Actual excerpts from The Scopes Trial
Clarence Darrow – Defense lawyer and evolutionist
William Jennings Bryan – Prosecuting lawyer and fundamentalist
"The Court" – Judge
Policeman
The courtyard (laughter and applause)
Day 7
Darrow-You have given considerable study to the Bible, haven’t you, Mr. Bryan?
Bryan-Yes, sir, I have tried to…
Q-The Bible says Joshua commanded the sun to stand still for the purpose of lengthening the day, doesn’t it, and you believe it.
A-I do.
Q-Do you believe at that time the entire sun went around the earth?
A-No, I believe that the earth goes around the sun.
Q-Do you believe that the men who wrote it thought that the day could be lengthened or that the sun could be stopped?
A-I don’t know what they thought.
Q-You don’t know?
A-I think they wrote the fact without expressing their own thoughts…
Mr. Darrow- Can you answer my question directly? If the day was lengthened by stopping either the earth or the sun, it must have been the earth?
A-Well, I should say so.
Q- Now, Mr. Bryan, have you ever pondered what would have happened to the earth if it had stood still?
A-No.
Q-You have not?
A- No; the God I believe in could have taken care of that, Mr. Darrow.
Q- I see. Have you ever pondered what would naturally happen to the earth if it stood still suddenly?
A- No.
Q-Don’t you know it would have been converted into molten mass of matter?
A-You testify to that when you get on the stand, I will give you a chance.
Q-Don’t you believe it?
A-I would want to hear expert testimony on that.
Q-You have never investigated that subject?
A-I don’t think I have ever had the question asked.
Q-Or ever thought of it?
A-I have been too busy on thinks that I thought were of more importance than that.
Q-You believe the story of the flood to be a literal interpretation?
A-Yes, sir.
Q-When was that Flood?
A-I would not attempt to fix the date. The date is fixed, as suggested this morning.
Q-About 4004 B.C.?…
A-I do not think about things I don’t think about.
Q-Do you think about things you do think about?
A-Well, sometimes.
(Laughter in the courtyard.)
Policeman-Let us have order….
Bryan-These gentlemen have not had much chance-they did not come here to try this case. They came here to try revealed religion. I am here to defend it and they can ask me any question they please.
The Court-All right…
(Applause from the court yard.)
Darrow- Do you know anything about how many people there were in Egypt 3,500 years ago, or how many people there were in China 5,000 years ago?
Bryan-No.
Q-Have you ever tried to find out?
A-No, sir. You are the first man I ever heard of who has been in interested in it. (Laughter.)
Q-Mr. Bryan, am I the first man you ever heard of who has been interested in the age of human societies and primitive man?
A-You are the first man I ever heard speak of the number of people at those different periods.
Q-Where have you lived all your life?
A-Not near you. (Laughter and applause.)
Q-Nor near anybody of learning?
A-Oh, don’t assume you know it all.
Q-Do you know there are thousands of books in our libraries on all those subjects I have been asking you about?
A-I couldn’t say, but I will take your word for it….
Q-Have you any idea how old the earth is?
A-No.
Q-The Book you have introduced in evidence tells you, doesn’t it?
A-I don’t think it does, Mr. Darrow.
Q-Let’s see whether it does; is this the one?
A-That is the one, I think.
Q-It says B.C. 4004?
A-That is Bishop Usher’s calculation.
Q-That is printed in the Bible you introduced?
A-Yes, sir….
Q-Would you say that the earth was only 4,000 years old?
A-Oh, no; I think it is much older than that.
Q-How much?
A-I couldn’t say.
Q-Do you say whether the Bible itself says it is older than that?
A-I don’t think it is older or not.
Q-Do you think the earth was made in six days?
A-Not six days of twenty-four hours.
Q-Doesn’t it say so?
The Court-Are you about through, Mr. Darrow?
Darrow-I want to ask a few more questions about the creation.
The Court-I know. We are going to adjourn when Mr. Bryan comes off the stand for the day. Be very brief, Mr. Darrow.
