Personal Statement on Ministry

One of the best reasons I have ever encountered for being a Christian, I heard as a college student. It had nothing to do with Biblical scholarship. It did not refer to archeological evidence from the Judean countryside or argue from the Dead Sea Scrolls. No testaments to visions or immediate encounters with Christ were recounted. No, the reason was simpler than that. Rather, the best reason I have heard for being a Christian was that "the story moved me."

This may sound a bit glib at first. But for me it is the most simple and elegant reason for why I too am a Christian. The story moves me. I feel convicted and inspired by the happenings and the teachings of this Jesus of Nazareth. This is the case even though I know that the Gospel narratives are strewn with inconsistencies. I know that in many sections, the New Testament is more ancient rhetoric than history. I realize that the whole notion of the Messiah, of Emmanuel - of God being with us - developed and changed over time. However, when I bracket my biblical criticism and just let the story work on me and through me - it does. There in the narrative descriptions of a wandering Jewish rabbi, who dared to question his own religion and the power of the Romans, I find renewal and inspiration for my own vision of the Kingdom of God.

And so it is in this tradition that I choose to anchor my ministry within the Unitarian Universalist Association. I am a U.U. Christian in the Free Church Tradition. I take from Unitarianism a relatively ‘low’ view of Jesus; that of teacher and prophet. I take from Universalism a firm belief that ultimately the grace of God extends to all people - indeed perhaps to everything. While I also have been influenced by other religions of the world, Buddhism in particular, it is as a follower of Jesus that I choose to make my path.

Philosophically, I would describe myself as a pragmatist; I believe in "Truth with a capital T," but I realize that our ability to conceptualize it, to articulate it, is forever limited. James Luther Adams, a prominent Unitarian minister and theologian from this century, states that the "Transcendent perennially eludes domestication." I believe those are wise words. They suggest to religious liberals that revelation is never complete. Rather, it is an ongoing process in which we, as sincere religious people, must also participate.

My call to ministry arises out of my belief in this ongoing process of revelation and redemption. I would describe myself as a regenerative seeker of truth; as someone who has encountered moments of grace in his life and is committed to creating those moments - those possibilities for others - in their encounters with God. Krister Stendahl, the Dean Emeritus of Harvard Divinity School, describes these moments of grace as the "ongoing mending of Creation." I like this because it suggests a rather subtle, somewhat mundane and everyday process.

Thus, I see my role in ministry as a leader and catalyst in the ongoing creation of community, indeed church. Be it crafting a thought-provoking sermon, telling a good story, leading a service, working with a youth group, advocating for a social justice program or simply visiting with a parishioner, I try to let my approach to Christianity come out and inform my ministry. I also try to share my own life of the mind and spirit, such as my concern for the environment, my attempts at Tai Chi, my interests in Religion and Science or my admiration of Liberation Theology. By sharing my own pilgrimage, I hope both to inspire and learn from others. By helping to create a liberal religious community, I hope somehow to be a small part of God’s "ongoing mending of Creation."