Auburn Sierra Foothills Unitarian Universalists Church welcomes Rev. Alex da Silva Souto

This article explains the background and adventurous journey that has led to Rev. Alex da Silva Souto becoming minister of the Sierra Foothills Unitarian Universalist (SFUU) Church in Auburn. Rev. Alex is firmly established as the pastor, bringing exciting new ideas and inspiration to the congregation. Two weekly Sunday services and a Monday evening meditation session provide religious education to youth and adult members and guests. There is always music (e.g., piano, guitar, drums) and an ecstatic dance gathering on the first Sunday of the month that enhances the enjoyment of participants. (Note: Rev. Alex's pronouns are they/them/theirs. Gender binary belief is inaccurate, and gender diversity has always been part of our existence as humans.) Rev. Alex has taken a fascinating and wide-ranging global path to their new pastoral home at 190 Finley Street (across from Placer High School's newest structure). They began this journey at a young age – born in a family that blended Catholic tradition with Afro-Brazilian faith practices and yet received religious education from their grandmother's Presbyterian Church and was re-baptized in the Baptist Church of Brazil. From an early age, Rev. Alex was fascinated with the Jewish/Christian Bible and became involved in youth ministry in an evangelical church. They "felt a great call to dedicate their life to ordained ministry" and became a novice on track to become a pastor at the age of 15. However, the rigid doctrines that were manifested by that denomination, such as heterosexism, homophobia and transphobia, along with exposure to the politicking, self-interested tendencies and exclusionary nature of that institution, led Rev. Alex to estrangement from organized religion. Yet, they retained personal practices of faith and social advocacy. Living in San Francisco in the early years of this century and beginning to advance in their career as an architect, they encountered a United Methodist church renowned at the time for being an inclusive community. For about four years, Rev. Alex spent more than 20 hours per week working in church programs and activities and getting involved with the regional denomination. As they put it, "Lo and behold, the real estate crash of late 2008 and early 2009 changed my life by bringing my career in architecture to a halt. I had to either keep resisting my call to ministry while pursuing a revival of my architecture career or … find a miraculous way to get into a Master of Divinity program." After consulting with mentors from their church, an Episcopal Bishop and their Buddhist teacher, they decided to apply to different Theology schools. Accepted at four schools, they choose Yale University in New Haven, "even though I had not visited the campus or never even been to Connecticut." In 2016, Rev. Alex was ordained by the New York Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC) and continued advocating as a clergy person for "the elimination of all discriminating, persecuting and punishing doctrine against LBGQIA+ individuals within the UMC Book of Disciplines." When the UMC global leaders doubled down on homophobic persecution, Rev. Alex co-founded the Liberationist movement within the UMC. The Liberationists envisioned the development and launch of a new branch of Methodism completely independent from the UMC to be founded at the global 2020 General Conference. The pandemic changed this trajectory, and as they put it, "My hopes for an equitable denomination were too far-fetched and I needed a new spiritual home and a new faith community I could believe in and partner with." Rev. Alex traveled back to Brazil to reconnect with their biological, cultural and syncretistic roots. During this sabbatical period, they reconnected with a Unitarian Universalist friend from Yale's Divinity School, recalled interactions with the San Francisco UU congregation in the late 1990s and subsequent UU interactions on their faith path. To quote Rev. Alex: "I once again felt called and allowed to reconcile my Christian roots while rekindling my Buddhist, Yogic and eclectic mystical practices, along with my affinity for Sufism." Rev. Alex's seminary friend connected them with the Sierra Foothills UU Church in Auburn, which was searching for a new minister at the time. After a few interviews and a short period of collective discernment, the SFUU search committee offered Rev. Alex the position of contract minister. To reiterate: The SFUU congregation is a non-credal joyfully religious community, bound together with a "mission to build beloved community that respects diversities as we nourish the spirit, care for the Earth and inspire acts of peace and justice. Whoever you are, whatever gifts and burdens you carry right now, you are welcome here." For more information about this Welcoming Congregation, visit mysfuu.org or call 530-823-0953.