Celebrate!
September this year brings us a special time of year for both Jews and Muslims. We celebrate the Jewish High Holy Days—Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur (and the ten Days of Turning between them), and the Muslim month of Ramadan. Both Yom Kippur and Ramadan involve fasting and prayer, and both the High Holy Days and Ramadan are special times when good deeds and caring for your neighbor are particularly encouraged.
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We Honor… |
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| Joseph Tuckerman , a Unitarian minister who has been called the “father of American social work”—and who was certainly an amazing example of someone whose religious life centered on caring for his neighbors. Joseph Tuckerman was born in 1778, in the midst of the American Revolutionary War, into a fairly wealthy family. He went to Harvard to study to become a minister, but was a mediocre student at best. He did, however, get a job as a minister, and stayed with the church for 25 years. However, Tuckerman isn't famous for anything he did with that church (apparently he wasn't any more exciting as a minister than he was as a student). The reason that we remember and honor Tuckerman is that his Unitarian beliefs led him to take on a ministry to the poor people who lived in Boston. At a time when many poor people were immigrating to Boston from other countries, or moving to the big city from the surrounding farmlands, Tuckerman wanted to reach out to these people and help improve their lives.
Tuckerman had, at first, little idea what form his ministry should take. He simply went onto the streets of Boston, particularly in the neighborhood of the docks. He introduced himself to people he identified as poor by their dress and conversation, invited himself into their homes and talked with husbands, wives and children. He sometimes offered assistance—wood for their fire, some money or clothes—and returned over and again, building trust and friendship with them. He asked all he met to send the children to his Sunday school, and to attend his Sunday evening lectures.
Tuckerman soon realized that the various Boston churches who were trying to help the poor needed to coordinate their efforts. So, in 1834 the Benevolent Fraternity, put together by a group of Unitarian churches, took over responsibility for this ministry-at-large. The ministry thrived under the guidance of the "Ben Frat's" board. At its peak at the end of the 19th century, its programs included five chapels, each with its own minister, and many other missions, schools, summer camps and opportunities to train for various jobs.
Joseph Tuckerman lobbied for more humane prisons and for the inclusion of educational programs in jails and prisons. Tuckerman frequently visited the House of Correction, the Common Jail, the School for Juveniles and the House of Industry at South Boston, and he concerned himself with ex-prisoners' problems after their release. I'm sure that he would be pleased to know about the CLF's Prisoner Pen-Pal program that connects up CLF members living in the outside world by mail with CLFers who are in prison. Eventually the Benevolent Fraternity was re-named the UU Urban Ministry, but the good work which Joseph Tuckerman started more than 150 years ago continues today. |
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Nurturing Your Spirit
Did you know that choosing not to eat is an ancient and important spiritual practice? Jews fast (don't eat) for the day of Yom Kippur. Muslims fast for the daylight hours during the whole month of Ramadan. While both religions say that children don't have to fast, it is common for kids to at least skip a meal while their parents are fasting for the whole day. While it can be hard on a child's health to go too long without eating, missing a meal and experiencing a bit of hunger is quite safe unless you have a condition such as diabetes or hypoglycemia. Fasting can be a way of declaring that there are some things more important than your personal comfort, like the beliefs that you hold most dear. And it can be a good reminder that there are many, many people in the world who are forced to go without food because they cannot afford to feed themselves or their families. Fasting can remind us that hunger is a painful reality for many people, but that we can help to see that those around us have enough to eat.
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Principles in Practice
Our second principle is "Justice, equity and compassion in human relationships." In other words, all people should be treated fairly and kindly. Although Joseph Tuckerman lived before the UU principles as we know them were written, our second principle was central to his life and ministry.
What do you do to practice “justice, equity (fairness), and compassion”? Try keeping a journal and taking a few moments each evening to write down something you have done that day to treat someone fairly and kindly—or something you've done to remind another person that they should treat others that way. You may find that you do more than you think...or you might find that knowing you'll be looking for something to write down helps you to try to find was to practice this principle in daily life. You don't have to be helping poor people on the docks of Boston in the 1800s to practice “justice, equity and compassion”—listening to a friend who is upset, playing with a younger sister or brother, sharing a snack or toy, standing up for someone who is being bullied, admitting it when you are wrong...all the little things add up to a whole lifetime of caring about the needs and feelings of others. |
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Act!
One of the Five Pillars (major commitments) of the Muslim religion is called “zakat,” which means giving to the poor. Although Muslims are encouraged to share with the poor all through the year, the end of Ramadan is a special time when everyone in the Muslim community is expected to give 2.5 percent of their income in charity. Does your family give a percentage of its income to the CLF or another church? To other charities? Does your family talk about how you donate money, and to whom? If not, you could certainly talk with your parents about this. Of course, adults don't have to be the only ones to share their money with those in need. Do you earn money through a job, babysitting or doing chores? Do you get an allowance? If you have money coming in, you can certainly figure out a percentage to give to an organization in your community such as a food bank or shelter for the homeless that helps those in need. Or you could contribute to the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. 2.5 percent of a couple of dollars a week or month may not seem like much, but it's a great habit to get into. Generous and compassionate kids tend to turn into generous and compassionate adults.
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