As we begin to explore our December theme of Expectation, I'm realizing some of the lessons I've been learning since my injury in late October. When people have asked about my recovery, one of my common responses has been impatience that it's going more slowly than I would prefer. (I keep hearing myself say, "I'm learning that my version of 'taking it slowly' is not slow enough for this situation!") I'd love to already be back in the office on Tuesdays and the pulpit on Sundays, but that hasn't been possible yet. I've had to adjust my expectations, and adapt my work style to accommodate my temporary limitations. I'm grateful that technology allows me to participate in the life and ministry of the church from home, but it's not what I expected to be doing! This is part of life on a smaller scale almost all the time, for most of us--but it's only when we are faced with a major disruption that we become conscious of the gap between our expectations and our reality. What expectations might we, as individuals and as a community, be holding without even realizing it? Which ones might we need to reconsider, out of kindness to ourselves or others, or out of necessity? One that comes to mind immediately is that we often have expectations about the winter holidays. We have images (reinforced by songs, movies, and television commercials) of the "perfect family holiday" and we often compare ourselves and our realities to those images, without even knowing we're doing it. We can then end up disappointed--in small ways or big ones--by our experience of the holiday season if it doesn't measure up to those images. Can we let go of at least some of our expectations, and engage in the spiritual practice of being in the moment? I also am keenly aware that for some of us, the holidays are not a time we anticipate with high expectations of joy and celebration, but a time we approach with more conflicted feelings, or even without outright dread, for a whole variety of reasons. If the holiday season is more challenge than joy for you, or if you struggle with it for any reason, I invite you to reach out to me or to others who can give you some extra support this December. This is something we can expect in this beloved community--that we are here for each other in good times and bad, reaching out to each other with love. In gratitude, Diana There are things I wish I didn’t expect. Like, this not being the last time that news of a heavily-armed man taking aim at a vulnerable group of people, injuring many, killing a few, breaks through an otherwise joy-filled day of rest and revelry. I wish I could say I believed we were done. That we had reached a tipping point. That the national and international press my friend and colleague, the Rev. Nori Rost has received for the vigil at All Souls Unitarian Universalist church in Colorado Springs was an indication that saner gun laws were in our near future, and that there would be a softening of the rhetoric from the far right media (and Presidential candidates) in the coming days, that we would usher in a reckoning of truth-telling and reconciliation. I wish I expected something to change, like a switch to flip, where a new day would break, and all of us would begin anew. The past few weeks have been rough for those of us who expect life to make sense, for humans to be generally good, and for the moral arc of the universe to be trending toward justice. I’m still feeling heartsick from the news of the two 11 year olds in the Fort Collins community who took their own lives just a couple of weeks ago. Meanwhile, even as we inch closer to this holiday where the central myth tells about finding God in the heart of the homeless stranger, political leaders, our neighbors, our family members, and we find ourselves caught in a cycle of fear and a desire for control that has us hanging up big bold signs all along our borders: “No Room At the Inn.” “Serenity comes when you trade expectations for acceptance,” says the Buddha, and I think he’s right. There is something spiritually wise and important about accepting the moment just as it is – rather than longing or waiting for a different moment. And still, I am not sure “serenity” is an appropriate response to this moment, as it actually is. These times ask us to instead be what Martin Luther King Jr. called, “creatively maladjusted.” These times ask us to see and name what is not right, what is dis-ordered in the world and to refuse to believe it is normal, or acceptable, or moral – and instead to believe that we are meant for something else – to expect peace, and equality, and mutual respect – for everyone, including ourselves. And these times ask us to come together in our congregation as a part of what Unitarian Universalist minister Rebecca Parker calls a”community of resistance,” which she defines as “countercultural habitations in which people learn ways to survive and thrive that can resist and sometimes even transform an unjust dominant culture.” This month we are exploring the theme, "Expectations," a theme ripe for the holiday season in both its religious and secular traditions. From the Maccabees to the Wise Men, from letters to Santa to the ancient anticipation of the return of the light, to the regular present-day expectations we all set for how the holidays are “supposed to be,” this season is a great practice and reminder of both the gift and the challenge of expectations. As we walk together in both our greatest joys as well as our most profound grief, my hope for us this season is for us to help each other resist believing