Universalism: Along A string of Tensions

I have been pondering about universalism alot lately.  The Universalist Herald has had several articles in this month’s issue discussing what Universalism should look like in today’s Unitarian Universalism.  Yes, I said should.  Because that is how this magazine has been taking up the cry to revive Universalist thought. 

There does seem to be a need for a universal message in today’s ultra conservative climate.  In Laurel, MS there is an evangelical presbyterian minister who writes a column on faith, his faith specifically, and he has twice now denounced universalism as heresy.  I responded the first time but decided not to the second time.  His theology is steeped in Calvinism.  I have gotten the impression that most of the community in which I live in Mississippi is steeped in Calvinism.  I was speaking the other day within someone who stated being raised Baptist and was taught, indoctrinated, to believe that if you disagreed with anything that was said you were facing the fires of hell.  It wasn’t until leaving home, meeting other people who did not see the world in such harsh  tones did the realization occur that maybe church had missed the mark. 

But what should that universal message be?  The Universalist Herald has been promoting what I would call a purist universalism.  This is the doctrine that the atonement of Jesus on the cross is freely given to all of humanity, that all are saved, and would be restored to God in the afterlife.  John Murray, oft considered the founder of Universalism in America, believed that there was a period of purification that some would have to go through before this restoration, and Hosea Ballou believed there was no need for this purification as the act of Jesus was sufficient. 

Both John Murray and Hosea Ballou rejected the notion of Original Sin.  This is the doctrine that Augustine of Hippo expanded on and through his efforts became the doctine of the Catholic church and later of many protestant churches.  Original Sin states that when Adam and Eve disobeyed god by eating of the fruit from the tree of knowledge,  that sin and death entered the world; not only did humanity fall from grace but all of creation to this very day.  Murray and Ballou believed that men and women were responsible for their own sin not the sin of some proverbial ancestor.   Jesus’ death and resurrection took care of any sins that were committed paving the way for God to restore humanity to itself.

The Universalist National Memorial Church in Washington,DC has revised the 1899 Universalist Declaration of Faith.  They ask for participation in the reading of this declaration each Sunday.  Reading it is not mandatory.  The revised declaration is as follows:

“In faith and freedom, we are called to bring hope and healing to the world, so that all my rejoice in God’s grace. I believe in the universal love of God, the spiritual authority and leadership of Jesus Christ, the trustworthiness of the Bible as a source of divine revelation, the need for repentance and forgiven of sin, and the final harmony of all souls with God.”  

There is very little difference from the original declaration.  Words that implied a sexist point of view have been removed.  John Murray’s ‘certainty of  just retribution for sin’ has been removed and Hosea Ballou’s belief emphasized a bit more implicitly.  The declaration is in fact a creed. 

I have difficulty with this declaration of faith.   I no longer call myself Christian. I seek to follow the teachings of Jesus but I do not see Jesus as Christ; I do not believe his death served as an atonement for anything; and I doubt his physical resurrection.  Given that these criteria are cornerstone to the definition of Christian, I cannot in good conscience call myself one. 

I question whether the Bible is to be considered trustworthy.  There are gems found within the Bible that are priceless. It is these gems that I mine for when I read the Bible.  But there is plenty in the Bible that has inspired malicious acts against others.  For a text to inspire such evil places it in the questionable box for it to be trustworthy as a source of divine revelation.   

Yet, I think the Universalist Herald might point to the Universalist National Memorial Church as an example of the type of Universalism that needs to be spoken today.  Perhaps.   But I see this growing call to re-claim, revive Universalism as being poised along a string of tensions.  For many of us, this would be a call to repentance for having left our Christian roots and return to the bosom of Jesus, forsaking all others.   

I consider my theology to be universalist.  Universalism for me is the knowledge that the source of all that is and all that is not,  is love.    Universalism as I have come to understand it is the knowing that love is a stream of well-being that flows through all of creation. This love is always there for us to tap into regardless of the circumstances around us. There is absolutely nothing as the author of Romans stated that can separate us from the love of god.  Universal Salvation for me is accessible in this life time.  I do not need to wait for an afterlife to experience it. 

