"Clouds of Witnesses:

Past, Present & Future"

A sermon by Dave Weissbard

delivered at

The Unitarian Universalist Church

Rockford, Illinois

04/24/05

The service began with a reading of "The Unitarian Jihad." It can be accessed at

The theme of our stewardship campaign this year, as if you could possibly have missed it, is “We Are Today’s Cloud of Witnesses.” The image became common in our congregation’s lexicon after a colleague of mine used it at a continental convocation of Unitarian Universalist ministers to refer to our colleagues who had gone before us. I thought it was equally apt in the context of our congregation and three years ago I began using it to link us to our heritage in this church. I stopped using it after a while, but resumed when people said how much they missed it.

The image is taken from the so-called “Letter to the Hebrews” in the Christian scriptures. The document was carelessly attributed to the apostle Paul, but reputable scholars are virtually unanimous in insisting that Paul was not the source – the style of writing, the form, and the Christology are quite different from those in the letters he is believed to have written. Actually, it is not even a letter. The purpose of the composition appears to be to caution some of the Jewish followers of Jesus that they should not backslide into elements of their former, inferior (in the eyes of the author) faith.

When Unitarian Universalists turn to the Bible, we have to be careful in our selections, and this is no exception. At the end of Chapter 11, the author lists a number of Hebrew leaders:

. . who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, [and] put foreign armies to flight. Yet all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised since God had provided something better so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect.

In other words, only Jesus and his followers could really deliver salvation, no matter how great the earlier witnesses were. Then, at the beginning of Chapter 12 comes the section from which we have carefully chosen phrases. What it actually says is:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.

The author insisted that the cloud of witnesses were important, but inferior because they did not have what was most important, which was Jesus. Our use of the image is, therefore, a bit of a stretch. It is not our belief that our cloud of witnesses were inferior because of their ignorance of truths subsequently revealed to us. They are inspirations to us because of the good faith with which they created and sustained this church. [I will come back to “the sin that clings so closely,” later.]

There are people who discover a Unitarian Universalist church and assume it must be a new thing. Matthew Gatheringwater was telling me about being in Bible classes and sharing 19^th century Unitarian scholarship on the Bible that even professors insisted must be contemporary. While elements of our church have changed with the times, we have a strong sense of our continuity with our founders. Channing went beyond Michael Servetus. Emerson and Parker pushed beyond Channing’s Unitarian Christianity; Francis Abbot’s “Fifty Affirmations” from 1870, and William Channing Gannet’s “Things Commonly Believed Among Us” from 1887 moved us further from those Christian roots, while not rejecting them. These were among our cloud of witnesses.

Two weeks ago I directed attention to Dr. Thomas Kerr, minister of this congregation from 1870 until 1900, and, at least in name, until his death in 1904. He was a critical element in the history of this church. But there is a problem with tracing the history of a church only by reference to its ministers: as much as it simplifies the process, it also distorts the reality.

I want to try to redress that by speaking this morning of some of the people who really populated our cloud of witnesses, who ran with perseverance the race of keeping liberal religion alive in Rockford for these 154 years.

Dr. Kerr would not have succeeded were it not for the people, Baptist and Unitarian, who were drawn to his message and provided the means for him to preach and serve the community. The Baptist heretics alone could not have done it.

Permit me to briefly recapitulate what I said 2 weeks ago about that early history. Thatcher Blake, one of the first two settlers of European descent on the west side of the Rock River, was a Unitarian from New England and what we would today call a developer. He attracted many other New England Unitarians to the new community. In February, 1841, Richard Montague, Isaac Cunningham, Francis Burnap, Ephraim Wyman and James Wight were elected trustees of a Unitarian Society, and raised $160 in pledges to support a Unitarian minister. The same year, a Universalist church was formally organized with Daniel Haight, Ezra Dorman, and Thomas Thatcher as trustees. The Universalist Church never really took hold and most of its members started worshiping with the Unitarians. After relying on visiting ministers for eight years, the Unitarians finally settled a minister in 1849, but his was just the first of several brief ministries – they kept trying, but somehow the money would run out. One historian suggested that the problem may have been that the Universalists were more conservative and withheld money when they found the preachers too liberal.

When Dr. Kerr broke with the Baptist Church in 1870, more than half of the charter members of his new congregation were stalwarts from the Unitarian Universalist congregation. While it was, in theory, a new and independent church with no denominational affiliation, in truth, the supposedly new church was Unitarian and had clear and enduring links to the Western Unitarian Conference, which was the liberal side of our family.

It was the loyal members of the congregation who supported the construction of a building to house the church in 1888. H.H. Waldo, who was one of the charter members, pointed out in a letter to the congregation in 1899:

I have attended every service in the last twenty-nine years, and I can truthfully and cheerfully give my testimony that in so doing, I have received more profitable instruction and more helpful suggestions as to correct living than in all the schools in which it has been my fortune to attend. . . .

