HUU Social Justice Committee - The Mahayana Fellowship
The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Harrisonburg has a very active Social Justice Committee. They meet monthly on the last Tuesday of the month at the church at 6:30PM. If you are interested, please join them.
The Social Justice Committee has named itself The Mahayana Fellowship. According to Internet sources, the word, “Mahayana” is a Buddhist term for “Great Vehicle.” Other sources have translated it as “compassion.” Perhaps we will use poetic license and simply consider ourselves a “great vehicle for compassion.” An extraordinary vision of a social justice committee, don’t you think?
Recent activities of the HUU Social Justice Committee include:
“Feeding the Community”: Potluck Sundays Food Drive. On the first Sundays of each month, we have always fed ourselves during potlucks. Recently we began also bringing food for people in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County who are in need. The grocery cart in the sanctuary awaits donations of non-perishables, to be given to the local food pantry, Patchwork Pantry.
Our kick-off Sunday, June 1, brought in nearly enough food to fill the large cart twice – or to fill a small car. Thanks so much to all who gave!!
Items can actually be left in the cart at any time. Those most needed now are beans/pork & beans, peanut butter, jelly or jam, cereal, fruit, beef stew, mac & cheese, spaghetti, and spaghetti sauce, and soup, though any non-perishable foods are welcomed.
Nonfood items are also accepted, including paper towels, disposable diapers (especially size 5), toilet paper, facial tissue and bar soap. Donations will be taken to the Pantry after each potluck Sunday, or whenever the cart becomes full. Cash donations and checks made out to Patchwork Pantry will also be welcomed. (For 16 years, the Pantry has been distributing a three-day emergency food supply, along with nonfood staples when available, to eligible persons in the local area. This all-volunteer, interfaith organization is housed at Community Mennonite Church. Details: http://www.cmcva.org/patchwork-pantry.html.)
Execution vigils. When Virginia resumed executions in May 2008, we planned to hold vigils on the nights of each one scheduled. In these vigils, we mourn the killings both of murder victims and of those people who are, in turn, killed by our state government. Local vigils are planned to take place on the southeast corner of the courthouse lawn in Harrisonburg beginning at 8:30 pm (half an hour before the scheduled execution time).
The first of these vigils received coverage in The Daily News-Record, and attracted many comments. A photo accompanying that May 28, 2008 article is below. To link to the story, titled “A Deathly Silence: Church Holds Vigil During Execution,” see: http://www.dnronline.com/news_details.php?AID=17068&CHID=2
We hope to also arrange for car-pools to same-day vigils at the Governor’s office and the state prison in Jarratt, where executions are performed. For details on anti-death penalty advocacy, see Virginians for Alternatives to Death Penalty, http://vadp.org/ and the website for Unitarian Universalists for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, www.uuadp.org/. (UUA has officially opposed capital punishment for more than 40 years.)
Becoming a “Welcoming Congregation.” UUA’s Welcoming Congregation Program is a volunteer program for congregations that see a need to become more inclusive towards bisexual, gay, lesbian, and/or transgender people, educating themselves through a series of workshops. (See http://www.uua.org/leaders/leaderslibrary/welcomingcongregation/index.shtml.) Several years ago, our congregation essentially completed requirements, but did not finish the paperwork, to obtain official “Welcoming” status. We plan to bring this project to closure soon.
The Fair Trade sales program is a long-established activity that grew out of our committee. Fair Trade products, sold through a nonprofit organization, earn Third-World farmers a living wage. After church each Sunday, in addition to coffee, tea, baking cocoa and hot cocoa mix, we now sell 2 types of chocolate bars—dark chocolate with almonds and very dark chocolate (which is also very popular!).
The Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC) frequently partners with the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) to address a variety of social concerns. To join or renew your membership, see http://www.uusc.org/info/vsmember.html.
Many HUU members and friends continuously contribute to social justice efforts in some way, from donating money to devoting significant time to specific social justice issues.
Contact us:
- Linda Royster is chair of this committee: 540-828-3750; linda@huuweb.org
- Chris Edwards may also be contacted about the food drive or the execution vigils: 540-434-0457; chris@huuweb.org.
- Other members (who may also be contacted) are Robin McNallie, Charlotte Shnaider, Eric Milnes, Ginny Holbrook-Heggie, and Ralph Grove.