Faithful Democracy

A sermon by Bill Docker, UUSC Staff
June 13, 2004 at the Universalist Meeting House of Provincetown, Mass.

I am humbled to be able to read the following words, which were written just a few hundred yards from where we sit today. On November 11, 1620 a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens signed their names to the following words:

"…. (We) do by these present, solemnly and mutually in the Presence of God and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together in a civil Body Politick, for our better Ordering and Preservation…: And by Virtue hereof to enact, constitute and frame, such just and equal Laws, Ordinances, Acts, Constitutions and Offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the General good of the Colony; unto which we promise all due submission and obedience..."

These are the words of the Mayflower Compact, the first document of self-rule in the New World and a foundation of our democracy, which was signed on our very shores that cold November day. These were some of the most religious people on the face of the planet at the time, but even they understood their faith in God informed their "body Politick." They did not scribe one word in this document to say we must live under any one faith or its laws.

I have to admit that almost 400 years later I am very worried about our "civil Body Politick," as I know many of you are, as well.

Democracies are not born overnight. They are fragile and forever in the need of our faithful, loving, tender care. It is no secret that there are those who wish to sublimate the many for the few.
We know elections can be rigged.
Gerrymandering is a reality.
Disenfranchisement can be a tool of the powerful.
As I was told on Beacon Hill recently by one of our most senior elected officials, "Democracy is sometimes like making sausage. You really don't want to see what goes into the process."

Well, that was a quaint comment, but I have to respectfully disagree. I, as a citizen, DO want to see what the ingredients of my democracy are!

We sit here this morning in a house of worship, aware of the importance of the separation of church and state… a principle we all hold dear. But, I have to ask myself and each of you: Where does our faith and its values touch policies and the government we elect at the polls every election season? Must policies and politics forever be the "third rail," which we, people of faith, are afraid to touch?

This afternoon from 1:00 to 3:00 we will be holding a "Defending Democracy" forum downstairs in our church hall. It will be a non-partisan activity to encourage voter participation, issue education and get-out-the-vote activities for our upcoming election in November. We will be addressing the fundamental issues of our democracy… citizen participation…knowing the facts behind the sound bites… equal and just access to power and the protection of our civil rights. We welcome all of you to attend and invite your friends and family. This forum is our first training session to teach you the simple mechanics of registering voters so everyone will be able to add their voice to our treasured system… called democracy.

You and I are not the first Unitarians, Universalists, Cape Codders, or Americans to add our labor to our democratic process. We follow our Founding Unitarian Fathers — John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Quincy Adams in their quest of "justice for all." We stand behind Universalist Susan B. Anthony in our desire to have all voices heard. It is our turn to be reminded by Falmouth resident, poet and lesbian, Katharine Lee Bates, author of "America the Beautiful," that "patriot dreams see beyond the years," and we must always remember to "mend thine every flaw."

Hundreds in UU congregations from CA and FL to GA, MN, WI, MI, NH and elsewhere — as well as thousands of others in liberal faiths — have joined together to be faithful to our democracy this year. Under the umbrella organization of "Faithful Democracy," UUs are joining with Presbyterians, Quakers, Mennonites, Congregationalists, and others to ensure every voice is heard and every vote which is cast is counted. UUA president, Bill Sinkford, in his pastoral letter this spring says, "I believe that the greatest service our faith community can perform right now is to help Americans reclaim our democracy. Unitarian Universalists, without doubt, register and vote in far greater numbers than do most Americans. And, many of us have worked in voter registration drives and contributed financially to efforts to get out the vote. But we have not, as a movement, committed ourselves to increase either voter registration or voter turn out. It is time we did. We will have only ourselves to blame if the only effective voter participation campaign between now and the November election is organized by the religious right."

Reverend Sinkford and others — including the institution I work for, the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, understand that UU values and principles must be heard and we are guided by simple principles on this subject.

• The UU "Fifth Principle" states: We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large."
• The Fifteenth Amendment of our U.S. Constitution, passed in 1870 - almost eighty years after the Constitution was written reads: "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude."
• In 1920, with the hard work of Susan B. Anthony and so many others, - 50 years after the creation of the Fifteenth amendment - the Nineteenth Amendment was passed stating: "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any other state on account of sex."
• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. reminded us that even well into the 20th century the rights of voters still had to be protected and flaws mended. He talked about the obstacles placed in the way of African Americans who tried to vote: poll taxes that poor folks could not afford; literacy tests; poll worker intimidation; voter registration records that were never filed; voters being jailed for trying to register; would-be voters fired from their jobs because they dared to register to vote.