Bryan-The reason I am answering is not for the benefit of the superior court. It is to keep these gentlemen from saying I was afraid to meet them and let them question me, and I want the Christian world to know that any atheist, agnostic, unbeliever, can question me anytime as to my belief in God, and I will answer him.
Darrow-I want to take an exception to this conduct of this witness. He may be very popular down here in the hills….
Bryan-Your honor, they have not asked a question legally and the only reason they have asked any question is for the purpose, as the question about Jonah was asked, for a chance to give this agnostic an opportunity to criticize a believer in the world of God; and I answered the question in order to shut his mouth so that he cannot go out and tell his atheistic friends that I would not answer his questions. That is the only reason, no more reason in the world.
Mr. Darrow:
Q-Mr. Bryan, do you believe that the first woman was Eve?
A-Yes.
Q-Do you believe she was literally made out of Adams’s rib?
A-I do.
Q-Did you ever discover where Cain got his wife?
A-No, sir; I leave the agnostics to hunt for her.
Q-You have never found out?
A-I have never tried to find
Q-You have never tried to find?
A-No.
Q-The Bible says he got one, doesn’t it? Were there other people on the earth at that time?
A-I cannot say.
Q-You cannot say. Did that ever enter your consideration?
A-Never bothered me.
Q-There were no others recorded, but Cain got a wife.
A-That is what the Bible says…
Q-I will read it to you from the Bible: "And the Lord God said unto the serpent, because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life." Do you think that is why the serpent is compelled to crawl upon its belly?
A-I believe that.
Q-Have you any idea how the snake went before that time?
A-No, sir.
Q-Do you know whether he walked on his tail or not?
A-No, sir. I have no way to know. (Laughter in audience).
Q–Now, you refer to the cloud that was put in heaven after the flood, the rainbow. Do you believe in that?
A-Read it.
Q-AII right, Mr. Bryan, I will read it for you.
Bryan-Your Honor, I think I can shorten this testimony. The only purpose Mr. Darrow has is to slur at the Bible, but I will answer his question. I will answer it all at once, and I have no objection in the world, I want the world to know that this man, who does not believe in a God, is trying to use a court in Tennessee–
Darrow-I object to that.
Bryan-(Continuing) to slur at it, and while it will require time, I am willing to take it.
Darrow–I object to your statement. I am exempting you on your fool ideas that no intelligent Christian on earth believes.
The Court-Court is adjourned until 9 o’clock tomorrow morning.
Two Selfish Kings
What is worth fighting for? Two KINGS HAD FOR MANY MONTHS been quarreling over a small piece of land. There a high bank had been made to stop a river from flooding the fields around it. "This bank belongs to my country," said one of the kings.
"No," said the other king. "This bank belongs to my country."
The more they talked, the angrier the kings became. Finally, since they could not agree peaceably, they decided to fight the matter out. Each one called his army to prepare for battle. Each king planned to be ready the next day to lead his army forth to fight the other king and his army.
Buddha heard that the two kings were planning to fight each other. He sent a messenger to each one saying, "Before you go to war, will you please allow me to hear your com-plaints? Perhaps I may help you to find some other way of settling your quarrel."
Neither king was very happy about meeting Buddha. Still they both consented and came to the house of the teacher. There the three men sat down together to talk the whole matter over.
Buddha began, in his gentle way, to ask the kings certain questions. First he would put his question to one king and then he would ask the same question of the other king. "Why do you say that the bank belongs to your kingdom?" he asked. "Of what use is the bank to you if it does belong to you? What will you do with it?"
When Buddha thought he understood the reasons for their quarrel, he asked another question, first of one, then of the other. "If you go to battle over this bank of earth, will not many of your soldiers be killed?" May not you yourselves even lose your lives?
"That is true," the kings admitted. "Many will be killed. But what else can we do?
"Which is worth more: a bank of earth, or the lives of your men, or your own lives? asked Buddha.
"Of course the lives of our men are worth far more than a bank of earth." Both kings agreed on that.
