The Middle Way

The topic was extremism and religion. It was a global interfaith conversation. Below are the questions I was asked to address, and my responses.

(1) What has been considered the moderate or Middle Way in your tradition?

Christian practice has drawn inspiration from two distinct and sometimes competitive modes of self-understanding. One might be called the “religion about Jesus” and the other, the “religion of Jesus”.

The religion about Jesus believes that Jesus Christ is the lens through which we gain a glimpse into divine reality; he is the mirror in which to see our truest selves. The God of the Universe is revealed in a displaced child who sleeps in a manger and flees imperial violence. The Prince of Peace rides a donkey and wears a crown of thorns. The hand that shaped the universe breaks bread with friends and enemies alike, washes the feet of others and is nailed to a wooden cross. The death itself is salvific and reveals the length to which the Holy One is willing to go on behalf of humankind.

The religion of Jesus is the faith that shaped his life, the faith he espoused and taught. It was formed and molded by the beliefs and practices of ancient Israel. The Shema (love for God with all one’s being) was for him the greatest commandment, and the Leviticus principle of love for neighbor was “like unto it”. His life was formed within a community of people whose backs were against the wall. He demonstrated a profound ability to look beyond the stereotypes and roles of a polarized society and to address the deepest longings in the human heart. He was a realist who taught an ethic of prudent nonviolence. Although he believed that human beings are, first of all, spiritual beings, he understood how money, power, health and relationships affect our souls’ development.

Jesus taught that love is the primary spiritual energy. The self is most fully realized when it behaves unselfishly. He called for generosity toward others, and “repentance” from all that is false and separates us from God and each other. He counseled a turning toward that which liberates us to live with integrity in the present and in harmony with others.

(2) Why and how can practice of these traditions illumine and bring balance to some aspects of faith that are now unfairly weighted by ignorance and extremist views?

In both the religion about Jesus and the religion of Jesus, there is a profound reversal of common assumptions about wealth, power and happiness. The Holy One is sought and served in the “Other”. Fulfillment comes through sacrifice. Generosity is more satisfying than self-aggrandizement. Stewardship trumps acquisition. Enemies are engaged, forgiven and loved, not hated or destroyed. By implication, Christian spiritual practice replaces ignorance with ever-expanding appreciation. Extremism is challenged by deep compassion. As we try to see ourselves, others, and all of creation through “God’s eyes” we grow into to a life of wonder, celebration and compassion.

(3) How can this balance contribute to openness in dialogue, understanding, respect, harmony, compassion and peace among all people of the world?

The most important step we can take is to develop loving hearts and a cherishing attitude toward all creation. The first act of love is to see — to see beyond external qualifiers into the intrinsic loveliness and uniqueness of other persons. The second act of love is to understand — to try to fathom the depths from which the other emerges. The third act of love is to cherish — to value the person as he or she really is, and to seek the best for that person even if it is costly for oneself.

Opportunities need to be multiplied where people of differing backgrounds and values come together safely to see, understand and cherish one another. Occasions for intentional cooperation and mutual learning must be multiplied and broadly inviting. These can be as local as neighborhood gatherings, gardening or cooking together, book studies or Habitat housing projects. They can be as global as interfaith journeys, pilgrimages or work projects, or even web-based interfaith classes. As much as possible, such events need to be free of distinctions based on status, wealth, power, privilege, or political ideology.

This was a presentation to "A Gathering of Hearts - Illuminating Compassion" with His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in San Francisco. I included an abbreviated version in my book, Faith In a Minor Key.  

Die Fahne hoch!

Someone recently asked me if Horst Wessel’s rousing Die Fahne hoch! could be considered a spiritual song. It was the Nazi anthem from 1930 until 1945. Promising an imminent end to “servitude” and “a day freedom and bread,” it became the stirring battle hymn of a desperate people. Singing it, they emerged from the smoldering ash heap of defeat to ignite a conflagration across Europe and North Africa.

The Third Reich itself was a spiritual phenomenon, albeit grotesque in its negativity. It arose to fill a void in the heart of a spiritually exhausted Europe. It became a surrogate spirituality that imposed order, created meaning, provided identity and inspired commitment to its own demonic vision. It was idolatry grown to horrific proportions.

Like all idolatries, the Reich united one people at the expense of others. It demanded the subordination, not the expression, of the unique gifts of every person it touched. It created a false and destructive community based on a false and destructive premise. Although its power derived from authentic spiritual sources, it twisted and deformed them into deeply anti-spiritual purposes.

It is the essence of idolatry to oppose God in the name of God, to destroy life in the name of life, to deny freedom in the name of freedom, and to subvert all that serves humanity against that same humanity. Though Die Fahne hoch! (“Lift High the Flag!”) is energetic, animating and passionate, yet it called forth the worse and empowered the demons in those who sang it. The enormous popularity of Die Fahne hoch! is sobering evidence that, indeed, millions of people can be monumentally and tragically wrong. 

Reprinted from my book, FAITH IN A MINOR KEY.