Dismal Science/Hopeful Art 

Rev. Ron Sala

Unitarian Universalist Society in Stamford

April 21, 2002 

One Sunday, a pastor told his congregation that the church needed some extra money. He asked the people to consider donating a little more than usual into the offering plate. He said that whoever gave the most would be able to pick out three hymns.

After the offering plates were passed, the pastor glanced down and noticed that someone had placed a $1,000 bill in the offering. He was so excited that he immediately shared his joy with his congregation and said he'd like to personally thank the person who placed the money in the plate.

A very quiet, elderly, saintly looking lady all the way in the back shyly raised her hand. The pastor asked her to come to the front. Slowly she made her way to the pastor. He told her how wonderful it was that she gave so much and in thanks asked her to pick out three hymns.

Her eyes brightened as she looked over the congregation, pointed to the three most handsome men in the building and said, “I'll take him and him and him.”

So, this is Canvass Sunday. This is when our Society joins together to rediscover its worth. I’m glad to see that, especially this year, UUSIS can look into the mirror and like what it sees. In the last 12 months, we’ve renovated the interior, installed a new minister, and added a religious education director. What’s more, UUSIS is growing! I’m sure there were those who thought it couldn’t be done, who thought that our small Society would slowly sink into oblivion, but we are proving them wrong and I thank you.

This year, we welcomed 15 new members. Each of these people bring with them a hope for Unitarian Universalism and for our congregation. They bring a hope that this is a place for making meaning and finding wholeness.

What brings people into our congregation? What keeps them there? It’s not much of a stretch for me to remember back to when I began my UU journey, when I was in a similar place to of our new members this year.

Let me tell you my story, parts of which you may have heard before. Maybe you will find it similar to your own.

I was born in Pennsylvania, raised Mennonite. One might describe Mennonites as “Amish lite.” Pacifist, often politically radical, but theologically conservative in a Christian fundamentalist sense. At 15 I was baptized, in accordance with the Mennonite belief that one should only take this step when old enough to make a personal commitment to Christ as savior.

I found much meaning in my native faith, becoming an enthusiastic and evangelical advocate for it, still questions haunted me: Could the God of love also be the God of hellfire? If so, I thought, someone should call Amnesty International, because there are clear human rights abuses involved. What earthly despot could possess the hardness of heart necessary to sentence all but one religion to everlasting torment?

As I entered college, such questions followed me. How could it be that the artists and writers I loved and fed my spirit on fall outside of “grace.” Their spirituality, as I perceived it, was greater than many of the Christians I knew. I poured over books. I prayed. I sought answers I could believe. I broke with the Mennonite faith of my youth, exploring in turn Quakerism, the Bahá’í faith, and Tibetan Buddhism. Finally, at the Community Church of New York, Unitarian Universalist, I found a place where I could truly feel at home, a place where the spirituality of every person was honored, where my questions were welcomed.

Speaking of artists and writers, as I was preparing for this sermon I came across a fine article by astrophysicist and visionary Robert Gilman, president of Context Institute, “a nonprofit research organization.” I found the article quite uncanny because it had almost the same title as this sermon. My sermon is called “Dismal Science/Hopeful Art.” Dr. Gilman’s article is called “From Dismal Science To Joyful Art [emphasis mine]! I had no knowledge of his article when I chose the title for my sermon. I have to thank him for expressing, better than I could, ideas quite similar to the one’s I was considering for this sermon. I hope he will not mind a few short, complimentary quotations from his work, the web address of which I will cite on uusis.org.¹

(I understand the epithet of economics as “the dismal science” refers to a comment about Malthus’s flawed 1798 theory that population growth will always outstrip economic growth.)

One of the ideas Gilman discusses is what he calls “The Diversity of Motivations,” In Gilman’s view, the field of economics overlooks much of the basis for economic activity He writes:

Conventional economics (both as a formal theory and in business practice) assumes that human desires for economic goods and services are unlimited, and that we work primarily for external (outer-directed) reasons, e.g. to get paid so that we can consume. Psychologists like Abraham Maslow suggest instead that people operate on the basis of a hierarchy of needs, starting from survival, going up through security, esteem and love, to self-actualization. The consumption needs of each level are limited, and when they are truly met, attention tends to shift to the next level up until one reaches the level of self-actualization which is a creative need, focused on intrinsic rewards, rather than a deficiency need. In this model, as one becomes more skilled in satisfying various levels of needs, one's demand for goods and services may actually decline. (Unquote).

