Neighboring Faiths

Today, we wrapped up a year of our Unitarian Universalist Neighboring Faiths curriculum which seeks to introduce UU kids to the religious beliefs of their neighbors. In our case this year, this included Judaism, Catholicism, Protestantism (Presbyterians, specifically), Hinduism (with smaller discussions of Sikkhism and Buddhism), AME (African Methodist Episcopal, an American black Christian church), nature-based paganism, humanism, a review of UU, and Quakers.  We had class activities about different faiths, visiting speakers, field trips, and time for reflection.  It was an astounding year and I was so glad to teach it with three other co-teachers.  

I think I liked the Jewish, Islam, Hindu, and AME field trips the most, probably because they were least familiar to me.  And I liked our Muslim speaker most.  The kids least liked the Catholic and Presbyterian services--"too much Bible reading!"

Judaism (field trip):

• historic Torah--Survivors' Scroll for Bar and Bat Bitzvahs was 450 years old, surviving Holocaust in Czechoslavakia
• Ark by Ben Shahn; kids fascinated by Ark (where Torah scrolls are kept)
• MLK dedicated building in 1961
• story of the Menorah hand carved by student
• righteous and most righteous at the time, story of Noah and Abraham, who argued with God in name of justice
• in class, kids learned about Torah (first 5 books of the Hebrew scriptures) and Talmud (commentary); important prophets include Abraham, David, Solomon; minyan, or minimum number for service; kashrut (kosher laws) about pork and shellfish; yarmulke, tfflin; menorah as symbol of Judaism (not just Star of David); various holidays (Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Passover, Sukkot, which was occurring when we visited); differences between Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform, especially as relates to women; a bit of the history of the Jewish diaspora across Europe and into the US; 

Catholicism (field trip):

• 8 altar boys
• 2 priests, a deacon, 2 lay ministers
• beautiful 19th-century Gothic Revival church
• lots of incense!
• Wise and Foolish Virgins--all well and good but you must convert and believe now!
• NO girls as altar servers because they can't become priests
• in class, kids had discussed rosary, Trinity, 7 sacraments (Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Reconciliation, Sacrament of the Sick, Marriage, Holy Orders)
• symbol: Crucifix

Presbyterianism (field trip):

• rainbow flag, refugee help, homeless shelter program
• focus on social action, justice, equality
• in-depth textual analysis of Nathaniel story, being known to God and knowing God--answering God's call "come and see"
• beautiful building--recycled telephone poles
• minister saw her stole as the yolk of Christ
• in class, kids heard about Martin Luther and Calvin; economic, political and religious focus of Reformation; stress on individual relationship with God, not through priest or Church; scriptural basis (Catholic church based on scripture AND tradition)
• symbol: cross

Islam (speaker and field trip):

• Belief in God/Allah; Prophets; The Unseen (angels, devils, etc)
• Islam is the religion; Muslim is the follower
• Five Pillars--belief, prayer, fasting, charity, pilgrimmage
• song about the months--Ramadan is holiest month
• Hijab--modesty; covers all but her face and hands; others don't wear headscarves and some wear niqab over entire face, also abaya/robe over close for some (see here); men were kufi/hats
• fasting--also about refraining from sin, not just food
• Prayer--ritual washing, prayer to Allah, bow, prayer to Allah, kneel, "Praise to God" x 3, and repeat from second prayer to Allah--5 times a day facing Mecca
• Hajj--pilgrimmage to Mecca in 12th month; ideally once in lifetime
• Koran--learn/memorize in Arabic, also many translations; Hafiz is person who memorizes it fully
• Service--same prayers for men and women but sit separately; long sermon, short prayer, over in about an hour.
• Bean pie!  African-American Muslim traditional food
• symbol: crescent

Hinduism (field trip):

• The four faces of Brahma, and the three main deities Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva
• The oneness and multifaceted aspects of God (which are either believed to really exist or to be symbols of life, nature, etc.)
• Rama and his story in the Ramayana; Baghavad Gita; Vedas; Upanishads
• Krishna and his incarnations when life on earth is out of balance between good and bad
• Elephant-headed god Ganesh; 
• pooja, the ritual offerings; 
• the animal spirits associated with the gods (and so there are many vegetarians); 
• samsara, or the wheel of suffering; 
• reincarnation; 
• karma, which is not some kind of universal scale of justice, but is more about the sum total of your actions (I've heard it described as intention)--so not "karma is a bitch";
• At the temple, we chanted OM , and other chants (shanti, shanti, shanti), plus two cycles of yoga forms (essentially what we would call salutation of the sun, downward facing dog, and others, called the Surya Namaskara);
• laddu, a sweet yellow ball with (usually) chickpea flour, ghee, sugar, nuts (almonds or pistachios), cardamom, and this one had raisins
• symbols: OM, 

