Sermon for
HERE WE STAND
Ronald J. Glossop
I.
Introduction
A.
The words "
Here I Stand" or "
Here We Stand" are regularly used by those committed to adopting
new principles and wanting to differentiate themselves from the generally accepted views of the past.
These statements or
declarations are for revolutionaries.
B. For example, the words "Here I Stand" are widely ascribed to Martin Luther when he had to defend himself against the charge of departing from the teachings of the Catholic Church at the Diet of Worms in 1521 as he lauched the Reformation. In fact, HERE I STAND is the title of several biographies of Martin Luther, the best known being that by Roland Bainton published in 1950. Nevertheless modern scholars doubt that Martin Luther actually said these exact words. They appear in some accounts written not long after the incident but not in the contemporary accounts.
1.
The connection of these words with Luther is so firm that
HERE I STAND is now being used as a title for a board game about the wars connected with the Reformation, wars which occurred between 1517 and 1555.
C.
HERE I STAND is also the title of the 1959 autobiography of
Paul Robeson, the well-known ground-breaking African-American scholar, athlete, performer, and activist, whose
revolutionary life occurred during the first three-quarters of the 20th century.
D.
HERE
WE STAND has been used as a title for programs of various religious groups, including a confirmation program of the
Evangelical
Lutheran
Church
in
America
and a leadership development program of the
E.
But in my talk this morning on the theme HERE WE STAND, the "we" refers to
this congregation and the Unitarian Universalist Association to which we belong.
And my aim is to show how and why Unitarian Universalism is in
prinicipled opposition to the main stream of the Judaeo-Christian tradition from which we have come.
Unitarian Universalism has become a
truly revolutionary kind of religion, and I think we should understand and appreciate this fact.
II. When we examine revolutions, we should focus on three things: (1) Exactly what is being rejected? (2) What is being advanced to replace it? and (3) What is the reason or rationale for the proposed change?
III. The main thing that Unitarian Universalists are rejecting from the Christian tradition is the notion that everyone in the religious group must accept the same particular set of beliefs. It has been characteristic of Christianity at least since the fourth century to have a creed (called the Nicene Creed because it was adopted in the city of Nicea in 325 AD) which would distinguish the correct or orthodox believers from the heretics. In fact two centuries earlier some Christians had developed the Apostle's Creed to be able to distinguish the real Christians from those who merely claimed to be Christians, but it proved to be insufficiently precise to deal with some of the beliefs being debated in the Christian movement then and during subsequent centuries.
A. This system of developing a creed to separate the true believers from others came about because Christianity started out as a sect within Judaism and what distinguished the Christians from the others was what they believed about Jesus. At first it was a question of whether someone accepted the idea that Jesus was the prophesied Messiah or "Anointed One" (the Greek equivalent word is "Christ"), but then disputes arose as to whether Jesus was also an incarnation of the eternal God or just a very special person whom God then chose to be the Messiah.
B. Eventually, other beliefs were viewed as crucial to being a real Christian, and creeds were developed to separate the orthodox (literally "right believers") from the heretics.
C. Gradually, disputes also arose about various rituals. For example, did one need to be completely immersed in water to be baptized, or would some drops of water on the head be sufficent? Should infants be baptized or only adults? If the latter, what was the earliest age at which one could be baptized? This was a critical issue since it was generally believed that only those who had been baptized would be "saved," that is, would go to Heaven rather than spend an eternity in Hell. But if infants would be saved just because they had been baptized, would they still be saved if they later failed to adopt the correct beliefs? Would the rite of baptism be sufficient by itself? Thus, the disputes about who was legitimately a member of the Church became disputes about who was really "saved." Furthermore, the generally accepted view was that the Church acting for God (not God himself) would decide who would be "saved." This belief gave the Church tremendous power over everyone, even political rulers. One's eternal destiny was in the hands of the leaders of the Church.
D. A critical issue in the 16th-century Reformation was whether to accept what the Church says or to accept what the Bible says as the authority. This issue of Church or Bible was central in the Reformation. But it should be noted that Luther, in his questioning of the authority of the Church leaders, also left room for reason and conscience. He said, "Unless I am convinced by Scripture and plain reason, I do not accept the authority of the popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other. My conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. God help me. Amen."
E. What the proto-Unitarian Michael Servetus did was to apply Luther's position to other issues. In his book ON THE ERRORS OF THE TRINITY published in 1531 Servetus noted that he could not find anything in the Bible about the doctrine of the Trinity. In his other writings he also questioned infant baptism and the idea of original sin. He was burned at the stake for his heresies not by the Catholics but by Protestants of the Reformed Church after having his whereabouts betrayed by his old friend and fellow Reformationist John Calvin, with whom he often debated about theological issues.
