8th Principle
The UU 8th Principle: Why UUs, and Why Now?
“We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote: journeying toward spiritual wholeness by working to build a diverse multicultural Beloved Community by our actions that accountably dismantle racism and other oppressions in ourselves and our institutions.”
In the January 2021 Tapestry, we introduced the 8th Principle and discussed its origins. At the January 6, 2021 KUUJAN All Network Gathering, we were privileged to learn from the developer of the 8th Principle, Paula Cole Jones, and from the UU Church of Lexington on its 8th Principle adoption process.
In 1997, the UU General Assembly voted to commit to intentionally becoming an anti-racist, anti-oppression, multicultural (ARAOMC) institution. In the few years after this vote, there was some good progress, including programs such as the Journey Toward Wholeness, the Jubilee Anti-Racism Training workshops, the inclusion of process evaluation at meetings, and multicultural consulting services. But actions had stalled until 2016, when we came face to face with how white supremacy culture manifests in our own UU institutions with conflicted hiring processes. Combine this with growing awareness of the New Jim Crow, anti-voting legislation, and the state of policing in our communities, and it has become clear that we, Unitarian Universalists, need to be more intentional about addressing racism within ourselves and within our institutions, as well as within our communities.
The 8th principle is one way of being more intentional about this work. UU congregations covenant together to affirm and promote seven principles already, but none of them specifically address racism. The 8th principle changes that and “came from a feeling that we need something to renew our commitment to this work, to hold ourselves accountable, and to fulfill the potential of our existing principles.” You can read the wordings and the background at the 8th principle website.
Future Steps
We will build a team of congregants to guide All Peoples as we decide whether our congregation will adopt the 8th Principle. Please contact Lesley Henney at L.Henney18@gmail.com if you are interested being part of this team.
In addition, we will continue to introduce the 8th Principle to All Peoples through varied written materials, viewings, and conversations, such as Beloved Conversations- Racial Justice as a Spiritual Practice.
At the January 2021 KUUJAN All-Network Gathering, the UU Church of Lexington shared that some of its congregants’ had participated in the Beloved Conversations curriculum, and eventually became one of the motivating factors that led them to vote to adopt the 8th Principle.
Beloved Conversations: Virtual—the signature offering of The Fahs Collaborative at Meadville Lombard Theological School—is an online program for UUs seeking to embody racial justice as a spiritual practice. In Beloved Conversations, people heal the impact of racism on their lives.
The program will be rolling out over the next several church years, and will be released in three phases:
- Within (the individual, personal work we each need to do);
- Among (the institutional, systemic change needed in our congregations); and
- Beyond (the work outside our congregations, with our local communities)
You can go to https://bcvirtual.meadville.edu/p/home to learn more.