New Page 1

INTRODUCTION: I remember reading years ago of the Roman Catholic elementary school that was attempting to teach the young children enrolled of not only the three R's, but also, the ritual and tradition of the Roman Catholic Church. But the project wasn't going too well. In fact, the priest for the parish had complained to the nuns who were teaching at the school, that when the children came to confession, they just sat in the confessional booth and said nothing. They didn't know what to do.

So in response to the priest's plea, the nuns sat down with the children and encouraged them to make lists of the sins they had committed the previous week. That way, when they went into the confessional booth, they would have a list of their sins, which they could read to the priest, and he could respond accordingly.

So on the first day of the new system, little Johnny went into the confessional booth, and just as he had learned from the nuns, said, "Bless me father, for I have sinned." And after the appropriate response from the priest, Johnny began to read from his list, the sins he had committed the previous week. However, he had hardly gotten into it, when he suddenly stopped and said, "Hey! This ain't my sins." Somewhere along the way he had picked up somebody else's list, not his own.

Today, every time I go to the mailbox, it seems, I receive pleas for help from worthy and caring organizations. The newspapers regularly carry stories of incredible need. And all over the city, state, nation and world, in one form or another, it seems like we are being constantly bombarded with the pleas of needs, to which we are being asked to respond.

And the needs are real. For example, last Tuesday night, we had a wonderful turnout for a reception for Donna Roberts and the documentary, Sea of Uncertainty, which she wrote and directed recently for WGCU on the Gulf oil spill at the British Petroleum Deepwater Horizon well. One of the thoughts I had watching and listening to it is how current and pressing the need still is in New Orleans, the Gulf and the surrounding communities. Though the spill is off the front pages, there are still an enormous number of after effects which not only remain, but also will be present for years to come.

But who among us wants to hear more about BP, the Gulf, and New Orleans? They had their moment, so to speak…their 15 minutes of infamy…and our attention span has collapsed.

It’s not just the Gulf that has suffered from our amnesia: Last January 12, there was a 7.0 magnitude earthquake near Port-au-Prince, Haiti, which was the strongest in more than 200 years. And now today, no matter what dimension any story about Haiti takes, it’s always a tragedy in every sense of the word.

But that too is yesterday’s news. We’ve already heard, seen, and responded. Like the media coverage of the Gulf, Haiti is off the radar screen of American interest.

And certainly, the continuing tragedy of our misguided, misrepresented, misinformed invasion of Iraq almost nine years ago is at the bottom of the list for most Americans. We want out. Recognizing that, President Obama has declared combat is over, even though 50,000 troops remain, and we’re spending close to $750 million dollars a day on a futile occupation, initiated by a former president in March of 2002: who didn’t know where he was going, when he got there didn’t know where he was, when he got back he didn’t know where he had been, and he did it all on borrowed money!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, or back in Florida, or back in the confessional, we’re protesting strongly, “Hey! These aren’t my sins!” Why should we be concerned about homelessness, hunger, and healthcare? Why should we be concerned about war and peace and the environment?

The answer to all of those questions is simple: because it’s a spiritual matter. Because it’s a deeply personal spiritual matter.

But before we go further, let’s stop for a moment and define the term. What do we mean when we use the word “spiritual?” A working definition for me is that:

Our species functions best when it’s in balance with the rhythms of the Universe. To be in balance with the rhythms of the Universe, means first that we are living our lives to the fullest and secondly, we are living them in harmony and support of every other species having the same privilege.

Now that sounds good, but how do we do that? Where are the directions? Or is this somebody else’s list?

In response, let me offer this clarification about religion: The Buddha, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, Confucius, Lao Tze, and a host of others have all considered themselves as answering the challenge to be in balance with the rhythms of the Universe…by living our lives to the fullest and by living in harmony and support of every other species doing the same.

Moses wasn’t about the Torah; rather the Torah was his people’s effort to live their lives to the fullest and in harmony with every other species. The followers of Jesus were not really about getting you to believe that Jesus was the Christ, but in doing so, it would enable you to live your life to the fullest and in harmony with others. Ditto for Confucius, Lao Tze, Muhammad, as well as Mary Baker Eddy and Christian Science, Joseph Smith and the Mormons, and all the 100,000 or so other religions and their gods. Their message was really about how to live life on this planet.

One of the things we’ve learned in the last century or so is that we on Planet Earth are made of the stuff of the stars and when we work to heal our little section of the Galaxy, we do so in resonance with an immensely complex Universal order that has been evolving for more than 15 billion years.

extend from the cellular substance of our blood and bone to the farthest galaxies.”

We’re a part of the “grand liturgy of the Universe.” One dimension of spirituality is recognizing that we are a part of the Whole, no matter how infinitesimal. Our task is to do those things which make life more full, living more harmonious, and relationships more in balance with the Whole. And how should we do that?

Let’s pause for a moment and take a hymnbook. Turn to page 1…then turn back one page and on the left hand side, quite inconspicuously, are two sets of lists:

1. The Principles and Practices that Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote…though they’re not numbered, there are seven of them.

