Our Unitarian Universalist principles support the seeking of religious truth based on personal experiences, and on respecting others’ searches, wherever they may take them. But do we really live up to our principles? Or do we tend to characterize certain fundamentalist or orthodox searches as misguided and naïve? And can we truly embrace religious tolerance without sacrificing a commitment to justice in the world? We’ll look at these questions with the aim of finding a bridge between personal faith and social interdependence.
Jeanette Leardi is a Portland, Oregon, social gerontologist, writer, editor, and community educator who holds a master’s degree with honors in English from Rutgers University and a Graduate Certificate in Gerontology from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. A national reporter and blogger on aging issues, she has been on the staff of Newsweek, Life, People, Condé Nast Traveler, and Sesame Street magazines and The Charlotte Observer newspaper. She gives presentations and workshops on journaling, spiritual writing, memoir writing, personal mythmaking, brain fitness, creativity, and caregiver support to students ranging from teenagers to centenarians. A Unitarian Universalist for nearly 30 years, Jeanette has led many U.U. services for congregations in North and South Carolina as well as in Massachusetts and the Portland metropolitan area.
Topics: Unitarian Universalism