Torch Articles

Reverendly Yours - Rev. Tom Goldsmith

A powerful film called “Loving” was released November 4th and I finally got a chance to see it last weekend. The story traces the struggle to legalize interracial marriage. Richard Loving (a white man) and his wife Mildred (a black woman) were married in 1958 in Washington, D.C. Since they lived in Virginia they anticipated correctly that there would be fewer obstacles to legalizing their marriage if performed in the nation’s capital, but they were shortsighted in anticipating the wrath heaped upon them by law enforcement once they returned home. Contacted by the ACLU after Mildred wrote a personal letter to Attorney General Robert Kennedy asking for their civil rights to be restored, The Supreme Court finally took the case in 1967 (Loving v. Virginia), and ended the anti-miscegenation statute, which would apply throughout the whole country.

With some incredulity I took note of this being (from my perspective) recent history. Recent enough to make me realize following Trump’s victory, that despite newly imposed laws that uphold the civil rights of a diverse America, people’s view of race outside metropolitan areas, remains just as ugly as what the Lovings experienced in rural white America 50 years ago. The slogan pertaining to make America great again sends chills down my spine. I would guess that America was “great” when laws sanctioning white supremacy were congruent with how white America was feeling emotionally about such issues. Today, just a few weeks shy of a Trump inauguration, we worry (legitimately) about the repeal of civil rights laws, especially with a conservative Supreme Court carefully designed to enforce white identity over and against a multicultural society.

Four years ago I walked into a court in Virginia and performed the wedding of my daughter to her husband, a Muslim whom she met while working in Bangladesh. He’s a very witty guy, who knows The Godfather by heart and can run through Italian accents better than Al Pacino. You would hardly expect such a performance from a Bangladeshi, but what is one supposed to expect? Once we transcend stereotypical profiles of people from all races and ethnicities, it’s a beautiful world.

After my daughter encountered too many ISIS operatives in her work, the two of them quickly abandoned Bangladesh and settled in Chicago a few months ago. You would think all would be fine now: Happy ending/new beginning. But the anxiety produced by a Trump presidency has quickly dissolved any feelings of newfound security. Obtaining a Green Card, never an easy enterprise, may easily prove prohibitive when Trump takes office. All paperwork has been filed and payments made. It now feels like a race against the clock to get the bureaucracy to move swiftly enough to secure papers necessary for working and immigration before a Trump presidency will play the xenophobic card. In supporting the blue collar yearning for a white America to prevail, lives will be made unbearable for Muslims. After seeing the film, Loving, I can’t help but be concerned about old feelings against
interracial couples being revived. The raft of recent violence, given license by the bold impression that laws protecting all people were merely attempts at political correctness, signal a brutal reversal of what liberals like me had conceived as social progress. The Trump victory indicates that human relations remain as fragile as ever, and that identity politics triumphs across this land where we imagine times were better when laws kept white populations in control.

I married an interracial couple some years ago in the state of Virginia. I am concerned whether or not I could do so in the future. TRG

In the Life  - Rev. Matthew Cockrum

As we edge toward darker winter days and longer winter nights it’s important to look for sources of hope and warmth. Join us for:

• Solstice Celebration - Wednesday, December 21 - Dancers & Pipers & Drumming, Oh My! Come for the Celtic-inspired worship service at 6 and stay for the chili dinner afterward! Dinner tickets available on-line and in Eliot Hall on Sunday mornings. Proceeds benefit the high school service trip.
• Seeking the Sources - Monday, December 19 6:45-8:45 p.m. - This monthly drop-in session will be a week early due to the Christmas holiday. Join me and others in embodied explorations of the sources of our living tradition. Dress for movement and bring your favorite yoga and meditation supplies!

Strength, Courage & Wisdom to you in these wintery times.

Here’s to The Work!
Matthew

“To see a face or body that looks like your own is powerful in its effect to simply validate you as a worthy human being”
-Eric Anthony Grollman, PH.D.

YRUU is sponsoring an LGBTQ book drive for the Salt Lake County Youth Services group homes. Please bring either book donations or cash donations to the Religious Education table through December 17th. Most sought after titles are listed below.

