The Bedrock of Deep Faith

Lately, I've been focused inward, reflecting on the Soul, what my own faith feels like and looks like. I came across this reading that I had used in my UU Covenant Group in 2007.  It sums up why I chose Unitarian Universalism, and provides a look at an inner stance that this religion promts.

Excerpt from Challenge of a Liberal Faith, George Marshall, Chapter 4, “The Religious Liberal Faces Life” UU Association, 1988

 "A person’s religion is not measured by the fervor of one’s Sunday devotions, one’s frequency at church meetings, or one’s pious expression of faith.  A genuine test of faith is how a person stands up in the face of some great grief, some unexpected tragedy, some harrowing experience, or some upsetting crisis.  The most devout often stumble, while the presumed backslider measures up.  During World War II some chaplains reported that religious faith was not measured by chapel attendance so much as by inner fortitude.

Too often the person whose faith depends on the dim religious light of a sanctuary or the soft tones of an organ gently soothing the harried emotions finds it is far removed from the actualities of the highways and byways, the dark street corners, the chill mortuary, or aseptic hospital bed.  Often the frenzied and harried parents facing the turbulence of adolescent strivings find this faith inadequate as they struggle with these pressures.  The modern adult at home and in business too often finds that constant demands of “decisions, decisions, decisions” wear down the resistance, so that one loses all sense of perspective, relationship, and serenity, thus acting impulsively without regard to values or primary concerns.

Religious liberalism can help.  Here is a faith that is not external, but internal.  The Unitarian Universalist church makes no other offer than this: to help a person develop a faith that is within.  Do not come to a Unitarian Universalist church to find religion, to learn beliefs, or to be given a faith.  Come only when you reach a point where all external faiths are rejected and you are ready to begin with the bedrock of your own being, experience, and character to construct the faith that is meaningful to you.”

What do you think about these words? Are you constructing a faith from within or without?

For a copy of Marshall's book Challenge of a Liberal Faith, CLICK HERE.

Blessings on your day!

 

Current Lessons from Revelation

In a post back in March [Reflection on Revelation], I shared the interpretation Marcus Borg offers for the Book of Revelation, one based in historical and cultural context, with a comment that Revelation provides some insight into domination systems in the world as illustrated by the Roman Empire over 60 years after the death of Jesus. A friend in my Christian Fellowship lent me a book of another interpretation published in 1983 which is also based firmly in historical and cultural context.

Pheme Perkins, The Book of Revelation, Collegeville Bible Commentary, New Testament 11. The Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota, 1983

This short treatise is only 87 pages long, but includes the text of Revelation at the top of each page while below, the author discusses that content. The  layout is easy to follow and the content fascinating. In his book Perkins offers this observation on how the Roman Empire presented itself in its conquered countries, and it struck me as being relevant to our situation today in the US. 

The self-glorifying and even self-divinizing inscriptions and proclamations of the imperial rulers presented the empire as beneficient. So does the literature written by those who benefited from the opportunities given by imperial expansion. We have seen that those local, civic authorities who sought favor with the empire joined the proclamation of benefits of the empire through the various cultic activities in honor of the emperor. Clearly, the local citizenry did not have a universally agreed upon assessment of the empire.[Italics mine]. Pg 57.

Our current administration and the administration of Rome offer a similar message: the imperial administration is here for the good of the people, in modern parlance, to make America great... again. Imperial Rome had no need to make itself great again, because it already was. [ASIDE: I personally feel that the US has always been great. Flawed of course, but grounded on a constitution, and a strong system of processes, law, and checks and balances that make it great.] In both cases, all of the people who have something to gain from the position of the administration join their voices to the chorus. And as in Rome, the US citizenry does not agree upon the truth in the message being propagated.  

This is where Bible study is helpful, if considered in the historical and cultural context in which it was written. The Book of Revelation was written for the Jesus sect of Jews who had by this time separated from the Jewish community and called themselves Christians. Their land was occupied by leaders who wanted to dominate the people and the land. Rome had been successful, so the underclass in Palestine felt the "boot" of imperial rule with great strength and little mercy. In the US -at this writing-, the "boot" has also struck with little compassion. In Rome, many were in such awe of the Empire that no one thought it could be beaten. The underclass of Palestine had little recourse except rebellion, mostly unsuccessful.  In the US, there are many who are working daily through the court system, on the ground with targeted groups, and through constant communcation through government channels to push back and use whatever system checks and balances are available.

