"Growing a Faith of Reality--and of Possibility"

“Janus is the Roman god of gates and doors (ianua), beginnings and endings, and hence represented with a double-faced head, each looking in opposite directions. He was worshipped at the beginning of the harvest time, planting, marriage, birth, and other types of beginnings, especially the beginnings of important events in a person's life. Janus also represents the transition between primitive life and civilization, between the countryside and the city, peace and war, and the growing-up of young people.”

--from “Encyclopedia Mythica” (Pantheon.org)

“Janus, the gatekeeper” — namesake for the first month of our calendar year--is probably the most neglected player in our holiday observances, but his message of “dual perspective” is arguably just as important as any other. (Janus, of course, supposedly has the ability to look both directions at once, which, in itself, is a valuable concept for people of liberal-religious faith which embraces “both-and” thinking more than either-or tunnelvision.) As the above definition suggests, the Janus image also has been utilized in other capacities, including rites of passage from childhood to adulthood. May I further suggest for a moment that such a dual focus could just as easily be “upward and downward” as much as “forward and backward?” In this respect, Janus can also be used as a consideration of both reality and possibility, and for a liberal, progressive religious faith I would argue that few things could be more important.

Pre-merger Unitarian leader James Freeman Clarke once proclaimed "five points of Unitarian faith" which went something like this...

1. The Fatherhood of God

2. The Brotherhood of Man

3. The Leadership of Jesus

4. Salvation by Character and

5. The Progress of Mankind, onward and upward forever.

Wow, how far we have come since then! (And, wow, how naive were their dreams back then...!) First, in this (widely-used) formula, God had a clear and undeniable gender, and the ideal relationship of "his" children was also couched in masculine terms, and then Jesus is proclaimed as the primary leader of our common faith, then...well, OK, maybe we can give them a pass on point number 4...but not on the fifth one: War and violence, poverty, famine, injustice and so many factors have conspiringly come together to shoot enough holes in that "onward and upward forever" premise that it now resembles Swiss cheese. What remains of our liberal faith--of Universalism included--is arguably a far more sober but still hope-filled, rationalistic faith and spirituality grounded both in reality and possibility.

Those of us who were born at the very end of the year (today is my birthday, by the way), are, in a sense, both cursed and gifted. From childhood, our birthday celebrations are often somewhat overshadowed or muted by holiday considerations, but, on the other hand, the concept of "new year's day" takes on an even greater significant for us. No, I don't make any grand New Year's "resolutions, " but I do have several days to ponder such things as past successes, opportunities lost, and present and future possibilities.

Further stirring this "internal conversation" for me this year is the fact that the first "comment" that was sent to this "new blog" was a highly critical one (from a person who is well known on the internet for the perennially antagonistic tone of his/her comments).

I don't believe any of us (in our right minds) would claim that Unitarian Universalism has achieved any degree of perfection. As I understand liberal religion, perfection is not even a part of its pantheon, and since imperfection is a part of our very essence--our DNA--it's our fate to always be an awkward and mistake-prone religious movement. While the idea of forming a "more perfect union" is noble and worthy ideal, an ideal it must remain...a distant, unreachable star in an ever-changing world. That's reality. But we also have enormous potential for change, mid-course correction-- even improvement, and that, too, I would suggest, is reality. Where people (like our "constant critic") seem only intent upon "cursing the darkness," it seems to me that UU's and religious progressives should be JUST AS committed to the other side of that proverb--to the "lighting of candles." Again, I don't, and will never, deny that we have significant problems---both denominationally, and even as a species, but I also have come to believe that a more Janus-like “both-and” vision is far healthier in the long-run than a "tunneled" worldview.

So, especially at this time of year, perhaps it's a good idea for us to follow Janus' lead, and to gaze soberly in both directions, to take inventory--and yes, occasionally to curse the darkness--but also to acknowledge those inevitable imperfections and then proceed to "light some candles," and (dare I say it?), to roll up our sleeves to make some changes as well? Instead of dwelling only upon the "warts" of our faith, why not set out to offer (or create) something better?

Do you think it’s possible that a person can be hopeful, but not particularly optimistic? If so, then my outlook on life would probably fall into such a category. I see so many hostile forces at work, so many negative trends that show no signs of stopping...so many human attitudes and habits that show no signs of changing. Still, I remain hopeful. I believe that meaningful progress COULD be made. As Powell Davies has written, orthodox religions the world over haven't shown any real signs of being able to address these problems in any particularly effective manner, and, in fact, are often more a part of the problem than the solution. What then, might a truly progressive, pragmatic religion bring to the table, which could serve our planet and its inhabitants any better?

What better time to ponder such questions as these…to thoroughly exercise our own “Janus-view” (not to be confused with a jaundiced one), admitting the reality of BOTH our inevitable imperfections and our unquenchable urge to do better? All hail, Janus, the gatekeeper--- the revealer of reality and possibility---at your special time of year!

Ron