November 2016 meeting for reverence turns into a commentary on a key world event #unitarians

Our service leaders are nothing if not adaptable!

This month our president for the day, for 13th November, had been planning to dwell on an ethics of identity.  So in the light of the announcement on 9th November of the name of the President-Elect, who in January 2017 will become 45th President of the United States of America, our leader adapted our service, whilst holding to the topic “Who do they say I am?”

In the light of the news, in a gathering that focused on who we say others are, and what narratives we allow to be built up around us, which can lead to persecution and hardship for others, we contemplated the documentary references below.  What do we allow to be said about others?  Do we challenge stereotypes and falsehoods?

We were glad to welcome four new faces on Sunday, some of whom we hope to see again at another of our meetings for reverence.

The Bible, Good News Translation

Mark Chapter 8

http://www.biblestudytools.com/gnt/mark/8.html

27  Then Jesus and his disciples went away to the villages near Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, "Tell me, who do people say I am?"

28  "Some say that you are John the Baptist," they answered; "others say that you are Elijah, while others say that you are one of the prophets." 

29  "What about you?" he asked them. "Who do you say I am?" Peter answered, "You are the Messiah." 

30  Then Jesus ordered them, "Do not tell anyone about me." 

31  Then Jesus began to teach his disciples: "The Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law. He will be put to death, but three days later he will rise to life." 

32  He made this very clear to them. So Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 

33  But Jesus turned around, looked at his disciples, and rebuked Peter. "Get away from me, Satan," he said. "Your thoughts don't come from God but from human nature!" 

The Apology by Plato (Socrates’ apology to the men of Athens, as recorded by Plato)

<a href="http://worldartsme.com/">WorldArtsMe</a>

http://www.sjsu.edu/people/james.lindahl/courses/Phil70A/s3/apology.pdf

  

“So let us take up from the beginning what the accusation is, from which has arisen the slander against me. ..... What did the slanderers say to slander me? Their sworn statement, just as though they were accusers, must be read: “Socrates does injustice and is meddlesome, by investigating the things under the earth and the heavenly things, and by making the weaker speech the stronger, and by teaching others these same things.” ... ...You yourselves also used to see these things in the comedy of Aristophanes: a certain Socrates was carried around there, claiming that he was treading on air and spouting much other drivel about which I have no expertise, either much or little. And I do not say this to dishonour this sort of knowledge, if anyone is wise in such things; but in fact I, men of Athens, have no share in these things.”