Alexa - What does it mean with we pray "Lead us not into temptation?"

Alexa: What does it mean when we pray the "Our Father" and say, "...lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil."?

It means that we are tempted to see ourselves as separate bodies rather than all as part of the Oneness from which we emerged with the tiny mad idea that we are separate from and greater than God.

Alexa: Did you hear about the baker who wanted to make little cookies in the shape of animals?

Yes, everybody thought he was crackers.

Mingling of the waters makes man feel like he has to urinate.

Yesterday, the first Sunday after Labor Day marks the beginning of a new church year for most Unitarian Universalist churches.

Bart said, "I love Unitarian Universalism because they take the whole summer off. When I was a little boy my father told me we don't have to go to church in the summer because God is on vacation."

Bart told his friend Toby that in the summer UUs can do what they want because God isn't watching. Toby said, "Great religion! In our Catholic church God is around all year long so you can't ever have any fun."

In most UU churches, the first day of the UU church year is celebrated with the mingling of the waters. People are supposed to bring some water from their summer travels and pour it in a bowl with everybody else's water. With my UTI all I could think about when the minister invited people to come up and pour out their waters was urinating. If felt to me like my water needed to be poured, but I ignored it because it was just a sensation from the infection.

I couldn't help but wonder, what if everyone brought in a lab speciman of their urine and then poured that into a communal bowl what would the toxicology lab test would show was in all that urine?

There would be THC, opioids, benzos, Etoh, and God only knows what. If the congregation got a full lab report then we could guess who among us was on what drugs. Talk about communal sharing.

And so another church year as begun with the mingling of just plain old water from the tap, from the well, from the creek, from the lake, from the ocean, from the rain barrel, who knows? Each sample of water has a story, but the stories weren't shared just the water. Having shared our waters we are still a mystery to one another because water is just good ole H2O. The meaning of the sharing was never disclosed nor shared and I wondered with my sense of urgency, "What really is the point of the ritual?" I didn't really care at that point, I just wanted to go to the rest room to pee.

Ask Alexa - Why don't I trust other people?

Alexa: If deep down you think you are defective in some way, inadequate, not good enough, you can't trust yourself to do the good thing, the right thing, then how can you trust anyone else?

Good point.

Alexa: Did you hear what the bartender said when a horse walked into the bar?

Yes, he said, "Why the long face?"

Members of UU church claim they have no idea they are in a covenant.

            Members of the First Unitarian Church of Dismal Seepage, Arkansas, said after service last Sunday that they had no idea they were in a covenant.

            Pastor Megan Tremble stated in her sermon that Unitarian Univeralism is a covenantal religion.  People interviewed after the service said they were alarmed that Pastor Tremble seemed to be saying that they were a coven and that Unitarian Univeralism is a pagan religion similar to witchcraft.

            Jerry said, “People already think we are weird. My neighbor, last week, said with a great deal of disdain, ‘You’re a UU???? You people aren’t even trinitarian!!!” I didn’t even know what she was talking about. What the hell is ‘trinitarian’ suppose to mean.”

            Jerry’s wife, Linda, said, “Maybe it's time for a new pastor. I don’t want to be a witch in a coven.”

            When Beth tried to explain that a “covenant” is not a “coven” it seemed to be over Jerry and Linda’s heads.

            Jerry said, “I don’t know about any of this fancy church stuff. Actually, I like the coffee and donuts after the service and chatting with people about the hog market.”

            Pastor Tremble said after the service that maybe she tried to bite off more than the congregation could chew and it was time for her to move on from the backwaters of Dismal Seepage and look for an opportunity in a bigger city like Little Rock.

The "last barbecue"

If Jesus were alive today would He have a last barbecue?

From the New Yorker.

What kind of relationships do you strive to create and develop?

In the West we have the myth of rugged individualism and yet the truth is that we are radically dependent on others from birth to death.

The earliest and most significant relationship is with our parents especially our mothers for without their care, protection, and nurturance we would have failed to thrive and die.

We would not have language without the interactions with others and without language our consciousness would be very limited and there is no possibility of our having actualized our potential.

Relationships come and go. Some relationships are transitory, while others have a longer life, and some are life long at least spiritually and psychologically if not physically.

As adults, how we interact in our relationships is key to our spirituality. Are we attention givers or attention seekers? Some people are needy, dependent and don’t seem to be able to have much to give, while others are more autonomous, more mature, and give readily to others. We all need some attention and the kind and amount of attention we seek and demand describes our personality. The key is not so much the amount and kind but the intention behind the attention seeking and the attention giving. Is it selfless and unconditional, or is it conditional and egotistical?

The mature soul has little need or desire for attention. The mature soul is way past that and readily shares attention with others and gives attention to others. The mature soul recognizes that being the focus of attention is illusionary because there is no identity to claim it. Attention is as much a projection of the needs and illusions of others onto us as it is real and of any substance.

True attention is validation and validation presumes knowledge and awareness at the same level of functioning and consciousness, or higher, on the part of the giver as the person receiving the attention. This is why mature souls sometimes complain of feeling lonely even when surrounded by many caring people, because there are very few or no people at the same level of consciousness to interact with. Loneliness is the price one pays for maturing and raising ones consciousness.

Jesus promised that where two or more are gathered in His name, there he would also be in spirit. I think this is true for anyone not just Jesus. Human beings are communal creatures and our consciousness is socially constructed whether we are aware of it or not. To the extent that our consciousness is socially constructed we are radically dependent on others and to them we should be extremely grateful.

Unitarian Universalists value justice, equity, and compassion in human relations. UUs value the acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in their congregations, and above all, UUs value the inherent worth and dignity of every person.

Alexa: Am I a body or a spirit?

Alexa: Am I a spirit with a body or a body with a spirit?

How could you be a body that is constantly changing and will one day die when your spirit is a witness to this and will live forever?

Alexa: Do you think a chicken crossing the road is a beautiful thing?

Yes, it is poultry in motion.