Bodhicitta is analogous to the broken heart--always seeking, but not quite achieving. And Saint Exupery's Little Prince reminds us that "what is essential is invisible to the eye." What does this have to do with our recently adopted vision statement which reads:
We will be a liberal religious haven
Sustained by tradition,
Boldly seeking justice,
Gently transforming lives.
Our discussions regarding our vision were meticulously tracked by the Strategic Planning Committee and posted for all of us to consider. An ad hoc committee took those comments and produced a draft. The draft was offered for comment and revision and the final vision statement was produced and shared. Soon, it will be made into song by Shelly Denham Jackson, a member here in years past.
Rightly, our minister noticed that our emphasis was on our social justice outreach. Our work in Avondale, Cease Fire, the Pride Parade, and Interfaith Hospitality Network are just a few examples of the good we do for others. She also noticed that we didn't make much mention of our own faith development. That is just like us. In the years I've been a member, I notice that we are practical and proud as opposed to amateur and servile. We enjoy the social justice work because it's for others and it produces a quantifiable effect. We play down our personal faith development because it requires us to sit, as Sharon would say, in our "soft spot."
We are not tender with ourselves. We, as a society and perhaps a congregation, have a low tolerance for discomfort. When we are not tender with ourselves, we cannot have the truly spiritual experiences that are possible for us.
Jihad is a word that many have stolen for their own uses but Sharon reminds us that in its original sense it means "the struggle to know self." We are involved in this jihad every day. Sharon reminds us "Live in your soft spot. Let yourself make mistakes. Boldly be tender. People who spontaneously break into song cannot worry about who is singing in tune."
Meditation teaches us how to live with the pain of our lives. It is bold to be tender. Letting go of hurts and addictions that harden or mask our true self is probably one of the most difficult things we could do. We have to love ourselves enough.
I am glad to report that after Sharon's sermon we sang "Standing on the Side of Love" boldly together. And, indeed, some of us were singing out of tune, but boldly and beautifully.
Go out into the world,
G.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
01/09/11 "The Sacred, The Holy, The Divine" by Rev. Annie Foerster
Fifteen new members and their children joined us on this morning. It is a joy to see our community growing.
According to the poet Allen Ginsberg, spirituality should be like singing in the bathtub. I loved this image. Unpracticed, not for an audience, and purely for its own joy. I would do well to remember this.
Rev. Foerster asked us what altars we have in our home. Where is the sacred center of your home? There are places where I like things to be "just so" because I think they're beautiful. She talked about the junk that is precious to children--sea shells, gold paper, pretty buttons--that they collect and hold sacred. I have some of these kinds of things collected on top of my dresser. I have always held these small items in high regard but I would have never called it my altar until today.
Many of us have rejected the deity or practices of our previous religions. "If I've rejected the deity, haven't I rejected the sacredness?" Annie reminds us that there is joy in all. She describes some of her own altars--quilts she made, a collection of bulls, Buddha, and Guanyin. "When I notice them, they are holy. When I look at them, I remember."
Annie mentioned the book by Linda Sexson, Ordinarily Sacred. And the poet Anne Sexton's "Welcome Morning." There is joy in all.
Go out into the world,
G.
According to the poet Allen Ginsberg, spirituality should be like singing in the bathtub. I loved this image. Unpracticed, not for an audience, and purely for its own joy. I would do well to remember this.
Rev. Foerster asked us what altars we have in our home. Where is the sacred center of your home? There are places where I like things to be "just so" because I think they're beautiful. She talked about the junk that is precious to children--sea shells, gold paper, pretty buttons--that they collect and hold sacred. I have some of these kinds of things collected on top of my dresser. I have always held these small items in high regard but I would have never called it my altar until today.
Many of us have rejected the deity or practices of our previous religions. "If I've rejected the deity, haven't I rejected the sacredness?" Annie reminds us that there is joy in all. She describes some of her own altars--quilts she made, a collection of bulls, Buddha, and Guanyin. "When I notice them, they are holy. When I look at them, I remember."
Annie mentioned the book by Linda Sexson, Ordinarily Sacred. And the poet Anne Sexton's "Welcome Morning." There is joy in all.
Go out into the world,
G.
Monday, January 3, 2011
05/14/00 Flashback Sermon: "Beneath the Blowing Bag" by Rev. Sharon Dittmar
Sharon's topic on May 14, 2000 was the film I love, American Beauty. I think of the sermon and the movie's tag line "Look Deeper" fairly often. I ran across this artist during my regular traverse of the internet:
and thought it might be a nice time to share with you Sharon's sermon on the movie that inspired the artist, Daniel Wurtzel.