Revelation reminds us that Domination is a quest that is still sought by people in any regime of any time, and it is our call, as descendents of the Jesus sect, to be attentive, and "wise as serpents [sometimes misquoted as foxes, but sends the same message] and innocent as doves" [having no self-serving agenda] (Matthew 10:16). If there is something or someone within our reach that is under threat from the harm domination can inflict, then we are called to speak up, to act, to step into the light. 

This is not easy by any means, and I have struggled with how to respond, how to prepare. But a focus on those issues within your reach and your passion will help you make wise choices while working without a self-serving agenda. A note: if your self-serving agenda includes the fact that you are one of the "targeted" and the agenda will in fact serve the good of targeted others, move forward.  To see some examples of how others have done this, watch the movies "Spotlight" about the uncovering of pedophilia in the Catholic Church, and "The Toxic Town" about mothers fighting back against the power structure that covered up toxic waste in their town. I know that here in North Carolina, our Governor and Attorney General are working as buffers while the Federal government reshapes. 

Are there other examples of people in your sphere who are working to protect rights, the rule of law, and compassion as a way of life? Share in the comments, please. I'd love to hear more. As Krista Tippett suggests (Taking in the Good) , we all need to "take in the good."

Blessings on your day.

Taking in the Good

 I've heard several comments about hope over the years: 

• Hope is the most dangerous thing in a human; 
• Hope can be a driving force, a source of strength, and a beacon of light in the darkest times; 
• People with higher levels of hope tend to have better mental health outcomes and a higher quality of life.

The American Heritge Dictionary defines HOPE as "The longing or desire for something accompanied by the belief in the possibility of its occurrence."

One of the books my therapist recently gave me to study was Krista Tippett's Becoming Wise: An Inquiry into the Mystery and Art of Living. She has a whole chapter on Hope as one of five virtues-- raw materials we humans can use to become wise. Here is something I learned for Krista's book to help me escape the "breaking news" and fill it with "fixing news."

"Hope is distinct, in my mind, from optimism or idealism. It has nothing to do with wishing. It references reality at every turn and reveres truth. It lives open-eyed and wholehearted within the darkness that is woven ineluctably into the light of life and sometimes seems to overcome it. (pg.232)

Hope inspires goodness to reveal itself. Hope takes goodness seriously, treats it as a data point, takes it in. This is a virtue for living in and of itself: taking in the good… (pg.259)

Our world is abundant with quiet hidden lives of beauty and courage and goodness. There are millions of people at any given moment, young and old, giving themselves over to service, risking hope, and all the while ennobling us all. To take such goodness in and let it matter - to let it define our take on reality as much as headlines of violence - is a choice we can make to live by the light in the darkness, to be brave and free… Taking in the good whenever and wherever we find it, gives us new eyes for seeing and living.” (pg. 265)

May you take in the good today. 

Five Steps to Your Story of Now

On the first Sunday in January, our minister at the Eno River Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (ERUUF) gave a sermon related to the month's theme: The Practice of Story. He made the case that before one makes a resolution in the New Year, it is prudent to take a measure of where you are now. He presented this self-reflection in a very simple way: the way of five. I have used this for my own reflection as I contemplated what direction I should take this year, and I offer it to you.

Rev. Daniel explains how story helps us make sense of life, to understand it. Our own story may help us learn what we're "awake" to (or not) and what we want.   Early in the year is a good time to tell our own  "Story of Now" - how we got to this moment, what gifts we've gathered, what did we learn, and now, what is wanting to be created.

Template for Reflection

FIVE: Reflect on five key moments in your life - crossroads, enlightenment, new directions, reflection on the path not taken.

FOUR: Four Beliefs under which you operate. These are ways in which you view the world. How do you approach life? Core values. In what do you put your faith?

THREE: Three people who have most impacted your life. Why and how did they make a difference?

TWO: Two intentions for the new year. What is a gift you have that you would like to share more fully? What quality of love would you like to add to the world? Hint: Love can be manifested in many ways... listening, giving, volunteering, donating, hugging, stop doing. How can you make your part of this world a better place?

ONE: One action step you will take this week to put your intentions into practice. Every week, rinse and repeat.