Buddha had one more question still to ask. "Which would take more money: to build another bank or to put back the lives of men once dead?"
"The lives of men cannot be brought back with all the money in the world." said the kings. "The lives of men are priceless."
"Are you then going to risk what is so precious that no money can ever buy it back, in order to have a small piece of ground that is like the ground on a thousand other hills?"
As the two kings talked and listened, they began to lose their angry feelings and to work out a peaceable agreement, In the end they did not go to war, and for many years the people of the two countries lived side by side in peace.
(This story is taken from The Gospel of Buddha, by Paul Carus and published by Open Court Publishing Co., Chicago, 1915.) Reprint permission granted by Open Court Publishing Company.
10 Tips for Taking Social Action
10 Tips for Taking Social Action
"Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity." – Oprah Winfrey
You’ve read about the Jackson kids. Anything they can do, you can do, too. Here are ten steps that will lead you to your goal.
1. Choose a problem. Look around your neighborhood. Are there any areas that look neglected or need improvements?Are there places that make you feel unsafe?Places that smell awful? Any problems with drugs, crumbling buildings, homeless people, hungry children, dangerous street crossings, grungy landscapes?
This is one good way to begin. You could also find a problem by thinking about a subject you have studied at school or in a scout troop. For example, if you have just finished a unit on mammals, you might ask yourself,"What kinds of problems do animals have or cause in real life?" If you can’t think of anything, you might call your local humane society, animal shelter, or research clinic.
The hard part won’t be finding a problem. (For some suggestions, see below.) The hard part will be choosing only one problem at a time.
2. Do your research. If you choose a problem from something you have studied at school, you already have valuable information to use. But try some new ways of researching,too.
Survey your school or neighborhood to find out how other people feel about the problem you want to tackle. Telephone officials for information, then interview them over the phone or in person. Write letters.Read magazines and newspapers. Checkout the Internet to find information or allies. If you happen to be a veteran couch potato, flip the TV to a news channel.
3. Brainstorm possible solutions and choose one. Think of what you might do to solve your problem. Brainstorm everything you can think of. Sometimes the zaniest ideas turn out to be the best.
After you have made a long list of potential solutions, look at each one carefully.Choose the solution that seems the most possible and will make the most difference.For example: We will help young people learn to read by volunteering as tutors in the elementary school; we will help reduce crime in our area by organizing a neighborhood watch program.
4. Build coalitions of support. A coalition is a group of people working together for the same goal. Find all the people you can who agree with your solutions.Survey your neighborhood; ask teachers,city officials, newspapers, legislators, other students. Call state agencies that deal with your problem. Send email to connect with businesses and nonprofit organizations interested in your issue.
This is very important to do. Organize all these people. The more people you have on your team, the more power you will have to make a difference.
5. Work with your opposition. For every good solution, there are people, businesses, and organizations that might oppose the plan. That’s why it’s important to ask, "Who or what might make it hard to carry out our plan?" It’s important to identify possible barriers before you run into them. You don’t want to be taken by surprise. Brainstorm with your coalition of support to help you identify who might object to your solution. Teachers and other experts can help as well. Then make plans to overcome others’ objections.
You might be tempted to think of the people who oppose your solution as "bad guys." But it can be more useful to see them as people with different needs and opinions.Get to know your "enemy" you might be surprised how far you can get by working together, and how many ideas you agree on.Not all the time, but in many cases, you and your opposition can both win–or at least accomplish more by compromising.
6. Advertise. Here’s good news:Television, radio, and newspaper reporters love stories of kid action. TV and radio stations usually offer free air time for worthy projects.
Call and ask to speak to a reporter who covers educational issues. Or you might write a letter. Be sure to include a phone number(yours?) the reporter can call for more information. Or send out a news release.
Don’t forget small community newspapers, even church bulletins. They can help you advertise, too. If you let people know what problem you’re trying to solve, and what solution you propose, You’ll suddenly find all sorts of people who want to climb aboard.
