HUU Sermon Archives

2nd UU Principle: Horton Hears A Who!

Michele O'Connor
July 20, 2003

Not to steal any of Byrd's thunder from this afternoon's session on UU history I'm going to read a section of the workbook she loaned to me titled "Living the Interdependent Web: An Adult Series on Unitarian Unviersalist Principles," By Tom Owen-Towle copyrighted in 1987.

"Our recently adopted (1985) Purposes and Principles statement is a timely and relevant document for it provides our movement with a covenant for the epoch of interdependence. . . the Purposes states, 'The primary purpose of the UU association is to serve the needs of its member congregations, organize new congregations, and implement its principles." He goes on to say of the 2nd principle, "Justice has to do with righteousness and lawfulness, equity with impartiality and fairness...”

Today I will be talking primarily about the first part of the 2nd principle, which states, “We covenant and promote:. . .Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.” Some of you may remember the last time I was up here we talked about compassion in human relations. Today I will be focusing on the idea of raising our voices in the cause of justice, equity and compassion, speaking out for these whenever we are able, and the idea that the 2nd principle calls us as UUs to use all the opportunities we are given.

I’m sure all of you are familiar with Dr. Suess, a/k/a Theodore Giesel. You may have even read the book Claire and I are going to read right now. As I read Horton Hears Who! several times for this service, I marveled at how clever Dr. Suess was. I had a political science teacher in college who said this book was the best piece of social justice commentary he ever read. We’ll see if you agree.

READ HORTON HEARS A WHO!!!

(NOTE: You have to read the story to fully appreciate this service!)

Make sure congregation repeats the phrases “A person’s a person no matter how small.”

Horton was a UU elephant. His first motivator in compassion. He hears a voice calling out for help and even though he can’t see them, he responds to their cry. No matter their difference in size he seeks to treat them fairly and compassionately right away. Horton understands what Kenneth Collier, who Elinor Mondale introduced us to last week, in his book OUR SEVEN PRINCIPLES, “Equity, not as an external quality but as an existential commitment, is the understanding the no one is privileged and that the worth, value and dignity of each person is as important and as sacred as one’s own.”

Horton says the things that justice and equity moved by compassion demand, “I’ve got to protect them I’m bigger than they.” “Please don’t harm all MY little folks, who have as much right to live as us bigger folks do!”

Malcom X: “So, I say brothers and sisters, it’s not a case of worrying about what’s going on in Africa before we get things straight over here. It’s a case of realizing that the Afro-American problem is not a Negro problem, or an American problem, but a human problem, a problem for humanity.”

And what is the response of Horton’s community to his insistence that there are actually people where the rest of them do not see people? They seek to silence him and destroy the source of their embarrassment. Sound familiar? It should. Voices of dissent have ever been hated and silenced. “Such carryings on in our peaceable jungle!” They don’t want the boat rocked. “We are going to stop all this nonsense. So there!” “You’re going to be roped and you’re going to be caged!” How many ways have people who have been voices of justice and fairness been “roped and caged?”

“Will you please get rid of this thing?” How many times have individuals as well as whole groups of persons been treated as things to be “gotten rid of?” Think about the few people in recent history who were leading movements in the direction of fundamental change toward justice and equity for large segments of people and the ways in which they were silenced. In the UU community we have a whole network of people committed to the purpose of raising voices and taking action to promote justice and equity in the world. The UU Service Committee is active worldwide and there is a pamphlet on the literature table for those interested in joining your voice with theirs.

Read excerpt from pamphlet

This book is a children’s book. And so at the end of this book, when Horton s fellow s hear the desperate screams of people who are about to die they relent, and more that that they REPENT! ... and automatically at the hearing of their voices are moved to want to help protect them. In our world: that is fantasy.

In our recent newsletter there is that by now very famous quote, that reads, “In Germany they came first for the Communists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn’t speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up.” —Martin Niemoeller (1892-1984)

We live in a racist country, we live in a racist commonwealth and we live in a racist town. This principle charges us to “speak up.” As I prepared this service, I wondered where our voice is in our community as HUU. I challenge this church to find it’s voice and work out a mechanism through which we speak up and speak out to our community.

Return to Sermon Archives 2003 listing