In this episode of the Hope and Heresy podcast, Rev. Peggy and Rev. Sarah are joined by Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray, Ninth President of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) and Carey McDonald, Executive Vice President at the UUA, to discuss the question at the heart this season of the podcast: What is the Central Task for Humanity at this Moment in History? In this episode, we phrased the question a bit differently, asking, "If you could wave a magic wand and fix or change one thing about the world, what would it be?"
Our hosts and guests discuss the impacts of intergenerational trauma, the transformative potentials of imagination and justice-centered love, and the power of relationships built around shared values to motivate us to keep showing up and fighting in an environment of oppression
About this week's guests:
Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray is the ninth president of the Unitarian Universalist Association. She was elected in June 2017 to a six-year term after serving congregations in Arizona, Ohio, and Tennessee. After leading the Unitarian Universalist response to Arizona’s anti-immigrant laws in 2010, she became lead organizer for the Arizona Immigration Ministry, among her other activism. She now lives in Massachusetts with her husband, Rev. Brian Frederick-Gray, and their son, Henry.
Carey McDonald is the UUA's Executive Vice President, helping to lead the organization in fulfilling its mission and overseeing staff operations. He previously served as the UUA's Outreach Director and as the Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries, and is a former lay member of the UUA Ministerial Fellowship Committee and the Skinner House Books Board. Prior to joining the UUA, Carey worked in educational policy with the Ohio House of Representatives and the Ohio Department of Education. Carey is a seventh generation Unitarian Universalist and a member of First Parish in Malden, MA and the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbus, Ohio. He was active in Columbus as a youth leader in the Ohio Meadville District Youth Adult Committee and with Diverse and Revolutionary UU Multicultural Ministries (DRUUMM). Carey holds a bachelors in Economics from Pomona College in Claremont, CA, and a masters in Organizational Leadership from Wheelock College in Boston, MA (now a part of Boston University). He lives Malden, MA with his family.
What is Hope & Heresy: Life on the Religious Left?
Hope & Heresy: Life on the Religious Left is a podcast for everyday people who want to live meaningfully without letting arbitrary doctrine or oppressive religious practice prevent them from asking big questions about our complicated world. Hosts Reverend Peggy Clarke and Reverend Sarah Lenzi discuss a series of contemporary issues, using history and theology as their guides. The initial episodes of Hope & Heresy were recorded on-site at Community Church of New York, a Unitarian-Universalist congregation in Murray Hill, Manhattan.
Hosted by Reverend Peggy Clarke (Community Church of New York) and Reverend Sarah Lenzi (The Unitarian Society of Ridgewood, NJ)
Produced by Starling Carter
Original music by Graham Clarke
Logo design by Carol E. Wolf