"Where have all the Flowers Gone" - A Lamentation

 "Where Have All the Flowers Gone" is a folk song written by Unitarian Pete Seeger in 1955, inspired by his reflections on the cycle of war, loss, and longing for peace. The lyrics are inspired by an old Cossack poem and the melody was adapted from an old Irish folk song.  He wrote the first three verses at that time and the last three were added by Joe Hickerson in 1960.  This was a difficult time for Pete professionally.  Pete was not shy about his devotion to the labor movement, social justice, and peace.  This was the McCarthy era and he and many other artists and performers on the left were blacklisted and banned. (We are seeing this again folks.)  Pete did not budge but continued to sing at folk festivals and more.  And we can take a lot of inspiration from him, his persistence, and his music. 

Pete’s intention for this song was to highlight the senselessness of war and the longing for peace.  It was recorded by the Kingston Trio and others like Peter, Paul, and Mary in the 60’s and gained wide attention during the Vietnam war as an anthem of the anti-war movement. Some describe this as a “timeless song.”  I am sad that is so. 

I would have hoped that by 2025, we would have learned how to resolve disputes without violence.  But each day on the news we hear how talks have failed, and wars continue in Gaza and Ukraine.  These are just the two in the news, though.  According to the Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights (aka – Geneva Academy) which monitors armed conflicts, “today there are more than 110.  Some of these conflicts make the headlines, others do not.  Some of them started recently, while others have lasted for more than 50 years.”  (https://geneva-academy.ch/galleries/today-s-armed-conflicts)

Now it is true that the number of combatants killed in these conflicts has declined over time with the use of better medical equipment and procedures and different techniques for destroying targets that do not involve boots on the ground.  But those numbers do not include the “collateral damage” that has increased with these new techniques – with many civilians, including children being sacrificed at the altar of war. 

Is World Peace Possible?  Many thought so after the Great War – now referred to as World War I.  That was supposed to be the war to end all wars. The Kellogg-Briand Pact was an agreement to outlaw war signed on August 27, 1928. Sometimes called the Pact of Paris for the city in which it was signed. Signatories included France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Belgium, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Italy and Japan. Later, an additional forty-seven nations followed suit, so the pact was eventually signed by most of the established nations in the world.  There was no way to really enforce it though. 

Again, I ask, is peace possible?  During some of the marches I’ve participated in, the marchers chanted, “No Justice, no peace.”  Now I attempted to frame that idea to mean that we would continue to make noise and “good trouble” till justice was done.  But some say, no – there are times to fight physically, with weapons if necessary.  Can we not grow beyond that? 

This song – and this sermon – is a lamentation.  But I don’t want to just be sad about the ongoing wars and armed conflicts throughout history.  I want to understand why we don’t seem to be able to move beyond this destructive, deadly, strategy.  In my efforts to understand – where have all the flowers gone – I read several articles and excerpts from studies, including a Psychology Today article by Allen Lickerman.

Lickerman (I like saying that) is a medical doctor and practicing Buddhist, and an author who has studied this concern.  The title of his article inspired me and gave me some hope.  It’s called: “Just Because Something is Hard, Doesn’t Mean it’s Impossible.”

Now Lickerman does indicate that some wars could be justified.  He says:

“In a world in which tyranny continues to exist, war may in fact sometimes be justified. In the same way it's necessary to fight to defend oneself when attacked, so too it's sometimes necessary to go to war to put down injustice, or even the possibility of injustice when its likelihood is great enough. (Then these words are in bold) - Rarely, however, is this given as a primary reason. Even democracies seem to be roused to war only by self-interest.”

Countries have gone to war for various reasons throughout history, and these reasons often stem from a combination of political, economic, social, and cultural factors.

I searched for some meta- analyses of reasons and found similar categorizations – though the orders changed somewhat.  Nevertheless, those at or near the top – were the same for all – and those at or near the bottom were similar as well. Of course, most causes of wars are complex – pulling from more than one of these reasons for conflict. I’ve combined a couple of these where it made sense and will share some of them with you.  The number one reason is the same for all these analyses.

·       Territorial Disputes:  Leaders throughout history seemed to measure their success by how much space they can take up on the map.  Russia is still number 1 in this regard – and perhaps that is why Trump jokes about (maybe) acquiring Canada and Greenland.  And even Russia is not satisfied and wants more.