It does not depend on a notion of sinfulness that needs redeeming, nor the death of an innocent man to make it available.   It does not require that I believe in god or Jesus in order to tap into the knowledge / experience that I am loved for who I am.  This love that flows inspires me to create justice for others.  It is inclusive of all paths of spirituality inviting all to swim deep in the waters of universalism.  This is the message that needs to be put out there in ever abundance.   Blessings,

Celebrating Humanity

 The song in this video is the Stream of Life by Rabindranath Tagore.  A translation of which is found in the “Singing the Living Tradition” hymnal of the Unitarian Universalists.  # 529  The Stream of Life

“The same stream of life that runs through my veins night and day runs through the world and dances in rhythmic measures.  It is the same life that shoots in joy through the dust of the earth in numberless blades of grass and breaks into tumultous waves of leaves and flowers.  It is the same life that is rocked in the ocean-cradle of birth and death, in ebb and in flow. I feel my limbs are made glorious by the touch of this world of life.  And my pride is from the life-throb of ages dancing in my blood this moment.” 

Thanks to Erik Walker Wikstrom for the suggestion to watch this video.  Apologies for not being able to get the high definition version on here.  Enjoy!

PS  In case the youtube link does not work you can see this video at the Stride Gum Website, the sponsors of this video here.  CLick on Dancing 2008.

A partisan view of how it all began

The Gallup people released last month their findings on how many Americans believe in Creationism, the belief that God created the world within the last 10,000 years ago including humans as is versus those who believe that evolution was how it all began millions of years ago.   The results have not changed much over the past 26 years when they began asking these questions.  

“Between 43% and 47% of Americans have agreed during this 26-year time period with the creationist view that God created human beings pretty much in their present form at one time within the last 10,000 years or so. Between 35% and 40% have agreed with the alternative explanation that humans evolved, but with God guiding the process, while 9% to 14% have chosen a pure secularist evolution perspective that humans evolved with no guidance by God.”

What is more, 60% of those identifying as Republican, 40% of those identifying as Independent  and 38% of those who identify as Democrats believe in Creationism.    So we have a partisan view of how it all began. 

Sigh… 

Unitarian Universalism: Denomination or Religion?

Mike Myers of SNL fame, had a sketch called “Coffee Talk”, during which the character would exclaim in yinglish ( a non-yiddish word that sounds like it could be yiddish) the she was becoming ‘Verklempt.’   To give her time to re-compose herself she would offer a topic,  such as Holy Roman Empire, neither Holy, nor Roman, nor even an Empire.  Discuss.  She could easily have offered:  “Unitarian Universalist:  Neither Unitarian nor Universalist.  Discuss.” 

UU Blogger Aaron Sawyer has received some criticism for a video he did and posted on YouTube. He responds to the criticism on his blog.  What came up in the discussion is whether or not Unitarian Universalist Association is a denomination or a religion.  I responded in part thus: 

               ”If we see ourselves as a denomination that means that we are a denomination of a specific faith tradition such as Christianity. Yet, we no longer identify as a Christian faith. We may have people who honor their Christian heritage and identify as Christian but Unitarian Universalism is not a Christian faith.

               “There are other Unitarian and Universalist faiths out there… are we a denomination of them? Judaism is unitarian in theology. Islam is unitarian in theology. Oneness Pentecostalism is non-trinitarian ( Jesus is the one God, so the emphasis is different) in theology. There is also the Biblical Unitarians. Unity is a universalist faith. And there are pockets of universalism within Methodism, Roman Catholicism, United Church of Christ, and Episcopalian traditions, to mention a few. Are we a denomination of these groups? The closest we could be affiliated would be Judaism because they are also a covenantal faith like we are (there are also some major differences which would separate us) but the others have very strong doctrinal and creedal requirements which we as a whole do not meet.

               ”Therefore it seems that declaring Unitarian Universalism a religion is closer to the truth of our identity since the term denomination does not seem to match. I know that there are many of us who will cling to the word denomination for nostalgic reasons but we really are no longer a denomination.” 