2. And below that is another list and it is of religions, sources and causes that inform the principles above, which is a recognition that the seven principles didn’t drop out of thin air; rather, they have roots culturally and historically, and they inform the way Unitarian Universalists think about things religious and spiritual.

We’re talking about these because our Board of Governors voted unanimously last month to recommend to the congregation that we pursue affiliation with the Unitarian Universalist Association, headquartered in Boston. We will make that decision Dec. 5^th. In the interim, for seven Sundays we will be examining these seven principles and practices which shape the understanding of Unitarian Universalists. Last week we looked at the first principle; today, we’re addressing the second, namely, we covenant to affirm and promote “justice, equity and compassion in human relations.”

I’ve said a lot about “justice,” but what does “equity” mean? Here’s a wonderful example.

About 20 years ago, I drove to Charlotte, N.C., to attend the Annual General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Church. It’s always held the last weekend in June. (Surprisingly, it’s going to be in Charlotte again next June; hopefully, several of us will want to go.) The Charlotte area is a part of the Thomas Jefferson District, which is comparable to the Florida District of UU congregations. And one part of the festivities the host district planned for the weekend of the General Assembly was a “Thomas Jefferson Ball” on Saturday night.

In the literature that went out beforehand, those attending the Ball were encouraged to wear dress appropriate to the period. The hosts envisioned period costumes and revolutionary period attire. And in response many brought their costumes and outfits planning to do just that.

The General Assembly began on Thursday night, followed by events of Friday, and then came Saturday morning. After the announcements about the day and the evening, the regular plenary session had hardly begun, before an attractive, articulate young Black woman, went to the microphone and asked for a point of personal privilege. The moderator consented, whereupon the young women read the description of the period attire which was recommended for the Ball that evening – “period costumes and revolutionary attire.” She said, "Does this mean African-Americans should come in rags and chains?"

There was stunned silence throughout the convention hall. The moderator was equally at a loss for words. Most of us were thinking, “Geez, I hadn’t thought of it from that perspective!”

Soon a recess had been called for 30 minutes, during which time a special task force was formed to prepare a recommendation to take into consideration the concern of the young woman, and also of the delegates who had planned to participate in the Ball. Their recommendation, which was put into effect, was to add another event for the evening, with a whole African cast to it, running coterminous with the Ball.

That evening, at the Ball, there was classical music and waltzing, with women and men dressed to the “T.” At the other end of the hotel, there was drumming, chanting, dancing and great rhythms. I went to both. It was a great lesson in equity.

There are many more such lessons to learn even now. If we know that all persons are created equal, we can in no sense brook or tolerate the brutal prejudice and tormenting of gays and lesbians rooted in our nation’s DNA. The UUA has promoted “Standing on the side of love,” and in so doing standing with those who are speaking out against hate and bigotry.

Years ago, I consulted with a children’s convalescent center for physically fragile children. In that process, we were able to identify an elderly gentleman who had been incredibly generous to many worthy causes in the area. He agreed to visit the center and consider making a naming bequest from his estate.

When he came, he saw the little children born without many of the necessary components and parts for their little bodies. He also saw little children who had been the victims of such physical abuse that they were paper shells of human beings. All of them still alive, but all of them needing to have 24 hour, around the clock care, and none of them destined to live beyond five years of age. They were truly physically fragile.

The man was very moved. He said he wanted his adult grandchildren to come out and tour the facility. He assured us that if they felt like he did, the possibility of a multi-million dollar naming bequest from his estate would be considered.

When his family members arrived, there was great expectation. The red carpet treatment was given. Music therapy, physical therapy, rocking and hugging – all the special things that were being done to give these children a taste of normal childcare were shown.

Afterwards, our guests were taken to a special area where tea and cookies were being offered, and also a chance to meet the dedicated staff. But we all were in for a shock. The visitors said, they couldn’t eat after what they had seen. One of them said, “Why would anyone bother to keep children like these alive?”

I was stunned. You can imagine the pain of the workers and staff. It was true that it was tough to see that much diminishment at one time. And yet the staff worked with them, loved them, hugged them, touched them, sang to them, played with them – and gave them the love and attention no one else would give – even though every worker knew these children would not live long. But these people of privilege – who had never known physical or material want – they said, why bother?

It wasn’t that they needed sympathy, but they very much needed compassion. Sympathy, while noteworthy and many times needed and appropriate, is distinctly different from compassion.

n Sympathy says, “I’m so sorry;” compassion says, “What can I do to help?”

n Sympathy focuses on the problem; compassion seeks to find an answer to the problem.

n Sympathy is bemoaning how awful things are; compassion is working to change things, one step at a time.

n Sympathy accepts the reality of ultimate defeat; compassion refuses to give up and fights on despite the odds.

Compassionate people are not necessarily the most sympathetic people. Sympathetic people are not necessarily the most compassionate. Compassionate people are determined to make a difference, to change things in our world.

[1] Given October1 10, 2010 at the All Faiths Unitarian Congregation, located at 2756 McGregor Boulevard, Ft. Myers, FL, by the Rev. Dr. Wayne Robinson, minister.