7. Raise money. After letting people know about your project, you might try to raise funds to support it. This isn’t essential,and many wonderful projects can be tackled without this step. But sometimes you have more power if you put money where your mouth is.
8. Carry out your solution. You have your lineup of team players, and you’ve advertised to let people know the problem you plan to solve. Now DO IT!
Make a list of all the steps you need to take. Give speeches, write letters and proclamations, pass petitions, improve your neighborhood or school (or you might just try to spiff up your own backyard).
9. Evaluate and reflect. Is your plan working? Are you congratulating yourself on your coolness, or do you feel more like you have a migraine headache? It’s time to evaluate your project and its progress.
Have you tried everything? Should you change your solution? Do you need to talk with more people? It’s up to you. You’re in charge.
Reflect on what you’ve learned. What have you actually accomplished? Write, draw, or dramatize your experiences; express your reactions to the service you have performed in an imaginative way.
10. Don’t give up. Unless you think it’s time to quit, don’t pay too much attention to folks who tell you all the reasons why your solution won’t work. If you believe your cause is really important, keep picking away at it.
Problem solving means weeding out all the things that don’t work until you find something that does. Remember; a mountain looks tallest from the bottom. Don’t give up. Climb!
WHAT’S YOUR PROBLEM?
Maybe you already know a problem you want to solve. Or maybe you’re truly stuck on finding an issue to pursue.
Four Rules of Brainstorming:
1. Brainstorm with a friend, your family, a group, or a class. The more brains you have to storm with, the more ideas you’ll have. But you can also brainstorm alone.
2. Everybody tries to come up with as many ideas as possible–from silly to serious, and everything in between.
3. All ideas are acceptable during brainstorming. Write all of them down now,and make your choices later.
4. Nobody criticizes anybody else’s ideas. Period. No exceptions!
You can brainstorm on blank paper, a chalkboard, a flip chart, a computer, or anything you choose. From the link below, you’ll find examples of a filled-in brainstorming form.
BRAINSTORMING I: Come up With Ideas (see example here)
A blank form for you to use is here.
BRAINSTORMING II: Choose Your Main Idea
At this point, you have many ideas, some of them crazy. Now you should choose an idea to work on.
Ask yourself questions.
For example: Which idea might make the biggest difference? Which idea might have the best chance to succeed? Which idea might benefit the most people? Which idea might cost the least to do? Which idea do I like the best?
QUESTIONS
1. Which idea might be the most possible to do?
2. Which idea do I like the best?
3. Which idea might help the most people?
4. Which idea might cost the least for us?
5. Which idea might help us learn the most?
Choose one basic idea to work with:
We will encourage sidewalk repairs in the Euclid area.
Now list the steps to carry out your Plan of Action.
For example: Give speeches at the community council. Write letters to the mayor. Write a news release for TV and radio.
Then write down who will be responsible for each step, and when.
WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?
Unfortunately, problems in need of solutions are easy to find, Reading the newspapers, watching the news on TV or listening to the radio, surfing the Web, reading books or magazines, or talking to people in your school and community can all help you identify problems that need to be tackled.
Here’s a list of topics that might get you jump-started. Ask yourself, "What’s the problem?" for each of these topics, Decide which ones you might want to work with, or brainstorm topics of your own.
Community Concerns
Schools
City growth and development; land use
Vacant lots, abandoned buildings
Beautification projects
Animals and wildlife
Libraries
Literacy
Parks and recreation
Sports and athletics
Social Concerns
Families
Child care
Friends and social relationships
Population
Immigration
Diversity
Clothing
Homelessness
Public health, mental health
Nutrition and hunger
Substance abuse (alcohol and other drugs, smoking)
Volunteerism
Support systems for children, the elderly, etc.