I suggest to you it is our duty as citizens and people of faith to ensure everyone has a voice in our nation and in their lives. Today, as you entered this building you saw a banner reading: "Your Voice — Your Vote Counts." This is not a simple statement of only our values, but also of our faith. Every voice and every vote counts!

For those who question why — and if — a church should be involved in such work I ask you to consider the words of Rev. Michael Schuler, Minister of the First Unitarian Society of Madison, Wisconsin:

"My colleague in Phoenix, (Rev.) John Burciaga, was raised in a conservative southern denomination. He remembers when country preachers gave political sermons, they were said to have 'stopped preaching and gone to meddlin.'"

"For at least a century and a half, it has been common practice for Unitarian and Universalist clergy to offer discourse on political and civic issues….While listeners are not obliged to support the views expressed, we Unitarian Universalists hardly regard pulpit politics as 'meddlin.' There is a moral dimension to many of the issues we face as a community and as a nation. Justice, compassion, fair play, equity, and the welfare of future generations are often at stake in a major election. Indeed, as religious liberals, we feel it would be irresponsible for the minister and the congregation not to devote time to the deliberation of such matters."

Another UU minister, Rev. Paige Getty of the UU Congregation of Columbia, Maryland, talks about her role and her congregation's efforts on the subject of church/state relations. She writes:

"It is true that the first Amendment of the United States constitution states that 'Congress shall make no laws respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.' But let us be clear that this does not mean that our personal faith should have no impact on our politics.

Much to the contrary, if our faith means anything to us — our faith affirms the necessity of justice, equity and compassion in human relations; it affirms the inherent worth and dignity of every human being; it affirms the rights of individual conscience and choice… if our faith has any meaning, then it must inform our politics."

What Michael Shuler, Paige Getty and John Burciaga are talking about is the difference between values and politics... the fine-line separation of church and state.

• Politics would have us talk about an issue such as Affirmative Action. Values allows us to talk about the protection and inclusion of all minorities.
• Politics would lead us into a discussion on No Child Left Behind. A values discussion would have us talk about our commitment to the good education of all children.
• A political discussion on the Patriot Act would be transformed into a conversation about the values of equality, liberty and justice for all.
• Politically, a discussion on Gay Marriage would lead us to the black and white answers some would like us to hold. When we talk about the values behind this conversation we can ponder the question:
  What truly is the promise of "Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." Are only "some" entitled to their lives, their liberties and their happiness while others are not? I, now being legally married in Massachusetts, do worry that my liberty and my pursuit of happiness will be taken away from me.
• Immigration law is steeped in politics, but a values discussion about the tablet Lady Liberty holds in her arms in New York harbor helps us to understand what was meant when we read the words: "Give me your tired, your poor huddled masses who yearn to be free."

Some may call it "meddlin," but I prefer to think of it as an honest, open discussion about who we are as a nation and a people, what we value most highly and what we're willing to fight for.

Some of you may have read the front page story in The New York Times on Thursday, June 3rd by David Kirkpatrick. The headline was "GOP Seeking Congregations for Bush Effort." It said 1,600 emails to "friendly congregations" went out that week.

I asked our minister if we received the email, but so far it doesn't seem to have arrived in our inbox….

Do not underestimate what was reported. And I quote:

"The Bush campaign is seeking to enlist thousands of religious congregations around the country in distributing campaign information and registering voters, according to an email message sent to many members of the clergy and others..." Steve Schmidt, a spokesman for the Bush administration, said "people of faith have as much right to participate in the political process as any other community and that email was about building the most sophisticated grass-roots presidential campaign in the country's history."

Further on in the article we do hear from some religious leaders in the conservative movement that said they are "troubled by the notion that a parishioner might distribute campaign information within a church or at a church service." One Southern Baptist minister, Richard Land, tells his followers to talk about the issues and take information from the two parties, but to vote their conscience. I don't often agree with many Southern Baptist ministers, but on this issue I could not agree more with Reverend Land.

I was shocked this week to read a follow-up article by Kirkpatrick, who reported what's happened since the Bush campaign sent its recent email. He reports: "Republicans in the House of Representatives have quietly introduced a measure to make it easier for churches to support political candidates, just days after the Bush campaign came under fire from liberal groups for inviting church members to distribute campaign information at their houses of worship." In the follow-up article Reverend Land, the Southern Baptist minister, modified his position and now says, "We don't think that churches should be endorsing candidates, but that should be a decision made by the churches, not by the government." Friends, this is a very slippery slope we're about to descend — and I know that I'm standing on the edge here this morning, but we must answer back!

It gets even more slippery and more scary for me when I remember the article I read of a recent book review — The Right Nation: Conservative Power in America. The authors conclude in their book that "conservatives have out-thought, out-organized, and out-hustled their competition." The authors point out that the most reliable indicator of whether people tilt toward the GOP isn't their income but whether they attend church. I'd say, let's invite them to THIS church!

