Mudhouse Sabbath

Mudhouse Sabbath: An Invitation to a Life of Spiritual Discipline 
© 2008 Laura Winner
162 pages

Increasingly, Christian religious scholars are examining Jesus in the context of his Jewish roots. While the works I'm familiar with have done this primarily to understand his teachings as portrayed in the New Testament,  Laura Winner's Mudhouse Sabbath asks: how can Jesus' Jewishiness inform contemporary Christian spirituality? In Mudhouse Sabbath, she examines eleven aspects of Jewish spirituality and discusses how they can be applied more broadly. While her intended audience is Christians,  this slender work can be of some use to any person with a 'spiritual' bent.

Winner is in a unique place to write this book, because despite being Jewish and raised in the conservative tradition, somehow while  studying in England she became an Anglican priest. She writes in her introduction that upon conversion, she at first did away with all of the elements of her Jewish roots -- the practices and tools of her childhood faith -- but then realized she felt as though she was missing something. Restoring those practices in a new context  made sense to her after she realized that since Jesus was Jewish,  taking inspiration from practices that might have been his, even if the contemporary Christian faith has forgotten them,  would mean being more like Jesus.  In this slender little work she addresses the sabbath,  keeping kosher, mourning, hospitality, prayer, body image, fasting, aging, candle-lighting, weddings, and doorposts. Some elements are distinct to Judaism (Shabbat and nailing mini-Torahs to doorposts) while the majority address a given issue in a Jewish context.

Mudhouse Sabbath leaves me with mixed feelings: Christians should explore Jewish spirituality. They should explore Muslim and Buddhist spirituality, too,  and the reverse is the same. No religion, philosophy, or worldview on Earth has a monopoly on truth, and  few are entirely bereft of it. Our minds find strength in exploring diverse pools of thought: homogeneity is stagnation and death.  Mudhouse Sabbath focuses more on what Christians can learn from Jews, but the value of certain practices transcends all boundaries. I'm particularly partial to the idea of sabbaths, for instance, as an affirmation of human dignity. In the United States, we are feverish with activity -- working long hours, then filling our leisure time with scheduled activities. We are constantly "connected" to the larger world, never free to just rest.  I like the idea of people declaring: Enough!.

The slenderness of the volume prevents Winner from developing her ideas, though. She offers sparks of potential insight rather than a roaring fire of enlightenment. Take the chapter on kashrut, or keeping kosher. She doesn't advocate that Christians or anyone else start keeping two separate sets of cookware because pots that have contained milk can never, ever contain milk; instead, she looks at the broader application of food mindfulness, and her example is the value of eating seasonally instead of letting the supermarket fool us into thinking that tomatoes in January are perfectly appropriate. A more salient example would be that of over-consumption -- or more pointedly, a  given company's sanitary standards or labor practices, both of which are in dire shape in the United States.


Although Winner didn't flesh out her ideas as expansively as I would have liked, it may be enough that she prompts Christians to draw inspiration from a broader source, especially given that Christianity tends to be dominated by beliefs instead of practices, and Winner principally addresses ways of working spiritual themes, like awareness, into the fabric of everyday lives.  Actions are more substantial than beliefs and ideas; as Epictetus groused in his handbook, what we intend matters little. ("Your dumbbells are your own affair, O slave; show me your muscles!")

So, may Winner's sparks be enough to ignite a few ideas in those who read his.


Related:

• The Misunderstood Jew: the Church and the Scandal of the Jewish Jesus, Amy Jill-Levine
• Liberating the Gospels: Reading the Bible with Jewish Eyes, John Shelby Spong
• The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Miracle, Shane Claiborne

Our Chosen Faith

Our Chosen Faith: An Introduction to Unitarian Universalism
© 1989 John A. Buehrens and the now late F. Forrester Church
195 pages

I've long been aware of the Unitarian Universalist church, ever since I read of a character in California Diaries mentioned having her mother's funeral held at a UU fellowhip. The UU church is closest to the ideal in my mind, and I dabble in the UU community online as best I can. I thought it would be interesting to read a book on Unitarian Universalism and found this one. This book is a straightforward introduction to the UU tradition: after very briefly explaining its history, the two authors each write essays about the themes present in its listed principles and sources -- The book is a bit dated in that it was written prior to the inclusion of "earth-centered traditions". The chapter on humanist teachings that warn against idolatries of the mind and spirit focused more on humanism's rationalism and less on its spirit, so to speak -- the celebration of human culture.

