UUFSMA: “Lives Not Worthy”

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Event Category: Religous/Spiritual

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  • UU Service

    “Lives Not Worthy”

    Dr. Daniel Neuspiel

    10:30 a.m., June 23, 2019


    Are some lives more worthy than others? At the June 23 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Service, Dr. Daniel Neuspiel paints an alarming picture of current events reminiscent of Nazi policies and ideology that viewed some groups as less worthy than others.

    The first principle of Unitarian Universalism supports the inherent worth and dignity of every person. This concept was turned on its head by totalitarian regimes like Nazi Germany, where many were targeted as “lives unworthy of living,” including Jews, Roma, homosexuals, the physically and mentally disabled, the politically undesirable, and others.

    Did you know that doctors initiated and led the most heinous programs in Nazi Germany, and that they joined the Nazi Party in greater relative numbers than any other profession? Were you aware that key Nazi programs were modeled on previous initiatives in the United States? Are you concerned that similar events may happen again, or perhaps that they are already happening?

    German doctors led the sterilization and euthanasia programs and selected arrivals at concentration camps for immediate death, slave labor, or gruesome experimentation. They were attracted to Nazi ideology by their acceptance of biologically based racial differences, their belief that serving the state was more important than caring for individual patients, and widespread unemployment and anti-Semitism among non-Jewish physicians.

    Nazis celebrated American racial segregation, sterilization programs and the extermination of Native Americans. Some of these racist programs were even more stringently implemented in the US than in Germany, and Nazis worried that the US might overtake them as world racial leaders.

    Dr. Daniel Neuspiel will explore this history and point to concerning current events reminiscent of Nazi policies and ideology. Dr. Neuspiel is a retired pediatrician and a member of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of San Miguel de Allende. He is son of a Holocaust survivor and a long-time antiracist and immigration justice activist.

    Dr. Neuspiel practiced academic general pediatrics for 33 years in New York and North Carolina, primarily serving children of underserved immigrant families.  He has been on the faculty of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, and is currently Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at Atrium Health.

    For more information about the UUFSMA, including our Sunday morning Children’s Religious Education program, Social Action outreach, weekly discussion groups, social activities, and Care Team, join us any Sunday at 10:30 a.m. at the Hotel La Aldea or check out our website at uufsma.org.


    Our fellowship was born in 1987 when a small group of expatriate religious liberals came together to meet as Unitarian Universalists in San Miguel de Allende. The fellowship has been active and thriving ever since. Every UU church has it’s own flavor, and we are no exception. We are a combination of expats and visitors, each actively engaged and contributing to this wonderful Mexican community we love. Because there is a coming, going, and returning aspect, our spiritual community is extremely fluid.  There is a magic in San Miguel which draws us in and binds us together—both as members of the church and of the larger community. Our programming is led by visiting ministers, community leaders, and church members, so the variety is lively. We have opportunities to meet as UU’s each week at discussion groups, breakfasts, luncheons, and in various other ways. Depending on the season, attendance fluctuates between 40 and 140. Our primary focus is on funding social action within the surrounding community. We love good music, good discussion, good food, and having visitors. We invite you to join us any Sunday morning.


    UU YAHOO GROUP SITE

    Members regularly post updates and information on this site. We also post meeting minutes and announcements there.

    To join our Yahoo group site click on this link:

    https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/UUFSMA/info

    Click on “membership”and follow the directions.

    Posting a notice on the Yahoo site is easy. Just go to your regular mail browser, type in the address line: uufsma@yahoogroups.com , type your message and hit send!

    We encourage you to use this site to communicate with other local UUs.

     

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