Last Sunday, my husband and I visited the local Unitarian church that feeds us so well. Jim and I sat near the front. The day’s leader took her place, lit the candles, and led the prayers that are prayed each Sunday—prayers of peace and of thankfulness for the freedom we’ve been given.
I held Jim’s hand as I listened to a rare litany that captured my heart, that came across as a basic Jesus teaching. I sat forward not wanting to miss one word …
Litany of Restoration
If, recognizing the interdependence of all life, we strive to build community, the strength we gather will be our salvation …
If you are black and I am white,
It will not matter.
If you are female and I am male,
It will not matter
If you are older and I am younger,
It will not matter
If you are progressive and I am conservative,
It will not matter
If you are straight and I am gay,
It will not matter
If you are Christian and I am Jewish
It will not matter
If we join spirits as brothers and sisters, the pain of our aloneness will be lessened,
And that does matter. In this spirit, we build community and move toward restoration.
As we drove home, I reflected on the coming Thanksgiving feast, and what, after all, does really matter as we approach our table laden with all sorts of traditional nourishing fare.
In my many years I’ve attended numerous Thanksgiving repasts, felt all manner of Thanksgiving grace poured out, lost myself in endless chatter with my tablemates about mundane and not so mundane matters.
Would it be too much to ask that this spirit of Thanksgiving continue throughout the year? Rather than what I heard last weekend from the lips of my friend, a savvy and totally caring pastor.
This world’s becoming more dangerous, more and more evil. Even if he thought so, does such a statement help to change anything? I guess he didn’t realize it—we rarely do—but that sort of fear mongering conversation accomplishes exactly the opposite of this season’s ennobling goodwill.
