Sermons

READING ~ The Fact of It All, from Michael Battenberg
Is this not the source of all fascination, religious or otherwise? The fact of life and death. The fact of gravity and black holes. The fact of a Mind that appears to itself to be somehow of another world, yet whose workings are tied to a dizzying array for neurons, chemicals and electrical signals. The fact of a solitary parasitic wasp that can sniff out a caterpillar in a hole. The fact of a huge colony of honeybees that behaves as one superorganism, buzzing to a rhythm with no apparent conductor beside itself.
In my personal experience, I have found that exploring the world of the very small through my lens has revealed relationships between organisms that are the very foundation of my life. To know that beneath my feet intricate threads of mycelia, mats of living fungus, can spread for kilometers and are breaking down the molecules and minerals that will ultimately feed me leads me to revere all the processes that support life on this planet. And when I actually see and touch some of these threads, forms of life that seem alien but are anything but alien, I am filled with joy and wonder. And best of all, no belief was necessary to make it all work.
SERMON ~ “Listening to Nature’s Call.” by Rev. Charles J. Stephens
I love how Michael Battenberg describes how wonder & awe flow into him when he realizes that he is part of the natural order of things.
Millions of people come to Maine & other beautiful natural places – to renew their spirits with the joy & wonder Battenberg describes. Many of us choose to live here in Maine in order to renew our spirits with joy & wonder, just by being here. We are strengthened & we are nurtured & we are deepened in our understanding that we are interconnected with nature. We are being called by nature to recognize deep down that we are part of the natural process which calls us to have respect for all the other forms of nature.

For far too long, for centuries, we, in our Western society, have tried & succeeded to live with blatant ignorance, not wanting to acknowledge our relationship to all the forms of nature. We humans are an intrinsic part of the interconnected web of existence. Still at times many of us lack an awareness that we are tied to the earth.

On some general level, I have long realized my interconnection with the natural world. But, like most people I get distracted & live as if I am independent from nature. Fortunately, nature gives us repeated reminders of our interconnectedness.

Just that sort of thing happened on April 8th. Alison & I along with our daughter Heather drove to Houlton, ME to better observe the Solar Eclipse. Like 1000s, no millions of others around the world we watched the natural phenomenon of the Moon passing between the Earth & the sun, blotting out the light of the sun, an eerie darkness slowly covered the earth.

In a powerful way, we were reminded that we are part of the complex natural web of existence. I heard nature’s call that day reminding me of the powerful natural laws & forces that govern our universe, our solar system, our earth, our bodies and me personally. I was reminded that we are part of the flow of energy & the nonmaterial elements which make up the world & all that is.

Since April 8th, whenever I look up at the clouds or the stars or the moon in the sky, the waves & the tides in the ocean or just a potted plant in my home, I do so with renewed awe, wonder & respect. You know the feeling. When you walk out into the natural world, become quiet, look around & listen, something can change in us, call out to us. This is when we better appreciate one of our UU Principles, the affirmation of the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

For far too long we humans have tried to replace knowledge of the natural laws with humanly created theologies filled with supernatural beings, demons & immortal souls in imaginary realms, all products of human imagination. In recent history some have replaced the knowledge of the natural laws with our humanized creations of the internet, TV and AI. The awe & wonder I experienced when sensing an at-oneness with the natural world reinforced my identification with Religious Naturalism.

For me, the Religious Naturalist worldview answers questions & issues that religions have wrestled with from the dawn of time. I find deep religious meaning in nature which in its own right is sacred & worth devotion.

Religious Naturalists believe that it’s possible to live a spiritually fulfilling life based on nature alone, no beliefs. For me & for many others, nature evokes deep religious feelings of awe, amazing wonder, heartfelt gratitude, the desire to celebrate the earth & being alive within it. Of course, nature can also evoke a deep sense of fear & unparalleled dread during times of personal & natural catastrophe.

Natural catastrophes have dramatically increased as the climate is changing drastically, even as I speak. There is no need for me to enumerate all the natural disasters happening around the world in order to talk about human‐induced climate change as a real and threatening reality.

Here in Maine we can smell & see the effects of the smoke from the fires in the west. 2023 was the warmest year on record. 2024 looks to equal or exceed it.

The 10 warmest years on record have all occurred since 2014. Enough said, Climate Change is real & it is here.

It seems unbelievable to me that only 34 % of evangelical Christians view Climate Change as extremely important or a very serious problem. Fortunately the percentage rises to 55% of Mainline Protestants, 57 % for RC, 68 % of Black churches, 70% of nones, 80% for Agnostics, and 88% for Atheists. My guess is that the percentage might be over 98% of you gathered here today.

What is called for in the face of Climate confusion is the reframing of we humans as being an organic part of the natural processes. This is when we are better able to appreciate our role as caretakers of our home, our planet, our Mother, the Earth.

Le Anne Schreiber, was a journalist, who wrote about growing up & understanding, but not liking the concept of the top to bottom concept of being in a “chain of being.” So when she first heard about the concept of the “web of Life” she was drawn to it. She found the challenge of the chain was accepting her place in it, the challenge of the web was finding her place in it. Within the web, she realized, “…the impact of my every foot fall, but of course the effects run back & forth, leaving me altered as I alter. {Parabola, Summer 2004}

When we sense that we are part of the web of life, we gain the perspective altering & being altered by our place in the web of the natural world & all the animate & inanimate elements. Speaking about Climate Change, the Dali Lama suggests that we approach the problem of Climate Change as we would if we had a problem with our house or home. He says: “We know that to have happy feelings in our house we must take care of it.”

Looking at our planet as our house can motivate us to take care of it because we are obviously concerned about our happiness but also concerned for the happiness of our children, our friends & all other sentient beings with whom we share this house, this earth, this universe, this web of existence. We humans are A portion of nature made aware of ourselves.

Consider that from a strictly biological perspective, we humans are organisms that have slowly evolved by the process of natural selection from our earlier primate relatives. From one generation to another generation, the species that are now alive have gradually adapted to changing environments, which enabled them/us to continue to survive. Now, however, the survival of life on earth as we know it, is being threatened by our human activities – because we lack a commitment to our being part of the web of life.

Like Raven in the story “Too Much of a Good Thing” we humans, at times, can forget & consume too much of a good thing. And, like Raven, too much of a good thing can cause a crash, a fall & a problem

The message from the rest of the family of nature comes through the negative impacts of Climate Change: the tornadoes, the floods, the fires & the melting of glaciers & the droughts. All these events are telling us humans that we have & are consuming too much. Too much of a good thing leads to a lack of respect for the earth’s other living things. It can extend to a lack of respect for our descendants & future generations who cannot expect the magic of Raven to solve their problems.

Everything has its limit. Nature is calling out to us, To come home to our natural place in the universe with renewed respect for all the earth’s living things. Including respect for our descendants & future generations. Let us become aware as the late Malidoma Some tells us that
All of us carry within ourselves something that is waiting (waiting) for the right moment when it can burst out and repair the particular separation that we are experiencing…Nature is still alive in us, and that is why we feel we are in exile.
Malidoma Some, The Healing Wisdom of Africa
Sensing our connection with nature let us heed the call of nature & return from our exile to our place in the interconnected web of existence of which we long to be – a responsive part. This is the hope & the plan of nature – for all its parts. Let us live inside this hope, respecting nature’s patterns and laws. Let us not merely admire nature from a perspective of independent actors. Rather let us live right within our natural home. This wonderful, nurturing & welcoming home, which allows us to touch the very threads of life filling us with joy & wonder.