Poverty
Employment, unemployment
Governing Agencies
Transportation
Law enforcement and justice
Education
Business and labor
Lawmaking agencies and governments
Social agencies
Elections and voting
Court advocacy
The Environment
Energy production, energy use
Natural resources
Wildlife
Hunting and fishing
Pollution (air, water, land)
Weather
Garbage and recycling
Technology
Communication
Information access
Satellites and space research
Medical research
Industrial advances
Inventions and projects
The future of technology and space
Value Systems
Money
Economic growth
Human rights
Children’s rights
Ethics (morals and beliefs)
Religion
Censorship
Trade
Working conditions
Public Safety
Peace
Weapons and gun control
Safety and accidents (including industrial)
Terrorism
Disasters (earthquakes, floods, fires, storms, etc.)
Disease
Crime
Statements About Spirituality
Spirituality is the experience of a depth dimension to life, a dimension beyond the physical, the obvious, the provable, the universally shared.
Spirituality is a quickening, an evolving awareness of the depth dimension of one’s life and one’s connection with the universe. It arises from the search or longing for atonement – perfection- at-onement. It invites a way of living- an ordering of one’s life- which nurtures the evolving awareness- the quickening- for one’s self and others.
Spirituality is the faith that a depth dimension of one’s life does exist and the process one goes through to reach such faith.
Spirituality is the inner quickening that comes with a sudden or long sought awareness which touches the core of one’s existence.
Spirituality is the heightened awareness of oneself in relationship to humankind and the universe.
Spirituality is the relationship a person experiences with the universe and the meaning that relationship has for how that person orders and lives life. It includes personal experiences of insight and connection, interpretation and sharing of those experiences, and decisions to act in ways that bring one’s life into harmony with the meanings those experiences have evoked.
Spirituality. . .self-learning. practice, ripening …through reflection, interaction, and action . . will, grace, faith.
Spirituality is not a goal, nor a state of being, but the process of sell-learning, practice and experience of the awesome, which leads to a ripening of the self, of the soul.
Spirituality is what lies beyond our physical boundaries and mental capacity, beyond the limitations- and how it is bonded to our physical awareness and existence.
Spirituality Is a hazy, nebulous dimension of life that means many things to different people and at different times, and that they explain with many different vocabularies.
Spirituality is the expression of one’s relationship to God/dess and/or one’s connection with the universe.
Spirituality is at the core of meaning-making for those who experience it.
Spirituality involves the relationship between one’s consciousness and one’s soul- and between one’s being and the universe as a whole.
Spirituality is one’s inner self: soul (mind is not the self but a form of expression of the soul).
Spirituality is feeling and knowing- awareness and recognition and resonance.
Spirituality is the awesome, nonphysical aspect of life.
Spirituality is something (a capacity) that you develop. It is a way of ordering one’s life.
Spirituality is needing to be intentional (will) vs. needing to wait (grace).
Spirituality is the element of fate.
Spirituality is the search for ultimate meaning/ answers- birth, life, and death.
Spirituality is application or practice; hands-on, not in the head. It is very personal, intimate, and may be scary or it may be terribly common and matter-of-fact.
Spirituality is an evocation of feelings that leads into the spiritual; extrasensory, transcendent experience.
A Spring Haggadah–Telling Stories
Passover and Easter are both celebrations which highlight the spring season. How do Unitarian Universalists respond to these deeply significant religious festivals? Some respond by turning with the secular culture to flowers, eggs, lambs and bunnies–all ancient symbols of the renewal of life, which is also a central message of Easter and Passover. The rich layers of human custom and belief come together now, and as we draw our living tradition from many sources, UUs may serve forth a generous slice that includes all those layers.
What follows, inspired by the Jewish Haggadah, or "telling" of the Passover story during the Seder meal, is an attempt to bring all the stories together in a celebration for UU families. The dialogue may take place around the dinner table where symbols of the season have been placed. The menu is of your choosing, with a glass of wine or juice for each person. The first question should be asked by the youngest person present and answered by the oldest person present. After that, you may take turns asking and answering in any order around the table. If you like, make copies of the dialogue available to everyone ahead of time, or simply pass this one copy from person to person for an impromptu reading.
First question: Why is this time of year different from other times?