Unitarian Universalism is in an interesting bind because as a faith we originated out from strong Christian / Abrahamic roots.  Unitarian theology is the theology that most Abrahamic faiths embrace.  Judaism, Islam, and Baha’i are all unitarian in theology.  They believe that God is one.  Only Christianity broke away from this stance in the 4thcentury with a Trinitarianview of God.  Today, we are seeing a shift in Christianity with the rise of non-trinitarian sects forming within Christianity such as Jehovah Witnesses and Oneness Pentecostalism.  Mormonism is non-trinitarianin that they describe the father, son, and holy spirit as more of a godhead, three distinct beings; father and son with distinct physical bodies and the holy spirit in spirit form. Together they form the godhead. 

What is important to note is that none of the religions that formed out of Judaic roots sought to begin a new religion.  Jesus was not looking to begin a new religion; nor was Mohammed, the founder of Islam; nor was Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism; nor was Baha’ullah, the founder of Baha’i.  They each sought to correct what they saw as errors in the religion they grew up in.  This is an extremely simplistic answer as there are more complex layers and nuances to the founding of these great religions but essentially this is true. 

So what errors does Unitarian Universalism seek to correct?  I think there are several.  The first is that revelation is forever evolving and revealing itself.  Part of that revelation occurs in the discoveries that the sciences unveil.  We have unlocked many of the mysteries of the world through scientific inquiry.  Prior to modern day science there was a belief that the earth was the center of the universe, today we know that we are not the center of the universe but that we are on the edge of a vast galaxy in a vaster universe of galaxies.  This revelation changes how we view our humanity in relationship with the universe and with the concept of god. 

The second correction Unitarian Universalism offers is the interdependent web of all creation.  We see ourselves as interdependent with the life on this planet.  We are not beings given dominion over the creation but interdependent players in the balance of life.  Our actions have a profound impact on the life on this planet.  Species live and die because of our ignorance and arrogance.  Unitarian Universalism seeks to honor that balance by becoming aware of our impact in the environmental arena and to reduce our human footprint on the world. 

The third correction we offer is the inherent worth and dignity of all people. This is our first principle that we as congregations seek to uphold.  We struggle with what that means in our lives especially in the presence of evil.  Yet, when followed, changes the way we treat the other in our presence.  Part of the meaning is in the listening to the often harsh reality of the lives others have lived because of the privileges we may have at their expense.   We seek to value the experiences that everyone lives by seeking systemic changes to situations that create injustices and oppression in the world. 

These and other correctives that exist in Unitarian Universalism seem to indicate that Unitarian Universalism is a religion in its own right.    A religion that is evolving.  Blessings,

Open Source Faith

Rev. Christine Robinson of the First Unitarian Church of Albuquerque, NM states that Unitarian Universalism is an open source faith.   A term used in internet circles.  She also talks about their Branch Ministry where they are using the Internet, DVDs to provide resources for folk in the rural areas of New Mexico where there are no Unitarian Universalist congregations.  This is an exciting experiment that is being developed there with great promise for other parts of the country, like Mississippi. 

The UUA’s Mid-south District is adapting her congregation’s idea to provide resources to the congregations of Mississippi.  I will be moving to Tuscaloosa, AL to serve that congregation on a part time basis and will continue to serve Our Home Universalist Church in Ellisville, MS on a once a month basis.  In addition with the generous cooperation of the Tuscaloosa congregation, I will be developing a series of DVDs of sermons and adult education programs that will be subscribed to by Unitarian Universalist congregations in Mississippi, as of this writing four of the six congregations are participating.  These DVDs can be used to supplement their worship services with a sermon or for their adult education programs.   I will also over the course of the year visit these congregations and provide a to be determined workshop, consultation, etc on a Saturday and then worship on Sunday.  It is the intention of the Mid-south District and my intention, that this resource will aid in the furthering of Unitarian Universalism in Mississippi by offering professional ministry to congregations that perhaps are not able to have a called professional ministry.  Who knows, perhaps these DVD sermons will also be posted on You Tube or on this blog for others to witness.  

