Sermon for 6 April 2014, 1^st Unitarian Church of Alton, Illinois

UUs,  THE WORLD COMMUNITY, AND YOU

Ronald J. Glossop

 

I.   Introduction

       A.  The 6th principle of the 7 being promoted by the Unitarian Universalist Association is “the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.”

       B.  Today I want to review with you what we UUs are already doing with regard to this sixth principle, how the world is changing, and what we as individuals should be doing.

 

II.   Our Unitarian-Universalist denomination is based in the United States, but from the start other parts of the world have played a major role in our becoming what we are.

     A.  In Palestine during the first 3 centuries after the death of Jesus the Ebionites maintained that Jesus was not God but only the Messiah, chosen by God to be king of the Jews. 

     B.  Michael Servetus, a 16th-century scholar & physician whose treatise “On the Errors of the Trinity” is often viewed as the first expression of our modern Unitarianism, was a Spaniard who lived much of his life traveling in Europe, trying to escape from both Catholic and Protestant religious authorities.  He ended up being burned at the stake.

     C.  Italian Anabaptists and their allies were able to convene the Anti-Trinitarian Council of Venice in 1550.  Anti-Trinitarian ideas were advanced by Laelius Socinus and his nephew Faustus Socinus in Italy.  In 1579 Faustus went to Poland and became a leader in the Minor Reformed Church (known as the Polish Brethren).  In 1638 the Polish government, as part of the Counter-Reformation, required the Socinians to convert to Catholicism or leave Poland.  Thus many emigrated to Transyvania, Holland, Germany, and Britain.

     D.  In Transylvania Ferenc David preached these ideas as early as 1566, & in 1568 King Sigismund’s Edict of Torda (Edict of Toleration) allowed public adherence to them.  In 1600 these believers were officially named “Unitarians.”  The Transylvanian Unitarian churches are still active, but now Transylvania belongs to Romania instead of Austria. 

     E.  The first organized Unitarian congregation in England was the Essex Street Church in London established by Theophilus Lindsey and Joseph Priestly in 1774.

     F.  King’s Chapel in Boston was the first congregation in the U.S to accept Unitarian ideas in 1782.  The American Unitarian Association was formed at Boston in 1825, and the Unitarian-Universalist Association was formed in 1961 -- only 53 years ago.

 

III.  One example of international outreach by American Unitarian-Universalists is the work of the Unitarian-Universalist Service Committee (UUSC).

     A.  In 1939 Unitarians helped refugees escaping from Nazi persecution in Europe.  A year later a Service Committee was formally organized.  Relief work was focused on Europe.

     B.  In 1963 the Unitarian Service Committee and the Universalist Service Committee were combined to form the Unitarian-Universalist Service Committee (UUSC).

     C.  Now the UUSC is engaged in humanitarian relief work in 15 countries throughout the world including Haiti, Guatemala, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Sudan, Kenya, and Uganda.

     D.  You may be familiar with the UUSC’s “Guest at your Table” program carried out each year from Thanksgiving to Christmas to gather contributions for their humanitarian work.

     E.  Former UUA President Rev. Dr. William Schulz is President and CEO of the UUSC.

 

IV.  Another example of international outreach by American Unitarian-Universalists is the UU United Nations Office (UU-UNO) in New York, very close to U.N. headquarters.

     A.  In 1946 the Unitarians appointed Elvira Franklin as an official delegate to the U.N.  In the 1950s both Unitarians & Universalists adopted resolutions of support for the U.N.

     B.  The UU-UN Office was established in 1962 at the suggestion of the U.S. Ambassador  to  the U.N. Adlai Stevenson that each UU congregation should have a U.N. envoy.

     C.  1965-1970 the UU-UNO was financially supported by the UUA.  In 1971-2011 it was supported by individual contributions.  In 2011 the UUA again made the UU-UN Office part of UUA’s International Resources Department, but individual contributions are still needed.  The UU-UNO holds consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council and the UN Department of Public Information/Non-governmental Organizations. 

     D.  UN-UNO Director Bruce Knotts has played a leading role in generating support for protecting GLBT rights and other human rights internationally as well as continuing UU efforts in the UN’s programs on climate change/sustainable development, children’s welfare, disarmament/elimination of weapons of mass destruction, & religious tolerance.          

