Finding and Giving Joy

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Stuart Walsh
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1 Finding and Giving Joy December 20, 2015 Rev. Susan Berryman The theme this month is celebrating joy so this morning I m going to focus on the finding and the giving of joy. In the book The Inherent Worth and Dignity of All Individuals: Encouraging Full Participation in Our Unitarian Universalist...by Dr. Bobby Newman There is an excerpt by Tom Owen-Towle that recounts an ancient Egyptian myth which says that after death, every individual is "confronted by the god Osiris with a quiz that must be answered honestly. After 42 routine questions concerning how the deceased had lived, Osiris asks a final and crucial two-part question: First, did you find joy? and second, did you give joy. According to this ancient Egyptian myth it s not possible to lie to Osiris, and everything is at stake because if it s possible to honestly answer yes to these questions, they re returned to continued existence, but if the answer is no, then they are taken away to the swamp to be eaten by a hippopotamus!" This old Egyptian myth teaches a valuable lesson about the purpose of life...note, that the emphasis is not on what we produce, our job or status, how much money we make, or the accumulation of possessions, not even on our creative talents or our good works. The purpose of our earthly journey according to the Ancient Egyptian religion is simply this: Did you find joy in your own life and did you give joy to others during your earthly sojourn?" Did you find and give joy??? This simple myth summarizes with straightforward clarity the nature of a full, balanced and responsible spiritual life. One that s found within the dynamic interplay" of: 1

2 One =Tending to our singular, individual self in ways that allow us to achieve our personal spiritual destiny of a joyful and satisfying life, while on the other hand, Two =Reaching out compassionately and responsibly in the ways that enhance, enrich and dignify the lives of others and indeed of creation itself. So let s explore this dualistic journey toward human wholeness and purpose...by first looking at the "finding joy" side of the spiritual equation. I ve come to believe that the first key to finding and achieving satisfaction and joy in life on this earthly plane is consciousness awareness through the practice of mindfulness. Becoming mindful in our daily routines by being present to life as we live it...another way to put it, is to succeed at life and achieve enduring satisfaction, wholeness, peace and joy is to be mindfully present- and keenly attentive to the ordinary flow of our daily existence as it happens right where we live day to day and moment by moment right here, right now. I ve also come to believe that perhaps the greatest danger to conscious awareness in our lives today is distraction...the simple and persistent distractions of our frenetic, electronically-driven, digitized and computerized speedy culture that distracts us from the fundamentals of our human existence; distracts us from the quiet inner realms of our being, from our thoughts, emotions, feelings- our very soul. We become too distracted from our family, and friends. and from the healing grace and beauty of nature. To be fully human and spiritually connected it is important to regularly remind ourselves to pay attention, to be mindful to what is right at our fingertips (and I don't mean computers and cell phones and I Pads!) 2

3 I mean the need to practice mindfulness by purposefully slowing down, quieting the mind, opening the heart and awakening our consciousness so that we can notice and take in the call of a song bird, -.the smile of a child,.-the beautiful melody and lyrics of music, the smell of a flower, the wisdom of our elders and the life affirming moments deeply shared with a friend, or the written or spoken words of the awakened. One sure way to find joy in our daily life is by paying radical attention to the simple holiness that surrounds us -by putting down our gadgets, turning off the television and simply being in the world right where it touches us using all our senses of sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. It is in this simplicity that we find gratitude for life itself.. And it s in the spiritual habit of being grateful deep in our heart grateful for the liberty and opportunity to be alive in this rich and interesting creation that connects us to our spirit. The Twentieth Century British Unitarian theologian L.P. Jacks reminded his generation that, "Religion is primarily an affair of Gratitude."And the mystic Meister Eckhart once said, "If you manage only one prayer in your life, and that prayer is simply 'Thank You' it will be sufficient." The opposite of gratitude is winging, griping, complaining, critical thought and speech. We all know that life in this uncertain and difficult world provides us with ample excuses to focus on everything that is wrong, disagreeable or unpleasant...and for sure we can fill our days with complaints and protests that life does not singularly devote itself to our personal happiness. Indeed, griping (in case you haven't noticed) is one of humanities favorite pastimes -and we have to work hard not to fall victim to it. 3

