Would Jesus have voted for the new library? A Sermon by Reverend Richard F. Jones

WOULD JESUS HAVE VOTED FOR THE LIBRARY? 20 November 2005

I had to meet with two families about upcoming baptisms Monday night, so I was late for town meeting. It was a little after nine o’clock when I parked my car on Green Road and walked to the high school. As I arrived, other people were leaving, and they didn’t look happy. I saw someone I knew and asked her what had happened. She was crying. “They voted down the library,” she said, and added, “I can’t believe I live in a town with people like this.”

Former town moderator Clyde Wheeler arrived late, too, and he and I compared notes near the rear doors of the high school auditorium. We guessed that the proposals to buy the Taggert land and the Smith land would be voted down as well, and we were right. The town meeting was clearly of a mind to vote “No.”

Parishioner and Bolton Common editor Lynda King and I traded emails on Tuesday, trying to figure out what had happened in town meeting and why and what it implied. On the surface, one might be tempted to say it was a battle between the haves and the have nots, between those who can afford to pay several hundred dollars more in property taxes each year and those who cannot. One might also be tempted to say it was a battle between “old Bolton” and “new Bolton,” between the town as some have known it and the town as some want it to be. Lynda and I agreed that “it ain’t necessarily so.” Some haves did not vote for the library, and some have-nots did. Some people who have been here forever voted for the library, and some people who moved here yesterday and may leave tomorrow voted against it. I even think the “vision thing” had little to do with it. Most of the people I talked with who voted against the library agreed that our present library is insufficient.

I have said that this church is slightly ahead of the town in confronting the challenges presented by change. We had our major conflict a decade ago. The town is due for one soon. The church dealt with the necessity of having to hire a staff person to do some of the work that had always been handled by volunteers two years before the town created the position of town administrator. And the church had a debate similar to that regarding the library a year- and-a- half ago. Our debate was about a new organ.
Like the current library, our pipe organ is insufficient to meet the current needs of the church and even if it is not replaced needs major work. The church had received a proposal for a new organ that was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Sound familiar? The proposed organ was magnificent, designed visually to fit in with our classic sanctuary but yet having resources far beyond those of many churches our size. Sound familiar? A group of committed people supported the project, and partial funding had been secured. Sound familiar? But when the church had a special meeting to consider the proposal, it was not approved, even though most at the meeting agreed that we do need a new organ. Sound familiar? And the comments that were made by some in attendance at the church meeting were exactly the same as some of the comments I heard regarding the library. “We have other priorities that need to be addressed.” “It’s too big.” “It’s more than we’ll ever need.” “It’s more money than we’ve ever spent.”

Isn’t it nice to know that our church is ahead of the curve? Perhaps I should run for selectman. NO, THANK YOU!

I have heard something in the current debate about the library that I have also heard here, in conversations about our church. One thing keeps coming up here again and again --- the yearning for community, the desire the create community. In the Letters to the Editor in the BOLTON COMMON and in the speeches at town meeting regarding the library, this word, “community,” keeps coming up again and again.

One would be forgiven for thinking that we were not considering building an addition to the library as much as we were considering building a community center, a place where people could meet, a new meetinghouse, if you will.

And I will admit to feeling a bit put out. One letter writer referred to the library as our only community building. Another said that the library was one of only three public places where people in town could meet one another, aside from our schools. Our church was not on that letter writer’s list, and neither were Trinity or St. Francis Xavier. I will not speak for the other churches, but this is very much a public place, a place where people in town meet one another. The library holds many of its events here. The Conservation Trust has its annual meeting here. The Bolton Historical Society has held lectures here. The town’s long-range planning committee has had public forums here. The Boy Scouts the Cub Scouts and the 4H meet here. The Florence Sawyer School has its eighth-grade dance here. The new postmaster of Bolton had his installation ceremony here. Meetings too large to be accommodated in the Town Hall but not large enough for a school auditorium have been held here. Hundreds attend the Halloween Party we provide for the town’s children. In two weeks, we will welcome the town to our annual tree-lighting. This is very much a public place, a place where people in town meet one another. You may not know this, but that’s why Davis Hall was built, not merely to host coffee hours after worship. It was built by both the church and the community to be a gathering place for the entire community, and it is.

What’s interesting to me is that as far as some members of our community are concerned, we are off the radar. What’s interesting to me is that as far as some members of our community are
concerned, we need a new place to meet, a place that is not tied-in to most of the past incarnations of this town nor to its places of worship.

I believe that the library project is not just about building an addition on the library or even about what sort of community we will be or about how much money we are willing to spend. It is about the longing of people in this rapidly-changing town to be a part of something substantial and enduring that connects them to each other in meaningful ways. And it is about the insufficiency of all the old institutions and networks to do this work.

Isn’t this the conversation we are having here, in these halls, too?
So, would Jesus have voted for the library?
I don’t know. But I do know that he would have told us that we need to look at each other, that we need to see each other. That, for him, is what it is all about.

