Worship Service Text, July 6, 2008  (Interdependence Day)  

(This service is also available in audio form)

CHALICE LIGHTING (By Russ Hiett) 

Last Wednesday, I had the good fortune to play in a band concert in front of 1,000 people from 98 different countries who were taking the oath for USA citizenship.  There was an unusually high number of candidates because of the upcoming Independence Day celebration. 

Before reading the oath, I’d like to ask all of us to ponder a few questions.  As a UU, could you take this oath without reservation?  Do you believe immigrants who want to become naturalized citizens should be the only ones taking it, or do you believe instead that all US citizens should have to do so?  If you were asked to amend the oath, what would you change, add or subtract?

Apparently, there are some clauses which can be optional… the phrase “So help me God,” for example.  The promise to serve in combatant and non-combatant roles also can be omitted if the candidate can prove such commitments are in violation of his or her religions scruples.  I would imagine those latter reservations are difficult to prove. 

Here is the oath of citizenship taken by those 1,000 eager individuals: 

I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God.

Please join me in lighting the chalice:  In the light of truth and in the warmth of love, we gather to seek, to sustain, and to share.

SACRED TEXT

My sacred text is from Abraham Lincoln.  These are words of advice he was giving to new young lawyers.

“There is a vague popular belief that lawyers are necessarily dishonest. I say vague, because when we consider to what extent confidence and honors are reposed in and conferred upon lawyers by the people, it appears improbable that their impression of dishonesty is very distinct and vivid. Yet the impression is common, almost universal. Let no young man choosing the law for a calling for a moment yield to the popular belief -- resolve to be honest at all events; and if in your own judgment you cannot be an honest lawyer, resolve to be honest without being a lawyer.” 

I love Abraham Lincoln.  The reason I chose this passage for today is because it represents and internal struggle I have between my values and my career choice and the hope that somehow, achieving a balance is possible.  I’ll be the first to admit that to most people, thinking of a lawyer does not bring to mind words like honesty, compassion, or peacefulness.  When I was teaching Junior Achievements at my daughter’s school one day the kids were trying to guess what kind of job I was going to school for and after about 3 guesses one kid raised his hand enthusiastically and I swear he shouted, “A liar!!  A liar!”  I optimistically said, “That’s right, a lawyer.”   And the bottom line is that when you work in the field of law, it’s really hard to stick to the kind of values that I, like most of you, hold dear.  You can try as hard as you can to play with all your cards on the table, to be honest, to be fair and compassionate… but not a day goes by that you try to do this and you encounter someone who without fail, doesn’t have all THEIR cards on the table and if you don’t do something, you and your client will be eaten alive.  I think every lawyer out there has had to make a choice in the best interest of their client to either keep their cards on the table, or play the game.  And inevitably, somewhere along the way, you will have to play the game to some extent, to get to the greater good.  I work in family law right now and there are few areas of law where this is more of an issue.  When you have a client who has lost his children because someone lied to the court, the only focus you have is getting that man his children back.  And when the other side is using every underhanded trick in the book, you have to play the game.  You have to.  And while the game doesn’t reflect the values and morals you want to portray in your life, your motivation, and the goal you are striving to reach, ARE.  You have to play the game to reunite this father and his children.  Any anything short of that outcome, is falling short of the value of protecting children, which as you all know is pretty high up there on my list of values.

Every day that my career choice lands me in a law office I encounter these kinds of decisions and situations.  It’s a constant struggle to remember your values in that kind of environment, and believe me, at least in our office, we try hard.  It’s high stress and it’s hard on the heart of a Unitarian.  Which is why you don’t see me missing many Sundays at church.  After a week of that kind of internal struggle, there is nothing more countering than to walk into a church full of peace-loving hippies to balance things out.  

Lawyers aren’t the only people who have a hard time balancing their career choices with their faith.  I’m also a Unitarian Universalist military brat, and if you don’t know what that means, it’s the nickname for the child of a member of the armed forces.  I have some of the same internal struggles when I try to reconcile a strong patriotic background with a Unitarian anti-war belief system.  Believe it or not, there are a lot of us out there and I know that everyone in this church knows at least one Unitarian lawyer, or a Unitarian military service member or family member.  You’d do them a big favor to remember not to assume the worst of intentions with regard to lawyers or members of the armed forces.  The motivations behind their career choices are probably a lot more noble than you think and if you take the time to try to understand them, you will probably find a lot more common ground than you’d expect.    

