Unitarian Universalist Church at Washington Crossing

Take a moment right now and ask yourself: “What would my life be like if I hadn’t discovered this congregation and Unitarian Universalism?” Really, take a moment to think about what your life would be like without this faith community?In 1981, I discovered a place for me within Unitarian Universalism. Two roads diverged and I took the one less traveled and that has made all the difference. I left the security of a respectable position within the Lutheran ministry for a very ambiguous path. I started serving two little Unitarian Universalist congregations with little pay, no health insurance let alone a pension. I moved to a larger congregation in New Hampshire with better pay, health insurance and a pension but it was not the best fit. I arrived here at the Unitarian Universalist Church at Washington Crossing in 1997, and from the beginning it felt just right.

So, what differentiates this congregation from other congregations? Take a look around. What do you see? People here to seek their own way, just like you and me. Some have come in gladness, some have come with fear; but all have come because they know that love grows here.

It is not that we are perfect as a congregation. After all what you see around you are people just like you. We come in various emotional states from gladness to fear. We come with our personal needs, scars and baggage.

The choir sang and I truly believe that:

Love is the spirit of this church.
The quest of truth is its sacrament.
And service is its prayer. And that
Our covenant with each other is:
To dwell together in peace,
To seek knowledge and freedom.
To serve each other in fellowship,
To the end that all souls shall grow
Into harmony with the divine.

We Unitarian Universalists hold up truth as a sacrament. We hold up knowledge seeking as a spiritual discipline. Because of that, Paul Razor, a liberal Unitarian Universalist theologian warns, “Liberal theology is not for the faint of heart.” It really is not. It is relatively easy to become a member of a Unitarian Universalist congregation. It is not easy to remain an active engaged member.

We do not give easy answers to difficult emotional, theological or spiritual questions. We ask that you continue learning and growing and that you hold up truth as your sacrament. We ask that you practice knowledge seeking as a spiritual discipline.

Our normal chalice lighting words are said in unison:

Let us open our eyes to see what is beautiful,
Let us open our minds to learn what is true,
Let us open our hearts to love one another.

Liberal religion points you in the general direction of truth, beauty and goodness but without a roadmap showing you the path to your ultimate destination. It remains for you to make your own commitments. This faith asks you to accept responsibility for those commitments you make.

We often hear an aggravating stereotype about Unitarian Universalists. For me, it is like hearing nails scratching on a blackboard. I am sure you have heard someone say: “Oh you are a Unitarian Universalist UUist that means it doesn’t matter what you believe.”

NO! NO! NO! NO!

What we believe matters tremendously. If it did not matter what I believe, I could be happy in any number of other faith communities. If it did not matter what I believe, I could have comfortably stayed within the faith community of my childhood. The reason I left was that it did matter to me how I look at and understand the world, religion and spirituality.

Two roads diverged …
Long I stood,
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

Dear friends, it matters what kind of faith we have as individuals. And it matters what kind of faith we practice as a congregation.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, a Unitarian Minister, wrote: “That which dominates our imaginations and our thoughts will determine our lives, and character. Therefore, it behooves us to be careful what we worship, for what we are worshipping we are becoming.”

Worship for Unitarian Universalists means that we hold up that which is of worth to us, celebrating it with our imaginations, our thoughts and dedicating to it our actions. Emerson was correct; we do become that which we worship. Or, as Archbishop Helder Camara said, “Be careful how you live your life for it is the only Gospel others will read.”

Our Liberal religious tradition invites you to seek knowledge and freedom. We are not presented with a mandate that we must accept. That is not only O.K., it is something to acknowledge, to celebrate and to proclaim. To seek knowledge with inquisitive and open minds is a good thing, a sign of strength, not a sign of weakness. Our freedom to explore a variety of wisdom traditions rather than being limited to just one is wonderful. It is a sign of security.

This wonderful liberal religious faith invited me to make peace with the ambiguity of life. We know how ambiguous life can be. One day, Pluto is a full-fledged planet and the next day it becomes merely a dwarf in the same category as the large asteroid Ceres and 2003 UB313, nicknamed Xena.

We also know life can be ambiguous on a very personal level. One day we feel great, we are doing well at our work, and in our relationships. The next moment we find out that we have a terrible illness, lose our job and our relationships are in shatters. We wonder what happened

Accepting and learning to live with ambiguity is better than trying to believe religious ideas that just do not make sense to me anymore. This does not mean that our quest for truth is without a foundation. This does not mean that we reject all those who disagree with what we find to be true. The quest of truth is our sacrament. Seeking knowledge and freedom is our spiritual discipline. And love is the spirit of our congregation, and service its prayer. The foundation of our covenant with each other is our commitment to dwell together in peace and serve each other in fellowship. If we do that, we shall grow into every greater harmony with one another and with the divine. Once again, reminding us that love grows here.

When we encounter the ambiguities of life our foundation is firm and supportive. Our religion does not need creedal certainty. Rather, we feel secure in our knowledge that our theological perspective is built on the solid foundation of a free and responsible quest for truth.

The truth we hold dear comes to us through open eyes and the use of reason, each of which has been shaped by our personal stories. We realize that those who have different perspectives on religious truth look through eyes and use reason that has been shaped by their personal stories.

You have heard the story of five blind men describing an elephant. Each felt just one part of the elephant (ear, side, trunk, leg, tail) and was convinced he knew what an elephant was like. For me the sequel to that story is someone coming along who is also blind. The sixth person cannot give the correct answer or description to the five men but does invite them to move around a bit and engage in a dialogue without any one of them trying to control the conversation. Together they realize the ambiguity that comes with assuming that their one perspective is the one true way of experiencing reality. The elephant is so much larger, more complex and wonderful than any one of them could ever imagine. The same is true about religion.

I am invited to participate in a number of different interfaith communities. I am on the Board of the statewide New Jersey Equity Coalition, the Shalem Spiritual Guidance Institute, the Board of the Kirkridge Retreat Center, Same Sex Marriage Equity Coalition, The College of New Jersey Campus ministry group and others. These groups include people of many different faith communities.

The fact that I am someone who holds truth as my sacrament, knowledge seeking as a spiritual discipline and service as my prayer allows me to become a unique and valuable bridge between those of differing faith traditions. I do not come into these interfaith organizations with the assumption that I am right and others are wrong. But neither do I come apologetic about my liberal religious tradition. As a result, I am often viewed as one who brings an important and needed bridging religious perspective to our common table of diverse faiths.

Today, I challenge you to deepen your liberal religious faith. Do not be apologetic for your faith. If we make our collective voices heard in the larger community, our faith community can and will make a difference. We can become a bridge that helps the world understand that value and meaning is found in all the various religious traditions. We can only become such a bridge, however, if we stand up together and step forward to be counted and to champion the principles we hold dear.