This service featured a sermon "talkforward," during which the congregation as a whole discussed four questions
We are going to do something a bit different today. Instead of having a sermon talkback, we are going to have a sermon talkforward. The inspiration for this idea is from Dr. Coeyman's last adult ed class, on Process Theology. (By the way, I recommend her classes to one and all.) In that class, she introduced the notion that we are all equipped to "do theology," that we need not rely on scripture or the work of so-called sages, but rather, that each of us has the power to create theology and, on our own, arrive at sometimes stunning insights about the nature of "God, the Universe and Everything," to quote the late Douglas Adams.
So, today, we're going to "do theology."
Printed on the insert to your order of service are four questions. You'll notice that these questions focus on two central aspects of spirituality. First, they invite each of us to ponder our destiny, what we should or should not be doing with our lives. Second they ask us to consider the notion of providence, that we are, in some sense provided for; that what we need, we get.
I chose these questions because it struck me that if we are to do theology, we would, at some point, bump up against all of these questions. So, why not now.
Take a few minutes to think about these question. You probably won't be able to answer all of them, but I'm betting that enough of you have thought about some of them to make the talkforward worthwhile.
Copouts are always a problem in discussions of this kind so I have some anti-copout medicine in the form of three rules. If you can't follow these three rules (as I am sure you cannot), please try to keep your copouts to a minimum.
To prepare for the talkforward, let's take three minutes to meditate on these questions in silence. Here are a few words of James Luther Adams to frame your meditations:
Whatever the destiny of the planet or of the individual life, a sustaining meaning is discernible and commanding in the here and now. Anyone who denies this denies that there is anything worth taking seriously or even worth talking about. Every blade of grass, every work of art, every scientific endeavor, every striving for righteousness bears witness to this meaning. Indeed every frustration or perversion of truth, beauty, or goodness also bears witness, as the shadow points round to the sun.
I have a confession to make. This is a stealth sermon. Some time ago, I made the remark that we Unitarians rarely talk about what's good in other religions. No sooner had I said that than a few people suggested that I do a service on just that. And that, the good parts of other religions, what this service is all about. I should say, "the good parts of one other religion," that religion that UUs love to hate, Christianity, although, much of what I say does not apply to Christianity alone. Much of it, for example, can be found in Judaism. But it's easier for me to focus on Christianity rather than trying to teach a course in comparative religions.
I enjoy a singular advantage in talking about this subject in that I have never been what card-carrying Christians would call a card-carrying Christian. I was brought up UU, actually Unitarian. But the Unitarianism of my youth was a kinder, gentler religion than contemporary Unitarian-Universalism. It bore no particular animus towards Christianity or any other religion.
Most UUs, on the other hand were brought up Christian, of some sort, and harbor a very definite animus against Christianity. I sometimes wonder if all their moves to a new house are like their move to UUism. If that's the case, then they pack all their good household effects into crates, and put all the junk into garbage bags. Then they leave the crates behind and take the garbage bags to the new house. And, whenever anyone comes over, they haul out the junk in the bags and show the visitors how really rotten the stuff they should have left behind but didn't is.
Here's the point of that little metaphor. I do not want us to be a religion defined by the ideas that we reject. I do want us to be a religion that draws upon the best traditions of other faiths. Those are the reasons I'm up here today.
So, what about the questions on providence and destiny, and why did I wait until now to tell you what I was up to? You see, these questions, it strikes me, are ones that we UUs find truly difficult. We don't generally have ready answers. In fact, if you're like me, you don't have any answers. But these questions are the very questions that Christians are good at. Indeed, it is questions like these that Christians just love to answer, and, now I want to talk about the best of Christian answers to these questions.
I kept Christianity under the table till now because I wanted us to think about the answers within the context of our own UU faith. I knew that if ÊI made the slightest mention of Christianity that half the congregation would spend the meditation time rummaging around in their garbage bags instead of dreaming up their own answers. Now that the Christianity thing is out of the bag, I'm sure that some of are already thinking of the worst of Christian answers to the questions. If you're one of those, you'll just have to wait until the coffee hour to tell us about it.
So, let me pretend to be Christian. No, let me be Christian. There is much to be gained in putting on that cloak. And, let me take a shot myself at the questions.
How do I know what my purpose in life is? How do I find my destiny? I could say, "The Bible," but that's the wrong answer, even for a Christian. The right answer is this: My purpose in life is God's purpose for me. I make a difference to God. God has great expectations for me, and my purpose in life, my destiny, is fulfilling those expectations. Incidentally, as a Christian, I look to scripture to discover what God has in mind.
This thought, that I have a destiny that is not just made up, is a beautiful and powerful thought. The very idea that each and every one of us is precious, has a role to play, means something to the divine is one that ought to inspire great joy and great passion for life. For many of us, the idea never gets to first base because, after all, there is no God. Well, I agree, for some purposes, there is no God. There is no god that will tell you how to build a better mousetrap or what will happen if we continue to put greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere, for these are questions about nature. But, for the purpose of finding one's destiny, God can be of tremendous assistance, nay, indispensable. For who else could confer upon one a destiny?
If Question 1 is a question about destiny, Question 2 is about providence. The notion that we are provided for, that what comes to us is what is supposed to come to us because it is a gift. If you are Christian, you say, a gift from God, and you give thanks to God for your gifts. You do this because one of God's expectations for you is reverence, and thanksgiving is a central act of reverence. It is an acknowledgment of divine providence.
