Section 2.2. Covenant, Values, and Inspirations
As Unitarian Universalists, we covenant, congregation-to-congregation and through our association, to support and assist one another in our ministries. Drawing from our Universalist heritages of love and our Unitarian heritages of wonder, these diverse ministries of our living religious tradition can be thought of as a metaphor of a flower and its environment. The flower’s petals represent our values. Our values are how we communicate and live out our tradition with the ultimate goal of love. Our inspirations, represented by the sun, stem, leaves and ground, provide energy, pathways, and nutrients needed for life. Air and water are not depicted. These elements represent that which cannot be named, and the ultimate forms in which we live, move, and have our being.
Values
Love is the power that holds us together and is at the center of our shared values. We are accountable to one another for doing the work of living our shared values through the spiritual discipline love. Inseparable from one another, these shared values are:
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Inspirations
As a pluralistic, living religious tradition, we draw inspiration from direct experiences of transcending mystery and wonder as well as historical wisdom which provides many paths to feeling a part of something larger than ourselves. Inseparable from one another our inspirations are:
Wonder. We find energy and joy in the mystery, beauty, and creativity of life.
We cultivate wonder by using science to explore mystery and quantify uncertainty, experiencing and creating moral and physical beauty, and connecting physically and emotionally with others.
Wisdom. We make meaning from our experiences which photosynthesizes courage, hope, and faith needed for our work.
We expand our wisdom by gaining perspective, practicing discernment, practicing philosophies and religious and spiritual traditions, and participating in the creative arts.
Grounding. We practice balance, restoration, and resurrection during difficult times.
We ground ourselves using rituals, mindfulness practices, sacred rest, and composting difficult experiences into new paths forward. By deeply listening to ourselves, each other, reason, and the ground of being, we co-create and re-create our home.
We respect the histories, contexts and cultures in which these paths were created and are currently practiced. Grateful for the experiences that move us, aware of the religious ancestries we inherit, and enriched by the diversity of our faith, we are called to ever deepen and expand our paths of connection.