SERMON

Independence Day is a day we celebrate our independence from Great Britain.  We celebrate our freedom from oppression and our ability to stand as one country, on our own…  and I can think of few celebrations in this country that are quite as grand.  We close most businesses, we have picnics and barbeques, parades and fireworks and no matter what your particular beliefs are, there are few of us who can hear the Star Spangled Banner or God Bless America and not be filled with a sense of goose-bump worthy pride.  We become proud of our country and feel a sense of unity and protectiveness over each other, and that sense of pride is an especially important sentiment in a time of war…when we are reminded constantly that everything we have can be wiped away in an instant. 

I had the chance to hear Forrest Church speak at General Assembly last weekend.  If you don’t know who Forrest is, he is a Unitarian Universalist Minister from All Souls Church in New York City.  He’s a theologian and an author and has written over twenty books, the last being the one he just finished: Love and Death: My Journey Through the Valley of the Shadow.  It’s his last book because he is dying of cancer. 

At GA, Forrest was given the UU service award for his lifelong work and achievements on behalf of Unitarian Universalism.  When he accepted the award, he warned that every once in a while he will contradict himself, but this was not one of those times.  Forrest had spoken and written many times about the greatest sins, pride being one of them.  He said upon receiving his award, “Well, I have to say that I’m pretty proud of this award, and I don’t particularly sinful for it.”  He went on to talk about the difference between good pride and bad pride.  He discussed what it means to be a Unitarian Universalist and to live by our principles. 

As Unitarians, I think we seem to be driven most strongly by our first principle, respecting the inherent worth and dignity of all beings.  A term that has always bothered me is “tolerance,” as in “religious tolerance” or “tolerance” of different races or ethnicities or lifestyles.  I don’t think we exercise “tolerance” as Unitarians.  What I love about our faith is that we go way beyond what I would consider tolerance.  We don’t just “tolerate” our differences… we respect them and we take an absolute interest in them.  We cherish and embrace the differences between us.   My first experience with that here at First Unitarian was when we focused on Haiti in 2002 or 2003.  We didn’t just send some money over to Haiti, we spent an entire year learning Haitian drumming, we sang Haitian music, we ate Haitian food, we read books about Haiti and had the most incredible celebration of Haitian culture right here in our sanctuary.  It was absolutely BEAUTIFUL to me how we embraced the whole culture. 

I then taught World Religions in our Religious Education program and participated in teaching our children, and learning for myself, what most of us UUs have come to understand.  That while there are many differences between our religions, more consistently, there are similarities.  As we studied each religion with the children, we found at least one principle we had in common with each religion, and usually that principle was consistent in all of the religions we had studied.  We understand that most people strive toward a similar goals with their faith.  I wish I could remember who said it, but someone at GA said most religions can be summed up in one sentence:  “Treat others the way you want to be treated.”  That probably doesn’t sum it all up, but it’s a consistent theme in most religions.  Other examples of values of different faiths that the children learned we had in common were:  In Judaism, a shared a belief in forgiving others and trying to right the wrongs we have done; In Hinduism we shared the belief that it is up to each of us to fight evil; In Native American studies we shared the principle that people have always been looking for the great truths about life and death; In studying St. Francis of the Christian faith we shared the value of gentleness and compassion toward all living things; In studying the Chinese new Year we shared the believe that we can all help to make good things happen.  In Buddhism we shared the belief that being religious means living a good life.  When we learned about the Chinese Dragon parade, we shared the belief that our ideas of God may change as we grow.  In all faiths, the ultimate form of spirituality was a oneness and uniting with God or some other form of higher power. 

