Summertime Freedom Ramblings
You might know that our Soul Matters theme this summer is Freedom. While sometimes
I don’t connect as much to a theme, this is one of those months where I feel a
resonance with it.
We have the more obvious connections to freedom this month with Juneteenth on June
19, which commemorates when the news of the emancipation of enslaved people finally
reached Galveston, Texas in 1865, over two years after President Lincoln’s
proclamation. And in July, we have Independence Day, of course.
Less obvious perhaps is the freedom to get outdoors more and enjoy the warmth of the
sun and the beauty of Mother Nature. With daylight lasting until at least 9p, it feels like
there is more time in a day to enjoy it, even if you had to work for most of the day.
Our Unitarian history for many congregations was to not have worship services during
the summer, a tradition that many still hold onto, especially smaller congregations.
Since many Unitarians were fairly wealthy, they had the means to take time off and
travel or spend the summer at vacation homes. I feel torn about this part of our history,
with its classism and white privilege. And yet I wish that we could enjoy a longer stretch
of time off to relax and renew our spirits, which would then lead us to determine how our
many ministries will work together in our struggle and hope to help make the world
whole.
Perhaps one solution to this is to carve out times throughout the year for reflection that
lead into further planning and collaboration. What if we, the whole congregation, took
one week or weekend off every quarter from church responsibilities and challenged
ourselves to deep introspection about our work – whatever that may be – and then
reconvened in a festive way to share our insights and determine our course for the next
three months? I wonder how, or if, this would change our ministry to each other and the
world at large.
One could also argue that we should take time for this every day, even if for just 10
minutes. Having a spiritual practice helps with making time for reflection and
introspection. Life often gets in the way though, especially if it is on our own time with no
obligation to others to do so.
In two weeks, I’ll be heading to the United Kingdom with my husband, Todd, as a
celebration of our 40 years of marriage. While we have a lot planned to see and do and
want to take advantage of finally going overseas, I know that taking time to simply sit
still will be even more necessary.
I endeavor to do so, and hope this for you as well.
In Faith,
Kathy