Faith

A thread of faith has trailed through my entire life journey. It began as a young kid, maybe 4 or 5 years of age. Slowly the years ticked off and we kids accompanied our parents to church; if not most Sundays, at least 2 or more per month.

Dad’s father was a Congregational minister. So was his grandfather. Both of those men pastored churches throughout the Midwest and California. The Midwest, however, was their bedrock experience. Chicago Theological Seminary was their training ground. So too, were their parishes in Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.

My father was born in Chicago, lived as the pastor’s kid throughout high school. It was not an easy role for him. Some of those years were deep in the Great Depression and dad, his sister and his parents often lived out of the church’s poor barrel. That’s where their clothes came from. Dad told us tales of going to school with his classmates remembering (and pointing out) dad was wearing one of their old shirts. Humility was learned dearly in those days. Not sweetly but dearly.

My father kept our family faith tradition alive in our household. Ours was not a religious home, but a Christian heritage home. We attended church, Sunday school, read the Bible, and followed church activities most of our lives. Church was also a way of getting to know the communities we moved to throughout my father’s career in military engineering and contracting. Churches introduced us well to the new community, its traditions and people.

But we did not cling to church as a well of faith. For me that came later.

Unlike my schoolmates, we were not Roman Catholic with catechism training. We didn’t even attend Sunday school enough to learn many of the Bible stories and thrust of ancient history as projected in the Bible. I learned those stories from college roommates who were raised on such histories and mythologies. At least then we were able to discuss intelligently the why of such stories and whether they embodied truth. Many brainstorming sessions were held late into the night at the dorm!

As we explored what faith is and its role in life, I came to believe in the existence of God and the power such faith provided me. I was not a solid believer in Christ; instead, I accepted the Christian tradition as a prophetic one, a guide to living life better if not well. The Christian heritage was an organizing tool in my life. As a result, I was open to understanding other great religions – Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Taoism – all with a base for comparison with Christianity.

Finally, things began to make more sense. I was not encumbered in thinking any one religion was the one and only spiritual answer. All had their rich value and purpose. Such thinking also nurtured ecumenism in an age of diverse beliefs, creeds and ideologies. We learned to get along with one another despite our differences. In fact, we enriched each other’s lives by sharing what we valued and believed.

When a fresh young college grad, I entered my adult life in Chicago far from family and homes on both the East and West coasts. I learned to live on my own in a large city, with new neighbors, new work colleagues, commuting patterns and all the rest of it. I attached myself to college chums living in the area. I also latched onto a local Congregational church and joined their choir. I had sung in choirs pretty much nonstop from the age of 15. Music was always a deep calling for me. It was also a strong thread in church life. You might say that my spiritual life began via the backdoor of the music program. From there I was absorbed by the church community. I grew spiritually in those days. It was only natural that we struggled to understand current events through the filter of our church life. The intellectual explorations were broad and deep. It was very natural that I would respond to the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by quitting my job and entering the seminary, the same one my great grandfather and grandfather attended. That experience deepened my spiritual faith and knowledge.

Still, I remain weak in theological matters; that goes double for Biblical matters. However, spirituality became a strong theme for my life. That doesn’t make me religious. Spiritual, yes; religious no. There is a huge difference between the two.

Here I am nearing 80 and I continue to find wellsprings of strength from my faith. It has allowed me to accept myself with all my imperfections. Doing that has allowed exploration of other talents and growth of them. At the same time, I have learned to enjoy much of what life has to offer and to laugh. Laughing is certainly one of the highlights of life!

Perhaps a ministy?

November 15, 2021