The worship theme for May is Tradition: What Does It Mean To be a People of Tradition?
May has a lot of traditional days and events; Mothers Day, Memorial Day, Graduation days, Beltane, Buddha’s birthday, and lest we forget, the annual meeting of UUFH. But on first reflection, thinking about tradition takes me back, or ahead, to fall and early winter, to Thanksgiving and Christmas and then to the two main holiday meals. And then I think of artichokes: large, fresh steamed artichokes, served whole, the “leaves” pulled off one at a time, each dipped in vinegar and oil before the soft part is eaten and the inedible part put in its own separate bowl. At my house, a fresh artichoke is as much a Thanksgiving tradition as the turkey. Eating it more the ritual than carving the bird. “ Hannah, do you want a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner?” “I don’t really care, but don’t forget the artichoke.” Even as life and world swirl and change, here is something that comes back around again. It looks and tastes the same and we do it the same way. It grounds us. It is as we remembered. I’m guessing the practice will be passed to the next generation. An artichoke become tradition and ritual. And it all started a few years ago simply because the biggest artichokes I’d ever seen were on sale at Fresh Market.
Tradition, however, means more than artichokes and whether they catch your eye and suit your taste. Its synonyms go beyond custom, ritual and habit. Well beyond. Another synonym for tradition is wisdom. Wisdom includes the accumulation of knowledge, insight, and judgment; it means good sense and a wise attitude. Wisdom is learning from experience; it is the distillation of human experience over time. May 25th is the Buddha’s birthday. The Buddha was all about direct experience. Don’t believe me, he said, try it yourself. When I say that I have faith in the tradition of Zen Buddhism. I am saying that I believe in the experience of practitioners who have gone before me. They say that they know from experience that sitting on my mat and focusing on my breath will make a difference in my life. It is a practice on the path to right relationship with life. The wisdom of their experience is a part of the tradition. My experience of meditation is enough that I believe the truth in what they are saying. A tradition in this sense brings forth the wisdom accumulated in the lives of those who have lived before.
As I said in the write-up to my May 3 reflection: “[This wisdom] can be grown and changed through experience and shared from generation to generation. “The religions of the world survive [become traditions] only when countless people are able to confirm, “yes, life is like that.”” (Sharon D. Parks)
Many people come to Unitarian Universalism searching for a “place of community and hope” that is free of the restrictions and rules of their earlier experience of religious tradition. Here they find a place where their freedom “from” becomes freedom “for”. Freedom for the inclusive, inspired, engaged understanding and vision of good living and a good world that two lineages of life experience and practice have brought together in the tradition of Unitarian Universalism. We don’t merely clear off all “tradition,” we participate in and grow and develop the wisdom, and tradition, of the orientation we share.
May is a good time to reflect not only on what it means to be a people of tradition, but also a person of tradition. What does it mean to you? Do you feel that you are a part of a community of shared experience and life wisdom going forward? Well, yes, you are.
May may be a month of late spring beauty and notice and insights. Mothers Day and Memorial Day are good days for traditional reflection. And don’t forget the Annual Meeting!
Jim McKinley
UUFH Minister