Dear Ones,
I’m writing to you with an update on the UUA position on Gaza, released on Feb. 14, condemning the violence and urging a ceasefire.
“There are crystallizing moments in the course of history when, in spite of the differences that exist among us, our common reverence for life demands that we speak with moral courage and clarity on the side of love.
As people of faith and conviction, Unitarian Universalists share a belief that every human life is sacred, endowed with worth and dignity from the moment of birth, with no person more deserving of freedom and flourishing than any other.
Our living tradition has long maintained that the only hells that exist are those that we create for one another, here on earth. We are watching in real time as the people of Gaza exist in a human-made hell that grows more unimaginable every day.”
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My priority at this time is to support KUUF members experiencing anguish as you grapple with the reality of the conflict. My approach to supporting the whole congregation is to offer direct pastoral care, consult with the Healthy Communications team, and offer guidance to our Board of Trustees.
Given my limited quarter-time hours with you, I am prioritizing listening and pastoral care for those of you most directly affected. If you have direct ties to the Gaza conflict or if you and your family are being targeted due to your Muslim-UU or Jewish-UU identity, please contact me directly for pastoral care: minister{at}kuuf.org.
On 3/17, following the Sunday service, there will be a Listening Circle for any of you at KUUF who wish to gather and lament, and share from the heart. This circle will be a time for grief and for hope to be heard. The Healthy Communications, Social Justice, and Pastoral Care teams are working together to hold this circle of care for you in this moral and spiritual crisis.
At this time, many groups, including in Kitsap County, continue to provide humanitarian relief, educational events and organize protests to raise awareness. Though I do not yet know how you, as members and friends of KUUF, will choose to respond to the UUA’s moral call, I do know that I will be with you and alongside you in this, with love and with compassion, as your minister.
Let us keep the faith in a vision of a world made whole, by our compassion and our love.
Rev. Victoria
With gratitude,
Victoria
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Rev. Victoria Poling (she/her)