For the first time in my life, I attended a Sunday service at a Unitarian Universalist Church, to see Chicago’s mayor, Brandon Johnson, in dialog with the pastor. I was curious to hear what this progressive Black mayor had to say to a progressive Northside (White) church.
The pastor began the service with an announcement.
“The Unitarian Universalist Church was established by and for people who do not believe in hell.”
“Whaat?” I was so startled I hardly heard the rest of the preamble. I don’t believe in hell. No one I know believes in hell. But I’ve never heard nor would I ever expect to hear such good news from any church pulpit.
But wait, there’s more good news! The “UU’s” reject original sin, believe in a God who loves and redeems all human beings, and trains congregants in social justice work. These are my beliefs too.
The bias I’ve had against the Unitarian Universalist Church stems from old thinking that Unitarianism is a heretical religion because they don’t display a cross. Where did I get that crap? Since I’ve been attending a Presbyterian Church for over 45 years, it must have slipped into my head when I was half asleep some Sunday morning.
Speaking of old ideas, on Friday, December 5, podcaster Scott Galloway responded to a young man who asked:
“How do I get more involved in politics?”
Galloway said “… because young people don’t vote, old people keep voting themselves more money, right? $40 billion child tax credit gets ripped out of the infrastructure bill, but the $120 billion cost of living adjustment for Social Security flies right through.
…our old people have figured out a way to vote themselves more money, and the fact that people under the age of 18 don’t vote, the budget reflects values, and our values are that we don’t really love our children.”*
This is a typical Scott Galloway motivator: money. He will happily reveal how much he’s worth and how he manipulated the modern system to get there. But his statement pitting the young against the old using the antiquated idea that we old citizens are sapping federal dollars from the young shows a decided lack of sophistication and reality.
First of all, we want young people to succeed. We were young Pete Buttigieg’s biggest voting bloc, long before he announced his Gray New Deal in Iowa 2020. We vote for SNAP and child tax credits. We volunteer at food kitchens, tutor at public schools, babysit our grandchildren and are worried about ours, yours and future generations.
Secondly, we pay. We will pay the government $202.90 a month in 2026 for Medicare Part B, which covers doctor’s visits. That’s a 9.7 percent increase from 2025. We count on the Social Security Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) to offset that Medicare increase. But in 2026, the Social Security COLA is only a 2.8 percent increase, posing a hardship for Social Security recipients who live check to check in this era of (non) affordability.
Third, don’t we all know that the way young people get involved in politics is to volunteer? What? Is that just a Chicago thing?
After 40 years, curiosity brought me, 79 years old, to an unexpected new idea about the Unitarian Universalist Church.
Let’s hope Scott Galloway, 61years old, becomes curious enough to come to a new idea about how the real world works.
______________
You can find Scott Galloway’s email address here:
*The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway: How to Get Involved in Politics, How Scott Galloway Writes, and How He Follows the News, Dec 5, 2025https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-get-involved-in-politics-how-scott-galloway/id1498802610?i=1000739823645&r=196.38 This material may be protected by copyright.
Regan Burke 
Thanks for sharing your article Regan, I have missed you & your compassionate fire!
William Thiele, PhD author: The Gate of Heaven is Everywhere Monks in the World: Seeking God in a Frantic Culture “A Contemplative Path” podcast on iTunes and blog on WordPress.com
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Regan. Thanks for another great piece. I know nothing about this Galloway guy, although the name is familiar. And, I sure don’t like his point of view about old people. That’s a subject I’m sensitive about. He does remind me of the novel by Albert Brooks titled “2030: The Real Story Of What Happens to America.” I read it about the same time as I saw the movie “Mother” that he was excellent in along with Debbie Reynolds as the mother. I was somewhat younger then although it still frightened me. Now, it has an existential theme for me. Meaning, if the young people prevail, I won’t be able to exist any more.
What I really want to say to you though is Once again you have taught me something very important. The first time was in reading your excellent book, “In That Number.” I was reading at a doctors office at the time and discovered that since I was married in 1964, I would not have had to worry about being drafted in early 1966. I got that from your remembering lots of college age men were anxious to get married so as to avoid the draft. But, I didn’t know that at the time and my local draft office in LaPorte, Indiana told me they would “get me” probably in January, 1966. That’s when I went immediately to the Naval Armory in town to sign up. That revelation caused me to do some serious evaluation of my life. Had I known what would I have done? I decided I would likely have not volunteered But that meant I would probably have never finished college, would certainly have never gone to law school, and most likely my marriage would not have survived. In other words, once again I discovered God was doing for me what I would not have done myself.
OK, So thats a big one. The other comes directly from what you learned at the Unitarian Universalist Church. As it happens, Apparently I, too, am a Unitarian. I believe nobody goes to hell, heaven is right here right now, and Original Sin? Nah! More like Original Love. And Christ is for everybody not just those who have heard the story. I was baptized in a Presbyterian church, attended a Methodist church most of my young life, married a Catholic when I was 19, converted to Catholicism 25 years after marrying. None of these churches were part of my life because of their doctrines. My affiliation with them was based purely on convenience. Now, I no longer attend church. My wife does and I read the readings that will be covered on any Sunday and then when my wife comes home we have a discussion about what I saw in the readings and what the priest saw in them. Sometimes there’s a match, sometimes not. But one thing for sure, most of my beliefs now have been shaped by Richard Rohr and his associates. A fascinating thing about that is many Catholics find Rohr to be dangerous. The danger? Many of those who find him dangerous do so because he doesn’t promote a God who isn’t a punishing God.
LikeLiked by 1 person
My friend,Amen! hope this finds you well! William Filan 1716 W George Street Chicago IL 60657 312-420-6813
Please excuse typos
>
LikeLiked by 1 person
Brilliant rebuttal. I hope you sent this to Galloway.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Regan.Jerry Loeser
LikeLiked by 1 person
This was one of my favorites!!! Keep writing. Keep the fires burning.
Cynthia Cynthia Joho cell: 312-218-1661
“Don’t give into the lies. Don’t give into the fear. Hold onto the truth and to hope.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great piece!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah……!! Well said.
Michael
LikeLiked by 1 person