The other day I was talking with another clergy person about religion and spirituality. As we discussed the differences between the two, we were looking at pictures on a Power Point depicting each. All of a sudden the pastor sat up and sharply declared, "That's pagan. It doesn't belong there." I looked at the screen, not
being able to determine what he was talking about I inquired. He said, "The whale tail, it's pagan." Interested in the level of offense he took in this, I asked him to elaborate. All he could say was the same thing over. I responded that I found that interesting because to me the whale tale symbolizes the awe of God and God's astounding creative powers. It also reminded me of the sacredness of water: in creation, the water of the womb, Baptismal waters, Holy Water, the amazing ways water both creates and sustains life and takes it away with it's destructive forces. As I was talking, my pastor friend was looking at me bewildered. He said he could understand the Baptismal waters but nothing else. Again he declared the whole thing pagan.
being able to determine what he was talking about I inquired. He said, "The whale tail, it's pagan." Interested in the level of offense he took in this, I asked him to elaborate. All he could say was the same thing over. I responded that I found that interesting because to me the whale tale symbolizes the awe of God and God's astounding creative powers. It also reminded me of the sacredness of water: in creation, the water of the womb, Baptismal waters, Holy Water, the amazing ways water both creates and sustains life and takes it away with it's destructive forces. As I was talking, my pastor friend was looking at me bewildered. He said he could understand the Baptismal waters but nothing else. Again he declared the whole thing pagan.
The more I reflect on this experience, the more I think about how we clergy can so easily block someone's spiritual growth, that is we get in the way of another person's relationship with God when we give in to judgmental attitudes about another person's experience of God. The people that look to us as spiritual leaders need us to respect their experiences of God even when they're surprising to us. Yes, we do need to discern what's of God and what isn't but that needs to be done with the guidance of the Holy Spirit and within the community of witnesses. When we are shocked by someone's experience, the best practice is for us to ask questions to understand more about what that experience meant to the person. The bottom line, when we find that we don't agree with the person's experience abrupt declarations of heresy is the least helpful way for us to proceed. God meets us where we are and lovingly urges us in the life-giving direction. Even when we suffer negative consequences due to our wrong choices, we can always rest assured that God will never turn his back on us. Unfortunately, we can't trust the same of one another.
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