serving othersFighting Racism, White Supremacy and Climate Change
At our Annual Meeting, the congregation voted that the major focus of our social justice work at Old Ship for the next three years will be centered around issues of racism, white supremacy, and climate change. Over the next few months, the SJC will be exploring how we can bring these issues to life in the context of our personal lives, our institutional life at Old Ship, and in our communities more generally. As part of these efforts, we will be engaging more directly with other efforts of the Unitarian Universalist Association to examine our principles and our efforts at creating a more diverse and welcoming world. The SJC also wants to thank the congregation for their support of our work!
If you have an idea for a project, or would like to support our work, please join us. Contact: Davalene Cooper for more information. Have you heard about the 8th Principle Project? There is a group of UUs proposing a new 8th Principle for our statement of UU Principles. Here is the text of the proposed 8th Principle: “We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote: journeying toward spiritual wholeness by working to build a diverse multicultural Beloved Community by our actions that accountably dismantle racism and other oppressions in ourselves and our institutions.” We are considering this as a possible focus for our social justice work at Old Ship. We will be sponsoring a forum later this spring on this topic. In the meantime, you may learn more at The 8th Principle of Unitarian Universalism.
New Old Ship Task Force on Widening the Circle—Would you like to join us in this work?
Imagine an Old Ship community where all who come here feel fully welcomed and free to join in all our activities and programs. What would that Old Ship community look like? How would we create such diversity? How would this atmosphere of radical welcome change us as a community? What hidden obstacles, or perhaps overt obstacles, get in the way of someone feeling truly welcomed here? These are some of the questions this new task force will consider as it reviews “Widening the Circle of Concern,” a report issued in June 2020 from the UUA Commission of Institutional Change. This Commission was charged “to conduct an audit of the power structures and analyze systemic racism and white supremacy within the Unitarian Universalist Association.” The report makes findings and recommendations regarding the problems of racism and white supremacy within Unitarian Universalism. The report itself is grounded in the premise that our faith is calling us “into living the fullness of the theology we inherit and proclaim.” Last spring at our annual meeting, we unanimously affirmed that “the major focus of the social justice effort at Old Ship for the next three years will be centered around issues of racism, white supremacy, and climate change. This task force is a crucial step in dismantling white supremacy and any other obstacles that get in the way of welcoming everyone to Old Ship. Our work is to study the report, ask questions about our Old Ship community, and then make recommendations as to how we might create a more beloved community at Old Ship—a community grounded in our theology of love and acceptance. The Task Force is open to any person in our community who would like to be a part of this work. To join us, or if you have questions about this effort, contact Davalene Cooper, Chair of the Task Force. More about our work
The Social Justice Council invites you to continue to help those in need
Hingham Food Pantry: We are again collecting non-perishable, unopened, and unexpired food for the Hingham Food Pantry. Donations may be made at:
The most needed items at this time: Although all donations are appreciated, the food pantry reports that the following items are most needed at this time:
Spread the word: Should anyone need help, please call the Hingham Food Pantry at 781-740-8180. For additional information, visit the Hingham Food Pantry on Facebook. |
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