If
you can’t read it, this cartoon I found says “Consider me a purpose-drive
meta-seeker with a moderate post-modern free-thinking worldview. I’m not sure
what I believe yet, but I certainly nailed my label.” That will make more sense
in a bit. The key though, is the last sentence, “I’m not sure what I believe
yet, but I certainly nailed my label.”
There
are two very different answers to the question “What do Unitarian Universalists
believe.” The first answer, the one that I have given here most frequently,
also the one that I know this congregation is most comfortable with, goes
something like this:
Unitarian
Universalists believe a great variety of different things. And we encourage a
free and responsible search for truth and meaning. That’s because we are a covenantal, rather than a creedal faith. We don’t all believe the
same things but we build a community to help one another along their own
journey for meaning.
You
have heard some variation of that answer from me for the past several years
here at UUFLB. But there is another answer to that question that is equally
valid. It just takes a little bit longer to tell. The other answer to the
question, “What do Unitarian Universalists believe?” is , while believe a great
many different things, there are a handful of core theological beliefs that
most of us hold in common. We have a generally positive view of human nature.
We believe that we are connected to each other and the world around us, and so
we are called to make the world better for everyone. We generally reject the
idea of a cosmic punishment for sins, but choose in the face of mystery to
focus on living this life with meaning and purpose, trusting that what comes
next will work itself out. And we believe that we are called to use logic and
reason in every aspect of our lives, and the more we learn, the more we cultivate
a sense of awe and wonder at the Universe we share. That’s just describing a
few of our beliefs off hand.
Today
marks the beginning of a three-month journey in our worship together. It is a
journey to explore some of those core UU beliefs that are commonly held in our
past and today. Honestly, I’m not sure where the journey will lead. Hopefully
it will lead to a new sense of rootedness in our tradition. As Unitarian
Universalists we inherit some of the brightest minds that American religion has
to offer. We also inherit the inspiration of social reformers that lived out
their beliefs in a way that literally shaped our country.
My
hope is that this exploration of our core beliefs will lead us to a greater
sense of rootedness in Unitarian Universalism. Or perhaps we will find that our
diversity and commitment to religious freedom are more significant themes than
those beliefs that we share in common. Perhaps this adventure will end in a new
sense of religious liberty and freedom to explore. But there’s only one way to
find out.
This
journey is not a new one. The conversation about core beliefs in the midst of
our religious freedom has been going on for a couple of hundred years.
One
of the best early examples of that challenge is part of our Universalist
heritage, dating back to the beginning of the 19th Century. Because
of the tremendous variety of belief, they formed a committee to craft a
profession of faith, a list of those things they believed in as Universalists.
In 1803 it was crafted. I’m not going to read it, suffice it to say it was very
strong on the Bible, a loving God, and universal salvation. The key part that I
want to share with you is that it also contained a “Liberty Clause, so that
individual Universalist societies could adopt theologies that fit their own
particular circumstances. This thorough and solid statement of faith was
difficult to get passed, but it did happen, with a liberty clause attached.
Ninety-six years later the Universalists decided it was time to revisit the
question of what do we believe. They crafted the Boston Declaraion. The
language was updated, with nearly identical ideas, and an even stronger
“liberty clause” attached. Stating “ The Winchester Profession is commended as
containing these principles, but neither this, nor any other precise form of
words, is required as a condition of fellowship…” Since that time, the
Universalist tradition expanded it’s horizons to wider and wider sources of
religious truths.
Unitarians
had their own moment of conflict over theological differences in the 1800s. For
them, the difference in beliefs was geographically based. As Unitarianism
spread west, it took on the sense of freedom and liberty that the West
symbolized. Conflict between Boston and the Western Unitarian Conference became
extremely heated. As those westerners took on a more and more Humanist
perspective, the American Unitarian Association based in Boston made clear it
would never assist any group that did not rest on a Christian basis. Finally
the Western Unitarian Conference came up with the document “The Things Most
Commonly Believed Today Among Us.”
