After several conversations with Unitarian Universalist leaders throughout Season 5 of the podcast, our hosts are ready to think through some of the big themes and threads that emerged, and to offer up their own answers to the question, "What is the Central Task for Humanity at this Moment in History?"

Some of the questions that come up for them include: How do we move our focus from individual to community, and how do we expand our understanding of community beyond humans? What are the first steps toward building the better world that we dream of? And, what does it take for us as humans to take action in the face of crisis?

About our hosts:
Rev. Peggy Clarke began her ministry at Community Church of New York the summer of 2019. She came to us after serving as solo minister at the First Unitarian Society of Westchester in Hastings on Hudson for eight years. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Religious Studies and Peace Studies and a Masters in Historical Theology from Boston College.

Her doctoral work was in American Religious History. Rev. Clarke has served on the board of the UUA’s climate justice initiative Commit2Respond, the UU Environmental Justice Collaboratory and as chair of the UU Food Justice Ministry. She was one of the denomination's Observer Delegates at the 2015 United Nations Climate Summit in Paris, represented our denomination at Standing Rock and most recently at the Mexican American border, calling attention to the crisis of separated families. In 2021, she served as UU Delegate at the United Nation’s Climate Summit in Glasgow.

The Reverend Doctor Sarah Lenzi was ordained to the Unitarian Universalist Ministry in 2012. Before turning full time to ministry, Rev. Lenzi, who holds a BA from Williams College and an MDiv from Harvard Divinity School, completed her doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania. Her work, published as “The Stations of the Cross: The Placelessness of Medieval Christian Piety” focuses on ritual practice and the integration of imagination, memory, the physical, the visual and the aural in creating transcendent experience. Rev. Lenzi brings her academic study of ritual to her worship leadership.

Rev. Lenzi’s ministry focuses on the value of the worship experience as a means of community building and encouraging personal growth along the spiritual journey. She hopes that participation in the communities she serves will help individuals to realize their capacity for love and compassion, to strengthen their sense of justice and power, and to affirm their own and others' beauty and worth.

In this episode of the Hope and Heresy podcast, Rev. Peggy and Rev. Sarah are joined by Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray, Ninth President of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) and Carey McDonald, Executive Vice President at the UUA, to discuss the question at the heart this season of the podcast: What is the Central Task for Humanity at this Moment in History? In this episode, we phrased the question a bit differently, asking, "If you could wave a magic wand and fix or change one thing about the world, what would it be?"

Our hosts and guests discuss the impacts of intergenerational trauma, the transformative potentials of imagination and justice-centered love, and the power of relationships built around shared values to motivate us to keep showing up and fighting in an environment of oppression

About this week's guests:
Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray is the ninth president of the Unitarian Universalist Association. She was elected in June 2017 to a six-year term after serving congregations in Arizona, Ohio, and Tennessee. After leading the Unitarian Universalist response to Arizona’s anti-immigrant laws in 2010, she became lead organizer for the Arizona Immigration Ministry, among her other activism. She now lives in Massachusetts with her husband, Rev. Brian Frederick-Gray, and their son, Henry.

Carey McDonald is the UUA's Executive Vice President, helping to lead the organization in fulfilling its mission and overseeing staff operations. He previously served as the UUA's Outreach Director and as the Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries, and is a former lay member of the UUA Ministerial Fellowship Committee and the Skinner House Books Board. Prior to joining the UUA, Carey worked in educational policy with the Ohio House of Representatives and the Ohio Department of Education. Carey is a seventh generation Unitarian Universalist and a member of First Parish in Malden, MA and the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbus, Ohio. He was active in Columbus as a youth leader in the Ohio Meadville District Youth Adult Committee and with Diverse and Revolutionary UU Multicultural Ministries (DRUUMM). Carey holds a bachelors in Economics from Pomona College in Claremont, CA, and a masters in Organizational Leadership from Wheelock College in Boston, MA (now a part of Boston University). He lives Malden, MA with his family.

In this episode of the Hope and Heresy podcast, Rev. Peggy and Rev. Sarah are joined by Rev. Meg Riley and Charles Du Mond, Co-Moderators of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), to discuss the question at the heart this season of the podcast: What is the Central Task for Humanity at this Moment in History? In this episode, we phrased the question a bit differently, asking, "If you could wave a magic wand and fix or change one thing about the world, what would it be?"

Our hosts and guests discuss the power of approaching with curiosity and saying "yes," the importance of uplifting marginalized voices in our communities, the necessity of reforming our policing system, and more.

