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There is an old story in the Jewish tradition of the man who asked Rabbi Shamai to teach him Judaism while standing on one foot. Shamai, notoriously impatient, chased the man away. Then he went to Rabbi Hillel and made the same request. While standing on one foot, Rabbi Hillel responded: "Don't do to others what you wouldn't have them do to you. That is all the Torah; all the rest is commentary. Now go and learn it."
That story suggested a similar question: how might we respond if we are asked to define Unitarian Universalism? By the water cooler at work? At a dinner party with neighbors? Or speaking with our Unitarian Universalist friends here at church? What is the essence of our liberal religious faith - and more - how do we articulate it? Succinctly! We are likely to be embarrassed. It is almost as if we had been asked to undress in public.
We have no creed or dogma; we read no one definitive text; we revere no one authority; we subscribe to no catechism - catechism - a manual of-instruction, in pithy question and answer form, for indoctrination into a particular system of faith and morals.
My first contact with a catechism was while riding a school bus in my high school days. Two small Roman Catholic children studied a catechism book on their way to and from school, and I read it over their shoulders. A born Universalist, I was puzzled both by its form and substance. Not only could I not affirm the words, but I also wondered what meaning they could possibly have for children who could have comprehended little of the dogma espoused.
I am reminded of a story. A priest had a catechism class in which each child learned the answer to one question which he or she was to give at the confirmation ceremony. One child was absent, and so to the question from the priest "Who made you?" the next boy in line said: "The boy God made is sick today."
Unitarian Universalism, in contrast to catechism, is a non-creedal faith formed out of the free mind and conscience of individuals in religious community, trying to discern the ultimate meanings and values of life. It will tolerate no creed engraved in stone, no indelible-ink dogma.
We pride ourselves on learning to live in the questions, not to be in too great a hurry to proclaim easy answers to hard questions. We have said "the method is the message," the way we form our beliefs says a great deal about us. It might be said that "the process is our most important product" - the how of our believing is as important as the what. I have concluded, however, that stress on question, process and the how of believing is a necessary, but not sufficient condition for a religious philosophy. It is not enough to ask profound questions; it is not enough to develop good methodology in religion; it is not enough to speak of the how, to the exclusion of the what.
To describe ourselves only in terms of process can be a cop-out for the disciplined work of thinking our way through to some conclusions, however tentative they may be. I believe we need at least provisional answers to our questions, a substantive message for the world; our process does lead to a product.
Question without answer, method without message, process without product, is like climbing the mountain and not enjoying the view; like painting the picture but not hanging it on the wall; like composing a musical score and never playing it. We do have our statement of Purposes and Principles, developed in typical democratic Unitarian Universalist fashion by a committee which solicited input from hundreds of congregations and thousands of people across the continent. Finally, it was adopted by vote of the 1985 General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association.
It has been a powerful influence upon us and our capacity to articulate who we are. A colleague once told about a member who walked up to him after a service, pointed to the principles and purposes posted on the wall, and said, "I read that poster when I first came here. It is what I believe. I knew I was home."[1]
These purposes and principles are not a creedal test of membership. They are rather a covenant - a set of mutual promises which describe the kind of religious community we aspire to be. They are no substitute for specific theological affirmations. Yet it is imperative we be able to articulate the nature of our faith. We must do better than cartoonist Jules Feiffer who said: "I believe in myself; after that there's room for doubt."[2]
All of this leads me, then, to share my own confession of faith as a Unitarian Universalist. It is in the form of a catechism - question and response - (provisional, but important). And while I am not delivering this sermon while standing on one foot, any of these answers can be uttered while standing on one foot - if one is in good spiritual shape. So, if there were a Unitarian Universalist catechism, I think it might sound like this:
What is religion?
Religion means to bind together the frayed strands of our being - to bind together a broken humanity. It is a core of ultimate meanings and values and convictions to which we commit our lives. It is the vantage point and the rallying point from which we enter the day-to-day of our existence.
What does Unitarian mean?
Theologically, a Unitarian believes God is one; historically this is denial of the trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Unitarian also refers to a cosmic reality held together by natural law in distinction from the supernatural. Everything is naturally divine and partakes of the power of being.
Then, what is the meaning of Jesus?
Jesus was a first century Jewish prophet - a moral and spiritual teacher who went about doing good. He sought to reform the Judaism of his day by placing emphasis on its moral and spiritual dimensions rather than on its ceremonies. While his message was designed for a first century agrarian society, the spirit of his teachings and his life has inspired people across the ages, and moves us today. Because he was a threat to the religious and political establishment of his day, he was crucified. Do you believe in the virgin birth and the resurrection? What about Christmas and Easter?
A virgin birth and physical resurrection are part of a mythology created to deify Jesus and defies all natural laws. We gladly celebrate Christmas as symbolizing that every night a child is born is a holy night, and Easter as testimony to the courage of a lonely prophet whose life was brief but whose teachings are immortal.
Is there life after death?
We do not and cannot know. Many of us doubt such an existence, but do not close our minds to serious attempts at understanding the death process. We affirm the immortality of influence: those who have lived well live on in the lives of those they touch. We have no time for such inquiries, for we are too busy with this life to worry about a future one. The more important question is - is there life after birth?