Sikkhism:

• Punjabi religion founded in 15th century, not to be confused with Islam or Hinduism
• The 5Ks of Sikkhism--Kesh (uncut long hair); Kangha (small wooden comb); Kara (steel bracelet); Kachera (a type of undergarments); Kirpan (sword or knife); the Kangha and Kirpan are sometimes worn as little amulets in the turban.
• The ten Gurus
• One Creator, social justice, selfless service--they will feed anyone who comes to the temple and often deliver meals in times of crisis

Buddhism:

• Siddhartha Gautama:  mom dies when he is born; prophecy about becoming powerful warrior or influential guru; hidden from illness, aging, and death; studies to be an aesthete; Enlightenment--"all beings and I awake."
• The Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path ("Middle Way")
• Three refuges:  Buddha, dharma, sangha
• karma, nirvana (enlightenment), samsara (wheel of suffering), bodhisattvas
• meditation
• Theravada--focus on Middle Way and nirvana, divided into samatha ("calm") and vipassana ("insight"); Mahayana ("great vehicle")--Pure Land and Zen, focuses on bodhisattvas; Vajrayana--Tibetan
• originally an oral tradition so no main text like the Bible or Quaran.  Sutras gathered in nikayas, which are part of the tripitakas ("three baskets," the Pali Canon)
• symbols: lotus, wheel, Buddha (elongated ears, wheels on hands, top knot of wisdom)

AME (field trip):

• African Methodist Episcopal (AME) founded when racism experienced in Methodist church in Philadelphia
• Church we visited formed by ex-slaves is 1818 and is second-oldest AME church in the world;
• Booker T Washington once spoke here;
• near a lookout spot for the Underground Railroad;
• focus on personal/experiential preaching, blending of music and spoken word, physical response to worship (hands raised, dance, movement in the aisles);
• very loud music--one song lasted 15+ minutes ("Way Maker" and "It Could Have Been Me")
• very traditional Apostles' Creed
• Matthew 21:2--about being tied up (by challenges) and let loose by God--what challenges you makes you worthy to be called.
• altar call, with one person saved
• offertory conducted by everyone filing past the box up front
• some women in gorgeous hats

Nature-based/Pagan (speaker):

• This is the only class topic that I totally missed because we had just gotten back from Italy.
• An email describing the class:  "I opened with brief overview of earth-centered religions, and the kids were pretty astute about why we see the earth as a "mother" and why this would be worthy of worship.  "Earth is a Mother" served as a good chalice lighting; 4 kids read a stanza each, and then I re-read it and we discussed its symbols.  They identified directions, we read "The Four Directions" while turning appropriately each way - and teacher drove home the point about how out of touch we are in so much of our lives with where we are on the earth.  She also spoke to the 7th UU principle, and the 6th source.  We used the photos and teacher had photos from the May Day celebration she attends each year, we discussed paganism, Wiccan, why there might be a focus in this domain on the moon rather than on the sun (tides, women's cycles tied to lunar cycles).  She talked about her experiences with shamanism, including sharing Tarot cards and some other practice elements.  We spent a few minutes outside, came back to the room, made a circle and shared thoughts and blew out the chalice."
• Later, I told the kids about the 8 sabbats and the Law of Three, the individual practice, folklore as a sacred source.
• symbol:  pentagram

Quaker (speaker):

• Did a silent meditation and encouraged students to share when they felt called to, a la a Quaker meeting;
• Watched two videos about Quakerism, including "What does George Fox Say?" (based on the hit song);
• Speaker compared Quaker meditation, where you ask for insight and listen for the "still, small voice," to Buddhist meditation, where you do not focus on a question or a thought.
• Speaker liked the very long silences
• liberal religious tradition but still very Christian

Our Palm Sunday

Yesterday, for Palm Sunday, our RE class attended service at an AME (African Methodist Episcopal) church nearby (AME is a predominantly African-American Protestant church; it broke off from traditional Methodism because of racism and discrimination.)  And the kids didn't know what to do with themselves!

