Driving around the other day I turned on the radio in time to hear one of the local public radio program hosts interviewing a philosophy professor from a local university. The topic was an idea put forth by Lou Marinoff in a book entitled Plato, Not Prozac. Marinoff apparently states that many of life's problems are philosophical not psychological. Rather than spending years in therapy, you should go to your friendly philosopher who would first hear about your struggles and then give you a reading list. Presumably, you would go home and dig into Plato or Spinoza and come back for a couple of conversations. You would work on your own life stance with regard to the issues with which you are dealing. And, you would only need to have 3 visits with the philosophical counselor.

I thought two things as I drove along. First, yes, that makes good sense. Second, Hel-lo-o! That's what church is for.

The 20th century has seen the rising of a professional class. Indeed, many of us at UCE occupy it. Along with the rise of professional expertise there has been a waning of individual authority and agency. We rely on experts. (Not that there aren't mental illnesses that need to be treated medically. Not that you can pick up an Idiot's Manual and tune your Saab.) But I wonder how much we have replaced personal relationships with friends and community with a professional staff?

Church remains a multi-generational community of companions -- people with whom you can share the ups and downs of your life; people among whom you can be a whole person, not the fragment-of-self you are at work, or the fragment-of-self you occupy in your family. At church you are among people with whom you can explore the big questions -- Why am I here? Where am I going? How should I live? Why do bad things happen? What's next? Your companions will keep a candle burning when you enter a dark place, and rejoice with you when you emerge.

Life is not supposed to be like elevator music. Your life will be punctuated by sorrow and joy. You will succeed sometimes and fail sometimes. You can come to feel at home in your life. You can help make the world better. And, with some work and some grace you can come to know a pervasive, inexplicable sense of gratitude. We honor and celebrate the whole of life at church.

See you in church! Ann