URI Midatlantic/Appalachia CC Gathering
August 12th, 2007
“Would you be interested?” A chance question in a phone call led nine CCs to take the initiative to gather a year later in a beautiful little valley in the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia for a “family reunion.” URI CCs blossomed in the Carolinas and Tennessee with the inspiration and guidance of Mary Page and Bennett Simms, and had gotten to know each other through quarterly meetings. So when Mary Page said “let us gather and meet our northern brethren,” gather they did, joined by CCs from Virginia, Baltimore, Washington DC, and Margi Ness and Sally Mahe.
Stream Ohrstrom, URI-DC, at the healing spring.
those morning clouds
hanging down between the mountains
in the prayerful quiet of running water and birdsong
lifted
as our united hearts radiated joy
a wellspring dedicated
to the healing of humanity.
peace — Stream Ohrstrom
“Would you be interested?” A chance question in a phone call led nine CCs to take the initiative to gather a year later in a beautiful little valley in the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia for a “family reunion.” URI CCs blossomed in the Carolinas and Tennessee with the inspiration and guidance of Mary Page and Bennett Simms, and had gotten to know each other through quarterly meetings. So when Mary Page said “let us gather and meet our northern brethren,” gather they did, joined by CCs from Virginia, Baltimore, Washington DC, and Margi Ness and Sally Mahe.
We gathered to get to know each other and share inspiration and renewal. We shared our CC’s best practices, stories and questions. We brought our drums, flutes, prayers and sacred poems, hymns, chants and humor. We shared our silence and contemplative presence, and our passion for love-in-action. Most of all, we brought our love, our respect, and our openness to each other.
and… did I mention the food?
Opening
It is said the many different materials used in making a basket can also teach us about living peacefully together for a common good.
The Yucca grows out in the sun. Its face is bold and determined; its fibers are strong and will last a long time.
The Juncus needs the shade of the oak tree and moist rich dark soil to grow tall and sturdy and will bend as needed.
The Deer Grass grows in the open meadow where the wind can blow it to and fro and the sun can dry it just enough.
When the Weaver gathers each of these, prayers are said.
And then taking them each differently prepares and begins to weave. Each material with its own characteristics begins to form one thing: a beautiful basket used for a common purpose.
Creator, here we are together, each of us unique in our own way.
Gather us up like the weaver gathers to make a basket. Weave us together as ONE this morning as we pray.
A Teaching & Prayer for An Interfaith Gathering — By Rev. Kathy Sandoval
Byron Ballard, Western NC Interfaith Network
What Powers Us? What Makes Our CC Gears Turn?
We began by ‘locating ourselves’ in the URI universe and its chaordic principles:
- Enduring in purpose and principle.
- Powered from the periphery, unified from the core.
- Existing to enable constituent parts.
- Equitably distributing power, rights, responsibilities and rewards.
- Fluid webs of cooperation and information.
- Cannot be managed, can only be led.
- Compatible with the human spirit and biosphere.
We reviewed how URI designed itself as a chaordic organization and chaordic principles are embedded in the Charter.
We located ourselves as CCs and as parts of URI in a “life cycle” – Where are we in the life developmental stages of URI? Some of us are exploring, some launching, some evolving, some transforming, some re-creating. We borrowed a metaphor from a children’s toy in which beautiful, unique, brightly-colored gears connect in an infinite number of ways.
They weren’t all connected initially, but all it took was for one gear to move a fraction of an inch and it would connect with other gears and increase interaction between all of them. The lightest touch could connect a lone gear with all the others and enable all the gears to be operating together. This was an excellent analogy to URI and showed the impact of our reaching out and embracing each other. – Julie Gordon, Hendersonville
The toy gears were powered from a central gear run by a battery, so we asked ourselves: “What powers us?” “What makes our CC gears turn?”
- What is it that gives your CC its power and positive potential?
- Something you do? The way that you are? Is it a key person?
- What gives you the power to hook up with others? In your community, in URI?
Here are some of our answers. They were so rich and so many, that it is difficult to do justice to them all. I hope others will find inspiration in this rich list, and contact the CCs mentioned for more information.
