“Sharing the Good News of Unitarian Universalism”

Reverend James Kubal-Komoto

Saltwater Unitarian Universalist Church

Des Moines, Washington

April 9, 2006

            In his recent memoir, Born Again and Again: Surprising Gifts of a Fundamentalist Childhood, Jon Sweeney tells the about being a first-year student at the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago and taking a class called Evangelism 101.

            While a student in this class, he tried to practice what the instructors preached and share his faith with as many people as possible.

            “I witnessed to everybody, it seemed,” Sweeney says. Sweeney witnessed to the drunks on Rush Street with little success. He witnessed to the manager at Mr. G’s, the hamburger join parodied by John Belushi and Dan Acroyd on Saturday Night Live and was told, “Never mind! Keep moving! Next.”

            Sweeney says, “I witnessed on the train, on the bus, on the street and in a cab. I was like a character in a Dr. Seuss story: Will you witness on the train? Will you witness on the bus? Will you witness on the street? You must, you must!”

            I’ve met people like Jon Sweeney, and I’m sure you have too, and I usually have a mixed reaction when I do. On the one hand, they drive me nuts. On the other hand, I can’t help but admiring a person whose faith is so important to him or her, whose faith has made such a difference in his or her life, that he or she is enthusiastic about sharing it with others.

            Unlike Sweeney and millions in this country like him, we Unitarian Universalists tend toward the opposite extreme. We tend not to be as enthusiastic about sharing our liberal religious faith with others.

            In fact, we tell ourselves we have some good reasons for not doing so.

            We tell ourselves that we value individual religious freedom, and we believe in the right of every individual to determine his or her own beliefs according to his or her own experience and conscience.

            We tell ourselves that we value religious tolerance. As the Unitarian martyr Francis David said, “We don’t need to think alike to love alike.”

            Even when others attempt to impose beliefs on us that we consider irrational, mean-spirited, or just a little nutty, our response tends to be one of saying, “Believe anything you want, but just keep it to yourself,” rather than one of convincing others of the wrong-headedness of their ways.

            We tell ourselves that we lack some of the more specific motivations as some of our more traditionally religious brothers and sisters. After all, there is no biblical imperative telling us to “Go and make Unitarian Universalists of all the nations.” Furthermore, unlike some of more traditionally religious brothers and sisters, most of us don’t believe that people who don’t believe exactly as we do will suffer eternal damnation after death, even if we believe some of them should. While death is ultimately a mystery for many of us, many of us also have a high degree of skepticism that one’s fate after death depends on whether one believed certain specific religious doctrines during one’s life.

            In addition to telling ourselves these things, I believe that another reason we are hesitant to share our faith with others is that we as Unitarian Universalists are a religious minority in this country, and when you’re a religious minority, a lot of times it’s easier just not to do anything draw any attention to yourself.

            I know that there are a lot of closeted Unitarian Universalists in this congregation, people who don’t share openly with others that they are Unitarian Universalists. I know this because occasionally we’ll have a visitor who will say to a long-time member, “I’ve known you for years, and I never knew you went to church here.”

            And the long-time member will say, “Well, Mom…”

            But what of it? Isn’t is generally a good thing that we aren’t as enthusiastic about sharing our faith with others as some of our more traditionally religious brothers and sisters?

            What I want to suggest for your consideration this morning is that we’ve let the pendulum swing too far in one direction. In our efforts not to push our own beliefs on others, we’ve made ourselves unknown to the rest of the world, even to those who would like to know about us.

            Let me ask all of you a question. Most Unitarian Universalists are come outers, meaning that we weren’t raised as Unitarian Universalists but came out of another religious tradition. How many of you wish you had heard of Unitarian Universalism earlier than you did in your life?

            And so think about this. In most churches in this country, more than 85 percent of people attend a church for the first time because somebody they know tells them about the church. Even with Internet websites, direct mail, print advertising, radio advertising, and television advertising, the vast majority of people come to a church for the first time because somebody they know tells them about it.

            Now add one more statistic to that previous one. On average, in this country, a Unitarian Universalist invites somebody to church only once every 27 years.

            Is it any wonder that Unitarian Universalism is such a small religious movement? In the United States, there are only about 157,000 adults who are members of Unitarian Universalists congregations. When you include children and youth, that number increases to about 218,000 individuals.

            The good news is that unlike many mainline Protestant denominations, we’re not shrinking. The bad news is that the U.S. population is growing faster than we are, and so every year we make up a smaller percent of the overall population.