·       Resource Scarcity and Economic Gain:  Access to natural resources like oil, minerals, fertile land, and waterways has often been a major driver of war. We saw a lot of this during the expansion of colonies throughout the world – but even now, this appears to be a factor. 

·       Nationalism and Patriotism:  Strong feelings of pride in one’s nation—has played a central role in many conflicts. Historical examples may be The American Revolution – or the Balkan Wars – but we see it today perhaps in Ukraine not wanting to give in to Russia. 

·       Religious, Ethnic, Cultural and Ideological Differences:  Conflicts driven by religion, ethnicity, culture, ideology, or belief systems are common. The Crusades and the Thirty Years' War were, of course, religiously motivated, as were some of the middle eastern wars.  The war in Gaza – though it could be proclaimed as a territorial dispute, may have underpinnings related to this category. 

·       Defence and Protection:  Countries may go to war to defend themselves from external threats. This includes wars of self-defence or to protect allies. World War II is a prime example of countries like Britain and France declaring war to defend Poland after Nazi Germany's invasion.

·       Civil Wars and Internal Conflicts:  Internal struggles within a country, such as civil wars or revolutions, can also lead to war. These wars often arise from ethnic, social, or political divisions. The American Civil War and the Russian Revolution are notable examples of this type of conflict.

·       Revenge or Retribution:  Past grievances, territorial losses, or perceived injustices can lead to wars of revenge. For instance, World War II can be seen as partially motivated by a desire for retribution following the outcomes of World War I. 

·       Security Dilemmas and Pre-emptive Strikes:  In some cases, countries go to war because they perceive an imminent threat and want to strike first. This is known as a security dilemma, where one country’s efforts to increase its security lead another to feel threatened, escalating into war.  Russia uses the threat of NATO as a reason for going to war with Ukraine before Ukraine can get more aligned with the West.

·       Humanitarian Reasons (Usually at or near the bottom for all analyses):  Wars have occasionally been waged with the justification of protecting human rights or stopping atrocities, such as during the Rwandan Genocide or Kosovo War.

Each war is a complex interplay of many factors, and motivations often overlap. The causes of war have evolved over time, but many of the fundamental reasons remain the same.

Now back to Likerman and his thoughts.  He shrinks all of this simplistically to three words: greed, anger, and stupidity. And he contends that the only way to peace is by more and more individuals becoming experts at living.  What is that? “An expert at living isn't a person who never experiences greed, anger, or stupidity but rather one who remains in firm control of those negative parts (which can never be entirely eliminated), who's able to surmount his or her darkest negativity, and displays a peerless ability to resolve conflict peacefully.”

Lickerman further explains his theory: "What generates this expert ability to resolve conflict? Wisdom and joy. Wise people are happy people, and happy people are wise. If enough people in the world's population became happy and wise, violence would be used far less often to solve conflict. If this pool of experts at living became large enough, we'd start seeing some of our leaders being picked from among them. And if enough leaders were experts at living, war, too, would be used far less often to solve conflict and further the interests of nations.”

Okay – so with that thinking, we have to have enough wise and happy people in this world – to attain peace -  and that’s a big task.  Where do we start.  Well, I guess here is where we sing – “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”

Now Lickerman is not that naïve.  He doesn’t expect that we can achieve world peace in his lifetime – and certainly not in mine.  Here’s a quote where he attempts to tell us what we can do: “As Gandhi famously said, ‘by becoming the change we wish to see.’ Strive to become an expert at living. Be good to those around you in concrete ways. Create an island of peace in your own life. If you do, it will spread. If enough of us do this, our islands will meet, ceasing to be islands and becoming whole continents. World peace exists literally in the actions each one of us takes in our own lives.”

Lickerman knows that everyone will not be easily enticed to become experts at living.  What will draw others who are obsessed with greed and more.  Now this response really does sound kind of like Pollyanna – but bear with me.  Lickerman thinks the draw is happiness.  People think they want more money and tax cuts, perhaps – but they really want to be happy – and they are not getting there. 

Another quote: “We must convince them to follow our lead by becoming so happy ourselves—so ridiculously, genuinely happy—that they decide on their own they want to be like us, that they want what we have. And then we have to show them how to get it. Good ideas are our weapons. When people come to deeply believe in notions that promote peace, peace will follow like a shadow follows the body.”

Now this is a very long-term goal of course.  But as John Lennon wrote: “You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.  I hope someday you’ll join us.  And the world we’ll be as one.”

May it be so!

