Sermons

'Practicing Spirituality:'

"Practicing Spirituality"
A Sermon by Susan Maginn
For A Worship Committee Sponsored Service
January 13, 2002
At the Unitarian Church of Montclair
67 Church Street, Montclair, New Jersey 07042
973-744-6276 WWW.UUMontclair.org  

A spiritual practice is any activity that we choose to be present to the miracle of being alive. Coming here is a spiritual practice. We come here to cultivate our spiritual values so that this spiritual foundation is available to us even when we are away from this sacred place. We come together to practice the giving and receiving of spiritual values like compassion, love, generosity, inspiration, empowerment and commitment.

During my life I have had many spiritual practices. I have cleaned public parks, kept a journal, rehabilitated abused animals, developed an earth-centered women’s group, read tarot cards, participated in drum circles, worked with people who have mental illness and donated blood. For many years, my husband and I started each day by reciting our wedding vows. At this time in my life I volunteer with a hospice, practice ashtanga yoga at a Hindu temple and I try to call my grandmother every Sunday.

Different practices have served me during different phases of my life. For me, a rich spiritual life includes practices where I can be of service, where I can be in community and where I can be devoted with commitment and rigor. This is a pretty tall order for any single spiritual practice, so that is why I now have a few.

Seeking the spiritual dimension allows us to be conscious of the beauty that surrounds us in every moment. To be conscious. To be awake. To be grateful. To be humble. To see the connections, patterns, the ebb and flow, the exhale and inhale, the receiving and the giving of life.

Context is everything. When we see life as a gift, we are embraced by blessings. When we see life as a threat, we are victims - hungry for life to pay us what we are due. Spiritual practices rest our eyes on the prize. Creating the context of a life we want to live, a full life that continually calls us to acknowledge the gifts that are always available for us to give and to take.

Last month I completed the “building your own theology” course. For those of you who don’t know about this course, it is lead by one of our ministers, Charlie Ortman, once or twice a year. It was an amazing experience. A wonderful group of people who each inspired me in ways I could have never anticipated and will always remember.

The entire process was pure delight. Charlie was in his element, enthusiastically inviting each of us to know ourselves and to know our own theological beliefs. Over the six weeks, he presented provocative questions like: How do I know what I know? What is the difference between knowledge and belief? Who or what is in charge of ultimate reality? What is my purpose in life? What does my death mean? And finally, by writing our own credo we answered the question, what do I believe?

During this course, I saw that when we become conscious of our spiritual values, living becomes a creative act. We can begin to sculpt our lives in the shape of our values, choosing the curves, lines and textures. Defining our spiritual beliefs is not only a stimulating, enriching experience; it is the responsibility of all Unitarian Universalists. If we do not commit to our own spiritual beliefs we are at risk of loosing the very foundation of Unitarian Universalism.

No one is going to tell us what to believe. No one is here telling us who or what is in charge of the universe. No one is telling us how to worship. That is a blessing when we feel limited by creed and dogma, and it can also be a curse when we struggle to have access to our spiritual values without a road map.

As members of a creedless, liberal religion, we the people are responsible for keeping this religious boat afloat. There are not any rules to say if you do this and that and if you put your faith in this and that, you are on your way to enlightenment. As spiritual seekers, it is up to each of us to say what we are seeking and it is up to each of us to choose the means of that search.

During WWI and II, some Unitarian congregations weakened as the Unitarian tradition was easily dismissed as naïve in light of the horrors of war. A Unitarian minister William Wallace Fenn wrote, “Does not its amiable faith in inherent goodness appear but ghastly mockery when confronted by the facts of life?” Indeed a similar statement could easily be made today in light of our post September 11th world. Unitarian minister James Luther Adams said, “an element of commitment has been neglected by religious liberalism, and that is the prime source of its enfeeblement.” Adams felt that commitment was the key to providing a transforming experience for people in liberal religions. “The decisive quality of a personality is its commitment, for the basic commitment determines the self and its interests, instead of being determined by them.”