• AJ and Magnus: Night of the Roach, Bryan Steel (Author) Simon Steel (Illustrator)
• Red: A Crayon’s Story, Michael Hall
• I’ll Give You the Sun, Jandy Nelson
• Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out, Susan Kuklin
• Beautiful Music for Ugly Children, Kristin Cronn-Mills
• The Miseducation of Cameron Post, Emily M. Danforth
• Some Assembly Required: The Not-So-Secret Life of a Transgender Teen, Arin Andrews
• Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Benjamin Alire Saenz
• Will Grayson, Will Grayson, John Green, David Levithan
• Me being Me Is Exactly as Insane as You Being You, Todd Hasak-Lowy
• Her Name in the Sky, Kelly Quindlen
• Fat Angie E.E. Charlton-Trujillo

5th Grader to Petition Salt Lake City Council to Ban Plastic Bags
-submitted by Julie Miller, Director of Religious Education and Joan M. Gregory, Co-Coordinator, Environmental Ministry

When our children stand up and take action, it’s important for us to support them, right? Well now’s our chance!

Liam, a fifth grader at Uintah Elementary School and a member of the First Unitarian Church, started a petition last Spring to ban the use of plastic bags by retail stores in Salt Lake City. He was inspired to do this after writing an essay in his class about the environmental dangers of plastic bags and how other cities and countries have banned their use. He now has over 200 names on the petition – one of those signatures is likely yours if you have stopped by the Environmental Ministry table within the last few months.

Liam will be attending the Salt Lake City Council Meeting on 12/6/16 with a group of kids from Uintah Elementary and First Unitarian Church who also support this project. He will present his petition to the Council and ask that they pass an ordinance to ban the use of plastic bags by retail stores in Salt Lake City.

We invite you to attend the Salt Lake City Council Meeting on Tuesday, 12/6/16 starting at 7:00PM at the Salt Lake City & County Building on 451 S. State Street to support this project. You can park in the underground parking at the Downtown Salt Lake Library and receive parking validations at the meeting.

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Environmental Ministry will screen “Before the Flood” on Fri, Dec 2nd, 7PM, Eliot Hall, First Unitarian Church. “Before the Flood” presents a riveting account of the dramatic changes now occurring around the world due to climate change, as well as the actions we as individuals and as a society can take to prevent catastrophic disruption of life on our planet.

YRUU Recycling Fundraiser YRUU is still collecting ewaste for recycling each Sunday at the Environmental Ministry table. Please donate your used printer cartridges, old phones and ipods. They do not take any cables, large electronics, or batteries. See planetgreenrecycle.org/slcuyruu for details. Thank you!

Refugee Resettlement Committee We find ourselves in an age of ill-mannered “mansplaining” and “mansprawling.” (Dude, it’s rude!) Neither of the newly minted words cast men in a favorable light. But if your sofa sags from years of mansprawl and no amount of mansplaining can dissuade you from an upgrade, call the Refugee Resettlement Committee to intervene. Rid yourself of man-worn chairs, tables, lamps—everything but his old clothes. Chill, dude, refugees will be grateful. Call Joe Dubray at (904) 527-9773 to recycle furniture. No mansplaining. Guaranteed.

Dinner and Dialogue Dinner and Dialogue is going strong! There have already been several dinners, and we have many more in the works clear through May. Feel free to sign up in the white binder in Eliot Hall at the Congregational Life Table to host or attend a dinner in order to connect with people in our congregation. If you have any questions, please call Darlene Thayne at 801-455-6553 or send me an email to .

Mindfulness Group Sundays Following the end of the first service, in the Parlor.

UU Lunch Bunch A family-friendly group for anyone and everyone who would like to get together for lunch and chat with like-minded people. Meet at the Restaurant on Sundays at noon during the summer. For more information contact Sonia Carnell at (801) 262-1151 or .
December 4: Mellow Mushroom (1080 East 2100 South)
December 11: Pho Thin (2121 McClelland)
December 18: Current Fish & Oyster (279 East 300 South)
December 25: No lunch bunch
January 1: No lunch bunch

“In the Spotlight”. . .Susie Martin

-submitted by Jan Crane

Susie has been attending First Church for about six years and only recently decided to sign the book. She was surprised to learn there was a way to show you are officially a member and once she heard that, she decided, “Why not?” Tom’s sermons are very meaningful to her, always something interesting and thought-provoking to consider. She has also enjoyed the contributions from our consulting minister, Matthew Cockrum. Taking things a step further, Susie has made a commitment to herself to start pledging to support the church she loves.