 

V.  Another example of international outreach is the UU Partner Church Council (UUPCC).

     A.  This program began its partnering program between UU congregations in the U.S. or Canada & a Unitarian congregation in another country which needs financial and other kinds of assistance. At first all the partner churches were in Transylvania, but now they might be in Hungary, the Czech Republic, the Philippines, India, Hong Kong, or Kenya.

     B.  The goal is to foster interpersonal relationships and unique educational experiences as well as to provide assistance to less affluent, less well-established Unitarian churches .

     C.  Both of the larger churches in the St. Louis area have partner churches in Transylvania.

 

VI.    Another example of international outreach is the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU) which was founded in 1995 in Essex, Massachusetts.

    A.  This organization at first brought together mainly English-speaking countries of the U.S., Canada, Australia, Britain, New Zealand, plus the Unitarians in Transylvania and other European countries, but now UU churches in Asian & African countries belong too.

    B.   The Council is made up of delegates from national bodies which meet every two years.

    C.  You may remember from our congregation’s March newsletter that I attended this year’s ICUU meeting at the end of January in New York.  At this year’s meeting there were 125 participants from 26 countries—Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Burundi, Canada, Colombia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Philippines, Romania, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, & U.S.A.  Photos & reports are at <www.icuu.net>.

 

VII.   Another example of international outreach is the UU Esperanto Network (UUEN).

    A.  The UU Esperanto Network was formed in 2007 and became an Associate Member of ICUU in 2009.  In 2007 UUEN President Sherry Wells attended the ICUU conference in Germany, and in 2009 Ron Glossop attended the ICUU conference in Romania.  In 2014 both of them attended the ICUU conference in New York.  Members of UUEN also have  helped publicize Esperanto at UUA General Assemblies almost every year since 2007.

    B.  UUEN efforts to work with ICUU have not been very successful, at least in part because ICUU deals with national organizations, and UUEN is global rather than inter-national.

 

VIII. Note the difference between the inter-nationalism of the UU inter-national organizations and the globalism of the UU Esperanto Network.  “Inter” is Latin for “between.” 

    A.  At this time in human history we are living through a fundamental shift in our human community from the inter-nationalism of the 19th and 20th centuries to the globalism of the 21st century.  To better understand that distinction think of a globe or a map of the world where the different nation-states are different colors and where each is separated from the others by a black line as the image for inter-nationalism.  On the other hand, the image for globalism is the photo of Earth from space where there are no black lines for national borders and where the common destiny of all on planet Earth is more obvious.

    B.  In inter-national organizations such as the UU-UN Office, the UUPCC, the ICUU, and even the United Nations the focus is relations between national governments and the use of national languages (with English more important than others).  In global organizations such as the UU Esperanto Network and to some extent even the UU Service Committee, national identity and national language are subordinated to a planetary/global viewpoint.

 

IX.  This present-day shift from inter-nationalism to globalism has implications for each of us.

    A.  Each of us should think of ourselves first as citizens of the world community and only secondarily as citizens of this country, just as we now usually think of ourselves first as citizens of the United States and only secondarily as citizens of Illinois or Missouri.

    B.  With regard to community loyalty, our concern for what is good for our country should be subordinated to what is good for the whole world community.  Simultaneously, we should do what we can to transform the often ineffective UN into a democratic world federation just as our national Founding Fathers transformed the often ineffective Articles of Confederation into the federally structured United States of America. 

    C.  With regard to language use, we can be pleased that English seems to be on its way to becoming the main language for the world community, but if many others must learn a second language, we should do likewise, and no choice makes more sense than to learn the easier-to-learn nationality-neutral language Esperanto.

    D.  In order to do our part in assisting the transition from inter-nationalism to globalism we should support non-governmental UU–related organizations as well as other NGOs such as Amnesty International, the Sierra Club, Doctors without Borders, Heifer International, Human Rights Watch, & so on. Such NGOs are the bridge we need during this transition.

 

X.  It should be evident that the 6th principle of promoting “the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all” will not be easily accomplished.  It is not something that we can do quickly, but it is the kind of goal we need, a goal that will keep challenging us and our children and our grandchildren and even generations after that.  But it also a goal that challenges each of us at this very critical moment in human history as we live through this exciting monumental transition from inter-nationalism to globalism.