F. Thus the Unitarians and the Universalists got started by questioning particular beliefs. For the Unitarians it was the belief in the Trinity, that the single eternal God has three ways of existing -- as the Creator, as Jesus the Savior, and as the Holy Spirit which acts in the Church, the community of believers. Unitarians especially questioned whether Jesus could be both human and God. Universalists, on the other hand, focused on the issue whether a good God would really punish anyone eternally, especially since one of the central teachings of Christianity was to forgive people for their wrong-doing. If people can forgive wrong-doing, why can't an all-powerful, all-good God to the same?
G. But eventually both denominations moved beyond these particular questions. At first they used reasoning from Biblical texts, but noting the contradictions and difficulties in those texts, they gradually started asking why they should be restricted to that source. The questioning became more intense with the advancements of science in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries which showed how ignorant the Biblical writers were. Eventually greater awareness of other religions also raised questions about why the Bible is any better as a source of information and inspiration than the scriptures of other religions. Finally they asked why religious scriptures are any more valuable than the writings of scientists, philosophers, and poets as sources of knowledge and inspiration.
H. In 1961, the Unitarians and the Universalists, who had already been cooperating on many levels, decided to merge into the Unitarian Universalist Association. One of the main things they agreed on was not to have any creeds by which some people would be excluded. Only those who wanted to exclude themselves would be excluded. They noted that having a creed that had to be accepted in order to be in the church meant that people might be pushed into saying they believed things that they did not really believe. The central principles should be freedom for each individual to develop and possibly even change their beliefs about "religious issues" plus tolerance for differences in belief and practices, religious and non-religious.
I. Earlier I said that in examining revolutions, we should focus on three things: Exactly what is being rejected? What is being advanced to replace it? and What is the reason or rationale for the proposed change?
1. On the issue I have just discussed, what is being rejected by Unitarian-Universalists is the idea that in a religious community everyone must accept the same particular set of beliefs and that it is appropriate to exclude some individuals because they do not accept these beliefs.
2. What is being advanced to replace it is a commitment to freedom of belief for everyone (including children) and tolerance for diversity of belief and practice plus an attitude of inclusiveness.
3. The rationale is that human knowledge expands with the passage of time and that individuals can grow intellectually plus recognizing the arrogance of assuming that one group of people knows the Truth rather than recognizing that everyone is fallible. Given this situation, it would be ridiculous to have people committed to a certain set of beliefs adopted at some particular time in the past (like the 4th-century Nicene Creed) or at some earlier stage of their life or to claim that they have infallible knowledge. Can it really be a source of satisfaction for anyone to say, "I believe the same things as many people believed 2,000 years ago" or "I now believe the same things that I believed when I was 8 years old" or "I believe that my knowledge of the Truth is absolutely infallible"?
IV. I suppose that many of you have heard the view that "Unitarian-Universalists don't believe in anything." That is what my own mother said about our religion. What exactly does that mean?
A. One possibility is that it is just another way of saying what I've already said, namely that Unitarian-Universalists do not have a creed which all must accept. But I think that it can also be interpreted to mean that Unitarian-Universalists don't accept a super-naturalistic view of the world. That is, UUs (1) don't believe in miracles, (2) don't believe that there is a disembodied parental mind called "God" looking over us, and (3) don't believe in any kind of life-after-death.
B. These statements about what UUs generally reject are largely correct, even though it should be obvious that in fact different UUs can have different views on these issues. But the fact that UUs can have different view on these issues doesn't mean that in fact they have different views.
C.
One can Google "Unitarian-Universalist beliefs" to see various views on what UUs believe.
The web-site of the
1. I have never met a Unitarian who did not accept the findings of science.
2. I have never met a Unitarian who did not believe in evolution.
3. I have never met a Unitarian who did not affirm the importance of this life, of living well in the here and now, as opposed to preparing now for a life to come. Unitarians hold that living well now is the only possible preparation for whatever may come after death - if anything.
4. I have never met a Unitarian who did not believe that Jesus was the son of normal human parents, conceived and born as you and I.
5. I know of no Unitarian who regards this world as a puppet stage over which some higher inscrutable power from time to time pulls the strings.
6. I cannot be sure that no Unitarian will contradict me on some of this, but I venture to say that Unitarian agreement on these matters comes closer to unanimity than you will find in any other church.
