This sermon was given by Rev. Judith Campbell at Stevens Chapel on June 1, 2003.

The 7th Principle, "Respect for the Interdependent Web of All Existence"

The seventh principle and concluding sermon in this year long series reads: We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote "Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part".

I had always thought this would be the easy one. I mean, who can’t love and respect and value and wonder at the interdependent web of all existence? And it is increasingly dramatic and wondrous, miraculous even, as we learn more and more about these interdependencies through the discoveries of science.

Those of us who can remember the eruption of Mt St Helens volcano will also remember the brilliant sunsets we had here in the east for weeks as a result of a natural occurrence over three thousand miles away.

And now that we realize that we are all connected through our basic chemistry to everything on this planet earth, and by understanding our DNA, we realize we really are brothers and sisters all, and as such we are all keepers and defenders of each other and this mother earth. And after I finish saying all of that, where do I begin? And what can I say that hasn’t been said before? (the answer to that is Nothing really!) Or, what can I say that I haven’t said before? (and the answer to that is not much!!!? So how do I say it in a way that is interesting and informative for all of us, myself included and not a rehash of platitudes?

You see, because the concept of the interdependent web is as broad as the web itself - and the interconnections are so many and so complicated - in beginning this sermon, I overwhelmed myself! And then I decided to take a look at the Key words and concepts, which are "interdependent", "web of existence", and "we are a part". It was the word interdependent which stood out for me, and that’s where the sermon was for me.

Human interdependence and the curious way so many of us embrace the concept but not the practice!

You see, we can all accept the interdependence of all things when it comes to ecological symbiosis; things like: the little ants eating the aphids off my one peony bud so it will bloom rather than be eaten, the food chain, the importance of temporary but vital vernal pools to the very existence of certain little salamanders and pinkletinky creature. And we can certainly understand many of our own interdependence with animals. Consider a dog or cat or horse lover and think about the emotional and, yes, even the spiritual interdependent bond between us and our animals. It is real and it is vital to both, and safe because it is non-critical and unconditional

We can think about this lovely interdependence intellectually and spiritually in any number of ways. We can think about it on a personal scale when we think of how we ourselves relate to and depend upon our immediate surroundings, the food we grow, the gardens we tend and the people we love. And because of scientific exploration and through the power of mass communication we can consider it on the global and even the intergalactic scale when we think about acid rain, global warming and even "Space-junk" on the moon and flying around in all of our universe courtesy of our international space programs.

And to be sure, most of us at least try to respect the interdependence of all OTHER things. I find that many of us fall way short on the interdependence part when it comes to actually admitting or actually being dependent upon another person, dependent children of course excluded. And here is the thing I have said - but I think it needs repeating - we respect and promote the interdependent web of existence in all things except perhaps each other. And by that I mean, too many of us are congenitally opposed to asking anyone for help, and morbidly afraid of being dependent upon or beholden to another. Many of us would do just about anything before we would ask for help. (just ask my husband!) But I think that any one of us has had the experience of being lost and driving around in circles for hours in a car by a person whose gender shall remain unstated be cause that person would not admit a need and ask for directions!

You all know why the Israelites wandered in the desert for forty years don’t you? Because Moses refused to ask for directions. A woman would have called the Ancient Egyptian equivalent of AAA and had the trip planned complete with "Potty breaks" and juice boxes and been there in a week! And before some of you of a different gender start feeling too smug, I might just know one or two women who, almost paralyzed by multitasking, would flat out perish before they would ask for a bit of help with the housecleaning or a trip to the grocery store or a bit of dusting before their mother or mother-in-law came for the weekend!

What is it about us, all of us, that makes us so loathe to be dependent on or beholden to another human, when each and every of the same one of us is just as anxious to be a helpful and supportive friend and family member? I wish I knew. Most people I know want to help, want to make a difference, want to lighten the load for another; and at the same time most of us would rather die than ask for the same help we are so willing to give.