 

 

I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free: An Exploration of the Yearnings of Women

 I Wish I knew how it would feel to be free-- #151 in our UU hymnal was composed as a jazz piece by African American jazz musician Billy Taylor in the 50’s.  He said he wrote it for his daughter Kim.  That instrumental version was recorded in 1962 and I’ll play that at the end of the service as our traveling music.  Dick Dallas added lyrics to the song and it became a staple of the Civil Rights Movement when it came to the attention of many with the recording by Nina Simone in 1967 on her Silk and Soul album.  Others recorded it as well – but I think you’ll agree, no one sings it like Nina Simone.   When I first heard this song – and later read through the lyrics, I was deeply moved.  I connected with it – not as Civil Rights marchers did in the 60’s – but as a woman who had felt those emotions and who had advocated for others who felt those same yearnings. 

I’m not going to ask you to sing it – but I invite you to say these words with me – and either think of times you may have felt this way – or if you are blessed enough not to have felt this way, put yourself in someone else’s shoes.

The words on the slides are from our hymnal – minus the last repeated line of each verse.

I wish I knew how it would feel to be free.
I wish I could break all these chains holding me.
I wish I could say all the things I could say,
Say ‘em loud, say ‘em clear for the whole world to hear.

I wish I could share all the love in my heart,
remove all the bars that still keep us apart.
I wish you could know what it means to be me,
then you’d see and agree everyone should be free.

I wish I could give all I’m longing to give.
I wish I could live like I’m longing to live.
I wish I could do all the things I can do,
though I’m way overdue I’d be starting anew.

I wish I could be like a bird in the sky.
How sweet it would be if I found I could fly.
I’d soar to the sun and look down at the sea,
then I’d sing ‘cause I’d know how it feels to be free.

This is Women’s History month so – though many can connect with these yearnings for freedom, today’s focus will be on the struggle of women, the progress made by women, and yes, the challenges as well. 

We are in a Unitarian Universalist church this morning, so pardon me – for lifting up some important Unitarian and Universalist women in this exploration of yearnings of women.  This morning I’m going to share briefly about the struggles and the gifts given to us by three women who were contemporaries:  Julia Ward Howe, Clara Barton, and Francis Ellen Watkins Harper. I’m sharing these in order of birth.

Julia Ward Howe was a Unitarian who is best known for writing the Battle Hymn of the Republic.  She was encouraged by Unitarian minister James Freeman Clarke to write new lyrics for the melody he heard union soldiers singing about - John Brown’s body.  She is also known as one who called for the first celebration of Mother’s Day – not as a day to honor mothers – but as a time for mothers to come together to protest their sons being sent into needless wars.  But I want to share about the Julia Ward Howe that I see as the yearning feminist – hoping for a better day for herself and other women. 

Julia was born into a family of prominence in New York.  Her mother died when she was just five years old, and she came to be under the very strict constraints of her father.  While her brothers went to school, Julia learned at home and became a gifted writer and poet.  Her father kept a tight reign on her for he was very religious and thought women should be raised to be good wives – seen and not heard, etc. He died when Julia was 20 – and for a while, she retreated even further and became more religious and separated from society.  However, Julia did fall in love with and married another prominent man.  Dr. Samuel Gridley Howe had made a name for himself by doing work with deaf children. He admired Julia’s money more than he did her poetry – and was adamant that she not share her talent.  Her husband once wrote these words to her – that some might see as loving.  “I give you fair warning; I shall not help you out of the cocoon state at all, you are a sweet, pretty, little mortal & shall not be immortal if I can help it, this many a long year. I suppose you think you would look very beautiful emerging from the chrysalis state & I should be proud to see a pair of wings sprouting out from your white shoulders...but no such thing & I advise you not to show even a feather, for I shall unmercifully cut them off, to keep you prisoner in my arms, my own dear earthly wife, who is to go forth with me through this pleasant world.”

Though they worked hard to display a happy marriage, Julia’s letters and poetry portray a different story.  A colleague who studied these letters wrote:

“Julia's letters throughout her marriage reveal anger, bitterness, fear and guilt. She wanted to convince others and herself that she was happy, but she and (her husband) were caught in a constant cycle of argument, frustration, and misunderstanding. She wrote in one letter that men are foolish who ‘think a woman's happiness is ensured, when she becomes tied for life to one of them-God knows one's wedding day may be worse than the day of one's death-one's husband may prove anything but a comfort and support.’”

