Over the last few weeks I have been pondering life, and what it is to be human in our world today. I know it sounds very philosophical but there is nothing like a chat about the meaning of life over dinner to make one start thinking about it. Nathan is currently doing philosophy at uni and was preparing for his exam, using Matt and me as guinea pigs. Yet I think it is a very important question to ponder - particularly in our secular world where no one voice is seen as more important than another.

Today I want us to think about how we and many others contribute to life, in all its fullness, regardless of our faith position. Recently I went to a talk given by A C Grayling, a leading philosopher and humanist, who has published a book called The Good Book, A Secular Bible. It is set out exactly like the King James Bible complete with similar sounding sections. He has taken ancient writings from many countries, dated over many, many years and put them together, aspiring to produce a guide to what is fine and good in life, for the person, for humanity and for the world. The only prerequisite was that the writings selected could not name a divine being as the source of the wisdom. But what we find in the pages resembles the book he has copied and the divine calling he has dismissed. He finds that what makes for a good life or a life well lived is love, compassion, an outward focus, generosity, friendship and community and a peaceful democratic society. In other words, a life of meaning is a life for others. Sounds familiar doesn`t it? The last book within the book, called Good focuses on all of these points. Let me read one extract….

(from Chapter 8)
The search for meaning and purpose in life is one of those things that reflect our common humanity. We have developed a consciousness over millions of years enabling us to see and analyse the world and ponder the great mysteries that lie within it. But it also means we have developed the ability to think abstractly, philosophically if you like. Where do we come from, why are we here, and what is the purpose to it all are questions asked by many people today, especially in our post modern world where the old social ties have been broken and life is open and complex. As Richard Eckersley says in his book Well and Good, meaning in life is a crucial aspect of human well being. Without meaning we become empty and directionless and lack hope. We need to have a reason to live, to know what makes life worth living in order to be fully functioning independent people.

But where does our meaning come from? Interestingly psychologists argue that one necessary condition for meaning is the attachment to something larger than the self. The Dalai Lama was here on the weekend giving a talk at Burswood, and thousands of people turned out to hear what he had to say. And again what he said sounded very familiar to us all. `Even if we have no interest in religion,` he said, `no problem, but you should not neglect that inner value of compassion and sense of the other`s wellbeing because it brings inner power and inner strength.` We have to think beyond ourselves for meaning to emerge.

It almost appears like we are all on the same page, seeking the same things in life. Those who came to hear the Dalai Lama or have read Grayling or Hugh Mackay or any other social commentator are seeking what lots of us have already found within our Christian tradition and in the life of Jesus. That a life of meaning and purpose has as its essence love and compassion, peace and justice, not just for oneself but for others.

But we need to be careful about which Christian tradition we are talking about if we are to acknowledge this commonality. Meaning and purpose is tied up in acting and participating, loving and giving, not in a set of rules or worse still an exclusive faith where only a few will be saved. This type of theology bases religion on a transaction, such that God has done something for me so the rewards are for me alone, in some other place. Those without any so called religious ties or from other religious traditions are viewed with suspicion and worse still judgment and damnation.

Another way of looking at our Christian tradition is to see it as Wisdom. Robyn Myers describes this Wisdom theology as the unifying object of all religious faith. As he says it is the understanding of faith as an embrace of the universal worth and dignity of all life, including creation itself and has stemmed from our greater understanding of science, nature, humanity, and the world in which we live. It is an understanding of God being present in all of creation, for all time and in all places. It is a theology of trust and openness that this God is not present one minute and gone the next but is forever present in us all. God is not some external ruler but that `mysterious reality that permeates the universe and holds everything together in connectedness and relationship` (Michael Morwood).

It is this presence that, Michael Morwood says, moves human cultures to a deeper spiritual awareness, moves individual men and women to greater depths of cooperation and care and generosity, assures men and women of hope and healing in the face of inevitable pain and tragedy in this fragile world, and moves all of us to live human life as best we can, in ways that ennoble and dignify ourselves and our neighbours.

The fruits of this presence, according to Morwood, are to be seen in any person who at any time and in any place lives what we would call in ordinary language, a thoroughly good and decent human life regardless of cultural or religious affinity. It can be found in religious and non religious material, such as in songs, in film, in poetry, in books, anywhere where life and love are celebrated, community formed, and peace and justice called forth. It can be found in the life giving transformation of people and situations through forgiveness and in acts that help to grow others such as teaching and educating. It can be found in each of us at any moment when we look beyond our small self to our neighbour. God`s presence in people and communities can inspire and teach us just as much as we try to inspire and teach others, like Ryan and his wells. It can be seen in the most unlikely places, even in football players. On Friday in The West Australian there was an article about an Eagles player, Mark Nicoski. Let me read what he said about winning the Chris Mainwaring medal for best clubman last year….. ,

`I was rapt at winning Mainy`s medal last year because it`s an award that represents what being a good human being is . . . someone who`s willing to do whatever they can to help the people around them to become the best that they can be.

`I guess that`s the way I was raised and if I don`t win another award at this football club, I`ll happily walk away with the Chris Mainwaring Medal.`

For us in our tradition God`s presence is also found in Jesus, the flesh and blood earthly Jesus. Jesus is the light to our eyes and the song to our hearts and the path we must follow. He above all else signifies what the reign of God in humanity looks like for us, what is required to live fully and completely, with purpose and meaning. But he is also something else, something that is often lost. He represents the universality of God`s presence that we have been talking about. Jesus was not religious in a conservative sense; he was inclusive of all people and situations and concerned with the whole of a person`s existence. He did not leave alone those suffering around him. Rather his vision was a call for justice now, community now, love now, and fullness of life now. He presented God as being in the world, the whole world, and broke down the barriers that divided and marginalised people.

So we are people with a tradition, with a history and with a guide which we should own and celebrate. And while we know there are other guides and other ways Jesus is our way and our light.

A Christian once asked the Dalai Lama whether she should become a Buddhist. His response was to tell the woman to become more deeply Christian and live more deeply in her own tradition. A very wise fellow! God is in the world, working in individual lives, in cultures and in religious movements, working for the betterment of human kind and all of creation. We are part of his work within our own faith tradition and journey, both as individuals and as a community just as the disciples and those that followed them were all those years ago. We go to Church not to belong to some club, but to be part of the movement that recognises, acknowledges and connects to the spirit of God present in the world and to act in the world for others.

And in the end the reward for us is a life well lived in and through God. A good life as AC Grayling would say.