About this week's guests:

Rev. Meg Riley, a lifelong Unitarian Universalist, was raised in congregations in Charleston, West Virginia, and Akron, Ohio. After serving for 38 years as a religious professional in a variety of capacities, Rev. Riley retired in the summer of 2020. She now serves, with Charles DuMond, as co-moderator of the Unitarian Universalist Association. She lives in Minneapolis, nestled in with her family, animals, gardens, deep friendships, and a vibrant activist community. She is also the editor of Testimony: The Transformative Power of Unitarian Universalism.

A lay leader who came to Unitarian Universalism from the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Charles Du Mond, for many years, described himself as a Quaker who belonged to a UU Church. Now, he is simply a Unitarian Universalist.

He joined the UUs of San Mateo in 1993. He has served on its Board of Trustees, holding all the leadership positions: President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Financial Secretary. He taught religious education (RE), including every Our Whole Lives (OWL) level from kindergarten to high school, facilitated the Beloved Conversations curriculum three times, led a capital campaign, participated in a Ministerial Search Committee, and developed and led Sunday Services.

Beyond his local congregation, he served on the UUA Pacific Central District Board, District Presidents’ Association / Regional Leaders Group, the Board of the Church of the Larger Fellowship (CLF), the Board of the Starr King School for the Ministry, and the advisory board for UU United Nations Office.

Du Mond has a PhD in Statistics which he uses to design, analyze, report, and present the results of clinical trials to regulatory agencies. He lives in San Mateo, CA. He has been married to Barbara for 40 years. They have two adult children, Jennifer and Emily, and one grandchild, Rio.

In this episode of the Hope and Heresy podcast, Rev. Peggy and Rev. Sarah are joined by Dr. Janice Marie Johnson and Rev. Sarah Lammert, Co-Directors of Ministries and Faith Development at the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) to discuss the question at the heart this season of the podcast: What is the Central Task for Humanity at this Moment in History?

Our hosts and guests discuss what it means to put love at the center, and how to "widen the circle of care."

About this week's guests:

Dr. Janice Marie Johnson and Rev. Sarah Lammert serve as Co-Directors of Ministries and Faith Development at the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). They support, sustain, and advance multicultural, anti-oppressive, justice-centered, and innovative Unitarian Universalist lay and professional leadership and ministry for all ages. She supports the professional lives of religious professionals, especially those of color, those from the trans community, and other marginalized groups.

Dr. Janice Marie Johnson is excited about the UUA's commitment to dismantling white supremacy culture and building the Beloved Community. Janice is a Jamaican, a New Yorker, an internationalist, and a “third-culture kid” who grew up all over the world. She has worked with UU congregations worldwide. As an educator. she previously served as Director of Lifespan Religious Education at the Community Church of New York for many years.
Janice—mother, grandmother, aunt, sibling, and so much more—treasured a unique relationship with her twin sister, Rev. Dr. Hope Johnson.

Rev. Sarah Lammert has served congregations in California, Utah, and New Jersey. She believes that Unitarian Universalism has transforming power to share with a world in need.

In this episode of the Hope and Heresy podcast, Rev. Peggy and Rev. Sarah are joined by Rev. Mary Katherine Morn, President of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, and Rev. Alicia Forde, Director of the International Office at the Unitarian Universalist Association, to discuss the question at the heart this season of the podcast: What is the Central Task for Humanity at this Moment in History?

Topics that come up in this week's discussion include: What it means, and why it is important, to make both local and global connections; the radical potential of moving money; the concept of a God that is in the constant process of becoming; and the power of a justice-focused love.

About this week's guests:

After 30 years in faith-based leadership, the Rev. Mary Katherine Morn joined UUSC as President and Lead Executive Officer in 2018. She has helped to grow a number of progressive congregations serving their members and the larger community.

Mary Katherine contributed to efforts for economic, racial, and social justice in Macon, Georgia at the Economic Opportunity Council/Headstart with the NAACP. She also worked deeply in the reproductive justice movement. In Nashville, Tennessee, she collaborated with the Interfaith Alliance and Industrial Areas Foundation. In Fairfax, Virginia, she worked with interfaith ministries addressing hunger and homelessness, collaborated with LGBTQI+ advocacy organizations, and served on the county’s homelessness task force.

The Reverend Alicia Roxanne Forde serves with the Unitarian Universalist Association as the Director of the International Office. She is a graduate of The Iliff School of Theology and currently lives in Longmont, Colorado. Alicia was born and spent her formative years in Trinidad and Tobago. She identifies as an African descent queer, cis-gender female with deep roots in Tobago. She considers herself bi-cultural and is grateful that her formative years enabled her to cultivate a global perspective. Alicia is a certified Spiritual Director and has a strong interest in health and wellness. When she's not hiking, you can find her reading, working-out, or podcast-walking.

