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I once traveled to a conference for Unitarian Universalist ministers that was held in Ottawa. For various reasons I decided to take the train. That meant leaving early and arriving in Ottawa sometime around 10:00 p.m. It was a long day. Read more →
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When I started my training for spiritual direction, I figured that it would involve a lot of reading the classics of spirituality—all those Desert Fathers and Mothers and Saints—and a lot of sitting still, contemplating God’s emptiness or something. I may have also thought it would be a pretty serious business. Well, it was a pretty serious business. But it was not at all solemn.
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As I began my monthly rituals of circling around writing my Quest column—rituals which generally include brooding, conversations, naps, internet searches, leafing through poetry books, walking the dogs, cleaning the kitchen, reading friends’ updates on Facebook, casting about in my mind for something wise I read or heard long ago that I can share—rituals of circling similar to my dogs’ as they prepare to lie down, following some cellular memory for creating a nesting spot—as I did all of this, something shocking emerged in my awareness: I have never preached or written, explicitly, about joy!
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I figured that in exploring the topic of joy it would be good to ask an expert for some input. So I decided to interview my dog, Piper, who is pretty much the most ridiculously joyful being I have ever encountered. We say of Piper that her emotions run the gamut from cheerful to ecstatic (with exceptions for baths and/or our other dog getting treats which “rightfully” belong to her).
July / August 2012
“From joy springs all creation,
By joy it is sustained,
Towards joy it proceeds,
And unto joy it returns. ”
—The Upanishads
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Quest for Meaning is a program of the Church of the Larger Fellowship (CLF).
As a Unitarian Universalist congregation with no geographical boundary, the CLF creates global spiritual community, rooted in profound love, which cultivates wonder, imagination, and the courage to act.