Living the Sabbath
Preached 5/3/2020 at SouthWest UU in N. Royalton OH
By Rev. Meg Mathieson
The fact that the theme of the month is Sabbath leaves me kind of speechless. The themes were chosen about a year ago, and yet here we are, in this unasked-for, imposed Sabbath of sorts. I spoke a few weeks ago about how even those of us who do not usually recognize the Christian season of Lent have been pushed by the virus into a season of holding back, a season of austerity.
You may have read UU minister Lynn Ungar’s poem, “Pandemic,” which has been making the rounds online lately, it compares this strange time that we are in with the Jewish Sabbath. What she refers to as “a most sacred of times.”
Maybe I’m cynical, but that poem made me a little cranky. This doesn’t feel like a sacred time. It feels like a frustrating time when I can’t hug the people I love, when I can’t do what I want to do. It feels like a sad and unfair time when I know that many folks are losing their jobs, their incomes, and therefore losing their healthcare and their homes at a time when those things are most needed.
And it feels like a scary time. I worry about my loved ones.
I also feel frustrated about all of the misinformation and the continued failed leadership of our nation that honestly would be funny if it wasn’t so scary and sad.
This, my standing here talking to a camera doesn’t feel like an especially sacred time.
But what if it is?
What if it could be?
A little part of me knows that Rev. Lynn is correct. Because every moment is sacred, and we only need to recognize it as such. I just need to get out of my cranky ego and look at the larger picture.
The theme of the month is Sabbath. It’s like the universe is teasing us with that theme! Or maybe it is the most fitting possible theme for this month, May 2020.
Sabbath. A most sacred of times. Why?
(read from Sabbath by Wayne Muller, p. 82-85)
The quiet truth of what is needed. In these quieter days, in these, perhaps, holy Sabbath days that the universe has imposed upon us, what is your heart telling you that it needs?
Sure, parts of you want more distractions, more entertainment, more business, but what does your deep heart, your quiet heart, what does it ask for in the still moments?
I think that one thing that we all have in common here is that our deepest hearts long for connection. We long to connect with one another and with the gorgeous world around us. That’s why we go out of our way to find ways to connect, again and again.
This congregation, this beloved community, is something truly special. I know congregations. I’m the child of a minister and I grew up in church. My brother is a minister, many of my friends are ministers. I have belonged to and worked in a lot of churches. I’m telling you, this place, SouthWest UU, SWUU, is something really special.
My family and I have found a spiritual home here that is generous and kind, playful and fun, sharply intellectual, deeply spiritual, and more that goes beyond words. I’m not talking about an item, I’m not talking about this building, I’m talking about that very thing that all of our hearts long for: connection. This is a very special place of connection.
Like what I said in my reading at the top of the hour this morning, this place is more than a place, it is community. It is connection.
These things are as important to our health and nourishment as food and water.
And this is pledge month. It’s the time of year when we plan our budget for next year, based off of what people pledge to give. Absolutely every dollar counts. Because what we do here, what we build together, not just on Sundays but throughout the week, is priceless. And invaluable. We have something that money can’t buy, something that millionaires and billionaires like Trump and the Kardashians long for, but they can’t figure out how to buy it.
We are wealthy with an abundance of love and connection! And I have the most exciting treat for you. If you stay after the prelude, before coffee hour begins, we will have the world premiere of our “SWUU hello!” video, featuring you. It’s really fun.
And as you watch the video, I encourage you to reflect on what a priceless gem this community is. And then bring to mind what you have pledged in the past. And think about whether you can increase it this year, even by a small amount.
We are a non-profit, and your generous gifts do things like pay the salaries of what I cannot state strongly enough - is an amazing staff, as well as keep up our beautiful building and fund programs that we run. You know what they are - the events that you love, as well as groups like Greater Cleveland Congregations, the UU Association, and much more.
Here at SouthWest UU, our mission is to Inspire Wonder, to Radically Accept and Love, and to Joyfully Connect and Serve. Your pledge is a substantial part of your serving and it allows you to connect.