For the video version of this episode, click here: https://youtu.be/c2hNUa2hu8A.

The Hope and Heresy podcast is produced by the Community Church of New York Unitarian Universalist.

In this episode, Rev. Peggy and Rev. Sarah sit down over Zoom with Rev. Rosemary Bray McNatt, President of Starr King School for the Ministry, and Dr. Elias Ortega, president of Meadville Lombard Theological School, to discuss the question animating this season: What is the Central Task for Humanity at this Moment in History?

About this week's guests:

The Rev. Rosemary Bray McNatt became President of Starr King School for the Ministry in Oakland, CA on July 1, 2014. For 13 years, she was Senior Minister of The Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York, a 175-year old Unitarian Universalist congregation on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, she is a graduate of Yale University and Drew Theological Seminary.

The Rev. Ms. McNatt was an editor and widely anthologized writer for more than 20 years before answering the call to ordained ministry. She is a former editor at the New York Times Book Review; the author of three books, including her memoir, “Unafraid of the Dark;” a former contributing columnist for Beliefnet.com; a former commentator on MSNBC; a contributing editor to UU World, the magazine of the Unitarian Universalist Association; and a cultural critic whose work appears regularly in The Huffington Post, The New York Times Book Review, Essence and other print and online publications. Her current projects include serving as a co-editor for a planned anthology of Unitarian Universalist historical writings, as well as continuing research into the multiracial liberal religious coalitions of early 20th century Chicago.

Dr. Elías Ortega is an interdisciplinary scholar who received his M.Div. and Ph.D. (Religion and Society, Magna Cum Laude) from Princeton Theological Seminary (2005, 2011). He also holds a B.A. in Communications Arts & Sciences and Philosophy and Religion from Calvin College. Prior to joining Meadville Lombard Theological School, Dr. Ortega served as Associate Professor of Social Theory and Religious Ethics at Drew University Theological School. At Drew Theological, he served as Deans’ Council Chair, was a member of the Digital Humanities Advisory Committee, and the Title IX Committee. His primary teaching and research areas are Sociology of Religion, Religious Ethics, Cultural Sociology, Social Movements, Critical Theory, Africana Studies, Latinx Cultural Studies. In addition to teaching at Drew, he has also taught at Princeton University, Princeton Theological Seminary, New Brunswick Theological Seminary, Vanderbilt Divinity School, The College of New Jersey, and Mercer County Community College. In the American Academy of Religion, he serves on the Committee on the Status of Racial and Ethnic Minorities in the Profession, and on the Steering Committees for the Religion and Politics.

Welcome to Season 5 of Hope and Heresy!

In this season, Rev. Peggy and Rev. Sarah are sitting down with five pairs of Unitarian Universalist ministers, leaders, thinkers, and colleagues to ask one big question... what is the central task for humanity at this time in history?

Why this question? Well, it seems impossible to ignore that we find ourselves living in unprecedented times. A global pandemic, the rising tide of fascism in our country and beyond, a climate poised on the brink of disaster, a protracted global refugee crisis... the list goes on. For liberal religious individuals and their communities, it can be hard to find and keep hope, and even harder to know where we should start building the world we dream of. So, we wanted to talk to various UU luminaries to get their takes on what we can and should be doing, and how we can approach efforts to bring our values into fruition in the world around us.

If this sounds like a serious topic, well - it is. But, if you've listened to our podcast before, you know that we approach big questions with an attitude of curiosity, camaraderie, and finding the fun and laughter even in the toughest conversations. So, we hope you will join us on this journey!

Episodes will be dropping every Thursday for the next six weeks. If you prefer to engage with visuals, the video version of each episode can be found on the Community Church of New York YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/ccnyuu.

See you next week for our second episode, with special guests Rosemary Bray McNatt and Elias Ortega!

Many liberal-religious people have hesitations about the structure of churches. Yet, churches can take many forms and operate in many different ways. The theological term "ecclesiology", or the study of the church itself, can provide interesting insight into the ways our institutions are shaped by their members and can reflect liberal-religious values as well as more orthodox traditions. As we end our guide to theological terms, we reflect on church itself and our hopes for the future.

On this episode, Reverend Sarah references a Hope & Heresy season 1 show about technology. Listen to it here: https://hopeandheresy.transistor.fm/episodes/episode-3-the-spirituality-of-technology

Thoughts on this season of Hope & Heresy? Requests for our ministers? Write back to us at podcast@ccny.org.