If all to whom this letter is sent, both old and young, will make the resolution to be regular in attendance upon the services of the church the coming year, and make the thirtieth year . . . it would become another instance of “blessing him that gives and him that receives.”

Of one thing I am sure, that if all of the people in Rockford who are in sympathy and accord with “untrammeled inquiry” on all matters of Scientific thought and Religious convictions would unite in its support, the tax would be very small in proportion to the benefits received.

This was, apparently an early canvass letter written by one of our cloud of witnesses. By that time, the Porter and Rugg families, members of both of which were still active when I began my ministry here, were involved in the church.

Francie Barnes’ ancestors here actually predated Dr. Kerr’s new church – Meredith and Lucretia Starr came here in 1856, and Lucretia how happy she was to be greeted by a Unitarian Minister. And the Addison Browns who came about the same time, and were close to the Starrs, are also Francie’s ancestors. [Pete Anderson is also a descendant of the Starrs.] Francie probably has the deepest roots of anyone in our present cloud. Francie’s mother, Debby, was, of course, to marry David, the son of Charles Parker Connolly, who was minister from 1913-1942. If the word “witnesses” has any meaning at all, it includes Debby & Dave Connolly, and equally Dr. Connolly’s daughter Sally and her husband Paul Caskey, parents of Dave Caskey. Sally was at one time a member of the Board of Trustees of the American Unitarian Association. They are certainly residents of our cloud.

Cousie Fox, who was director of religious education for many years, and who was a generous benefactor of the church when she died at 100, told me that she remembered hearing Dr. Kerr preach. She joined during a period when no dates were recorded, but it was near the end of the 19^th or beginning of the 20^th century.

Margaret Rugg Quinlan was the next longest term member of the congregation when I arrived - her family, the Ruggs, had joined during the 19^th century, and Marg herself joined in 1908.

Elizabeth Peers Rogers’ parents had been members, and Betty herself joined in 1920.

As I noted in the newsletter following my sermon on Dr. Kerr, I neglected to mention his family which was active in the church. His granddaughter, Helen Dick, married Howard Countryman, and she became a pillar of this church. One of the women’s circles in the church when I first arrived was named after her. Her son, Dr. Dick Countryman also grew up in this church and was part of our cloud of witnesses.

Scotti Lichtenheld’s father, Andrew Gillett joined this church in 1918, so Scotti’s roots are by no means insignificant. Scottie became a member in 1940 which, I believe, makes her our senior member in longevity – 65 years!

Alice Porter Webb joined in 1920. Alice was one of the delightful senior members when I arrived. Also joining that year was Carrie Ashton Johnson whose son, Ash married Mabel who was one of my all-time favorite Unitarians. Mabel and Alice were close friends and when they were in their nineties they used to spend hours on the phone every night – they didn’t sleep much - so they would talk together about liberal politics.

Elva Olander joined in 1920, and she married Forrest Lyddon, who subsequently became one of the pillars of the church. Forrie was most proud of having designed Lincoln Junior High, now Lincoln Middle School.

Hans & Theresa Zack Hanitz became members in 1925. They were the parents of Elizanne, who married Walt Lewis and became the mother of Steve who married Pat. Steve spoke last night about how both of their sons, although not attending church and marrying Catholic girls, had Unitarian Weddings – I officiated at one and Nancy McDonald at the other.

One of Rockford’s outstanding educators, Dr. Mildred Berry became a member of this church in 1927 and remained a member until her death.

Florence Schenck, who was for many years the bursar at Rockford College, also appears first in the membership record in 1928, although she maintained that she had actually joined earlier. Florence was another of our beloved older members who was still attending church regularly when she was 102.

Wil Lindberg joined the church in 1946, and while he is living in Arizona, his daughter Norma is still very much with us.

In 1947, two dynamos, Anne & Winfield Foster became members of the church. Wink served the church in many capacities – he was a long time treasurer. Anne made her presence felt in virtually every area of church life – from the worship committee to membership committee, to church school, to the ministerial search committee which persuaded me to come to Rockford. Their sons Ed and Jack continue the Foster tradition in the church.

Barent Johnson also joined the church in 1947, and his wife Liz joined two years later. Barent served for a time as Religious Education Director; Liz has participated in a variety of ways over the years.

1950 was a big year: Hub and Lotta Eklund, Kay and Del Hotchkiss, Bob and Elna Culbertson and Lois McDowell were among the 58 who joined. What a year!

Bille Whitsitt and Evelyn and Stu Johnson, Lit and Jeanette Schulein and Esther Erickson joined in ‘51. The following year we welcomed Floyd and Evelyn Palm, Verna Hays, Dan and Berget Shuey, and Jesse and Dorothy Frederick. Ruby Manson, Suzanne Cunningham, Norah Borland, Bernice Baldwin and Janice Scott became members. [The last two, for those who do not know are the grandmother and mother of our outgoing mayor.