It was a fair read, but it seems to me there must be better introductions for those curious about Unitarian Universalism, even online.

Finding Your Religion

Finding Your Religion: When the Faith You Grew Up with Has Lost its Meaning

© 1999 Scotty McLennan

242 pages

I didn't go into the library to find this book -- I pulled it off the shelf on a whim, and gained a little interest after seeing that it seemed to be a general guide to "spiritual paths". The clincher was the Doonesbury character on the cover of the novel promising an introduction from Gary Trudeau. I don't actually read Doonesbury, but I know its reputation. Author Scotty McLennan is a Christian Unitarian Universalist, although he may put emphasis on the first third of that description, and he has written this book in an attempt to help people with no religion or those who have been burned by their childhood religion find a spiritual path or to resume their journey. Why look for a spiritual path? This is never deliberately explained, but in the telling of his and other's stories, the general purpose seems to be to find meaning, purpose, and direction in life.

McLennan's story certainly is an interesting one: he sees his legal training as an asset to be used for spiritual purposes in helping people, establishing a "legal ministry" that defies the convention that spiritual matters and "secular" matters cannot mix -- as well as potentially giving lawyers a good name. It is clear that McLennan's view of spirituality -- which he practices and which he advocates -- is part of life, not just cultural identity. He begins the book by establishing what he believes to be the six "stages" of religion, beginning with a child's belief in magic and culminating in the "Unity" experienced only by mystics and men like Gandhi. The stages in between -- "Reality", "Dependence", "Independence", and "Interdependence" cover everything else, from cults to the standard religions.

One of his initial pieces of advice -- which I found surprising, since he is Unitarian Universalist -- was for those "seeking" a path to simply pick one and go with it. His analogy is that of paths leading up a mountain: those who choose to go it alone may tire of hacking away at the brush or may fall down the abyss of a cult. I thought it strange that he wanted readers to simply pick a religion arbitrarily and try to make it fit, but once I made my way further into the book I saw his purpose: the point is for people to get started. In "Crossings", he makes it clear that no one need be limited by their religion: the book is full of stories of people who have started in one tradition and grown into another one. McLennan believes in the universality of human religions/spiritual paths -- that they share the same essential goal of human growth and that they each incorporate similar practices. Many of the stories from the book come from his spiritual journey across the world, where he tries to drink in as much human experience as possible with an emphasis on spiritual matters. In one, he goes to a Hindu sage who admonishes him to be the best Christian he can be: Christianity is in the culture he knows, so he will fare the best there. McLennan reminds me of Marcus Borg (who also believes in the universality of human religions) in choosing this.

This book seems to me to reflect his and other's attempt to find a living spirituality: a sense of it that grows with them as it helps them to grow: a sense of spirituality that facilitates, not limits, human flourishing. He's a lovely guide and a readable author. Although I am not seeking a religion, I enjoyed connecting with McLennan's stories and the stories he betrayed. This is a recommendation for those interested in this kind of growth.

Drawing Down the Moon

Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers and Other Pagans in America

© 1986 (revised) Margaret Adler

646 pages including appendices

A few weeks back I read a book on Wicca and found the religion itself to be interesting. Continuing in my current habit of reading in comparative religion and religious pluralism topics, I decided to look into the broader theme of Earth religions. The book is quite broad, and its first section is mainly background and explanation in which Adler focuses on what these groups have in common, where they came from, and how they are adjusting themselves to a culture that by and large rejects them -- for even though they outnumber religions like the Quakers and Unitarians s while sharing most of the same values, the terms of the nature religions have such connotations that the groups are largely marginalized, according to Adler.

