Speaker & Worship Leader:- Rachel Mackintosh

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Rachel Mackintosh © 9 March 2025

Please take a moment to close your eyes and breathe.

Breathe in the possibility of tomorrow

Breath out what is done.

In our wedding vows, Clay and I said to each other, “I love you with all I am and hope to be. I promise to be with you as you are and as you will be.”

As we will be is not as we are. Everything changes us.

And change is loss.

In the 1986 Jim Jarmusch movie Down by Law, two prisoners share a cell. The endless cycle of days and nights consists of labour by day, and sleeping in their small cell, bunks against the wall, each night; one always on the top bunk, the other always on the bottom. Each morning, they leave their bunks and go to work. Each evening, they return to their bunks. One day the two make a daring escape. They are in the middle of nowhere and they must cross a vast, flat countryside to get away from the prison.

At the end of their first day on the outside, they find themselves in a wood. They stumble upon a little cabin and sleep there. The next morning, they get up to deal with their second day as escapees. In a moment of cinematic brilliance, they pause for a moment in that small cabin, the same size and shape as the cell they have left, next to the bunks against the wall, where one has slept on the top, the other on the bottom, just like always. A look passes between them.

Such is freedom.

Change is loss.

We cling to what we are losing, even if it isn’t good for us. Even if it is prison.

If we resist change from prison, how much more do we resist change if everything seems fine.

So with the seven Unitarian Universalist principles. Everything seems fine.

So inspiring. How could anyone object? Why change? A perfect creed to live by.

Ahem. Creed?

Oh dear.

Maybe that’s why.

Unitarian Universalists aren’t supposed to have a creed.

But the principles are good, so let’s enjoy them. Let’s contemplate them for a moment:

“We desire openly to declare our belief as a denomination that God, moved by his own love, did raise up Jesus to aid in our redemption from sin, did by him pour a fresh flood of purifying life through the withered veins of humanity and along the corrupted channels of the world, and is, by his religion, forever sweeping the nations with regenerating gales from heaven, and visiting the hearts of men with celestial solicitations. We receive the teachings of Christ, separated from all foreign admixtures and later accretions, as infallible truth from God.”

Surprised? These were the Unitarian principles in 1853. So comforting … “infallible truth from God”. Imagine how upsetting it must have been when the Unitarians moved on from there.

Let’s race forward to 1961, and the establishment of Unitarian Universalism as a merged faith. Here are the UU principles:

The members of the Unitarian Universalist Association, dedicated to the principles of a free faith, unite in seeking:

1. To strengthen one another in a free and disciplined search for truth as the foundation of religious fellowship;
2. To cherish and spread the universal truths taught by the great prophets and teachers of humanity in every age and tradition, immemorially summarized in their essence as love to God and love to man;
3. To affirm, defend, and promote the supreme worth of every human personality, the dignity of man, and the use of the democratic method in human relationships;
4. To implement our vision of one world by striving for a world community founded on ideals of brotherhood, justice, and peace;
5. To serve the needs of member churches and fellowships, to organize new churches and fellowships, and to extend and strengthen liberal religion;
6. To encourage cooperation with men of goodwill of all faiths in every land.

[The UUA’s original Principles (1961) | UU World Magazine. https://www.uuworld.org/articles/uuas-original-principles-1961]

Ha! All the men. Thanks guys.

The 1961 principles are much more familiar to us than those from 1853; but perhaps we can see why those had to change — and thank second wave feminism.

And so to the seven principles that we all know.

They were adopted in 1985, a little over 20 years after the establishment of Unitarian Universalism. We are now nearly 40 years past that. Did we get them so right 40 years ago that they will do now for ever? Well, no, because actually in recent times some congregations have added an 8th –

8. 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.

(https://www.8thprincipleuu.org/)

So eight Unitarian Universalist principles.

So inspiring. How could anyone object?

I certainly don’t object. I support anti-racism.

Did we get them so right that, with the addition of an eighth, they will now do for ever.

Well no. We are a living tradition.

In my view the approach of the UUA to the problem of avoiding creedalism, and of remaining a Living Tradition, is better than adding an eighth principle.

New bylaws adopted last year at the UUA still contain the principles. But they have values front and centre. Values are more open to interpretation, more fluid and more open to our search for truth and meaning; more suitable to a living tradition. We can debate them and apply them and continue to grow.

Please take a moment to close your eyes and breathe.

Breathe in the possibility of tomorrow

Breath out what is done.

This image is of a chalice with an overlay of the word love over the flame, with six outstretched arms that create a circle around each of the core values and form a six-petal flower shape. Each arm is a different colour and, clockwise, they are Pluralism (Sky Blue), Generosity (Olive Green), Interdependence (Burgundy), Equity (Indigo), Justice (Golden Yellow) and Transformation (Dusky pink). Each represents UU values.

Pluralism celebrates that we are all sacred beings diverse in culture, experience, and theology.
We covenant to learn from one another in our free and responsible search for truth and meaning. We embrace our differences and commonalities with love, curiosity, and respect.

Generosity cultivates a spirit of gratitude and hope.
We covenant to freely and compassionately share our faith, presence, and resources. Our generosity connects us to one another in relationships of interdependence and mutuality.

Interdependence honours the interdependent web of all existence.
We covenant to cherish Earth and all beings by creating and nurturing relationships of care and respect. With humility and reverence, we acknowledge our place in the great web of life, and we work to repair harmed and damaged relationships.

Equity declares that every person has the right to flourish with inherent dignity and worthiness.
We covenant to use our time, wisdom, attention, and money to build and sustain fully accessible and inclusive communities.

Justice works to create diverse, multicultural Beloved Communities where all thrive.
We covenant to dismantle racism and all forms of systemic oppression. We support the use of inclusive democratic processes to make decisions.

Transformation adapts to the changing world.
We covenant to collectively transform and grow spiritually and ethically.
Openness to change is fundamental to our Unitarian and Universalist heritages, never complete and never perfect.

As we adopt these new values, we experience change. Change is loss. It is understandable that we resist. It is reasonable that we grieve.

Everything changes us. The new values change us. And change is loss.

Change is also possibility. 

As we will be is not as we are.

I promise to be with you as you are and as you will be.

Amen

Please take a moment to close your eyes and breathe.

Breathe in the possibility of tomorrow

Breath out what is done.

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