First answer: This is the time when we remember that death is a natural part of life on earth and that all living things renew themselves over and over, year after year. This is the time when Passover and Easter are celebrated. It is the time of Easter bunnies and decorated eggs.
All: We lift our glasses in celebration of life everlasting!
Second question: What is the story of Passover?
Second answer: Long ago, the Hebrew people were slaves in the land of Egypt. Because the Pharaoh refused to free the slaves, Moses and Aaron and their god, Yahweh, brought one affliction after another to the Egyptians. Finally Yahweh passed through the land by night, bringing death to the firstborn son of every Egyptian family. So that the Hebrews would be spared, Yahweh told them to kill a lamb and mark their doorways with its blood. When Yahweh came to a door marked with the blood of the lamb, he would passover that house. The Hebrews were able to escape from Egypt, and after wandering for many years, finally came to a Promised Land of their own. At the time of Passover, Jewish people all over the world celebrate their freedom with a Seder dinner.
All: We lift our glasses in celebration of freedom from oppression!
Third question: What is the story of Easter?
Third answer: The Easter story happened many, many years after the Hebrews left Egypt. It is the story of a man named Jesus, a Jew who lived during the time of the Roman empire. Jesus brought new inspiration to his people. He talked about love and non-violence and respect for every person. Some of the Roman rulers were afraid he might start a rebellion, and some of the Jewish leaders were afraid he might change their religion. It was just after Jesus and his friends had celebrated a Passover Seder together that he was arrested and put to death on the cross. However, his teaching lived on, and today Christians all over the world celebrate Easter in his memory as a time of love and hope reborn.
All: We lift our glasses in celebration of love and hope reborn!
Fourth question: What is the story of the Easter bunny and colored eggs:
Fourth answer: This is the oldest story of all. Ancient people who lived in northern lands waited anxiously each year for spring to return.They saw the egg as a symbol of new life, and they noticed that rabbits had large and frequent families. They watched eagerly for the first green shoots of spring, which meant fresh food for their own families. Many people in all times and places have decorated eggs for spring celebrations. A roasted egg is one of the symbolic foods of Passover. Baby animals and flowers and green, growing things are also symbols of new life.
All: We lift our glasses in celebration of life everlasting!
LIST OF STAMPS and their NUMBERS
UNITED STATES
2146 Abigail Adams
806 John Adams
811 John Quincy Adams
862 Louisa May Alcott
2010 Horatio Alger
784 Susan B. Anthony
967 Clara Barton
1683 Telephone (Alexander Graham Bell)
1399 Elizabeth Blackwell
1781 Boston State House (Thomas Bulfinch)
876 Luther Burbank
1551 Christmas (Nathaniel Currier)
1844 Dorothea Dix
871 Charles W Eliot
861 Ralph Waldo Emerson
818 Millard Fillmore
1030 Benjamin Franklin
887 Daniel Chester French
1177 Horace Greeley
2047 Nathaniel Hawthorne
1288 Oliver Wendell Holmes
870 Mark Hopkins
2177 Julia Ward Howe
1278 Thomas Jefferson
864 Henry W Longfellow
866 James Russell Lowell
869 Horace Mann
1050 John Marshall
2094 Herman Melville
890 Samuel FB. Morse
1281 Francis Parkman
2038 Joseph Priestley
1048 Paul Revere
2055 Charles Steinmetz
1275 Adlai Stevenson
1293 Lucy Stone
884 Gilbert Stuart
685 William H. Taft
1327 Henry D. Thoreau
1380 Daniel Webster
2170 Paul Dudley White
1280 Frank Lloyd Wright
1875 Whitney Young
CANADIAN
274 Alexander Graham Bell
518 Arthur Lismer (painting)
879 Emily Stowe
858 Robert S. Weir (Three composers)
Stefania’s Story
Explain that the story is about a girl the children’s age who had a hard decision to make. Then read or tell the following story.
