The old watchwords of liberalism – freedom, reason, tolerance-worthy though they may be, are simply not catching the imagination of the contemporary world. They describe a process for approaching the religious depths but they testify to no intimate acquaintance with the depths themselves.
-O. Eugne Picket, 1979 as quoted on page 195 of John A. Buehren’s Universalist and Unitarians in America: A People’s History
Unitarian Universalists ought reset to ‘79 and reevaluate freedom, reason, and tolerance’s insufficiency to reach religious depths.
Syrians, Libyans, Egyptians, Iranians and others throughout the Middle East endure the converse of this trinity.
Their revolution's caught the imagination of the contemporary world.
That UU’s at a loss to address the depth of their revolution (not an AIW on it at GA) suggests to me we made a very bad turn somewhere between today and ‘79. Starting with Picket's discount of our old core I suspect.
Sivan Perwer Azadi, شفان برور أغنية الحرية والسلام
video about the last three months in the middle east.
3 comments:
From what I have seen Unitarian Universalist talk about freedom, reason, and tolerance is just that. . .
talk. And talk is awfully cheap in the U*U World. I have seen too many U*Us behave in ways that compromise or endanger freedom, make a total mockery of reason (i.e. stunningly irrational U*Us and/or U*U emotionalism), and are the anti-thesis of tolerant. I too have noted that the UUA seems to have very little to say about the "Arab Spring". In fact Googling -
"Peter Morales" UUA "Arab Spring"
finds UUA President Peter Morales standing on the side of "love" as in zero, nothing, nada. . .
Your awfully harsh on the institution sometimes Robin, but you hit the nail here.
One of the greatest moments of the past few years I think is happening this year, and UUisms doesn't have a clue what do say on it.
If I am harsh on the "institution" at times Bill it is because the "institution" has done things that thoroughly deserve some harsh criticism. Or, conversely, the "istitution" has shamefully neglected to do things that it really *should* do. . . I believe these are commonly known as "sins of commission" and "sins of omission", but God knows that most U*Us are loathe to think of themselves as "sinners" even when they are wallowing in sin.
I don't think I was all that "harsh" on UUA President Peter Morales in my comment.
Just speaking truth to weakness as it were.
OK *that* was a little harsh, but thoroughly deserved harsh words AFA*I*AC, and not just in terms of President Morales' shameful silence regarding the "Arab Spring". . .
WVC = honet
As in honnête. . .
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