8th Principle Adoption Process: April 9, 2021

Learn about the 8th Principle at the next 8th Principle Town Hall gathering on Sunday, April 11 at 1:15 pm. It will be the same Zoom link as the virtual coffee hour. ALL ARE INVITED! 

The final congregation-wide meeting about the 8th Principle will be a Board chat. Please attend the Board Special Edition: Consider the 8th Principle on Friday, April 23, 2021 from 6:00 – 7:00 pm. The Board will create space to hear the pros and cons from church members before the congregational meeting regarding the idea of adopting the 8th Principle. 

If you have not yet been part of a group conversation about the 8th Principle and would like to talk with someone from Team 8th one-on-one or if you would like your small group to discuss it in order to understand more about the 8th Principle, please contact Rev. Susan Frances at sfrances@ucevanston.org. 

Q&A from the Town Hall meetings: Why isn’t it (the 7 Principles, the BLM sign, all the work I have done or am doing) enough? 

A core question I keep hearing in the conversations happening at UCE around the 8th Principle is:  

Why isn’t “it” enough?  

• “It” has referred to the existing 7 Principles.  
• “It” has referred to our large Black Lives Matter sign on Ridge. 
• “It” has referred to the hard work UCE congregants did during the civil rights era and the ensuing decades. 
• “It” has referred to the hard work being done by members right now through FAST and REAL and the Organizing Team and the Peace & Justice Team and the Accessibility & Inclusion Team and the Endowment Committee and others. 

I hear you. You should be proud of the work you have done, of the BLM sign, of the work you continue to do. AND I hear Black, white, indigenous, and members of color saying we aren’t done yet. I hear the endorsement of the 8th Principle by BLUU and by DRUUMM. For all the hard work and sound Principles, inequities still exist and micro-aggressions still occur. The 7 Principles have been in their current form since 1995 and they have not been enough to create systemic change, dismantle racism, or build a more inclusive congregation or association. As a spiritual home, as a place where we strive to nurture the human spirit for a world made whole, we want to acknowledge these ongoing personal injustices and find new ways to make our congregation a safe place, a radically welcoming space, for all. The 8th Principle is one of these ways. 

When the question is framed as “Isn’t x enough?” there is only room for a yes/no answer. There is no room for a yes/and conversation. YES, we have been and are currently reflecting on and planning and creating and doing important anti-racism and anti-oppression work, AND the 8th Principle is one more of these things that we need to reflect on, plan to adopt, create a culture around its concepts, and then live out this principle in our congregation and the world. YES, the 8th Principle is an extension of what UCE has done and is doing, AND after we adopt the 8th Principle, we will have to continue to listen to each other, believe each other, forgive each other, and move forward together in relationship as we actively live into the values of the 8th Principle.  

We are on a life-long journey, my friends. And I am glad to be on this journey with you. The longevity is one of the reasons why we need to lean into our covenantal community. Why we have to be willing to talk to each other when our feelings are hurt or we have cause to be offended. Why we have to be willing to listen and believe each other. Why we have to be willing to forgive and move forward, still connected to each other. Being on this life-long journey is also why we have to continue to bring joy and hope into our anti-racism and anti-oppression work. I envision the adoption of the 8th Principle will be one of these moments of celebration, fueling our hope and commitment to continue on this journey together. 

Yours in building our multicultural Beloved Community, 

Rev. Susan