Rev. Janet Onnie
September 1, 2024
Last week Rev. Paul Britner described ministry, quoting Gordon McKeeman, as ‘the quality of a relationship between and among human beings that beckons forth hidden possibilities.’ Rev. Britner gave striking examples of individuals doing ministry. I need only to look around at HUU and see equally striking examples of people doing ministry. So why did you feel you needed a minister? To address that question that I’ll need to reference our history. Back to 1648 – more than 100 years before the American Revolutionary War.
In August 1648 a group of ministers from Massachusetts and Connecticut gathered in Cambridge, Massachusetts to craft a declaration of principles of church government and discipline, forming a constitution of the Congregational churches; the churches from which we evolved. The Cambridge Platform is the foundational document upon which our free faith rests. It almost nothing to do with matters of doctrine and belief but is very specific about the ways in which groups of like-minded people – congregations – would be in communion – in association– with each other. It defined matters of church officers, ministry, membership, and cooperation between churches. Another way to say it is the Cambridge Platform is a statement of behavioral expectations rather than beliefs. The Cambridge Platform is a statement of behavioral expectations rather than beliefs. Although changes in practice were being made as early as the second generation, the Cambridge Platform remains a defining document for the denominations, including Unitarian Universalism, that continue to practice congregational polity. Of the 65 congregations that voted to ratify the Platform in 1648, 21 of them are members of the Unitarian Universalist Association today.
Among other things the Cambridge Platform addressed the relationship between a minister and the congregation/s they served. It noted – it insisted – that the congregation was the ultimate authority of the gathered community. Yes, there was a minister. But the minister’s authority was granted and sustained by the local congregation. This may be a surprise to those of you who may have come from more traditional religious experiences. Or who view the UUA as the mothership, dictating procedures and dispensing judgments. But former UUA President Peter Morales described the function of our association as an APP STORE. The Unitarian Universalists Association of Congregations – the UUA — supports individual congregations by offering programs, training, research, and counsel. It also sets the standards for ordaining UU ministers. In Unitarian Universalism the buck stops with the congregation. I can’t emphasize that enough. The buck stops with the congregation. It also starts there. You are a living example of that. Three hundred fifty-six years later I am here before you because you applied congregational polity. After consultation with the gathered community the HUU congregation directed your representatives – your Board – to hire a minister. And they did. They carried out the will of you, the congregation, in accordance with the principles of the Cambridge Platform.
This doesn’t answer the question of why you thought you needed a minister. So let me suggest a reason: a minister encourages and supports a congregation to do ministry within a specific context. Although you are doing a fine job of doing ministry within and beyond the HUU community you might have felt you were missing the context of Unitarian Universalism. Someone whose education, training, and experience enables them to see the world through the lens of Unitarian Universalism. I thought it would be interesting for you to learn how I – or any UU minister — acquires such a lens.
The UUA’s website has a lengthy section on ministerial formation. I’ve cited it here with the addition of my own explanations. It says, “All candidates must have satisfactorily completed all educational and skill training programs and demonstrate the qualities, skills and aptitude required for Unitarian Universalist ministry as determined by the Ministerial Fellowship Committee. Those qualifications and requirements include, but are not limited to, the following:
- satisfactory completion of an approved clinical pastoral education (CPE) program. This is approximately 400 hours (1 unit) over a period of 9 months.
- An internship in a congregation of one year full time or two years part time;
- have completed the required reading of 65+ books and documents. The Cambridge Platform is one of them.
- have undergone an approved career assessment program. This is a 2-day in-depth psychological assessment.
- be able to demonstrate an understanding of and experience with UU congregational life based on at least two years active involvement;
- must demonstrate a strong motivation for our ministry;
- must be sponsored by a member congregation.
- and must demonstrate a balanced and healthy personality, a capacity for self-understanding, a concern for others, and ministerial leadership skills.
The Committee will further require that the candidate be well informed on the history and development of Unitarianism and Universalism, familiar with the Bylaws of the Unitarian Universalist Association, and fully committed to the purpose, objectives and guidelines of the Unitarian Universalist Ministers’ Association. A candidate for the Ministry shall also have a Master of Divinity degree or its equivalent from a theological school approved by the Committee or have had an equivalent educational experience.”
This process takes between 4 and 10 or more years. During this time the candidate is focused on achieving competency in 8 core areas: worship and rites of passage, pastoral care and presence, spiritual development for self and others, social justice in the public square, administration, serving the larger UU faith, leading the faith into the future, and theology. They are being constantly evaluated – in conversation and in written reports — by their faculty, their supervisors, their mentors, and themselves. I remember my first mentor, Kenn Hurto, asking me in all seriousness, if I could do anything else with my life besides ministry. At the time I thought it was an odd question, but later came to see the wisdom in asking it.
