Basic Credentials

Interfaith Celebration Gathering

Basic Credentials

We, as a society, give a huge weight to credentials, little pieces of paper that say we have attained knowledge, passed tests, and are otherwise capable of doing a wide variety of things. We have degrees, licenses, and certificates, all of which are supposed to tell us and others that we have the capacity and knowledge to do what we are doing. Owners of these little pieces of paper are respected for their credentials. They are frequently valued above people who are not carriers of credentials.

For instance, medical diagnoses do not exist unless a doctor pronounces them. Patients can say they have an allergy to a substance, but their allergy is not acknowledged by other medical professionals when they say they have it. Only when a doctor says they have the allergy does it become true for other medical professionals.

In America, we are not a hierarchical society with royalty and titles. However, in our adoration of credentials, we have become quite hierarchical in our dealings with each other. Think about it - to whom would you lend more credence with respect to a research project, a holder of a Ph.D. or a person with a Bachelor of Science degree. Would you accept that the building you were in was on fire if you were told about the fire by a janitor as readily as if you heard it from a Fire Certification Specialist? We all sometimes fall victim to this trap of looking to the person with the degrees or the titles for all the answers.

Many of us also pursue advanced degrees. We acquire as much knowledge as we can as we search for the answers to life. But the true answers to life are not acquired from books because spirituality is not an intellectual pursuit. The way to connect with God cannot be found in books, lectures, degrees, certifications or other credentials.

While we can find or create beautiful words to pray to God, unless we also learn to listen to God, we will have only a one-way communication. We do not need a minister to intercede with God for us, nor do we need schooling in how to communicate with God. We only need an open heart and mind. Nor do we need flowery words to talk with God. All we need to do is speak from our hearts, and be willing to listen in the stillness for God’s answer.

When we speak, God is always listening. But when God speaks, we are often too busy to hear. Our minds are crowded with our To-Do lists, our plans for the future, what is happening in the present, and our worries, fears, and frustrations. We get so lost in the maze of thoughts in our minds that we cannot seem to find a quiet space to listen to what God says to us. We need to learn to quiet our minds and listen for God’s answers to our questions, God’s guidance, and God’s will for us.

God can and will (if we are willing to allow it) use us to help others, just as God has often directed others to help us. We need no credentials to do the work that God sets before us. Nor do we have to be concerned about whether we can afford to do what God asks us to do. Wherever God sends us, the way to go will be provided for us. Whatever God asks us to do will be within our capacity to do. Whatever tools we need to do the job God sends us to do will be there for us when we need them.

God gives us what we need when we need it. All we have to do in this exchange is to agree to use the basic credentials with which we came into being in God's service. We are never called to do a job we cannot achieve. Credentials are merely pieces of paper that are important to people who have not yet realized that no credentials are necessary for doing God's work. Just as you need no credentials to love your brother and sister, you do not need credentials to minister to others in the service of God.

May the God of love add a blessing to these humble words.

AMEN