Home, Sweet Home
June 11, 2006
I’ve wavered about today’s sermon title, “Home, Sweet Home,” because any Unitarian Universalist congregation worth its salt won’t be merely a haven for sweetness and light. We don’t major in syrup or sentimentality; hence, there will be in this very house, in the days ahead, plenty of intelligent rage and friction born of compassion.
Nonetheless, my friends, it is truly a sweet day, a very sweet day, for you’ve accomplished the “heroic”; you’ve purchased, then made hospitable, your very first home. And such sweetness needs to be celebrated -- a delicious sweetness that will linger for many moons. Hallelujah and hip-hip-hooray. Please join me, altogether, with three hearty hip-hip-hoorays for all Summitarians: past, present, and future.
I’m biased, but I believe that if we resemble a genuinely sweet people within these walls, toward one another and all who enter our doors, we’ll be in great shape to spread such sweetness abroad in East County. For, if I’m not mistaken: our tormented, oft-ugly world could use a whole lot more gentleness, kindness, yes, sweetness if we’re going to make it to the other side.
Wow, you’ve done it; you’re moving into your very first home. I say moving, not moved, because we ain’t entirely in yet. We’re still ordering stuff, still arranging and beautifying our home. Crucial items are missing, like banks of lights above, and so much more, but you’ve accomplished an incredible amount in under 3 months. And remember, friends, that good art is always a work in progress. And, furthermore, the 16th century watchwords of our particular brand of religion are semper reformanda, which translate “ever evolving,” and that’s what we’re doing lots of right now, and always will be. For semper reformanda is our fundamental mantra as a religious people!
When I offer you my heartiest congratulations as your interim minister, I can hear, as well, loud cheers from Unitarian Universalist partisans throughout our San Diego cluster -- a handful of whom are present today plus others of whom have supported our liberal religious outpost with their generous gifts -- and we thank each and every one of you, our spiritual kin, from the bottom of our Summit souls. For, in our minority liberal religious movement, the success of a new outpost marks a success for every one of the 160,000 Unitarian Universalists throughout the continent. Summit has finally grounded its mission on its own piece of turf, and that’s great cause for universal rejoicing.
If Summit’s been wandering in the wilderness for 18+ years, you’re now settlers, for the foreseeable future, on your own hunk of land. Clearly, you’ve learned the art of living out of boxes and in someone’s else’s abode; now you’ve got to master the art of living in your own home. Some of the same skills will be required, my friends, but different ones as well.
We’re now the stewards of this sacred site on the corner of Cottonwood and Buena Vista. Our actual address is 8778 Cottonwood, but I don’t want to leave out Buena Vista, because those two words remind us that we’re not only beneficiaries of a “good view” here in Santee but must become holders of a grand vision. For, as a religious people, we never exist merely for ourselves; we always try to shine forth as a beacon of light and liberation for the larger world.
So, it’s our turn now to play the central role in visioning, then shaping, the specific future we want to happen within and beyond these walls, right here in East County, because if we don’t essentially sculpt our own future, it will be done for us, by outside forces and quirks of fate. Or as I like to say: good religion isn’t about believing in the future so much as behaving the future in!
Since our earliest Unitarian and Universalist forebears settled in San Diego nearly 140 years ago, there have reportedly been three short-lived experiments here in East County. But, as our Unitarian fore-sister Susan B. Anthony shouted, a century ago: “Failure is impossible!” Yes, failure will now be impossible if we stay on purpose, if we dare to create a beloved community of compassionate freethinkers with a civic circumference rather than devolve into a group with a comfortable but insular feel.
This time around, I contend that Unitarian Universalism will succeed in East County, because we know that we belong to a Love that will never let us go, will never let us down, and will never let us off. “Rest assured,” as our Universalist forebears boldly said.
Again, I personally want to thank all those Summitarians, living and dead, who were steadfast stakeholders in converting the Masonic lodge into a religious community, over a span of roughly 936 Sundays. So, blessings upon our forebears; for we now sit upon their shoulders, and we owe them an eternal debt of gratitude. And my parents told me that such a debt is only paid off by growing tomorrows of which our ancestors can be proud.