that this is the best we can do, to resist despair, and to resist complacency. And instead, that we might bolster our continued expectations for something more, something more beautiful, more brave, more compassionate to take hold, and for us to see ourselves as a critical part in this great turning. Each of our lives in little and sometimes big ways, a critical part- and our whole community, a vital part. What new survival techniques will we offer each other? What practices can we take up so that we are both accepting life as it is and expecting something more? …so that we can thrive in this tension? Remaining open hearted in this tension, remaining awake and alive, we might even, sometimes, transform. Let’s expect it. My colleague, the Reverend Matt Alspaugh, recently wrote that “Grace is one of those words whose meaning has been diffused by so many strands of religious tradition that it is hard to use without confusion.” Matt cites theologian Paul Tillich’s declaration that grace is active and something that addresses us directly. “Grace strikes us when we are in great pain and restlessness. It strikes us when we walk through the dark valley of a meaningless and empty life.” Matt goes on to assert that grace can offer us, as Unitarian Universalists, the possibility of sudden transformation –– an awakening not unlike what Zen Buddhists might seek through a practice of considering the riddles of koans that can lead to enlightenment. I would agree and want to suggest that central to achieving a sense of balance to one’s life –– central to our Unitarian Universalist faith –– that in the midst of mystery, in the midst of the unknown, in the midst of the glory and tragedy, that, at the end, we can experience grace. The impetus for such a statement of belief on my part comes from having a reasoned faith, from an awareness of grace, and from the possibility of love. I believe firmly that each one of us can apply our reason and our passion and that, in doing so, we can transform ourselves and our world. I believe not in a “saving” grace, but in a transforming and nurturing grace. The primary religious task of our times is to be able to establish or, perhaps, re-establish, that sense of connection and relationship to the mysterious and the majestic, to Life’s transcendent creative power. Unitarian Universalism has long affirmed its faith in the worth and dignity of humanity. I want to suggest that our chosen faith must also connect us to the larger context and grace of Life itself. In Roanoke, Virginia, there is a large mountain on the edge of town called Tinker Mountain and along its base runs Tinker Creek. In 1974 Annie Dillard wrote an award-winning book about the creative and destructive powers within nature that she titled Pilgrim At Tinker’s Creek. Her book is about the mystery of our world; it is a pilgrim’s report of her wrestling with God and with the unknown as Dillard puzzled over her rustic neighborhood. It is a reminder for each one of us to look at the world closely –– it is about seeing clearly as it beautifully reaffirms this concept of a gracious life. In her A Pilgrim At Tinker’s Creek Dillard writes the following: “There seems to be such a thing as beauty, a grace wholly gratuitous. About five years ago I saw a mockingbird make a straight vertical descent from the roof gutter of a four-story building. It was an act as careless and spontaneous as the curl of a stem or the kindling of a star. The mockingbird took a single step into the air and dropped. His wings were still folded against his sides as though he were swinging from a limb and not falling, accelerating thirty-two feet per second, through empty air. Just a breath before he would have dashed to the ground, he unfurled his wings with exact, deliberate care, spread his elegant white-banded tail, and so floated onto the grass. I had just rounded the corner when his insouciant step caught my eye, there was no one else in sight. The fact of his free-fall was like the old philosophical conundrum about the tree that falls in the forest.” Annie Dillard concludes this passage with her profound observation that: “The answer must be, I think, that beauty and grace are performed whether or not we sense them. The least we can do is try to be there.” Listen again to how Annie Dillard begins her account: “There seems to be such a thing as beauty, a grace wholly gratuitous.” We are here. We exist by grace. That we live and love and cry and celebrate is a part of that mysterious grace. Writer Anne Lamont has expressed it this way: “I do not understand the mystery of grace –– only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us.” I believe that being open to moments of grace offers us the gift of transformation –– and it can come in small ways as Anne Dillard described, or in large ways when grace meets us where we are and takes us to a better place –– a better place where we begin to grow both emotionally and spiritually and can better live out of our values and our faith’s convictions. The task for all of us, as Unitarian Universalists, is to ever be open to such moments of grace –– both the small moments and the large moments –– and to receive them as the gracious gifts of Life that they are. Being open to and receptive of such moments can be wonderful, awe-filled, and amazing . . . hence, the expression, Amazing Grace! As we begin to explore our November theme of Grace, I have to laugh about the fact that I displayed a distinct lack of physical grace while hiking on October 24th. As most of you probably know by now, I broke