Acknowledging providence is deciding to treat the events of your life as being something more than dumb luck or the effects of natural causes. Let me give you an example. A few years ago, I allowed my SUV to drift into the median of I-35 North of Austin. It rolled twice and planted itself in the fast lane of the opposite side of the freeway. Jean and I should have been killed. We were not. How might I respond to this near tragedy? "Whoa! What a lucky break," or "Gosh, now that I know how easy it is to roll an SUV, I'll get myself something a little lower to the ground," or "You have been given life, but not without a price, not without a sacred obligation to make that life count;" luck, physics, providence. Acknowledging all three is not just a Christian notion; it's a way that we all can lead fuller lives.
And, in case it isn't obvious, Christians believe that divine providence is an act of love, a blessing conferred, grace bestowed. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." Which brings us to É
Question 3. Is life a blessing or a curse? I've never met a Christian that was not filled with joy, that considered life an unmitigated blessing, and that thanked God at every opportunity for the gift of life. Again, for me, answering this question is not a matter of figuring out what the truth is. After all, one could lead a perfectly miserable life and still consider oneself blessed. One could, as did Buddha, live like a Maharaja and still think that life sucks. Rather, it's a matter of deciding whether or not to approach life as being worthwhile. For Christians, the worth in the worthwhile is worth to God, and is therefore something of inestimable value.
The last question again relates to destiny, to what we are here for, and it's a troublesome one for UUs. Are there such things as good and evil? Are the choices that we make in life really that important? For Christmas, I got this little book called Wishful Thinking: A Seeker's ABC by the Christian theologist, Frederick Buechner. He says, "É the problem of good is a major stumbling block for atheism, just as the problem of evil is a major stumbling block for religious faith." I'm not here to talk about the Christianity's stumbling blocks, at least not before the coffee hour. So let's talk about good. What would life be like if nothing was good. Actually, for Buddhists, nothing is good. Nothing, or Nirvana, is the highest good, so they say. But even for Buddhists, compassion seems to be better than nothing, even trumping Nirvana, as when Buddha turned down an opportunity to achieve Nirvana so that he could, out of compassion, bring what he had learned to others.
For Christians, there is such a thing as good. God is good. I don't think this statement is simply telling us God is one of the things in this world, along with puppies and the American way, that are good. It says that God and good are coextensive, in some sense, identical. If you see good in puppies and the American way, you're looking at the face of God. Discerning what is good is not always easy, but denying that there is good is damn near impossible.
Where does this leave us. Last week, I recalled the proposals of Rabbi Howard Kushner about why people are fleeing liberalism for fundamentalism. He proposed that fundamentalists offer three great enticements: certainty, community and a defense against the profanity of modern-day secular life. I think that Kushner missed something quite important. What liberalism fails to offer is the joy and passion afforded by a faith in destiny, that one's life has purpose, and in providence, that one is loved and provided for. By contrast, even the most fundamentalist Christian's spirit is animated by the knowledge that grace his or hers for the taking. Here is what Buechner says about grace.
The grace of God means something like: Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are because the party wouldn't have been complete without you. Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid. I am with you. Nothing can ever separate us. It's for you that I created the universe. I love you.
There's only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can only be yours if you'll reach out and take it.
Maybe being able to reach out and take it is a gift too.
Why is this important to UUs? There used to be a saying about Unitarians (and it may apply even more so to Universalists) that "Everyone is a Unitarian. Most of them just don't know it." We have gotten away from that sentiment and replaced it with an almost perfect bigotry against those who don't call themselves religious liberals. I think it's time that we bring back the saying, self-serving though it may seem. First, because it reminds us that we have a natural kinship, and share common cause with all those whose lives are guided by sincerely held religious beliefs, no matter what those beliefs. This is what makes Unitarian-Universalism different from both the Catholic Church and the American Humanist Association. That's why I've used the word God unreservedly this morning. I could have used some euphemism, such as "Spirit of Life." But I believe that God that I've talked about today, at bottom, is the same God as the God of the most conservative evangelical Christian, and I want to use words that bring me closer to those who often seem so far away.
I have to tell you in this connection that this service is largely the result of my own personal experience. A few years ago, Jean started dragging me off to retreats at the HEB Foundation's Laity Lodge, located in the hill country on the beautiful Frio River and "dedicated to our desire to know Christ [pretty scary, eh?], and what that means in the ordinary, everyday places and relationships of our lives," according to their web site. Jean says that she only goes there to be with nature, but that's a lie. I know it's a lie because she goes to all, or a good number, of the very conservative Christian talks, and she drags me along. "Drag," is what she had to do at first. Being among Blble-totin' evangelicals was, and still is, an uncomfortable experience for me. But at some point, I decided to make lemonade and started listening to that which is essential to the heart, and inaudible to the ear, to paraphrase St-Exupéry. I found that these folks are very, very different from UUs and very, very different from how UUs think of Christians. By and large, they are happy, loving, charitable, and far less critical than we are or than we think they are. They know that God has great expectations for them and that God will provide, and this just tickles them pink. The only way of putting it is that they've fallen in love with God. So, I have come to realize that my discomfort in the company of evangelicals is not because they are what I feared they would be but because they are not. I'm getting an inkling of how some of the prophets must have felt.
Those of you who know me know that I strive to cover four aspects of spirituality in every one of my services. A message, in this case, that we are blessed with both a destiny and divine providence. An intergenerational focus, provided today by Alexander McCall Smith. Participatory worship, which today was the talkforward. And something to take away. The takeaway today is that "Everyone is a UU," because it acknowledges what we have in common in the "fellowship of all good souls." It therefore opens to each of us the doors of every church or synagogue or mosque or temple, and especially the one you walked out of to come here. Put differently, "Every church is a UU church, and we know it."