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Rev. Cynthia A. Snavely Sunday, October 1, 2000 Today’s sermon is an auction sermon bought by a member of my congregation. Before I begin I would like to read you a portion of what he wrote to me in asking for the topic. He wrote, "When I was growing up Methodist and even more so when I was in college really trying very hard to follow ‘God’s word,’ one thing that was impressed upon me was the importance of ‘turning others to Christ’ and ‘saving’ them. This was so important, of course, because of the belief that the unsaved would be cast away after death. A good Christian truly was trying o save other people’s lives – eternal lives and not just physical ones – when they were trying to convert others to Christianity. "In Unitarian Universalism, we don’t do that kind of thing because we don’t feel that we have the ultimate answer. We don’t have the driving force of knowing we are trying to save peoples’ lives. Therefore, we end up being reluctant to talk to others about our religion at all! "Is there anything about Unitarian Universalism that could encourage us to go out and ‘save souls’? There are many people out there – even just in our congregation -- who would say their lives are better since they discovered UUism. Are we doing a disservice to others by not sharing our faith with them? And, if so, how can we do this (or can we?) without proselytizing?" Our religion, like all religions does two things. One, it defines a problem of humanity, and two, it prescribes a cure. Most religious cures include four parts; a spirituality, an ethic, a theology and a ministry. Unitarian Universalism today defines the problem as a lack of connection. We see the brokenness of persons, the separations between people and the disconnect between people and the earth and seeks to bring connection. But, Unitarian Universalism also sees the uniqueness of individuals. We do not prescribe the same cure for all. We encourage each person to find his or her own cure, their own spirituality, ethic, theology and ministry. There is not one cure for the human condition, but we will help you discover yours. Do you remember the musical, The Music Man? When the main character, a traveling salesman, comes to town one of the first things he does is scout out the town to find out what’s new in town. He is looking for something that he can make into a problem that his product can help solve. What is new is a pool hall. He sings, "You’ve got trouble with a capital T gonna rhyme it with P and that stands for pool…. Got to find a way to keep the young ones moral after school." The answer, of course, is a boys’ band, for the salesman is selling instruments and uniforms. Whether one is selling a product or sharing a religion people want to know why they need what you are offering. As Ken suggests the simple answer for evangelical Christianity is that one needs Jesus in order to save one’s soul from eternal damnation. For a century or more Unitarianism and Universalism saw much of their purpose as saving people, not from hell itself, but from hellfire and brimstone Christianity In Jack Mendelsohn’s biography, Channing:The Reluctant Radical Mendelsohn shares a childhood remembrance of William Ellery Channing, who preached the defining sermon for the beginning of American Unitarianism in Baltimore in 1819. "When I was quite young (says Channing)… I was taken by my father in a chaise to a meeting, to which he went to hear a famous preacher of the revival kind. My father, I think, took me rather to give me the drive, and relieve my mother of the care of me, than with any expectation of my attending to the sermon. But I could not choose but attend, for the preacher made such a terrific picture of the lost condition of the human race rushing into hell… that it filled my imagination with horror. I wondered that the congregation could then stand and sing praises to such a god as would send their souls to hell. When my father and I climbed back in the chaise, my father said to a friend, ‘Sound doctrine that! Leaves no rag of self-righteousness to wrap the sinner in.’ "Imagine, then, my surprise when my father, in the face of explicit instructions to flee ‘the divine wrath to come’ began whistling. When we arrived home he ate a hearty dinner and settled down to read the newspaper as if nothing had happened, as if nothing was wrong. It was a memory that lingered." Most people today do not need to be rescued from a hellfire and brimstone religion that smites their sense of hope or seems to be incongruent with how they actually live their lives. Many of our small Universalist congregations died as fewer Methodist, Presbyterian, Brethren and Baptist congregations preached hellfire and damnation sermons from their pulpits. I recently received a list of summer seminary classes offered by the collection of Christian seminaries in DC. It included a course on redefining Christianity without a belief in the second coming of Christ. Too many Unitarian Universalist are still defining the problem we address as bad or destructive religion. Many people in our communities today never had a bad or a destructive religion. Many of them have never been a part of any religion. So, what is the problem that Unitarian Universalism does address today? Buddhism describes