Born and raised in Salt Lake, Susie was a life-long Mormon until one Sunday when she stopped into our church to see what it was all about. It was just happenstance, but she was smitten, and has called First Church home since then. “What have I been missing?!” was the thought that came to her.
Susie studied to become a teacher and gave it her best shot for two years, teaching 1st and 4th grade, but decided she was not cut out for it and wanted to be a homemaker and mother. . . so that’s what she did, raising three children, two sons and a daughter (and now six grandchildren.) Two family members share her home, her oldest son in an upstairs apartment and a grandson in the basement. Divorced from her first husband, she had a longtime friendship with a colorful Salt Lake businessman, Joe Shool, who has since passed away.

Susie enjoys working in her yard when the weather is nice, and at 75, she has a goal to read more. She participates in Small Group Ministry and enjoys the lively discussions. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” are words that ring true to Susie and she has tried to live her life that way.

“Kindness changes the brain by experiencing it. Children and adolescents do not learn kindness by only thinking about it and talking about it. Kindness is best learned by feeling it so that it can be reproduced.” - Dr. Patty O’Grady, expert in neuroscience

These are depressing and distressing times for many of us. In our home, I often find myself discussing world events with my granddaughter Hailey, but it has been beyond difficult to explain issues raised the the President-Elect and his supporters.

We talk about perspective, that this was far from the first time that the U.S. has struggled with prejudice and polarized points of view. Hailey, now 15, says, “Maybe we need to be more active with like-minded organizations, maybe we need to stand up more for everyone who feels isolated and different.”
Despite forty-plus years in elementary education, I still have no succinct answers on how to talk about race and racism, particularly when so much hate invaded the current election cycle. Thinking back, I recall comments a former President of Spellman College made about race. She likened it to smog...filling our environment with ideas about who is good and who is bad, who “counts” as a person and who we need to fear.

Our children are breathing that smog. As bright and sophisticated as many kids are, they’re still learning about race in the context of what their developing brains can comprehend. Who belongs to what group, who counts, who deserves attention. Children need our guidance on how to navigate safely through the smog in order to attain some measure of self-assurance.
In short, children need to experience positive behaviors to keep from being smothered by the smog of incivility and bigotry.

As we approach Thanksgiving, I ask everyone to to welcome a new friend to your table. Reflect on your good fortune. Balance serious conversation with laughter. Be extra generous with your hugs. Forget your texts and e-mails, and it wouldn’t hurt to put that phone down for five minutes, either!

Learn from your children. Let this horrible election become an inspiration to download a kindness app (so to speak!) into your collective body and soul, and to know that kindness lurks just around the corner.

Just Around the Corner

• Sunday, December 4: Sanctuary Sunday. Young children briefly join our Worship Service. Ticket sales for Solstice
• Monday December 5: No Family Fun Night.
 HOWEVER, children and youth have Pageant Practice from 6 - 7:30pm in Eliot Hall. Please feed your kids before arriving, as no food will be served.
• Saturday December 10: Holiday Party, Eliot Hall
Saturday December 17: Pageant Practice, Eliot Hall, 9:30am - noon.
Sunday December 18: Christmas Pageant “The Last Straw” 11:00am service only.
  Please have children arrive at 10am!

• Wednesday December 21: Solstice Celebration. Service at 6pm, Dinner at 7pm
• Note: The Giving Tree, for our sister church St. Esteban, will be in Eliot Hall Sunday (11//27/16) after Thanksgiving
  
  

Reverendly Yours - Rev. Tom Goldsmith

It’s a lot like the neighborhood emergency preparedness program. I participate in a lot of these meetings where we go through a host of contingencies should something devastating descend upon us. The old “be prepared” serves as our motto, and we know the drill of where to go, say in an earthquake. But last Sunday I discovered a different kind of emergency program. Where do people go when an unexpected spiritual earthquake rocks the soul? They head to First Unitarian Church.

The soaring attendance by new people, kind of new people, I heard about Unitarianism people, and our regular members and friends made for quite a crowd that practically doubled our massive Christmas Eve turnout. I don’t think anybody came to be saved or to find a quick fix. No one came expecting to hear otherworldly advice. It was, as it is in any emergency, a search for community that offers succor to one’s grief and heartache. Community offers assurance that one need not face an icy winter storm alone.

Our church will not be filled like that again. Some may stay on for a few weeks, but as the shock of the political landscape crumbling beneath our feet wears off, people will seek a return to “normalcy.” But our church was there for the community en masse. I hope that felt good for you, knowing that people relied on our church in an emergency, a crisis of spirit, a sense of feeling lost as our moral goodness lost its mooring.

