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Talk by Rev. Carol Hartman

“Dignity and Justice in Living and Dying”
Rev. Carol Hartman
Unitarian Universalist Church of Sarasota, FL
August 21, 2005

Opening Words:

Sometimes a line must be drawn.
Sometimes there is just no compromise.
Sometimes so much is at stake; we must stand up, speak out and act.

What are these times for me? What are they for you? For us? We’d rather stay in our comfortable cocoon, where there is harmony and beauty and quiet and peace, yet if these were threatened to be lost, would we take the stand that would need to be taken? Would we pass the test?

We declare as members of UU congregations that we affirm and promote the following:

* The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
* Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
* Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
* A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;
* The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and society at large;
* The goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all;
* Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

Just how serious are we? Which ones would we draw the line? Which ones would mean no compromise? Which ones would cause us to stand up, speak out and act?

What is my answer? What is your answer? What is our answer?

Sermon:

Thank you for inviting me to speak from this pulpit. I am pleased to be here and to speak with you on these timely and important subjects.

I chose the topic “Dignity and Justice in Living and Dying” this morning because I am alarmed at what is happening in my country and I see the trends as a genuine threat to be able to live and die with dignity and justice. As I watch with increasing alarm the workings of the political world around me unfold, I want to know, what are the underlying causes for the actions and reactions in the debates and proposed laws. I want to understand. I want to be clear and as the singer Kenny Rogers sings, I want “Know when to hold and know when to fold”. But beyond that, I want to know where I can find the truth, for it is with the truth I can make competent and clear decisions. All of my life time, I have believed as I believe others have, in some basic ingredients that make us a democracy. These were hard won and nurtured and protected as precious when threatened. Those were an independent judiciary, checks and balances, in balance, in our three branches of government, a fearless and independent press who searched for right and wrong wherever the investigation led, universal free education and representatives who tried to represent ALL the people who elected them.

I know in theory that we as a people swing from one extreme to another before settling for periods in a kind of balance, yet what is happening around me does not reassure me that we will return to that balance and it is cause for great concern. No that is too mild… I am seriously alarmed. The changes, subtle and overt, seem too far reaching and are an attack on our fundamental values. Those seeking to interweave government and their specific biblical interpretation of Christianity for the creation of a theocracy are many, powerful, well funded and very, very determined to do whatever it takes to get what they want. They are not shy about their desires, we hear them everywhere. “Faith based” programs, legislation, prayer breakfasts are the vehicles of bringing their plans to fruition.

I am genuinely impacted by the influence of my colleagues in the clergy and how hungry they appear for power. As they intertwine their religious agenda with a political agenda on every level of government, I become increasingly concerned. I know they mean business. I am like many who are distracted with everyday things, too busy for all I would like to do, but it has become impossible for me to not pay attention, there is much too much at stake.

Our political system is not the norm in this world. It is a unique social experiment that has evolved over the last 200 years. To be created and sustained, it took and takes people with a common vision. This is a vision of the possibility of the coexistence of people with many world views and religious views, with different educational, economic and cultural backgrounds. Beliefs are to be honored and respected, even celebrated for the diversity and differences this pluralistic mix creates. This vision is manifest through the social contract of this nation. This social contract is stated in our nation’s founding documents ,the laws and legislation as well as the rules of governance. This social contract, the envy of the world, cannot be replicated without certain ingredients. Creating and maintaining this social contract requires an educated population who makes it their business to stay informed, who are vigilant and who take their responsibility to express their rights and desires in the form of voting seriously. Under this contract, many different desires come together, yet there is a respect for the process, a pride in the process, a knowing that one will not get his way every time. But if the issue is such that many feel the desire to have law or legislation or representation, clear rules of gathering votes are known and understood and spelled out in the social contract. This is a fundamental tenant of a democratic system. All are invited to vote as all are part of the social contract, not just the wealthy, the landed, or the privileged.

But all this is changing before our eyes and we are witnessing the implosion of our own democracy. Time and again we have watched countries around the world seem to cave in upon themselves and destroy their social fabric. We are in such a time of change. Many of the changes we are experiencing are overt but many more are very subtle. Tiny shifts in thinking and operating, spinning and eliminating not being detected until after it is too late. Increased secrecy, lack of response from our leaders , tampering with the judiciary, devaluing education for our children and making higher education affordable for the wealthy only. All while watching our representatives become increasingly beholden to funders with interests and agendas that are increasing the implosion of this social contract. These are all causes for alarm.