I encourage you to listen to the sermon so you can pick up any nuances that speak to you. Below is the link to the full sermon on YouTube. I've bookmarked the recording so it starts at the beginning of Rev. Daniel's sermon, instead of the beginning of the service, but if you want to watch the entire service, please do.

CLICK NOW!

  STORY OF NOW SERMON.

In the comments, let us know if you thought this exercise

 was valuable for you and why.

Blessings on your day!

The Daily Conflict - The World or God?

I'm coming back online during Advent (perhaps I'll be able to carry on through the New Year!) because my own spiritual path is in transition. More on that as the season proceeds. I'll start with a meditation that I found in an Advent booklet published by United Church of Chapel Hill a few years ago. 

The meditation is based on Matthew 22: 15-22, the question of paying taxes. “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” The writer of the meditation feels that this is an opportunity to reflect on our own lives and ask the questions what is our obligation to God, what are our obligations to the world, and how do we choose between the two.

My reaction was to remember one of the things I've learned in reading Bishop John Spong. The Bible was written in a day in which God existed outside the world, in the sky, and humans existed separately, on the earth. So there was a divide. The world or God? Ancient image, ancient concept.

Modern concept: the Divine Spirit permeates around and through everything. Earth, heavens, people, deeds, seas. Everything. I believe that the question for me in this modern world is...how do I make the Spirit VISIBLE, how do I manifest it?  My purpose is to bring the Light out from under the bushel and place it on a lamp stand. Every choice, every action can be a Revelation of the Spirit. That revelation comes from the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23): Joy, Love, Peace, Patience (Forbearance), Generosity, Kindness (Compassion), Gentleness, Self-Control, and Faithfulness. As the United Church of Christ says, "God is still speaking". God speaks through me.

God speaks through us.

May it be so. Amen.

Building the Internal Sky

Anna Pigeon is a memorable fictional character because she carries a lifetime's experience in her strength and fears. At one point Anna reflects on her days of deep depression and how she struggled to break free:

She had tried meditating on love and courage, bright satin sashes and whiskers on kittens, but they seemed such tiny points of light in the ink of her internal sky.
Nevada Barr, Borderline, pg.39

Those of us who have known depression, know this "internal ink". To cancel such darkness, the tiny lights must be very strong--in luminosity or in numbers.

But a dark internal sky is not just a symptom of depression, we can create it from holding fast to what we believe is wrong in the world, or from our anger and hate, or from mentally living in the "bad times".

We counteract the "internal ink" by creating light--reminding ourselves of life's joys, remembering the good times, or living with the Eternal Spirit in our hearts. My favorite image for God's Spirit is a tongue of flame. Flaming light, meant to slide deep within us and banish the dark ink. But first, we must believe that the Light--the positive, the good, the blessings--exist. Then we must make an act of faith every day, perhaps several times a day and draw the flame inside, flooding our internal sky with Light.

Avoid building a dark internal sky with anger and bitterness and drama. Life has enough dark spaces; we don't need to add any.

May your internal sky glow with the Spirit's light.

Amen.

Charity and Justice

My Christian Fellowship has just completed its reading and discussion of Marcus Borg's The Heart of Christianity. Toward the end is a section entitled "Practicing Compassion and Justice" (pages 200-204), and I will share with you what we shared in my group.

Borg writes that the practice of compassion is the way in which Christians pay attention to God and participate in God's passion--the redemption of the world. Borg emphasizes the last word because in traditional Christian interpretations, God seeks--and therefore, so should His followers--the redemption of individuals. "God loves the world," Borg says, and the world is God's passion.

Borg goes on to say that the compassion Jesus taught works on two levels. Compassion directed toward the individual, the victim, is charity. Compassion directed toward society, social reform, is justice. Charity directly helps the victims; justice asks, "Why are there victims?" and works to transform the system that produces victimization. Both are good; both are critical. Christians are real good at charity, Borg says, but pretty weak on justice. One reason? "...charity never offends; a passion for justice often does."

What would happen if Christians, as individuals and as a group, shifted their emphasis from mostly charity to a balanced 50-50, charity-to-justice giving model? Borg challenges the reader to try it out. Rebalance your giving of time, talent and treasure to offer 50% to charitable causes that support the less fortunate and 50% to causes that strive to change the social system which produces economic, educational or social inequity. Borg suggests adding to your current donating level instead of dividing the current level in two, but hey, any movement toward the justice side would weigh in as a positive ripple.