They did separate for a year – though this was a secret from most – and her husband indicated he would happily grant her a divorce, but he demanded that his two favorite children remain with him.  Julia did not agree to that demand, and they reconciled.  Before his death, she published a book of her poetry under another name – but it was easy for him and others to figure out that she was the author – and he became furious.  Julia once wrote to her sister, “My voice is frozen to silence, my poetry chained down by an icy bond of indifference.”

Sometimes, freedom comes with a death.  Julia’s husband was 18 years older and died in 1876.  The following day, Julia wrote in her journal, “My new life begins today.”  And, indeed, it did.  Julia became a prominent poet, author, abolitionist and suffragette.  And – she preached regularly at Unitarian and Universalist churches.  She traveled widely and shared her message of freedom for all. 

In preparation for a sermon about her many years ago, I read a novel by Julia Ward Howe that wasn’t published till 2004!  It was called The Hermaphrodite.  Do not let the old-fashioned terminology prevent you from reading this.  As she explored what we would now term the fluidity of gender and sexuality, I was amazed that I was reading this very compassionate – and yes – passionate novel written by a prominent woman from that time period. 

Julia Ward Howe yearned to be free and used her freedom to promote freedom for others.  She lived to be an old woman – a liberal and liberating crone.  And that “old bird” (as her brothers called her) is still teaching me. 

Clara Barton was a Universalist – best known, of course, as the founder of the American Red Cross.  Because of that – many folks think of her as a nurse, but she had no formal nursing training.  Barton did learn many nursing skills when she was young as the main caregiver for her brother David, who had sustained a severe head injury after falling off the roof of the family barn. Yet, Clara did not go for nursing training as an adult.  It seems that her father employed a phrenologist to examine Clara’s skull – and the bumps I suppose on her head led the phrenologist to determine that she should be a teacher, though she was painfully shy. 

She began her teaching career at the age of 18 and founded a school at her brother’s mill for the children of the workers at age 24.  She established the first free school in Bordentown, New Jersey in 1852, but resigned when she discovered that the school had hired a man at twice her salary, saying she would never work for less than a man.

In Washington, DC, she interviewed for the job of a patent clerk and got it – becoming the first woman to have such a job and she was paid the same salary – $1400 a year – not bad for back then – as the male clerks.  But then a new Secretary of the Interior who was opposed to women working demoted her to a copyist at a lower salary. 

When the Civil War broke out, she quit her job so that she could support the Union war effort.  She didn’t want to do it from behind the scenes though and begged to be sent to the fields.  And, indeed, she was on those battlefields using her nursing and caring skills throughout the war, earning her the nickname, “angel of the battlefield.” 

All of this work during the war took its toll on Barton’s health – so she went to Europe for “the cure.”  But it was not long before she was doing the same kind of nursing work there.  While in Switzerland, she learned of the International Red Cross.  After learning all she could from them, she was determined to return to America to begin an affiliated organization.  She had a hard time getting it going – but finally on May 21, 1881, the American Association of the Red Cross was formed; Barton was elected president in June. In 1882, the US joined the International Red Cross. Though her health problems continued, she remained with the Red Cross till 1904.  During this time, she also became a big supporter of the women’s suffrage movement.  This excerpt from a letter to her friend Frances Gage, written in 1870, reminds me of some of the arguments women have continually had to hear regarding their rights.  She wrote: “Woman should certainly have some voice in the matter of war, either affirmative or negative and the fact that she has not this should not be made the ground on which to deprive her of other privileges. She shan't say there shall be no war—and she shan't take any part in it when there is one, and because she don't take part in war, she must not vote, and because she can't vote, she has no voice in her government, and because she has no voice in her government, she isn't a citizen, and because she isn't a citizen, she has no rights, and because she has no rights, she must submit to wrongs, and because she submits to wrongs, she isn't anybody, and ‘what does she know about war—' and because she don't know anything about it, she mustn't say or do anything about it."

I hear you sister – and thank you for your determination.

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was blessed to be born to free parents in Baltimore in 1825. She held dual membership in Unitarian and African Methodist Episcopal churches in Philadelphia and believed the struggles for black Americans and women of all races were connected. Her works were largely forgotten until scholars and Unitarian Universalists resurrected her legacy.

Before her marriage, she was active on the lecture circuit – speaking on abolition and on women’s suffrage.  Some of her writing seemed to be of great interest to middle class white women, while she also wrote protest literature in the black liberation tradition. 