Make no mistake about it, the religious right sees itself as a political force. And, so must we — doing it legally, ethically, and with UU morals and values. I am reminded that one of the reasons I am a Unitarian Universalist is that we believe that no one single religion, its books or scriptures hold the ultimate, Divine truth. Our hallmark is to know that we do not — and will not — live under a single "revealed" scripture. This is another slippery slide toward Fascist religious thinking.

You, I and all who believe in the separation of church and state must protect the right for religion and politics to maintain its separateness. If you believe, as I do, then you'd better get out the vote to protect what is most sacred to us as people of our faith.

It behooves me to understand why we are fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan so the people there will not have to live under a religious regime and by the fundamentalist scripture of the Koran... and here, in our own country, we are being railroaded into a culture that would have to live by the creed of the Old and New Testaments.

There is an understanding on the issue of state/church separation about which our UU ministers remind us. We can work actively from within our hallowed halls on value-based issues, but we are not to do the work of any specific politician or political party. Those are the rules we will live by — unless and until they are changed.

Someone should probably give a clue to Steve Schmidt, the Bush campaign official and Reverend Land. And, I might add a few bishops of the Catholic church, as well.

What we all can be certain of are the inherent tensions our society will face in this election and many others. How wide — or fine — is the line between the church/state separation? Are we a nation of rugged individualists or a nation that still believes in E Pluribus Unum… from many one… one for all and all for one? Does giving one group or person true liberty lessen liberty for others? This is where values meet politics.

Let us advocate for, fight for, organize and vote for the people and parties that believe in balanced justice, absolute equality, true liberty, separation of church and state and unbridled happiness for all.

I won't bore you with all the statistics I ran across in preparation for today's service. But, I must share just a few with you:

• In the 2000 election, only about one-half of the voting age population voted and that statistic has varied little in the past 50 years.
• The Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance has compiled data since 1945 among the 172 nations that hold competitive elections. The United States ranks 139th in average voter turnout.
• Insurance companies spent $311 million to influence government policy last year.
• The American auto industry spent $87 million since the last national election.

They vote with their dollars. We vote with our voice and our numbers.

Some of my friends have started to think of me as "out there" in my quest to include all in our democratic process. I take great solace in Dr. King's Letter from the Birmingham jail when he reminds me that he had to question his own extremism when confronted by his colleagues. I will work for love and not hate. I will be an advocate for the extension of justice to all. I, like Thomas Jefferson, do believe that "all are created equal."

I ask you…. How far are you willing to go? What are you willing to do? How hard will you fight to defend our democracy?

The author Margaret Atwood, a Canadian novelist, wrote a letter to America in the magazine, The Nation, on April 14th of 2003:

"Dear America:
This is a difficult letter to write, because I am no longer sure who you are. Some of you may be having the same trouble. I thought I knew you… You wrote some of my favorite books…you were Thoreau, the father of environmentalism, witness to individual conscience; and Walt Witman, singer of the great Republic; and Emily Dickenson, keeper of the private soul. You were Sinclair Lewis and Arthur Miller, who, with their own American idealism, went after the sham in you, because they thought you could do better. ….You have always wanted to be a city on a hill, a light to all nations, and for a while you were. Give me your tired, your poor, you sang, and for a while you meant it….. You have great spirits of the past you may call upon: men and women of courage, of conscience, of prescience. Summon them now, to stand with you, to inspire you, to defend the best in you. You need them."

Abraham Lincoln reminded us of our duty as citizens when he wrote: "Let us have faith that right makes might, and in faith, let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it."

My duty is to do all I can to bring as many disenfranchised citizens and bruised souls into the process of our fragile, unfolding democracy.

I want to live in an America that IS a light to all nations.

I still believe in Katharine Lee Bates' words when she wrote about the "patriots dream that sees beyond the years."

The idea of America is alive and well.

The ideals of America are out of focus.

Today from 1:00 to 3:00 we will be taking the first step to refocus and to do our best to add every voice to the democratic process …on the sand the Pilgrims landed upon. We invite you to join in.

Rev. Paige Getty, in her sermon on democracy titled, "Yes, I Will," ends by saying the words from our hymnal, Affirmation #457:

I am only one.
But still I am one.
I cannot do everything.
But still I can do something.
And because I cannot do everything,
I must to do the something that I can do.

Please join us downstairs this afternoon and, yourself, say,
"Yes, I will."

May it be so.

Postscript: I would like to thank the Unitarian Universalist Association, its web site, ministers who have shared their sermons on this subject and all the friends, colleagues, and notable sources who gave me inspiration, phrases, words, and support.

Unitarian Universalist Association
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