Welcome to the Practice of Repair
When the cracks come, who doesn’t desire – even demand – to restore what once was?
Nothing is more human. We all long to reverse the damage. We all hold tight to the Humpty Dumpty hope that everything can be put back together again.
But, as our faith teaches us, transition and change dictate the flow of life. The current of time is just too strong for us to swim back. And so the repair offered us is not that of returning our lives to their original state but working with what remains to make something new. The shards are not pieces of a puzzle waiting to be put perfectly back together, but building blocks waiting to be molded into a yet to be imagined form.
All of which means that there is freedom in the breaking. The cracks, if we can widen our view, become conduits for creativity. That’s not to minimize the pain involved. And it’s certainly not a way of justifying tragedy as “part of God’s plan.” Rather, it’s a call for us to perceive the broken pieces of our lives as more than just a pile of ruined rubble. “Look closer!” whispers the wisdom within. “That ash, if worked with, can give birth to a Phoenix.”
2024-2025 Themes
This year’s overarching frame is The Practices of Our Faith. We’re using this frame to focus on how Unitarian Universalism is a lived faith that inspires us to act, live, and love our values out in the world. Or to put it another way, we’re diving into our long-loved commitment to “deeds not creeds.” Our overarching frame is also a way for us to connect to our new UU core value of Liberating Love, with each of our monthly themes framed as a practice that helps us embody liberating love in our daily lives.
November: Repair
December: Presence
January: Story
February: Inclusion
March: Trust
April: Joy
May: Imagination
June: Freedom
Unitarian Universalist Holidays, Holy Days and Worship Themes 2024-25.