Fifty years ago, in 1955, Bill and Janet Paulson, and Malcolm and Margaret McFadyen are prominent among those who became members.

Now, for some of, many of these are just names; for others each of them call back powerful memories of profound service to this congregation – and I’ve only reached 50 years ago.

• If you joined this church between 1956 and 1978, will you please stand as you are able.

• If you have become a member since 1979, will you please stand as you are able.

• If you have been a member of the board of Trustees, will you please stand as you are able.

• If you have served on one or more committees or taught in the church school, will you please stand as you are able.

I am an alumnus of the St Lawrence University. St. Lawrence was the treasurer of the Christian church in Rome. During Valerian’s persecution of the Christians in 258, Lawrence distributed the treasury among the members of the church before he was arrested. When he was asked where the wealth was, according to the legend, he led the Emperor out onto the balcony and pointed to the people and said, “Behold the wealth of the church.” He meant it in a specific sense, but I use it equally in the broad sense. We, in this church, are the beneficiaries of the courage and commitment of a great cloud of witnesses who have worked over the past 154 years to keep liberal religion alive in this community. Here is the wealth of this church. We are now members of today’s cloud of witnesses and it is our charge to “run with perseverance the race that is set before us” so we can pass this church on to those who come after us at least as strong as it came to us.

Friends, there is more to this story. While it is our belief that the members are the church and own the church, there are times when the practice is to hold back tough news from the members in order to present an enthusiastic positive picture. The problem with that is, when people make their decisions on inadequate data, they may then be faced with unpleasant consequences.

Last night, many of you heard how wonderful the results of the canvass of church leadership have been. We have raised enough money with the preliminary canvass to carry us through mid-December. That’s great, but would you like me to share “the rest of the story?”

The truth is that the budget we need for next year to maintain the present program of the church and provide for the beginning of a major repair reserve, the increased custodial salary you voted, increased utilities, Fusion, and a full share to the UUA requires a significant increase in pledges, and the money raised so far does not reflect those kinds of increases. If we continue at the pace that has been set, we are in for very harsh consequences.

My family is not atypical of the leadership givers. Our pledge has increased over the years in response to the need. I have always believed in a pledge equal to 5% of our gross family income. Last year we gave almost 6%: on a combined gross income of $126,000, we pledged $7,111 - that made us the 6^th highest contributors, and I can assure you our income does not rank 6^th. This year, we only rounded up to $7,200 because we anticipate little if any increases in income. There are other leadership givers who find themselves in the same place, hence our increase from our lead givers so far is way behind what it needs to be to meet the church’s needs.

Let me tell you the bad news and the good news. We have all the resources in this congregation we need, and then some. The bad news is that many of our members do not understand what it means to support the church. 40% of our members contribute less to the church each year than the cost of classic cable service. I would suggest four reasons:

4. Some are complacent and have never seriously considered the responsibility of being a recipient of what our cloud of witnesses has bestowed upon us.

There is little we can do about groups one and two, and the changes group three desires are not what the majority want. That takes us to the complacent, which I suggest represent a significant portion of our “modest” givers. The problem is, we are here and they are satisfied so they figure they can just keep on keeping on as they have. “I’ll do the same again” is a phrase canvassers hear far too often.

Clearly it would take a miracle to bring about a change. I want to share a story that gives me hope. Last year at this time, a canvasser called my attention to a new pledge which represented a 1000% increase in what the member had been giving. The new pledge was 10 times the old! That seemed extreme so I sought out the member. I expressed concern that this pledge was out of line for someone with modest resources and as minister I did not want an unrealistic pledge that would be hard to keep up to create an obstacle to anyone’s participation. The member explained that their spouse was a member of a church which expected 10% of gross income, and the spouse paid it. This person had to face whether this church meant as much to them as their spouses’ church did to their spouse. It did, hence the pledge. I elicited a promise to reduce the pledge if it became a burden. It did not, and the pledge has already been renewed for next year. I talked with that member yesterday and was told how satisfying it has been to support our church at that level.

I am confident that there are some people here today who, if they thought seriously about the meaning of this church in their lives, could contribute 5 times as much as they are currently giving, some 2 times as much, or 3 or 4 times. $2,000 could be $3,000; $1,000 could be $2,000 or $3,000; $500 could be $1,000. If we do not receive a number of

No one but you can decide what this church means to you, and no one but you knows your resources and obligations. What I do know is that the average of the pledges received so far is $3,500. The average giving last year of the pledges not yet received is $746. Some cannot increase, so that makes it all the more important that those who have the means take their responsibility seriously and do what they can to carry their share of the responsibility for this church today and tomorrow.

I tell you the truth because I respect you and I respect your commitment to the church. I would never ask you to do any more than you can. All I am asking is that you do what you can.