Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Punctuating Faith

“God is still speaking.” The United Church of Christ launched the “StillSpeaking” campaign in 2004 to help increase the relevance and welcoming capacity of religion. In presenting the idea that “God is still speaking,” the UCC reminded people that God, or the divine mystery that some call God, still speaks to us today, through people, nature, new understandings of holy texts, the arts, and more. The symbol for this campaign was the comma, indicating the continuation of something that already exists. Something that we were born into, but that is not yet finished. The comma reminds us that revelation is ongoing and evolving, which means that we can always learn something new – if we are willing to listen.

 “Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim.” “Insha’Allah.” “Alhamdulillah.” For many followers of Islam, these are another way of punctuating faith, of repeatedly inserting reminders of God into one’s daily life. The first is often said before eating or drinking. The second means “if God wills” or “God willing,” and is often said after one shares future plans. The third is a way to praise God at any moment, and is often used at times when we might say “thank goodness” or “thankfully.” With these phrases, Islam also punctuates life, but not with marks like the United Church of Christ; Islam punctuates life with gratitude. Gratitude for the gifts that we receive in our lives, for the forces that are so beyond our control that we cannot name or understand them, yet we know that they are there, sustaining our lives.

“Let us give reverent attention in our worship life and our educational work to serving the beauty and goodness of life…Let us make love the first—and not the last—resort.” In the face of the brokenness in the world, Unitarian Universalist minister Rev. Dr. Rebecca Parker reminds us to intentionally place love at the forefront of our faith. She reminds us that we too can punctuate. So how do you as a Unitarian Universalist understand the mystery that some call God, the divine, Love, the source, or creation? In what ways do you remember and honor its presence throughout your days? How do you punctuate your faith?