Submission 128
Patricia Mohr)
UU Congregation of Columbia (Columbia,SC) 29206
What is your suggestion or idea?
Remove Values & Covenants section. Replace with current principles section.
What is the reason for your amendment idea?
The values are not as specific as the principles and the covenants are not aspirations. They are punitive, requiring enforcement. These covenants constitute a creed; they are anti- UU! They violate our 1st and 4th principles.
Have you discussed this idea with your congregation or other UUs?
Yes, I have given a Sunday sermon, & we have had 3 post-service meetings on this proposal. Two of these meetings were after the principles were deleted (using draft 2) & the last one after phrases from the principles are added to the values (after January 2023). Most of my congregation wanted to retain the current principles. Most did not understand the covenants or their implications. They asked questions about them that I could not answer without reference to the recommendations in Widening the Circle of Concern. These recommendations include a panel of selected BIPOCs who would evaluate whether the congregation was doing the work to dismantle oppression. What would happen if they didn’t? Accountability is not defined.
People also asked what definition of Love was being used. One congregant noted that this focus on love did nothing to distinguish UU from every other religion.