I left institutional religion behind many years ago. My mind couldn't wrap around what I considered to be myth and superstition, and I spent the next thirty years religion free and never felt the need for it.
Now it is 1993, a year of flux and many, many changes. My husband's business had fallen apart, we had to sell our home and move to an apartment, my son left home for college, I was finishing up my Master's degree in English, and I began a demanding new career teaching at an independent prep school. I was totally overwhelmed. The feeling that the well was empty began to consume me. I needed help.
It was easy in Southern California to find spiritual guidance. You name a cult or sect, Los Angeles has it. I decided that I would "do the rounds" of churches to see if there was anything that worked for me. Although I hadn't changed my mind about myth and superstition, I had read enough of Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell to figure out that myth is important to us, because it embraces another way of thinking about the world (and who doesn't enjoy a good story?), and like poetry and music, can transcend our material level of being.
First, I went back to early experiences and visited a Methodist church, but discovered that both God and Jesus Christ, although One, were watching my every move--plus I often drink wine, and alcohol even in moderation, is a no-no. I tried Science of Mind, but the minister, in his bright red jacket, thought he was very charismatic--and I didn't agree. I enjoyed Paramahansa Yoginanda's Self-Realization Fellowship, but it didn't quite hit the spot.
Finally, I entered the UU Church of Santa Monica, and immediately felt comfortable. I loved that the walls were decorated with symbols of world religions to acknowledge that wisdom from other cultures and belief systems can be relevant to us; that the music that first day was from the forties (Sinatra) with an uplifting beat and melody; and that the message that first day, "life itself is the miracle," taken from the words of 19th century UU theologian, philosopher, writer, and poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson all beckoned to me. Emerson also wrote: "The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common."
What a splendid way to view life, I thought. I was home.
Most Unitarian Universalists do not believe in life after death, and in his essay "Awakening," the late F .Forrester Church, a UU Minister and a wonderfully prolific writer, explains that by "offering religious security blankets and heavenly insurance policies, many faiths base their considerable appeal on a denial of death." He then goes on to say: "By refusing to accept the dispensation of death as a condition for the gift of birth, life's intrinsic wonder and promise are diminished."
Forrester Church also offers a different connotation of the fundamental Christian phrase "born again." He states that we are born again "when we awaken to the fact that life is not a given--not something to be taken for granted, or transcended after death--but a gift, undeserved and unexpected, holy, awesome, and mysterious." As Unitarian Universalists, we are free to choose our beliefs, but as Forrester Church reminds us, "we are responsible for what we make of that freedom."
My duties at school were wide and demanding, and I had little time or energy left for anything except my job during the school year. But, I joined the UU Welcome Committee which meant that one Sunday each month I stood by the Hospitality Cart during the coffee hour and engaged in conversation with anyone who was new or seemed a little lost. It was a small thing to do, but I was doing something, and I felt connected to the community. Attendance each Sunday became precious to me, and I took to heart so much of what the services called for: acts of kindness, demands for justice, equality for all, and appeals to conscience via intellect and reason. The well was refilled again and again, and it was good to see familiar faces on a regular basis. The Reverend Judith Meyer pointed out that " . . . the need for affiliation is human nature. We do not thrive on isolation whether it is social or spiritual. Community confers benefits. Our lives are longer and healthier with companionship; our dispositions stay supple and our hearts stay open."
I agree with all my heart.
In those days, I promised myself that when I retired, I would find ways to become a more integral part of the UU community, and now that has come to pass. I am a retiree, and am blessed to live in Bellingham, Washington, at this stage in my life in spite of the two terrible blows we suffered since moving here (see Reflection I).
I am so grateful for the spirit of Bellingham Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (BUF), and the kindness its minister, the Reverend Doug Wadkins, and so many of its congregation has extended to me. I look forward to supporting and taking part in its good works for as long as I'm able. Not only that, but along the way we have lots of laughs, plenty of opportunities to find out where we fit, and the pleasure of being among talented, motivated, and kindred spirits.
No comments:
Post a Comment