Scripture Reading (follow link): Mark 8:34-36
Poetry Reading (follow link): The Layers by Stanley Kunitz
Listen to Penny's sermon (follow link): Adam 1 and Adam 2
(delivered 09.13.15 at the Congregational Church of San Mateo)
My reflection:
Penny’s sermon on Sunday highlighted a human commonality: our intention to do good in the world. Most of us hope to be remembered as good people who did good things with their time in the world. Few people get to the ends of their journeys and regret that they were not committed enough to their careers or that they were unable to buy the sports car they wanted. Before I entered seminary, I worked for a company that managed cemeteries. A privilege of that work was to be present for dozens of graveside services. I can attest that few family members celebrate a person’s financial or career success. Each of us will be remembered for our “Adam II” selves, not our “Adam I” selves. Our Adam II journeys (the ways we love, the change we pursue, and the faith we demonstrate) resonate in the lives of those around us far more than our Adam I journeys (our successes in business, finance, and other material things which benefit few beyond ourselves). As Penny pointed out, however, while we seem to have clear strategies and pathways toward cultivating career success, the Road to Character is not so clearly paved.
Perhaps especially for those of us living in the Bay Area, the tension between “eulogy virtues” and “resume virtues” strikes home. Anyone who has interviewed for a job knows that part of resume success is the ability to self-advertise and self-promote. Success in our professional lives often breeds a me-centric way of being in the world that seems at odds with cultivation of character, yet no matter where we call home or what kinds of success we find in our lives, few of us would articulate our values in relation to our careers. Surely many of us work in fields that bring joy, knowledge, and care to others, but we find that we articulate our vocation in terms of our values-- not the other way around. I don’t say I do justice because I am pursuing ministry; I pursue ministry because I am called toward creating justice and peace. Our intentions to be good people in the world are perhaps closer to the surface of our natures than we sometimes realize.
Much of our culture celebrates and asks us to achieve the kinds of success that can be measured in cars and stock portfolios. We can turn on our televisions-- even to the most educational of programming-- and become inundated with advertising which suggests our worth is related to our clothing, vehicles, and how shiny our coffee table is. We’re invited to quench our desires in an endless frenzy of consumerism that transforms “values” into “savings.” We want to be good people, but our world continues to throw distractions our way. To borrow examples from Penny’s sermon, it can feel like Donald Trump is sitting on one shoulder, whispering into our ear, while Pope Francis sits on our other shoulder. It seems clear to me which voice finds the most air time in our culture.
Penny’s sermon asked us to do some honest self-confrontation. If cultivating skills for career success requires time, training, and curricula, why do we not think about cultivating our ethical and spiritual selves in the same way? If I spend a significant amount of my time learning to climb ladders, how might I spend my time learning to build bridges? For me, finding time to reflect on my character during a busy day is often during my commute. “What kind of language did I catch myself using today? How did I interact with the people around me? How did I NOT interact?” Perhaps I will inventory my own time: how do I REALLY use my most precious resource?
Would you like to share your thoughts on Penny’s sermon? In what ways do you resist or succumb to me-centricness in our culture? How do you cultivate (or plan to cultivate) character in your life or the lives of others? Do you have ways of doing careful, honest self-confrontation?
Penny's sermon also reminded me of this:
No comments:
Post a Comment