Generosity of Spirit (CL)

I have been spending a lot of time, these past couple months, thinking about money. I am planning a wedding, buying a house, and now that my car’s engine has developed some really strange noises, buying a new car, too. All while paying off large student debt.

Money is one of those unpleasant topics which most of us try to avoid thinking about, or talking about, most of the time. Indeed, our society has taught us that discussing money in public is something “polite” people don’t do. But it is that frame of mind that has kept us from honestly discussing the purpose and value of money. We are taught to think of it as an end in itself, rather than a means to a useful end. Some people even consider money "evil." We are woefully uneducated as to the ways our economy and banking systems work. 

What if, instead of fearing money, we were empowered to use it in service to our values?

All of these thoughts about money are swirling in my mind while the church’s administrative team and finance committee work to plan the upcoming budget and stewardship campaign. It’s that time of year again... We will talk about money.

The theme for the month of October is “Vision.” The vision for the Unitarian Universalist Church of Annapolis is to create the Beloved Community by empowering and inspiring all souls to live bold and compassionate lives. Creating the Beloved Community… that’s a big (bold) vision!

Throughout October we will have meetings to discuss that vision, and importantly, how the budget is reflected in the vision, and how we hope that the congregation will give so generously that we can expand the vision further. We will be asking you, what’s your vision? What is it that you are looking forward to? This year? Next year? In 20 years?

This year, I am looking forward to...

Exciting music programs planned by Betsy Kraning. 

Committed high school youth making their goals a reality. 

Fighting for Marriage Equality and the DREAM Act with UULM. 

Great new groups and classes, and great ongoing ones, too! 

Growth of our PlayScape, nursery and Spirit Play classes for little ones. 

AWAKE Ministries and the new mid-week worship service.

What are you looking forward to?

The reality of this vision is that each of these things costs money. We are a spiritual community living in the world of reality. We cannot escape utility bills, cost of supplies, or paying our staff a fair salary. Our vision must be reflected in our generosity.

I did the math, and realized that if each adult member of the church gave $1,500/year (that’s $125/month) we would breeze through our budget process and have some to spare for our church’s vision.  I have seen the numbers, and I know that many of you give much more than that. If your life circumstances allow you to give more, please know that we greatly appreciate that generosity… Many people cannot give that much, and we understand and appreciate whatever you can give. But as you make your pledge, please consider that number: $1,500 per adult member. Look honestly at your household finances and also consider how much the church means to you.

I don’t know if you realize this, but your ministers and many of the staff also make a pledge and pay to support the vision of the church.  Fred and Susan are among our top givers! As I planned my budget, including how much I can afford for my house or car payments, I included my pledge to the church in that process. I chose to give $1,500 because I can. I calculated what I can afford for my home and car payments after taking that amount out of my budget.

We know that every circumstance is different. We are not asking you to accumulate debt or be financially irresponsible in order to increase your pledge. But we are asking you to consider your pledge to the church as a forethought, and not an afterthought.

The church is here to help you grow in your life, in your values, and your connections to others. Please know that we are here for you if you have lost a job or are struggling financially. We have knowledgeable people who can help you plan your budget or find resources in the community. I am offering a class in December to help you talk to kids about money, so we can break the cycle of silence on this topic. Money isn’t a topic to avoid or fear. It’s a topic to engage honestly and with love.

What are you looking forward to?

I’m looking forward to honest conversation about money, about generosity, and about vision. I’m looking forward to a year of bold and compassionate living.

Let’s make it happen, together!

Closed Mouth, Opened Heart - Conscious Listening (JC)

In the Hindu/Buddhist tradition many believe there are seven chakras or seven centers in the body where one can collect energy, wisdom, insight, foresight, strength, compassion, power and love.  These energy centers are connected to particular glands in the body.  As one becomes master over oneself, he/she can open and close these energy centers as needed given the situation.

As an example, if I wanted to intuit a person's motives I could open my sixth chakra, also known as the "third eye" which regulates clarity, intuition, clear thinking and vision.  This energy center is located just above the eyes in the center of the forehead.

Chakras are important when I think about our ministry together at the UUCA.  We are in the business of developing intimate relationships with one another.  We grow closer by getting to know each other.  We get to know each other by listening to each other's stories.  When we hear each other in, love pains are endured and healed, wounds are closed, and love is given and received.

