Minister’s Column

This week I had a dream that I remembered vividly upon waking. In the dream, I was seeing many of my dear friends from high school – and greeting them with hugs. I woke up feeling in my bones how much I miss hugging friends as this coronavirus social distancing continues. And the feeling of connection and knowing that I was loved stayed with me after waking up.
 
A few days ago, the alumni of my seminary held a vespers service on Zoom. It is always a curious and wonderful thing to be in a worship service full of other ministers. When I’ve experienced that in person, I’ve noticed that UU ministers will say “preach” out loud in worship service more than most UU’s. In this Zoom service, they even found a way to do that virtually by using the chat box.
 
But the thing that was moving about the experience was the feeling of connecting with old friends. Like my high school classmates, my seminary classmates and I share a bond of connection through a formative period of life. At the worship service, my friend Monica greeted me and together we remembered an experience we had two years ago in a class together: as part of a class presentation, one day we were dancing and singing along to the song “Hell You Talmbout.” It’s a song about saying the names of victims of police violence. Awareness of racial injustice brought us together as seminary students, and it brought us together again this week for the vespers service.
 
We all need to know that we have people we belong to. I think that’s why a lot of people join and stay with a congregation. I had that feeling with my high school friends in my dream—separated by many years and even by consciousness. And I had that feeling with my seminary friends on a Zoom worship call—separated by a few years and by the miles between us. May we all know that we can find our people. May we all know that we are loved and not alone.
 
Prayer:
God of many names and no name, be with me now. Bless Craig and Mike, whom I was hugging in my dream; bless Monica and Bill whom I saw on the Zoom worship call.
 
May friendship and belonging bless all people. May we all know that distance and time do not separate us from the ones we love.
 
May those who seek friendship and belonging in this Fellowship find it here. We know when we have found our people, and it is a precious feeling.
 
May everyone find their family, their tribe, and know they are loved and welcome there. And may all of us know that we are part of the great tribe, the great family that includes all of humanity.
 
May it be so.

Andrew Frantz