4 A wise and spiritually connected person knows to focus instead on simple, open hearted gratitude. There is so much to be grateful for even as we suffer or feel defensive or misunderstood we can always be grateful for the miracle of birth, the miracle of Christmas, and for the miracle of life itself. It is a miracle having a life on this rich and generous planet; having friends, family, and community, food and sleep, work and play, song and dance, thought and emotion, and the opportunity to make life meaningful every day. As your minister, on this Christmas week I d like to affirmed that if we want to find lasting joy and satisfaction in our life, we must learn to open our heart and know how to graciously receive the blessings of this world...and be grateful (truly grateful, right down to our bones) just for the chance to experience this rich and amazing (and challenging) creation. With the prayer Thank you. The other day as I was driving the long way back from Arizona which could have made me resent the long monotony, yet somehow, because I desire to be grateful as much as I can - I looked out at the great expanse of desert and the long ribbon of road stretching to the horizon and the day was lifted in brightness and amazing grace. Gratitude swept over me and I felt grateful for my life, for Peter s life for my family and home, and of course our dog Tucker. I felt grateful for this vast country and to be on the move and to be coming back here to this community. Gratitude is a simple, everyday attitude of the heart that can brighten even the darkest and dreariest of moments. Gratitude is primary for a life of satisfaction and of joy!. And this leads to the third crucial spiritual ingredient required if we are to find joy and satisfaction in this life...that is resilience and faith. 4

5 Life is a difficult business. As the Buddha says Life is suffering. To live is to get knocked down and to have unpleasant and unfair things happen to us that can steal the wind from our sails, and renders us adrift and sometimes feeling we don t have the capacity for positive or forward movement. But because this is the complicated way life is -we need to regularly practice resilience and faith during and after the hard knocks if we are to find our way to joy, hope and meaning. When life gets difficult -as it invariably does -we need to find way in our emotional and spiritual self to roll with the punches, to look for new doors to open toward the light, and have faith and confidence that there are choices we can make that will help us to wend our way back to calm, satisfaction and joy. This may sound simplistic or even trite to some, but I believe the spiritual choices that we make when we face inevitable adversity, challenge and sorrow in our lives can lead us back toward our truth, our path our destiny and our joy. These choices make all the difference in the quality of our life. Without resilience, faith and hope it s difficult to find and keep satisfaction in our lives, through the inevitable rocky times. So for the "Finding Joy" we need mindfulness, gratitude, resilience and faith to achieve our destiny of a satisfying and joyful life, but what about the equally important "Giving Joy" side of the spiritual equation It s not possible to achieve fullness of human and spiritual being by simply focusing attentions on the internal realm of our own personal needs and satisfaction...any such narcissistic self-focused will eventually poisons us. To reach our full and finest individual potential (as all religious traditions teach) we must also regularly look and act and care outward...striving always in many 5

6 countless small ways to give joy to other living beings...thus generously sharing with others the possibilities of "the good life" we seek for ourselves. To me, sharing joy always begins at the simplest level of human interaction, and that is with kindness...pure and simple compassionate kindness. The great British Philosopher Aldous Huxley once powerfully and simply observed, "It is a bit embarrassing to have been concerned with 'the human problem' all one's life, and find that, at the end, one has no more to offer by way of advice than, 'try to be a little kinder'" I once saw a bumper sticker that said, "Dear Lord, help me to become the person my dog thinks I am!" Now..I might also say Dear Lord, help me be as kind as my dog is, because kindness is the only way he is. Practicing kindness in our daily life may seem obvious or even inconsequential to some...but to me ordinary, everyday kindness is the sure sign of a person who is living out of and up to his or her spiritual principles. There s another bumper sticker which reads, "I love humanity, its people I can't stand." Well, the truth is, that if we re not routinely being kind, generous, understanding and compassionate to the people immediately around us everyday our family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and our fellow criticizes, our spiritual principles and aspirations directed toward humanity as a whole will mean little or nothing at all. Kindness is more than formulaic courtesy and convention, it is a powerful every day spiritual practice that will shape the very substance of our soul, and determine the quality of our character. I think it was Unitarian poet Ralph Waldo Emerson 6

