The New UU
A Jewish Rabbi, a Catholic priest and a UU minister were discussing how they divide the collection plate between church use and God. The Rabbi said that he draws a circle in the middle of the room, stands in the middle of it, and throws the money up into the air. Whatever falls outside the circle goes to the blessed one, and what falls inside goes to the synagogue.
The priest said “I do something similar. I draw a line. I throw up the money, and what ever falls in front of me goes to the church, whatever falls behind me goes to God.
The UU minister said that she also used a similar method for dividing up the collection plate. She said “I throw up the money and figure whatever God wants, God will grab.”
It's funny how things can be absurd and yet speak truth. A view more likely to be held by the priest, the rabbi and possibly the UU Minister might be everything the congregation does should serve God. Another UU Minister might say that everything the congregation does should serve life. The question for each religious congregation is what ways to serve? How does this religious congregation respond to the blessed gift of our existence? What things are most appropriate for us to do in order to be of service?
Today we celebrate Association Sunday. We give our thanks and support to the work of the UUA. Today we remember that the UUA is not just a building in Boston, but rather that it is an association of congregations. Celebrating the UUA helps us to understand ourselves as a part of something bigger than us.
I am not suggesting that the UUA is like God to us. We don't suggest that the UUA is perfect. We do not worship a church, a man, a book, or a set of doctrines approved from religious authorities. We do however, value our tradition that points us toward Truth that is greater than any book, toward meaning of life greater than any philosophy, and toward an eternal source of life that is greater than any one religious doctrine.
I am not going to give a report on the activities funded and directed by the UUA. We will have other times to accomplish that important task. Today, however, I will continue to present that what is happening in our association of congregations is an emerging sense that we are participating in a religion or religious tradition that is so very fitting for our time.
Most of you know that I have tremendous gratitude for the changes of the past 8 years during the administration of former UUA president Bill Sinkford. I am excited about who we have become and who we are becoming. This summer and fall, I've been attempting to foment a discussion about who we are locally and the reasons we have come together. In this discussion, many have mentioned the “principles and purposes of the UUA.” This Principles and Purposes of the UUA, which can be found on the walls of the coffee room and the fireplace room, is a covenant between the congregations that are members of the UUA. It's great for us to look for guidance to this covenant. However, it is up to each congregation to form its own covenant as to its purpose and how its members agree to treat each other.
The body that is the UUAoC has been growing by leaps and bounds in coming to an understanding of itself as a religious tradition. We are realizing the value of having a religious emphasis in all that we do. Today, I will talk about the importance of our association as a religious body and how that impacts our lives. I will remind us that anything that we can accomplish will come out of our relationships. But I'm not interested today in just any relationships. I interested in the relationships that form this congregation, and this congregations relationship and participation in the UU religious tradition.
I imagine that not everyone is excited about this. We don't need the man to tell us what to do. We don't need religious authority. We don't need the bible, and we don't need God, or some white man's idea of what God tells us we should do. Does that sound familiar? Maybe no one here has said these things explicitly, but they've been in the ether.
UUs question absolute authority, but some individuals and some congregations get developmentally stuck in unnecessary rebellion of authority. They live in denial of the role that leadership plays in the health of any community.
Our tradition isn't bound to a completed revelation handed thousands of years ago. However, we have accumulated UU wisdom and values to pass on to the next generation. We expect our leaders to immerse themselves in the wisdom and traditions of Unitarian Universalism. We expect our leaders and all members to learn from our past.
We also expect our leaders and our members to value what is present here and now. We hold revelation to be continuous. Our truths emerge out of long term ongoing multi-faceted conversations. We expect our leaders and our members to listen and value present day expressions of what is sacred and of ultimate concern.
I say leaders and members, but in some sense UUism calls all of us to become leaders. This doesn't mean that everyone is expected to be board members. It means that in some way each of us is asked to move beyond passivity, to find some way to contribute toward creating the world we want to experience.
When UUs do work to save the rainforests, to create peace and justice in the workplace, or advocate for quality public education, we celebrate. We want our congregations to be places that “nurture souls and helps heal the world."
For this to happen, congregations it's crucial that we appreciate UU religious tradition and value the work it takes to remain a beacon of religious liberalism. It is no small accomplishment to build a sanctuary. It is no less important to do the work to see that the sanctuary remains a place that blesses people and helps them to become a blessing to this world.
You know sometimes we UUs try so hard to avoid telling anyone what they should do, that we stop ourselves from expressing what is important to us. We do this sometimes with politics. We've done it far more often with our religion. God forbid we became serious about being religious liberals! God forbid us to speak and act as if we were participating in something sacred and precious!
Valuing Unitarian Universalism means taking the time and making the effort to form a religious identity. It means learning what has been treasured by Unitarians and Universalists historically, and what shapes us and other forms of religious liberalism today. It means developing a vocabulary of religious terms and understanding what they mean in various cultures. It means taking responsibility for our knee jerk reactions to religion. It means participating in old and new religious traditions.
Wait, did I say religious traditions? Do we have religious traditions? If religious tradition vanished from some congregations, it means they forgot the value of being RELIGOUS liberals, but instead became social clubs where all skeptics were welcomed and occasionally discussions of religion ensued.