We all have spiritual values whether we know them or not. Spiritual values are the fascia, the connective tissue of our lives. Sometimes our values are not conscious choices, but they are there. They are silently shaped as we float through a life of reacting to people and events – agreeing or disagreeing. Our values are expressed in where we live, the car we drive, if we work, where we work, the food we eat, the businesses we support and the friendships we keep. In this sense, religion is pragmatic. You believe what you do.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said:

“A person will worship something – have no doubt about that. We may think our tribute is paid in secret in the dark recesses of our hearts – but it will out. That which dominates our imaginations and our thoughts will determine our lives, and character. Therefore, it behooves us to be careful what we worship, for what we are worshipping we are becoming.”

When we practice anything, we gain proficiency. But unlike most practicing, spiritual practice doesn’t make perfect. You will practice, but there is no perfection to be had in the spiritual world. There is no end point to it. There are no guarantees. There is no mastery. A spiritual practice is not intended to win or to prepare for a final performance. The purpose of practicing spirituality is to create and nurture our values so that our whole being is consistent with these values. Practice is the womb of spirituality. Our life is then born as a beautiful expression of our spirituality.

Having a spiritual perspective allows us to see what we see, to hear what we hear, to feel what we feel in the full spectrum of birth, death, failure, success, fulfillment and emptiness. Without a spiritual perspective to support us, we slide the slippery slope of bitterness, violence, consumerism, addiction and isolation. We live in a world of violence, supported by classism and consumerism neglecting the gifts of children, the elderly and disabled. We live in a world that neglects the finite gift of the earth. And yet the sunrise through the icicles is magical.

To have a spiritual life, allows us to feel the tragedy of life without being destroyed by it. We are empowered to feel the tragedies and to learn from them. A major tenet in Buddhism is that life is suffering. Spirituality is not to save us from suffering, but to offer comfort in the face of the pain that is always with us.

Last week I went to visit Fourth Universalist Church on the upper west side. It was a lovely service, lead by Rosemary Bray McNatt. Fourth Universalist does something I think we should do here, they have tables of wonderful books for sale and on one of the tables I found this gem, which is called Everyday Spiritual Practice. There are 40 contributors to this collection of essays– all of whom are Unitarian ministers or lay people. As you can imagine, this book a timely find and a great source of clarity and inspiration.

This book describes about 30 different ways to practice spirituality, and I found that there were really two types of spiritual practice. There are the subtle practices that infuse your life with meaning by transforming the existing activities of your daily life into a spiritual practice. Mealtime, exercise, cooking, gardening, giving, parenting, marriage, partnership, re-cycling – all of these can be spiritual practices.

The other type of spiritual practice is the type that shifts the shape of your life to incorporate the practice, perhaps creating a new lifestyle in the process. These practices are meditation, yoga, prayer, sacred reading, keeping a Sabbath day, tithing, silent retreats, martial arts, fasting, vegetarianism and social justice.

A spiritual practice can be as simple as beginning your day with three slow breaths or it can be as rigorous being trained in sitting Zen. Whatever works with your life and allows you to honor your spiritual values. If you are not sure what your spiritual values are at this point in your life, you may want to join a covenant group, meet with one of our ministers or take the “building your own theology” class.

To live a life where our spiritual values are alive and well creates excitement and a sense a peace – knowing that our actions and our words are consistent with our hearts. To live a life where our spiritual values are alive and well takes something. In the words of Charlie’s new member service, “it takes submitting to the most rigorous authority in religious and spiritual matters—the authority of your own mind, your own heart, and your own conscience.” Like he said, it takes submitting – submitting to our selves, and this submission takes a practice.

So what do I want to leave you all with this morning? Basically, I believe that it is the responsibility of each of us to have spiritual practices – as Unitarian Universalists and as human beings walking the planet during this delicate time in history. I invite you to know yourself and to create a practice that aligns you with your spiritual values and to commit yourself to that practice, letting it be a guide in your life.

Whatever lights you up, that is your gift. Give it away. Let your light shine. Let it warm your heart as you give that light to the world.

“The more I give to thee the more I have for both are infinite.”

Let us come together in the spirit of meditation.