Can you do a 50-50 balance? Are you doing it now? Share some of the efforts in which you're involved. Let us know how your rebalancing is going.

Blessings!

What To Do, What To Do

During the last week or two, I've been browsing through A New Zealand Prayer Book, looking for prayers and "good words" for our Christian Fellowship Service Book. This prayer book is much like the American Episcopalian Book of Common Prayer, but the prayers are often in simpler language, language that reflects a vibrant connection between a people and the land, the oceans and God.

Here's a prayer that I'm pinning up on my wall:

Jesus, you knew rejection and disappointment;
help us if our work seems distasteful;
help us to decide what best to do,
what next to do,
or what to do at all.
Give us courage and cheerfulness to go the second mile, and all the miles ahead. (NZPB, pg.130)

I'm at the "what to do at all" point today. I pray you are at "what best to do".

Blessings on whatever decision you need to make!

The Power of Presence

Over the last few weeks, I've been hearing a consistent message. "Just show up." "Just be there." "Be present."

It's one of the first things that a hospital chaplain learns. You don't neccessarily need to converse or do anything for the patient. Often what is most needed is simply your presence, quiet and still.

Mindfulness, presence, is the very essence of Buddhism. Focusing on the now, this minute, this time gives you perspective and helps you sense the Divine Presence in what you are doing.

In marriage and in friendships, the simple act of sitting in the same room together, each reading or sewing or thinking can strengthen the bonds of relationship.

Just showing up for your child's soccer game or dance recital or team debate can bring joy to your child and display your love.

My minister reminds us that attending service on Sunday is a spiritual discipline. We never know who will be touched and uplifted just by walking into the sanctuary and seeing familiar faces there. Our presence creates community which can comfort and support--and "all" we did was show up.

My Christian Fellowship is finding that for the last year simply our presence is yielding fruit. We meet twice a month, make sure that the Sunday bulletin announces when we're meeting and write an article for the monthly newsletter. We mention our involvement casually in conversation. We had a small table at the congregational Connections Fair. We are present in our UU community. From five regular attendees, we're growing to 10. People mention that they've visited our church and stayed partly because they noticed that Christians meet and are accepted. A few people from other UU congregations in the area have visited our meetings.

Presence. Steady. Quiet. Loving. Calming.

How did you show up today?

God's Time Is Now

Ministers and elders, friends and acquaintances, often share a common wisdom. I'm sure you've heard it, too. Things will happen "in God's time". More importantly, God's time is not our own, and there is a need for great patience when we're not on the same timeline as God.

I've been reading a Love Inspired romance (by now, you've guessed this is one of my favorite fiction lines) entitled Marrying Minister Right by Annie Jones. The hero of the story is a minister named Michael and during the story, he freely gives his longtime friend and love-to-be, Heather, advice about praying and thinking before leaping and looking for God's timing, not her own. Michael is skilled in handling conflict, but he's the type of guy who would just as soon avoid it whenever possible and has been known to use a delaying tactic or two. This advice about waiting for God's timing comes easy for him, and he lives it every day. At one point in the story, Michael is deciding when to tell his niece the unwelcome news that she will staying in this small, podunk (in her eyes) Kansas town with him for the whole summer.

Heather returns his favor with some advice of her own.

"Some things can not be put off until you are ready to deal with them", Heather tells him. "Doing things in God's time doesn't always mean waiting...Sometimes, God's time is now."

Whew! Smack me up the side of the head. I'm accustomed to waiting for God's timing and mine to coincide. Like Michael, I'm not fond of conflict, and I consider choices and new directions with such great deliberation that I often forget the lesson Heather shares. There is a time for deliberation, for research, for discussion, even for delaying--and then there is a time for action. My husband has commented that I've got to stop thinking something to death, gnawing over it endlessly. Finally, I have to take the leap of faith and JUST DO IT.

We all need Heather's reminder that when God is ready for us to move, whether we're ready or not, more waiting, more delay could spell disaster or failure or unseen hurdles that will make life more complicated. There is a reason we're supposed to act. "Whoever obeys a command [like Get Moving!] will meet no harm and the wise mind will know the time and way." (Ecclesiastes 8:5) A sign of wisdom is knowing how to recognize that the time is now. To save a life, to fight injustice, to do a kind act, to give our very best, to pray. Sometimes, maybe more often than we think, God's time is NOW.