Back in the early days of this century, a young schoolgirl and her family moved from Winnipeg, Manitoba, to a small town in the same province. Her name was Stefania. Her father had bought a general store in the town and sold groceries and candy, buttons and boots, paint and hammers, and all manner of useful and interesting things. He and Stefania’s mother and her brothers and sisters were considered important people in the town because of the store.
It was summer when the family moved to the town. Stefania found it easy to make new friends in her neighborhood. For one thing, she was a friendly person. For another there was the store with the bins of cookies and the penny candy in the glass case, and she was allowed to treat her friends when they came to the store with her.
When September came and it was time for school to start, Stefania did not feel like a new pupil at all, for she already had friends who would be at school with her, and she looked forward to making new ones. She also looked forward to going to the little Unitarian church on the edge of town. It had been closed all summer. Her family had been members of the Icelandic Unitarian Church in Winnipeg and Stefania had gone to Sunday school.
At recess on the first day of school all the pupils went outside to play. Soon they were busy with their games and Stefania was finding new friends. In a little while, though, she noticed a girl about her age in a dress that looked like a hand-me-down standing apart from all the others, not joining in the games.
"Why doesn’t that girl over there play with us?" she asked. "Oh, we couldn’t play with her," someone said. "She’s a Unitarian." It didn’t take Stefania even a second to decide what to do. "Then you can’t play with me either," she said, "for I’m a Unitarian too." And she walked away from the group and introduced herself to the other girl.
This is a true story. It happened at a time when some people didn’t like Unitarians because Unitarians believe that the search for truth is important in religion and don’t believe that Jesus was a God. Some people didn’t like Universalists because Universalists believe that love toward others is the most important part of religion and don’t believe that anyone will go to hell forever. It was sometimes very hard to be a Unitarian or a Universalist.
What does stereotype mean?
Goal:
To explore the concepts of prejudice and stereotyping and your family’s experience with them.
Definitions:
For this session define the terms as follows:
Prejudice: an unfavorable attitude toward or feeling about a person or group of people based on ignorance and/or misinformation.
Stereotype: a generalization about a group of people also based on ignorance and/or misinformation
Preparation:
Print the following statements on a large piece of paper:
All children are noisy.
I think people who wear glasses are dumb.
All African-Americans play basketball.
Everyone has a right to a free education.
No UUs believe in God.
I don’t like people who speak Spanish at home.
All old people are hard of hearing.
I don’t like people who are tall.
All adults are smart.
Activites:
Movement Game: Ask everyone to find a space in the room where they can stretch out their arms and legs without touching anything. Say something like: Our world is full of opposites like:wet—dry; little—big; hot—cold; old—young; night—day; short—tall; low—high. Can you think of more?
We’re going to play a game where we explore some of these pairs of opposites through the way we move our bodies. When I say a word, I want you to try it on like it was a piece of clothing. See how it fits you. The only rule is that you have to stay in one place, keep your feet where they are now all the time. We’ll start with huge. Let your body and your movements be as big as you can. (Pause for 5-10 seconds.) Now let your body and your movements get tiny, as small as you can. (Pause) Now let your body and your movements be all straight lines. (Pause) And now make curved lines. (Pause) Can you make your movements very loud? And now make them totally silent. Now, everyone explore moving like a boy. How do boys move? (Pause) Now switch and try moving like a girl. Now move like an old person. Now move like a teenager. Now move like a parent.
Did anyone make any discoveries while you were moving in different ways? (Be aware of movements that indicate prejudice or stereotyping about boys, girls, old people etc.)
True or False?
Read the list of statements you printed out above, ask your family to vote on whether they think the statement is true or false. When you’ve finished voting, discuss the statements with questions like:
What do most of these statements have in common?
How do statements like this make you feel?
Read the definitions of prejudice and stereotype. Then read each statement again and ask your family to say whether the statement is a statement of prejudice or a stereotype. (note that some are neither.)
Used-to-Thinks
Did you ever think something when you were younger and then, when you got to be a little older, find out it wasn’t that way at all?