To build better relationships at church, at home or at work we must become better listeners.  That's what our monthly theme Sabbath is about to me--being quiet long enough to hear the other. When listening, practice opening only two energy centers (chakras 4 and 7) the heart and crown chakras which regulate love and spiritual connection.  When we enter into relationships from a spiritual perspective guided by love only good can be manifest.

I have personally felt the power of these energy centers in my life for better and for worse.  I've been in difficult conversations where I want the other person to see what I see.  I intentionally kept my third-eye chakra open trying to guess what this person is thinking, trying to convince them that my way was better.  But ultimately the conversation failed.  It is only when I made the decision to close the third-eye chakra and focus my energy on compassion and love, in the name of Spirit, that I began to hear/see things anew.  The conversation continued and healing occurred.

For the rest of this month of Sabbath, try to consciously listen to others.  Open your heart and spirit to love.  Take your eyes off of yourself and place them on someone else.  Practice conscious listening and things will transform!



Love and light,

Rev. John

Attending to the New: A Journey Through Shabbat (DG)

By Daniel Gregoire, Intern Minister.

I need rest, I need to be. I need Shabbat.

In New York City, where I am from, I had always referred to Sabbath as Shabbat, to use the Hebrew pronunciation.  Although I am of Haitian descent and I’ve lived a good part of my life around people from the Caribbean islands, Jewish culture and influence suffuses life in New York City. You see it in the ease with which you can order a bagel with lox from the Puerto Rican bodega. I can remember the occasion my grandmother paired Jewish latkes with Haitian mori (a traditional dish of salted cod in a spicy tomato sauce).  In New York one can’t help but import and export cultural artifacts, and I suppose that is true of life anywhere in this deeply interconnected world in which we find ourselves.

Speaking of cultural artifacts, the Hebrew Bible makes many references to the observance of Shabbat. One must abstain from work of various sorts, and perform rites. Shabbat is a deeply important aspect of the identity of the Hebrew and later Jewish peoples.  Rev. Fred explained in his previous blog how Shabbat has been adapted and incorporated into the subsequent Abrahamic faith traditions. As Unitarian Universalists we draw on many of those sources for our inspiration. The Jewish tradition shows us that Shabbat in its most fundamental sense is about rest. And, we are all familiar with the notion that “God rested on the seventh day” in the Jewish and Christian creation narrative. 

The first intimations of Shabbat come in between two intense periods, creating the cosmos, and responding to humanity.  Elohim (“the God”, “the Council of Gods”, depending on who’s doing the translating) is a creative kind of deity, bringing forth new things, ideas and relationships.  Now, I don’t intend for this blog entry to be a historical critical study, but rather an opportunity to reflect on the importance of attending to the new; and, how the call to rest of Shabbat is a deeply important way to do just that.

As I consider rest, I feel confident in saying that rest is more than rest. It is certainly more than sleep, even a rejuvenating sleep. Rest as I understand it is about “being” - just being.  Sir Isaac Newton’s Law of Motion (in fact his first law) says that an object at rest will stay at rest unless some unbalanced force acts on it. The deeper knowledge here in Newtonian physics and in biblical exegesis is that an object at rest, and object at Shabbat, will simply “Be”.

In recent weeks I have become well acquainted with the “new” and the busyness that makes the new possible.  I graduated from Union Theological Seminary. I have had enough “Goodbye Parties” for the idea that I was really leaving my home, to finally sink into my bones. On the 24^th of August I decamped from the very center of New York City, where I could see the Empire State building from my bedroom window and feel the crush of Midtown Manhattan.  Lately, it seems I’ve retreated to the green seclusion of the intern apartment in Annapolis, where for the first few days I saw more deer than people.

I am glad to say I that now the amount of people I see outnumbers the deer. 

This is a new experience to be sure: finding a car, learning where to get groceries, where to spend leisure time, getting used to more personal space and navigating the greater distances between places. And, I know that the church has made various preparations and changes both for my arrival as Intern Minister and the start of the new church year. This is a period of intense, creative activity.

