Forming communities to bring out the best in each other and to help shape the world toward liberation is not only an Ethical Culture ideal, it was something Paolo Friere spoke about in his educational work in Brazil and Chile. As we embrace the possibilities for 21st-century community, ideas about groups who learn and humanize … Continue reading Principles of Community Building
We are in an era of hurry up and wait. We have begun the journey to a post-COVID world, discovering what the new normal looks like in different parts of our lives, little by little. We are caught up in the urgent social justice concerns and life changes that have never left us. We struggle … Continue reading Re-Imagining Community
In this season when our Jewish neighbors are celebrating the High Holidays, we seek a Humanist frame for renewal. By returning to sources of strength and resilience, maintaining a practice of reflection, and connecting with the best in each other, we find the energy to turn the page into another chapter of our community life.
Practicing a philosophy that focuses on human solutions to human problems, we look for inspiration in stories about people coming together to achieve important things, despite obstacles like racism or anti-immigrant sentiment or economic disparities. The labor movement can provide a few such examples.
The ancient story of Inannna’s descent to and return from the underworld has common threads with other myths, including the importance of collaboration. Even in a heroic epic story, people need each other.
Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Divinity School Address urges listeners to heed direct experience and creative spontaneity. The Transcendentalists tried to balance savoring the world with changing the world. Though some like Felix Adler rightly criticized the Transcendentalists for doing too much of one and not enough of the other, there might yet be inspiration available to … Continue reading This Refulgent Summer
Perry Beider and John Daken look back on the discernment process that led to WES’s decision to affiliate with both the UUA and the AEU. Interim Leader Lyn Cox adds thoughts on how our institutional relationships have deepened since 2008.
Bring your questions about philosophy, theology, dinosaurs, and what connects us to this spontaneous, collaborative Platform with Interim Leader Lyn Cox.
Laughter (the deep, personal growth kind) emerges at the return of vitality. It can be an affirmation of survival after a harrowing experience. It can be a breath of peace when the truth is revealed. The wisdom side of laughter comes at times of renewal, relief, and realization.