Are you waiting for God's timing on something? Do you need to consider that God's timing is today, this hour? How do you know when the time is now? How does the Spirit of Life give you a shove?

Are you listening? Do you feel it? Is the time...Now?

Reacting to Hardship

I have a story to share that I heard this week. I had just finished my workout at Curves (a small, franchise exercise gym for women for my out-of-U.S. readers). This particular Curves is in a small shopping center with about 15 other stores. We've been having lovely weather, not yet the Southern sweltering summer heat and no rain. The shopping center management decided to re-surface the parking lot, so over a week, a section of the lot was blocked off each day for the trucks to do their work.

One of the gym instructors shared that just the day before, a woman (a regular gym patron) came into the gym ready to do her workout. "I had to walk all the way from the bank!" she declared with extreme exasperation. Mind you, the bank is maybe the length of a tennis court away, maybe a court and a half. The instructor said simply, "Perhaps you can consider the walk your warm-up." At which the woman glared at the instructor and moved off, her irritation all over her body and proceeded to do a 30-minute cardio workout.

As the instructor said, "I was amazed. I mean, she was coming in to exercise after all."

So, question for the day. We're all trying to live as good Christians. What do you do in a situation like this, where the emotion is coming in waves and someone makes a comment that doesn't seem to make sense? There's a gut reaction in me that wants to state firmly, "Can you hear yourself and how illogical that comment is?" Do we ignore it (obviously she's having a bad day), wade in (I need to find out what's bothering her), or commiserate (yes, what a pain this re-surface work is)?

What would you do? Is there a right way to react? A Christian way?

"The First Rule"

Today I want to share a meditation that my husband shared with me and introduce you to a small, but powerful book, Always We Begin Again: The Benedictine Way of Living by John McQuiston II.

The Order of St. Benedict (Benedictines) carries on a monastic tradition that stems from the origins of the Christian monastic movement in the late third century. They regard Saint Benedict as their founder and guide even though he did not establish a Benedictine Order as such. The monasteries or the order originated in the tradition of community life with its common prayer, reading, and work. John McQuiston II has written a book for "modern" Benedictines outside of a monastic setting, for those who wish to bring the order's values and way of life to everday living.

The First Rule

Attend to these instructions,
listen with the heart and the mind;
they are provided in a spirit of goodwill.
These words are addressed to anyone
who is willing to renounce the delusion
that the meaning of life can be learned;
whoever is ready
to take up the greater weapon
of fidelity to a way of living
that transcends understanding.

The first rule is simply this:

Live this life
and do what ever is done,
in a spirit of Thanksgiving.

Abandon attempts to achieve security, they are futile,
give up the search for wealth, it is demeaning,
quit the search for salvation, it is selfish,
and come to comfortable rest
in the certainty that those who participate in this life
with an attitude of Thanksgiving
will receive its full promise.

May it be so. Amen.

Good, Better, Best: Choosing in a Grey World

In today's final post on right and wrong (final at least for this series), I want to go back to the original scenario I described. A prosecuting attorney in a courtroom tries to convince the court that the defendent knew right from wrong. Just a few hours with this subject over the past week brings up several thoughts.

In the majority of people's lives, daily choices are less about distinguishing right from wrong as they are about determining a good choice from a better choice. Or choosing what has less negative "ripples" at the time. To which charitable organization should you donate money or volunteer your time? In your schedule should you plan to visit your aging mother or attend your son's softball practice? Should you finish that report for your boss or help a colleague with a problem he's trying to solve for his boss? Should you give yourself an hour break to work on your hobby or get to fixing that squeeking door? I suppose my point is that, for most people, it's all good.

I've spoken of Sister José Hobday before. She explained that in judging how "good" we are in our lives, we should set the bar at FTMP--For the Most Part. Our goal is not perfect good (only God is perfect), but we can thrive, bring God's Kingdom closer and show Jesus' Way with FTMP. That's quite a relief to know that FTMP is good enough--for the world and for God.

