Jesus has told us that the way to the kingdom is to “love
as I have loved.” Somebody asked Mother Teresa about this imperative of Jesus’s
one time saying, “Who am I to love?” Mother Teresa is reported to have said, “Whomever
life puts in your path.” Pretty simple, right? Whomever life puts in your path
you are to love. So I don’t get why the third principle says that we should
accept and encourage to spiritual growth people in our congregations. Why not
everyone in the whole wide world?
There are a couple of reasons why Unitarian
Universalism is such a small religious denomination. First, people use their
congregation like a social club and really don’t internalize their faith by
incorporating it into practices leading to a richer interior spiritual life,
and secondly, they don’t proselytize. It’s a shame really. Why would they limit
themselves in their ethic of inclusivity and encouragement to spiritual growth
only in their congregations and not to the world? Of course, we don’t need to
wait for the leaders of the UUA or our congregation to spread the good word
about the seven UU principles. We can do it ourselves person to person.
In Matthew 10 Jesus sends His apostles off two by
two with nothing but their tunic and sandals and a walking stick. He tells them
the people they encounter will support them and if they don’t move on. Here is
what Jesus tells them in verses 5 – 20
These twelve Jesus sent out with the
following instructions: “Do
not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go rather to the
lost sheep of Israel.7 As
you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8 Heal the sick,
raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,[a] drive out demons.
Freely you have received; freely give.
9 “Do not get any gold or silver or copper to
take with you in your belts— 10 no bag for the
journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep.11 Whatever
town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at
their house until you leave. 12 As you enter the
home, give it your greeting. 13 If the home is
deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to
you.14 If
anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town
and shake the dust off your feet. 15 Truly I tell you,
it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of
judgment than
for that town.
16 “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as
shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. 17 Be on your guard;
you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in
the synagogues. 18 On my account you will be brought before
governors and kings as
witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they
arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you
will be given what to say, 20 for it will not be
you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through
you.
How would that work if Unitarian Universalists who
were to go out and preach the seven principles to the lost sheep of America?
What if UUs were to take seriously the teaching of the seven principles? What
would that effort look like? Because the seven principles are so counter
cultural, if they are seriously applied to daily life, UUs would probably be
arrested or at least mocked, ridiculed, shunned, avoided, called unpatriotic,
and perhaps killed.
An attack on Unitarian Universalists occurred in
July of 2008 at the Knoxville Unitarian Universalist Church in Tennessee when a
gunman went to the church and killed two members and injured seven with a
sawed-off shotgun before he was restrained by church members. The gunman said
he wanted to kill liberals, African-Americans, homosexuals, and democrats, and
he apparently thought the local Unitarian Universalist church was a good place
to start. Many UUs were spooked after that, naturally, and became warier for a
while when strangers visited their churches.
Jesus said that He was sending his apostles out like
sheep among wolves. He said they should be shrewd as snakes and yet innocent as
doves. For people who want to pursue or are pursuing a spiritual life, it is a
high road not a low road. Jesus says many are called but few are chosen.
Many jokes are made about Unitarian Universalsim and
Unitarian Universalists but taken seriously, living a Unitarian Universalist life
is serious business. It is not for the faint of heart but for people with great
faith, conviction, and love. Not just to attend a Unitarian Universalist church,
but to live a Unitarian Universalist life takes dedication, commitment, and
what the third principle calls “encouragement to spiritual growth.” As the UU
preachers say when they end their sermons, “May it be so.”
I like this essay but it seems a bit strident. It seems to assume that most UUs are slackers and only a few take the faith seriously. I'm not sure if this is true. However, if you ask what difference a UU church makes in any given community, there are only a few where it seems that they make any kind of difference, but I can be wrong. Most people in my area think that UUs are nice people, but not really religious and as long as they don't bother anybody they are cooly tolerated. However, I live in a liberal area. I suppose if we were in the tea party area in the bible belt with a lot of religious right sympathy like Tennessee, it might be a different story.
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