Spiritual Window-Shopping UU Church of Greensboro October 14, 2012 by Rev.

Eric Posa

So, have you heard the one about the UU minister who went to an atheist's lecture at a Christian music festival? No? Well, I'm not surprised. You see, it's not actually a joke it's what I did over my summer vacation. Obviously, this was not your stereotypical Christian music festival. The Wild Goose Festival, here in central North Carolina, was in its second year of offering a gathering of the tribes that make up the progressive wings of contemporary Christianity especially the newly-emerging progressive evangelical community. Performances by Christian musicians, as well as lectures and workshops by authors, theologians and social justice activists all were on the program. Their vision statement notes, The festival is rooted in the Christian tradition and therefore open to all regardless of belief, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, denomination or religious affiliation. Pause for a minute, and think about that - because they are Christian, therefore they are open to every sexuality and religion. For myself, as a UU Christian, it does me a world of good finally to hear a prominent Christian event affirming that, after too many centuries in which too many so-called Christians used the trappings of the tradition to discriminate and oppress. With such a unique and hopeful gathering occurring less than an hour's drive away from my home, of course I was going to be there. In fact, one of the focal points of this year's festival was interfaith dialogue: from their perspective, how Christians can respectfully engage with people of other faiths without trying to convert anyone. That's why they invited, to speak at the festival, Chris Steadman. Quick show of hands: do any of you know who Chris Steadman is? Steadman is the Assistant Humanist Chaplain at Harvard University. He and his associates write the blog "Non-Prophet Status" (that's Prophet spelled P R O P H E T), that describes itself as "a forum for stories promoting atheist-interfaith cooperation that hopes to catalyze a movement in which religious and secular folks not only co-exist peacefully but collaborate around shared values." This atheist-inclusive interfaith collaboration was the subject of his presentation at Wild Goose, in which he advocated for the creation of what he called "communities of compassion and respect," communities in which people of different faiths, and of no faith, can meet to discuss their similarities and differences openly and safely. So Steadman's talk was not your stereotypical atheist lecture, either: rather than passionately arguing against theistic and other view, as some atheists have done, Steadman showed real respect for them. It was such a treat to see the kinds of interfaith

work advocated by Steadman, and by the Wild Goose Festival, being lived out that weekend. Of course, Unitarian Universalism, with its pluralistic approach to religious insight, has long valued the importance of such interfaith dialogue and cooperation. But valuing interfaith work, and effectively engaging such work...? Not the same thing-not necessarily. So what can such interfaith engagement mean for us? Where in this engagement must we Unitarian Universalists, especially clergy, be careful not to go astray? And how does it benefit us and our neighbors, to work directly with faith leaders and practitioners of many different religious traditions? For there are so many benefits to interfaith dialogue, yet there is always the potential for respect to be abandoned, and for offense to be taken. So one trap to avoid is one that is particularly risky for us Unitarian Universalists: picking and choosing our own religious practices and beliefs from other traditions, without regard to the deeper meanings they holds in that tradition. Casually sampling spiritual trinkets may please the mind, but not impart the spiritual depths to be found in their traditions of origin. It also conveys the implicit message that your reason for engaging in dialogue is to see what YOU can get out of it, in your own spiritual life. If you encounter a member of the Lakota Sioux tribe, for example, and you spend your entire time together asking about sweat lodges, because you've always wanted to experience that, you may think you're showing respect for Lakota ways, but you might look more like you want to use this Lakota practice for your own gain...and the Lakota person you are speaking with may not feel very respected. Plus, these surface engagements with religious practices do little to feed one's own soul. This hints at another tendency, a potentially-harmful one, that some people new to interfaith dialogue find appealing. It's the tendency to assume that every religion says the same thing, that there is no difference between them. Again, this often feels respectful to the person saying it. But all religions have both profound similarities with one another, and significant differences from each other. To focus only on the similarities between your faith and another's, in a way that ignores the differences, is not to see the other tradition (or your own) in fullness. Less mean-spirited than those intolerant people who seek to claim the sole truth of their religion by highlighting only the differences with other religions. But both approaches - naming only differences, or naming only similarities - is inherently partial, and therefore misleading. We saw both extremes in the aftermath of the Sept. 11th attacks on the World Trade Center & the Pentagon. Intolerant Christians rushed to condemn & seek revenge against all Muslims, because of these intolerant Muslims who committed the attacks, while tolerant Muslims and Christians (and Jews, UUs, etc.) defensively rushed in, simplistically proclaiming the beliefs we all held in common...supposedly. But the most

balanced and nuanced statement I heard came from Rabbi Geoffrey Dennis, who served a synagogue in a Dallas suburb near where I lived at the time. At an interfaith gathering in a nearby mosque, on the weekend following Sept. 11, Rabbi Dennis was clear to note that his Jewish tradition, and the Islamic tradition of those from the mosque, were in the same FAMILY of religions, but not the same religion. There are important differences between them, that should not be ignored, he said. But, he quickly added, this was a time for focusing on the commonalities, and he went on to affirm the monotheism that was central both to faithful Muslims and to faithful Jews. Rabbi Dennis walked the fine line of emphasizing the similarities between Judaism and Islam, without ignoring that they each had distinctive qualities. But when we avoid pitfalls like these, we see the benefits of interfaith dialogue. One obvious advantage of encountering people of other faiths is that it teaches us how to better relate to our neighbors, to those in our community with other faith perspectives. Another benefit is that it equips us with the perspectives to engage in interfaith cooperation in the larger community, to see how we can work together for the common good. And we come to a deeper understanding and appreciation for our own faith tradition. This point is more subtle than the others, but no less true. There is one more aspect of healthy and respectful interfaith dialogue to lift up - not so much a danger, or a benefit, but an important reminder for us always to keep in mind. It can be summed up in two words: be humble. Few of us are experts on another religious tradition. Too few of us are experts on our own faith. Don't pretend to be. Owning up to our own limited knowledge can open the door for trusting one another, and feeling emotionally safe to share similarities and differences. This openness and trust, fueled by humility, is a vital ingredient for creating those communities of compassion and respect that Chris Steadman advocated for back in June. Which brings me back to Wild Goose. You may be wondering how even these more progressive Christians received this talk from an avowed atheist. Quite well, I'm pleased to report: large audience, warm applause, and a respectful Q&A session. There was one moment that gave me pause during the Q&A, though. Chris had began his talk with his own story of having spent his middle school and high school years as an evangelical Christian, but having been rejected by those communities, first when he came out as gay in high school, then again in his freshman year of college when he came to realize that he did not believe the doctrines of God, heaven, or salvation those churches taught. One man in the audience later stood up and said, "I'm one of those evangelical Christians, like the ones you knew as a young man." (And I thought, "Uh-oh; here we go. Confrontation time!") But then he went on to say, "On behalf of my fellow evangelicals, I want to apologize to you, and to other atheists who we evangelicals have

rejected and mistreated. It was not fair to you, it was not true to what we believe, and I am truly sorry." That humility, from an evangelical Christian to an atheist, was an opening. It was not a disrespectful picking-and-choosing of what beliefs and practices to uphold, nor was it a naive moment of ignoring the differences between the two men, but it was a moment upon which trust could be built, for engaging in sincere, open, and respectful dialogue between two people. We UUs will have countless opportunities to dialogue with, or work beside, people of other faiths and people of no faith. I pray that these dialogues and engagements enrich your understanding of people whose faiths differ from ours, your ability to work together with people of other faiths for the common good, and your clarity and commitment to our own faith as Unitarian Universalists, who affirm covenants over creeds, who uphold our seven principles, and who stand on the side of love. So may it be for us all, amen.