The Quest Resources

Sunday mornings before service, join us for a pre-service discussion group.

The Quest is led by different Unity of New York teachers each week. The topics of discussion are based on a chosen book, which is discussed weekly. We will collect and provide discussion materials, book links, and other resources for past and upcoming discussions here for your reference.

THE QUEST facilitators are:

Erika Banks-Alvarez, Rev. Becca Bean, Chris Bennett, John Canary, Nellie Diaz, Rev. Chris DiGiorgio, Rev. Keith Greer, and Rev. Robert Yarnall.

Resmaa Menakem and Robin Di Angelo’s interview with Krista Tippett:

John Singleton’s film called “Higher Learning” (1994) A guy joins up with skinheads because all the other groups on campus reject him.

“Learning How to See” with Brian McLaren

A Podcast:  Speaks to the inherent biases we struggle with.

“Perfect Strangers”

Dr. King’s Philosophy- Non-Violence 365

• To work against the Triple Evils, you must develop a nonviolent frame of mind as described in the “Six Principles of Nonviolence” and use the Kingian model for social action outlined in the “Six Steps for Nonviolent Social Change.”

Unity Worldwide: Standing Together

• Resources to support you in knowing your spiritual nature more fully, guiding you to see the Divine more clearly around you so that you can take your next right spiritual action.

Valedictorian Addresses Racism from Classmates

• A high school valedictorian in New York spoke out against the anti-Asian racism she experienced at the hands of her classmates and teachers throughout her entire public school education.

Behind the Cover: What is Owed

• A look at Nikole Hannah-Jones’s argument that if black lives are to truly matter in America, the nation must finally pay its debts.

Resmaa Menakem: ‘Notice the Rage; Notice the Silence’

• We offer up his intelligence on changing ourselves at a cellular level — practices towards the transformed reality most of us long to inhabit.

Robin DiAngelo and Resmaa Menakem: In Conversation

• Resmaa proposed that he join On Being again, this time together with Robin DiAngelo, the author of White Fragility. Hearing the two of them together is electric — the deepest of dives into the calling of our lifetimes.

Hasidic Jewish Led BLM March

• For Miriam Levy-Haim, the most exciting part of the march was watching the crowd grow.

Washington Post article on the same topic:

• Young Hasidic Jews protest in support of black neighbors, challenging the history of racial tensions

Make Change: A Book by Shaun King

• How to fight injustice, dismantle systemic oppression and own our own future

Dr. Robin DiAngelo discusses ‘White Fragility’

• University of Washington professor Dr. Robin DiAngelo reads from her book “White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism,” which explains the phenomenon, and discusses how white people can develop their capacity to engage more constructively across race.

Maya Angelou, We Wear The Mask

• A historically powerful poem by Maya Angelou

Bryan Stevenson: We Need to Talk About Injustice

• In an engaging and personal talk — with cameo appearances from his grandmother and Rosa Parks — human rights lawyer Bryan Stevenson shares some hard truths about America’s justice system.

• “The poem is the one safe place I feel I can put these possibly violent impulses without doing (justified) damage.”—Danez Smith

Lil Baby – The Bigger Picture (Official Music Video)

• Find lyrics here

The Business of Homelessness: Scott Hutchins

• Financial & Human Costs of the Shelter-Industrial Complex

Resmaa Menakem: ‘Notice the Rage; Notice the Silence’

• We offer up his intelligence on changing ourselves at a cellular level — practices towards the transformed reality most of us long to inhabit.

Karenna Gore on Climate Change and Resilience

• Environmentalist Karenna Gore goes beyond carbon emissions to the root causes of climate change and talks about how framing the crisis as a moral issue can help us adapt and mitigate its worst effects. Ms. Gore is Director of the Center for Earth Ethics at Union Theological Seminary.

5 People Who Can Help You Strengthen Your Empathy Muscle

• Ever wondered how empathetic you are? Consider the advice of these five people who have spent their lives studying, understanding, and practicing empathy.

Bryan Stevenson: Love is the Motive

• How to embrace what’s right and corrective, redemptive and restorative — and an insistence that each of us is more than the worst thing we’ve done — these are gifts Bryan Stevenson offers with his life.