7 who once wisely said, "Be careful how you live, it is the only sermon you will ever preach." And Thomas Jefferson similarly said, "It is from our lives, and not from our words, that our religion must be read." To be a Unitarian Universalist is to strive, every day, to bring the compassion and kindness of our faith to our every day interactions with each other and with others. Simply put, if we are not kind, we are not a Unitarian Universalist...period This brings me to the second dimension of "giving joy" which defines for me what it means to be spiritual and that is -compassion and empathy toward all beings. All of the world's great religious traditions including ours, understand the primacy of "The Golden Rule," the simple-yet-demanding human imperative to "do unto others as you would have them do unto you.", or Don t do to others what you don t want done to you. It s the great reciprocal principle and obligation to treat others with the kindness, generosity, respect, and understanding that we want for ourselves. It lies at the core of religious impulse and it is animated by the intuitive understanding that, when all is said and done, all human beings are bound together in a commonality and oneness that must be recognized and honored. This is certainly the most central affirmation of our Unitarian Universalist faith...we begin our principles by declaring "The inherent worth and dignity of all persons," Our other principles go on to affirm the duty we have to treat all persons everywhere with compassion, understanding, respect, justice and love. So if we have at the very core of our being, our soul the understanding and appreciation for our radical belonging and connection to everyone, everywhere then we will lead lives that will make a positive difference in this troubled, sorrowful, and difficult world of ours. 7

8 And this leads me to the final and profoundly important aspect of "giving joy" and that is...justice seeking. As important as personal kindness and empathy and compassion are in our daily living (for again, they shape the very substance of our souls) we have still not fulfilled our duty in the world if we have not tirelessly worked to (as the Rev. Theodore Parker put it in 1853) try to bend the world "toward justice." For reasons that have always plagued humanity, our world is a profoundly unjust place, marked by painful inequity, inequality, brutality, cruelty, violence, prejudice, and neglect. And I believe it is impossible in a world such as ours for a truly spiritual person to ignore the demands for greater justice, equality, decency and peace for all of humanity. A key component of our faith is to roll up our sleeves and work for justice, both in the locally and in the wider world. This is why the work of our Social Justice Committee is so important, and so essential to what we do as a spiritual community. As UUs, we re committed (individually and collectively) to speak up and act toward the powers and principalities that give shape to the common life we all share as citizens. This is the hardest work of our faith, because it regularly requires that we give time and money, take personal and political risks, and make sacrifices so that others may breathe and live more easily. In a world as imperfect and painful as ours, it seems impossible (sadly) to imagine a world that is totally just, totally fair, totally inclusive, totally peaceful, beautiful and safe. But our spiritual imperative is to work for and seek greater justice, 8

9 greater hope, and greater dignity for persons everywhere. Working and praying for justice is giving joy back to the world. And so, on the eve of Christmas 2015 I offer this simple but heart-felt prayer that we may, individually and together, evermore lead lives that enable us in equal and complimentary measure to both find joy and give joy and in our daily life, finding the spiritual wisdom to both. 1. Tend to the satisfactions found in "the garden of the self" by practicing mindfulness, gratitude, resilience and faith...while at the same time, 2. Reaching out lovingly and responsibly to other life and persons by intentionally being kind, compassionate and empathetic, while seeking justice...forever seeking justice, I take it on faith, that it is within the dynamic and profound dance of both finding and giving joy that we will find the path to wholeness, purpose, and to peace on our one and only earth.. I wish each you the merriest and most joyful Christmas season and New Year and may you never face the hippopotamus. Blessings, Merry Christmas and Nameste 9

10 Final Words May the joy of this season brighten and lighten your heart May you find way to bring joy into your heart and home May you find opportunities to give joy to all who enter your world May you be an instrument of joy and peace Amen And I invite you to stay and sing and both give and receive the joy of Christmas 10

Oh, The Places We ll Go!

Oh, The Places We ll Go! Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray UU Congregation of Phoenix April 20, 2008 from Oh, The Places You Will Go! by Dr. Seuss Congratulations! Today is your day. You re off to Great Places!