Go out into the world,
G.
and thought it might be a nice time to share with you Sharon's sermon on the movie that inspired the artist, Daniel Wurtzel.
Go out into the world,
G.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
11/14/10--“The Gospel of Inclusion (Or: ‘Why am I a Universalist’)" by Rev. Bill Gupton
Rev. Bill Gupton of Heritage Universalist Unitarian Church took the pulpit today. His career path has included stops as journalist, minister, and yoga teacher. He said Heritage is "where the Universalist comes first." His sermon reminded us of what a radical and rational concept it is to support the inherent worth and dignity of every person.
Universalist, Gupton says, is the grammatical modifier. You can be a Universalist Hindu, a Universalist Sufi, a Universalist Jew, or a Universalist Christian. The Universalist side of our faith believes that we are all saved, universally.
Rev. Gupton shared the story of Rev. Carlton Pearson, a former Pentacostal bishop who has embraced Universalism. His story was covered by UU World and This American Life. Rev. Pearson, the conservative leader of a mega-church in Tulsa, had a change of heart when he found that his best friend was gay. His religion told him that this man would go to hell. Pearson started to doubt a god that would punish his friend, a man he knew to be good. He started to preach a more universalist message. All were saved in God.
Pearson was soon rejected by his faith. All Souls Unitarian Church of Tulsa, a mostly white congregation, offered Pearson and his remaining followers to share space at their church. Their combined efforts have created the UUA's largest congregation in America. That is radical in Oklahoma. It's radical everywhere.
This radical love is something to learn from. It is radical to accept all comers--gay, straight, black, white, gospel, classical, urban, suburban. . . It's what All Souls and Pearson did. It's what our UUniversalist principles call us to do.
Go out into the world,
G.
Universalist, Gupton says, is the grammatical modifier. You can be a Universalist Hindu, a Universalist Sufi, a Universalist Jew, or a Universalist Christian. The Universalist side of our faith believes that we are all saved, universally.
Rev. Gupton shared the story of Rev. Carlton Pearson, a former Pentacostal bishop who has embraced Universalism. His story was covered by UU World and This American Life. Rev. Pearson, the conservative leader of a mega-church in Tulsa, had a change of heart when he found that his best friend was gay. His religion told him that this man would go to hell. Pearson started to doubt a god that would punish his friend, a man he knew to be good. He started to preach a more universalist message. All were saved in God.
Pearson was soon rejected by his faith. All Souls Unitarian Church of Tulsa, a mostly white congregation, offered Pearson and his remaining followers to share space at their church. Their combined efforts have created the UUA's largest congregation in America. That is radical in Oklahoma. It's radical everywhere.
This radical love is something to learn from. It is radical to accept all comers--gay, straight, black, white, gospel, classical, urban, suburban. . . It's what All Souls and Pearson did. It's what our UUniversalist principles call us to do.
Go out into the world,
G.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
08/08/10--What is Theism? by Rev. Sharon Dittmar
What is Theism? Jan Connelly started us off with thinking about this topic describing an exercise Sharon led Jan's orientation group through. Imagine a line with THEIST at one end and ATHEIST at the other. Where on the line would you place yourself on this human spectrum?
In the children's story, Sharon allayed some of the fears the adults might have had about God, assuring all, "You don't have to believe what I believe." She shared some books that might start a talk about theism started between you and your young person. Here's a reading list:
Sharon told the story of Rev. Bill Sinkford's journey from atheist to believer. It involves an exodus and return to First Unitarian. There was a long night waiting at his son's hospital bed. He described how his prayers evolved in the course of the night from begging to save his son to a comfort in knowing that whatever happened, Bill and Billy would be held in the hands of God.
Later, Sinkford's journey led him to become President of the UUA. His call for developing a "language of reverence" to "name the holy" caused an uproar for a while in Unitarian circles. Sharon reminded us that the conservative and fundamentalist elements of our society often hold the language that is related to God. What we hear about God is not liberal perhaps because liberals do not speak of God much at all.
The definition of God has evolved. Sharon said, "If we're free to grow and learn, we're going to change our minds." God had to change because the authoritarian God of our parents was more about power than justice and love. "In order to survive the twentieth century, God had to change."
This statement just blew me away. "God had to change." I have never thought of God as being very willing to change. But Sharon reminded me that this is true. My own process has led me from fundamentalism to atheism to agnosticism to theism. (And since Sharon introduced me to panentheism this morning, I think that might me the next step on my journey. Or maybe I'm a pantheist.) I thought I was changing. Sharon spoke of I & Thou by Martin Buber. Buber is saying you need God and God needs you. This forms the basis of Hartshorne's Process Theology. So I'm left wondering what it is God needs us to do?
