Szabó Árpád (szerk.): Isten és ember szolgálatában. Erdő János emlékezete (Kolozsvár, 2007)

John A. Buehrens: A House for Hope. Liberal Theology and the Challenges of the 21st Century

the influence of individualistic consumerism. And we have warned that the capacity of our communities to play a transforming role in the world will be direct proportion to our capacity to strengthen our covenantal bonds and to make them more explicit, especially with regard to shared mission — the purposes that we undertake when we go out the doors of the meetinghouse, when the worship is over and the service begins, when the church leaves the building. Those are the questions of missiology, but let’s save those for a moment.

The Roof: Taking Refuge Together

That same hymn begins with the words, „One world this, for all its sorrow.” Which brings me to the very first theme of religious reflection: Why be religious at all? Dr. Parker and I connect this question with the roof of the theological house, and with questions systematic theology refers to as „soteriology,” or the issue of salvation.

These, it seems to me, are not exclusive to Christianity, but rather universal, though variously formulated. My one time parishioner, the late Dr. Frederick J. Streng,

author

of a widely used text called Understanding Religious Life, pointed out that every religion, as well as every replacement for religion (however secular sounding: Marxist, psychological) posits a different ‘human problematic’ to which it then offers a solution. The problem need not be framed as sin and redemption. In Buddhism, for example the problem is suffering or dukkha, the incapacity to be satisfied; caused by attachment or desire; to be overcome by walking a spiritual path; such as the Eight-fold way. When one becomes a Buddhist, one is said to take refuge — in the Buddha and in his teaching, the dharma, and in the sangha, or community of disciples.

We too seek refuge.„May nothing evil cross this door, and may ill-fortune never pry about these windows; may the roar and rain go by,” says the first hymn in the current UUA hymnal. We do seek sanctuary. I often spoke about this in dedicating new churches. „[But] What [...] is sanctuary?" asks Elie Wiesel, and then answers: „Often something very small. Not a grandiose gesture, but a small gesture toward alleviating human suffering and preventing humiliation. Sanctuary is a human being. Sanctuary is a dream. And that is why you are here and that is why I am here; we are here because of one another. We are in truth each other’s shelter."

Religion is, in no small part, a response to suffering. But we also need liberal religion to be more than sanctuary. Especially if what we are fleeing, as we often are, are the more oppressive interpretations of religion in our particular culture. Because that can leave us with the illusion that we within the 175

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