She dropped away from the lecture circuit and decreased her writing when she married Fenton Harper in 1860.  He was a widower with three children, and they had another child together.  Now I did not read the kinds of negative things about Fenton Harper that I read about Julia Ward Howe’s husband, but it is interesting that both women became more active in their writing and speaking after their husbands died.  Fenton Harper died just four years after their marriage, and that is when Francis EW Harper returned to the lecture circuit. 

You’ve heard the phrase – “Progress sometimes comes in a hearse.”  Well, it seems that for some women, freedom comes in a hearse.

In May 1866 Francis EW Harper delivered an address to the National Woman’s Rights Convention in New York, saying before thousands, “Justice is not fulfilled so long as woman is unequal before the law. We are all bound up together in one great bundle of humanity, and society cannot trample on the weakest and feeblest of its members without receiving the curse in its own soul.”

Harper’s works are still being read and lifted up by feminists, scholars, and of course, Unitarian Universalists. 

My friend Dr. Leon Spencer shared with me that he attended with other Black UUs the dedication of a new grave marker for Harper in 1992.  Here is the quote written by Harper that is on it: “I ask no monument proud and high, to arrest the gaze of the passers by; all that my yearning spirit craves, is bury me not in the land of slaves.”

Dr. Spencer told me there were two reasons for them creating and giving a new gravestone – 1st, the old one was unreadable – as happens with time, and 2nd, they wanted to let folks know that she was a Unitarian! 

Here are two other quotes from Harper that are inspirational for us at this time and place.

"We want more soul, a higher cultivation of all spiritual faculties. We need more unselfishness, earnestness, and integrity. We need men and women whose hearts are the homes of high and lofty enthusiasm and a noble devotion to the cause of emancipation, who are ready and willing to lay time, talent, and money on the altar of universal freedom."

 “There is light beyond the darkness, joy beyond the present pain . . . the shadows bear a promise of a brighter coming day.”

I am proud that we have women like this in our history.  None of them lived to see women get the vote – but they continued working for good into their old age. This is an inspiration for me.  Just as Nina Simone was able to change the lyrics --- and say she finally knew what it was like to be free, we need to persevere through these difficult times when freedoms and rights are being trampled. 

Sometimes, we do not know what to do. What choices should we make in this struggle?  But that does not mean that we should do nothing.  So, I want to close with words – not from a UU woman in our history – but to let you know we UU women are still writing and preaching and trying to make a difference - I want to share an excerpt from a poem by a living UU woman and colleague whose poetry gives me constant encouragement – Lynn Ungar.  Here is what she says about choices we must make:

Every choice will

wound someone, heal someone,

build a wall and open a conversation.

Things will always happen

that you can’t foresee.

But you have to choose.

It’s all we have—that little rudder

that we employ in the midst

of all the eddies and rapids,

the current that pulls us

inexorably toward the sea.

The fact that you are swept along

by the river is no excuse.

Watch where you are going.

Lean in toward what you love.

When in doubt, tell the truth.

 

May it be so- beloveds!

 

 

 

 

 

The Passing of Love Notes (Double Meaning Intended)

 

The Passing of Love Notes (Double Meaning intended)

Roses are red, Violets are blue, Sugar is sweet, and So are YOU!

Now the older folks here may remember passing notes like that in Study Hall – or maybe even in class or church – heaven forbid.  We passed love notes – and other notes as well, of course.  But I suppose the passing of love notes is not done among the young folks anymore.  That practice has, indeed, passed.  Now they slip their phones out and text little heart emojis.

Some of us believe we miss so much from communication that is by texting and emailing and such.  And yet, I know personally that you can develop strong feelings and emotions through the written word – no matter how it is conveyed.

Love letters have been written and shared for as long as writing has been a thing.  Many were romantic – some erotic even – but some were about that bigger kind of love that we lift up here in church, sometimes referred to as Universal Love, or Agape Love, or God’s love.  Thankfully – those letters have been passed as well, passed down to us so that we may learn of the wonders of love.

These love notes or love letters have not passed away.  We have them today.  And since this month includes Valentine’s Day- which honors St. Valentine, who wrote a letter to the jailer’s daughter before his execution and signed it “Your Valentine” – I decided to share and explore some  love letters with you today.