The next two sections focus on the religions themselves, with Wicca getting the lion's share of the attention: it merits its own section while the rest are grouped together. The definitions used for Wicca, witch, and pagan are broader here than in Wicca for Beginners because Adler is attempting to write a general survey of these groups. Adler's epilogue is the last chapter and concentrates specifically on how pagans and similar people live within society. Because the approach is so broad, impressions are as well -- although there are some general statements that can be made. For instance, these movements are by and large urban movements, filled with people from all social classes and which see themselves primarily as life-affirming. For many, the gods are not literal: they may be Jungian archetypes, or they may be flavors of Deity. There's a lot of diversity here, but the wealth of information is generally accessible. The people interviewed explain their terms well.

The book is useful as a general reference, I think.

Jesus

Jesus: Uncovering the Life, Teachings, and Relevance of a Religious Revolutionary

© 1989 Marcus Borg

343 pages

Marcus Borg is one of the two theologians who interested me in attempts to humanize Christianity and in the works of men like himself, Albert Schweitzer, and Shelby Spong. I looked forward to reading this book, but did not anticipate enjoying it as much as I did. Rather than simply creating a narrative from portions of the Christian gospels and promoting it, Borg attempts to distill all the information we possess to the point that a hypothetical “nonpapal conclave” composed of a Catholic, a Protestant, a Jew, and an atheist could agree on the story being told.

Before he does so, however, Borg establishes background by analyzing the information at hand and the interpretations thus far, categorizing the viewpoints into general categories and writing at length on the texts themselves. More importantly, he offers a historical and social analysis of the Roman Empire and the religious world of Judea -- something I find lacking in many books and that I was most pleased to see here. Jesus and his followers would have been shaped by the culture they lived in, and I’m glad that Borg emphasizes the importance of context.

What follows then is an examination of the gospel accounts: Borg divides them into three portions -- Jesus’ early ministry in Galilee, his last days in Jerusalem, and the road between the two. As he writes, he refers back to the contexts he established and to the important of symbolic language. What unfolds is a genuinely fair treatment of the Gospels: when I looked at the back of the book and saw it advertised as a “unifying vision for a critical time,” I scoffed because I figured the interpretations of Jesus are so varied that unifying them would be like unifying humanity -- probably impossible. To my surprise, however, the book neither insults rationality nor belief. When examining accounts of the miraculous, for instance, Borg does not spend time debating on if these things happened or not: he prefers to address the importance these stories held for the first people to tell them. What does it tell us about Jesus that they would say these things about him? A common theme is the importance of metaphor. What strikes me about Borg’s tone is his gentleness: he refuses even to label the Pharisees or Romans as evil even when acknowledging that they did disagreeable things. “You and I might enjoy the Pharisees’ company”, he comments, “and the Roman Empire was considerably better to live in than any other nation-state at the same time.” The Pharisees and Romans were both trapped by the economic-governmental system that they were born in.

The book isn’t wholly unifying, but I don’t suppose it could be. Borg believes there are two general types of Christians: those who place importance on holding particular beliefs, and those who place importance on living in a certain way -- on following Jesus on the Path, just as a Taoist follows the way of Lao Tzu and a Buddhist the way of Siddhartha Gautama. The latter Christianity is one Borg identifies as having been emerging since the 17th century. In his last chapter, he looks at how traditional/authoritative and emerging Christianity are shaping up in the United States. While admitting concern over the success of the Religious Right, he points out that mainstream Christianity’s fading-away is not necessarily a bad thing: it is simply the decay of imperial Christianity, and will ultimately free Christianity to be the lifestyle-changing religion it first was. Here I wonder if Borg has ever heard of Shane Claiborne: from what I’ve heard of Claiborne (thanks for the recommendation, Pom-Pom), I think the two would get along.

I enjoyed the book immensely and recommend it without reservation.

The Beginner's Guide to Zen Buddhism

The Beginner's Guide to Zen Buddhism
© 2000 Jean Smith
190 pages

Not knowing what distinguishes Zen Buddhism from Buddhism as a whole, I decided to read this quite accessible little book about the basics. Author Jean Smith does this fairly well, I think. Although I would be made to claim a comprehensive knowledge of Buddhist beliefs and practices, I've never encountered anything in another book that was not at least mentioned here. Perhaps appropriately, she begins the book by concentrating on the practice of zazen, or Zen meditation. This is a particular form of meditation relying on particular sitting positions and techniques and must -- according to her -- become part of daily, or at least weekly. Illustrations are used effectively: what pictures that are here are used directly by the text, instead of functioning as "extras" that give the reader a rest from nonstop text. The first pictures used are of the author (I presume) demonstrating several appropriate sitting positions for zazen.