This is an exciting time and a wonderful opportunity for the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Tuscaloosa to extend their ministry in an innovative manner to support the ministries of the Unitarian Universalist congregations in Mississippi.  Blessings,

Wondering Where The Lions Are

 

Funny how some songs change their meanings as one gets older.  I have always liked this song.  I now see the lions as the great prophets, like Gandhi, King, Emerson, Parker, and others whose words challenge us to live our lives differently.  “They were not as frightening as they were before.  Some kind of ecstasy got a hold on me”… Once we know and understand their message, the fear of their challenge fades away.  Where are they now?  Who will be seen as the prophets of this age?   

But then Bruce Cockburn says the song was in reference to a nuclear war threat between China and Soviet Union but every good poet knows, that the reader / hearer adds their own meaning to the words.   BLessings,

Presbyterians to consider Ordaining Gays

“An engineering professor is treating her husband, a loan officer, to dinner for finally giving in to her pleas to shave off the scraggly beard he grew on vacation.  His favorite restaurant is a casual place where they both feel comfortable in slacks and cotton/polyester-blend golf shirts.  But, as always, she wears the gold and pearl pendant he gave her the day her divorce decree was final.  They’re laughing over their menus because they know he always ends up diving into a giant plate of ribs but she won’t be talked into anything more fattening than shrimp.
      Quiz:  How many biblical prohibitions are they violating?  Well, wives are supposed to be ’submissive’ to their husbands (I Peter 3:1).  And all women are forbidden to teach men (I Timothy 2:12), wear gold or pearls (I Timothy 2:9) or dress in clothing that ‘pertains to a man’ (Deuteronomy 22:5).  Shellfish and pork are definitely out (Leviticus 11:7, 10) as are usury (Deuteronomy 23:19), shaving (Leviticus 19:27) and clothes of more than one fabric (Leviticus 19:19).  And since the Bible rarely recognizes divorce, they’re committing adultery, which carries the rather harsh penalty of death by stoning (Deuteronomy 22:22).
      So why are they having such a good time?  Probably because they wouldn’t think of worrying about rules that seem absurd, anachronistic or - at best - unrealistic.  Yet this same modern-day couple could easily be among the millions of Americans who never hesitate to lean on the Bible to justify their own anti-gay attitudes.”  ~Deb Price, And Say Hi To Joyce 

The Presbyterian General Conference voted in their national body to overturn their ban on ordaining Gays and Lesbians.  This is a major step forward for this denomination.  A few decades ago now, it had passed a similar resolution but in their polity in order for it to become official, had to be ratified by a majority of the Presbyteries within their denomination.  It failed to reach that majority vote.  This next year will show whether the attitudes of Presbyterians have really changed over these many years or  will this again be a vote aborted. 

The subject of ordaining sexual minorities has been a divisive issue in main line denominations these past few years.  We are witnessing a widening schism in the Episcopal church over the ordaining of a gay priest to the position of Bishop.  Presbyterians also struggle with this potential of schism.  Yet, the scenario quoted above is seen as perfectly aligned with teachings of the church even when it is shown to ignore biblical teachings.   Jesus never mentioned homosexuality.  Yet he mentioned some of the concerns mentioned in our scenario above, especially divorce.  

It seems to me that if one is to be true to the teachings of Jesus, that one ought to seek the spirit of the law rather than the letter of the law.  What is at the heart of a devout religious life?  To live justly, love tenderly, and walk humbly with one’s god.  This is a pretty broad prescription from Micah with room for interpretation.  It does leave open the ability to adjust our living based on our new understandings that Science and Reason offer us.   As well as evolving cultural understandings of what is sinful behavior. 

May Presbyterians weigh seriously the call placed before them and the path they will go down as a result of their vote. Will they seek to follow the spirit or the letter of their doctrines?  May they choose the spirit.  Blessings,

Spirituality: what is it?