The role of the minister in these circumstances is not to act as pundit. Analyses are not the best tonic for the spirit. The minister must be true to his/her calling, which is to serve a community in times of crises. And that community extends beyond membership or any church affiliation. The community (as demonstrated last Sunday) was defined by a whole lot of people with a similar ache that defied words. They flooded the church to feel connected, spiritually and physically, with others who grieve the loss of democracy and principles of inclusivity.

Perhaps quite a few of our members began to see our church in a new light. We can either feel “used” by a sudden influx of non-contributing people who will simply take what they can from the experience and move on, or we can recognize the church as a beacon of progressive thought that welcomes the stranger in times of crises. Our church also fulfills this role when families need a memorial service to bid farewell to a loved one. It is our committed church members and friends who make this possible, a selfless gift to the community by which we keep the doors open, supply a lovely space, pay for a staff and lights and heat. I think this reflects our values.

But the best part of the whole deal for those who pledge is that we have this magnificent community all the time. It’s not just a shelter for the tragic moments in life, but a community that is linked also in celebration. This is where we go to meet friends, and together we try to make the world better. That’s been the case long before this last election. Our community is blessed, and in return we open the door to others to attend their needs. And historically some of these folks who step inside just for a little peace, actually return and become part of our congregation. Some have become members after attending a memorial service, or a Jazz Vespers, or a Christmas Eve service, which is also a “freebee.”

It is our opportunity to be gracious to our neighbors. Our church is a gift to all who seek comfort. TRG

In the Life: Rev. Matthew Cockrum

It’s been a tumultuous few weeks since our last Torch issue. Public sentiment and unrest has become clearer, more volatile. The energy that, in recent months, has fueled protests in support of the Water Protectors in Standing Rock and those standing in solidarity against militarized police and a white supremacist state, chanting “Black Lives Matter,” has expanded like a river overflowing its banks. Some of us have participated physically in marches subsequent to the presidential results. The chants have changed to “Not my president!” Some of us have watched from our homes, from the sidelines, from our televisions and computer screens. Some of us - inspired by the post “Brexit” vote - have taken to wearing safety pins in an effort to communicate that we, individually, are safe spaces for folks marginalized by past and anticipated future policies and practices.

These are all necessary responses.
None of these, alone, are sufficient.

I am reminded of an image from our eastern European Unitarian roots:

This image, a seal of the Transylvanian Unitarian Church, references the gospel of Matthew (10:16) in which Jesus charges his disciples to be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves” as they go out into ministry in the world. A dove, encircled by a serpent, is depicted standing atop a mountain and the whole scene is topped by a crown. For our religious cousins this symbol is a reminder, among other things, of their historic persecution and their endurance. It is a reminder, too, of the work of rising to new heights in ethical living, what in American Unitarianism would come to be known as the human “likeness to God” (a la William Ellery Channing) and contemporary Unitarian Universalism references as building Beloved Community.

The work among us, before us and within us is of great consequence, Friends. This great living tradition we share still calls us to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. The work for racial justice, economic justice, environmental justice and basic universal human rights is, it seems, even more critical at this juncture.

So, too, is the task of everyday living. How do we embody our principles in everyday choices?

This year we’ve been learning together a song sung by our children, set to the tune of “Do, Re Mi” from The Sound of Music and using a simplified version of the Seven Principles of Unitarian Universalism:

One - each person is important,
Two - be kind in all you do,
Three - we help each other learn,
Four - and search for what is true
Five - all people have a say
Six - work for a peaceful world
Seven - the web of life’s the way
And that brings us back to me and UU.

Sing that to yourself, friends.
Hum it under your breath as you work and play.
Let the words and the music underscore your living - especially now.

We are called to wisdom and innocence. We are called to seeing and revealing and building the Beloved Community here and now - even and especially amidst such challenging times.

(for more on how to go about this check out this month’s Seeking the Sources, Monday, November 27, 6:45-8:45 p.m.)

As you enter these holidays of late autumn and early winter, hold close to these truths. Look for the crown hovering above and around everything - even and especially amidst protests and politics and the work for radically inclusive, honoring, love-based, progressive community.

Here’s to The Work, Friends.
Peace, Faith & Passion,
Matthew

P.S. - I’ll be out of town visiting family over the Thanksgiving Holiday - November 22-27.

