#208 | anne schneider | Strike Values and Covenant

2023 Article II Amendment Idea Submissions Amendment Ideas
1

Submission 208
anne schneider
valley unitarian universalist congregation

What is your suggestion or idea?

Section C-2.2. STRIKE THE
ENTIRE SECTION CALLED VALUES AND COVENANT.

REPLACE WITH:

Section C-2.2. Principles for Belief and Action

We, the member congregations
of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm, promote, and
carry into the world through our beliefs and actions
the following principles:

·
Respect
for the inherent value of every person;

·
Fairness
and compassion in human relations;

·
Encouragement
for spiritual growth and philosophical contemplation among our members;

·
An
independent and free search for truth and meaning;

·
Freedom–
of conscience, belief, speech, and association – and use of democratic processes;

·
The
goal of freedom, fairness, and peace for the world;

·
Respect
for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

·
Commitment
to oppose oppression in all its forms, in those places we can access, with the
resources we have to use

What is the reason for your amendment idea?

We need an 8th principle to oppose oppression (and some tweaking) of the 7 principles. These should replace the lengthy ““values and covenant”” section that does not contribute much at all in articulating what UUs believe or how we are different from other religions. The seven principles (slightly edited to be a little less archaic) and an 8th principle opposing oppression but without any threats of outside ““accountability”” and without priortizing any one oppression are desperately needed. That’s what this revision does.

Have you discussed this idea with your congregation or other UUs?

Yes, and those I have talked with like the idea! Many in our congregation want an 8th principle but oppose punishment-oriented accountability and some (perhaps many or most) do not want to limit it to racism nor to priortize racism over other oppressed identities. We do not want a ““victim olympics”” but a sincere, realistic, and authentic principle to encourage beliefs and actions against oppression.

14 Likes
2

This restatement of proposed 8th principle (Commitment) is far superior to the original language of the 8th, which was not even a principle, and made the previous seven subservient. This broadens the commitment to MORE than just anti-racism, pulling all forms of oppression.

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3

I like the way you updated the language and shortened the principles. These retain the meaning of what brought me into wanting to be a UU. I also like the way the new one opposing oppression was worded.

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4

Meaningful and suscinct articulation of 8 UU Principles that retains the original meaning. Thank you, Ann Schneider.

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5

I like this very much, it is simple, clean and true.

I would very much like to move completely away from the use of “covenant” in Article II. It is actually a binding promise to do something. As a UU, I do not wish to be bound by numerous covenants to prescribed actions. An aspiration to adhere to principles seems right to me.

I suggest the following change to this:

We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, affirm, promote, and
aspire to carry into the world through our beliefs and actions the following principles:

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6

agreed; people have also pointed out that the origin of covenant is in a punishing god, in which few of us believe these days

1 Like