Preached 5/3/2020 at SouthWest UU in N. Royalton OH
By Rev. Meg Mathieson
The fact that the theme of the month is Sabbath leaves me kind of speechless. The themes were chosen about a year ago, and yet here we are, in this unasked-for, imposed Sabbath of sorts. I spoke a few weeks ago about how even those of us who do not usually recognize the Christian season of Lent have been pushed by the virus into a season of holding back, a season of austerity.
You may have read UU minister Lynn Ungar’s poem, “Pandemic,” which has been making the rounds online lately, it compares this strange time that we are in with the Jewish Sabbath. What she refers to as “a most sacred of times.”
Maybe I’m cynical, but that poem made me a little cranky. This doesn’t feel like a sacred time. It feels like a frustrating time when I can’t hug the people I love, when I can’t do what I want to do. It feels like a sad and unfair time when I know that many folks are losing their jobs, their incomes, and therefore losing their healthcare and their homes at a time when those things are most needed.
And it feels like a scary time. I worry about my loved ones.
I also feel frustrated about all of the misinformation and the continued failed leadership of our nation that honestly would be funny if it wasn’t so scary and sad.
This, my standing here talking to a camera doesn’t feel like an especially sacred time.
But what if it is?
What if it could be?
A little part of me knows that Rev. Lynn is correct. Because every moment is sacred, and we only need to recognize it as such. I just need to get out of my cranky ego and look at the larger picture.
The theme of the month is Sabbath. It’s like the universe is teasing us with that theme! Or maybe it is the most fitting possible theme for this month, May 2020.
Sabbath. A most sacred of times. Why?
(read from Sabbath by Wayne Muller, p. 82-85)
The quiet truth of what is needed. In these quieter days, in these, perhaps, holy Sabbath days that the universe has imposed upon us, what is your heart telling you that it needs?
Sure, parts of you want more distractions, more entertainment, more business, but what does your deep heart, your quiet heart, what does it ask for in the still moments?
I think that one thing that we all have in common here is that our deepest hearts long for connection. We long to connect with one another and with the gorgeous world around us. That’s why we go out of our way to find ways to connect, again and again.
This congregation, this beloved community, is something truly special. I know congregations. I’m the child of a minister and I grew up in church. My brother is a minister, many of my friends are ministers. I have belonged to and worked in a lot of churches. I’m telling you, this place, SouthWest UU, SWUU, is something really special.
My family and I have found a spiritual home here that is generous and kind, playful and fun, sharply intellectual, deeply spiritual, and more that goes beyond words. I’m not talking about an item, I’m not talking about this building, I’m talking about that very thing that all of our hearts long for: connection. This is a very special place of connection.
Like what I said in my reading at the top of the hour this morning, this place is more than a place, it is community. It is connection.
These things are as important to our health and nourishment as food and water.
And this is pledge month. It’s the time of year when we plan our budget for next year, based off of what people pledge to give. Absolutely every dollar counts. Because what we do here, what we build together, not just on Sundays but throughout the week, is priceless. And invaluable. We have something that money can’t buy, something that millionaires and billionaires like Trump and the Kardashians long for, but they can’t figure out how to buy it.
We are wealthy with an abundance of love and connection! And I have the most exciting treat for you. If you stay after the prelude, before coffee hour begins, we will have the world premiere of our “SWUU hello!” video, featuring you. It’s really fun.
And as you watch the video, I encourage you to reflect on what a priceless gem this community is. And then bring to mind what you have pledged in the past. And think about whether you can increase it this year, even by a small amount.
We are a non-profit, and your generous gifts do things like pay the salaries of what I cannot state strongly enough - is an amazing staff, as well as keep up our beautiful building and fund programs that we run. You know what they are - the events that you love, as well as groups like Greater Cleveland Congregations, the UU Association, and much more.
Here at SouthWest UU, our mission is to Inspire Wonder, to Radically Accept and Love, and to Joyfully Connect and Serve. Your pledge is a substantial part of your serving and it allows you to connect.