The Ministerial Fellowship Committee is the arm of the UUA that recommends – or not — the candidate for ordination. The MFC is represented by a panel of 9 clergy and lay people, who examine and assess a huge packet of all those reports and evaluations and confirming documents assembled over the candidate’s years of education and formation. In a 45-minute interview the panel decides if they ‘see’ a UU minister. This is a make-or-break interview. If the interview goes well the candidate enters into preliminary fellowship. They are now free to call themselves Reverend and look for a job. They are also free to begin payments on their student loans.
Even once the minister has found employment they’re not out of the assessment woods. For the next three years they, their required mentor, and their congregation’s Committee on Ministry annually write detailed performance reviews. These reports are sent to the Ministerial Fellowship Committee. If all goes well, the minister is admitted into Full Fellowship, which is something akin to tenure. The written evaluations to the UUA ends, but the congregation – always the congregation — can terminate their service. Oh, I almost forgot to mention. Ministers – and those aspiring to same – are encouraged to hire a therapist to help maintain their own mental health and well-being.
I’m telling you this by way of explaining how one is transformed into a minister. By the time a Unitarian Universalist minister faces a congregation they are thinking theologically. They are looking at the human condition through the unique lens of Unitarian Universalism and bring a deep understanding of and commitment to the values and practice of our free religion. They also bring a network of over a thousand ordained peers who are primed to advise, celebrate, commiserate, and sometimes admonish. Many of them have had previous careers and bring that experience to their ministry. To my mind, the network of peers is the primary factor that distinguishes ordained clergy from lay leaders. This difference was brought home early in my ministry, when one of my congregants asked for tips on officiating at his daughter’s wedding. Apparently the online ordination he picked up didn’t give offer guidance on how to officiate a wedding. I advised him to ask his ministerial colleagues. I wasn’t invited to the wedding.
The distinction between ordained and lay ministry is not only education, training and collegial support. It’s also visibility. For better or worse, when someone shows up in a clerical collar and stole people tend to notice. They are inclined to pay attention, some negative and some positive. The words and demeanor have an authority, whether you or I think that authority is warranted. When my colleague Rev. Misha Saunders appears behind Rachel Maddow, as she did last week, the internet notices. When Rev. Susan Frederick Gray linked arms with 50 other clergy in collars and stoles at the Unite the Right Rally in Charlottesville there is an impact on the community. When Rev. Dr. William Barber shows up on Capitol Hill his Poor People’s Campaign gets press coverage. Just as authority is assumed for doctors and lawyers, so it is assumed for clergy. And yes, we can all cite examples of when that authority has been abused. Nonetheless, the perceptions still exist – especially in the older generations — and the authority conferred is real.
Sharing that authority hasn’t always been easy. The concept of sharing ministerial leadership in the UU world began through pressure to recognize the other religious professionals – the religious educators, the musicians, and the administrators — as equal partners. All of these professionals have their own stringent requirements for credentialing. They all receive support of their professional communities. I am expecting that one of these days there’ll be a Minister of Technology – a phrase my last intern coined at the start of the pandemic. Because of their expertise we were the first UU congregation in the state to pivot to online services. This was possible because they brought in congregants who had an equal passion for bringing the good news of Unitarian Universalism to as wide an audience as possible. Without naming it, we were practicing shared ministry. And it felt great! Now we have lay pastoral care associates, lay officiants for weddings and funerals, and a program for lay ministers. To quote from the UUA website, “Ordained ministers often have the most visible kind of ministry, but other kinds of professional and volunteer ministry are just as important.” Just as important.
I was going to talk with you today about leadership: about when Joshua took over after Moses died within sight of the Promised Land. But on Wednesday, when I couldn’t get traction, it occurred to me that you don’t need to hear about leadership. You have plenty of good leaders. That’s not what I’m here for. I’m here to be your App store. Your App store. I am a repository of years of experience in the dynamics of UU congregations. By virtue of my involvement in the UU Ministers Association I have access to colleagues who have suggestions when I don’t have answers. And I almost never have answers. I am here to encourage and support the ministries you currently do, the ministries that are evolving, and the ministries you have yet to envision. To recall John O’Donahue’s poem, “then the delight when your courage kindled — and out you stepped onto new ground.” You have invited me to join you, the Harrisonburg Unitarian Universalists, in stepping out onto new ground. I am delighted to accept your invitation and am honored to step out with you. May it be so. Enshallah. Amen.