Communication
- Consistent, clear, accurate, simple, inclusive;
- Appropriate for different styles: phone calls, face to face, emails;
- Outreach: large mailing list (members, friends and supporters);
- Interviews for magazines;
- Inviting local newspaper publisher to participate;
- Connections with local academic community.
Leadership
- You have to cultivate and seek out your leadership. “grow a leaderful group;” Look for the skills someone has. We believe everyone has leadership capacity, and if we believe that, we will get it — and that’s true for all URI.
- What kind of leadership is needed? Shared leadership; shared decision-making; every imaginable kind of leadership.
- Need to plan for sustainability, prepare for transition; Need to attract people willing to be “grown;”
- Often a founder or main worker gets things going; Need to pass on leadership, need to divide tasks;
- Built-in succession, formal structure – (serve two years on Board, then move off) - Greenville;
- “Circle Model” – Hendersonville;
- Take turns leading meetings- (bring food, take notes, lead meeting) Charlottesville.
Avoid burnout by timing of annual cycle (Hendersonville)
“We breathe in – in the fall, and breathe out in the spring. With breathing space of no activities in the summer.”
- Fall – planning;
- December – major event;
- Spring – workshop series; (cooling down);
Programs/Events/Activities
- Programs attract people, broaden the scope of the group;
- Nonviolent communication – Hendersonville; grew from individual interest, spread to others: “passion sparked passion;” personal learning and growth; attracted others to teach and take this out;
- Events that blend into community – Charlottesville: All-faiths invocations before community events, Kick off festivals (films);
- Interfaith Concert – URI-DC;
- Project to foster dialogue - 90-minute workshop on Golden Rule – Greenville;
- Monthly prayer for peace, sponsored by different groups;
- Movie night; Reading books together; Going to each other’s place of worship or practice;
- Intl Day of Peace event – something to work together on ;
- Essay contest; Collaboration with schools;
- Enjoyment of each other – potluck at home, meal, hospitality.
- Study together: “Force More Powerful” series, “Deepening the American Dream,”
- Personal sharing and connection.
Other
- “We would put problems on the table, and if we were stuck we would go back and pray about it. And when we came back, it would be solved.”
- Read URI Preamble every time;
- When people are too busy to attend the meetings, they still show up at other places, talk about URI, and stay connected.
- Something people can join - give people involvement, voice.Open Space Afternoon
May our hearts be open
May our minds be open
May our ears be open.
- Stream
Frances Worthington, Greenville Interfaith Forum. Golden Rule Workshop
15 workshops in 4 hours…we ran around a lot, but it was fabulous!
- How to hold dialogue groups;
- Religious influence in world affairs;
- Introduction to nonviolent communication;
- Creating an interactive interfaith service;
- Using the Golden Rule Workshop;
- Communication;
- Circular model of leadership;
- The Trinity – connection of all great religions;
- Q & A about URI;
- Listening;
- Introduction to the work of Byron Katie;
- North America workplan input;
- Interfaith Jeopardy;
- Video of Festival of Faiths (Charlottesville);
- URI videos and URI- Europe slide show.
Sharing Evening
From the ethereal to laughing so hard we couldn’t breathe.
The Fine Print
Two of us found a space, put a deposit down, and invited everyone. Four of us planned it slowly over a year, with input from everyone. Our cost was low: $135 per person for the weekend, all meals, room and board. Materials were paid for from generous donations. We received a $600 planning grant from URI-North America, as well as help with some expenses.
Many thanks to all who helped make this gathering possible!
Participating CCs:
- Interfaith CC-Central Virginia (Charlottesville, VA)
- Interfaith Explorers CC (Northern Virginia)
- Interfaith Forum (Greenville, SC)
- United Religions of Charlotte
- URI of Baltimore
- URI of Henderson County
- URI of Washington DC
- Western NC Interfaith Network (Asheville, NC)
- Winston-Salem (in formation)
The time was brief yet full
of rich encounters
connecting us through shared stories, hopes, dreams
and red yarn.
Scattered now, we carry each other
lightly into a new day
forever joined.Until the wings of time unite us once again.
-Arlene Russell
Susanna McIlwaine
Interfaith Explorers, Northern Virginia.