And while we willingly extend our hands to help and to sustain the balance, far too many of us can’t ask for help and sustenance ourselves. In the self-imposed loneliness of an increasingly electronic society and culture which permits more and more people to never leave their computer, even to go to the grocery store, many of us are without the support and, yes, the interdependence that a more agrarian and even the early industrial age offered us. We are becoming a generation of loners: kids in front of video games instead of playing a pick-up basketball game, people chatting on-line instead of over coffee, even consulting our health care providers on line, when a little human contact is what is really needed and would be so beneficial. Someone to listen.

I know of a woman who, even though she wasn’t contemplating suicide, regularly called the "Samaritans" just to have someone to talk to in the night. (She made sure they had "call waiting" so someone in real need would not be left un-helped.) She had no support system and didn’t know how to go about establishing one. She called the Samaritans. Someone to listen.

In the time of our grandmothers and great grandmothers, members of a community had ways of establishing support groups, things like quilting bees, barn raisings and sheep shearings happened within the community as a way to get something specific done, and provide a chance for members of a community to strengthen the bonds that connected them.

Incidentally, I would not be giving this kind of a sermon to an Amish community, where interdependence is an unspoken and yet integral part of their religion and their spirituality. But by many they are considered otherworldly and hopelessly old fashioned. I’m not so sure.

In place of cultural or religious interdependence some of us, who feel the need of a meaningful connection to another human being, have "support" groups, and they are vital connections for people who want and need them! Our men’s group and our women’s group can be support groups for the people who attend them. There is movement within our denomination, especially in larger churches where that "personal/family" everybody knows everybody feeling seems to be absent, there is a movement to establish what UU’s are calling "small group" ministries. A small group ministry is a covenant group of 8-10 people who agree to meet for a number of weeks for a specific purpose. It might be study, it might be social action, it might be prayer and spirituality. In this way, a small group of individuals is connected to one another in a meaningful way, and the group itself is connected to the larger community in a meaningful way. It is an interdependent web where, like other support groups, humans come out from behind their desks, their computers and their designer sunglasses and look at each other and even - dare I say it - lean on each other!

Probably the best and most effective support group, planet wide, is AA, or any of the variations of the 12 step recovery movement. It is the most beautiful and powerful and effective example of human interdependence I can think of. And two of the most important aspects of the program are, the first step, "admitting we were powerless over whatever we are doing that is harming us" and, in addition to the other 11 steps, getting a sponsor, asking another human being to hold your hand hard and be there for you and help you as you move through each day, one day at a time.

You can go to AA meetings all over the world literally, and you are "family".

It’s so sad that it takes "hitting bottom" for some of us to realize just how much we need one another and how deeply we can be connected, if we want to, if we admit it.

Recently, this way of looking at the interdependence of things has come to be called a systems approach where each part of a system has an individual job or role, but is absolutely and vitally connected to the efficiency and the health of the whole.

Interdependence. A spiritually healthy and growing church family should be an interdependent unit with each of us sharing the gifts and responsibilities and challenges of membership, .which means among other things, asking for yourself as well as offering of yourself and keeping a healthy balance within the community and beyond.

So then, if we look at the larger picture, we see the interdependence and the symbiosis of living things and natural resources, we see the rise and fall of species, we see our connection with the other living inhabitants to the rhythms of the sun and the moon and the rotation of the planet upon its axis. And while the human sector of the interdependent web is just one part of the larger whole, we are the only ones who can make decisions and take action about the future of this precious interwoven relationship both amongst ourselves and in relationship to the larger picture. And we must shoulder that responsibility, or possibly risk losing everything.

Here is where we as a little unit, this church, part of a larger unit, our denomination, part of a larger unit, world community, we must not look away. We can not ignore the reality that something we might do, something we create or destroy or relocate (Import just one little plant for our garden…)can have repercussions far beyond our the limits of our immediate thinking.

When the nuclear plant in Chernobyl Russia exploded, sheep sickened and died in Wales from the fallout. And for three years, until the atmosphere righted itself, sheep farmers were left unable to make a living.

Now as never before we must be local and global at the same time. That’s why we’re here. And that’s why, as we welcome and integrate our new members, we will connect to that local and global interdependence and responsibility, whether it be through the caring committee, a habitat home, a healthy cow for a rural village in Nicaragua, a crop walk or a peace rally. We have the power of butterfly wings to effect wind currents if we think about it. One hand and one heart at a time.

Blessed be.