DanceLessons

Missiology

Dr. Rebecca Parker uses the word ‘Missiology’ in her description of our Unitarian Universalist Theological House.  She defines Missiology as how we understand our relationship with and to our religious neighbors. Missiology asks what is our mission to the world.[i]  When searching ‘Missiology’ on the Starr King site, it is only found in the syllabus for this course.  Missiology fares much better in mainline Christian seminaries although there is disagreement as to where Missiology fits in theological studies.  David Bosch, a renowned missiologist, goes so far as to say ‘Theology, rightly understood has no reason to exist other than critically to accompany the mission Dei “  The  Society of Missiology defines Missiology as the scholarly study of theological, historical, social and practical questions relating to the missionary dimension of the Christian church.  The World Council of Churches (WCC) understands mission as being first and foremost God’s own purpose and activity in the whole creation, with and for children, women and men of all nations and cultures. [ii]   Reframing in UU terms, Does Un itarian Universalist Theology have any reason to exist if it does not accompany the Ultimate or Universal mission. 

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[i]

Newsletter for the Mass Bay District of Unitarian Universalist Churches

03-04 Issue 3         November 2003

[ii]

World Council of Churches

Dismay

Growing dismay at our historical tendency as a faith to become embroiled in issues around inclusivity and exclusivity. For the last one hundred and fifty years, Unitarians and Universalism have spoken out on spreading our good news. Not withstanding the good works of some, the movement gets caught, over and over again, in a quagmire of who should be covered by the sacred canopy. The radical becomes reformed becomes erring concervative. I have been reading history of evangelism and the sad irony is that we seemed doomed to continue to repeat this pattern.

Cultural Linguistic Literacy ?

I read something once by Bellah – understanding the meaning of Christ as Lord is deeply contextual, dependent on historical memory and cultural-linguistic literacy.  I suppose understanding the meaning of Allah would be the same.  I think this describes most intelligent believers of orthodox religions.   From the outside it looks inconsistent and paradoxical. On the inside, the inconsistency turns to faith or understanding that what is a reflection of a reflection of something holy or sacred. We do not understand the language of these believers; we have our own historic memory and our own vocabulary.

Kenneth Patton said in 1964  – members of other traditions often set themselves apart. How can you have a conversation with them?  That is the question following the election.  Patton’s answer is “even if they set themselves apart, the Universalist does not set himself apart. If they will not engage in warm, mutually accepting, person-to-person dialogue, he will go to their writings, their art, their folklore, and take these into himself. 

I've compulsively wandered the web as I work on a paper on theology and evangelicalism.  Most of what I have found is from the Evangelical Movement.   What has been the most interesting is reading their thoughts about how evangelism sees itself in a postmodern, pluralistic world.  There exists a concern that theology that binds their members may not be strong enough in dealing with a secular, materialistic world.  We need to understand that.  Not that we want to recruit secular, materialistic Evangelicals, but you never know who might be haven't second thoughts.

Stranger things have happened.

Nancy

Imagining God

I'm faciliating a group at my Church called Imagining God.  Most of the people who show up are new members.  Let me rephrase that, two of us long-time members.  We are going into our fourth month and have ten attendees.  Every new person is new to Unitarian Universalism.   Three are from St Johns College (Great Books) and love discussion.  They are in their 20's and 30's and come with no wounds from other religions.  In fact they resist anything that might move the conversation in that directions. Refreshing and challenging. 

I hope to move more into spiritual practice/experiencial stuff. It is much harder to do that than I imagined.  Finding  source material.  Comfort zones. etc.  Next week we are talking about how/if God or belief of God makes you a better person (however devined) 

Nancy

Being Good Enough

Sometimes I wish I could come to church with my brilliant 2.5 children  - and a husband (since I’m fantasizing let’s make him also brilliant -  say,  a professor of medieval Hungarian poetry.) Truth is my life isn’t like that.  I come alone.  My grown children have their own lives. My husband is not interested. That is what is real.

