URGENT: Release Rev. Fulgence Ndagijimana and other Unitarians Suffering Persecution in Burundi
We stand with Unitarian Universalists across the globe calling for the immediate release of the Rev. Fulgence Ndagijimana of the Unitarian Universalist Church in Burundi.
“On November 16th, the minister of the church, the Rev. Fulgence Ndagijimana, was arrested from the church at gunpoint, taken into police custody and interrogated severely, regarding the activities of his church. He was threatened with physical harm and death. At the moment he remains in custody, with other members of the church also being questioned.”
—International Council of Unitarian Universalists (ICUU)
[VIDEO] In the Ruins
A man sits on the rubble—
not just in the rubble, but on the pile
of what remains. No people
in the bombed-out houses.
No dogs. No birds. Just ragged hunks
of concrete and loss. And on his perch
he is playing an instrument constructed
of what is left—an olive oil can, a broom handle,
a bowed stick and strings. It sounds
exactly as it is supposed to sound.
The instrument cries, but the man sings.
Because sometimes loss is deeper than tears.
Because sometimes grief is resistance.
Because, somewhere down the very long road,
music is stronger than bombs.
Dedicated to S.K.
VIDEO: “ت ناوازەیە” by Xendan
PHOTO: “Rubble litters the street in the main souk or market area of Maraat al-Numan, Syria” by Freedom House is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Jumping Mouse
Adapted from a Native American legend, and told by Rev. Dr. Lynn Ungar.
On Setting Out and Coming Home
Podcast: Download (Duration: 11:02 — 25.3MB)
Subscribe: More
Matsuo Bashō, the late 17th century Japanese poet, speaks of a strong desire to wander, as if it’s the essence of who he is. In the opening lines of his travel sketch, The Narrow Road to the Deep North, he says: “The gods seemed to have possessed my soul and turned it inside out, and roadside images seemed to invite me from every corner, so that it was impossible for me to stay idle at home.” Read more →
CLF Nominating Committee Seeks Leaders
Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:24 — 1.3MB)
Subscribe: More
The Church of the Larger Fellowship’s Nominating Committee seeks CLF members to run for positions on the Board of Directors beginning June 2016: Read more →
Trail Blazers and Covenant Keepers
Podcast: Download (Duration: 9:54 — 9.1MB)
Subscribe: More
As a little girl I ran away from home at least twice every summer, hurling myself out of the house with outrage at childhood oppressions like being left out by my brother and his friends or facing bad sportsmanship during a T-ball game. Read more →
Opportunities to Journey
Podcast: Download (Duration: 0:53 — 833.6KB)
Subscribe: More
“The only journey is the one within.” —Rainer Maria Rilke Read more →
Map of the Journey in Progress
Podcast: Download (Duration: 3:10 — 2.9MB)
Subscribe: More
Here is where I found my voice and chose to be brave. Read more →
Pilgrims Always
Podcast: Download (Duration: 3:29 — 3.2MB)
Subscribe: More
At core, we Unitarian Universalists are wonderers and wanderers; pilgrim seems to capture the balance of focused aim and fluid adventure so integral to Unitarian Universalism. Read more →
Here is a blessing to offer anyone who is heading out on a journey–even if that journey is just as far as school.
May you go out in peace and may you come back in joy. On the road in between, may you find what fills your heart, feeds your mind and inspires your imagination.
Artist: Alice Popkorn