One of the historical and contractual agreements in this social contract is the separation of church and state. It is this separation that was the underlying vision of the founding documents and most of their authors knew that a dominant pattern of religious thinking, doctrine or dogma excludes rather than includes. It was known that the joining of the two institutions, government and church, was a recipe for inevitable oppression and the end of free and creative thought and belief. Under this merger, free thought and a spectrum of beliefs would be a threat for there would be questions and challenge, dissent, rebellion and even revolution. The religious and spiritual exploration of individuals who are encouraged to stretch and reach and speak out is what has been the driving force of growth in our concepts and actions regarding justice. A separation of the two is essential if there is to be dignity and justice in living and dying. No one religious idea should hold more weight than another, particularly in governance.

Yet, the reason for the separation runs deeper with some fundamental psychological factors.

I believe that the oppression of people by a state church or religious entity is based upon the individual viewing himself at a very deep level as a dependent child and worthy of being oppressed. Oppression requires the tacit agreement of both oppressed and oppressor. This relationship view is fundamentally true of the major religions of the world. One of the major beliefs is a view of God as an all powerful figure controlling individual and collective destinies. The external, great parent. Children are not responsible, they are not to think deeply, question or ask for justification or accountability. Overt and subtle rules, myths, litany, rituals and edicts of religious leaders enhance and fortify this child-like emotional dependency. These are powerful tools, particularly considering the parent figure is professed to have the power to love and hurt as all parents do. Creating a relationship of parent and child, obedience is paramount. However, in this relationship, the parental wishes are subject to much interpretation, because the parent is not present, only his representatives. When this parent cannot be detected directly, his representatives… teachers, priests, ministers, church committees, self proclaimed leaders and now politicians are there to take over and tell the child what to think, feel and do. Supposing direct connections and proclaimed direct communication to the will and desires of the great Parent, their influence and power are magnified. Fortified by special ancient books, the people are pliable, intimidated and maneuverable. The major religions of the world are based upon text that are built upon myths, ancient myths at that. To say they supersede science is to discredit the inventions and scientific explorations of the last 2000 years. The clergy with many agendas interpret these texts to suit their desires and their specific agendas. Yet, because they are given magical, parental status and coerce and manipulate followers into following with blind faith, they often believe they are not accountable. Stating that a personal, always watching, potentially punishing God will cause discomfort if not obeyed in a certain way, they way they say, the clergy gain even more power.

Our social contract has the power of church and clergy in tension with government. They are separated for a very clear reason. When joined together, democracy is not possible. Each must be the check and balance, sometimes the conscience, and often the dissenting voice of the extremes of the other. When blended together, the loss is profound. Strident certitude, intolerant voices that shout down or intimidate others prevail and when backed by both entities, democracy cannot exist.

For all to know who the true representatives are, there must be manifestations of power. That power is only realized by how many follow and do as they are told. To create this following, tools of coercion, fear, intimidation and oppression are used. One of the most powerful tools is Communication. Directing the images in words and pictures, all media becomes the arm of the coercers; those that filter and shape the perceptions of the led are a major part of this process. A system of communication that knows that the frivolous and inane numbs and distracts will carefully avoid the intellectually challenging. Witness the threats to NPR and PBS. We invite these influences into our livingroom each day. This invitation has a high cost. Controlling and directing an education system that values order above critical thinking, will produce followers. Placing a value on the number of facts to remember to pass standard tests, surely leaves little time for questioning, thinking, exploration, or day dreaming. Reducing and eliminating the arts, which are not orderly and stretch the imagination and courage of children, has had profound effects. Retuning the educational system to diminish the study of government, how and why it works, comparing it to others, and the study of history, leaves each generation with less respect and commitment to our democratic system of government. Thus the question, “what is the big deal over prayer in school, the stone Ten Commandments and leadership who claim that their guidance comes directly from God?” “Why not compromise on a woman’s right to choose, place judges who disregard and disrespect the law in lifetime jobs, demand people be forced to live when they have said they choose to die?”

