We Are All Holy
Preached 3/15/2020 at SouthWest UU in N. Royalton OH
By Rev. Meg Mathieson
During the last few weeks, I’ve talked with you about Forgiveness, and it’s interesting to think about how forgiveness, the theme for the month, ties in with what is happening in our lives today. In the midst of what can only be called uncertainty, frustration abounds. Some of you might even be wondering why I’m sticking to the theme, and yes, it is in part because I am a stubborn person. But also, I like to believe that things happen for a reason and I can’t help but wonder if the universe gave us this theme at this time for a reason.
There’s another story, similar to the Time For All Ages story I just told about Grudgeville. This story comes from the writings of a Sufi mystic named Hadrat Muinudin Chishti.
A man was in dire need of funds, and the only way he could acquire them was to sell his house. He did not wish to give up the entire house, so he came to terms with the purchasers by which he retained unrestricted use of one room. He was permitted to store there any of his possessions. Initially, he kept only small items there, and he came from time to time and caused no disturbance. When he changed occupations, as he did occasionally, he brought his tools to the room also. The new owners made no protest to all this.
Finally, the man began to keep [small dead animals] in the room, and because of the stench from the decomposition, the whole abode became uninhabitable. The new owners went to court for redress, but the judge ruled that the man had not breached the contract. The owners ended up reselling the house, at a tremendous loss, [back] to the original owner.
Carrying a grudge against another person is like renting out a small room in your soul for someone else’s garbage and filth. You just tuck it up there inside yourself. One small but powerful issue left unaddressed can sap your entire spiritual growth. It stinks, but what are you able to do about it, you’ve rented the room out. The good news is, you don’t have to turn over the whole house. There is something you can do.
That thing, of course, is forgiveness.
And in a time when we are overwhelmed with stress, we need first to lighten the loads that we carry on our backs. We need to look within and decide what we need to let go of, who we need to evict. We are at a difficult time of this journey, and we can all lighten our packs.
The Eastern Orthodox tradition that I was brought up in has a gorgeous, ancient tradition around this time of year. Before they begin lent, they gather for a small, quiet service called “Forgiveness Vespers.” Lit by candlelight, after they complete their traditional vespers prayers, they line up and face one another. One by one they file past each other until each person has had a chance to face each other person. It can take a very long time. And what they do, is when they are facing one another, one person asks for forgiveness.
Here is how my mother wrote about it in an article a few years ago:
“On Sunday night I am going to have to apologize to someone. I am going to have to apologize to about a hundred people, in fact–one at a time, face to face. I’m looking forward to it.
“If you were in our church on this Sunday evening you would see us do something surprising. The members of the church form a large circle. At the end nearest the altar the two ends overlap, as a deacon turns to face my husband, the priest. He bows to touch the ground, honoring the image of God in this person, then stands to say, “Forgive me, my brother, for any way I have offended you.”
“After the deacon says “I forgive you,” he too bows to the ground, and asks for and receives the same forgiveness, and then the two embrace. Each of them then moves over to the next person in line. Over the course of an hour or so, every single person in the church will stand face-to-face with every other person. Each will bow to the ground and ask for forgiveness; each will bestow forgiveness on the other.
“As my husband says, “When we do this, we do something the devil hates.” Teenaged brothers and sisters forgive each other. Small children solemnly tell their mothers, “I forgive you.” Folks who have been arguing about the church budget for months embrace with tears.
“In fact, tears are the common coin of the evening. Some weep hard as they look in each face and think how they have slighted, ignored, or resented this person during the year — a person now revealed as bearing the face of Christ. Some weep as they are forgiven, over and over, in a nearly-overwhelming rush of love and acceptance. Some weep and hug so much they hold up the line, but no one minds. A toddler is ignoring the line and going on his own steam from person to person, tugging on a skirt hem or trouser leg and looking up to ask, “Forgive?”
“This is how Lent begins for us. It’s an exhilarating kick start for a time that will get much harder.
This time that will get much harder, she is referring to Lent, a time that is considered holy by many Christians because it represents a time of pulling back, fasting, and austerity. Interesting that the world seems to be in a forced state of lent this year, The poem that has been going around Facebook that compares this time of fear and distancing to the holy Jewish Sabbat has a point. But the comparison also makes me uncomfortable. Because for some of us this is a time of challenge, a time of growth. A time of rest, a time of regeneration.
But we must remember that we are diverse. What this season is for some of us is NOT what it is for all of us. For some of us, this is a time of very real fear, real threat to our very lives. We are diverse. We have differing needs. And I think that while it is very important to catch ourselves before we spin into anxiety, it is also very important to recognize and honor our anxiety. To honor the very real anxieties that are among us. We must listen to each other, and all the while, we must forgive each other.
