I wrote the following words for our chalice lighting:
“There is perhaps no greater symbol of universal love than the love between a mother and a child. For whatever else happens in that relationship, it was first and foremost love that gave birth to life and the potential of extending that love forward into eternity. We light this candle in honor of the mothers everywhere who gave birth to us. “
This video has received as of this date over 6 million hits. I was recently asked to comment on Oprah’s views of multiple paths to god and what does Unitarian Universalism say about this by WAPT Channel 16 News reporter Megan West. (Unfortunately the link to WAPT News to watch the interview with me is no longer available.)
Oprah has received some bad press simply for stating she believes that there are multiple paths to god. Our understanding of god is limited. The Buddha tells the story of the 4 blind men and the elephant. The blind men are describing the elephant through their senses. The first blind man says the elephant is like a wall, tall and wide as he touches the elephants side. No says the second man, the elephant is like a tree firmly planted into the ground as he touches the elephants legs. NO shouts the third man, the elephant is like a whip as he attempts to touch the elephants tail, The fourth man shouts, no no, the elephant is like a snake as he touches the elephants trunk.
All four are describing parts of the elephant. They all have a piece of the puzzle that is the elephant. So it is with truth, we each have a piece but not the whole piece. That is why we need community to help us expand on the truth we have. It is also why we need the diversity of reflection, of ideas, so that we can sift through and find how the pieces fit together.
There is no Church of Oprah but in my mind’s view, she is asking the right questions. The answers she has been coming up with seem to be leading her to increase her philanthropy, increase her tolerance of the different, and increase her desire to leave this world a better place because of her life. All wonderful fruits of her life, I would say. Blessings, Rev. Fred L Hammond
“William Moore” by Phil Ochs
What price the glory of one man?
What price the glory of one man?
What price the hopes,
What price the dreams,
And what price the glory of one man?
And they shot him on the Alabama road
Forgot about what the Bible told
They shot him with that letter in his hand
As though he were a dog and not a man
And they shot him on the Alabama road
“I was made to wish for more—more than the mere possible or even the probable. I must pursue the impossible . . . Whether I go forward as Don Quixote chasing his windmill or as the pilgrim progressing must be left for you to decide . . . I can only give my life.” —The Mind in Chains: The Autobiography of a Schizophrenic, William L. Moore
William Moore was a mail carrier who chose to walk from Chattenooga, TN to Jackson, MS to hand deliver a letter to Mississippi Governor Ross Barnett asking for an end to segregation. He wore a sandwich board placard which read: “End Segregation in America: Equal Rights for All Men” and on the other side read “Eat at Joes–Black and White.” He had spoken with a Floyd Simpson in the morning of April 23, 1963 and found dead later that day. The gun used was owned by Floyd Simpson but he was never convicted for the murder. Other freedom walkers in the weeks that followed after Mr. Moore’s death tried to complete his freedom walk. They were all thwarted in Alabama or in Mississippi.
In the letter he hoped to deliver included the following: “The white man cannot be truly free himself until all men have their rights. Each is dependent upon the other. ” These words are still true today, and a group of men and women are walking this week from Highway 11 in Gadsden, Etowah County, AL, where Moore was murdered to Jackson, MS to finish his postal route and will deliver the original letter to Governor Haley Barbour.
William Moore was also an atheist. Those marching with the letter are members of the American Atheists. So they are marching not only in memory of William Moore and to complete his task of delivering this letter, albeit 45 years later, so that history will not be able to record that his mission was forever unrealized. But also with the message of honoring the freedom of conscience. It was never clear if Moore was killed for his equal rights stance or his atheist beliefs. He proudly proclaimed them both to all who would listen.
Freedom of conscience is as radical an idea for 21st century America as it was for our American founders who ensured that this country would have religious freedom of thought. Even the right to not believe.
He was made to wish for more. This week his legacy is remembered and we all will wish for more– more equality for all people in this land, more honor and respect for the freedom of conscience in this land. Blessings, Rev. Fred L Hammond
Staying at a hotel for MSD district annual assembly, I was awoken at 2:45 AM to loud screaming at the pool. There was a group of people in the pool area and they were having quite the discussion. In my half stupor, I opened the door and began yelling for them to quiet down. They did not hear me. I yelled again… they still did not hear me… it slowly dawned on me as I was waking up that I was now part of the problem rather than the solution. I shut the door and called the front desk who had just received several calls regarding the situation and no doubt my cacophony was included in the complaint.
I have been reflecting on whether there were other times in my life when my actions were part of the problem? Were there times that I with the sleepiness of unawareness acted in ways that contributed to racism through white privilege; or global warming through abandoned consumerism; or injustice through self-centered attitudes.
