We covenant to affirm and promote the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

I love our 7th Principle because it awakens the Spirit of Life in my heart and soul. Its deep theology is the driving force behind all that I am called to do in this world. It is the inspiration for the love that I have for all of you, and for all of life. It enables me to come alive with a smile when I see you, those I am familiar with, and when I see others that I have never met before. It inspires my enthusiasm and helps me to gather the energy we need to do our life-saving, web-of-existence-loving work together.

You see, the 7th UU Principle is different from the first six, and it is eloquently carried into our 8th Principle. Go ahead, read them all. Look them up online or grab a gray hymnal and find them in the front. First, notice that none of them are meant to be statements of belief, but rather of action. They are a promise that we make to each other, and to the rest of the world, for how we want to be together. They are guiding principles by which we are called to live and embody in our everyday actions so as to shape the world with love and justice. Notice and reflect upon how the 7th Principle embraces the first six, wraps them up in a theological context, and calls us to moral action by means of the spirit.

The 7th Principle is an intersection at which we find a call to action and a Unitarian Universalist theology. The 7th Principle reminds us that even though we are all independent, unique, and worthy individuals, we do not stand alone, we are not above the web of life, more special than the rest of creation, and every action we take, every word we say, matters to all the rest of existence. We are an equal part of it- connected to each other, to the animals, the plants, the rocks, the soil, the air, the water, the fire.

As quoted on the uua.org website: “Our seventh Principle may be our Unitarian Universalist way of coming to fully embrace something greater than ourselves. The interdependent web—expressed as the spirit of life, the ground of all being, the oneness of all existence, the community-forming power, the process of life, the creative force, even God—can help us develop that social understanding of ourselves that we and our culture so desperately need. It is a source of meaning to which we can dedicate our lives.” —Rev. Forrest Gilmore, Executive Director of Shalom Community Center, Bloomington, IN (https://www.uua.org/beliefs/what-we-believe/principles/7th)

This thing that is greater than ourselves really is the “good news” of Unitarian Universalism. But, we just don’t know that it exists, we experience its existence when we are together as a community. Over the years, we have awakened to more loving, brave, honest, and authentic ways of being together. We have awakened our insight, our attention to our behavior and to the ways in which we can cultivate good relationships with one another. Awesome job, everyone! Do you notice how this affirms and promotes the interdependent web of all existence?

Let’s keep growing and changing together. What will we awaken to next?