Remembering Martin Luther King, Jr.

Crystal St. Marie Lewis asks, “Will you go to the mountaintop?”

On this, the observance of Dr. King’s 83rd birthday, I am reminded of the repeated call in scripture that we return to the mountaintop—if for no other reason than to hear the call of God, or weep tears of love for the societies we serve, or to demonstrate the love of God which overtakes us so relentlessly, or to dream of the future.  (Crystal St. Marie Lewis, January 16)

Kim Hampton wonders, “Next year, can we have an A. Philip Randolph and Fannie Lou Hamer Day instead?”

[When] we’re talking about something like civil rights, something that has such a long arc, why put all of the focus on that one man? Doesn’t that ignore the people and the work that made him possible? (East of Midnight, January 16)

Lizard Eater is learning about love from Martin Luther King, Jr., and from JT, an African-American classmate, who “lives in a world that sees him as the bogeyman.”

Over and over, through his sermons, through his speeches, [King] counseled love. He knew that to cede the power of love was to lose part of yourself. JT shows me how very hard this is. That to forgive others, others who have never even realized how wrong they were, is a herculean task. (The Journey, January 16)

The most hated girl in America

The Rev. Cynthia Landrum is stunned by the deluge of hatred directed toward Jessica Ahlquist, the teenage atheist who successfully fought to have a prayer banner removed from her high school.

The obvious irony is that the words of the prayer call on people to grow morally, to be kind, to conduct themselves in a way that brings credit to the school, and to be good sports and smile when we lose.

If only everyone who wants the prayer to hang could at least try to live up to it. (Rev Cyn, January 19)

Searching for common ground

After a confrontational social media encounter, Sarah MacLeod reaffirms her commitment to dialogue and the search common ground.

Why bother? . . . Because, like it or not, much of life is a mystery, as is all of the future.  None of us have the market cornered on the best way of living in this remarkably complicated world.  Really. And no amount of vitriol and rhetoric actually changes anyone’s mind. (Finding My Ground, January 13 and 17)

Amy Peterson Derrick is giving up one of her favorite pastimes—yelling at her television and radio.

Perhaps my energy would be better spent writing letters and having an actual conversation with somebody. So, with our cable service cancelled and the local talk radio channel erased from my presets, I have decided that it is time to have real conversations with people while engaging in a new spiritual practice: listening. Really listening. (UU@Home, January 14)

Worship experiments and evolution

The Rev. Christine Robinson, who serves the UU congregation in Albuquerque, reports on the staff’s visits to contemporary worship services at neighboring churches.

Some of those [who attend these evangelical churches] are someday going to say to themselves,  ”I just don’t buy this!” and walk.  If this has been their experience of worship, they are not going to find my church’s eclectic but more formal music interesting, no matter how much freedom they are looking for. . . . Therefore we are experimenting with contemporary worship.  So that we can be hospitable to the next generation of seekers, most of whom attend churches with bands, not organs. (iMinister, January 16)

Vance Bass, Albuquerque’s contemporary worship director, shares his perspective on the congregation’s learning journey.

The really important thing here is that the ministers understand what contemporary worship is all about, why it’s vital to UUism, and are totally on board with making changes in that direction. We as musicians—even the music ministers among us—don’t usually have the authority or influence to make this kind of change happen alone. But we can educate our colleagues in the pulpit, assist them or guide them, and learn along with them. (Liberal Religion Gets Loud, January 16)

The Rev. Adam Tierney-Eliot weighs in on music choices in his congregation.

I usually try to avoid the terms “traditional” and “contemporary” when talking about worship because they are more of a hindrance than a help. . . . The real question for people is whether or not our worship experience fits the context  we find ourselves in. Each week we ask our selves if what we see and hear is in some way us. One thing we must all remember, though, is that this context evolves over time.  (Burbania Posts, January 18)

Learning to pray

The Rev. Lisa Ward admits that “Prayer has not come easily to me.”

It wasn’t until my twenties that I gave it a good go, and, thirty years later, I am beginning to feel a resonance, a “prayer life.”  I slowly came to realize that I do not have to know, specifically, who or what I am praying to.  In fact, that may limit the flow of energy, healing or wisdom I seek;  because it would then be a conversation with my definitions, not an invocation of that which encompasses more than me.  (Pondering on the Path, January 14)

The Rev. Naomi King answers some of the questions people ask her about prayer.

Is prayer answered? Yes, but maybe not the way we would prefer or can easily understand. Getting what I wish for is not how I judge the efficacy or use of prayer. Prayer doesn’t work from scarcity, and it can’t treat the Holy as a vending machine. (The Wonderment, January 19)

Around the blogosphere

Will Shetterley remembers his mother, who died this week, saying that she “gave me my heart.”

She taught me how to love—none of my flaws as a pupil are her fault. She loved indiscriminately. Children naturally exaggerate the virtues or flaws of their parents, but I was always able to test my belief that Mom was a great mom by seeing how people everywhere adored her. (it’s all one thing, January 19)

The Rev. Ellen Cooper-Davis responds to questions about Unitarian Univeralism in a guest post on Rachel Held Evans’ blog.

Unitarian Universalist churches certainly began as Christian paths, and their theological positions were derived from those who read the Bible, and found evidence there for rejecting both the Trinity and hell. But today, in our modern North American form, we are best considered Post-Christian. That is to say, we have roots in and influence from Christianity, but solidly mainline Christian churches would not recognize as Christian. (Rachel Held Evans, January 19)

Meadville-Lombard seminarian Jim Magaw reflects on lessons learned in a UU polity course.

As faith communities, we need to be . . . . arteries that supply the blood that nourishes the world’s muscle and the world’s heart. The extent to which congregational polity helps us become open channels for this lifeblood determines how relevant and vital we will be to the rest of the world.(Jim’s Meadville Journal, January 16)

Trustee Linda Laskowski begins a series about the UUA Board’s January meeting in New Orleans.  (UUA View from Berkeley, January 14)