Boots and Blessings

I watched Come Sunday with my family this weekend, the story of Bishop Carlton Pearson's epiphany of universal salvation, and the price he paid for being public about it. If you are a UU primarily interested in the story of Pearson's diminished community coming to All Souls Tulsa, that is another story, not covered by the movie. But the story, as it is, is very good, and focuses on the nature of God and grace. There was one aspect of the movie that has stayed with me, probably because I've been wrestling with what this means for humanity for ... oh, about 25 years. And it's not about God, it's about people. And whether there is a dividing line between people that so impacts how we view the world, that it cannot be overcome. In about the middle of the movie, Pearson confronts other Pentecostal leaders at what amounts to a heresy trial. He asks Bishop Ellis to name someone he loved, who is now in Hell. The other man says, "My daddy." He says that he lov...

I was watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer* one day, like you do, and I thought, "Wow. I wish I had a Watcher." According to the Buffy Wiki , a Watcher is: a member of the Watchers Council, devoted to tracking and combating malevolent supernatural entities (and particularly vampires), primarily by locating individuals with the talents required to fight such beings and win. More specifically, Watchers were assigned to train and guide Slayers, girls that were part of a succession of mystically powered young women who were destined to face the forces of darkness. And then, quick as a vampire turns to dust when stabbed with a wooden stake, I realized, "Ohmygosh, I TOTALLY have a Watcher." My Watcher is named Ken, and he's an expert in Bowen Systems Theory, and he coaches me, teaching me about the vampires I encounter, and drilling me in how to slay them. No, the Vampires aren't people around me!  Far from it. The Vampires are my own responses to anxiety...

Disappointment is normal. How we deal with it is part of personal growth. First: Disappointment is normal . How often do we feel upset because there is part of us, inside, that really believes disappointment is abnormal? That our expectations should always be met, and when they are not, it is a sign that something clearly is not right with the world? But the world is not our personal possession. Other people get to make decisions that may impact us. What's the matter with your life? Is the poverty bringing you down? Is the mailman jerking you 'round? Did he put your million dollar check In someone else's box? -- Pop Life, Prince There are many ways to deal with disappointment, and each situation will warrant a different response, based on your personal guiding principles. There are times when complaining directly to the source of the disappointment--to a manager, to a friend, to a congressperson--is the right thing to do. There are times when acceptance is...