I spent much of the summer at my home
in Portsmouth, England. Portsmouth is the home of the British Navy and my
apartment overlooks the harbor entrance. When I arrived, the USS George HW
Bush, one of the largest aircraft carriers in the world, was anchored just
outside the harbor, in sight of my apartment. It was good to see the U.S. Government was providing special security for my visit.
The UK Government must also have got
wind of my being in town. They also sent an aircraft carrier but not just any
aircraft carrier -- they sent Her Majesty’s Ship, HMS Queen Elizabeth, the
newest and largest vessel of the British Royal Navy. I was there to witness the
ship’s first entry into Portsmouth Harbor. Portsmouth will be the home port for
this aircraft carrier which is expected to be the Flagship of the British Royal
Navy for the next fifty years.
According to Rear Admiral Chris Parry,
aircraft carriers combine the sustainable reach of maritime platforms, the
striking power and versatility of aircraft, and the multi-role possibilities of
distinctly large chunks of deployable sovereign territory. Sustainability is an
important theme for this aircraft carrier and for my sermon today.
One last reflection on HMS Queen
Elizabeth: when the ship was launched in Scotland last year, rather than the
traditional champagne launch, it was a bottle of Scotch whisky that was smashed
against the hull to launch the ship. What a waste!
I want to start with some “What if?”
questions:
·
What if we focused on stewardship
rather than leadership?
·
What if we focused on thriving rather
than just surviving?
But what is stewardship and what is sustainability?
I like the definition of stewardship as
a theological belief that humans are responsible for the world, and should take
care of it for the greater good -- Humans are responsible for the world, and we should
take care of it for the greater good. It is about the careful and responsible
management of something or someone entrusted to our care.
The definition of sustainability that I
like is: something that can be continued or a practice that maintains a
condition, meeting current needs without harming our environment and without
sacrificing the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs by balancing environmental, economic, and social concerns. So,
something that can be continued without harming our environment.
So, let’s begin with
Environmental stewardship and sustainability
I am often impressed by the passion of
advocates who speak from this pulpit. Leah Rothschild who was our service
leader during the summer described herself as an eco-feminist which I found
described as someone who combines ecological concerns with feminist concerns,
both philosophically and politically.
Leah described her experiences of tree sitting, which is a form of
environmentalist civil disobedience in which a protester sits in a tree,
usually on a small platform built for the purpose, to protect it from being cut
down. Tree sitters are stewards of the trees and the forests.
I have never been a strong advocate; I
am not really an activist but, as some of you know, I am writing a book on
Conscious Leadership and conscious leaders stand for something. So, I have been
challenging myself about what I stand for.
So, I stand for non-violence, I stand
for freedom of speech but strongly believe in the philosophy of do no harm. I
also stand for protecting our environment.
Environmental stewardship refers to
responsible use and protection of the natural environment through conservation
and sustainable practices. We need to be good stewards of this earth.
Although the origin is uncertain, I
really like this quote: “We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we
borrow it from our children.” -- “We do not inherit the earth from our
ancestors; we borrow it from our children.” While I was in England last week, I
was told to expect another grandchild next spring. I am looking forward to
having another grandchild. But, what am I doing to protect the environment for
my children and grandchildren?
In my book, I have included the story
of the Patagonia organization. Yvon Chouinard is the founder and owner of
Patagonia, an organization that began life creating pitons and axes for the
sport of rock climbing. Chouinard soon realized they were becoming, in his
words, environment villains. The iron pitons hammered into the rocks caused
major damage.
After an ascent of the Nose in Yosemite
National Park, once pristine and considered impossible to climb, Chouinard
became disgusted with the degradation he had seen and, despite the pitons being
the mainstay of their business, decided they would phase out the piton
business. In the event, in 1972, they replaced the damaging iron pitons with
aluminum chocks that could be wedged in by hand and easily removed rather than
hammered in and out of cracks.
Patagonia has become a very successful,
environmentally conscious business and is now described as a supplier of
environmentally friendly clothes and equipment for silent sports, none of which
require a motor and where reward comes in moments of connection between people
and nature. I love that: moments of connection between people and nature.
In his book, Let My People Go Surfing,
Yvon Chouinard explains why he was in business. He said, “True, I wanted to
give money to environmental causes. But even more, I wanted to create in
Patagonia a model other businesses could look to in their own searches for
environmental stewardship and sustainability, just as our pitons and ice axes
were models for other equipment manufacturers.” This purpose is supported by a
mission statement which is: “Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm,
and use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental
crisis.”
An interesting tension exists between
“building the best product” and “causing no unnecessary harm”?
In an interview with Rick
Ridgeway, VP of public engagement at Patagonia, published in Conscious Company
Magazine, he talks about this tension.
Patagonia has replaced the chemistry in
the durable water resistant (DWR) coating on their shell jackets from one that
was causing some considerable harm on the environment through fluorocarbon
chemistry with one that is less harmful; but it is still harmful. In analyzing
and considering all the other potential replacements they have found that
coatings that do no harm to the environment last for only one or two years
instead of the fifteen or twenty years for the current jacket. Patagonia cannot
possibly be comfortable, much less complacent, with where they’re at, because
it’s not nearly good enough but they are working on it and they are being transparent
about it.
Environmental stewardship and the
importance of the sustainability of our planet for future generations cannot be
over-estimated despite what the U.S. president has to say about climate change
being a hoax invented by the Chinese. I support the Paris Climate Change
Agreement.