It took me a long time to feel at home in our faith community.  I felt my life didn’t quite measure up to UU standards.  I dropped out of graduate school.  I had a good job but  certainly not one that solved world hunger or made a mark in the academic world.  (And I didn’t sail.)   I didn’t feel quite “good enough.”  It took me a while, and I’m still working on it, to realize that “good enough” is more in my head then it is in our community. 

I can only give who I really am.  And you can only give who you are – and that is good enough.  If we each did that well, we would be more than a good-enough community, we would transform our congregation to one of greater ministry, mission, and spiritual development.

I was once in another faith where I felt marginalized. Marginalized is a trendy word, but it aptly describes how it feels on the edge.  Feeling marginal causes self-doubt, skepticism , hesitancy, and withdrawal.  A  marginalized person assumes judgement.  We have people among our faith community who feel alone or marginalized.  If you are out there on the edge , please try it again. If you are inside the circle, reach out. Look someone in the eye. Listen. If you are a hugger, hug.  If you’re not, kind words are appreciated too.  Assume goodness.

  Ministry does not belong exclusively to ordained clergy but to all of us. 

Sacred Space

Many years I tried to adapt to the Mormon faith.  But I felt I was living in the margins, a place that had silenced me, and squeezed my spirit and had betrayed my sense of trust.  I needed space and time before I could trust my own voice. I needed to say out loud my truth, my doubts, my confusion, my uncertainty.  And I needed to say it again and again. Only after I found the trusted space to say my own truth would I eventually learn to trust the people and faith community around me.

One of the great missions of Unitarian Universalist congregations  is to give people, especially those that have been living in the margins, the space and the time to learn  trust.  Matthew Fox says in community we are healers by way of grace.  Anne Lamott says ”.. Grace is the light or electricity or juice or breeze that takes you from that isolated place and puts you with others who are as startled and embarrassed and eventually grateful as you are to be there.   

Grace took me from my isolated place, out of the margins, off the map, and put me, startled and embarrassed and eventually grateful to be here in this church. 

Exodus

Baby Boomers have exodus stories, which they are pleased to share.  “I was brought up a______________________ (fill in the blank) and it didn’t make sense and I couldn’t believe it anymore so I left.  (The wounds may be accounted for here).  When I discovered UU’sm, I felt like I had come home.   We share our stories and the become part of our own personal mythology.  Some readers of the Torah say the land promised to the Israelites was a special place, a spiritually sensitive place, a place of tremendous potential,   and a place where one has to behave in a special manner. We need to add to our stories about the arrival and living in the Promised Land. These are the stories that we need to share.  Richard, a 30 year old new member of the church, told me he didn’t want to hear any more exodus stories from members.  He said “I try to have a conversation but it is always interrupted by the person showing me their wounds.  UU’s sure have a lot of baggage. “   It was an aha moment. The next generations have their own stories. And if we are in the Promised Land, we need to begin building foundations and digging wells of our souls and others – using the tremendous spiritual potential we find here.

UU Evangelism

I’ve read many a sermon that begin something like this:  Minister:  I going to admit something.  I am a UU evangelist.  I’m sure you’ve heard something similar. 

Funny word Evangelism.  It is like the god word.  There is the little ‘e’ evangelism and the big ‘E’ Evangelism.  At least thirty million people use the big ‘E’.   They refer to themselves as being Evangelical Christions.  Not Presbyterians, Catholics, or Methodists.  Jesus is their personal savior and scriptures are unerring.  There are Evangelical Churches, Parachurches, Seminaries, Theologians, Journals, and Associations. The word with the little ‘e’ means to spread the good news of Jesus Christ.  That word is understood by millions other people who belong to mainstream churches.   

The big ‘E’s don’t like the little ‘e’s to use their word.  According to the big ‘E’s little 'e's don’t have the right message. Little 'e's feel that the big 'E's have co-opted their vocabulary.  And then there is the UU E's.  I'm not sure if it should be capitalized.  UU's spreading the good news. Spreading or telling or sharing or witness are fine for the first part.  But what about the second part. What is our good news?  I need some bold and clear. Not a 30 second elevator speech. Words, dynamic, living that feed my soul.