Since the attacks of September 11th, American citizens are experiencing heightened anxiety. Our sense of safety has been shaken. With the latest warnings to be on alert for possible terrorism and the flurry of Anthrax incidents, I find that I am ill at ease and angry. My mind is often filled with questions in an effort to find a renewed sense of composure and security. There was a warning about possible attacks on bridges and tunnels on a day that I had planned to travel to Cape Cod. I weighed the likelihood that the Sagamore Bridge would be targeted and then the probability that I would be driving over at that moment. The decision was fairly simple. I knew that it was more likely that I would be in a car accident than to be the victim of any attack and refused to stay at home just in case. However, as I rolled down the window of my car to symbolically throw my troubles into the Cape Cod Canal as I had done light-heartedly so many times before, I found that I was left with a feeling of heaviness.

This feeling continues as I hear and read reports of powder arriving in letters. Receiving mail has always been a joy for me. Each time I hear a story of someone opening a letter containing real or fake Anthrax I become angry. How could anyone do this? The sources of these letters remain mysterious. Many are hoaxes. It is possible that none of them are linked to September 11th but are instead the acts of individuals.

The threats of terrorism are real. Not only in the direct attacks, but in the ripple effect on tourism and our economy. Many people are suddenly facing job insecurity. Men and women of the armed forces are being called up to serve in the war effort. Our lives are forever changed by what has happened and we cannot go back to the way things were before. I recognize that my anxiety is only a fraction of what the people of Afghanistan and other war-torn parts of the world are experiencing. I find that this awareness makes me more committed to my religious values and to engage with the world at large as a Unitarian Universalist.

"Come dream a dream with me, that I might know your mind.
And I'll bring you hope when hope is hard to find.
And I'll bring a song of love
And a rose in the wintertime."

Dreaming is easier when we are feeling happy and secure. Picture a scene with beautiful flowers, doves taking flight, a young couple holding hands looking out into the future with reverie. I believe that this is why people often cry at weddings and ceremonies of union, the beauty, the hope; the pure connection is real but fleeting.

Daily living involves practical concerns and responsibilities. Part of becoming a mature citizen is learning what is expected of us and negotiating with other people. Only children and newlyweds are allowed to be "dreamy". There is a predominant view that in order to be successful we must take our heads out of the clouds and place our feet on solid ground.

This brings me to the poem by Langston Hughes a line of which is printed in your order of service:

Hold fast to dreams
for if dreams die
life is a broken-winged bird
that cannot fly.

Hold fast to dreams
for when dreams go
life is a barren field
frozen with snow.

Dreaming is not a waste of time nor is it something you get over, move past or grow too old for. To have a vision, to look beyond what is to what is possible, is what gives life wings. As Hughes writes so powerfully, a life of abandoned dreams is barren and cold like a field frozen with snow. Unlike the scene filled with flowers, doves, and music, Hughes paints a bleak picture of an existence that has little color, movement, or vitality. What I like about this poem is that it reminds us that dreaming is not a passive activity. "Hold fast to dreams". Hold on as if your life depends upon it, because it does.

This kind of dreaming involves hard work. Our Universalist ancestor, Clara Barton is a good example of someone who saw past convention to respond directly to the needs that surrounded her. She once said, "I have an almost complete disregard of precedent and a faith in the possibility of something done better. It irritates me to be told how things have always been done. I defy the tyranny of precedent. I cannot afford the luxury of a closed mind. I go for anything new that might improve the past."

In her lifetime, Barton was able to carry out her mission on a grand scale through the creation of the American Red Cross. However, what inspires me was that she was not afraid to roll-up her sleeves and go out into the battlefields herself. She brought hope to wounded soldiers of the Civil War by tending to them one by one.

Clara Barton is known as a heroine because of the depth of her commitment, her skill as a nurse, a public speaker and a visionary. In reading about her life, what is most remarkable was her ability to respond swiftly, to take the extra step that made a significant difference to others. The following true story demonstrates how both her resolve and generous spirit was an inspiration to those around her:

"When Clara Barton was taking wagon loads of supplies to the battle grounds, the drivers very stubbornly insisted they stop at the usual quitting time. Clara worried about the soldiers who desperately needed the supplies.
"The road was narrow and she couldn't get her own wagon past the other wagons. Instead of being angry, she got down, started a fire and cooked a good big meal. Then she invited all the teamsters to supper. After they had eaten, she didn't even have to say a word. One of them spoke up. 'Well men, what do you say we push on. We can get there probably before midnight.'" (from "Clara Barton Vignettes", UUWF)

We cannot all be like Clara Barton out there on the frontlines of disaster. However, no matter what our age, gender, skills, and physical ability, we can commit ourselves to living a purposeful life. This means not letting the busyness of daily activities cause us to let go of our personal dreams. It means climbing down off the wagon to serve up a good meal. Giving someone a rose just because you were thinking about them. Taking the time to truly listen to another person as they struggle with a problem. Remaining open to new ideas and differing perspectives, even if it poses a challenge to our own cherished beliefs. Like Clara Barton, we simply cannot afford the luxury of a closed mind.