Peace, Faith & Passion,
Matthew

More from Matthew

Seeking the Sources - this monthly drop-in experience continues on the last Monday of each month. Join Rev. Matthew and others on Monday, November 28, 6:45-8:45 p.m. as we use movement, meditation and discussion to explore the second source of our living tradition, “Words and deeds of prophetic women and men which challenge us to confront structures of evil with justice, compassion and the transforming power of love.” Bring a yoga mat and favorite meditation seat and wear comfortable clothes.

Youth Ministry Updates:

Solstice - First Church’s annual Winter Solstice Celebration and Supper is on Wednesday, December 21. The worship service is open to all and the dinner following (a fundraiser for youth service trips) requires a ticket. See more information elsewhere in this edition of the Torch. Tickets available soon in Eliot Hall on Sundays, on-line through the church website.

High School - our 10th-12th graders continue in their exploration of current events and religious living under the facilitation of Derek, Jillian and Cooper. Weekly meetings 10:45-12:45 on Sundays in room 218 and monthly evening meetings 6:30-8:30. Contact youth coordinator, Jillian O’Karma () for more details.

Martin Luther King Weekend Conference - January 14-16 - UU community building with other area high school UU youth. Workshops focused on racial justice and civil rights.
Our Whole Lives - lifespan sexuality education
two overnight weekends, February 3-4 and 17-18
Cost - $40 - scholarships available
Mandatory Parent orientations - January 22 (3-5 p.m.) and January 26 (6:30-8:30 p.m.)
Snack/meal help requested
Contact Rev. Matthew Cockrum ( or 801.582.8687 ext. 205) for more information

6th & 7th Grade - We have all learned a lot in the last month about Christianity. From its Judaic roots, the early church, the Catholic Church, through the reformation, and over to the Episcopal Church.
NOW IT’S TIME FOR A FIELD TRIP!
This coming Sunday we will be visiting St. Stephens/San Esteban’s Episcopal Church, 4615 South 3200 West, West Valley City, UT. We will gather outside or in Eliot Hall at the First Unitarian Church at 10:15 and leave at 10:25. Service Begins at 11am. The Service will last about 1 hour. We will return to the church between 12:30 and 12:45.
Please inform us if your child will have other transportation plans.
WE MAY NEED DRIVERS SO LET US KNOW IF YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO TRANSPORT SOME OF THE KIDS. (The Church will need a copy of your driver’s licence and insurance.) Please ensure you have already signed the Permission and Liability Release for Off-Site Activity Form for your child. (contact Religious Education Assistant, Lissa Lander at or 801.859.6878 for permission slip.)

Things to keep in mind as a guest:
Wear Appropriate Attire: “Sunday Best” (As a sign of Respect)

You are usually expected to sit, kneel, and stand with the congregation, read prayers, and sing with congregants, so long as this does not compromise your personal beliefs. The only behavior that would be considered “offensive” would be not to stand for the reading of the Gospel.

Parts of the service you should not participate:

If you are not an Episcopalian/Anglican, do not receive the Communion. (As a note: Only baptized Christians may receive Communion) You do not have to say any prayers contrary to your beliefs.
See you next week.

“In the Spotlight”. . . Meet Barbara Taylor
-submitted by Jan Crane

Barbara Taylor has attended First Unitarian Church of Salt Lake for years and years. Her initial involvement was with the women’s spiritual group and she remembers inviting Tom to attend one of their meetings back when Tom was interviewing for the ministry job, thirty years ago. She has attended Flo's (Wineriter) Small Group Ministry for many years and continues to participate in that program, as well as being active with the Social Justice Committee. Her focus at the present time is the UU resolution supporting the Palestinians by divesting of American corporations who are making a profit in the Israeli occupation. She would like to attend the General Assembly where the resolution will be voted on and hopes to share her experience with the congregation. Barbara is married to David Holbrook, and between them they have seven children. Trained as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Barbara is now retired and teaches a watercolor class at Fort Douglas for the U’s OSHER program (continuing education for senior adults, check it out at www.osher.utah.ed).

“Make the most of each day” is a motto that guides Barbara’s life. She has made many friends at the church over the years and enjoys her association with First Church- and decided to make that association official by formally ‘signing the book.’ She pledges because she appreciates all the church does, and especially that is supports causes that she also believes in.