I’m skeptical of “devotion”. Don’t get me wrong, I’m deeply in love with the concept of it, but I have not been sure it’s real.

In the name of devotion, I’ve seen conservatives cling more closely to personal gain than to integrity. I’ve seen liberals cling more closely to aspirations than to justice. I’ve seen radical leftist progressives cling more closely to ideas than to people. I’ve seen institutions cling more closely to budgets than to livelihoods. And, somehow, all of them would say they are deeply devoted to God or Love (which are the same thing).

I like what Rev. Bill said on Sunday – something about devotion calling us to put our own self-interests in second place. Humility. Understanding that salvation and liberation cannot be individually achieved without being collectively achieved. I liked how readily the congregation all nodded their heads in affirmation. And yet, I didn’t believe it for one moment. This jaded cynic has never seen devotion go much further than the proclamation thereof. It seems and feels good to talk about it, but when faced with our actual, if silent, priorities, devotion fails to get us all the way to Love. Maybe talking, on its own, isn’t the answer.

We no longer offer baptism as a sacrament in most Unitarian Universalist congregations. Sure, some places might choose a time once or twice a year to fling a few drops of water from the tips of an opening rose at the forehead of an adorably overdressed baby or child in an act of “dedication”, but we don’t baptize. As such, we lack a ritual for formalizing our alignment to any highest ideal.

I long for a ritual reminder of our devotion, of our accountability. I long for public commitments that are impossible to turn away from. I long for lives that don’t stop at inherently worthy but go as far as being consecrated and devoted.

As a person of faith, I don’t believe that just because I’ve never seen it means that it can never be. But hope is cheap. We can spend our energy looking for it, or we can use that energy to build it.

Do you remember The Five Stairsteps? Here’s a video of them singing “Ooh, Child” on the iconic Soul Train.