            As of now, only one out of about every 1,367 people in the United States is a Unitarian Universalist. The ratio between Unitarian Universalists and the general population is similar here in South King County.

            The words that come to mind when I think about these are “statistically insignificant.”

            This truly bothers me.

            Why?

            It bothers me because, with such small numbers, our hopes of becoming an influential voice for liberal religious values in South King County, in the state of Washington, or in national life are nearly negligible.

            What politician is going to care what the Unitarian Universalist position is on any issue, no matter how right or just our position may be?

            It bothers me even more because I believe there are millions of people in this country and thousands of people in South King County would enjoy being part of a Unitarian Universalist congregation and whose lives would be better if they were a part of a Unitarian Universalist congregation, but aren’t because they’ve never heard of us.

            My colleague, the Reverend Lisa Presley, shared this story with me:

            “A few years ago, there were some troubled teens,” Presley says. “They had been picked upon, and felt themselves the butt of every joke. They were ostracized by the cool kids in school, and they didn’t seem the point to all of that. So they decided to get even. They found guns, got lots of ammunition, and headed off to their high school. This time, they would get the best of people. And they did. These two young men attended Columbine High School, and we all know the toll of death and destruction they created that day. But what we don’t know is that there was a third student, equally despondent, who used to hang out with these other two.”

            “I don’t know his name,” Presley says, “but for simplicity sake, let’s give him one. Tom. Tom used to hang out with these guys, and felt equally displaced and unhappy and angry. But then something happened. Tom started going to church. He went to the church youth group, and found some other people to talk with, and found someone who would listen. He found that things didn’t have to be the way that his buddies told him it had to be. Tom found a new community, a place to feel at home, a place to be himself in new and better ways. The place he found. Columbine Unitarian Universalist Church…”

            “For what happened to Tom when he began attending the Columbine UU Church,” Presley says, “is that he found a new sense - - a liberated sense - - of what it means to be human. Of what it means to be alive. He found a place where who he was mattered, and how things mattered, and still does matter. He found a place where his fears and worries were taken seriously, and where he found different answers than those offered by his high school friends. His religion - - our religion - - literally saved his life. Not in a glorious afterlife, but here in the hard work of living day by day in community.”

            That’s a pretty dramatic story. But I don’t think it’s such an unusual one. I believe many Unitarian Universalist churches, including this one change lives and save lives. We do so by offering people acceptance, freedom, caring, and meaning. We offer people a more abundant life than they might have otherwise. I know my own life is more abundant because of my discovery of Unitarian Universalism.

            So let me tell you about my dream.

            Thomas Jefferson said during his own lifetime, “There is not a young man living today who will not die a Unitarian.” Never in history has such a great mind been so wrong.

            Unlike Jefferson, I have no illusions that Unitarian Universalists will ever be as numerous as the members of many other religious faiths. I recognize that Unitarian Universalists will most likely always be a religious minority in this country. So my dream is not that every individual now living die as a Unitarian Universalists.

            My dream is simpler. My dream is that every person in South King County will at least here about this church and about Unitarian Universalism and know what we are all about here, even if they end up wanting no part of what we have to offer.

            And as I said before, the most likely way this is going to happen is not through advertising, and not even through our website, but with the help of all of you.

            So for the rest of my time this morning, I want to talk to you about how to tell somebody else about this church. I know from experience it’s not always easy. On the other hand, I know it’s not that hard either.

            Let me give you some very practical tips.

            First, give people a chance to ask you about church. Wear a chalice pendant like I do, or Chalice earrings, or have a Chalice tattooed on your body. (Two members of this church have done this, by the way, and no, I’m not one of them.) People will ask you questions. “What’s that?” they’ll ask. “Oh, that’s the symbol of the church I attend,” you can say.

            Or if you’re not big into chalices, just find a way to bring up the word “church” in conversation. More often than not, people will ask, “Oh, what church do you go to?” Sometimes people will say, “You go to church? Which one?”

            This leads to my another tip. Break up the name.

            In my opinion, one reason we as Unitarian Universalists have such trouble evangelizing is that we have a hard name to say. Before the 1961 merger of the American Unitarian Association with the Universalist Church of America, which created the Unitarian Universalist association, a person could just say, “I’m a Unitarian,” or “I’m a Universalist.” In the effort, however, to honor both the Unitarian and the Universalist sides of our history, the powers-that-be in 1961 created a 10-syllable monstrosity of a name: UN-I-TA-RI-AN UN-I-VER-SAL-IST.

