Living in Peace on the Unitarian Universalist Path
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We pledge our commitment to peace in the following ways.
Inward Peacemaking
We pledge to continue to learn as a community to create deeper peace within ourselves as individuals. In building our own inner harmony, self-acceptance, compassionate understanding of our own needs and feelings, we increase our capacity to provide that to others. Inner peace empowers us to build outward peace.
Interpersonal Peacemaking
We pledge to create deeper peace in our relations with others, through learning to:
- listen more deeply;
- communicate our feelings and needs in effective, non-blaming and non-shaming ways;
- handle conflicts skillfully and respectfully;
- see always the ‘inherent worth and dignity’ in the other despite differences.
Congregational Peacemaking
We pledge to create deeper peace within our congregation through:
- building norms of respect and understanding for those who differ from us by belief, ethnic background, culture, gender orientation, or style
- making congregational decisions in ways that build consensus through finding common ground and ‘win-win’ solutions, avoiding power struggles and factions
- having in place an effective process for resolving conflicts within the congregation.
Societal Peacemaking
We pledge to build a deeper understanding of systemic violence and to be active in the wider community in reducing systemic causes of violence.
We do this through:
- participating in local, regional, and national efforts to build a more peaceful and just society
- addressing racism, classism and other forms of cultural and economic oppression
- working toward changes in life style and policies that lead us toward greater harmony with our natural environment
- envisioning and working toward a society that respects the inherent worth and dignity of each person.
International Peacemaking
We pledge to build a deeper understanding of the causes of, and ways to prevent, war and intercommunity violence.
We pledge to learn about and support:
- peaceful approaches to international conflicts
- international programs that encourage healthy and balanced economic development in allcountries
- international efforts that address the causes of violence – poverty, economic instability, lack of education, etc..
Inward Peacemaking
We pledge to continue to learn as a community to create deeper peace within ourselves as individuals. In building our own inner harmony, self-acceptance, compassionate understanding of our own needs and feelings, we increase our capacity to provide that to others. Inner peace empowers us to build outward peace.
Interpersonal Peacemaking
We pledge to create deeper peace in our relations with others, through learning to:
- listen more deeply;
- communicate our feelings and needs in effective, non-blaming and non-shaming ways;
- handle conflicts skillfully and respectfully;
- see always the ‘inherent worth and dignity’ in the other despite differences.
Congregational Peacemaking
We pledge to create deeper peace within our congregation through:
- building norms of respect and understanding for those who differ from us by belief, ethnic background, culture, gender orientation, or style
- making congregational decisions in ways that build consensus through finding common ground and ‘win-win’ solutions, avoiding power struggles and factions
- having in place an effective process for resolving conflicts within the congregation.
Societal Peacemaking
We pledge to build a deeper understanding of systemic violence and to be active in the wider community in reducing systemic causes of violence.
We do this through:
- participating in local, regional, and national efforts to build a more peaceful and just society
- addressing racism, classism and other forms of cultural and economic oppression
- working toward changes in life style and policies that lead us toward greater harmony with our natural environment
- envisioning and working toward a society that respects the inherent worth and dignity of each person.
International Peacemaking
We pledge to build a deeper understanding of the causes of, and ways to prevent, war and intercommunity violence.
We pledge to learn about and support:
- peaceful approaches to international conflicts
- international programs that encourage healthy and balanced economic development in allcountries
- international efforts that address the causes of violence – poverty, economic instability, lack of education, etc..
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