Preached 3/15/2020 at SouthWest UU in N. Royalton OH
By Rev. Meg Mathieson
During the last few weeks, I’ve talked with you about Forgiveness, and it’s interesting to think about how forgiveness, the theme for the month, ties in with what is happening in our lives today. In the midst of what can only be called uncertainty, frustration abounds. Some of you might even be wondering why I’m sticking to the theme, and yes, it is in part because I am a stubborn person. But also, I like to believe that things happen for a reason and I can’t help but wonder if the universe gave us this theme at this time for a reason.
There’s another story, similar to the Time For All Ages story I just told about Grudgeville. This story comes from the writings of a Sufi mystic named Hadrat Muinudin Chishti.
A man was in dire need of funds, and the only way he could acquire them was to sell his house. He did not wish to give up the entire house, so he came to terms with the purchasers by which he retained unrestricted use of one room. He was permitted to store there any of his possessions. Initially, he kept only small items there, and he came from time to time and caused no disturbance. When he changed occupations, as he did occasionally, he brought his tools to the room also. The new owners made no protest to all this.
Finally, the man began to keep [small dead animals] in the room, and because of the stench from the decomposition, the whole abode became uninhabitable. The new owners went to court for redress, but the judge ruled that the man had not breached the contract. The owners ended up reselling the house, at a tremendous loss, [back] to the original owner.
Carrying a grudge against another person is like renting out a small room in your soul for someone else’s garbage and filth. You just tuck it up there inside yourself. One small but powerful issue left unaddressed can sap your entire spiritual growth. It stinks, but what are you able to do about it, you’ve rented the room out. The good news is, you don’t have to turn over the whole house. There is something you can do.
That thing, of course, is forgiveness.
And in a time when we are overwhelmed with stress, we need first to lighten the loads that we carry on our backs. We need to look within and decide what we need to let go of, who we need to evict. We are at a difficult time of this journey, and we can all lighten our packs.
The Eastern Orthodox tradition that I was brought up in has a gorgeous, ancient tradition around this time of year. Before they begin lent, they gather for a small, quiet service called “Forgiveness Vespers.” Lit by candlelight, after they complete their traditional vespers prayers, they line up and face one another. One by one they file past each other until each person has had a chance to face each other person. It can take a very long time. And what they do, is when they are facing one another, one person asks for forgiveness.
Here is how my mother wrote about it in an article a few years ago:
“On Sunday night I am going to have to apologize to someone. I am going to have to apologize to about a hundred people, in fact–one at a time, face to face. I’m looking forward to it.
“If you were in our church on this Sunday evening you would see us do something surprising. The members of the church form a large circle. At the end nearest the altar the two ends overlap, as a deacon turns to face my husband, the priest. He bows to touch the ground, honoring the image of God in this person, then stands to say, “Forgive me, my brother, for any way I have offended you.”
“After the deacon says “I forgive you,” he too bows to the ground, and asks for and receives the same forgiveness, and then the two embrace. Each of them then moves over to the next person in line. Over the course of an hour or so, every single person in the church will stand face-to-face with every other person. Each will bow to the ground and ask for forgiveness; each will bestow forgiveness on the other.
“As my husband says, “When we do this, we do something the devil hates.” Teenaged brothers and sisters forgive each other. Small children solemnly tell their mothers, “I forgive you.” Folks who have been arguing about the church budget for months embrace with tears.
“In fact, tears are the common coin of the evening. Some weep hard as they look in each face and think how they have slighted, ignored, or resented this person during the year — a person now revealed as bearing the face of Christ. Some weep as they are forgiven, over and over, in a nearly-overwhelming rush of love and acceptance. Some weep and hug so much they hold up the line, but no one minds. A toddler is ignoring the line and going on his own steam from person to person, tugging on a skirt hem or trouser leg and looking up to ask, “Forgive?”
“This is how Lent begins for us. It’s an exhilarating kick start for a time that will get much harder.
This time that will get much harder, she is referring to Lent, a time that is considered holy by many Christians because it represents a time of pulling back, fasting, and austerity. Interesting that the world seems to be in a forced state of lent this year, The poem that has been going around Facebook that compares this time of fear and distancing to the holy Jewish Sabbat has a point. But the comparison also makes me uncomfortable. Because for some of us this is a time of challenge, a time of growth. A time of rest, a time of regeneration.
But we must remember that we are diverse. What this season is for some of us is NOT what it is for all of us. For some of us, this is a time of very real fear, real threat to our very lives. We are diverse. We have differing needs. And I think that while it is very important to catch ourselves before we spin into anxiety, it is also very important to recognize and honor our anxiety. To honor the very real anxieties that are among us. We must listen to each other, and all the while, we must forgive each other.