As I move through this life and these times, I am constantly looking to respond in Peaceful ways to all the horror happening in our country. As a Peacemaker, I understand my work to be helping the Sacred Village, here at home as well as globally, to respond to Creation and the Gift of Life to which we are heirs. My work is usually present tense; I want to help people understand that we are born to be Peacemakers. This is our work, our calling, on this Earth. Every day is a day to make Peace. So many people are at risk right now; the urgency is upon us.
The other day, I was – as I do – thinking. A phrase an old beau from Arizona used to employ came to mind. “Well, I’ll be go to hell,” which always made me laugh. I work in a business where I hear people worry about hell regularly. I blame lazy theological thinking. People come into the hospital, having led fine and upright lives and followed the laws of their tradition. So often in the fear of Death, an Almighty Judgement gets raised and crushes people’s ability to remember the wonders of their precious human being’s Life. Or in the face of Death, one of Life’s most amazing moments, they get caught up in denying the Possibility of Heaven to anyone else.
When I became a Unitarian Universalist, I was asked to struggle with a new way of thinking about Heaven and Hell. If you grew up Christian in the 50s and 60s in this country, you’ve thought a bit about heaven and hell. As I grew up, and then as I became clergy, I became far more interested in how we live now and less and less interested in thinking about an afterlife. But UUism is interesting, because Universalism is the notion that we all go to heaven. There is no ‘go to hell.’
After my dear friend Carolyn died, her brother had a dream – the sort of which was not a normal occurrence in his life – Carolyn was on the ‘Go to Heaven Bus’. This was a big yellow school bus and she was waving out the window as she left, along with everyone else who had died and was headed to Heaven that day. She was simply Joyous. I have cherished that image.
Unitarian Universalism offered a challenge for my delight in this “mythical” bus — If there was a bus, everyone would be on it. I would be on that bus with people I did not feel “deserved” that right. Additionally, I would be on that bus with a huge lesson to learn about judgment and purpose in this life: I cannot be cavalier about Love in this world. Everyone, no exception, deserves it. Everyone, no exception, deserves every opportunity to learn, to exercise forgiveness and grace and have them granted to them. If I forget that, please help me remember.
Now I don’t have any idea what I truly believe about Heaven. My focus is on the Present and being present in this life, this world. Quite frankly I don’t talk about Heaven unless I’m helping people die, which is actually part of my work as Chaplain. I can tell you that people die more easily if they are reminded that others are waiting for them, if their struggle is finished, and if they can then just relax into the beauty of a life well-lived and hopefully well-loved. The reassurance that there will be others waiting ‘on the other side’ often seems to send people off with a smile and an easier end. At that moment, as chaplain, I’m focused on comfort. The Absolute Truth, as I increasingly understand it, is that we are made of Love for Love. In my Thealogy, it only makes sense that we would return to Love.
The other day, I heard an ad, about something, I have no idea what, but that somehow caused me to wonder what it might be like if Heaven really is a place to rework our lives. One thing it could mean is that perhaps we could also work on our own growth and sense of Peacemaking Possibility right now, when we know it matters. I have to accept that, in this country I call home, there is currently a government I abhor. I can’t change them. But I can change the focus of my work, because I must be part of what models and creates Possibilities for Peace. The more of us who undertake that work, the less able this government will be to continue their monstrous behaviors.
Let us not be naïve. Our Peacemaking response will not be simple or short-term. But what we are seeing already, my friends, is remarkable and inspiring. Among others, Clergy of all traditions are showing up to proclaim Love in the face of greed, hate, and violence. Clergy are being warned by their higher-ups to get their affairs in order, and write their wills, because there will be demands on them – and on all of us – to stand for Justice.
This may seem overwhelming. Most of us are not prepared to put our beliefs or our lives on the line for our neighbor’s well-being. Some feel like we worked once before on civil rights and ending the Viet Nam War and shouldn’t have to do it again. We proved then that our efforts in nonviolent resistance and protest made the needed difference. Sadly, despotism and tyranny are not waiting for us to make decisions and take action. The Time has arrived. We have a lot more to do than wring our hands. Call your lawmakers. Make realistic choices about where you can make a difference. Choose the people you are called to defend. Gather your support. Choose your fellow Peacemakers. Start making plans. What’s happening in Minneapolis is so very likely going to be playing in a town square near you. You will be prepared to resist it because you have prepared yourselves. You will be prepared to resist it because you are amazing, talented, organized and ready to do what is needed to transform ugliness into a World of Welcome. A World of Abundance. A World of Peace.
It’s true there are those among us who are well-suited to bring this establishment down. That’s not me. I’m in awe of my friends who can. I’m built to work for Peace. We will be working simultaneously. Be realistic about where your efforts will be best utilized. I couldn’t go to Minneapolis with the Clergy last weekend, so I stayed at the hospital under snowy conditions so others didn’t need to risk their lives. I have acquaintances, friends, and experts whom I follow on social media and in hard copy. There are others who follow me. We are in this together, for each other, and for the betterment of our lives and our nation.
Let’s be Peacemaking in whatever ways best suit us. Let’s contribute to the health of the Great American Experiment. I believe that we can make this come true, even now. Let’s not waste time consigning people to imaginary fiery depths of hell. Our focus now is not on the judgment to come but on Present Peacemaking through non-violent resistance and care for the vulnerable.
The title of this article was taken from a song by Tuck and Patti. They wrote and sang a beautiful love song. Recently, I’ve found myself singing it as ‘love song as call to Peace action.’ Here are their words:
“What are you waiting for, believe in me
Isn’t it love in this life that you need
You can offer your soul to an altar of sacrifice
But give your heart to me
Let’s bring Heaven down here
Let’s bring Heaven on down
I don’t want to wait for the angels
Let’s bring Heaven down here.”
If we simply changed the first line to “What are we waiting for, believe in Peace, then “we” every time they sing you and then the last line of the verse becomes Peace, once again. My friends, then let us throw back our heads and sing out. Let’s use this as a call to righteous and tender living right down here. A Call to Peace.
Many don’t believe in an afterlife, but I’m not sure it negates the call to believe in what we imagine its qualities to be right here, right now. Why would we consider that only a few will be worthy, when worthiness isn’t the point, Loving Justice is. When Divine Love isn’t a ‘they’ll be pie in the sky when we die’ reward hoarded away but spread generously now. Whatever our tradition or philosophy, we are called to be kind, generous Peacemakers. We are not to withhold our love. “Why should we wait for the angels? Let’s bring Heaven down here.” Let’s give ourselves to Peace.
* Thealogy: I experience the world through the perspective of the Divine Feminine, and, thus, use Thea (the feminine of Theo) as prefix to -ology, which means systematic study. Hence Thealogy is the study and composition of the Knowledge of the Feminine Divine. I will explore this more thoroughly in a future Substack.
Salaam, Shalom, Peace, and Blessed Be!