D. Another helpful source of information about what Unitarian Universalists believe about these issues is a little booklet 100 QUESTIONS THAT NON-MEMBERS ASK ABOUT UNITARIAN UNIVERSALISM by John Sias, based on interviews with Unitarian Universalist minister Steve Edington, pastor of the UU church in Nashua, New Hampshire. This 50-page booklet was first published in 1994 by that congregation using the name "Transition Publishing." The current 7th edition was published in 2005. The ISBN is 0-9654497-3-4, and it sells for $5.95. You can also download it from the website <www.uunashua.org/100q/c1.shtml-12k>. Here are some selected quotes from that book.
1. UUs do not have a defined doctrine of God. Members are free to develop individual concepts of God that are meaningful to them. They are also free to reject the term and concept altogether. Most of us do not believe in a supernatural, supreme being who can directly intervene in and alter human life or the mechanism of the natural world . Many believe in a spirit of life or a power within themselves, which some call God.
2. A personal God is one with whom someone feels a one-to-one relationship, a deity who cares specifically for that individual and to whom that person can appeal directly. Few UUs would characterize God in such personal terms.
3. Do UUs believe in the existence of spiritual beings? Not in the sense of something that is disembodied . Most agree that there is a spiritual dimension to life that is connected to the physical, mental, emotional, and psychological aspects of life.
4. Do UUs believe in miracles? We do not believe in miracles in any supernatural way since our ideas of God generally do not include a deity who has the ability to alter the workings of the natural world. Most UUs feel that the gift of life itself is sufficient miracle, and that we should live as fully, joyfully and responsibly as we can.
5. Do UUs believe in Jesus? We do not believe that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, performed miracles, and was resurrected from death. We do admire and respect the way he lived, the power of his love, the force of his example and his system of values. Most UUs regard Jesus as one of several important moral and ethical teachers who have shown humans how to live a life of love, service and compassion. Though some of us may question whether Jesus was an actual historical figure, we believe his teachings are of significant moral value.
6. Do UUs believe in life after death? Very few UUs believe in a continuing, individualized existence after physical death. Even fewer believe in the physical existence of places called heaven or hell where one goes after dying. We believe that immortality manifests itself in the lives of those we affect during our lifetime and in the legacy we leave when we die.
7. Do UUs believe in the concept of evolution? Yes. We believe that more complex life forms have evolved from less complex life forms.
8. What are the bonds that unify UUs? While there are no written or verbal doctrines designed for that purpose, we have . . . bonds which unify us. The stated bonds are the Principles and Purposes of the UUA which we support individually and collectively.
E. Another good source for understanding what UUs believe is the insert published for newspapers in the St. Louis area last summer when the UUA held its annual General Assembly in St. Louis. It headlines the statement "Imagine a religion where people with different beliefs worship as one faith." It also says, "In a world of conventional religions, there is one that is not." The UUA is "The Uncommon Denomination."
F. Going back to what I said about examining revolutions, we will recall that I said we should focus on three things:Exactly what is being rejected? What is being advanced to replace it? and What is the reason or rationale for the proposed change?
1. On the issues I have just discussed, what is being rejected by Unitarian Universalists is the pre-scientific, pre-Enlightenment view of the world that is found in the Bible and in those religious communities which treat the Bible and a small group of self-selected religious leaders as an infallible guide to beliefs about what is true or what is good. Of course, this rejection by UUs applies not only to Chistian fundamentalists but also to fundamentalists of all religious traditions--Jewish, Muslim, and even a few Hindus--who are focused on believing what was written down 1300 years ago or more, well before the advances in knowledge brought about by modern science.
2. What is being advanced to replace it is a commitment to use of the scientific method which uses experimentation to accumulate evidence in order to sort out true beliefs from pure speculation plus critical reasoning in a democratically organized group to evaluate speculative ideas and proposals for individual or collective action.
3. And the rationale is that human knowledge has been greatly expanded as the result of use of the scientific method to get rid of mistaken speculations and that decisions about what is to be done tend to be better when various viewpoints and suggestions are freely discussed and debated. Given this situation, it is ridiculous to continue to base one's beliefs on pre-scientific superstitions and to allow conclusions about what is good or right to be determined by a small closed elite group of seers whose views are based on unexamined prejudices.
V. So what holds us together as a religious community? As already noted, what holds us together is our common ideas and traditions summarized well by our seven purposes and principles, printed every week on the back of our weekly order of service. These principles are not a creed and are not unchanging. Members do not have to accept any of them, and from time to time some modifications have been made and new principles have been added. But these seven purposes and principles should make it clear to anyone what we are about.
A. We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote:
1. the inherent worth and dignity of every person
2. justice, equity, and compassion in human relations
3. acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations
4. a free and responsible search for truth and meaning
5. the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process in our congregations and in society at large
6. the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all
7. respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part
B. That's good enough for us. HERE WE STAND
Amen.
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