The first is one that is familiar to us all.  If you haven’t heard it at church, you’ve heard it at weddings.  Though it’s often shared at weddings, it is not about marriage – the author, Paul of Tarsus, was not really in favor of marriage, unless you just couldn’t help yourself from sinning without it.  Now there is much writing attributed to Paul that I take issue with – but he really was progressive and insightful about some things – especially if you consider the context of his culture and his upbringing, etc.  This passage in his letter to the Corinthians is one that I cherish.  Paul writes:

13 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. ² And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. ³ If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned,but have not love, I gain nothing.

⁴ Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant ⁵ or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; ⁶ it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

⁸ Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. ⁹ For we know in part and we prophesy in part, ¹⁰ but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. ¹¹ When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. ¹² For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

¹³ So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is Love.

I think I could preach five or six sermons on that passage – and maybe one day I will.  For today, though, I will let Paul’s words just speak for themselves.

The second love letter that I want to share with you was SAID to be among 1400 letters that Einstein left to the Hebrew University, with orders not to publish their contents until two decades after his death.  This letter from Einstein to his daughter started popping up on the internet quite a while back.  There is no evidence that Einstein wrote this letter – and in fact – he was not a good father according to any evidence there is.  This daughter Liesel did exist – but she was conceived out of wedlock before he and his wife married – and was left for her maternal grandparents to raise or was adopted.  There is some indication that she may have died when she was two.  But I do like this letter.  It must have been fabricated by someone trying to get into an old Einstein’s head – and imagining that he may have changed in terms of his love for this daughter and wanted to prove the power of Universal Love.  And perhaps for now – we can do that as well.  Here is the letter attributed to Einstein – written to his daughter Liesel.

"When I proposed the theory of relativity, very few understood me, and what I will reveal now to transmit includes and governs all others, and is even behind any phenomenon operating in the universe and has not yet been identified by us. This universal force is LOVE.

When scientists looked for a unified theory of the universe they forgot the most powerful unseen force. Love is Light, that enlightens those who give and receive it. Love is gravity, because it makes some people feel attracted to others. Love is power, because it multiplies the best we have, and allows humanity not to be extinguished in their blind selfishness. Love unfolds and reveals. For love we live and die. Love is God and God is Love.

This force explains everything and gives meaning to life. This is the variable that we have ignored for too long, maybe because we are afraid of love because it is the only energy in the universe that man has not learned to drive at will. To give visibility to love, I made a simple substitution in my most famous equation. If instead of E = mc2, we accept that the energy to heal the world can be obtained through love multiplied by the speed of light squared, we arrive at the conclusion that love is the most powerful force there is, because it has no limits.

After the failure of humanity in the use and control of the other forces of the universe that have turned against us, it is urgent that we nourish ourselves with another kind of energy… If we want our species to survive, if we are to find meaning in life, if we want to save the world and every sentient being that inhabits it, love is the one and only answer.

Perhaps we are not yet ready to make a bomb of love, a device powerful enough to entirely destroy the hate, selfishness and greed that devastate the planet. However, each individual carries within them a small but powerful generator of love whose energy is waiting to be released. When we learn to give and receive this universal energy, dear Lieserl, we will have affirmed that love conquers all, is able to transcend everything and anything, because love is the quintessence of life.

I deeply regret not having been able to express what is in my heart, which has quietly beaten for you all my life. Maybe it's too late to apologize, but as time is relative, I need to tell you that I love you and thanks to you I have reached the ultimate answer!"

The last letter I want to share is, for sure, a fictitious letter – but many truths are conveyed through the writings we label as fiction.  Just because it’s in a work of fiction – doesn’t mean it isn’t true.

This is an excerpt from one of Celie’s letters to God – of all things – in Alice Walker’s book, The Color Purple.  In this letter to God, Celie is sharing about a conversation she had with Shug about Shug’s concept of God and how it had changed.

“Shug a beautiful something, let me tell you. She frown a little, look out cross the yard, lean back in her chair, look like a big rose. She say, My first step from the old white man (god) was trees. Then air. Then birds. Then other people. But one day when I was sitting quiet and feeling like a motherless child, which I was, it come to me: that feeling of being part of everything, not separate at all. I knew that if I cut a tree, my arm would bleed. And I laughed and I cried and I run all around the house. I knew just what it was. In fact, when it happen, you can't miss it. It sort of like you know what, she say, grinning and rubbing high up on my thigh.

Shug! I say.

Oh, she say. God love all them feelings. That's some of the best stuff God did. And when you know God loves 'em you enjoys 'em a lot more. You can just relax, go with everything that's going, and praise God by liking what you like.

