New Beginnings

It fits that the first post on Looking for Faith is about new beginnings. I came up with the idea for this website several months ago; I can’t even remember when exactly it occurred to me. But for a while I said, “no way!” and “I wouldn’t have the time…” Yet it picked at me. My husband kept encouraging me, saying every so often, “when the new website is up…” (rather than “if the new website ever gets started…” which was closer to how I felt). I would return to Looking for Faith every once in a while, slowly putting a few more pieces together. The set-up was more challenging than I expected. Then a few days ago, it was ready, or at least ready enough to start posting. So here we are.

This is not so different from the process of finding a faith. About five years ago, I was taking a class on religion, and the class took a field trip to a Unitarian Universalist church. I immediately felt at home. The building was a beautiful sunlit building with windows and high ceilings. The preacher communicated a loving acceptance of people of many faiths, and no faith. He used the word God in a way that stirred me. I was in the right place. This was in February of that year.

I didn’t go back till June. I couldn’t tell you why exactly. I thought about going many times. I was busy and life was swirling around me. When school finally let out for the summer, I had a moment of quiet, and that was when I took the big step forward. I began going to church, reading about Unitarian Universalism, and talking to friends about questions of faith. That leap has changed my life for the better.

You are reading this, so perhaps you too are starting a new beginning in your life. Perhaps you too are moving forward, in baby steps, or in lurches, or in a full-speed sprint. Perhaps you have found faith but then hit a slow spot, perhaps you have been searching for faith for a long time, or perhaps you have recently had the desire for faith for the first time.

Whatever your starting point, I hope you find encouragement and guidance here at Looking for Faith. I will strive each week to explore with you important questions about faith and to share some words that might help each of us find meaningful answers to these questions. Please join me in this journey by reading the posts and sharing your own comments and ideas.

Amen and Blessed Be.