What about heaven and hell?
Heaven and hell are mythic creations of ancient peoples. We need no thought of heavenly reward or hellish punishment to motivate us to be and do good. Our heavens and hells are here on earth and are of our own making. They are states of the soul. Heaven is participation in the Beloved Community; Hell is indifference to our neighbors.
What does Universalism mean?
Historically Universalism refers to universal salvation - the final harmony of all souls with God. It was a reaction to Calvinist theology in which some were predestined for heaven and others for hell. Universalists believed in a God of love who would ultimately restore all people to a state of grace. Ethically, Universalism refers to our responsibility for the human family of which we are all members. Someone told the early Universalists: "You're sitting on the biggest word in the English language; do something about it or get off!"
Do you believe in salvation? If so, what is it?
Salvation means health or wholeness of being. We do not accept salvation as the gracious act of an omnipotent God who redeems us from sin. It is the struggle toward wholeness as a human being - generosity of spirit, depth of meaning, responsibility of action. Salvation is not a single event, but a cradle-to-grave pilgrimage in which we grow in our capacity to love and to serve. Salvation is not the miraculous intervention of deity in some magical moment, but the human work of a lifetime. (My foot got a little tired on that one.) What about human nature? Do you believe in original sin?
Human nature is neither tainted at birth with original sin to be expunged, nor are we born noble savages corrupted by an evil society. We are born in finite freedom. On the one hand we are selfish creatures who think we are the center of creation. On the other, we can transcend that self-centeredness and expand our interests to include our neighbors. We are intriguing contradictions - the "glory, jest and riddle of the world."
Do you believe in sin?
Sin in the Hebrew scriptures meant "missing the mark." We are constantly missing the mark - doing that which we ought not to do and not doing what we ought to do. We are our own most perplexing problem and our own final hope. We are neither sinners in the hands of an angry God nor saints in the arms of a loving one. We are both saints and sinners, but more importantly, we are seekers.
Do you believe in God?
We believe in a creating, sustaining and transforming power - a cosmic creativity which is the power behind the natural world of planets and flowers, pine cones and photons. It sustains our very existence, but it does not play favorites; it is indifferent to us as creatures - the rain falls on the just and the unjust. Some among us personalize this power in prayer; others do not; but it sustains us all no matter what our theology.
What, then, is your source of authority in religion?
Our ultimate source of authority is and must be our own conscience. We cannot claim to be possessors of the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. We must own our decisions and live our lives according to the best lights we have. We are not alone religiously, for we live in a community of persons who both sustain and challenge us.
What about the Bible as a source of truth?
The Bible with its Jewish and Christian scriptures, is a vast and valuable compendium of human wisdom and folly collected over a period of centuries. The lovely legends of creation, the poetry of the psalmist, the insight of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, the zeal of the prophets, the moral imagination of Jesus, and the eloquence of Paul are a rich resource. It is a human book, however, shot through with the best and the worst of human nature. It is not the word of God to humanity, but the word of humanity about its understanding of humanity and divinity and where they meet in human life. There are other religious scriptures to which we would also turn. The ethical demands of the Koran, the beauty of the Tao Te Ching, the simple ethic of the Analects of Confucius, the mystical insights of the Bhagavad Ghita, the existential wisdom of the Sutras of Buddhism - and the rich abundance of the whole human literary tradition - all these contribute to our human store of goodness and beauty and wisdom.
We celebrate a loose-leaf bible which affirms that revelation is not sealed. Truth has not been embalmed in any one age or tradition; it is an unfolding process. The truths of yesterday are often the superstitions of today. We need the freedom to remove from our loose-leaf bible ancient ideas that no longer stand the test of time, keep those that do, and add our own insights to its pages.
Are you a Christian, then, or not?
If by Christian you mean one who believes in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, no. If by Christian you mean one who accepts the Bible as the word of God, no. If by Christian you mean one who seeks to live in the spirit of Jesus - seeks a life of love and justice - then perhaps yes. We are not as concerned with whether or not we are Christian as whether or not we lead worthy lives . Labels are unimportant; life transcends labels.
What is the meaning of life for you?
Meaning is the measure of religion. Meaning is not written in the stars, but created by human beings out of the raw material of their own existence. It is not handed to us by God, or by church or by state. We are not sure life or history have grand meanings, nor that we could discover them even if they do. Religion is a human creation, not a divine gift.
E.B. White, you know, the New Yorker who wrote for the New Yorker, once wrote that each of us has a "suitcase full of beliefs." Some of us pack better than others. Some travel light. Some are bogged down with a suitcase so heavy they cannot move. We need at least an overnight bag with a single heartfelt conviction that will get us through the day and the night.
How would you explain Unitarian Universalism while standing on one foot?
Life matters;
People are precious;
Deed is more important than creed;
Love is the spirit of our church;
Existence is our gift;
Meaning is our quest;
Service is our prayer;
Freedom in community is our way;
Responsibility for others is our obligation;
Reverence for life is our practice.
In the love of beauty and the spirit of truth,
we unite for the celebration of life
and the service of humanity.
All the rest is commentary. Now go and learn it.