The full wording of the sixth source of our Unitarian Living Tradition is: Spiritual teachings of Earth-centered traditions which celebrate the sacred circle of life and instruct us to live in harmony with the rhythms of nature. This source was added after the other five, in 1995, just seven years ago. There was much debate and even argument before it was adopted by the UUA General Assembly that year. Many people there could hardly believe they were hearing such intense resistance to adding a source of Unitarian Universalist religious thought which credited specifically the earth and nature. And that was despite the popular joke that says all UUs have in common is belief in the environment and all we practice in common is recycling!

Much of the resistance to the addition of the sixth source seemed on the surface to have come from people who believed it was redundant. The other five sources cite world religions, humanism, prophetic deeds of women and men, and transcending mystery and wonder. The presence of nature is implicit in all of these, or so the opposition argued. Therefore Nature, and the traditions around it, didn’t need to be listed separately. The majority of those who were voting disagreed with that position, and the sixth source was added. I’m glad!

I suspect that beneath the surface at least some of the objection to including the sixth source was not so much about its possible redundancy as about its seeming to open the door to a whole-hearted acceptance of paganism and similar traditions. “Earth-centred traditions” – what could these possibly be? For some UUs perhaps they might suggest humanist, native American, or other nature-honoring paths, but for most the prime examples of earth-centred religion are paganism and witchcraft. And these have not had, to say the least, the best of press in our North American society. Or in England, either – when I was at Catholic school there 50 years ago, and probably much more recently too, “pagan” meant unChristian, heathen, immoral, generally bad, even though its literal meaning is just “country dweller”, and as for “witch” – well, you know the images that word conjures up! The addition of the sixth source pushed us to reconsider our assumptions – after all, if we were acknowledging our indebtedness to earth-centred traditions, we needed to get more comfortable with them.

And we did, to a large extent. Today, many UUs who do not embrace Paganism as their personal spiritual truth still understand and accept Paganism and other forms of earthy spirituality as part of the UUA's religious pluralism. Many congregations have an active Pagan presence among their membership, and some have chapters of the UU affiliate group, CUUPS – Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans. (I’m sure it hasn’t escaped your notice how the word “covenant” is so similar to “coven,” the word for a gathering of witches.) Perhaps more importantly, there’s a far greater understanding today than ever before, I think, that whatever our particular and personal form of Unitarian belief, we have a vital relationship with the Earth which is our home and need to find ways of connecting our spirituality and our living with that vital relationship.

The sixth source, like some of the others we’ve discussed, goes into a little detail about just what are the valuable aspects of earth-centred traditions for our thinking and our daily lives. They are those which celebrate the sacred circle of life and instruct us to live in harmony with the rhythms of nature. Celebration and harmony: I’ll have a bit more to say about celebration in a few moments, but let’s look briefly at what it might mean to live in harmony with the rhythms of nature. One small example was brought to my attention this week by a friend who sent me an imaginary dialogue between God and St. Francis, the Christian saint who’s traditionally associated with Nature, and whose hymn we sang at the beginning of today’s service. It’s this

(Rhoda Riemer reads the part of God)

GOD: Francis, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there in North America? What happened to the dandelions, violets, thistle and stuff I started? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the blossoms attracts butterflies, honey bees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But all I see are these green rectangles.

ST. FRANCIS: It's the tribes that settled there. They started calling your flowers "weeds" and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.

GOD: Grass? But it's so boring. It only attracts grubs and sod worms. Do they really want all that grass?

ST. FRANCIS: Apparently so. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn. Then as soon as it grows a little, they cut it, sometimes twice a week.

GOD: They cut it? Do they bale it like hay and sell it?

ST. FRANCIS: Not exactly. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags. Then they pay to throw it away.

GOD: Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away? They must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.

ST. FRANCIS: You aren't going to believe this. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.

GOD: What nonsense! Well, at least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stoke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. Plus, as they rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It's a natural circle of life. Perfect!

ST. FRANCIS: You'd better sit down, God. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.

GOD: No! What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter and to keep the soil moist and loose?

ST. FRANCIS: After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.

GOD: And where do they get this mulch?

ST. FRANCIS: They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.

GOD: Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. When will people see sense and start to tune into Nature?

In case you think this is too mundane and limited an example of how we can live in harmony with the rhythms of nature, let me tell you about a woman who wanted to find the essential core of earth-centred spirituality. I read about her some months ago in an article called Lost Rites in that wonderful magazine The Utne Reader. After describing some unsatisfactory experiences of various nature rituals (including one in a Unitarian church!) Maria Stadtmueller says:

“There was one solstice gathering a few years ago that felt truly celebratory. There was no ceremony, no costumes, just ten shivering strangers bundled up for a Central Park tour titled “A Winter Solstice in New York: Who Survives?” As we headed into the park that Saturday morning, our two female park rangers occasionally stopped us to describe how particular birds or bushes withstand a Northeast winter.

These women knew their turf. They pointed out lofty holes in oak trees where a half-hidden racoon would be sleeping off a rough night in Upper West Side alleys; they knew where to spot a hawk when all we had noticed was the scattering sparrows. We stopped in front of a glossy green holly tree, a real extrovert against December’s taupe and gray. Holly leaves survive, one guide explained, because the tree stores water not in the leaf cells, but in interstices between cells; there the water can freeze and expand, and the cells remain intact.

A thrill bubbled up through my half-frozen marrow at the genius and beauty of this little system. Oh, you are wise, I thought. You are glorious! This tree, and these women who knew it, and the light that clicked on in our faces when we knew it too - this was a catechism of sorts, nature’s Magnificat in which science could sing its stanza.