One of my dreams is that in our efforts as individuals and as a church to become ever more open and inclusive, diverse and engaging, meaningful and fun, Channing Memorial Church will become known in the wider community. I have served this church for a little over a year. Invariably, I meet new people and they ask me what I do. When I tell them that I serve as the minister of Channing Memorial Church in Newport, the next question is usually, "Where is that church?" Being new to the area, I would chime in that it is on Pelham Street-- across from Touro Park-- near the Art Museum. I've now learned that when I continue to get blank stares to mention the Old Stone Mill or the Elks to which people's faces light up. "Oh, yeah, I know now. That church near the Elks!"

This is not to say that there aren't local people who are familiar with our church. Girl Scouts, AA, Gay AA, and NAMI meet regularly in the Parish Hall. Once a month we participate in the local Soup Kitchen program and folks who want a warm meal, find their way through our doors. The Folk Music Series has brought talented musician to play in our sanctuary bringing the gift of music to the wider community.

One of the greatest services that we provide is as a welcoming place for weddings of interfaith couples, people with no religious affiliation or those who do not have a local parish but want to be married in Newport. This weekend alone three weddings were held here.

One of my dreams is that we become more widely known than the church near the Elks. That folks on Aquidneck Island will know the location of the Unitarian Universalist church in town. Even if they are not members, I dream of people saying "That church does great things. Channing Memorial Church is an important part of Newport."

There is a joke that I included in our newsletter that a Unitarian Universalist missionary knocks on your door but does not know why. Like most humor, there is a grain of truth in the joke. Our principles uphold a respect for the individual and as a religion without a common creed, there is no doctrine for UU's to accept.
I am not suggesting that we begin knocking on doors and handing out leaflets. However, I ask you to join me in considering becoming a Unitarian Universalist evangelist. In the current environment of uncertainty, many people long for a place to reflect on the important values of life. Children and youth are afraid. No matter what reassurances they receive from their family and schoolteachers, children have questions about terrorism and war. Our religious education program provides guidance, a place for children to feel good about themselves while empowering them to make a difference through social service projects.

Many people simply do not realize that a church such as ours exists, drawing from many sources both secular and sacred for wisdom, where ministry is shared, and people are encouraged in a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. So many times, when I share our good news with people, they respond, "I have been a UU all my life. I just never knew it! I had no idea that there were other people like me." We have so much to be proud and thankful for here. Do not hesitate to spread our good news. Tell a friend. Invite a colleague.

An important step in our own spiritual growth is the realization that you do not "go" to church you "are" the church wherever you go. Members of Channing Memorial Church are not just Unitarian Universalists on Sundays. Our purposes and principles as religious people help to guide us Monday through Saturday as well. We demonstrate our beliefs not just by what we say but in how we spend our time and through the choices that we make. Like Clara Barton who enacted her Universalist faith in a loving God and the innate goodness of humankind, may we develop a deep Unitarian Universalist identity that motivates our actions.

One of the highlights of the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association is the Ware Lecture where truly prophetic men and women are invited to speak such as Rienhold Niebuhr, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Marion Wright Edelman. For GA 2001, the Ware lecturer was The Rev. Dr. James Forbes, Senior minister of Riverside Church in New York City an American Baptist congregation. Often it is an outsider who is able to hold up a mirror to help you see yourself more clearly. Forbes emphasized that although we are a relatively small association, our faith tradition has empowered outstanding humanitarian work through out the years. He challenged us to join him in the recruitment of human race activists: people who work with passion and commitment to make our own actions, our religious institutions, our local communities and the world more inclusive, democratic and just.

How can a little group like us transform the consciousness of this nation? Forbes offered the following Sufi tale:
"A stream from its source in far-off mountains passing through every kind and description of countryside, at last reached the sands of the desert. Just as it crossed every other barrier, the stream tried to cross this one but found that as fast as it ran into the sand its waters disappeared. It was convinced however that it was its destiny to cross the desert and yet there was no way. Now a hidden voice coming from the desert itself whispered 'The wind crosses the desert and so can the stream'. And the story says that the stream exclaimed 'How can we?' and the voice said 'Give yourself to the wind'. And the little stream gave itself to the wind and the wind took it to yonder mountain and dropped it gently as rain. And thereby the stream was able to cross the desert."

James Forbes understood our pluralism as Unitarian Universalists. He said that it was up to each of us to consider what the wind is according to our own beliefs. Whether we call it God, Mystery, Love, Life, Web of Life, or Collective Unconscious, when we yield ourselves to that wind it will take us across the barriers that now seem insurmountable. Behind every great achievement lies weeks or months or years of great effort, but every hope, aspiration, dream that is realized is also an act of faith. Life is a dream and a hope. In this time of uncertainty, let us not be mired in despair. Instead, let us join together as people of faith holding fast to dreams and inviting others to join us along the way.