We’re also inspired by similar stories of bravery throughout the human history. Just one example, the black people of South Africa. Mildred Motsuenane, a blind, arthritic mother of ten children was seen weeping in triumph after voting for the first time in her life in a church in the Soweto ghetto on April 29, 1994. “I can tell you dawn is breaking and the dark night is going away. My parents never saw this day. My husband never saw this day. Lots of my friends never saw this day. But now I’m going to the cemetery and tell their bones that I voted.”
To be sure, our story is different, not as dramatic as Soweto, but every story of homecoming counts. Summit’s pilgrimage from Tommy Drive to Cottonwood Avenue is a real and valiant story, which took ample grit and grace. And we’re here today to tell the bones of our Summit ancestors that we made it, that we exist in the eyes of the world, because we finally have our own address.
And we’re also unabashedly announcing to the surrounding neighborhood that, from this day forward, you can count on there being a progressive batch of freethinking mystics with hands in East County, because we refuse to travel either backwards or sideways but plan to keep marching forward. Yes, Summit UU Fellowship plans to stay and sing and serve and make this corner of the county a bit more just and joyful for our having been planted here.
Yet, in the midst of our raw enthusiasm, it’s my job as your interim minister not to get too carried away (which is easy for the shameless cheerleader you currently have in the pulpit to do), let alone allow you to float afield on the wings of exuberance. For you and I know, down-deep, that Cottonwood Avenue isn’t the Promised Land. Indeed, no sacred site ever is, whether in America’s Finest City or anywhere else.
When Yahweh created the universe, it wasn’t deemed perfect; it was deemed good, indeed very good, literally “adequate to its purposes.” And so, that’s all what we Summitarians can claim today. We’ve bought and are reshaping this property into a good, yea very good home, adequate to our purposes for now.
We didn’t build these structures, but we’re fashioning them according to our own aspirations and resources. And our prayer is simple: may we come to be known, both near and far, as reverent and loving stewards of this land, as long as we belong to it and it belongs to us!
Friends, they say that cab drivers in New York City make about 200 critical decisions for every mile they drive. And our decision-making, while different, will resemble the cabbies more than we think, for crucial choice after crucial choice will need to be thoughtfully and caringly made . . . by every committed Summitarian, in the days and nights ahead.
Furthermore, just as we appreciated the many kindnesses of the Masonic Lodge folks, and told their Master Joe Allen so on May 21st, we would pay sincere homage, on this first Sunday of worship in our new home, to Esther Jaw, proprietor of the Beauty Salon, who had the foresight to build her salon back in 1988 (oddly enough, the same year Summit moved into the Lodge). And then Esther fearlessly went on to improve her corner property with these additional structures. We are also beholden to any realtors and architects, contractors and laborers whose communal sweat has fertilized this site. And for all those paid and unpaid who’ve worked so arduously over the past months to make these spaces ours and usable for today’s worship, our profoundest gratitude! Come on, comrades, stand up and be praised!
We would also offer a blessing to our sister-brother congregation, Calvary Chapel, who warmed several rooms, primarily this sanctuary, with song and speech and prayer, for years, and now have moved on, ironically, to their own place on Summit Avenue.
To be sure, we represent different faiths; yet are we not all God’s children, moreover, siblings who must learn how to respect one another? We bear a common humanity, which makes us more alike than not, and, surely as Universalists we stand devoted, yea convicted, to building caring alliances wherever we can . . . for our religion won’t allow us to throw anyone out of our hearts.
I have no illusions; many are the times when we Unitarian Universalists have not been welcome in ecumenical settings because of our progressive, oft-considered heathen, views. Indeed, I’m reminded of the story of a small band of Unitarians in Wyoming. When one member died, and there was no available Unitarian Universalist minister to conduct the memorial, the family approached an outside clergy and asked if he could perform the service. The clergy allowed as if he’d be willing to do so, but first, in order to be on the safe side, had to contact the bishop for permission.
A few days later, he received a reply, “Permission granted. Bury all the Unitarians you want!”