I had attended an AME service during college, as part of a religion-in-America class and so I knew it would be a long service, with a fluidity between song and sermon and lots of tangible worship.  By this I mean obvious physical and verbal means of praise--clapping, standing, dancing, raising hands in the air, calling out "amen" and the like.  This is the part the kids were unsure of.  As UUs, we don't tend to praise or worship anything--as there are as many concepts (or not) of the divine as there are congregants--much less make noise or move during service, unless it's a particularly rousing hymn (and then, really, it's only some of our more extroverted members.)  So to praise God, call out worship of Jesus, raise hands, stand up when moved was new.  Such organized UU kids--they were disturbed that they couldn't even figure out where we were in the order of service because of the fluidity between music and sermon.  They seemed uncomfortable with the emotional and passionate style, quite opposed to our UU intellectual and reflective services.  But I liked it.  Whether you call it holy or divine, or not, there was clearly a spirit in that church.  A community coming together in joy.  For some parts of it, I could just allow myself to be moved by that spirit, instead of analyzing what was happening.

But of course I did observe and analyze.  I had told the kiddos that people would be dressed up more than at our church (and so I wouldn't let them wear t-shirts) and, though there were some who were not, there were a few rows of older church ladies in hats with fans; most of the men were in suits.  I noticed the various oratorical methods (and here) used to engage the congregation--pauses, repetition, call and response, experiential preaching.  There was even that noticeable expulsion of breath after some words and phrases--the appending of "ah" such as "Jesus-ah"--when the preacher became really impassioned.  I pointed out to Sis and Bud next to me that this was the black preaching style that Martin Luther King, Jr came out of and then influenced.  I could also see the clear connections between the Gospel music and more secular pop, particularly when one of the deacons sang "Way Maker," interspersed with his own words and stories.  I think that song went on for 15+ minutes and couldn't even just be called a song--it was more of an interactive experience.  (Same with "It Could've Been Me.")  It reminded me of line singing, with the next verse called out, a tradition leftover from a time of greater illiteracy and a lack of hymnals (though, actual line singing is a more sorrowful tradition from white Appalachian churches.) There was also a guest musician, Alaina Rose, who is launching and sang a beautiful song and had the church's full support.

As for the message, the service, "ministry of words" I think it was called in the bulletin, it was nothing like the slow, word-for-word exegesis of the Presbyterians we visited. (The only part that felt like other Christian services was the recitation of the Apostle's Creed.)  There was a guest "shepherd of the house," Rev. Figueroa, who apologized for not focusing on the Word, so caught up in the Spirit was he.  He said sometimes you need to praise with your feet--and he began to dance.  The scripture of the day was Mathew 21:2, when Jesus told two disciples to go fetch a donkey that was tied up and bring him forth to be used; and if anyone were to ask them what they were doing, they were doing His work.  Now, I would never have thought you could do a whole sermon on the phrase about "untie and let loose" but he did.  The "tied up" part was the issues and difficulties all people have (he mentioned poverty, illness, drugs, the ghetto, he said, drawing from the song, "It's not just that it could've been me.  It should've been me.")   He preached that it's these issues that make you worthy to be chosen to do God's work.  And so he encouraged the tied-up congregation to let loose.  And oh what praise there was.  In fact, he kept saying the crowd had him worked up and he wasn't going to end on time for the next service (which he barely did!)

So much was unfamiliar to our kids, beginning with the palm fronds passed out.  They weren't even sure what Palm Sunday was, much less the tradition of the palms. I tried to whisper info to them throughout the whole service.  Another unfamiliar part to UUs was the altar call, when certain people feel the call to be saved and go to the front of the church.  One young man did this and was welcomed by several deacons.  UUs don't convert like that--they attend a newcomer's class and might sign the membership book during service. The offertory was at least recognizable by the kids--except that the whole congregation rises and circulates to deposit their envelopes in a basket up front.

When we spoke to the pastor afterwards, the kids had questions—typical UU questions about history.  How old was the building?  How old was that pipe organ?  They learned that this congregation was founded by ex-slaves in 1818; it's the second-oldest AME church in the world.  Booker T Washington once spoke from pulpit.  The current location is not far from a spot believed to be a lookout for the Underground Railroad.    I asked the pastor what he would have the kids take away about his faith and his church.  He said that even with a rich history, we must always look ahead. 

