Ubuntu is an African concept which means that a person cannot be fully formed in isolation. Put simply we can say, "I am because we are."
In Unitarian Universalism ubuntu is recognized and acknowledged in our seventh principles which is to affirm and promote respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
From, The Power Of Interdependence by Adam Russell Taylor in the Sept./Oct 2021 issue of Sojourners magazine p.24
Interdependence is not often considered a cornerstone of the American ethos, but it lies at the heart of what binds us together, in both a moral and a practical sense. It constitutes an essential beatitude of building the Beloved Community. A greater understanding of how our lives are inextricably linked opens up new possibilities for developing empathy toward others and helps us counteract the atomized, overly individualistic excesses of American culture. Ubuntu also provides a needed lens to understand the ways in which all parts of the globe have become increasingly interdependent. Both our security and our prosperity are increasingly tied to the rest of the world. Global crises such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic require shared global leadership and cooperation.
American culture is dysfunctional because of its belief in the primacy of the individual without recognition, acknowledgement, and gratitude for what others have provided for the person. Galen Guengerich has taught that a primary quality of Unitarian Universalism could be gratitude which is based on a recognition of what he calls "radical dependence." Without others we would not exist and survive.
At this time , the beginning of 2022, we are more aware than even because of climate change, the Covid pandemic, the proliferation of guns, that we are threads of a fabric which can be shredded or woven together. As the old saying goes, "United we stand. Divided we fall."
A major basis of our faith at UU A Way Of Life is Ubuntu. Will you join us as we pursue our mission of encouraging spiritual development to achieve our vision of salvation of the world?