Feminist theology has added to Sharon's understanding of God. Many early religions have male and female aspects of deities. Women are generally gentler. So when God is seen as feminine, God can be more caring. And thus, women can be seen as powerful.
Black Liberation Theology has also influenced Sharon's definition of God. James Cone's work has emphasized that if a God exists, God will be with the oppressed. If he is not, God is racist. Sharon says, "The day I read 'God is Black', I knew I could trust God again."
Theodicy is the justification of God in the face of suffering. If God is all powerful, how do we explain holocausts, genocide, hunger, violence? For many, there is no way to explain these horrible things if God is all powerful. So maybe God isn't all powerful. And maybe God doesn't need to be. Perhaps, the thing we call God is just the guarantee that you will not be alone in your suffering. There are people at this church who will keep that guarantee. Bill Sinkford was assured of that when his mother died. He had been away from First for some time. But someone from this congregation brought him a covered dish when his mother died and that started him on a different course in his life. Maybe we find God in the covered dish.
The minister doesn't have all the answers to this. And neither does the blogger. I'm interested to hear your opinions and thoughts on this question for the ages.
Go out into the world in peace,
G.
In the children's story, Sharon allayed some of the fears the adults might have had about God, assuring all, "You don't have to believe what I believe." She shared some books that might start a talk about theism started between you and your young person. Here's a reading list:
- What is God's Name? by Sasso
- What Does God Look Like? by Kushner
- Where is God? by Kushner
- God Lives in Glass by Landy
- Ayat Jamila: Beautiful Signs by Conover and Crane
- Humanism? What's That? by Bennet
- The Everything Seed by Martignacco
Sharon told the story of Rev. Bill Sinkford's journey from atheist to believer. It involves an exodus and return to First Unitarian. There was a long night waiting at his son's hospital bed. He described how his prayers evolved in the course of the night from begging to save his son to a comfort in knowing that whatever happened, Bill and Billy would be held in the hands of God.
Later, Sinkford's journey led him to become President of the UUA. His call for developing a "language of reverence" to "name the holy" caused an uproar for a while in Unitarian circles. Sharon reminded us that the conservative and fundamentalist elements of our society often hold the language that is related to God. What we hear about God is not liberal perhaps because liberals do not speak of God much at all.
The definition of God has evolved. Sharon said, "If we're free to grow and learn, we're going to change our minds." God had to change because the authoritarian God of our parents was more about power than justice and love. "In order to survive the twentieth century, God had to change."
This statement just blew me away. "God had to change." I have never thought of God as being very willing to change. But Sharon reminded me that this is true. My own process has led me from fundamentalism to atheism to agnosticism to theism. (And since Sharon introduced me to panentheism this morning, I think that might me the next step on my journey. Or maybe I'm a pantheist.) I thought I was changing. Sharon spoke of I & Thou by Martin Buber. Buber is saying you need God and God needs you. This forms the basis of Hartshorne's Process Theology. So I'm left wondering what it is God needs us to do?
Feminist theology has added to Sharon's understanding of God. Many early religions have male and female aspects of deities. Women are generally gentler. So when God is seen as feminine, God can be more caring. And thus, women can be seen as powerful.
Black Liberation Theology has also influenced Sharon's definition of God. James Cone's work has emphasized that if a God exists, God will be with the oppressed. If he is not, God is racist. Sharon says, "The day I read 'God is Black', I knew I could trust God again."
Theodicy is the justification of God in the face of suffering. If God is all powerful, how do we explain holocausts, genocide, hunger, violence? For many, there is no way to explain these horrible things if God is all powerful. So maybe God isn't all powerful. And maybe God doesn't need to be. Perhaps, the thing we call God is just the guarantee that you will not be alone in your suffering. There are people at this church who will keep that guarantee. Bill Sinkford was assured of that when his mother died. He had been away from First for some time. But someone from this congregation brought him a covered dish when his mother died and that started him on a different course in his life. Maybe we find God in the covered dish.
The minister doesn't have all the answers to this. And neither does the blogger. I'm interested to hear your opinions and thoughts on this question for the ages.
Go out into the world in peace,
G.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Music/Sound Art/Community/Engagement/Worship
Do all of those words mean the same thing? I was flipping through some UU blogs and found this entry. It's timely to me as we prepare this weekend to hear the musical journeys of some of our members. Nick Payne will be the service leader for what is always an engaging time.
Is this worship? Art? Performance? Noise? It does seem fun. It does engage. And my, those people seem young. See what you think. Forget those hippie drum circles.
