our CHANGE dues. I laughed as I said this. And my colleagues laughed along. For they knew that a miracle Sunday is a foreign concept to UUs.

A miracle Sunday is when a preacher gets up into the pulpit and makes a dramatic sermon that increases emotional fervor to the degree that wallets explode like fountains, and cash descends like water and checks like an ever-flowing stream.

In a miracle Sunday sermon, I would explain that CHANGE is an acronym that stands for Communities Helping All Neighbors Gain Empowerment. And I would preach with fervor how our sixth principle states that we support the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; that our second principle calls for justice, equity, and compassion in human relations; and that our fourth principle calls for the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.

I could ask the question, "Is this fellowship living up to its principles?" I could call on the holy spirit – the Holy Spirit of Thoreau, who said, "If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them." (Walden, 1854)

Are we putting the foundation under our castles in the sky? Are we walking the walk that we talk? Are we really committed to community? Are we only talking of justice? Are we demonstrating progress in the democratic process? Are we being the change we want to see in the world?

In a miracle Sunday speech, these rhetorical questions are designed to

Introduce discomfort. They suggest that we are not doing enough. If asked with enough fervor, they may make a congregation feel guilty – guilty of a sin of omission.

Guilt calls for an act of contrition, often in the form of a contribution. That makes you feel like part of the solution…contributing to the evolution…of the CHANGE revolution.

A miracle Sunday sermon fans the flames of fervor. It feeds the frenzy of the faithful. It generates generosity. It produces philanthropy. It relieves the emotion of guilt with the promotion of giving. It gives one the feeling of being sanctified, justified, and glorified.

Even churchified.

Then I realize that that is what I do not like about CHANGE. A community CHANGE meeting feels like a Sunday "going to" meeting. They are emotional theater. A political pep rally.

For three years I have been trying to get members of this congregation excited about CHANGE by inviting them to the spectacle of a meeting. I often left the meetings feeling churchified and wanted to share that possibility with others. On the other hand, I have witnessed many failures of ministers failing to be inclusive. They try to be inclusive, but often get filled with the spirit and go off script. Some of the participants cannot conceive that there is any motivation for doing good other than God. God is often invoked in order to provoke people into action.

Not a good strategy for Unitarian Universalists.

I could stand the meeting because I had seen the work behind the scenes. I had seen the thoughtful planning and action of the subcommittee. I had seen the men and women behind the curtain of the public meeting. And unlike "The Wizard of Oz," the people behind the curtain are much more interesting than their public performance might otherwise indicate.

That is why instead of a miracle Sunday for CHANGE, I am declaring this a "Practical Sunday."

What I like about CHANGE is not the hype; what I like is the work behind the scenes. When I first came to this community I became involved in Crossing 52, the locally sponsored initiative to help improve race relations and combat racism in our community. I had heard that the school board was going to discontinue the Equity Commission. The Equity Commission had been established to monitor the new school district system. People had warned that this new district system would resegregate the schools. The school board disagreed and allowed the Equity Commission to monitor them. When the commission determined, however, that the schools had in fact been desegregated, the board announced that the commission was no longer necessary. I went down to the next school board meeting to voice my dissent with this decision. Although I was allowed to speak, no school board member seemed interested in listening. After the designated public comment time, they went about the business on their agenda.

CHANGE was different. We collected information from our different congregations and found that several issues were shared in common across this diverse group. We canvassed all the schools in the district, making note of every broken window, counting trailers, and judging the condition of the buildings. We then arranged a meeting with the Superintendent, inviting him to a meeting at Temple Emmanuel, where he pledged to the 400 people in attendance that 50% of their next bond would be for inner city schools.

But then the school board proposed the 2005 bond.

Moore School was the only city school included. They were to get new windows.

The school board was literally offering only window dressing for the city schools.

They had arranged for several public meetings for comments, but none of them were on the east side of town. So we approached them and requested a meeting at Carver School. We made calls, we sent out emails, and 400 people showed up for the meeting.

The board retracted the previous proposal and offered a new one in which 50% of the money went to city schools. That was the bond initiative that passed in the last election. The needs of the people were taken seriously because the people took themselves seriously.

Behind all the big actions are small teams of people working on the information they have gleaned, gathering data and processing it, trying to determine the places where the people can make a difference.

It is this practical work that leads to the miracle.

This practical work is being done by UUs working with other faith groups all over the country. At last count, 101 UU congregations – 10% of our denomination – are members of Congregation-Based Community Organizations. These organizations are supported by "networks" that provide training to leaders and organizers; support and consultation to organizers who do the day-to-day work of organizing; and organizers to the local groups. Forty-five of our congregations are involved with Congregation-Based Community Organizations supported by the Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF), which is the national group that CHANGE is affiliated with.

The Unitarian Universalist Association has just published a booklet entitled "A Social Justice Approach to Revitalizing Congregational Life" in which they outline how participating in groups like CHANGE can give us a practical way to interact with the rest of the community.

This is crucial, because it can be difficult to interact with people whose theology excludes us. But I see it as an opportunity to educate them – to let them know that there are many motivations for doing good in society. After working side by side with UUs, people from traditional religions will have difficulty writing us off.

When someone in the community calls us a cult, those who know us by our works will defend our character. But we in our turn also have to be more accepting. We cannot write off all Christians as people who promise pie-in-the sky bye-and-bye while ignoring the real problems of today. We have the opportunity to get to know people by relating to them.

One of the most underrated parts of the CHANGE organization meeting is the "One on One" meeting, during which people are encouraged to meet with one another for one hour and talk about what motivates them to do good and what they want to do to make the world better. These relationships are what hold the group together: Issues come and go, but the relationships remain.

CHANGE is about committing to work together for long-term change. We learn about each other and find out what we have in common. We put aside differences to work for the greater good. Yet individual congregations continue to work on issues specific to their missions. CHANGE is about not letting our differences be a barrier to the good work we can do together.

You have envelopes in your order of service. I do want you to put money in those envelopes – not because you believe in miracles, but because you believe in the practical. At the last congregational meeting we voted to support CHANGE. We owe it to ourselves to honor our word. We will be stronger by seeking allies in the faith community. We will be stronger by working together.

There is also in your chairs a volunteer form, which is another way to support CHANGE. Find a way to share yourself with others. This is an opportunity to practice Unitarian Universalism. Perhaps you believe in increased access to health care. Perhaps you believe in improving public education. Maybe you want to help get out the vote for elections. Maybe you are interested in a living wage to decrease poverty. Maybe you want to increase greenways and improve the city infrastructure. CHANGE has subcommittees working on all these matters. It is on these subcommittees that the work is done.

While other religions are celebrating the season of miracles, let us activate the practical.

I now open the floor to anyone to share their experiences with change, and I’ll try to answer any questions you may have.