In the comments of the last entry, Ogre pointed out that Rev. Robert Hardies (senior minister of All Souls Church in Washington DC) taught a class on UU spiritual practice at Meadville Lombard seminary. A little googling turned up the syllabus from that class and this sermon Rev. Hardies preached on “The Practice of Reverence.” I encourage you to read them both – they’re worth your time, even if you already have a strong spiritual practice.A syllabus and a sermon… Read more

All that was said in the comments of the last post (and thanks to all who participated in the discussion) seems to confirm my suspicion that there is no religious center in Unitarian Universalism. And this small sample size seems to be quite OK with that.I shouldn’t be surprised. When I look around at other denominations, I don’t see much in the way of religious centers there either.The Episcopal Church is currently in the middle of a nasty schism precipitated… Read more

Star UU blogger PeaceBang set off quite an uproar with this post on covenants. In it, she passionately proclaims that religious covenants always originate with God. She offers a way to interpret that in humanistic terms, but says that attempting to form covenants without reverence is blasphemy. She knows she’s being provocative – she says “I just said BLASPHEMY! But dern it, I mean it.”I remember enough from Baptist Sunday School to know she’s not wrong. Biblical covenants were God’s… Read more

The Danu Portal, with gate, elemental altars, spiral labyrinth, and Brigid’s Cross. Some of the Grove Pavilion tents are in the background.Last year I attended a Saturday workshop on meditation, led by a Buddhist monk. We practiced several different types of postures and meditations, all with an emphasis on mindfulness. It was helpful, but what I remember most of all was Br. ChiSing’s final recommendations: practice alone daily, practice with a group weekly, and attend a retreat or seminar quarterly.Daily… Read more

Three issues are guaranteed to bring zealots (on all sides) out of the woodwork: abortion, gay marriage, and evolution. This week’s “Texas Faith” question on the DMN Religion Blog is variation on the third. It asks “How would you make a case for mutual engagement between science and religion?”The panelists gave mostly good answers, while the comments have quickly become polarized. Here’s part of my comment:Religion and science both seek truth, but they approach it from different perspectives. Science seeks… Read more

Last month I posted a picture of a small rabbit I found in my back yard. As I was cutting grass this morning, I saw two rabbits, and they were much larger. My first impulse was the product of millions of years of evolution – and a Tennessee upbringing that was more rural than suburban: “just the right size to eat!”My father kept rabbits for a while when I was growing up (along with cows and chickens and horses and… Read more

After last night’s blog about the need to maintain spiritual practice especially during difficult times, I have to post this.In addition to my rather brief evening prayers, I did a little energy work last night. Ground, center, connect with the Earth below and the Sky above. Draw in energy, store some, use most of it on a basic shielding exercise. I use a version taught by OBOD, but it’s the same basic technique used by just about every Pagan, Wiccan,… Read more

As jobs go, mine is a pretty good one. Nice working environment, decent people, mostly reasonable expectations. I do sales and operations planning, which is something I do well. Pay is mediocre and benefits are below average, but they’re enough. We’ve had several rounds of layoffs due to the recession and (as far as I know, anyway) I’ve never been in any real danger.But the last four months in general and the last six weeks in particular have been rather… Read more

The Dallas Morning News Religion Blog is a shadow of its former self. It’s been de-staffed – about all that’s left is the weekly “Texas Faith” forum. But this week’s question gave me a perfect opportunity to introduce some explicitly Pagan material. You can read the whole thing here.The question was: “We live in society where so much attention is devoted to work. But we’re headed into August, the vacation month. What do your spiritual paths say about the role… Read more

I’ve always thought of myself as an American – period. But if you push me for a regional identity, I’m a Tennessean. Always have been, always will be. I was born in Tennessee, grew up in Tennessee, went to school in Tennessee, and lived in Tennessee for almost all of my first 33 years. Much of my family and many of my friends are still in Tennessee. I felt at home in Atlanta and I’ve made a home in Dallas,… Read more