All Kinds of Justice

The 18th century Rabbi Elijah of Vilna wrote that “What we create becomes meaningful to us only once we stop creating it and start to think about why we did so.” In addition to thinking, let’s also feel the impact of our creative actions. In order to engage this practice, I’ll be stepping away from the Fellowship from July 8th through August 4th. A mix of vacation and study leave, this retreat time is essential for me to rest, dream, and prepare for the fall. As much as the Fellowship will be in my thoughts and on my heart, I will be taking a break from texting, calling, meeting with, and seeing you all. There’s one exception to my time away — 10 points for anyone who discovers it in this newsletter! I’m leaving you in good hands, as you’ll see throughout the rest of this newsletter. 

Our friends at Soul Matters are also taking a break, and so it was up to us to come up with themes for the summer. For July, we settled on “All Kinds o’ Justice.” I’ll be with you for the first Sunday, and I’m thrilled to be presenting a service on “Justice as Healing and Transformation” with two amazing guests. With their guidance, we will understand justice work as both personal and interpersonal and fundamentally embodied. This prepares us well for Fat Liberation the following week, when Taryn leads us in challenging societal norms that devalue larger — and ultimately all — bodies. The next week, Kyle will help us look outward to the body of our planet, where Nature has all the solutions we need to the most complex conflicts among us. We are blessed to have these members sharing their passions with us this summer.

Although it has felt like summer for over a month now, the official start was only a week ago, with solstice and the shortening of our days. It’s a reminder to lift our awareness above the stifling heat and the insistently green foliage, and notice winter on the horizon. The Fellowship leadership is already looking toward the late summer and fall, for ways to manifest our vision:

A vibrant, inclusive congregation, UUFM is widely known as a safe haven and a force for social justice.

Please put the upcoming dates on your calendar for all the events we are lovingly preparing. This is how we embody all kinds of justice as Unitarian Universalists here in Kansas.

See you in a few weeks!
Pastor Isabel