SPIRITUAL EXERCISES II
by Forrest Church
May 2, 2004
Here at All Souls, as in many other religious communities, coming of age is not only an actuarial matter, a turning of the clock to mark the passage from childhood to young adulthood. Coming of age is a rite of passage, bringing with it new responsibilities, not least of which is the responsibility to begin forging one's personal faith. What sets our ceremony apart from bar and bas mitzvahs, say, or confirmations, is that the particulars of that faith are hammered out not by some teaching authority but by the young people themselves. Gathering in the broad tent defined by our Unitarian Universalist principles (which you will find on the back of your Sunday order of service), our Coming of Age class reflects together on the history and theologies of their religious forebears—both adopted and inherited—and then personalizes some aspect of this capacious set of moral and spiritual values into a personal credo statement.
Last year, in his beautiful sermon on Coming of Age Sunday, Galen defined the word credo by going beyond the dictionary definition, "I believe," all the way back to its root meaning. I was reminded of this on Friday evening, when, in the company of their families, teachers, and ministers, the Coming of Agers gathered here in the sanctuary for the first presentation of their credos. Before they did, Nancy Northrup (who, together with Paul Bennett, has done such a wonderful job leading our Coming of Age program) put the evening in perspective by recalling Galen's words. Deepening our insight with a bit of telling etymology that I, at least, had never considered before, Galen said, "The Latin word credo was derived from two other Latin words, cor, meaning heart, and do, from the verb meaning to give. In its original meaning, cor-do meant "I give my heart." To believe in something is to give your heart to it."
In this broad and deep spirit, true to our tradition, the credos we have been privileged to hear this morning—three in each service—are based on personal experience, and not on someone else's revelation. They will therefore change and develop over the years, even as these wonderful young people, together with their hearts, will themselves grow and change. New experience and insight, new relationships and challenges, will shape and change the nature of their fundamental beliefs.
So it is with each of us. Belief is heart work. If religion is our human response to the dual reality of being alive and having to die, we cannot help but wonder what life means. Over a lifetime of reflection, during significant passages and when the spiritual muse visits, we ponder life's meaning in our hearts. When actively engaged in this process, as our coming of agers have been these past few months, our lives are charged with spiritual significance.
Much of the time, of course, we coast. Until some trap door springs or the beams holding up our roof begin to creak, we navigate from one day to the next more or less oblivious to ultimate things. Eventually, time will take care of this. Whether one considers oneself religious or not, it is impossible to make it all the way through life without being cast into the depths. Death bed conversions, however, point back on a lifetime of lost opportunity. Which is why those of us who gather in religious community are, or attempt to be, proactive in exploring life's depths. Not waiting to be cast into them, we climb the ladder, venture out the edge of the board, and dive.
For those of us who have been successfully avoiding such a plunge, Coming of Age Sunday presents a challenge. Given three minutes to express our deepest beliefs and values, what would we say? Where would we even begin?
Which leads directly to me sermon. This morning, I'm going to offer 10 simple hints on beginning—on how to re-boot your spiritual life, if it has become automatic or stale. Getting your soul in shape may lead to awe-inspiring mystical encounters some day. Yet how to begin (or begin anew) isn't the least bit mystifying. Here are 10 simple thoughts to launch you on your way.
1) Begin here. How deeply you would long for all the things you take for granted, if suddenly you lost them. So much of what we want we have already, so want what you have. Begin here.
2) Begin now. You have everything you need. Everything. Plus the bonus of today, one day more than you will have if you wait until tomorrow. Begin now.
3) Begin as you are. At your fingertips is a treasure trove of memories and dreams. Put one good memory together with one good dream and you are ready to begin. (Good memories are memories that make you feel good about yourself. Good dreams are the stuff of which tomorrow's good memories are made.) Begin as you are.
4) Begin by doing what you can. No more, but also no less. Don't throw yourself against the wall. Walk around it. You can't do the impossible, but so much is possible. So many of the things you haven't tried you still can do. To get around the wall, you can set out in either direction—the wall has two ends. The important thing is to start walking. Begin by doing what you can.
5) Begin with those who are closest to you. They can cheer you on only if you let them. Invite them to give you a hand—bow. And to lend you a hand—ask. And to take your hand—no one can take your hand, if you bury it in your pocket. You say they won't cheer you on, help you out, or take your hand? Maybe not, but how will you know without asking? Begin by asking.
6) Begin by turning the page. Today you can open a new chapter of your life. If you are trapped in your story (stuck in place, botching the same old lines), revise the script. Practice a new line or two. When reading a book, we sometimes reach the bottom of a page only to realize we have been glossing its words without registering their meaning. We haven't been paying attention. We don't have the faintest idea what we've just read. So we go back to the top of the page and try to concentrate. It happens again. Sentences dissolve into words. Words into sounds. The books of our lives are no different. Resist the temptation to wallow over some dark passage until you know exactly what went wrong. You never will. Besides, perfection is not life's goal. Neither is unnecessary pain. If you are stuck, open a new chapter. Turn the page.
7) Begin by cleaning up your slate. Don't erase the past. File it by experience, to keep it handy should you need it. But don't obsess over it. Ticking off a growing list of grievances gets you nothing from life's store. As for the things on your "To Do" list that you'll probably never do, place them under a statute of limitations. When they serve no longer to inspire but only to haunt you, x them off. Not only is there no reason to carry over unnecessary indictments from one day to the next, but you'll also never reform the things you can about yourself, until you stop trying to reform the things you can't. Begin by cleaning up your slate.
8) Begin by looking for new questions, not old answers. Answers close doors. Questions open them. Answers lock us in place. Questions lead us on adventures. Socrates boasted himself the most ignorant man in Athens. Each new insight raised a dozen questions, extending the compass of his ignorance. Yet beyond every ridge he climbed there lay a wider vista. The more questions we have, the farther we can see.
9) Begin with little regard for where your path may lead. Destinations are overrated. And never what we imagine. Even should we somehow manage to get where we are heading, we won't end up there. Until life ends, no destination is final. In fact, the best destinations are those we look back upon as new beginnings. Good journeys always continue. So don't be driven by desire (that empty place within you), never to rest until you reach your goal. Invest your joy in the journey.
10) Begin in the middle. Our lives will end mid-story, so why not begin there? Don't wait around for the perfect starting pistol. Or until you are ready. You may never be ready. No reason to wait in the grandstand for some official to guide you to the gate. Jump the fence. Enter the race in the middle. Here. Now. As you are. By doing what you can. With those who are closest to you. By turning the page. Cleaning up your slate. Looking for new questions, not old answers. And with little regard for where your path will lead.
Finally, before you begin, a bonus suggestion—Begin small. Dream possible dreams. Set out to climb a single hill, not every mountain. Soul work needn't be strenuous to be high impact. You can begin transforming your life with a single phone call. Or by writing a kind letter. Or by opening your blinds to let the sun flood in. Don't say it's nothing. It's everything. For you have now begun.
Amen. I love you. And may God bless us all.