In a sermon about the Gospel lesson I read to you this morning, Barbara Brown Taylor writes “Say that Jesus is present in every single person whose path crosses ours....the only way to tell if they are really Jesus’ eyes is to look into them, to risk that moment of recognition that may break your heart, or change your mind, or make you mad, or make you amend your life. Whatever effect it has on you, that seems to be the one thing the sheep know how to do that the goats have never tried: to look, to see, to seek Christ...I am sure Matthew would not agree with me, but if you ask me, that is enough to start with. The food, the drink, the welcome, the visit - -- all those things will follow in their own good time. They are necessary for life; they are not optional, but by themselves, they are just quarters in a cup. Charity is no substitute for kinship. We are not called to be philanthropists or social workers, but brothers and sisters. We are called into relationship, even when that relationship is unlikely, momentary... We are called to look at each other and seek Christ, who promises to be there when our eyes meet, and in that glance to teach us something we need to know.”

Haves and have-nots, we are called to look at each other. Old Bolton and new Bolton, we are called to look at each other. Pragmatists and visionaries, we are called to look at each other. Penny-pinchers and spendthrifts, we are called to look at each other. Senior citizens and thirty-somethings, we are called to look at each other. Advisory Committee and Friends of the Library, we are called to look at each other. First Parish and Trinity and St. Francis Xavier and those who don’t even know who we are and don’t care, we are called to look at each other. Gay and straight, we are called to look at each other. Democrats and Republicans, we are called to look at each other. Clueless husbands and desperate housewives, we are called to look at each other. Buff or bulging, we are called to look at each other. Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Jew, Christian, we are called to look at each other. Fox Run and Bolton Woods Way, we are called to look at each other. Back of the church and front of the church, we are called to look at each other.

We are called to look at each other, to really see one another, and in that glance, we will learn something we need to know, like how to serve one another, like how to build real community, community that transcends our differences, and transcends any structure that could be built to contain it or to try to create it.

If we want to build community, we have to be community. And it starts with a look.
This is one of the few public places in this town where we will hear that suggestion. I pray, as I always have, that we will act on it. Let us be ahead of the curve in this way, too. Let us show our town how to be community and how to build community. It starts with a look.

New Shutesbury Library in my mind

"Barns and agricultural buildings help tell the Massachusetts story over the last several hundred years. From carriage barns in city or town centers, tobacco barns in the Connecticut River valley, cranberry screen houses on the Cape, to dairy barns across the state, they help us read the landscape and connect us to the life and work of our communities through the generations. Most barns, especially those of timber frame construction, are well-built and have open floor plans that make them useful today for farming or for a wide variety of new uses. Yet, barns are disappearing at a rapid rate from the landscape. With some planning, patience, and creativity, older and historic barns can continue to serve their original function or be put back to use."http://preservationmass.org/programs/mass-barns/

Driving through the farmlands of Hadley one late afternoon in August as the sun was blazing through the open slats of a tobacco barn I was reminded how the light of knowledge lights up a library and the people within. For a split second I imagined a library that captured the essence of this icon of local ingenuity and industry and was reminded of an article I read in 2010 during the design phase of planning for the new library.

More important to me than what it looked like, was being able to dream of a new library again. After it was burned and worse, neglected, at the time of Caesar and Christ wars. It was rebuilt in 2002. Started in a jelljar cupboard in 1811, shutesbury's first library

I want a library with a flush toilet: a place to read a newspaper, to learn and be inspired, catch up with neighbors on the welcoming porch. I imagine children playing, families on bikes arriving safely along the tree lined main street alley, crossing the bridge over the rain garden strolling through the memorial garden enjoying nature along the cranberry strewn trails. The library in my mind is a model of sustainability and cooperation, built together in harmony with the natural world, a community center that brings us together and lifts us up. 

I am done with meetings in the cold, damp basement of town hall and won't be on the committee next time. but if will alone can build a library then I will one day be sitting at the maple table with the crystal ball feet in the sunny window of the local history room. everything legal and mostly moral to see that the new Shutesbury library comes to fruition in my lifetime.

“Shutesbury residents have indicated that they like the friendly, welcoming atmosphere at the current library facility. As we move toward the future, LFNAC members recommend that the library maintains its small town atmosphere, while serving our growing population of active library users with a high quality library. LFNAC members continue to encourage suggestions from residents. Some strongly expressed ideas suggested the library should:

a. Be located in the town center (85.7% said very or somewhat important)b.Serve as a community center, strengthening community in Shutesbury.c. Offer more activities at the library.d.Be visible to the community.e. Be an architectural enhancement to the town.f.  Be built with planning for the future in mind and that it last a long time.g.Honor the town’ s history.h.Reflect current thinking about ecology – i.e. have a southern exposure, be a “green” building, possibly include photovoltaic cells for electricity, and/or use solar or geothermal heating.i.  Reflect the cultures represented in the community.j.  Be a place that provides educational opportunities for the community.k.Include a café or community center where residents can gather and socialize. 

