In my “other life,” I work as a nurse making home visits. Not too long ago, I visited a gentleman with dementia. The caregivers told me that they were concerned, because they frequently found him sitting up in bed, talking to the air.
When I saw him, I asked him about this. He said, “I’m talking to the window, saying ‘Thank you.’ ” At first I was confused, but then I had a flash of insight. I inquired, “Do you mean that you are saying thank you to God?” He beamed at me, and said, “Yes! I want Him to know I’m grateful.”
For me, this is interfaith. It has no labels. I don’t need to know which religion this man used to follow. I only see that he has a connection with the Divine.
I don’t need to know which path anyone is on, because in my mind, everyone – aware or not – is walking their spiritual path. Introverted mystics; secular, extroverted social activists; disabled seniors ... it just doesn’t matter. If you’re breathing, from my perspective you are on your path. My job as an interfaith chaplain is to walk there with you and – wherever possible – help you hold and explore that space. It is also my job to remember that it is your sacred space, not mine.
We CAN label it, if you like. Thanks to ChI, I can speak a little Islam, Buddhism, and Judaism. I also know some Christianity, Hinduism and Native American. And if I find that I don’t speak your language, I’m not afraid to ask you teach me: philosophies, hymns, practices, meanings. I want to understand your need so that I can support you in a way that is meaningful to you.
An interfaith minister is uniquely equipped to appreciate and marvel at how many different ways people have found to build their own picture of the Divine, based on geography, culture, and history. Each tradition reflects people's deep human need to make sense of their world and find connection with their own, deep spiritual core.
I believe that anyone can develop an interfaith sensibility. This doesn’t mean letting go of your own religion. In fact, appreciating the beauty and complexity of your particular belief system can brilliantly prepare you to appreciate the same in others.
It does, however, mean dropping whatever sense of “we own God” you may have absorbed when learning your doctrines of faith. It means opening the windows of your mind to the possibility that God – just like a mountain, or a many-faceted crystal, or an elephant – can be seen from many angles. All of these limited perspectives are true, but only to the extent that a human being is capable of understanding and expressing something as staggering as pure Spirit.
If you like, you can forget the word “interfaith!” The word is only a reflection of the greater understanding that we are all climbing the same mountain, just using different roads. We who stand up here are striving – each in our own way – to move closer to that which we perceive as God…the Great Spirit… Allah...
Again, it’s all semantics. For many people one, deeply satisfying religious practice is what feeds them. For others, it’s a fusion of beliefs and rituals which deepens them, and moves them closer to God. Still others only require a walk in Nature to find upliftment and connection with something greater than themselves.
The number of spiritual paths is exactly equal to the number of unique, intrinsically sacred people who walk them. We at ChI are called to serve and support them.
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Sermon given at Ordination, Sept. 25, 2010