the problem as suffering. Christianity describes the problem as humanity’s separation from God. I believe that Unitarian Universalism might best describe the problem we address as fractures or separations within ourselves and between ourselves and others. A Jewish myth says that in the beginning all the universe was bound together in one globe of light. That globe shattered and now we seek ever to put those sparks of light back together. Many people today feel life is so segmented. Life at work, life with children, life with spouse, life with friends are all separated one from the other. Each is distinct. Many a person feels pulled in too many directions, barraged with different sets of values coming at them from different sources. Where are the core values? How do they find what is really important? Is there anything that can pull their own feelings, needs, and struggles together and focus them in one direction? The prescription is religion, but religion needs to be created for the person not the person made to fit the religion. People need a sense of connection and reverence, spirituality. People need a way to sort out what is right and what is wrong, ethics. People need a way to discover for themselves what is most important in life, theology. People need a way to make a difference in the world, a ministry. Unitarian Universalism can help people to find their own spirituality, ethics, theology and ministry without making everyone work off the same sheet. Not everyone’s sense of connection and reverence will be nourished by the same practices. We tell people that up front, and offer opportunities for Sufi dancing, Bible study, planting trees, making sandwiches, etc. One’s ethics should back up what one feels is important in life. A woman in the Charleston, West Virginia UU congregation had gone to South America with her husband as Brethren missionaries. She thought they were doing the right thing at first, but they left their missionary work as they realized that their Christian preaching was robbing the people of their own cultural base. Unitarian Universalism doesn’t say that there is this one set of commandments that you can put on your wall and follow and always be right. We say, "Ask questions, ‘If I do this how will it effect myself, other people, the environment?’ ‘Will it bring us together or separate us further from ourselves, others, the earth?’" What is ultimately important?" If you answer, "God" in Unitarian Universalism you had better be able to flesh that answer out with an explanation of what that word means to you. How will you leave the world better than you found it? What is your ministry? As each of us needs a spirituality, an ethic, and a theology as a part of our religion, we each also need a ministry. Whether our service is with children, the environment, the church community, the political community, or elsewhere by our works we will show our faith. Unitarian Universalism is a build it yourself religion. We know everyone needs a spirituality, an ethic, a theology, and a ministry. We also know that everyone’s religion will not, cannot, be exactly the same. To use the metaphor once again of the broken that needs to be made whole, all the puzzle pieces are not cut exactly the same. How they fit into the whole is not the same for each piece. Every piece has both its own unique shape and its place within the whole. Unitarian Universalism is a religion that acknowledges both the uniqueness and the connection. John Murray, Universalist preacher of the eighteenth century said, "Go out into the highways and bi-ways. Give the people something of your new vision. You may possess a small light, but uncover it, let it shine, use it in order to bring more light and understanding to the hearts and minds of men and women. Give them not hell, but hope and courage; preach the kindness and everlasting love of God." He, like many Unitarians and Universalists, saw that there was an alternative to a religion that separated the saved from the unsaved and made people feel that either they themselves or "some people" could never get it together. Today we can see that we are not offering an alternative to one kind of religion. We are offering custom tailoring. Religion can offer kindness and love, a way of connection in many ways and forms. Hope and courage, kindness and love are still what Unitarian Universalism has to offer. Hope and courage will help us to celebrate our uniqueness. Kindness and love will help us to find our place within the whole. The way you share this with someone else is by giving testimony. Don’t tell people what Unitarian Universalism can do for them. Tell them what it has done for you. Show by your actions as well as by your words that you have a religion that brings wholeness and integrity to your life. "You may possess a small light, but uncover it, let it shine, use it in order to bring more light and understanding to the hearts and minds of men and women." Don’t assume Unitarian Universalism will do exactly the same things for someone else. Ask about who they are and what they need. There are others who need a place where their uniqueness will be recognized along with their connection to the whole. Tell them your story and invite them into our faith. Back to Sermons
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