November 25, 2001

There have been Knights attending and in active service at First for nearly a century. But from my mother Sylvia I was breast fed on Adams’ milk. My great great great grandparents and uncles were practicing Unitarians in both Boston and Philadelphia. John, John Quincy, and Samuel Adams all lived by their beliefs. Much of western democracy owes a great debt to their bold stands for freedom of speech, freedom of thought, freedom of religion. I don’t want to overstate their influence on me…because I really only share a little bit of DNA with them at this point. But the tradition of Free Thinking has stayed the generations in my family.

As a child here in Toronto I participated in the church and school boycotts in the early sixties. Later on, during my high school years, my brother and i and several other Unitarians in Waterloo County petitioned our local school board for the removal of the Lord’s Prayer from morning exercises. The outcry across the country was huge. The result of our efforts to point a spot light on this issue was national coverage of our position in the media including a 20 minute documentary segment on CBC’s the Fifth Estate. My brother Steven and I were interviewed by Canada’s current governor general Adrienne Clarkson. Steven and I received an unprecedented number of letters from across the country. Of the 500+ letters, 50% were in support, 25% felt we were misguided, and the remainders were hateful. Not too many years later the government of Ontario rescinded the requirement of the Lord’s Prayer to be read each day.

I joined this congregation 21 years ago…was on the board for a time…was involved as an adult advisor to the youth group…but I drifted away from my religious community after university got married and started a family. I quenched my thirst for Unitarianism with the support of family and UU guests at the cottage. There are always a dozen or more UU’s around…or least a dozen or more challenging discussions.

So that is the head part of how I came to first…how I came back…is from the heart.

I came back through these doors a year ago…after separating from my wife. I needed to make a new life for myself. I needed to build a new community for my children. I needed to reconnect to a world that I had left so long ago. I needed a place to belong…a place where I could feel useful… I decided to come back to old friends…I decided to come home.

First Unitarian congregation is built strong with bricks and mortar, glass and brass. It has been built with dreams and hopes and vision.

When i came back through these doors…to the very marrow of my bones…I knew…above all else…that this place had been built with love. When you look through your heart you can see it everywhere. On every face and smile…every tear-filled cheek…

We do belong here…. simply because we are here…I feel welcome...to all of you….I am grateful.

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