Where we differ is not usually in our goal, but in the path we follow to get there.  In my experience religious differences are the single most significant area where we as Unitarians are the most diverse, accepting and open-minded.  I take great pride in that part of our faith every day when we come into church and hear, “we welcome all of whatever race, ethnicity, lifestyle or religious background.”  I take great pride in this, because like many of you, I came from a church and a background where many of us said things on Sunday and then went on to live quite differently the rest of the week.  I came with a resentment for the church I had left and most of you have heard me talk about how to this day, I still have to fight that resentment.  I’m getting better at it.  I’m learning through things like the World Religions program to look back and see that while there are things I resent from my religious past, there are far many more values that I learned in my Catholic upbringing that are still my values today as  Unitarian Universalist.  The title of my faith is different.  The way I worship on Sundays is different.  The lessons we teach in RE are different, but the values if I stop and think about it, remain unchanged.  If anything, they have simply grown and blossomed.  Unitarian Universalism helps me learn this more every day.  We as Unitarians always try to find the common ground between our religions, our ethnicities, and our lifestyles.  And the pride we feel about that part of our faith, as Forrest Church put it, is the good pride…. It’s the kind of pride that unites us.  It’s the kind of pride that reminds me every day why I’m a Unitarian. 

When politics get involved, however, especially the politics of war, it can be much more difficult, seemingly impossible sometimes, to find common ground and to remember that we are called to honor diversity.) Although people in this country disagree wildly on how to protect our freedom and independence, especially now as we move along in an election year, it is not the end result we disagree on... because we all want to remain a free country and we all want there to be peace in other countries… But what we often DO disagree on is how to get there.  Do we fight with guns and armies and blood to protect our freedom and independence and to bestow freedom and independence on others, or do we believe that the only way to protect that freedom and independence is through peace and communication?   Our goals are much more alike than we tend to imagine.  But we seem to disagree so strongly on the path to get there that in our efforts to reach the same goal, we divide into opposing sides even here amongst ourselves … until we are almost at war with each other in our own country, over taking a different path to the same place. 

I find it interesting that while we are celebrating our independence we are struggling with the price of oil because of how dependent we are on it.   Are we independent?  And if we are, then what does independent mean?  Does it mean that we don't need anyone in the world except ourselves?  I'm reminded that isn't true every time I fill up my tank and consider taking up hand-gliding to save money.  If you look at how much the United States imports from other countries, it’s quite easy to see that we are in NO way independent.  We depend on imports from other countries for many of our clothes, our cooking equipment, housewares, vehicles, ceramic tiles, industrial fasteners, machine tools and electrical equipment.  And similarly, other countries depend on us for their imports.  And we depend on the income we receive from exporting to those countries. 

We live on a planet where no one place has all of the resources it needs.  Does that mean we really aren’t independent and shouldn’t celebrate the 4th of July?  I don't think so.  We are a free country... just as I am a free and independent person who is not ruled by my parents anymore.  But you had better believe if my daughter, husband or I were to get sick or fall into some other dire situation, my father would be there in an instant extending his support financially or otherwise, just as they did when my first husband fought his battle with cancer.  And if my mother buys a new ipod or iphone or pretty much anything that has an i or e in front of it, she will no doubt be dialing my number within minutes to schedule an appointment for me to "make it work."  Does that mean we aren't independent?  No, it means we're independent people with strengths and weaknesses in different areas that make up one incredible whole.  So maybe "independence" isn't really about being on our own... in that we are self-sufficient or don’t need others.  Maybe it just means that we are unique.  Just as we believe in the inherent worth and dignity of each person as our first UU principle… we believe in the inherent worth and dignity of our country as it's own unique country, with its own laws and ways. 

But… interestingly, it’s our last principle that puts our “independence” into perspective.  We believe that each of us is a valuable part of a beautiful interdependent web of existence… INTER-dependent.  We as a country are part of an interdependent WORLD of existence.  Does it mean we are submissive to others?  No, it means we work best when connected in reciprocal relationships with other people, other countries and other resources.  We come to church to enrich our minds and hearts... to find strength in unity... while we are connected by beliefs we share... we grow in strength because of our individual gifts and talents.  What would this church have been like the last six years without Jamie's music?  Most of us don’t want to imagine Sundays without him.  What would we be without the seemingly endless supply of energy Cat propels herself from project to project with?  Or without the many nameless people hiding behind the title "Webbie"?  Would any one of us be as great standing alone as we are when we stand together?  I think we’d all answer that the same way.

Why is it then, that when it comes to a church, we celebrate our individuality and also appreciate the diversity that makes us work together as a well-oiled machine… but when it comes to our country and our political beliefs, we are much more likely to draw a line in the sand and criticize those who believe differently?  That’s when pride has crossed the line.  It’s the kind of pride Forrest Church would define as the wrong kind of pride.  It’s not a pride that unites us.  It’s the kind of pride that divides and separates us. 

