by Rev. Terry Davis
Delivered at Northwest Unitarian Universalist Congregation on May 15, 2016
In the Catholic Church I attended growing up, there was a gentle, soft-spoken man who used to sing a solo every Sunday during communion. Mr. Marsden was his name, and he taught religious education classes at our church and also served as a substitute teacher at my middle school.
The song he sang was the Prayer of St. Francis. How many of you are familiar with this? For those of you who don’t know it, it goes like this (and I’m going to recite it, not sing it!):
Make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon.
Where there is doubt, faith.
Where there is darkness, light.
Where there is sadness, joy.
O Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled, as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned
and it is in dying that we are
born to eternal life.
I remember the way Mr. Marsden sounded when he sang this prayer. His tenor voice was so full of pure and tender emotion that it would bring me to tears right in the middle of mass . . . every single Sunday!
At the time, it felt as if Mr. Marsden himself was that instrument of peace, that he was channeling a message straight from God, right then, down to our Sanctuary. Today, I still find that the prayer a beautiful invitation, an invitation to get outside of my ego-centered existence and strive to live life with a generous spirit.
While it’s doubtful that this prayer was truly authored by Francis of Assisi, the 13th century Catholic friar who’s also known as the patron saint of animals and the environment, it nevertheless has become a source of inspiration for many people.
Mother Teresa, for instance, made it part of the morning prayers of her religious order, the Missionaries of Charity. And she attributed importance to it when receiving the Nobel Peace Prize.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, also a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, declared that it was “an integral part” of his devotions. President Bill Clinton quoted it in his welcoming speech to Pope John Paul II on his arrival in New York to address the United Nations. Nancy Pelosi used it when she became Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives in 2007, as did her successor John Boehner when he resigned in 2015.
It has been recorded by Sinead O’Connor, Sarah McLachlan, and numerous other musical artists. And, it’s the only established religious prayer that appears in the basic literature of Alcoholics Anonymous.
This morning, I’d like for us to think about this prayer’s invitation . . . and what each day might feel and look like if we were to each think of ourselves as instruments of peace. As Unitarian Universalists, I believe that this is, perhaps, the highest calling of our faith – to live lives led by a generous spirit and a humble heart, with the belief that our actions will transform the world and ourselves.
Furthermore, I believe that this invitation extends to the mission of this congregation, that, as a faith community, Northwest is collectively invited to act as an instrument of peace, that our primary purpose beyond being welcoming and loving to one another in here is to help those who are oppressed by poverty, violence, neglect and discrimination out there.
How might we cultivate this attitude of generosity and humility within ourselves?
In Hannah’s personal reflection this morning, she suggests that forgiveness was the instrument to achieving her own inner peace. I might add that forgiveness is also essential if we are to be effective instruments of peace in the wider world. That’s because forgiveness is about undergoing a change in feelings and attitude. And change is exactly what the Prayer of St. Francis suggests that we do.
It invites us to change our focus from ourselves to others. It invites us to change our understanding of the reason for our very existence . . . which is that we don’t exist to receive love, comfort, joy, and understanding but, rather, we are here to learn how to give these gifts to the world.
And, when we do, we will bring peace and experience it for ourselves. Self-centered fear will die and we will be born into a new way of life.
****
I want to take a minute to share a disturbing story I read in Friday’s newspaper. For me, it underscored the need for each of us to strive to be instruments of peace.
The news story involved the sale of the gun used by George Zimmerman in the fatal shooting in 2012 of Trayvon Martin, a 17-year old unarmed African American male.
As you likely recall, the circumstances surrounding Martin’s death, Zimmerman’s trial and his eventual acquittal unleashed a torrent of protests across the country, started a national conversation about “stand your ground” self-defense laws and planted the seeds for what has since become the Black Lives Matter movement.
Friday’s news article reported that George Zimmerman attempted this past week to sell on a gun auction website the pistol he used to kill Trayvon Martin. When the website, GunBroker.com, refused to list Zimmerman’s pistol, a second website, UnitedGunGroup.com, agreed to post it . . . but then temporarily took down the ad when they received offers topping $65 million.
Zimmerman’s listing said that a portion of the proceeds from the sale of his pistol “would go toward fighting what he called violence by the Black Lives Matter movement against law enforcement officers, combating anti-gun rhetoric of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and ending the career of Florida state attorney Angela Corey, who led his prosecution.” The listing for his gun ended with a Latin phrase that translates as “if you want peace, prepare for war.”