There has been over the last few days an interesting conversation on spirituality on the minister’s chat list.  What is it?  How do we define it?  How do Unitarian Universalists who have, for the most part, shied away from the other worldly forms of spirituality of the 19th century re-engage the topic without returning to the spiritualist’s ruminations?   Can we find a common definition of the word that all would agree on it’s meaning?

Here is a bit of what I wrote to my colleagues:  ‘I have a sermon that I have given a few times now, entitled
“Spiritual being having a Human Experience”  It is from a quote by Pierre Tielhard de Chardin, the 20th century theologian / priest / mystic who stated:   
       “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.”    

‘I have taken this to mean that there is something transcendent about life.  And something very spiritual about our human experiences so enjoy them– all of them, in what ever shape or form they come to us; even those that cause us great pain.  I do not mean enjoy the pain in a sado/masochistic manner but enjoy as in embrace all of life as it comes to us.  Feel it deeply.  Reflect on it deeply.  Suck the marrow out of it all… ‘    

For me, a healthy spirituality is one where our humanity is embraced, that we are able to live through the events of our lives as whole and present as possible.  Yes, there may be events that happen in our lives that are difficult to face and the defense mechanisms of denial and repression are valuable responses in the moment to get us through these moments.  But at some point in time, to be able to reflect on these moments, to embrace them as events that have happened and then to let them go so those events lose their power over the living of our current moments. 

To be able to reflect upon and embrace the wonderful events as well and then to let them go because I don’t want that  event to be the standard bearer / the pedestal of all other events like it.  I want the next wonderful moment to stand on its own merit and to be enjoyed fully for what it brings. 

A healthy spirituality for me is one where we are able to transcend our aloneness to know that we are connected and part of the interdependent web of the universe.  It is a means where we bask in the awareness of all that is; marvel at its beauty; wonder at its complexity and simplicity.    For me, spirituality is to live as authentically as I can and fully in touch with all I bring to the moment.  It is about living to the fullest of my human potential. 

I have not even come close to answering the questions at the beginning of this post.  This is a conversation that is answered when there is relational dialogue.  So I open the floor and invite your comments.  What is spirituality to you?  How do you define it?  How do you experience your sense of the spiritual?  Blessings,

Are Unitarian Universalists leaven for America?

“The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.” Matthew 13:33 

The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life has reported its findings yesterday regarding religious tolerance in the New York Times.   The story stated, ” … 70 percent of Americans affiliated with a religion or denomination said they agreed that ‘many religions can lead to eternal life,’ including majorities among Protestants and Catholics.  Among Evangelical Christians, 57 percent agreed with the statement, and among Catholics, 79 percent did.  Among minority faiths, more than 80 percent of Jews, Hindus, and Buddhists, agreed with the statement, and more than half of Muslims did.”

The findings as reported does not indicate if this tolerance in other’s religious beliefs is a shift from intolerance or if Americans were always more tolerant of religious beliefs?   The question for me, is what role, if any,  did Unitarian Universalist’s play in this attitude?  As a faith, Unitarian Universalists acceptance in right of conscience, in the personal quest for truth and meaning, has meant that we recognize that all faith journeys are valid for salvation, regardless of how we might define the word salvation. 

While it may be presumptuous to think that our minority faith has had any impact on the larger whole towards tolerance, does presumption mean it is therefore beyond consideration?  Long before I became an official Unitarian Universalist, I was always impressed with the Unitarian Universalists that I knew with their openness and acceptance of other point of views.  Unitarian Universalists seemed to role model this concept for me in ways that my conservative charismatic Christian faith did not. 

And not that my charismatic Christian friends were not tolerant of others, they were but it was done in the arrogant tolerance sort of way.  I mean there was always this ‘I will tolerate your position because you simply don’t know better yet’ attitude.  Once you knew better and you decided to reject their message, all tolerance bets were off.    While Unitarian Universalists are not immune to this sort of arrogance, we tend to be aware of its tendency and confront it because deep down we also know that humanly we only have a piece of the universal truth.  And not a very big piece at that. 