We involved in spiritual life have long known that this principle is true. I’m reminded of Jesus famous dictum, “Man shall not live by bread alone.” There is more to being human than just putting food on the table or finding a place to live. The highest parts of our nature long to give of ourselves for the benefit of others. In so doing, we slowly build up what I call character capital. Character capital is the result of conscious, rightful, self-giving action. Character capital expresses itself in the many ways we serve this community and our deepest ideals: singing, teaching children, cooking, cleaning, service leading, playing bridge, discussing global economics, donating food to those less fortunate, patronizing the Urban Artists, helping with the art show, etc., etc. All of these are investments of character capital that earn such wonderful dividends as peace of mind, smiles, laughter, knowledge, wisdom, friendship, and much more. Where we invest our character capital, we will want to invest our monetary capital as well. This place that we artfully shape week by week and year by year, how could we not do all in our power to see to its financial needs? The money we pledge is not charity, so much as an investment in the health of our selves, our congregation, and our world. To once again quote from Dr. Gilman, “Our economics can be as intelligent, as subtle, as beautiful, as joyful as the universe it reflects.”

We are lucky to have so many artists and artisans at UUSIS, but no matter our artistic skill (or lack of it) each of us is learning to sculpt our lives through the choices we make.

Not only are we a congregation of many artists, we are wonderfully diverse in many ways, racially, politically, and theologically. I see Unitarian Universalism as a free country of the spirit. Like America, we are a place for immigrants. So many of us come from other religions or none. This accounts for some of the turbulence of our denomination, but also for it's unusual dynamism. Where else can Humanists, Christians, Pagans, Buddhists, and Jews sit in the same pew, singing the same hymns, even if they do look ahead to see if they agree with the next verse?

In this era of rapid change, people are dissatisfied with the worn remedies and simplistic solutions brought forth by fundamentalism. We stand as a harbor for the apostate, those who have left the comfort or the pain of their previous lives to search for truth and wholeness with us.

I want to be a part of that.

I want to be here when a stranger crosses the Society’s threshold wondering if this is the place he or she has been searching for.

I want to be here when a senior citizen and young adult tell each other jokes at coffee hour.

I want to be here when we struggle together for justice.

These are a few of the reasons I’ve made the choices I made to become a Unitarian Universalist and a few of the reasons I accepted the call to be your minister. But one does not have to go to seminary to support the UU movement. We all support each other through friendship, prayers, laughter, a listening ear, and how we chose to invest our financial resources in this faith and in each other.

It’s been clear to me these last nine months how much people mean to each other here, how much we appreciate each others talents and efforts, how much we’re concerned about each other’s struggles, and how much we want to contribute to each other’s development. I’m also aware of how glad we are to be growing, both numerically and in the depth of our relationships. The Society is people reaching out to people.

And let us not forget our Society’s programs. Every dollar you contribute goes to fund important work such as religious education, music, our building and grounds, our district and denominational structures, advertising, or ministry.

And yet with all the wonderful aspects of a UU congregation, especially one as dynamic as UUSIS, it can be easy to forget sometimes the financial needs of the congregation we love. In the UUA’s Congregational Handbook, it says that,

In a survey published in Newsweek, Unitarian Universalists were revealed as having the highest average incomes of twenty major denominations, but their average pledge to their congregation was the lowest of all groups studied. The implication is that the major fundraising challenge facing most congregations is not the capacity of members to give, but their willingness.

Unitarian Universalists love their congregations just as much as their friends and neighbors do. When the mission and the goals of the congregation are clear and actively shared by the membership, the financial needs clearly communicated, and the budget “owned” by the congregation, Unitarian Universalists give just as generously as their neighbors. This is most clearly seen in our new congregations, filled with members who pledge between $1,000 and $1,200 annually.

The Unitarian Universalist Society in Stamford may be 161 years old, but many of us pledge like it’s a new congregation! And in many ways it is. After a long period of decline we are finally on our way—thanks to the artistry of our living and the generosity of our giving. We have much to be proud of.

And yet, I believe we can do even better. Last year’s canvass was the most successful in our history, bringing in $93,000. This year, due to new members and new enthusiasm, our finance chair Richard Webb and I believe we can raise our level of giving to $100,000! If you’re giving less than the average $1000 per adult, please raise your pledge to that amount if you can. If you’re already giving at that amount, please consider raising it as an increased investment in all that this Society means to you.

I will be raising my pledge this year. For the current fiscal year, I pledged $500. For the coming year, I will increase that to $1100. I’ve come to believe you’re worth the extra investment.

Thanks for the opportunity to be your minister!

¹ http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC02/Gilman1.htm