I’ve stopped looking for pagan rituals. What I “practice” now borrows from Buddhist and Catholic monastic traditions: the idea that work and awareness can be worship. I take long walks and pick up litter as I go. I try to bike instead of driving. I sit quietly in fields and under trees. Upstairs on my desk stands a small alabaster copy of ....... [a] Cycladic goddess in Athens, her arms crossed expectantly while I keep my weekly vigil of environmental e-mails and calls to elected officials, of letters to the editor about policies and preservation. The nature religion I’ve sought seems irretrievably lost [but] Nature might still have a chance.

And I would simply add that despite the deep alienation of most of us from the land and the seasons, it may not be too late to learn enough, recover enough, to be able to live in greater harmony with the rhythms of Nature than we presently do. It may not be too late. And every time we notice some natural event, or attend an environmental meeting, or step barefoot onto the grass and wiggle our toes, or sort out stuff for the Blue Box, we’re doing our little bit towards that recovery of elementary good sense, elementary spirituality. And yes, I do mean to make that equation of good sense with spirituality – part of the world’s trouble, I think, is that we’ve been in the habit of separating mind, body and spirit. The teachings of earth-centred traditions tend not to do that, but to insist on integrating them. What we think, what we feel, and what we do – perhaps they really can become one harmonious whole!”

In the newsletter, I promised that today we’d not only consider how we draw from the sixth source in our everyday lives, but also how, if at all, it relates to this Pride Weekend. I find the clue to that relationship, which I believe is a very real one and not at all an artificial connection, in some words from an article by Gus diZerega in Sacred Cosmos, Journal of Liberal Religious Paganism. Writing from a pagan perspective, DiZerega reminds us that the natural religions’ emphasis on physical life’s basic goodness, and Spirit’s immanence within it, places us in a different relationship with the world of Spirit than that emphasized by salvation oriented traditions. Spiritual fulfillment is found with others, within a community which is itself a reflection, or emanation, of Spirit.

This is, I think, why it was so important to include the sixth source in the description of where we find the elements of our living Unitarian Universalist tradition. Together with the first source, direct experience, it enwraps and embraces the words and deeds of women and men and scriptures and world religions, reminding us of this essential, vital truth: physical life’s basic goodness. The first source acknowledges the importance of direct experience, our personal and incontrovertible knowledge of who we are, what we feel, who we love; the sixth source tells us that there are venerable and wonderful traditions which affirm this too. We are not doomed to an unending battle with our natural selves in order to become acceptable or saved from judgment. We are all right, just as we are. Extrovert, introvert, thoughtful, passionate, gay, lesbian, heterosexual, transgender, transexual, black, white, Canadian, refugee, differently abled, physically or mentally challenged – we are all right, just as we are!

A few weeks ago I took part in a panel presentation to a conference in Waterloo on creating a safe culture in our schools, and how faith communities can contribute to that. Here’s part of what I said:

The very first way in which a faith community can contribute to safety from bullying and harrassment, I think, is by giving people ...... a sense of belonging. Much evidence shows that it’s isolated, lonely individuals, without friends or other supports, who are most likely to participate in bullying, whether it’s one kid picking on a smaller one, or an unhappy teacher or janitor angrily taking out frustration on a student. If, in our faith communities, we can help everyone who comes through our doors feel that here is a place they’re accepted and valued for who they are, not by comparison with others or by how they measure up against some theoretical standard, but for themselves, then we’ll have a hugely positive influence ........... It’s important that we ask ourselves hard questions about our values and how they help or hinder the self-esteem of those who find themselves, often despite their own most profound efforts and deepest wishes, different from others in conspicuous ways.

My own faith community believes that we also need to give caring attention to those of alternative sexual orientation, who so often find school not a safe place. We remember how Matthew Shepard was beaten and left to die by fellow students in Wyoming three years ago, because he was homosexual. We believe that the way to be most helpful to the Marc Halls in our schools is to affirm in every way possible that we value and care for them, that they belong with us. ...... I think all of us can try to stretch ourselves to encompass in our caring at least a little more diversity than comes easily to us. To the extent that we can help the children and adults in our schools feel that they have a community in which they belong and are loved, we will be contributing to the creation of a safe culture .........

And that applies, I believe, way beyond the school context, in all areas of our lives, and particularly in this congregation, which draws upon the spiritual teachings of earth-centred traditions and upon a faith in physical life’s basic goodness and the spiritual fulfillment to be found within a community. To the extent that we can help everyone who comes here feel that they have a community in which they belong and are loved, we will be contributing to the creation of a better world.

A couple of weeks ago, there was an essay in the Globe and Mail by Trevor Herriot, about rural values. Herriot explored (a little further than I did a few moments ago) the origin of the word pagan, pointing out that

“It entered our lexicon when Christianity, a persecuted cult on the fringes of the Roman state, snuck past the walls of civilization to become the Church of Emperors. When the marginal make it to the centre, their first act is to declare a new margin.”

What we tend to forget, Herriot says, is that (now as always)

“...... the country surrounds the city and not the reverse, that a civilizations’s social and spiritual renewal almost always comes from the margins, and that we ourselves are marginal and therefore more pagan than Roman. Perhaps worst of all, we forget that to keep a culture vital, its seed stock of lifeways must be resown ...... in the new soil of each generation.”

Yes, all of us who are gathered here this morning are marginal people, part of, or visiting, a tradition which has not many more than 5000 adherents in the whole of Canada. We are pagan people in at least that sense. I hope we are pagan also in other senses – that we celebrate the basic goodness of our bodily life, and celebrate that we are who we are, each one of us within our diversity, and that rather than trying to overcome Nature, and our own nature, we seek to live in harmony with who we are and the Earth on which we live. So may it be.