Eastrose Fellowship
Unitarian Universalist
1133
NE 181st Avenue, Gresham, Oregon -- 181st Avenue between Glisan and
Halsey
WE
ARE A WELCOMING CONGREGATION
Monthly Letters to the Congregation by Rev. David Maynard
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Eastrose Fellowship
Unitarian Universalist
1133
NE 181st Avenue, Gresham, Oregon -- 181st Avenue between Glisan and
Halsey
WE
ARE A WELCOMING CONGREGATION
| April 2008 The minister’s view… “Whatever We Do in the World” In her sermon on February 3 our Affiliated Community Minister Reverend Sue Matranga-Watson said: “Whatever we do in the world touches others.” At that moment she was referring to her partner Jude Watson’s trip to Biloxi to help build housing for hurricane Katrina refugees. However, the sentiment, as she says, is global. The ecologist and philosopher Garrett Hardin, who died in 2003, posited Hardin's First Law of Ecology: "You cannot do only one thing." While his concern was the impact of pollution and human activity on the eco-system, his Law is global, too. As the centuries pass humans have expanded their awareness of other cultures and their knowledge of natural systems. This awareness reinforces Hardin’s Law. Exploitation of resources, abuse of groups of people, and the wanton accumulation of power or wealth are big actions that affect all people. Yet these are dwarfed by millions of perhaps selfish individual decisions. These millions of decisions are the “one thing” that can set us on destructive courses. The antidote is found in Reverend Sue’s phrase: “Whatever we do in the world touches others.” It’s when we take action (“do”) that we touch others. And when we do touch others, by deed and by generosity, we ourselves are transformed a bit in the process. That’s why it’s so important to stay involved in a wide range of volunteer and social change activities: to allow for that transformation. Even if we are doing more than one thing, we can ensure that at least to some degree our actions are bringing some goodness to others in this world. Like the stories of Pandora which Jeannette Leardi shared in March, for all the hazards of the world let loose, there are also gifts, such as Hope, which abound. Love, David |
| March 2008 The minister’s view… “Ecumenists”
On a Tuesday morning in the Eastrose Thatcher room recently sat nine clergy: one United Methodist, three Presbyterians, one Christian (Disciples), two Lutherans, one United Church of Christ and one Unitarian Universalist. This Gresham Clergy group has met for about a year. They’ve hosted a joint Thanksgiving service, an Ash Wednesday service and we are planning an Earth Day service for April 23. For the future we are looking at community service, ties to Mount Hood Community College, and other ways to engage our faiths locally. We do this by sharing coffee, snacks, conversation and prayer. We are colleagues and we know from experience that collective energy is greater than separate parts. We accept that part of religion is celebration and transformation. We expect that with one another. We are also “liberal,” in the sense of Edwin Markham’s poem: “He drew a circle that shut me out -- Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout -- But love and I had the wit to win; We drew a circle that took him in.” As I told the group, simply being together is good. I think this may be the first time such a clergy group has met at Eastrose Fellowship. “Ecumenical” means being a part of the greater world. My ministry has focused on connections and finding common ground both inside and outside our walls. This Gresham clergy group is a good step forward in my experience. I’m glad we can be together, one day at a time. Love, David P.S. During March the Committee on Ministry will host a series of geographically based home meetings. Do plan on attending one! |
| February 2008 The minister’s view… “Connections and
Glue” As I write this column a very silly looking gift sits beside me. It is a discarded black cell phone with an orange Crazy Glue cap fastened on the top. The man who presented this was saying his good-bye to our weekly men’s group. After meeting for five years he wanted me, as group leader, to have a gift symbolic of my role as “glue and connector” in the group. He also presented me with a small carved wooden owl. I was appreciative and moved by his thoughtfulness. Connections and glue are, in fact, a major part of both my counseling and ministry. Some time ago I gave a sermon on Evil in which I summarize evil as isolation. That is, isolation from the soul and integrity of other people. Isolation from a radical individualism instead of dependent, connected humanness. Isolation from our cultural history and genetic inheritance which can be used for good or ill. Isolation from accountability to others for our behaviors. Isolation from the light of truth and hiding behind a mask of secrecy. If ministry in part is a moral mission, then connections and glue are part of moral actions . By acknowledging our common human connections and by utilizing the glue of friendships and common purpose we counteract bad things. We also benefit individually by both passing on the good things we’ve been handed and ensuring that good things will come back to us in our own times of need. While the modified cell phone looks silly, the symbolism for me is serious. I hope that my concern for helping others find connections and glue never wanes. I also hope that if you or I fall short in this quest, we’ll either assist or remind one another. It’s working together on such goals that brings us closer to the life of peace and love we seek for all. These are goals which are uniquely human and among our greatest gifts. Love, David |
| January 2008 The minister's view... “In The Beginning…”
The opening line in a book is quite important to authors. For example, Scott Peck's “Life is difficult,” grabbed readers for decades and kept The Road Less Travelled on the best-seller lists. Likewise, “In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth,” serves well as the opening line for a best-seller in Jewish and Christian circles. These two openings and a hundred thousand others over the centuries result from intentional thought and action on the part of the writer(s). They are designed to establish the direction of the book and also to involve the reader in what follows. Beginnings are important. However, when it comes to living out our lives, we do not get to choose our opening lines. These are handed to us by culture and genetics. These are dictated in myriad languages and uttered under all imaginable and unimaginable circumstances. Some days I am amazed that we understand one another at all. What is possible, however, is to use intention and help from others to start over again. That is, to take all of who we are and what we have become to this point in our lives and say, “from this day on I have a new beginning which is .....” As we welcome the New Year, I find much in this past year to cherish and much to regret. My past year began with a series of family deaths and ends with some tragic events going on at home and in my counseling practice. In between were a host of wonderful trips, visits and conversations and one new granddaughter. Then, in December while talking about the Peace Pilgrim, I read these words: “If your life is in harmony with your part in the Life Pattern... then your life is full and good but not overcrowded. If it is overcrowded, you are doing more than is right for you to do, more than is your job to do in the total scheme of things.” Those words really struck me. My life is overcrowded. For one New Year's resolution, I plan to write a new beginning line moving toward that harmony Peace Pilgrim describes. Although I cannot change what's gone before, I can begin to do what is just my “job to to in the total scheme of things.” Like any opening line, I'll need to be intentional and take action to get it right. I invite you to do the same in your life, if you could use a new beginning. Love, David P.S. Copies of Peace Pilgrim's Steps to Inner Peace are available from my office. |