However, in those daily decisions and shooting for FTMP, I believe we need to take a serious look back over the paths we've chosen and critically observe where we are on the Right/Wrong, Good/Evil continuum. I remember some wisdom from TV--either "Buffy, The Vampire Slayer" or "Joan of Arcadia"(both were excellent spiritual sources) --that most of the time evil isn't just switched on, like a light. You make a decision one day, a pretty good one; you make another decision the next day, another pretty good one; you choose again, a little less good. Finally after many small choices over time, all in themselves seemingly coming down on the "good" side, you find yourself in the middle of a corporate money scandal or cheating on your spouse or hooked on prescription drugs.

That brings me to my last thought for the post. That right and wrong don't seem to be absolutes. We talk as if they were. We humans can even communicate with those abstract concepts and if we checked, we'd mostly agree on the definition. But we live in a world of grey. In practice, right and wrong are judgment calls. Every choice. Every day. Some of the choices are made automatically, and they bring good into the world. For all the others, there is a need for mindfulness, discernment, reflection, prayer, finding trustworthy authorities and listening to their wisdom.

May you use every human and divine resource at your disposal to make choices with positive ripples that show us the Way of Jesus.

Amen.

Keep the Faith, Baby!

Keep the Faith. Being faithful. Having faith in someone, in something. "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1) Faith is being sure.

During my upbringing, I didn't think about faith. It was just there. I had Faith, according to my teachers, because I believed in God and in Eternal Salvation. I was set. I had Faith as in: "The theological virtue defined as secure belief in God and a trusting acceptance of God's will." (American Heritage Dictionary, 3rd Ed., 1996) Faith in that sense didn't have anything to do with what was happening on Earth. And nothing on Earth was as certain as God and Salvation, so it was better that I didn't have faith in anything or anyone in my life.

The American Heritage Dictionary also defines faith as a "confident belief in the truth, value, or trustworthiness of a person, an idea or thing." and as "Belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence." A synonym of faith is Trust. "Firm reliance on the integrity, ability or character of a person or thing." So you have a confident belief in someone's trustworthiness and then you rely on him. Faith and Trust go hand in hand.

In a sermon I heard last year, the minister encouraged us to define our own faith through questions. When the chips are down and life is throwing lemons, what do you rely on to pull you through? To what or to whom do you turn to support you through the tough times? Answering instinctively, from the gut, uncovers some interesting answers.

I have faith in my own abilities to see me through. My intellect, my judgment, my knowledge. At the same time, I am convinced that, although I might have cultivated these abilities, I received them, and any talents I possess, as gifts from God the Creator.

I also have faith in the Interdependent Web, the Life System, the Exquisite Timing, in God within whom we live and move and have our being. I have a confident belief that this Web aligns itself with Good, moves toward the positive, desires the Kingdom of God here, in our existence. I have faith that when I have a problem, other people and circumstances will align to help me toward an ultimately good outcome--not necessarily at the immediate time or for me personally, but for the Life System, the Web as a whole.

Part of any Leap of Faith is to be aware of how that alignment may be happening around me--dynamically--and deliberately step into the flow.

Recognizing and moving in the correct flow, following my Bliss, seeking courage and goodness, living in love and compassion, listening to my spiritual teachers and scripture. I have faith in this life Path. I trust that if I follow this Path, I will, with God, create positive ripples around me and in the world.

When the chips are down and life is throwing lemons, what do you rely on to pull you through? To what or to whom do you turn to support you through the tough times?

Quick! What's your answer?

A Tale of Two Churches

We Unitarian Universalists affirm Seven Principles that guide our behavior and our lives. The Third Principle states: "We...covenant to affirm and promote acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations." As a theological group, Theists (with Christians) account for only 10% of Unitarian Universalists. And many of us UU Christians know first hand that our fellow UU's sometimes have difficulty accepting and encouraging our spiritual growth. We can be painted with the same brush as fundamentalist or conservative Christians, and that brush, for many in our denomination, holds the colors of pain, guilt, dogma, magical thinking, authoritarianism, and judgmentalism--everything from religious pasts that is still healing.

Enter Bishop Carlton Pearson in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with a congregation of mostly African American, Pentecostal seekers, embracing Universalism and looking for a new spiritual home. This group of wanderers worships for a while at the local Episcopalian church. But the fit is not exactly right for several reasons, and Bishop Pearson turns to Rev. Marlin Lavanhar, Senior Minister at All Souls Unitarian Church. Historically white, theologically inclusive, with a strong Humanist base. New Dimensions, the Pentecostal Universalists, begin worshipping at All Souls. The two ministers talk, discuss options, exchange practical and theological ideas. Share thoughts with their congregations. And in October 2008, they take a Leap of Faith.