Something entirely new and never seen before is coming into existence. Leaving the city has expanded my world in many ways. Living in Annapolis is challenging me to be open, to be silly, to be tired, to be scared driving down Route 50, to be dumbfounded, to be reflective and to be inquisitive in creating a new life for myself in the community and in this particular congregation. However, the biggest challenge here is the call to just be. There is so much to do and so much to explore. There are historic sites, the Eastern Shore, seafood, an epic Naval Academy vs. St. John’s Croquet Tournament; and I hear sailing is “a big thing” here. I want to experience it all now.

At some point we’ve all been called to simply be, after or before the frenzy of creative dislocation/ relocation. We’ve rearranged our world, metaphorically separating day from night, creating sea monsters and sunflowers. We bring so much into being at moments just like this.  It could have been a long term move (like mine), or a summer getaway, or shifting gears at work. So much behind us, and before us right now and great deal more awaits us; how do we attend to it all?

“O wonder!
How many goodly creatures are there here!
How beauteous mankind [sic] is! O brave new world,
That has such people in't.”         Shakespeare’s The Tempest.

Whether it’s Elohim or Miranda or me or you, behold, we are on the verge of something absolutely fascinating and tremendous. There is just so much to do and see and be a part of. It is overwhelming to consider the many possibilities that await us at UUCA this year. We have an awesome ministerial leadership team and an engaged and engaging congregation. I get overwhelmed when I think about all the options. Considering the past and anticipating the future, I could drown in the excitement, and would be quite sad.

How do we respond to all of this? With Shabbat.

Shabbat is rest. It is stopping before getting too far ahead of ourselves; it is attending to the extraordinary with an extended pause. Shabbat is finding a calm posture and remembering to breathe and perhaps even counting our breath to help us. It is a prayer of silence before crossing the threshold. Shabbat is a chance that we get again and again to just be.

Sabbath Day (FM)

I grew up with “blue laws.”  Maybe you’re not familiar with this idea.  A "blue law" is a type of law, “designed to enforce religious standards, particularly the observance of Sunday as a day of worship or rest, and a restriction on shopping." In my hometown, if we wanted to buy anything we had to cross the village limits and go into Chicago where ‘blue laws” were not enforced.  Since my hometown was dry, the sale of alcohol was never an issue; but “blue law” enforcement would have taken care of that too.  Eventually, most communities and businesses began repealing these restrictions under the constitutional guarantee of church-state separation.  In addition, few communities wanted to miss out on the tourist and tax revenues that could come from Sunday sales.   I suppose there must have been “blue laws” in Annapolis.

Nowadays, I think “blue laws” are a thing of the past.  There are probably a few municipalities who have chosen to continue this tradition that dates back to colonial times.  Now days it seems that we’ve gone to another extreme.  Sundays are a day when men, women, children and families are on the run all day: to the mall, going to the movies, participating in sports events, traveling, partying, boating.  Observing the Sabbath - taking a day of rest and inactivity - has a whole new meaning that’s radically different from Puritan days, even different from what I remember.

The Abrahamic faiths all claim a Sabbath.  Christopher D. Ringwald has it right in the title of his book: A Day Apart.  For Muslims, the Sabbath is Friday; for Jews, Saturday; for Christians, Sunday.  Ringwald’s subtitle is: How Jews, Christians, and Muslims Find Faith, Freedom, and Joy on the Sabbath.

As Unitarian Universalists, we share in the Abrahamic traditions, yet we almost never refer to our Sunday as a Sabbath; maybe we should if only to remind ourselves of the need to rest, to take a break, to step away from the daily routine and show gratitude for what we have and share.  Ringwald writes: “The calm confidence, joy, and dignity of observant Jews, Christians, and Muslims on the holy day are striking.  The mystery remains as to why only a minority accepts this gift.  The Sabbath remains the dessert most people leave on the table.”

This month’s theme at UUCA is “Sabbath.”  I’m not suggesting that we go back to a bygone observance; I know that striking a Sabbath posture not part of our way of faith wouldn’t work; most of us would meet quite a bit of resistance from family, friends and in our work places if we pronounced a Sabbath moratorium on all activity.

There is another way to be mindful.  You probably won’t be surprised to hear from me that I think your Sabbath should start with coming to UUCA!  Actually, there are many who arrive at church by nine and leave at eleven or noon; who spend most of that time in an engaged, disciplined, restful mode of easing into the day - mindful and grateful for their life, relationships and faith.

What does Sabbath mean to you?  Do you have a day of rest?  See you Sunday?

Take care and see you soon,

Fred