Is this worship? Art? Performance? Noise? It does seem fun. It does engage. And my, those people seem young. See what you think. Forget those hippie drum circles.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
"Gender Identity" with Rev. Sharon Dittmar on 06/13/10
Pride Sunday is always a great day at our church. Today was no different. From the rainbow balloons in the entry, to our private accessible restroom on the second floor, to the rainbow sherbet served after the service, it is clear that this church takes PRIDE in welcoming and celebrating the gay community.
This year's Pride Sunday service focused on issues of gender identity. Rev. Dittmar taught us so much about the experience of GLBQT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, queer, and transgendered) people. Some vocabulary, some etiquette, some popular culture.
Sharon mentioned Leslie Feinberg's Beacon Press book Transgender Warriors. This sounds like an excellent book to enhance understanding of the social justice issues that surround our gender expression. Feinberg's own life experience reminds me of the courage these warriors must summon in order to walk about in a world that prefers direct answer to "Is that a man or a woman?" Sharon also mentioned Jeffrey Eugenides's fictional Middlesex, which I can highly recommend. The movie "Boys Don't Cry" and the production notes here also illuminate the violent death that Brandon Teena suffered because others were afraid of his gender expression.
Can a boy wear a skirt to school? Can a girl wear a tux to the prom? This sermon reminds me that our teens, puzzling out their own sexual and gender identities, often lead us into clearer thinking on the issues with their willingness to question our standard ways of thinking. As Sharon reminded us, to them gender is something to play with. Boys with eyeliner. Girls in boxer shorts. Appreciate the difference. Children at our church and, hopefully, in our world will be accepted, embraced, protected no matter how they identify.
The Religious Institute on Sexual Morality, Justice, and Healing offers resources for faith communities working in our own church, the community, and the world to celebrate and support GLBTQ people and to take a stand on issues of injustice related to sexuality. Our own UUA, has started the Standing on the Side of Love campaign, led by our own RE graduate, Adam Gerhardstein. Adam's parents, Mimi Gingold and Al Gerhardstein, are rightfully proud of the ministry he has taken up, as we all are. The effort encourages using the power of love to conquer discrimination of all sorts, including advocacy to end unfair marriage discrimination for gay couples. (By the way, Standing on the Side of Love takes its name from our closing hymn today that was written in honor of another of our own RE graduates, former UUA president Rev. Bill Sinkford.)
The problem of how to label, identify, and classify people is not their problem. Sharon reminds us, "The problem is ours and that's a good problem to have because we can change. . . Find your love and give it."
And take a peek at Bret Michaels' hair extensions.
Go out into the world. . .
G.
This year's Pride Sunday service focused on issues of gender identity. Rev. Dittmar taught us so much about the experience of GLBQT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, queer, and transgendered) people. Some vocabulary, some etiquette, some popular culture.
Sharon mentioned Leslie Feinberg's Beacon Press book Transgender Warriors. This sounds like an excellent book to enhance understanding of the social justice issues that surround our gender expression. Feinberg's own life experience reminds me of the courage these warriors must summon in order to walk about in a world that prefers direct answer to "Is that a man or a woman?" Sharon also mentioned Jeffrey Eugenides's fictional Middlesex, which I can highly recommend. The movie "Boys Don't Cry" and the production notes here also illuminate the violent death that Brandon Teena suffered because others were afraid of his gender expression.
Can a boy wear a skirt to school? Can a girl wear a tux to the prom? This sermon reminds me that our teens, puzzling out their own sexual and gender identities, often lead us into clearer thinking on the issues with their willingness to question our standard ways of thinking. As Sharon reminded us, to them gender is something to play with. Boys with eyeliner. Girls in boxer shorts. Appreciate the difference. Children at our church and, hopefully, in our world will be accepted, embraced, protected no matter how they identify.
The Religious Institute on Sexual Morality, Justice, and Healing offers resources for faith communities working in our own church, the community, and the world to celebrate and support GLBTQ people and to take a stand on issues of injustice related to sexuality. Our own UUA, has started the Standing on the Side of Love campaign, led by our own RE graduate, Adam Gerhardstein. Adam's parents, Mimi Gingold and Al Gerhardstein, are rightfully proud of the ministry he has taken up, as we all are. The effort encourages using the power of love to conquer discrimination of all sorts, including advocacy to end unfair marriage discrimination for gay couples. (By the way, Standing on the Side of Love takes its name from our closing hymn today that was written in honor of another of our own RE graduates, former UUA president Rev. Bill Sinkford.)
The problem of how to label, identify, and classify people is not their problem. Sharon reminds us, "The problem is ours and that's a good problem to have because we can change. . . Find your love and give it."
And take a peek at Bret Michaels' hair extensions.
Go out into the world. . .
G.
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