You may be wondering what this logo for Circles of Spirit is about. Contained within the logo are two important ideas, the flower of life and the butterfly. When I got ordained, I had the butterfly as my theme, the symbol of transformation. Ordination is a ceremony that recognizes the personal transformation and commitment of what I was before to “minister.” It means something within me has changed, and it recognizes my commitment to my faith tradition, Unitarian Universalism. It is a ceremony that honors this new form of my life with ministry as its purpose, and keeping that vision always in front of me, never turning back. Just like the butterfly cannot go back to a chrysalis.

The butterfly lays eggs. When the eggs hatch, they become caterpillars. The caterpillars feed and begin the process of attaching to a plant and resting in the chrysalis. During that chrysalis phase, the cells turn to goo, not recognizable as a caterpillar and certainly not as a butterfly. Eventually, cells rearrange and there emerges an incredibly beautiful and free butterfly. It is an astounding transformation.

I also saw the butterfly as the symbol of transformation of someone who has been incarcerated, working to build a new life free of the trauma and suppression of prison. Breaking free of the chrysalis is a metaphor that is not too far off! People I know who have spent time inside, do not want to go back. That means making changes and not turning back. Just like the butterfly cannot go back to the chrysalis, the person in reentry must lead an entirely different life outside, learning to fly away, free.

If you look closely at this image that looks like a flower, you will see the flower is made up of overlapping circles. It is a geometric pattern that some would call sacred: sacred geometry. Even though it is expanding from one to many, the image symbolizes our unity as interlocking circles. These circles are in harmony with one another. As a Unitarian Universalist, our principles begin with our recognition of the inherent worth and dignity of every person and end with the interdependent web of which we are a part. Moving from the circle to the flower reflects these principles, for me. I appreciate the idea that we might live in unity and harmony, even as these ideas are a vision. This whole image cannot go back to the single circle.