While Zimmerman’s crass attempt to profit from Martin’s slaying has drawn sharp and significant criticism, what was also disturbing for me was the reminder that violence is also – and tragically – very big business. Zimmerman obviously posted the ad for his gun because he knew that his notoriety from the Trayvon Martin case would generate offers. And online markets for firearms exist because companies know that people want guns – for hunting, for sport, for self-defense, and more.
Atlanta-based GunBroker.com is, in fact, one of the most successful websites of ANY online business. The site averages more than 500,000 auction listings for firearms, parts and accessories at any given time. It attracts more than four million unique monthly visitors each month and boasts over 2.5 million registered users.
Their website first reached $1 billion in cumulative merchandise sales 10 years after its launch, and doubled its sales to $2 billion just three years after that.
GunBroker.com now has a mobile device app for iPhones and Androids, making it even easier for firearm buyers and sellers to do business.
While we might applaud CEO Steven Urvan and his company for taking down the Zimmerman ad, online gun exchanges are nevertheless problematic. Unfortunately, they’re one of the easiest ways for unlicensed persons to sell firearms from their personal collection – and for purchasers to receive a shipped gun without first going through a background check.
According the U.S. Department of Justice, because federal law does not require universal background checks, “individuals prohibited by law from possessing guns can easily obtain them from private sellers and do so without any federal records of the transactions.” And, one study published by the New England Journal of Medicine observed that the private-party gun market “has long been recognized as a leading source of guns used in crimes.”
As I read this horrific article about the Zimmerman gun ad, as I thought about market for gun violence, and about today’s sermon and the invitation to be an instrument of peace, it seemed only natural that I ask myself and all of you, “What can we do about it?”
Well, I have an idea.
Earlier this week, a Northwest member who is also a member of the North Georgia Unitarian Universalist Social Justice cluster, approached me with a public witness suggestion. The North Georgia cluster, by the way, is a group of social justice activists who meet regularly to discuss, among other things, how members of our congregations can act collectively as instruments of justice and peace. Reducing gun violence is one of the things on their minds.
The Northwest member – Helen Borland – wondered if we might participate in an act of social witness for gun law reform. Since social justice is a ministry that the members of Northwest – not me – are in charge of, I’m offering her proposal to you for consideration.
June 2nd is National Gun Violence Awareness Day. On this day, gun law reform advocacy groups Moms Demand Action and Everytown for Gun Safety are encouraging millions of Americans to “wear orange” to signify their belief that we can do more to save American lives from gun violence.
The color orange comes from hunting culture, where hunters wear orange in the woods to protect themselves and others. Orange signifies the American heritage of responsible gun ownership and the importance and value of protecting human life. June 2nd is also the birthday of Hadiya Pendleton, the Chicago teen who was fatally shot at the age of 15 just weeks after performing at President Obama’s second inauguration.
So the June 2nd “Wear Orange” day is both an effort to promote gun sense as well as a celebration of Hadiya’s life.
Are you interested? If so, let Helen and Northwest’s Social Justice Ministry Team Leader Tony Barbagallo know. And, let me know so I can support you in your actions. I’ll wear orange on Thursday, June 2nd. I’ll join you at any rallies that day that you’d like to participate in. I’ll wear orange again on Sunday, June 5th to keep visible our ongoing hope for change in our laws and peace in the land.
So, let me know what you decide . . . okay?
****
Before I end my sermon, I want you to turn to your printed Order of Service. In it, you’ll find Northwest’s Covenant of Right Relations.
As we reflect on what it means to be an instrument of peace, this also seemed like a good time to be reminded that, as a congregation, we have made a promise to practice peace and understanding with one another.
Would you read it aloud with me?
As members and friends of NWUUC we affirm this covenant,
grounded in our Seven Principles,
as a statement of how we as a congregation
intend to work with each other to create a vibrant, caring community.
We covenant to:
Speak our opinions and our feelings with care and compassion.
Seek to understand others’ truths by listening actively and respectfully.
Be kind.
Be calm.
Keep talking, directly with the parties involved, to resolve conflicts or concerns.
Hold ourselves and other accountable for our words and actions.
Forgive imperfection.
Respect personal boundaries.
****
As we go from here, may we be reminded that the Prayer of St. Francis, our Unitarian Universalist faith, and Northwest’s own covenant, invites each of us to be an instrument of peace. Let’s remember that accepting this invitation means doing the work of changing our attitudes and actions.
It means having faith that when we seek to give to others the things we desire for ourselves – such as love, comfort, forgiveness and hope – we will receive these in return. And, it means taking bold steps to challenge unjust and unreasonable laws so that more peace is possible for more people.
May we find the willingness and the strength to do so. May it be so. Amen.