Unitarian congregation celebrates 50 full years
Respect for all religions, the environment, social action are core beliefs
BY LINDA DeNICOLA
Staff Writer

The Rev. Kathleen Hepler

'Who do we think we are?" was the title of the service at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Monmouth County on Sept. 17. It was an appropriate question because the congregation is celebrating 50 years in the county.

So who are they? The Rev. Kathleen Hepler, a Fair Haven resident and the UUC minister since 1992, explained that the unitarians are a liberal religious community.

"The word 'unitarian' affirms the concept of 'one god.' The word 'universalist' affirms the concept that 'God is love,' " she said.

She noted that Unitarian Universalism has centuries-old roots in Europe, but took hold most securely in the United States starting in the 17th century.

"Some call it the 'Uncommon Denomination' because it is intentionally creedless in its affirmation of individual freedom of belief," Hepler said. "Various people in any one congregation might define their personal beliefs with words like liberal Christian, religious humanist, agnostic, atheist or theist. The religion draws its inspiration and meaning from many sources, including the wisdom of all world religions."

Harold Dean

The first principle of the Unitarian Universalist covenant is to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person.

Unitarians have put their energy and commitment to the test over the years, marching for civil rights and in protest of the Vietnam War in the 1960s and women's rights in the 1970s.

In 1982, the congregation established a local chapter of Amnesty International and joined the Freehold march to support a nuclear weapons freeze.

In 1984, the Lincroft Center for Children was established with the stated purpose of providing day care for children whose mothers needed to work. And in 1996, Hepler, along with two members of the congregation, worked to educate the public regarding AIDS. The church hosted two interfaith AIDS services of hope and remembrance.

In addition, the congregation has actively worked to combat racism through workshops and outreach programs. Since Hepler has led the congregation, members have participated in four or five interracial dialogs with black churches.

Meetinghouse of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Monmouth County

Family planning, poverty and the homeless, as well as environmental issues are also high on the list of concerns.

The church voted to become a "Green Sanctuary" in 2002 and since then has seen major accomplishments in the areas of energy conservation, use of recyclable or reusable supplies, involved religious education classes in environmental projects, incorporated earth-based issues into Sunday services, and participated in community-wide environmental projects.

In the 1990s, the church became a "welcoming congregation" supporting the gay, lesbian and bisexual communities.

According to Hepler, the congregation voted to support marriage equality, and she and other members of the community have attended rallies throughout the state.

Hepler participated in the civil disobedience at New Paltz, N.Y., in 2004 during which, she said, she married four couples as part of a ministers' action.

She also testified at the New Jersey Legislature for domestic partnership and was in Trenton last week when the state Superior Court reached its decision about whether or not gay couples have a right to marry.

She explained that the Superior Court agreed to grant equal rights to same-sex couples, but handed the issue of whether it could be called marriage back to the Legislature.

"It's a partial victory, but a really giant step," she said, adding, "The congregation should be proud."

Social action has not always been easy or comfortable, especially when the congregation was in support of unpopular causes, but its first minister, the Rev. Harold Dean, and his wife, Liz, also provided a base and support for those who wished to engage in those issues.

Along with members of the Ethical Culture Society and the Quakers (Society of Friends), Harold Dean formed the Shore Citizens for Better Housing. The group tested the notorious practice among Realtors of showing minorities housing only in certain, designated neighborhoods.

The Monmouth Unitarians also provided board members to the Monmouth Community Action program, and provoked the ire of the Middletown Police Department for allowing anti-war protesters and people who were protesting police profiling practices to park in their lot and use their building.

In October 2002, a group of Unitarian Universalists once again joined other local people on a bus to Washington to protest the impending war in Iraq. On the way home, the passengers formed the community-wide Central NJ Coalition for Peace and Justice, which meets at the meetinghouse on Thursday evenings.

In 1994, the Monmouth Center for World Religions and Ethical Thought was approved as an adjunct body that meets in the meetinghouse. Hepler was a member of the board along with nine others representing seven different faiths. Today, that board consists of 25 members representing 15 different faiths.

Besides all of the social action programs, the congregation includes many fine musicians and a deep musical appreciation. In the spring of 1998, a part-time music director was hired who pulled the church choir together into a more cohesive group and established a Performing Arts Series that will host four fundraising performances this year. In 2002, under the direction of a second director, a children's choir was established.

The Unitarian congregation in this area began in 1956, when Shrewsbury residents Robert B. Kimble and his wife, Pat, placed an ad in a local newspaper seeking people interested in establishing a Unitarian fellowship for Monmouth County.

About a dozen couples answered the ad, joining another dozen couples to establish the fellowship that was to meet Sundays at 8 p.m. in the Old Mill restaurant in Tinton Falls.

Kimble, who was the temporary group chairman, explained in the advertisement that the church would not have a regular minister or chapel until its membership had grown large enough to support them.

"A Unitarian," he explained, "is one who believes that in religion, as in everything, each individual should be free to seek the truth for himself, unhampered by official creeds."

By the third year, there were 92 adult members and 120 children registered in religious education classes. Today, the community is thriving with 400 members and friends and 140 children in the classes. The congregation now holds two Sunday services, at 9 and 11 a.m.

In 1962 the congregation finally hired a "regular" minister - Dean - and in 1965, the community dedicated its new building on West Front Street in Lincroft, where the Unitarians have been meeting ever since.

At the dedication ceremony, Dean, who retired in 1992 and passed away in 1995, said that the building would provide a platform for free speech, peaceable assembly and the "lonely voice."

In 1962, with a full-time minister chosen, the fellowship applied for official church status and chose the name The First Unitarian Church. Universalist, was added later when the Unitarian and Universalist churches merged.

According to a recently published history of the past 50 years, the word "church" rankled some members who came from non-Christian backgrounds, so after 35 years of intermittent discussion, the name was changed to Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Monmouth County (UUCMC) and the building was designated the Meetinghouse.

Hepler, who celebrated her 10th year as minister in 2002, wrote in this October's church newsletter, "Let the celebration begin!"

And so it did. On Oct. 7, as the kickoff event of the yearlong celebration, a dinner was held at the Old Orchard Inn and on Oct. 8, the Rev. Ken Sawyer, who grew up in the church during the earlier days and currently serves as a minister in Wayland, Mass., spoke to the congregation.

On Dec. 17, the Rev. John Buehrens will present a workshop based on his book "Understanding the Bible: An Introduction for Skeptics, Seekers and Religious Liberals."

The next day, Sunday, he will present a service titled "Expectation" about Advent/Hanukkah/Solstice.

So the Unitarian Universalists continue to meet in Middletown. The pattern of protesting war and advocating for lonely voices is still strong within the congregation.

Hepler said she is grateful to be a part of a congregation so focused on social action, but Unitarian Universalism is also a religion with all of the spiritual dimensions of any religious community.

She added: "While we are very much defined by our activities in the world, that is not just who we are. We are a liberal religion that grew out of Christianity. We invite people to journey toward a faith that sustains them. Our history is of religious education."