The “Soul Matters” theme and the topic of today’s message from the Board is “repair,” and this theme really fits the moment. We’ve all had times in our lives when we feel overwhelmed by what is broken around us. In a very concrete sense, there is the leaky sink that has been broken for months, the crack in your driveway, or the tire on your car that leaks air, each demanding your time, your attention, and your money. 
 
These days, though, we have more to contend with than the leaky sink. We hear more and more about our broken climate and see the images of the broken homes and communities left in climate change’s wake. We hear about our political system, which threatens to break under the strain of deep division. Internationally, we hear of Ukraine, Israel, Palestine, and Sudan, all broken by the ravages of war. 
 
Closer to home, the First Parish community deals with what all communities deal with at times- relationships that can seem broken with no hope of repair.
 
Luckily, part of the calling and spiritual grounding of First Parish and the larger UU community is to approach this world not through a different lens of brokenness, but through a sense of hope, abundance, and repair. 
 
This spirit of November’s theme is especially clear in the sixth UU principle: the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all. Now more than ever, it’s clear that these lofty goals are not static states of being; they are practices that require constant and loving steward-ship. In this sense, these goals, and we as their stewards, are in a constant state of repair as a spiritual practice.
 
This idea of continuous repair may feel daunting, but our community collectively has the disposition and the will to turn the world as a broken thing into the world as a living thing that asks for sacred tending. This reframing offers us, individually and as a community united around UU values, the opportunity to create hope through the simple act of repair. 
 
So honor all that your home gives you by fixing the sink. Address our climate by carpooling to shrink your carbon footprint. Love your friend by embracing them in a moment of conflict. This is the kind of sacred repair that cultivates energy and hope in the face of challenging times.
 
This month, let us celebrate the humble but transformative act of repair as the ultimate expression of hope and joy in our First Parish community.
 
Greg Shea
on behalf of the First Parish Board of Trustees