We tend to embrace the wisdom of Buddha, where he tells the story of four blind men trying to describe what an elephant [metaphor for Truth] looks like.  An elephant is like a trunk of a tree…  no no an elephant is like a huge wall… no no an elephant is like a whip…  NO! You are all wrong, an elephant is like a serpentining serpent…  All were correct in their experiences of the elephant; legs, body, tail, and trunk.  We each may have a piece of the Truth but our limited experiences and senses fail to see the whole picture.  This is one important reason why we need to be in community with each other so we can hear others experiences of Truth in the hopes of enlarging our conception of our elephant. 

Even if, American’s have generally had a broad tolerance for other faiths, in what ways can Unitarian Universalists be the leaven that leavens the whole of America?  Jesus stated this is what the Kingdom of Heaven was like; placing leaven (yeast) in flour and soon it was all leavened with yeast.  We can live our lives like that.  Our values, our principles that we seek to uphold, can be leaven for the society in which we live.  Blessings,  

 

Looking for a Fulfilling Life

The Director of Religious Education at one of the congregations I serve, led the Adult Forum discussion on Sunday.  She was using the curriculum of Spirit in Practice, a UU curriculum that explores a variety of ways people express their spirituality.  It has been a wonderful study for this congregation. 

She shared a story entitled “The Wise Fool”   I will paraphrase the story here. 

There was a great Sufi holy man Nasreddin Hodja who was approached by a group of women one day.  They were quite upset and cried out, “Help us, Hodja! Help us!”   Hodja replied, “What is the trouble?” 

“Our husbands!” The women cried.  “They have all decided that they must go into the desert and dedicate themselves to finding Allah.  They have abandoned us and the children!”

“This is wrong!”  Hodja declared and he set out on his donkey to find the men.  When he found them he began to shout, “Help me! Help me!” 

“What is the trouble, Hodja?” the men replied.  

“My donkey!  I have lost my donkey and cannot find him anywhere.  I must find my donkey.”  He said.

“But he is right there,” the men laughed.  “Can’t you see that you are sitting on him?  You do not have to try to look for him.”

“And why do you,” Hodja replied, ” believe you must go into the desert to look for Allah?  Go back to your wives and your lives.”   And that is what the men did.

There is a belief that in order for us to have a fulfilling life, that we must have that life over there–where ever over there may be.  And so, people are disatisfied because they feel trapped in their present condition.  They go through their daily routine as a grind, muttering through out their very being that they wished they could be someplace else and really live.  Of course, there is nothing wrong in wanting to be someplace else and seeing different things and living different experiences that various locations offer.

But finding a fulfilling life someplace else is just like going into the desert to find Allah.  Allah is already here in the fabric of our lives and routines.  The Sufi holy man knew that Allah was to be found in the faces of the wives and children.  So too a fulfilling life is to be found in the daily routines we awaken ourselves to experience.  

Being awake, being fully alert to all that is going on around us can and will reveal to us what we must do  or be in this moment.  That response will shape our next moment and the next, and in reflection we will discover that our being here in the day to day routine made a difference in our having a fulfilling life.  We will discover that the opportunities for fulfillment were already here all the time. 

I hear from my friends in other parts of the country, who comment and state that living in Mississippi must be really hard.  It must be a culture shock to live there.  They of course are referring to the stereotype and biases that have developed against Mississippi.   But people are people where ever one lives.  The Human condition is the same that I experienced in Connecticut as I experienced in Illinois and in California and now in Mississippi.  The location of the people encountered does not matter.  We tend to run into the same people no matter where we live. 

The difference, I believe, is in how we decide to respond to our daily encounters with others and how we respond to the daily routines we find ourselves in.  It is a matter of being at peace with ourselves and in our present living.   If we believe that nothing good ever comes out of Nazareth  (John 1:46) then we will miss the opportunity to meet Jesus or the Buddha or the Mahatma.  And believing that something good does come out of your location in time and space, is a step towards finding Allah in the midst of the desert of our lives.  Blessings, Fred