God don't think it dirty? I ast.

Naw, she say. God made it. Listen, God love everything you love? and a mess of stuff you don't. But more than anything else, God love admiration.

You saying God vain? I ast.

Naw, she say. Not vain, just wanting to share a good thing. I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it.

What it do when it pissed off? I ast.

Oh, it make something else. People think pleasing God is all God care about. But any fool living in the world can see it always trying to please us back.

Yeah? I say.

Yeah, she say. It always making little surprises and springing them on us when us least expect.

You mean it want to be loved, just like the bible say.

Yes, Celie, she say. Everything want to be loved. Us sing and dance, make faces and give flower bouquets, trying to be loved. You ever notice that trees do everything to git attention we do, except walk?”

Shug is right, y’all.  Everything wants to be loved – and everything needs to be loved. 

What do these three love letters  – have in common?

I see three common themes – here I go with a Trinity again, just can’t seem to get away from it – even in this Unitarian church.

The first is the Universality of Love.

Paul reminds us that:  ⁷ Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  He also says that Love never ends.  I truly believe that this is how we have eternal life – not by rising up to some new plane of existence in a city with gold streets and mansions.  My son Fred loved me and he fixed things for me that I still have – and he said things to me that I remember.  Fred and I disagreed on lots of things – but he loved me supremely and would do anything to protect me. Fred’s obituary says he died on December 27, 2019, but I still have his love with me.  And I try to pass it on to you. Love never ends.  It’s universal. 

Of course, the letter attributed to Einstein is all about the Universality of Love.  The author states that “love is able to transcend everything and anything, because love is the quintessence of life.”

And in Alice Walker’s fictitious letter from Celie to God – Shug explains that EVERYTHING wants to be loved.

The Second theme is the Power of Love!

Paul lifts up the power of love – especially as compared with our human nature without the power of love.  He says that “⁴ Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant ⁵ or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;^{[b] 6} it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”  That’s the power of love.

The ”Einstein” letter states it directly – even providing a formula for it.  The author says that Love is power, because it multiplies the best we have, and allows humanity not to be extinguished in their blind selfishness. Love unfolds and reveals. For love we live and die….”  The author further implores us of the necessity for using the power of love with these words:  “After the failure of humanity in the use and control of the other forces of the universe that have turned against us, it is urgent that we nourish ourselves with another kind of energy… If we want our species to survive, if we are to find meaning in life, if we want to save the world and every sentient being that inhabits it, love is the one and only answer. “

In Alice Walker’s fictitious letter, Shug hints at Love (even erotic love) being the best thing God did- and the power of loving what God loves.  She says “And when you know God loves 'em you enjoys 'em a lot more. You can just relax, go with everything that's going, and praise God by liking what you like.”

The third theme in this trinity of letters is Our need to focus on, give, and receive Love!

Paul says: If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. ² And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

“Einstein” reveals this need by sharing his regret.  He says:  I deeply regret not having been able to express what is in my heart, which has quietly beaten for you all my life. Maybe it's too late to apologize, but as time is relative, I need to tell you that I love you and thanks to you I have reached the ultimate answer!"

And In Walker’s fictitious letter, Shug shares this about our need to love and desire to be loved: Yes, Celie, she say. Everything want to be loved. Us sing and dance, make faces and give flower bouquets, trying to be loved. You ever notice that trees do everything to git attention we do, except walk?”

My friend Laura Milner shared with me recently that as her mother approached the very end of her life – she held both her daughters’ hands.  Now Laura has shared with me that she and her sister are very different in many ways, religiously, socially, and politically.  But the thing their mom wanted them to see was the importance of sharing their love with one another – how much they need that – And the message she had for them in the end was this – - and I’m quoting Laura directly here -  “Mother said ‘Love is everything.’  That night and again in her final hours, she encouraged us to develop and nurture the kind of close relationship she enjoyed with her sister for more than 80 years. “ That was what was on Laura’s mother’s mind till the end – that Love is Everything! – and that they needed to love each other.  And they did get closer in those weeks at their mother’s bedside.  But we don’t need to wait, folks.  We may not have that opportunity.  We need to reach out now, today if possible.

The chorus of the song we shared earlier says it all – especially this year:  What the World needs now – is Love, sweet love.  It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of.  What the World needs now, is Love, sweet love – no, not just for one, but for everyone!

May it be so!