            Now add on to that “Saltwater Church,” and you get the wholly monstrous, “SALT-WA-TER UN-I-TA-RI-AN UN-I-VER-SAL-IST CHURCH.” That’s 14 syllables. That’s a mouthful.

            When I first became minister of this church, it took me several months before I could spit that all out answering the phone, “Saltwater Unitarian Universalist Church. This is James.” And one morning when I was out visiting one of religious education classes, I spent a whole hour with a group of four and five year olds teaching them to say the name of the church they attend.

            So here’s what I’ve learned from experience.

            In the past, when introducing myself, I’d say, “I’m the minister of the Saltwater Unitarian Universalist Church in Des Moines.” That’s a mouthful.

            A lot of times, people would hesitate to say anything after that, and I think one reason is that there were just too many syllables and words for people to get their ears around.

            Now, when people ask, “Where do you go to church?” I answer, “Saltwater Church.” Pretty easy to say. Pretty easy to remember, too. Only four syllables. That’s 10 less than “Saltwater Unitarian Universalist Church.”

            But isn’t it important to get the “Unitarian Universalist” in there somewhere? If you really want to, when people ask you where you go to church, you can say, “Saltwater Church. In Des Moines. It’s a Unitarian Universalist congregation.” It’s also okay just to say, “Unitarian.” It’s okay to say, “I go to Saltwater Church. In Des Moines. It’s a Unitarian church.”

            When I was preparing for ministry, I used to have a professor who would yell at anyone who just said, “Unitarian” rather than “Unitarian Universalist.” She thought that anyone who did that was dishonoring part of our heritage. However, I’m come to the conclusion, that’s putting the important of our past above the importance of our future, especially since so much of our future depends on our ability to reach out to others.

            [So let’s practice this. Turn toward your neighbor. Ask them, “Where do you go to church?”…]

            Here’s another tip. When somebody ask you, “What is Unitarian Universalism?” or “What do Unitarian Universalists believe?” - -  which they inevitably will - - have a short, positive, memorized response ready to go. We Unitarian Universalists are infamous for long, stumbling, nearly incoherent responses to questions about our faith.

            Here’s my memorized response: “Unitarian Universalism is a liberal religious tradition. Unitarian Universalism seeks wisdom in all the world’s religions while affirming that individuals experience should be the ultimate authority for a person’s beliefs.”

            [Let’s practice this too. Turn to your neighbor and ask, “What is Unitarian Universalism?”]

            Now sometimes when I’ve shared this response with people, they’ve responded, “I believe that the Bible is God’s infaillible revealed words and that I’m saved through Jesus,” to which I usually respond, “It sounds like you and I have very different approaches to our faith. Isn’t it wonderful that we live in a country where people can have such different beliefs?”

            However, sometime people want to know more. So here’s another tip. Have something to give them. And we’ll help you with that. Will the ushers please hand out the cards?

            The church had these cards printed up. It has the church’s name, address, and telephone number on it. (It also has my name on there, which I didn’t want, but I got overruled on that decision.) It has a map to the church on the back. Most importantly, it has the church’s website address on it. There’s even a blank space for you to write down your own name if you want to when you give it to somebody. Put this card in your wallet or purse now, and within the near future, look for opportunities to give it away.

            Here’s my challenge to you. Give away this card within a month. Give it to a family member. Give it to a neighbor. Give it to a friend. Give it to a co-worker. If you have to, leave it with your tip on the table in a restaurant. Find somebody to give it to!

            Like I said, see if you can get somebody to ask you about the church first. It’s not that hard. But if not, don’t be afraid to say to somebody, “It seems like you and I share some similar values. I go to Saltwater Church. It’s in Des Moines. It’s a Unitarian congregation. I don’t know if you already go to church, but from what you’ve told me about yourself, I think you might like it. If you’re interested in finding out more, here’s a card with the church’s website address on it. If you’re not interested, that’s okay too.”

            One final tip. When you think about who you might give this card to, think outside the box. Think about the possibility of giving it to somebody who looks a little different than most of the people you see here. After all, despite our reputation, we’re more gray than gay in this congregation.

            Think about this. If everybody here this morning gives away these cards within a month, that’s more than 100 cards. Even if only 10 percent of the people we give them to decide to come to visit the church, that’s still 10 people, 10 people whose lives might be changed forever.

            That’s a risk I’m willing to take. How about you?