Paul
Carnes was a native of Indiana. He graduated with honors
from Indiana University and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.
Following his graduation from college, he served as a
platoon leader in the First Infantry Division during World
War II. He was captured by the Germans in the early days
of the Tunisian campaign—on Christmas Day, 1942—and
remained a prisoner of war for 29 months, until his liberation
by the Russian Army in 1945.
Upon his discharge from the Army, he enrolled in the Harvard
Divinity School, where he received his S.T.B. Degree with
honors. After years of serving Unitarian congregations
primarily in Youngstown, Ohio; Memphis, Tennessee; and
Buffalo, New York, he was elected President of the Unitarian
Universalist Association.
REMEMBRANCE
AND THANKSGIVING
The First Parish in Cambridge, Massachusetts March 20,
1979
RECOLLECTION
by Dana McLean Greeley, D.D.
Paul was a born minister, and I think that he was a born
president. Brief as his occupancy of that office was,
it spanned three papal administrations in Rome, and was
only eleven months shorter than John Kennedy's residence
in the White House. His death is a major tragedy, but
the mystique of his personality and his ministry has challenged
us and quickened us to renewed vitality. We have had him,
even though we have lost him.
He was one of a very small group that pushed me to run
for the presidency 21 years ago. And since I first knew
him, I have stood in admiration of his strength and his
humility, his conviction and his tolerance, his courage
and his compassion. He was as thoughtful as he was eloquent,
and as patient as he was resolute. He had an inspiring
presence, and a commensurate appreciation of the worth
and work of others. His dream for us will be a guiding
star still and his commitment to our cause, and his genuine
ecumenism as well, will be examples for us, as we carry
forward the work that, with this whole life, he has begun.
IN
APPRECIATION
by Rhys Williams, D. D.
In
gathering now to honor the life and spirit of Paul—husband,
father, friend, pastor, leader, and exemplar of the good
and the true—we are compelled by the strength, intensity,
and warmth of his personality to reflect on the power
and inspiration of his life on all of us gathered here,
and on so many others across this continent and in other
lands.
 |
|
Freda
and Paul
(From the Unitarian Universalist Minister Files,
Andover-Harvard Theological Library, Harvard Divinity
School, Cambridge, MA.)
|
"Here
was a man to hold against the world, a man to match the
mountains and the sea. The color of the ground was in
him, the smack of elemental things." Close was he
to earth and sky, and close, too, to the needs of earth's
people. This closeness to what matters in human living
was reflected in his commitment to social justice, to
being on the cutting edge of progressive change when he
saw a dangerous drift backward or perceived a vacuum in
responsible leadership.
This closeness was witnessed by his concern for the whole
person. Thus whether in a prisoner of war camp or in his
church or with his colleagues, he moved beyond statistics
and expectations in order to talk with an individual in
an empathetic, sharing way, while stirring each with hope
and promise.
This was shown in his dedication to truth to upholding
the right of free speech, to a directness that knew no
sham, to a recognition of our mortality and the democracy
of death, to a readiness to deal candidly with people
and be candidly dealt with by them.
It was indicated by his sense of balance, his ability
to see several sides and seek a common, positive solution
for all problems to find the grace of self-forgiveness
while expecting much of himself.
It was demonstrated by his belief in the "ecstasy
of the possible” culminating in knowing that universal
love is our greatest good.
But beyond all these was the fullness of his personhood--the
great reservoir of his being, his humor that overflowed
to bring light to others, his enjoyment of music and singing,
his statesmanship and churchmanship, his powerful prophetic
preaching, his sense of style and grace.
A
PRAYER FOR HONEST DOUBT