"Patrons would prefer a larger overall space that could include community rooms that could be used for classes or groups (for example, a knitting group, the library book group, yoga classes, etc.) Any expansion of the library must match the unique character of Shutesbury, respect the town and library history, reflect the needs of the residents, and be mindful of the budgetary limitations of a small town."  (library building program 2009)

LFNAC meeting July 23, 2007

http://www.shutesbury.org/sites/default/files/offices_committees/lfnac/Minutes%207_23_07LFNAC.pdf

Library Quotes

I love the Shutesbury Library we have, but it was built over 100 years ago for a town of 400. It’s time for a new one, and this vote is our best chance to make that happen.

    Julie Stepanek

 
There is not such a cradle of democracy upon the earth as the Free Public Library, this republic of letters, where neither rank, office, nor wealth receives the slightest consideration.  ~Andrew Carnegie

  Constructive participation and the development of democracy depend on satisfactory education as well as on free and unlimited access to knowledge, thought, culture and information. The public library, the local gateway to knowledge, provides a basic condition for lifelong learning, independent decision-making and cultural development of the individual and social goups. This Manifesto proclaims UNESCO's belief in the public library as a living force for education, culture and information, and as an essential agent for the fostering of peace and spiritual welfare through the minds of men and women.                                                                                                  UNESCO Library Manifesto

“The opportunity awaits every youth as well as individual of maturer years to enter through the medium of books, the companionship of men and women of letters, who have had at their disposal the wisdom of the ages. The unequalled privilege never possessed before by modern civilization should inspire as well as animate the masses of the people.
Respectfully submitted
Library board of trustees William H. Hemenway-Chair  March 20,1908

From the M. N. Spear Memorial Library
Building Program July 2009
"Any expansion of the library must match the unique character of Shutesbury, respect the town and library history, reflect the needs of the residents, and be mindful of the budgetary limitations of a small town."

Shutesbury is our town. A small town with a very engaged and interesting populace. Amherst, for all of its proximity, is not in fact our town. We don’t vote there, and can’t join in on town committees. I moved to this area from a city so I could take part in small town life. The place and the way for me to do this is through town life in Shutesbury.

Emily Bloch

"I thought it was silly to build a big library in such a little town. I was worried nobody would use it and it would just be a big waste of time and money. I really feel like I was proven wrong. The place seems to always be full of people and I feel like it’s added significantly to our community. The computers, WiFi, yoga classes, movies, talks, art exhibits, all of it has added to the richness of our town. Now I can't really remember it not being there."
         Donna Horn- Wendell artist

There are many things to love about life in Shutesbury, but one that comes up every time is… You guessed it - the library! Whether it’s here in Scotland, or in California or in Colorado or any of the many places we’ve spent time in during the last few years, nothing reminds me more acutely of how special our home is than stepping into what passes for libraries in other places. I find direct parallels between a region’s quality of life and the quality of their libraries.

 Think of the possibilities! Get excited about them! Though we’re an ocean away, that’s exactly what we’ve been doing as we dream of returning to Shutesbury and as we envision the future prosperity of the town.

-David Durham

Sometimes taxes pay for the greater good of the community and contribute to a responsible investment for generations to come. This kind of civic endeavor is part of what makes a town a real town.

Vote yes today to make a difference in the future history of Shutesbury. In 50 years, at the tri-centennial, the "new" library will be celebrated as a legacy of community pride.

Dave and Susie Mosher

#reclaimingmylivingroomshelfandlife

Finally going through my library files from 12 years as a trustee and my obsession with the library and town history. 

tarantella siciliana polka u puddricinu

Karen Traub: WMUA’s music selection an enriching part of life

Karen Traub: WMUA’s music selection an enriching part of life

Tuesday, January 19, 2016
(Published in print: Wednesday, January 20, 2016)

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To the editor:

When I moved to Northampton after college, WMUA was one of the best things about the area, introducing me to music I didn’t know existed like zydeco, polka and Tuvan throat singing.

Many wonderful programs disappeared when the student hosts graduated, but the “Polka Bandstand” with Billy Belina followed me through life. In the late 80s, I would drink coffee and annoy my housemates with polka on Saturday mornings. Little Billy Jr. was so cute helping his dad.

Life went on. I met the man of my dreams and we started a family. As the years went by, I listened while driving my kids to soccer, karate and drum lessons. Last summer I went to Ocean Beach Park Polka Days and finally met my polka hero. I thank Belina and the crew for enriching my life.

My donations to WMUA were part of the half million dollars polka raised. The polka shows are a cultural icon of the Pioneer Valley and will no doubt continue via the Internet and Valley Free Radio. Unfortunately, along with many other loyal fans, I will lose access to the music that makes Saturdays happy and snappy.

Given its longevity, considerable financial contribution and cultural significance, I request that the WMUA polka music family be considered separately from the 24-hour limit on community music, or that the limit be altered to restore the polka hours.

The University of Massachusetts has a responsibility to the community that hosts and supports it, as well as to the volunteers who have given so much over the years. I hope the station and the university will find an answer that doesn’t include denying us the programs we count on.

Karen Traub

Shutesbury