Can’t our first and last principles also apply to people who believe that defending our country takes a different path than most of us as UUs would advocate?  Can’t we find the common ground in that these people feel as passionate about defending their country, OUR country, as we do, except that we believe in a different path, just as some people believe in a different path to God?  Can’t we find the mutual values in both positions and respect the space in between?

At GA there was a table for a group called UUniforms. (spelled with two Us.)  I spoke with the founder of the organization and the group was formed as a support group for Unitarian Universalists who serve in the military (or have families who do).  These are fellow Unitarians… they share our values and principles.  We don’t have to support the war to support them as human beings.  We need to try harder to look at political differences the way we look at religions differences… we need to do more than TOLERATE these brother and sister UUs.  We need to embrace them and celebrate the common ground we have.  By the way, did you know that our third UUA president, Paul Carnes, was in the military and spent time in a camp as a prisoner of war?  Did you know that our current UUA president, Bill Sinkford, has a son who is a paratrooper in the 82nd airborne division?  Says Bill Sinkford:  I'm proud of the fact that Billy chose to serve his country, as I am proud of the young people in our movement and beyond who choose to serve in City Year and AmeriCorps, who choose to go to the UUSC (Unitarian Universalist Service Committee) work camps, who choose and have chosen to help rebuild the burnt black churches in the South. I am proud of those young people who are beginning to understand that a full religious life must always include, prayer, meditation or reflection, but that that must always be married to service.

I am the daughter of a retired Lt. Colonel in the US Army and I come from a family made up of many members of the armed forces.  I don’t support the current war in Iraq.  But I support our military men and women and I believe that there is an ultimate goal that most of our military men and women share with me, and with most of us Unitarians.  I am proud of being patriotic, I’m proud that I support our military and I’m proud that I’m a Unitarian.  I know that there are underlying beliefs that we all share whether we are standing on a battlefield and fighting for those beliefs with weapons, or whether we’re here in the states holding up signs that say “End this war!”  I know there are underlying beliefs that we share, because I am a patriotic supporter of our military and I’m a Unitarian.  I believe our seventh principle makes us responsible for finding that common ground and respecting the way we and our beliefs all fit together to make one whole... an interdependent web of humanity. 

I think it says a lot that our principles begin with individuality and end with interdependence.  One is useless without the other.  We are independent in that we are unique... we are the United States of America... the country known as the land of the free... but we are not the country with the oil.  And for that reason alone, we are only one piece of the interdependent web that is our world.  The sooner we set aside our pride and take on the responsibility of finding common ground with each other whether as individuals or as countries, the sooner we will find peace.  So while we celebrate our freedom and independence, let's not forget the ties that bind us to all people and places.  We are the United States of America, unique, incredible, and interdependent with our brother and sister countries around the globe.  So the next time we celebrate with fireworks the day we gained our independence from Great Britain remember this:  While celebrating our independence, that there is a lot to be said for celebrating our INTER-dependence as well.  We can take pride in both, and that is a good kind of pride.  

CLOSING WORDS

I close with words from Abraham Lincoln and Forrest Church

From President Lincoln’s First Innaugural Address:

We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.

And from Forrest Church’s book “An American Creed”:

Shortly after leaving office, President Bill Clinton demonstrated an empathetic imagination in speaking about our neighbors around the globe.  “Because we live in an interdependent world, we must accept  the fact that all people are created equal, entitled to a chance at a decent life, that no one has a monopoly on truth, that we all do better when we help each other.”  Clinton summed up the faith of democratic pluralism in a single sentence:  “One person’s dignity is not by definition another person’s humiliation; one person’s work of God not by definition another’s heresy.” 

At our national best, when we wave the American flag or affix red, white and blue ribbons to our lapels, this is not merely an expression of patriotism, uniting us against a common foe, but rather an emblem of faith, uniting us with one another.  Our hymns of freedom are sung less in anger than in hope.  It is these mythic overtones- not lost innocence or apocalyptic vengeance-that recall and then reconnect us to the “mystic chords of memory” of which Abraham Lincoln spoke.  These mystic chords, which sounded clearly once again that unforgettable fall, contain the high notes of the American Creed.