both bones in my left ankle and sprained the right one. This is the most incapacitated I have ever been. Although I certainly wouldn't have chosen for this to happen, there are gifts that have come from the experience. Much of what has happened since my injury feels like grace to me. Grace can be defined in many ways; one is "unmerited divine assistance." For me, this kind of grace isn't about direct assistance from God, but about how things sometimes align in ways that feel like blessings. Perhaps some would use the word "luck" for those instances, but for me, it feels like grace, like an unexpected gift that is more than coincidence. There were at least two things that felt like blessings or gifts of grace even before I made it off the mountain. First, we had strong enough cell signal on the portion of the trail where I was injured to call 911. Second, the responders to that call were not just the fire department but the Rocky Mountain Rescue Group, one of the best rescue units in the nation. Another definition of grace is acts of kindness, courtesy, consideration, and thoughtfulness. I have received many gifts of that kind of grace, beginning with the way the rescue group got me off the mountain--not just their technical skills, but their kindness and consideration for how I was feeling, both physically and emotionally. There have been countless other acts of kindness: my mother immediately bought a plane ticket and arrived about 12 hours after I called her from the ER; my home congregation loaned me some equipment to use while my mobility is restricted; friends offered help of all kinds, including picking Mom up at the airport. I've received many kind emails and phone calls. It feels like grace to be on the receiving end of so much love and care. The pastoral nature of this congregation--your loving spirit and your desire to be of help whenever someone needs support--has really shown up this week. In Sunday worship, we often use the phrase "caring community" when we are talking about how we share joys and concerns with each other. This week, I've seen firsthand the depth of your commitment to being that kind of community. You are truly grace-full. In fact, prior to last weekend's "adventure" the example of grace I would have been most likely to talk about in this column is the grace that brought us together, me to serve you, and you to welcome me to my first professional ministry. I am deeply grateful for all the colleagues and congregants who are stepping in to take care of things for me while I recover. I will be off work for at least the first week of November, and will probably be working from home for a while after that. Thanks again for your caring, and I look forward to being back with you as soon as I can. Thank you all for the very warm welcome you showed to the ministry team on Sunday, August 16th, when Rev. Gretchen Haley and I shared the pulpit. It was a delight to be with you in worship and in celebration of the partnership between UUCG and Foothills Unitarian Church!
As we get into the church year, there are a few logistical things I want to share with you. First, I will continue holding office hours in the UUCG office on Tuesdays, as was the pattern for your previous ministers. Please continue to set appointments with me when you’d like to meet, so that I can be sure to set aside time for you. You can, of course, reach me by email or phone at other times if something comes up. Our new Religious Education Coordinator, Mitchell Wilcox, will be with us beginning at the Water Communion on August 30th. Welcome, Mitchell! On September 12th, the UUCG Board and the Foothills Board, along with the ministry team, will have a joint retreat. The rest of you will also soon have a chance to connect with our partners at Foothills, if you haven’t already—look for news of a social event for the two congregations together later in the fall! We are starting a new year of Share The Plate with a different procedure. At any point in the church year, you can nominate a group that you believe we should share our plate with (and hopefully volunteer our time, as well). The general criteria is that the organization should be local, nonprofit, nonpartisan, and aligned with our values as Unitarian Universalists. There will be nomination forms available soon. Forms can be turned in to the ministry team or the Social Justice Ministry team, and those two groups will work together to map out the calendar of which group will be the recipient in each month. For September, the Share The Plate recipient will be The Children’s Garden, who we have supported before. The mission of The Children's Garden (from their website, http://www.greeleychildrensgarden.org ) is “to provide a place for children and community to connect with the earth, learn, participate, experience, and enjoy the fruits of their labor.” The fall is always an exciting time in the church year, as we look ahead to our goals and our dreams for what we’ll do in our shared ministry over the course of the year. I look forward to continuing to get to know you, and living into those dreams with you! Diana McLean, Assistant Minister Thank you one and all for the beautiful gifts you gave me during our last worship service together on July 19. The platter inscribed with “Serving with Grace” is now on my altar at home (see pictures). And the beautiful plant matches the purple in our house perfectly. In the service, we honored the gifts we have shared this year. I thank you again for sharing yours with me; for teaching me, energizing me, and renewing me.