It
was actually an attempt to compromise between divergent viewpoints. It tried to
articulate simple truths that a majority could agree upon. These included
“reason and conscience as the final authorities in matters of belief,” the
“nobility of Man,” and an “unfolding, beneficent order to the universe.” Of
course this also came with a sort of liberty clause, stating that no dogmatic tests
would be used as consideration of fellowship.
We
have struggled for a very, very long time to describe what it is that we
believe. It has been an official controversy for over 200 years. So you
certainly shouldn’t feel overwhelmed when someone asks you, that dreaded
question, “What do Unitarian Universalists believe?”
It’s
hard to nail down. Still, nearly every President of the Unitarian Universalist
Association has called for a deepening of our shared beliefs and values. Our
current president, Rev. Peter Morales has encouraged us offer a faith for those
in need. Before him, President William Sinkford said “We need some language
that would allow us to capture the possibility of reverence, to name the holy,
to talk about human agency in theological terms.”
Many
of our greatest leaders have seen a need for a better grasp our share beliefs.
The one who I think said it best was Eugene Pieckett, the president of the UUA
from 1971-1985. He said:
The old watchwords of liberalism – freedom, reason, and
tolerance – worthy though they may be, are simply not catching the imagination
of the contemporary world. They describe a process
for approaching the religions depths, but they testify to no intimate acquaintance
with the depths themselves. If we are ever to speak to a new age, we must
supplement our seeking with some profound religious finds.
The
point is, Unitarian Universalism is more than a method. Yes, we uphold
religious liberty as a value as we search for truth and meaning. But we also
have a couple of centuries of theology in our back pocket. It’s theology that
informs who we are today as a tradition. These are strong and viable ideas that
offer a message of hope. I think we can both encourage a free and responsible
search for truth and meaning while we offer those life-affirming beliefs that
have offered hope to Unitarians and Universalists for a couple of centuries.
The
point of church after all, is not to celebrate itself and it’s method. The
point of any religious community is to point beyond itself to deeper springs of
inspiration and hope.
Often
when new people find Unitarian Universalism, they invest deeply in it.
Occasionally it is too deeply. Don’t get me wrong, I am thrilled when anyone
finds a religious path that brings meaning to his or her life. I’m even more
thrilled when that path is Unitarian Universalism. But on occasion, I see that
what has stirred someone’s soul isn’t the path that Unitarian Universalism
illuminates. Instead they are enamored with the institution itself. They are
thrilled that such a church exists, because it is different, it is free from
the dogma and hierarchy of other traditions, it is built on love. It is an almost
magical community.
These
are the people that worry me, because I know they will be disappointed in the
end. Unitarian Universalism is an institution, made up of people. Our Fellowship
is made up of people. And I too, your minister, am a person. The faith
tradition, this congregation, and undoubtedly I myself will miss the mark
sometime, we will make mistakes, we will disappoint. That’s why you have to, we
have to set our sights on something beyond the individual people and institutions
that make up our faith. They are not perfect, they never will be. They are here
not as the object of worship, but to point in the direction of fulfillment and
meaning.
It’s
no different from appreciating a political leader as an individual. I’m sure
you know by now that your faith in democracy as a political system can’t rest
on the shoulders of any individual political leader. They are human, they will
do their best, but the real power in democracy is that we have trust in an
ideal, rather than any single individual person to execute that ideal.
I
learned this lesson myself a few years ago. I didn’t think I would ever preach
about this, but I can’t think of another way to describe this experience. In my
first year of ministry with this congregation I was still in the process of
becoming ordained. I had had a wonderful internship at Orange Coast up in Costa
Mesa, graduated from seminary with flying colors, including being named “student
of the year” a valedictorian or sorts. Things were smooth sailing. So I headed
off to have my final interview with the committee that would approve me for
ordination.
My
experience there was less than perfect. After an intense hour-long interview,
they essentially told me I wasn’t ready, and that I should come back next year.
