Thinking of Norbert

Norbert Capek was not just the inventor of the Flower Ceremony, he was a devoted father. So when Flower Sunday happened to fall on Fathers' Day, it was clearly time to talk about Capek's life. I realized by the response to what I said that this was a story unfamiliar to many members of our congregation. (Yes, I get it -- if I don't tell it, no one else will!) They didn't know he had re-planted Unitarianism in Czechoslovakia, that the teachings of his church about freedom of thought and growing your faith from within were considered treason once the Germans came, that he had died in a gas chamber after being worked nearly to death in Dachau.

It feels as if the channels for spreading UU stories to adult members of this congregation, for teaching the UU's of Manchester, New Hampshire, about our very own movement, are very thin. There's Sunday morning. There's the often unread newsletter. There's the library -- unfunded, and a new part of our enterprise, so not a really well-developed resource and not yet widely used. And there's the Adult Enrichment program, most effectively used for teaching spirituality these days. There's this blog, and its companion meant for the local community. I'm intrigued by the flow of comments on my Eagle Scout reflection -- maybe this channel is not as thin as I think.

Our own website is mostly used for sharing information about events, and the UUA's website is so big and complex, it's hard to know and access what's on it. I'm thinking that as the internet gets to be more like TV, it could be possible to share more stories that way. But could we do it well? accurately? attractively? And I'm wishing someone else would do it, of course. Days seem very long already. So much to share, so little time! And so few channels to attract and hold their attention!

I'll hold the good thought, do my best, and hope to say what needs to be said in ways that convey it to those ready to absorb. So much to do, so little time!