She then moves onto the importance of the sangha, or community, and the Zen practitioner's relationship with his or her teacher. Smith places a lot of emphasis on the need for a teacher, which I found surprising. She then includes a short history of Buddhism's spread and development from India into China, Vietnam, Korea, Japan, and finally the United States, after which she writes on the Four Noble Truths, the Eight-Fold Path, and other teachings. This approach -- specifics before background -- is the reverse of what I expected, but I think it works. It is here that she states that what makes the separate schools of thought in Buddhism distinct from one another is which parts of the Eight-Fold path they place emphasis on. Zen's emphasis, she explains is on "right mindfulness and concentration". The book ends with thoughts on Zen in everyday life and a chapter of frequently-asked questions. Smith includes a list of suggested reading and a directory of Zen centers in the United States.

Overall, I found the book to be enjoyable and informing reading. I was surprised by the picture of Zen painted here: I did not anticipate the importance of ritual and such. My only detractory comment would be that Smith doesn't seem to offer any explanation for the preservation of rituals and chants and so forth aside from "It's part of the Zen Tradition." I know of possible explanations for these things -- chants serving to quiet the mind for the purposes of meditation, for instance -- but they were not mentioned.

The Faith Club

The Faith Club: A Muslim, a Christian, a Jew -- Three Women Search for Understanding

© 2006 Ranya Indliby, Suzanne Oliver, and Priscilla Warner

396 pages, including discussion guide and resources for starting similar groups.

The book begins on September 11. When Ranya Indilby -- a Palestinian-American who remains sensitive about her minority position -- hears of the attacks, she prays and asks that it not be Muslims who are behind them. In the post-9/11 world, she grows increasingly sensitive about her identidy, but finds solace in a story about Muhammed that seems to identify Islam as a religion that embraces other traditions. Inspired by this and prompted by her children's questions about their culture, she decides to write a children's book on the similarities between Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. A Christian friend of hers -- Suzanne Oliver -- quickly jumps on board, and the two call a local Jewish children's author (Priscella) to ask if she's interested in the project.

They join together and begin to discussion their traditions' common beginning with Abraham and begin the work of selecting stories from their texts to compile together, but quickly run into trouble when Suzanne and Priscella disagree on the meaning of Jesus' execution. Suzanne sees it as crucial to understanding Jesus' resurrection -- which she sees as a vitally important part of her worldview. Tensions begin to rise, and the three women realize that a different approach is needed -- so they begin talking about what their faiths mean to them. They work through a number of issues (Israel, stereotypes, prayer, and so on) through a number of years. The book is a (self-described) memoir written by three people in the voice of the first person. While their meetings are initially structured around writing the children's book, it becomes more of a retreat for the three women, and the book itself becomes less about the relationship between three religions and more about the developing friendship between the three women -- and the relationships they have with their respective senses of spirituality. Each of their faiths undergoes a transformation in the three or so years that the memoir covers.

I had expected to grow weary of what I expected to be the book's limited focus (the Abrahamic religions), but the book quickly became more about their personal quests to find meaning -- actively reinterpreting their beliefs and making them fit to their lives. The book ends with the chapter "Awakening", in which the three describe coming to peace with their paths. After the last bits of the memoir, there is added material: an interview with the authors and information helpful to starting a "faith club", including a list of things to keep in mind -- that everyone will bring stereotypes, that secrets corrupt, that everyone can be a peacemaker, that sort of thing. It ends with information about the three Abrahamic religions. Helpfully, all of this information -- from the interview to the religious information -- is rendered in English, Hebrew, and Arabic. Turning the page to see Hebrew and then Arabic script was surprising, but interesting.

The book was surprisingly...enjoyable. It reminded me a bit of Spong's Here I Stand, and the theme -- humans standing up to amd owning religion rather than being dominated by them -- is one I like.