The founders of this nation understood the value of education and communication and knew that by the blending of the church and the government there would be one official church, destroying the vision, the social contract and yes, the dignity and justice they knew possible for themselves and others.

Theocracy and democracy cannot be bedfellows. They have vastly different vision and purpose. For a theocracy must keep all but the few leaders believing themselves to be as children and a democracy demands the personal responsibility and thinking of grown ups.

I’d like to draw some parallels here with a personal experience. I just finished a 17 week course in what is known as CPE, Clinical Pastoral Education. This course is the coming together of a small group of ministers from many denominations that look at the principals and convictions that are the underpinning of their personal and religious lives. They face them squarely and through thought, discussion, writing, meditation or prayer put them in a place where they are a given deeply embedded in their lives. With this deep thinking, many change, doctrine and dogma becomes less important than core values. This group was 2 Pentecostals, one Anglican, 2 Catholics (one a sister), a black Southern Baptist minister and me. Three were in the military and we were meeting at the VA in Tampa. All but 2 were politically conservative also. As you can well imagine, there were some testy times. It was a real test for me, to listen, to dare to share and to have to think and be creative. For our world views were often in direct conflict. We were expanding ourselves to work more effectively as Chaplains. A Chaplain is different than minister and to be an effective Chaplain requires many internal shifts. A Minister is the leadership, the teacher, spokesperson for a particular denomination and the expectation is that the minister is hired to promote that particular set of denominational beliefs. A Chaplain takes another step. Grounded in his/her own beliefs, a chaplain puts aside his/her denominational rhetoric and incorporates his/her religious faith into the act of serving all. Those in leadership in our government have become like ministers when they should be like chaplains. Promoting a particular religion, doctrine or dogma is what our founding fathers sought to avoid. The vision of the founding fathers and the social contract we know is in peril.

The world has become a fearful place where bad things happen and where we are constantly reminded what might or could happen. When things are so unpredictable, there is a demand for answers, definitive and conclusive answers. The climate of fear has children running to the parent and parent representatives for safety and for certitude. Fear can be real and come from unpredictable sources. Those who live and worked in Port Charlotte know that well as survivors of hurricanes. Those situations produce feelings of fear and powerlessness, vulnerability ripe for exploitation. Many search for leaders with answers. These situations that create fear can be created artificially also and the same response of fear and powerlessness, vulnerability and possible exploitation causes many to search for leaders with answers. A compliant media and a joined church and state, result in the abandonment of tolerance, the headiness and arrogance of power, the unleashing the destruction of individual rights using the tools of oppression, intimidation, coercion and fear. Justice becomes a faded memory and the dignity of the individual, which is based upon choice, disappears. Loss of the ability to have choices over the control of ones body, to have or refuse medical care, to manage one’s reproduction and yes, in death to choose how to die with dignity is no longer an individual choice but governed by the most powerful religious group who has joined with the government. The right to choose to live under extraordinary conditions or to die becomes the decision of others in the intertwined church/government state. For those of us who believe that justice must be blind to the privilege, wealth, social position, ethicnicity, racial or religious heritage of every individual, there is no compromise. For those who cherish the dignity of each individual to govern his person, there is no compromise.

The emerging vision of our social contract is heading in a new direction. With the constant discussions of faith, faith based programs and legislation that stabs deep into our democracy, there is a legislative strategy and a desire to limit the courts’ ability in their “checks and balances” role of reviewing the executive and legislative branches of government. Right now, Congress is considering bills to prevent all federal courts, including the Supreme Court, from hearing challenges to laws they want to pass regarding mandatory prayer in schools, the Ten Commandments, the Pledge of Allegiance or any government action involving “acknowledgment of God as the sovereign source of law, liberty and government”. This is alarming for this disregard of our democratic principles is creeping in the halls of our legislatures and in our media. The prominence of clergy and church in affairs of government is being tolerated, welcomed and encouraged as never before. All this results in a push to abandon many of the very basic ideals of a pluralistic, diverse and responsible people. Falling into traps of fear created by an increasingly secret government who accepts no responsibility for mistakes or faulty misguided actions, slowly but surely the concepts of dignity and justice melt away. The elements of coercion and fear, even if wrapped in a myth, cause oppression. I become concerned no alarmed, when I see the dismantling of our democracy by attempts to create a theocracy right here in America. A theocracy is not just. It has no room for options, opportunities, for critical thinking, for creativity, for exploration, for dreaming or for challenge or challenging facts. With out justice, there is no place for dignity or for choice. When the spokesman for the religious groups who gave so much money says to our elected officials, “you owe us to impose our beliefs upon all,” when avenues under the social contract for dissent are systematically destroyed and secrecy and spin increase, we must take notice and respond. When fear is used as a tool to crush debate and discussion, when the press gets lazy or too scared to do the “investigative reporting” and when large amounts of money, as in our times, are put in the mix, oppression and coercion are increased and we are in grave danger.