The decision is made to enfold the several hundred seekers from New Dimensions into All Souls Unitarian.

All Souls now offers two services. The contrast between the two could not be more striking. At the early service, hymns rich in harmony and organ, sermons listened to with attentive silence, the rhythm of words from many spiritual sources and people, and quiet joy. At the second service, praise music that starts a half-hour before, people on their feet, hands upraised, clapping, sermons punctuated with "Amen!" and "Halleluja" from the congregation. The names of Jesus and God spoken and sung with abandon.

And to the surprise of many, the second service is attended by many current All Souls members, who tried it out...and stayed. New members begin to find a spiritual home within a denomination pledged to embracing diversity and inclusiveness.

In an article written by Rev. Lavanhar ("Spiritual Brokeness", Simple Gifts: The All Souls Journal, March 2009), it is clear that all is not smooth sailing. The praise music reignites memories of old and painful trauma. People complain, "I came to All Souls to get away from all that." What is the "that" they are escaping, Rev. Lavanhar asks. And learns that there is a long list of past religious experience from which people have fled: the way women were treated, anti-intellectualism, homophobia, proselytizing, the way other traditions were demonized, just to name a few. And Rev. Lavanhar points out that none of this has come to All Souls with its new members. What has come is a chance to bring out those old wounds which have been covered up or skillfully avoided and heal them.

"At All Souls", Rev. Lavanhar concludes, "we are not simply expounding lofty religious ideals, we are becoming the world we hope to see."

If a similar opportunity arose to embrace diversity--theological, racial, political, all of the above--by adding double the number of current members to your congregation, would you do it? Would you live out the Third Priniciple? Would you follow the Way of Jesus, the Gospel of Inclusiveness?

Jesus, The Wisdom Teacher

For all of you just joining us, I'm sharing experiences I had at the 2009 UUCF Revival in Tulsa in March, and we're using those experiences as springboards for discussion and reflection.

One workshop I attended that weekend was called "Saving Jesus from the Christian Right and Secular Left" and was moderated by a minister from the United Church of Christ. As one participant said, "I don't think that Jesus needs to be saved. He can do that for himself. But I'm willing to listen."

First, we watched a video from the Saving Jesus curriculum, a 12-week DVD-based study for small groups presenting leading religious voices of today, such as John Dominic Crossan, Matthew Fox, Marcus Borg, and Amy-Jill Levine. The sixth video is Teachings of Jesus: Wisdom Tradition and focuses on the oral tradition that Jesus used to greatest effect in his ministry--parables. Parables are an exquisite form of storytelling which ground the story in commonplace, everyday images, and then shifts perspective within the commonplace to make you think, sit up and take notice, or nudge your perceptions. The power of Jesus was his ability to create these stories with a radical force. He described the status quo: the Roman occupation, the status of Jews in society, the rule-based Jewish community. He showed how the status quo oppressed. Then he shifts. Through his storyline he tells his listeners that they are pure, worthy, everything that society tells them they are not.

I particularly valued the teaching that in reading all the parables, we should be on the lookout for not only personal sin, but also systemic sin; not only personal injustice, but also systemic injustice. Jesus was a master at showing both at the same time. The example parable is the one about the generous landowner and the laborers in his vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16). Remember? The landowner hires laborers throughout the day and when the end of the day comes, he directs his manager to pay them all the same rate whether they worked a full day or only a few hours.

Jesus begins by saying the "The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner..." So we know that Jesus is going to describe the environment, our mind set, our internal moral compass the way God wishes it to be. The story is one of outrageous generosity. Underneath, two other realities arise. First, is the gut reaction we (and the grumbling laborers) have to such generosity. It's unfair. It's unjust. People should be paid at a rate reflecting the work they do. Jesus' first lesson is that we need to radically reorder our thoughts on this matter to create the kingdom of heaven on earth.

The second reality is more subtle. Here we are, at the height of the harvest season when it should be "all hands on deck" so to speak, but at the end of the day, there are still laborers milling around without a job, "Because no one has hired us." (v.7). Here is systemic injustice. There is something wrong with a system that has jobs available, but can not bring the workers and jobs together so that workers can work and jobs can be filled.

