Openings and Closings -- Vision and Values in a Post-9/11 World-- Issues

A. Powell Davies quote

O God to whom we pray for truth, be with us in out trembling lest we find it. We fear its light; our lives are full of shadows: what shall we do for shelter when we stand before the brightness of truth? We do not want, O God, the truth that troubles us and seeks to save us; we look for truth that brings us safety, comfort and repose. . . . We do not want the truth that tells of a world of human wretchedness, with wrongs to be set right and justice calling us to serve it. For if we see this truth, we must admit our own betrayals: our callousness and our cowardice, our evasions and our love of ease. We do not seek at all the truth of conscience. We want Thee in thy tenderness, Thy loving kindness . . . What shall we do, O Spirit of the Holy and Highest? What shall we do to be saved?

Quotes for Patriotism

“Of all the nations of today the future will say that there were tow kinds: those that were intelligent, courageous, decisive, and tireless in their support of high principles - and those that disappeared from the earth.” –D.D. Eisenhower

“I am not a citizen of Athens of Greece, but of the world.” --ascribed to Socrates

“A president’s hardest task is not to do what is right, but to know what is right.”
--Lyndon Johnson

“The age of virtuous politics is past and we are deep in that of cold pretense. Patriots are grown too shrewd to be sincere and we are too wise to trust them.” --William Cowper

“It seems like the less a statesman amounts to, the more he loves the flag.”
--Frank Hubbard

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.”
--Matthew 5:9

“Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.” --Samuel Johnson

“If patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel, it is not merely because evil deeds may be performed in the name of patriotism, but because patriotic fervor con obliterate moral distinction altogether.” --Ralph Benton Perry

“You’ll never have a quiet world till you knock the patriotism out of the human race.” --George Bernard Shaw

Wake, Now, My Senses (Hymn #298)
Words: Thomas Mikelson
Music: Traditional Irish melody

Wake, now, my senses, and hear the earth call;
Feel the deep power of being in all;
Keep, with the web of creation your vow,
Giving, receiving as love shows us how.

Wake, now, compassion, give heed to the cry;
Voices of suffering fill the wide sky;
Take as your neighbor both stranger and friend,
Praying and striving their hardship to end.

Wake, now, my conscience, with justice thy guide
Join with all people whose rights are denied;
Take not for granted a privileged place;
God’s love embraces the whole human race.

Wake, now, my vision of ministry clear;
Brighten my pathway with radiance here;
Mingle my calling with all who will share;
Work toward a planet transformed by our care.

Selected Children’s Letters to God

Dear God,
I am American. What are you?
                                    --Robert
Dear God,
I bet it is very hard for you to love all of everybody in the world. There are only 4 people in our family and I can never do it.
                                    --Nan
Dear God,
Who draws the lines around the countries?
                                    --Nan
Dear God,
How come you did all those miracles in the old das and don’s do any now?
                                    --Seymour

Selected Readings from “Singing the Living Tradition”

#434

May we be reminded here of our
highest aspirations,
and inspired to bring our gifts of
love and service to the altar of
humanity.

May we know once again that we
            are not isolated beings
but connected, in mystery and
            miracle, to the universe,
to this community and to each
            other.

Anonymous

#436

We come to this time and this place:

To rediscover the wondrous gift of free religious community;

To renew our faith in the holiness, goodness, and beauty of life;

To reaffirm the way of the open mind and full heart;

To rekindle the flame of memory and hope; and

To reclaim the visio nof an earth made fair, with all her people one.

David C. Pohl

#453

May the light we no kindle
Inspire us to use our powers
To heal and not to harm,
To help and not to hinder,
To bless and not to curse,
To serve you, Spirit of freedom.

Passover Haggadah

#466 Religion

Let religion be to us life and joy.

Let it be a voice of renewing challenge to the best we have and may be; let it be a call to generous action.

Let religion be to us a dissatisfaction with things that are, which bids us serve more eagerly the true and right.

Let it be sorrow that opens for us the way of sympathy, understanding, and service to suffering humanity.

Let religion be to us the wonder and lure of that which is only partly known and understood:

An eye that glories in nature’s majesty and beauty, and a heart that rejoices in deeds of kindness and of courage.

Let religion be to us security and serenity because of its truth and beauty, and because of the enduring worth and power of the loyalties which it engenders;

Let it be to us hope and purpose, and a discovering of opportunities to express our best through daily tasks:

Religion, uniting us with all that is admirable in human beings everywhere;

Holding before our eyes a prospect of the better life for humankind, which each may help to make actual.

Vincent B. Silliman

#576 A Litany of Restoration

If, recognizing the interdependence of all life, we strive to build community, the strenth 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 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 alones will be lessened, and that does matter.

In this spirit, we build community and move toward restoration.

Marjorie Bowens-Wheatley

#580 The Task of the Religious Community

The central task of the religious community is to unveil the bonds that bind each to all. There is a connectedness, a relationship discovered amid the particulars of our own lives and the lives of others. Once felt, it inspires us to act for justice.

It is the church that assures us that we are not struggling for justice on our own, but as members of a larger community. The religious community is essential, for alone our vision is too narrow to see all that must be seen, and our strength too limited to do all that must be done. Together, our vision widens and our strength is renewed.

Mark Morrison-Reed