As new and renewed UUs we are reexamining the way we were taught to think about prayer, meditation, God, and many other religious concepts and practices. We are allowing ourselves freedom to be creative, curious even playful as we discover new ways to be religious that enable us to maintain our integrity.
Today our leaders are asking us to value our tradition and take seriously the work of our congregations. We're asking why we have been so reluctant to tell people about our congregations. These days, more of us are displaying flaming chalices, and are ready to respond when people ask us what this means. More of us are becoming willing to invite people to come with us to a service or church activity. BTW, inviting does not mean coercing. It doesn't mean tricking, or shaming or pressuring. It means knowing we have something that someone else might appreciate and be willing to share it with them.
Some UU congregations are raising the bar on expectations for membership. They are communicating that membership means some basic things like regular attendance at Sunday service, participation in an adult RE program and/or social witness event at least once a year. Acceptance will no longer be assumed to require a lasse faire, “anything goes” low self esteem attitude.
Congregations are creating liturgical calendars, that provide consistency and repetition of religious traditions that are found to be meaningful by the congregation. New and renewed members also try new kinds of services and programs. Renewed congregations are becoming clear on their mission, and they are making sure that all church activities fit with their mission. Teaching and worship components are being added to long standing events.
Some UU congregations still limit themselves to endless discussions of intellectual concepts. Some are comfortable living in the realm of agreement or disagreement of ideas. (especially disagreement). Some of us wish we could live in a world of ideas. We would read, and discuss, and research and discuss, but we would never face our demons, change our behavior or discover our souls purpose.
Did you hear about the UU who didn't make it to heaven. He was passing through the clouds, and he came upon a sign that said "heaven this way." He continued his journey, and then he came upon another sign pointing in a different direction. It read "discussion about heaven this way." You can surmise his fate.
Don't get me wrong. I love a good discussion as much as the next UU. I am suggesting that religion asks more of us. Done wisely, religion asks us to look at ourselves and make a change. This means occasionally leaving comfortable intellectual realms to experience deeper authenticity. It sometimes means entering realms that disturb us.
Our tradition asks us to examine our lives and determine if our deeds are congruent with what we claim to believe and value. We encourage each other to examine the beliefs we've accumulated, especially those that were foisted upon us in childhood. We want to upgrade our belief systems regularly so that they serve life.
If you have the same beliefs you held when you got here, maybe you aren't practicing Unitarian Universalism. Some of us seem to think that if we rejected the religion of our childhood, then we no longer need to examine our beliefs. Some of us who claim to align ourselves with reason and science, assume that only “those” religious types need to examine their beliefs.
Such attitudes are not IMO, congruent with our UU tradition. Who needs enlightenment? We do. Who needs to examine their beliefs in order to move into greater alignment with wisdom and deepest values? We do, all of us.
The new UU like the old one is willing to reexamine his belief about Jesus. But our religion asks other important questions too. What is it that you are believing about yourself? About humanity? What do our words and deeds suggest we believe about women, men, young people, older people, poor people, rich people, gays, lesbians, bisexuals, people who question gender, people of color? What do our actions suggest we believe about the meaning, purpose and value of life?
Like any other religious or spiritual traditions, UU asks something of us. We are not as different from the church down the street as you may think. Just like them, we have the option to talk the talk without walking the walk.
And whether you are here or down the street, it takes time and effort to learn the language, follow the directions and actually take the steps. New people can make great contributions to the congregation, and I'm not just talking about money. However, you can't expect to gain all that our tradition has to offer in one month or even one year. Neither can walk today's UU talk if you are stuck in a framework from a generation gone by.
The walk and the talk of Unitarian Universalism requires effort. The quality of what this congregation can offer the world depends upon the quality of the attitude, the learning, the practice and the relationships of the people here. More powerful than the spoken word is the experience of being here.
If this congregation wants to participate in the good works of the UU religious tradition, it must have a vision of good works grounded in UU tradition. We can't give away the gifts of Unitarian Universalism unless we are receiving them. We must experience and know the worth of our tradition.
Learning UU history helps us understand the challenges, the values and the gifts of the tradition. But new people will receive our tradition only when we bring it to life in the present. When we accept its challenges, when we receive and give its gifts, when we demonstrate its values, through the relationships in the congregation.
We want to use our religion to become like the team of divers that saved Ggenpo the whale in the story told earlier. We want to practice cutting ropes. We want to see to it that this giant gentle peaceful precious creature, this religious body, this congregation, and all who come here - can get free. UUs have always valued liberation. Today we are returning to an understanding that liberation comes not only through political action but also because as a result of religious attitudes, teachings and practices. And growing into freedom comes in good part through the education we get from the relationships within our congregation as we struggle to live up to the values we claim to hold. We can't do this by avoiding conflict. We can't do this by avoiding controversy, people or things that disturb us. We need help with the many challenges we face. We need help to grow spiritually, and that is why we are here.
What we see here, what we hear in this place, what we practice together may point us toward the sacred. We can learn to become better Unitarian Universalists. We can learn and practice a religion for our time, our hearts and our souls. Doing so we will be blessed and we will be a blessing. May it be so.