This second reality is evident even today. Jobs in the suburbs could be filled by workers living in the city, except for a lack of good public transportation and affordable daycare. High tech jobs go unfilled due to a lack of re-training for manufacturing workers and less emphasis on math and science in our schools.

Jesus often speaks on two levels; it's up to us to recognize it and become aware of the situation around us. Personal injustice and systemic injustice. If we tackle the systemic injustice, will all the personal injustices be resolved? What's better, putting our efforts toward systemic solutions like teaching the person to fish, or putting out the brushfires by feeding him today?

What do you think? What will you DO?

"Useful Righteousness"

The Opening Service at UUCF Revival dropped me into a Pentecostal style of worship that I had never before experienced. The combined choirs of All Souls Unitarian Church rocked the house with praise choruses accompanied by an electric keyboard and the beat of drums, clapping, swaying, raising hands--all to praise God. Energized, we settled in to hear the sermon of Rev. Gerald Davis, Church of the Restoration-UU. Settled in? Not going to happen when Rev. Davis began preaching.

Revival, he told us, means to get back up, to come back to life, to rise again. When we are revived, we gain renewed life, renewed energy, and renewed focus. That was why we were all in Tulsa that weekend. To REVIVE.

Why? For what purpose?

To take that renewed life, energy, and focus and MOVE out into the world. The Way of Jesus for a Unitarian Universalist is to be useful. Someone in the congregation declared, "Preach it, Brother!" And he did.

Believing is fine, he said. Pulling a friend to church is fine. Stating your beliefs is fine. But if you don't extend yourself into the world, then your belief is lifeless, stagnant. He turned our attention to Isaiah 58:5-15 by calling Rev. Tamara Lebak of All Souls to "Read, Sister!" And she did.

As she read, Rev. Davis expounded. Only when you feed the hungry, love each other, fight for justice, THEN "...your light shall break forth like the dawn (v.8)...you shall be like a spring of water, whose waters never fail."(v.11). Punctuated with "Amen" and "Yes, Lord!" from the congregation, the words of Isaiah and the enthusiasm of Rev. Davis gave us the message of "Useful Righteousness." Read the Isaiah passage. Powerful stuff.

Just this morning, I was reading a Love Inspired romance by Cheryl Wyatt titled "Ready-Made Family" (April 2009). In the story, a young man named Hutton with Mosaic Down Syndrome watches all day as an older man, a claimed Christian, chastises and insults another because the other man is Asian, different. Days later, the older man relates how Hutton confronted him. "He [Hutton] asked me why I had pictures of Jesus up on my walls when I didn't love like Him...He went on to tell me that he didn't know how I could tell everybody I was a Christian because he looked and looked and looked all day and couldn't see Jesus living anywhere in my heart."

Hutton couldn't see Jesus. "They'll know we are Christians by our love", a well-known hymn states.

Useful Righteousness.

We talked about what our faith looks like earlier this week. Same question, different perspective. How do you intend to practice useful righteousness today so that "...your light shall break forth like the dawn..."?

Introduction

I am a Unitarian Universalist Christian. It's taken me many years, a lot of prayers and a few twisty roads to get here. More on the twisty roads in a later post. As a Christian, the Way of Jesus draws me to seek God, and his teachings as related in the Bible provide my moral compass and a vision of what life on earth might be if only we could bring the Kingdom of God to it. As a Unitarian Universalist (UU), I acknowledge that there is a Truth, Divine Light, Sacredness, Higher Power, God, but I do not profess that I have exclusive, complete knowledge of its existence or characteristics. The Face of God is seen through many windows--sacred scriptures, nature, television, the cosmos, people, books, movies, Facebook--and only by being aware and open can we see even a glimpse of Divinity's expanse and nature. I foster an attitude of gratitude for Life, its blessings, joys and sorrows. As a UU, I'm very interested in outcomes. You may have very different beliefs from me, but how do you put those beliefs into practice? Do you respect and listen to others? Do you care for nature and Mother Earth? Do you seek justice for all people or do you feel that only a few deserve it? Do you love your neighbor as the Samaritan did? Do you support other people in their spiritual walk even if it's different from yours? Outcomes.

What does your faith look like?