So if as liberals and we must assume that most here consider themselves as such or you would not be here, what do we do in these times if we hold the value that dignity and justice for all are critical ingredients for both living and dying? How do we respond as we see the avalanche of theocracy looming at us?

I suggest that as with any major life challenge, and as I see it, it is, we educate ourselves and all we know. We read the documents of the founding fathers, we study again the principles of democracy. We force ourselves away from the TV and get to the library and refresh ourselves on exactly what our social contract is. While we are at it we study model theocracies too... We pay attention. We think, we talk, we write our congress people, we write letters to the editor and we vote in every election. We spread the word in every way we can. We get on the internet and write our friends, we step up to the plate. We print things off the internet or cut them from newspapers and magazines and put them in places where they will be read….at work, at church, send them to the kids, share with neighbors. Sound the alarms, but be prepared.

As you all know, I am a Hospice Chaplain. Recently the nurses were talking with me about the Terry Schivo case. We had a family member who wanted us to insert a feeding tube into a non-responsive, actively dying patient who had a living will that stated no extra ordinary measures. She said she wanted her husband to die of the cancer and not from starvation. The press did a poor job discussing the dying process in the Terry Schivo case, presenting facts with accuracy, and it left lingering misconceptions. Dying people naturally stop eating, the body does not want or need the nourishment. The feeding tube was her idea and against his wishes. She was ready to violate his wishes. If the Shiavo case had turned out differently and Congress and our politicians prevailed in stripping the independence of the judiciary, this person would be stripped of his choice to die in dignity and would be forced to endure real suffering beyond his control. The attempts to govern the life and death of Terry Schivo were an attempt by the church, clergy and politicians on the conservative right to have power that supersedes personal choice and the law of the land. It assumed she was not responsible to make decisions regarding the invasive or noninvasive procedures on HER OWN BODY. No different than the right to choose whether to carry a child to birth. Somehow the church and those in government influenced by the church and the conservative right have the idea a person’s body is their property before it is born and as it is dying. In-between it claims little responsibility….All are on their own with a disintegrating safety net, disappearing access to health care, exporting of jobs, crushing debt etc. Blind faith is all that is required. Lulled into complacency, hoodwinked by a spun press with 30 second sound bites, we are in grave danger.

Oh, there are days I feel like I am tilting windmills. Watching the insidious crushing of the flower of democracy, which has been a beacon to millions who yearned to live in dignity with justice, is a truly painful experience. How loud do I need to shout that this is real stuff, wake up, and see the dangers.

All we know, truly know, is what is here and now. Afterlives, what happens after death is belief which can be very strong wishing without any measurable proof. We are given one chance to live these years with passion and conviction following principles we know to be honest, thoughtful and sound. This is no time to fritter away an opportunity to live a life of passion and meaning and find every way we can to live what we believe. Our principles of justice and dignity are not a Sunday outfit…they are every day clothes we must wear with pride. There is an opportunity for everyone. Big flashy gestures are not what is required nor are huge sums of money. We are in a fight for what our fathers, grandfathers and sons and daughters believed they were fighting for..the social contract spelled out by our founding fathers. Think hard about what you can do and join me in this fight. Have courage and give courage to others with likeminded thinking. Have no shame being a liberal even in the climate we live in, for if we accept the fear, oppression, coercion and intimidation, there will be no retrieving dignity and justice in living and dying in our life time.

Thank you for inviting me to speak here this morning.