Dear friends,

I am just back from a wonderful trip to attend the Unitarian Universalist Association General Assembly in Portland, Oregon. While most of the time with fellow UU’s from across the continent was uplifting, it was also marked by pain and anger as we received the official news from the Supreme Court on Friday morning overturning the longstanding precedent of Roe vs. Wade. The announcement in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturns the federal right to abortion that has existed in the United States for over fifty years. The decision is an assault on bodily autonomy, women’s health, and religious liberty, and will gravely impact people in marginalized groups. My eyes were filled with tears as UUA President Rev. Dr. Susan Frederick Gray addressed a full hall. While we knew this news was imminent, the reality of this decision set into our bodies and our bones. We also know this is not the end; other rights such as marriage equality and contraception access are threatened by future court decisions. Nor is it the end of our fight for justice and equity. As we heard at the rally that filled the streets in downtown Portland, it is just the beginning. As Gray proclaimed, “We will fight for every single one of us, and we will win, and we will not stop fighting until we win.” We are not alone and must join with those in our local community and other UU congregations across the country in this fight for justice.
~

Back on the East Coast, I am now finishing up three days of congregational work before I begin vacation and study leave for the month of July. If you email me on July 1st, you will receive an out-of-office away message. I will not be checking email on vacation days (I will be in the Adirondacks, Boston, and Maine), but I will respond to emergencies communicated to me through our Care Team. There will be a Care Team member available at all summer services to offer support and compassionate listening as well. During my study leave time, I will be reading, reflecting, learning, and writing in order to better serve as your minister in the year ahead. I look forward to seeing you again- in person on Wednesdays starting August 3rd and at our multi-platform worship service on Sunday, August 7th.

May summer be a time of rebalancing and rest, so that we may prepare our spirits for the long road to freedom ahead.

Blessings,
Rev. Terri