For example, when I was in first grade, I used to think that children in the third grade were practically grownups! But then when I got to be in the third grade, I didn’t feel grown-up at all. But then I thought the sixth-graders were really old!
For some reason it’s fun to tell other people about your "used-to-thinks." I’ve been collecting "used to thinks" for quite a few years now — some of them are my own, some of them my children told me, and some of them other children told me. Here are some of the "used-to-thinks" I have collected. I wonder whether you used to think any of these things?
I used to think that we lived on the inside of the world ball, not on the outside.
I used to think that when you shut off the TV the program would stop, and then, when you turned it on again, it would begin right where it was when you stopped it.
I used to think you grew bigger on your birthday.
I used to think that when people said that Christmas was just around the corner, the people around the corner were having Christmas.
I used to think that when there were double lines down the middle of the highway, motorcycles were supposed to go in the space between them.
I used to think that ladies who wore high heels had heels on their feet that went down inside their shoes.
I used to think that after you’ve gotten as old as you are going to get, you begin to get younger again. When someone told me how old they were, I wondered whether they were on their way to older or younger.
Children are not the only ones who have "used-to-thinks." Almost every day, now that I have grown up, I find out something that makes something that I thought I knew into a "used-to-think." (Share some grown-up "used-to-thinks" of your own.)
Do any of you have "used-to-thinks?" (Pause while others in the group share their "used-to-thinks.")
But it isn’t just grownups and children who have "used-to-thinks." All the people who are alive together at one time think certain things that people living after them find out aren’t true at all.
The people who lived in Greece several thousand years ago used to think that it was the trees shaking that made the wind blow.
People used to think that tomatoes were poisonous.
The people who lived when my grandmother did used to think that it was positively dangerous to go as fast as fifteen miles an hour. They used to think that there never could be a flying machine — it would fall out of the air.
People used to think that we would never, never get to the moon, or to Mars, or away from our earth at all.
I guess that as long as there are people in the world there will be "used-to-thinks," because there is always going to be more to find out, and there are always going to be new things to find out about what we think we already know. Sometimes, as we get older, we understand things that we couldn’t have understood before — just because we have grown some and have had more experiences. Every time you find yourself with a new "used-to-think," you ought to feel pretty good, because it means you’ve learned something that you didn’t know before.
What do I say when someone asks me, “What do UUs believe?”
Goal:
To help kids learn how to respond to questions about Unitarian Universalism.
Materials:
The Unitarian Universalist Principles and Purposes in Simplified Language printout
Story: “Stefania’s Story"
What Am I? printout
Activities:
Show the simplified version of the UU Principles.
Read Stefania’s Story.
Discuss:
Was Stefania’s decision difficult? Why? What do you think happened next?
Have you ever been in a similar situation? What was your decision? Was it hard or easy?
What principle (or principles) does Stefania’s story fit?
Read the following situations, or present them in your own words. Invite responses. Discuss the different choices in each situation. Affirm your kids positive and confident responses and their search for their own answers.
You and your friends are sitting on the beach after a swim, talking a Sunday school. Someone says, “I know that Jesus was God.” You could: say nothing, say “No, he wasn’t,” or ________________________________.
Someone says to you that the world began the way it says in the Bible. You could: get mad and say they don’t know what they’re talking about; say, “I guess so”; or _________________________.
You and a classmate are walking home from school. The classmate says that going to church every Sunday is the most important thing about religion. You could: agree; say, “That’s silly!”; or __________________.
As you walk home from school you and your friend pass his church. He says “That’s my church, The Church of Our Savior. What’s yours?” You tell him____________. Your friend says, “Oh, I know about your church. My father says you don’t believe in anything.” You could: yell, “Oh yes we do,” and run off; say “I guess we don’t”; or _______________________________.
You and a friend walk by your church on the way home from school. You tell her that it is your church and give its name. She says she goes to Emmanuel Baptist. She asks you what your church is like and what you believe. You could: say, “I don’t really know what we believe,” say, “We have good parties at our church;” or _________________________________.