I have not yet seen Al Gore’s new
movie, The Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power but from what I hear, it is
optimistic perspective on just how close we are to a real energy revolution.
Apparently, he pursues the inspirational idea that while the stakes have never
been higher, the perils of climate change can be overcome with human ingenuity
and passion.
Bringing this closer to home, let me
mention the Climate Action Coalition of South Florida. I live on the beach and
I know the sea levels are rising. I expect Singer Island to be underwater at
some point in this century. I don’t think I can stop the sea levels rising but
I can join in the those seeking action. I encourage you to support the Climate
Action Coalition of South Florida and other environmental initiatives.
UU Stewardship
Let me move on to the stewardship and
sustainability of the First Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Palm
Beaches. As president of the Board of Trustees for this Congregation, I take
stewardship and sustainability of this Congregation very seriously.
Our next stewardship campaign is
some way off but I hope you will continue to be inspired to give generously in
support of our Congregation.
As Unitarian Universalist theologian Tom Owen-Towle once said, “Generosity involves openheartedness, the cardinal
ability to give lavishly of yourself to others, to the world around you, to the
divine communal Spirit in which we live, move, and have our beings.” He goes on
to say this “generosity undergirds and underwrites all other values.
Without generosity, one loves
sparingly, if not stingily;
without generosity, our acts of justice
happen rarely;
without generosity, we hoard our
precious gifts of time and soul and other resources.”
The tension between generosity and
stewardship challenges the Board of Trustees. We want to be generous and caring
for each individual and yet we must take action for the good of all. Decisions
we take are not taken lightly.
Some might say we are surviving quite
well even without a minister. So far this year, we are within budget. We are coping
without a minister. With the active support of so many of our Congregation, I
hope you will agree that we are doing more than just surviving -- we are thriving.
That doesn’t mean we are complacent. Selection teams are working diligently to
hire a settled minister for the long term and a contract minister for the short
term. I will be providing an update in my Life of the Congregation presentation
after the service today.
We have new members joining and
existing members are actively engaged. If you are ready to get more involved,
talk to members of the Board and members of the committees. Let’s continue to
move positively towards an increasingly thriving Congregation.
Personal stewardship
So, I have talked about environmental
stewardship and Congregational stewardship. I would like to end with a focus on
personal stewardship. For me, this is about choosing service over self-interest.
Peter Block, who I met in New York
about 20 years ago, wrote the book on stewardship. He wrote, stewardship is to
hold something in trust for another; a choice to act in service of the long run
and a choice to act in the service of those with little power. Although recognizing
that the idea of stewardship is somewhat elusive and suffers from ambiguity,
the practice of stewardship still provides a framework for thriving in the
complexity of this modern age.
Ultimately, we must make a choice
between service and self-interest. We exist in an age of self-interest and
entitlement. But can we come from a place of service? Can we ask, how may I
help you? How may I serve this person or this organization? How may I serve
this Congregation?
As I look for examples of conscious leaders,
I look for people who act responsibly for the good of all, not first and
foremost for their own self-interest. One source of inspiration is the Purpose
Prize™ -- an award that honors extraordinary individuals who use their life
experience to make a better future for all. I shared the story of Ysabel
Duron in my reading. There are many
other examples of exemplary stewards who have made a difference.
As I prepared this service, I was
reminded of our sixth and seventh UU principles:
6th Principle: The goal of world community with peace,
liberty, and justice for all;
7th Principle: Respect for the interdependent web of all
existence of which we are a part.
These principles run through this
message of stewardship and sustainability.
So, what are you called to do?
His Holiness the Dalai Lama said, “Today,
more than ever before, life must be characterized by a sense of universal
responsibility, not only nation to nation and human to human, but also human to
other forms of life.”
Today, October 15, is the 288th day of
the year 2017. There are 77 days remaining until the end of the year. What do
you stand for? What are you called to do before as we begin to plan for 2018?
So, let me come back to sustainability
and stewardship.
I have a growing passion for sustainability
of our planet. Last week, the European Union hosted the 4th edition of the Our
Ocean conference in Malta. At the conference, 437 tangible and measurable commitments were agreed.
Let me share one commitment. P&G Dish brands -- the world's
#1 selling handwashing liquid -- announced it will continue to use 8,000 metric
tonnes of recycled plastic per year in its transparent plastic bottles, using
an average of 40% Post-Consumer Recycled plastic content. P&G Dish Care are also using recovered beach plastic and
raising consumer awareness of the ocean plastic issue. These initiatives
complement P&G's support of the efforts of the Trash Free Seas Alliance to
dramatically reduce the flow of plastic into the world's oceans. Members of the
Trash Free Seas Alliance® aim to reduce and make continual progress toward
eliminating ocean trash.
There are a lot of good things
happening. I invite you to look for the causes that inspire you to encourage
the survivability of our planet.
Our Congregation is doing more than
surviving. I believe we are thriving while we search for a settled minister. I
appreciate every one of you, and all you do as stewards of our Congregation.
I invite you all to consider the
questions,
· How may I serve?
· How may I help sustain our environment whether it be our
planet, our country, our state of Florida, our County of Palm Beach, or our own
back yard?
· How may I help this Congregation to thrive?
Put service before self-interest. May it be so.
Sermon by Paul Ward, delivered from the 1stUUPB pulpit on October 15, 2017.
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