In the Elevator
Not exactly a story, but worth telling in children's chapel, or as a "Story for All Ages."
If you're a Unitarian Universalist kid, sometimes it can be hard to explain what a Unitarian Universalist is. Maybe you're at school, and one of your friends says, "Do you go to a church or a synagogue, or anything?" And you say yes, you go to a church, and they say, "Which one?" and you say you're a Unitarian Universalist, and they say, "What's a Unitarian Universalist? What do you believe?"
What do you say then?
Adults have this problem, too. This is the way I imagine it for adults: you're in one of the office buildings in downtown Providence, and you get on the elevator with someon who says, "I heard you say that you're a Untiarian Unviersalist. What do you Unitarian Unviersalists believe, anyway?" And the doors close and the elevator starts to go down, and how do you explain Unitarian Universalism in ten seconds?
Now sometimes I take the easy way out, and I don't really explain when someone asks me, "What do Unitarian Universalists believe, anyway?" It's kind of hard to explain what a Unitarian Universalist is, so I might just say, "Well, we can believe anything we want" -- which isn't true, but it's the easy way out. Or I might say, "You know, Unitarian Universalist -- it's the big stone church just a few blocks up from the whaling muesum" -- which doesn't say what Unitarian Universalism is at all! -- but it's easier than trying to explain our religion.
Well, you adults are on your own, but I have some ideas for kids can say.
If you're a little kid, and someone asks you what a Unitarian Universalist is, you could say, "I'm a Unitarian Universalist, a church where people have open minds, loving hearts, and hands that are ready to help." To help you remember, there are even little hand motions that go with it [show]. Now you try it with me: "I'm a Unitarian Universalist, a church where people have open minds, loving hearts, and hands that are ready to help."
If you're a slightly older kid, I have a little saying that can help you remember what it means to be a Unitarian Unviersalist. It goes like this: "It's a blessing we are born, and it matters what we do. What we know about God is a piece of the truth. We let the beauty we love, be what we do, And we don't have to do it alone."
It's a blessing we are born -- that means each and every person is important -- and it matters what we do. What we know about God is a piece of the truth -- and one of the things some people know about God is that God doesn't exist. We let the beauty we love, be what we do -- in other words, we try to live a good life. And we don't have to do it alone. This little poem was written by two Unitarian Universalists named Sheri Prud'homme and Laila Ibrahim.
Here, try saying it with me: It's a blessing we are born, and it matters what we do. What we know about God is a piece of the truth. Let the beauty we love, be what we do. And we don't ahve to do it alone.
Now if you're in middle school or high school, I recommend a different approach. When someone asks you, "What do Unitarian Unviersalists believe, anyway?" you can say, "We believe in asking good questions." -- then you turn it around on them, and ask, "And what do you believe?" And then everything they say, you can respond with another question -- so if your friends says, for example, "I believe that Jesus is my lord and savior," you then ask politely, "What do you mean by lord and savior?" It's a great way to learn what your friends really believe about religion. And it's a pretty accurate way of showing how we Unitarian Universalists ask each other lots of hard questions. Be warned, though -- asking all those questions can be extremely annoying -- if you're not careful, you can really annoy your friends.
One more time: little kids can say, "I'm a Unitarian Universalist, a church where people have open minds, loving hearts, and hands that are ready to help." Older kids can say something like this: "It's a blessing we are born, and it matters what we do. What we know about God is a piece of the truth. We let the beauty we love, be what we do, And we don't have to do it alone." And if you're in middle school or high school, you can try saying: "We believe in asking good questions. And what do you believe?"
If you forget those, you can ask me again in social hour after Sunday school is over!