We also released one another from the ministry we have shared. For those of you who weren’t able to join us, here are the words we used to do so: Gifts for the Journey Kelly: It is now time for us formally to let go of one another. In the code of conduct for ministers, it is written that the leaving minister will not be in contact with congregants until the ministerial transition is complete, which is often a year or more. You have done that with Eric this year. And so, as we let one another go, we free you up to honor your new ministers and allow your new shared ministry to flourish and grow. In our free churches, there is perhaps no bond more sacred than the bond between a minister and the congregation that has chosen him or her to serve them. This is because a minister’s power and authority come not from on high, but from the hearts and minds of those they serve. Last August we had a ceremony that initiated our covenant to work together in a shared ministry. It is only right and fitting that we have a ceremony to recognize its ending. Minister: You have offered me your free pulpit. In gratitude for this gift I offer sage to symbolize the wisdom That comes from creating meaningful worship together, Rooted in a rich spiritual life. I hereby return the ministry of worship to you and your new ministers - Diana, Gretchen and Howell. Use this ministry to speak the truth in love to one another. May this loving truth be a source of joy and gladness for you. Congregation: We thank you for your service in our pulpit, We accept its power of freedom for ourselves And release you from your service as worship leader. Minister: You have welcomed me into the transitional moments of your lives,Times of sorrow and of joy. In gratitude for this gift you have given me, I offer the herb rosemary For remembrance of comfort given and joys celebrated together. I hereby return the ministry of pastoral care to you and your new ministers. Use it to comfort and to celebrate the milestones of your lives With compassion and care. Congregation: We thank you for the pastoral care you have offered us. We accept its power of compassion for ourselves And release you from your service as pastoral caregiver. Minister: You have asked me to serve As chief administrator of this congregation, As a professional religious leader. In gratitude for this gift you have given me, I offer thyme as symbol of our time together, and of experience. I hereby return the administry of this congregation to you and your new ministers. May you guide yourselves with courage and wisdom Into a strong and sure future Congregation: We thank you for your professional leadership. We accept its power of vision and knowledge And release you from your service as professional leader. Minister: These two candles symbolize your ministry and my ministry. Both will continue, separately. The president, Marcia Free, and I will now light these two candles from our chalice. Light candles Minister: I release you from our covenant with one another. Go your way in peace, truth, and love. Congregation: We release you from our covenant with one another, Go your way in peace, truth, and love. Please do go your way in peace, truth, and love - taking my love with you. Rev. Kelly It's official! As of August 1st, I'll formally begin to serve as your new Assistant Minister, in partnership with Rev. Howell Lind and Rev. Gretchen Haley on the ministry team for both the Unitarian Universalist Church of Greeley and Foothills Unitarian Church in Fort Collins. I'm delighted both to be part of that team, and to be serving these two dedicated Unitarian Universalist congregations. I look forward to our shared ministry together!
In the next couple of months, as we settle into the partnership between the churches, there will be several events for us all to get to know each other better. The first will be Sunday, August 16th, when Gretchen and I will share the pulpit for our first worship service in Greeley. Stay tuned for information about other events. I've already had several meetings with Rev. Kelly Dignan, both individually and with Gretchen, to make this ministerial transition smooth for all involved. I anticipate keeping the same office schedule as Kelly did, so you will find me at the church on Tuesdays. Please continue making appointments when you need to see me, as you did with Kelly. You can reach me at minister@greeleyuuc.org or at diana@greeleyuuc.org, Gretchen at gretchen@greeleyuuc.org, and Howell at howell@greeleyuuc.org. We, your ministry team, are excited about the coming year and the possibilities of the new partnership. Let's dream big about what Unitarian Universalism can be in Northern Colorado! In gratitude, Diana As Unitarian Universalists, we have a complicated relationship with humility because of our religious roots.
