Returning to the Basics: What are the Basics?

In this era of constant high anxiety, in this era of political gridlock, in this era where hateful speech is more and more the norm, how do we hang on to what is good? What are the basics of your religious life, of our religious life? What do you return to over and over again?

For me there are two things: first it is the call to use words with care, knowing they are the bridge between us. Ever miraculous yet imperfect, they can be a bridge or a barrier. How can we better use words to connect? My second is connected to the first and it is to remember that Unitarian Universalism is a covenantal religion. My personal covenant includes trying to be careful with words. As we explore words and covenant, we will remember that every interaction is a holy interaction if we let it be. And it includes letting go of assumptions and presumptions and expecting it to be simple. Let us enjoy the miracle of words!

Gail Stratton is a Unitarian Universalist Minister who will be ordained in the fall. Also a Biology Instructor, she enjoys gardening, mushroom hunting and spider studies with her wife, Pat Miller.