Being part of the problem is never the role a person wants to be in when trying to solve a dilemma. We want to make things better, we want to create justice, we want to heal the wounds that have been inflicted; not make things worse by increasing injustice with layers of bureaucracy, or re-wound the inflicted. Yet, sometimes we have approached problems the same way for so long we think that must be the right way to solve this new problem or old problem that has once again surfaced to our awareness.
The bumper sticker that reads “if you are not part of the solution you are part of the problem” never seemed very helpful to me. I wanted a bit more awareness about this problem. What was the problem, how was I contributing to it, how could I stop contributing it?
Somewhere in my sleepy stupor of wanting to return to sleep and no longer hear the yelling and screaming, I realized that I had become part of the problem and not the solution. I owned my participation in exacerbating the problem and saw a means to stop contributing to the problem and perhaps found another way to solve the problem. It was a matter of becoming fully alert and present to what was happening.
This seems key to me… to be fully alert and present to what is happening. It may be painful to be fully alert and present and so I understand the desire to keep responding from the sleepy numbing stupor but that will not create the solution desired and may actually increase the problem. yet, it is only when we are fully awake can we respond with our full authentic selves and bring healing and transformation to this world.
May we all seek to realize the role we play in the problems we face and become awake and alert in order to see our ways to the solutions we seek. Blessings, Rev. Fred L Hammond
This is an excellent introduction to Unitarian Universalism. It has been seen elsewhere. But there may be people in Mississippi who have not seen it. Enjoy!
Plus, placing this video here taught me how to do this on this blog…
Blessings, Rev. Fred L Hammond
Today, the good people at Maryland-based Space Telescope Science Institute is releasing a series of photographs of galaxies colliding taken by the Hubble telescope in celebration of the 18th anniversary of this telescope. I was hoping to insert some photographs of these amazing galaxy formations but there seems to be a glitch with wordpress’ program since their most recent upgrade. Stay tuned I will try again.
Any way, this announcement and these remarkable photographs got me remembering a conversation I had years ago when I was still very much a staunch christian with another staunch christian. I made the heretical comment of life being on other planets. [I should have realized then I was on my way out] His comment was that god had his hands full with sinful humanity on earth and therefore would not create life elsewhere. I thought this was a very arrogant statement to make. It also questioned god’s omnipotence–another theological doctrine but at the time, that thought did not occur to me.
I don’t know how many people believe today that we are alone in the universe. With the proliferation of successful sci-fi television series and movies with themes of inter-planetary interactions, it is hard to know if people are more accepting of the possibility of life elsewhere or not. While interaction with extraterrestial beings remains within the realms of fiction and hypnotic trances, there is no proof that we are alone or that we have counterparts in the universe.
If first contact with an extraterrrestial did occur, what would that do to the majority of our world religions? Would it disintegrate the truths they espouse? Or would it shine a light on the exclusionary facets of many world religions and only those facest would fade away making the world religions more inclusive more universal in thought?
There was an excellent movie several years ago entitled: Enemy Mine with Dennis Quaid and Lou Gossett, Jr in the leading roles. The story line was an intergalactical war between two species, Humans and Dracs. The lead stars in this movie chase each other to a hostile planet and in order to survive have to work together. In the process, Lou Gossett, Jr.’s character begins to teach Dennis Quiad’s character about the Drac religion which had strikingly similar values to our world religions. The movie is a fable about tolerance and acceptance of others different than ourselves but for our discussion here it asks the question “if life did exist elsewhere, what truth that we see as truth remains?”
There is a fear, at least in fundamentalist Christianity, that if one iota of doctrine is found to be untrue or unaccepted that the whole fabric of the faith will unravel. I have heard this argument regarding the doctrines of creationism, virgin birth, the resurrection of Jesus, homosexuals, original sin and many other revered religious doctrines.
I think my friend would include life on other planets into this unraveling because he would likely quote me John 3:16. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (New International Version). If there was life on other planets, How would god save them from their sins? He already sent his only son to us? He already “so loved [this] world”; how could he so love another? Again the questioning of god’s omipotence. I really do have to talk to him about his contradictory theologies.
If there is life on other planets, and this universe is so vast and wide to deny life on other planets ‘would be illogical’ to quote a wise Vulcan; but what remains of faith? One of the wisdoms of Unitarian Universalism is that it is not hinged to a specific doctrine or doctrines or even specific events being true in order for Unitarian Universalism to retain its integrity. We are a non-creedal faith. If there is a hinge or an anchor to Unitarian Universalism it is to the values that we seek to live in our lives.
The value of inherent worth and dignity of every person. This value is not dependent on some event in order for it to be true. The verse I quoted earlier supports this value, “For God so loved the world…” but it is not contingent on god [or even the existance of god] to make it true, each person has inherent worth and dignity in and of themselves. This value does not disintegrate if we discover that we are not alone in the universe.
The question then remains… how committed are you to your values that they will not be shaken by the removal of your doctrines? Blessings, Rev. Fred L Hammond