My kids were exhausted by the whole experience and didn't have much to say about it on the way home.  Which was the exact opposite of me--I had been touched by the worship and wanted to discuss the whole thing.  This isn't to say I want to convert to AME--beyond not being a Christian, I clearly noticed the absence of the hallmarks of progressive churches, like rainbow flags and calls to social justice around issues like immigration and gun control.  I'm pretty certain they don't support same-sex marriage.  But I liked the music and the joy.  It was a beautiful morning and I appreciated the experience of their community spirit, which, for just awhile, I was a part of.

------
About appending "-ah" at ends of phrases (from straightdope.com):
It's caused by failure to breathe properly while orating. Preachers who end up sounding that way usually start out ordinary enough, but as their adrenaline begins to flow and they talk faster and longer and louder, their diaphragms start squeezing hard to empty their old breath so they will breathe new air. What you hear is this expulsion of breath through the preacher's vocal chords.

It's been a phenomenon for a long time. C. H. Spurgeon wrote for the July, 1875 Sword and Trowel, "Hints on the Voice For Young Preachers" (http://www.spurgeon.org/s_and_t/voice.htm):

It is an infliction, not to be endured twice, to hear a brother, who mistakes perspiration for inspiration, tear along like a wild horse with a hornet in its ear till he has no more wind, and must needs pause to pump his lungs full again; a repetition of this indecency several times in a sermon is not uncommon, but is most painful. Pause soon enough to prevent that "hough, hough," which rather creates pity for the breathless orator than sympathy with the subject in hand. Your audience ought not to know that you breathe at all—the process of respiration should be as unobserved as the circulation of the blood. It is indecent to let the mere animal function of breathing cause any hiatus in your discourse.

At the Hindu Temple

Today, our RE class went to a Hindu temple here in CT, having learned more about Hinduism last week from our RE director, who had majored in East Asian religions and lived in India for a year (his mother had been in the Peace Corps in India for 2 1/2 years; he was in the Peace Corps in Costa Rica, I believe.)

He had told us several stories from Hinduism, about the four faces of Brahma, and the three main deities Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva; about both the oneness and multifaceted aspects of God (which are either believed to really exist or to be symbols of life, nature, etc.); about Rama and his story in the Ramayana; about Krishna and his incarnations when life on earth is out of balance between good and bad; about the elephant-headed god Ganesh; pooja, the ritual offerings; the animal spirits associated with the gods (and so there are many vegetarians); Sanskrit; samsara, or the wheel of suffering; reincarnation; karma, which is not some kind of universal scale of justice, but is more about the sum total of your actions (I've heard it described as intention)--so not "karma is a bitch."

So today was our field trip.  We removed our shoes, saw the shrine to Ganesh, entered the main sanctuary, and did the prayer walk around the room, seeing each shrine and statues to the deities.  The kids asked questions, as did the adults, as we went.  The statues were from India, but the elaborate, gleaming white architectural niches were made here (no pictures allowed inside this area.)  We saw several people praying and making offerings at various shrines--Rama, Shiva, the Jains, the planets, and several others.  There was the sweet smell of incense and lots of ringing bells, plus chanting.  Also, another member demonstrated how ashes at the shrine of Shiva were put across the forehead, left to right; he compared it to Catholic Ash Wednesday.

Then we went downstairs to the Hindu school for the common prayers; we sat on mats or in chairs along the wall.  Led by students, we chanted OM , and other chants (shanti, shanti, shanti), plus two cycles of yoga forms (essentially what we would call salutation of the sun, downward facing dog, and others, each presented with their Hindu name and a short instruction, but I had the strong feeling that this was yoga as it was meant to be--within its spiritual tradition.  i just looked it up--it was a progression called the Surya Namaskara), and more chanting.  There were two presentations on temples by students--one in Tamil Nadu to Shiva and one KaliSa (I think.)  After the kids presented, they asked the gathered children and adults 4 questions--right answers were rewarded with candy!  Everybody liked this part and a couple of our students had a right answer.

Then we went upstairs where there was more chanting and an increasing number of people.  We watched for awhile, looked over a book they had on the temple and its prayer walk.  The curtain in front of the main deity was drawn because the statue was being washed (butter, milk, juice, honey etc., which is later offered as a blessing) and dressed; we hoped to see the curtain opened but think it happened later than we were there.  As we left, I did buy some laddu, a sweet yellow ball with (usually) chickpea flour, ghee, sugar, nuts (almonds or pistachios), cardamom, and this one had raisins.  I shared it around outside but the kids pretty much didn't like it, neither did the adults (well, I did, but I remember having it at my Hindu neighbor's house when I was a child.)

I think we have one major field trip left, to an African American Baptist church.  I've really loved this class.