Yes, there are plenty of religious folks in Santee who aren’t celebrating our arrival, but I want them to know that, even if they’re inclined to exclude us from their welcome, we won’t reciprocate. For ours is an inclusive faith; we will become faithful teammates with any pilgrim willing to serve the Spirit . . . serving the world.
In a mystical sense, Calvary Chapel folks come with our new property. They will always be a part of the history of this site, and therewith a part of our evolving story as well.
So, I hope when we have our grand dedication, several months off, perhaps early in 2007, after we’ve scuffed up this place enough to call it our own …that a representative from the larger religious community of Santee will agree to participate in the celebration of our Unitarian Universalist parish. And if they turn us down, it won’t be for lack of our heartfelt invitation.
Here’s my larger point, if radically different religious groups whether in the Middle East or in Ireland, in the American south or in the East County of San Diego won’t choose to build bridges of reconciliation, then what hope is there for our globe? Just as religious wars prove to be the worst kind; so also religious cooperation can become the best kind.
Unitarian Universalism has the name, the history, the identity, the mission to lead the way in forging such bridges of collaboration. Openness and humility are how we do religion, at our truest. So, I ask you: if not in East County, then where? If not in 2006, then when?
“People,” writes Thich Nhat Hanh “usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth.”
Yes, indeed, it’s a genuine miracle for Summit to be sauntering on this sacred ground. So, today after the service, during our modest open house, and in the days ahead, walk around, smell the paint, whistle a tune, ogle the spaces, greet a newcomer as well as hug a buddy, jump for joy, and yes prepare to keep on volunteering to weed the soil, pay the pledges, and conduct the difficult meetings that will convert this collection of folks into a beloved community.
And so, from this day forward, we pledge to walk our talk and talk our walk in Santee, however imperfectly. We pledge to sing and serve, fellowshipping around a meal or dance or intergenerational party. We’ll be repairing our home’s nicks and bruises as well as tearing down this and shifting that.
We’ll be giving voice to our highest joys and deepest sorrows, trusting to be held in one another’s holy embrace. We’ll have art shows and meditation circles, circle conversations and auctions, music concerts and social justice events. We’ll be giving our heads and hearts to church business as well as celebrating life-and-death passages of our members. Our children will be learning and playing within these holy walls, alongside adults doing likewise, and, if we stay on mission, our real estate will be well used, especially welcoming the marginalized and outcast of East County who have no other place to meet, let alone a place to call home.
So, let us tread reverently on this sacred turf. Let us adorn the rooms as if we were beautifying our own private homes. Within these walls, may we listen to one another with both respect and patience. And may we always welcome both neighbor and stranger, as if Moses or Mary Magdalene, Buddha or Clara Barton were paying us a visit.
I assure you, folks, if we resemble our simple yet profound Aspiration -- namely, being a people of open minds, loving hearts, and welcoming hands -- then this site will both transform the souls within as well as reform the society without
Naturally, Summit’s mission in East County will be slightly different than it would be in Hillcrest or Solana Beach, in Escondido or South Bay, not because our common gospel differs, but because distinct sites require distinct ministries. So, this coming year, we will “hasten slowly” to discern what are the premier needs that we can best meet in Santee as a liberal religion, always hoping to stand in compassionate coalition with others of good will.
This is our mission field, and this is our era. And we exist to insure that the inherent worth and dignity of every Santeean is well-served. And when people get to know us, they may not agree with our philosophy or even our actions, but they won’t be able to deny our compassion. They may argue with our theology, but they’ll surely feel our universal love.
So, folks, 8878 Cottonwood is holy ground, and we’ll keep it so by worshipping in reverence, growing families of character, opening doors to those who seek our liberating gospel, and serving fellow travelers in need. If we do that, say 70% of the time, we’ll have earned our reason for moving here; indeed, we’ll be furnishing a worthy religious alternative in East County.
You and I can’t live a grounded life without being grounded in a place. And Santee is now our ground as Summitarians, where we belong -- our tilling ground, our holy ground, our battleground, our growing ground.
May we grow worthy of this sacred soil: today, tomorrow, and far into seasons beyond counting!
Shalom, salaam, blessed be, and amen.
Tom Owen-Towle
June 11, 2006