Freedom? We love it! Tolerance? Absolutely! Individualism? Heck yes! Reason? Who would want to live without it?! Humility? Well… We needed freedom, tolerance, reason and individualism to get where we are today. Leaders like Ralph Waldo Emerson led us in that direction. But as Unitarian Universalists, we also know that we need a healthy dose of humility to connect with folks who are oppressed. We are humble when we tell others that truth is ever unfolding and there’s not just one way of knowing it. Unitarian Universalist minister, Rev. Barbara Wells ten Hove learned about humility from her father: “To be humble, he told me, was to remain teachable. Whenever we think we know it all, real humility reminds us to stay open and willing to learn. The magic words, ‘I don't know,’ are at the essence of both awe and humility.” We develop humility when we contemplate our smallness in relation to the universe. If you have a chance, watch this video by Carl Sagan: Pale Blue Dot: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p86BPM1GV8M This kind of humility is at the heart of our faith. Rev. Wells ten Hove goes on: “When we approach the universe with awe, while our first response can and will likely be ‘Wow!’ perhaps our second response should be ‘I don't know!’ Rev. Scott Tayler from the UUA suggests these “homework” assignments for us. Identify one way this month to be “uniquely humble.” The options are endless: Spend two hours one evening looking up at the stars and contemplate how small--and how lucky--you are; Rather than giving your coworkers advice, humbly ask your coworkers for advice, for a change; Take a risk and humbly ask someone for help or tell them you’re hurting; Send a thank you card to humbly acknowledge a person who helped you get where you are; Anonymously do something nice for someone as a way of humbly not taking credit; Maybe even stand up for yourself as a way of showing you know the difference between humility and humiliation. The goal is to think more deeply about how humility shows up in your life--and also how humility needs to show up in your life. I’ll look forward to exploring these concepts and practices with you during the month of July! Rev. Kelly More than 20 of you are participating in Building Your Own Theology. We are using the curriculum developed by Unitarian Universalist minister Richard Gilbert. Our classes have been discussion, not lecture, and together we are grappling with questions like:
What do we know for sure? What holds us together? What is holy? Are we saved? How do we account for evil? What is our place in the world? What is the role of the church? Why do bad things happen? How do we celebrate life and death? This month, our theme is Transcendence. In the Building Your Own Theology curriculum, Richard Gilbert discusses our first source: The direct experience of that transcending mystery and wonder, affirmed in all cultures, which moves us to a renewal of the spirit and an openness to the forces which create and uphold life. He reminds us of our nineteenth-century Transcendentalist forebears who believed in a direct experience of divinity. In one classic passage Ralph Waldo Emerson writes: Standing on the bare ground - my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space - all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eyeball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me: I am part and parcel of God. Gilbert asks: Are Unitarian Universalists averse to transcendence? Or do (we) religious liberals have transcendent experiences that take us beyond our surface selves and remind us that we are part of something greater than ourselves - something that brings out the best in us, that transforms our lives, transcends the ordinary, gives us a glimpse into another realm of being, and makes life worth living? Are we open to transcendent experience enough to be transformed by it? Rather than answering those questions for all of us (which is impossible and kind of rude to do), how do you answer them? When in your life have you felt as though you have transcended your ego, desires, sense of self? Or more theistically described, when have you felt lifted up by God? And how were you transformed by those experiences? In small group gatherings throughout the month of June, we’ll be exploring this theme together. You might be wondering about my summer schedule. In June, I will attend Pride Fest in Denver on June 21. If you are there, look for the crowd of Unitarian Universalists and join us in the parade itself. Then Pete and I will travel to Portland, Oregon for the Unitarian Universalist General Assembly (June 22 - 28). There we will join 3000 or more UUs to worship, learn, and act for climate justice. I will be on vacation June 29 - July 4. I will be with you for the first three Sundays in July, worshiping and celebrating summer! My last Sunday with you is July 19th. My last day of work will be July 24; I will take vacation from then to the end of the month. I am looking forward to quality time with you between now and then. Let’s see how many times we transcend and transform, shall we? Rev. Kelly All stories—all myths—boil down to a map that guides us: the hero’s journey. From the ancient myths, philosophies and religions from around the world, to our modern movies, we can find the hero’s journey over and over.
Consider the story line of the following movies: Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Twilight, Superman, The Matrix, Rocky, Wizard of Oz, and Alice in Wonderland. They all follow the same stages of the hero’s journey: yearning, preparation, journey, arrival, return. Each protagonist has an awakening and goes from one sense of reality into a new reality where they are initiated, struggle with their inner conflicts, obtain wisdom, and return to share with their community. These characters and their experiences are metaphors for human existence. They nourish the seed of potential within us that wants to be actualized. These experiences claim our inner resources. They encourage us to go beyond the false limitations of our possibilities. They transform us. They are metaphors for our Fourth Principle – the free and responsible search for truth and meaning. As we conduct that ongoing search, we repeat the stages over and over again. And we are transformed. The labyrinth is a great metaphor for this process, and a wonderful spiritual practice. Pete and I have friends who are retired from meaningful careers. They have voyaged through several iterations of the hero’s journey, and now they return to share their gifts in ways different than before. Their vision is to make life easier for people who are still working, especially in endeavors they heartily support. They cook and deliver meals, buy restaurant gift certificates and do grocery shopping. They offer household chores and errands - dry cleaning delivery and pickup, cleaning and laundry. In these ways, they are making meaning – for themselves and those they help. They are heroes. And in the process, both they and those they help, are transformed. Where are you in the journey? Yearning? Preparing? On the road struggling with inner conflicts? Arriving and obtaining wisdom? Returning to share with your community? Each of these thresholds is part of the voyage, part of your journey as a hero in this world, part of the free and responsible search for meaning, part of how you will be transformed. I look forward to hearing about your journey! Rev. Kelly |
From the minister
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