In retrospect, I now recognize that I wasn’t quite ready to shoulder the full
responsibility of ordained ministry. But at the time I was truly devastated. I
can say without hesitation that it’s the single most disappointing moment I
have had in my life to date, and it came from my faith tradition.
So
I spent the year addressing their concerns in my ministerial formation. That
was helpful. But what was far more helpful, what I will hold on to until the
day I day, was a much needed realization that my faith is not in Unitarian
Universalism. My faith is not in an institution. Sure I think Unitarian
Universalism is a great structure to explore and express my ideas, but it is
not the object of my worship. My faith is in the beauty and wonder of creation,
and what I have come to call God.
This
is an amazing church. I mean that in the broadest sense of the word, our
congregation, our faith tradition, the people who come here on Sundays and
every other day of the week. Even this building. This is an amazing church, but
it is not enough to sustain your faith. The role of any meaningful religious
tradition must be to set your sights beyond, to set your sights on higher
ideals and beliefs.
Ralph
Waldo Emerson explained most beautifully and most effectively. He said that the
teachings of Jesus were true and powerful, not because Jesus said them. They
are true because they are universal truths. In fact any other person might as
easily have tapped into these truths and shared them with the world. Jesus
shared with the world some wonderful truths about the nature of the divine, the
nature of human beings, and the way we are called to treat one another. But
those same ideas would have been just as true, were they spoken by different
lips in a different land in a different time.
No
preacher or teacher or book or church is worthy of our worship. But each of
these things, used wisely, can point us in the direction of the divine, and our
highest ideals, the things that ultimately are worthy or worship and appreciation. We do not worship an institutions
or leaders. This was the indelible mark of Emerson on our tradition. But we
can, we should use our institutions to point to that which is worthy of our
worship.
Eugene
Picket said, “If we are ever to speak to
a new age, we must supplement our seeking with some profound religious finds.” I contend that we have already had
profound religious finds. In the midst of our diversity and free exploration there
are profound and bold theological claims that make up our history. They are
alive in our diverse congregations. And I believe they offer a sustaining
vision of hope for our future, both as a faith, and as a world.
There
are a handful of different lists of what Unitarian Universalists believe. They
have been written down repeatedly over the past two centuries. The language
changes with time, but the core ideas remain the same. So for the Summer we are
going to dive into one of those lists. This particular list comes out of the
Mountain Desert District and the work of Rev. Mike Moran. After much
discussion, they came up with five pieces of Unitarian Universalist belief.
They are:
All
souls are sacred and worthy
There
is a unity that makes us one
Salvation
is in this life
Courageous
love will transform the world
Truth
continues to be revealed
These
are profound theological statements. You may not recognize it because you
believe these things. You may take these things for granted, and think of
course, doesn’t everyone think this way.
But
I want you to know, these are major claims about the nature of the world we
live in, about what is sacred, about how we will called to live our lives and
what will ultimately save our world. These are religious beliefs and they stand
in contrast to claims of other religious traditions. Religions that care more
about what happens to you after death that what you do in life. Religions that
think we as humans are sinful, dirty, and flawed. Religions that teach our fate
as human beings is somehow separate from the fate of the world we inhabit.
Do
you remember the cartoon that we saw earlier? “Consider me a purpose-drive
meta-seeker with a moderate post-modern free-thinking worldview. I’m not sure
what I believe yet, but I certainly nailed my label.” It’s a joke about folks
who are stuck in their own heads and in books. It’s a joke about people who have some big words in their
minds, but don’t know in their hearts what they believe. I can’t help but read
it as a joke about Unitarians.
There
are many agnostics among us, those folks who say God is a big fat question mark
and is an unanswerable question. I myself fall into that camp from time to
time. I appreciate that. But there is no mention of God in this list of
beliefs. There is plenty of room for big fat question marks even while we
proclaim a life-affirming faith of reason and hope for our shared world.
It
is time for us to share that faith with the world; it is time to speak to a new
age and share what we have found in our centuries of seeking as a liberal
religious community.
-Amen-
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