In their meeting this week, our lay ministers reflected on the challenges of the last several years of our lives. Holding the “stew of anger” that surrounds us in our national and world politics, the hate directed at some of the most vulnerable among us, and the global warming crisis, among other things. All of that happened before the Covid pandemic and how Covid has added a whole new layer to things. I’ve come to understand it as a time of existential angst. There is a lot of hold these days.
The lay ministers offered ways that they have navigated these times of tumult and isolation—tools they have found that have been helpful to congregants in their care.
During the reflection, one of the lay ministers mentioned a phrase that was new to me—the concept of the beloved stranger. This described the person who is not in your closest circle, whose name you may not even know but who is part of the web of community we interact with. Think the checkers at the grocery store. Think the people you meet on a walk or at the dog park. Think the people you see at church but who you may not know. One of the things that was lost in these pandemic times has been our interactions with those we might call beloved strangers.
One of the realities for some of us in these last few years has been an increased isolation for many of us. A sense of disconnection from others. For those of us in places of privilege in particular it has been a time all too often to be able to close ourselves off from others. Not necessarily by choice but just through the narrowing of our worlds. And that has been a loss.
One of the blessings I am noticing these days is an opening happening around me in this regard. Signs of turning. Signs of opening. I’m especially seeing that at church. People returning in person. Seeing familiar faces—beloved strangers—again. Getting used to the practice of making connections across distances. Reemerging, each of us in our own way, in this present moment. There is an opportunity here, I hope. To perhaps deconstruct some of those walls that have been built up between us and other people.
These days I find myself seeking out spiritual practices that might help me navigate all this. Practices that can call me to be mindful of what is around me. In particular of the people who are around me. That practice begins with an intention to first be in the present moment. If I can be in that place then I think I’ll be more likely to be in a place to recognize the blessings around me.
Mostly these days I don’t feel like l have most of the answers. There is a lot to hold. There is so much that is unknown. What I am pretty sure about is that one of the spiritual tasks before we is to be mindful of what’s before me and to look for doors that are opening. To look for ways that call me into deeper relationship with the people and communities around me.
May we find ourselves in the presence of more beloved strangers. And may they help us find our way through these complicated times.
Blessings,
Tom
Rev. Thomas Disrud he/him
Associate Minister
First Unitarian Church of Portland