Well For Goodness Sake!
Last August I attended the wedding of a dear girlfriend. It was performed on the shore of Big Bear Lake, and was a day beautiful both in reality and in spirit. The love that flowed was not limited to the couple; that feeling shot through and out of all of us present. It was like a heady tonic. I recall looking out at the amazing sunset over the water as an Italian guest sang an impromptu aria. I am sure I am not the only one who was moved to tears by this spectacle.
The service was performed by another dear friend, Sharon, a woman I admire for her courage and strength and love. When I spoke to her later about how well I thought she'd done, she said "you should do this." "Do what," I replied, genuinely confused. "Perform weddings, be an officiant." I truly thought she was kidding, so far was this from any concept of myself that I have ever had across a lifetime of living fantasy existences in my head. "Why?" Sharon replied: "Because you have such a strong connection to the universe. You'd bring something to this that I don't."
Wow. Me? A strong connection to the universe? Well, yes, I had to admit that I knew what she meant. In spite of a life dedicated to rigorous study and skepticism in the best Enlightenment rational tradition, I've ended up experiencing things that simply belie human explanation. And I accept that. And I embrace them. And I refuse to name or dogmatize them. Closest I will get is to saying that I worship the Moon Goddess. Is there really one? Don't know. Does that matter? No. I am an atheist who prays. Upon hearing that, an incredulous man once said "how does that work?" "I haven't the faintest idea," I replied. "But it does."
Anyway I got a good laugh out of what she had said and mostly disregarded it, although part of my "religion" if you will is being open to what comes, open minded, open to change, open to personal growth. I'd forgotten about it until recently when another friend approached me and asked if I had been ordained yet. "Huh?" I was puzzled. "You know, so you can perform weddings." "Is someone getting married?" "Yes, my daughter Rachel. And I told her you could do the service. She'd like that."
I've known this friend for 13 years. We've seen each other through all kinds of joy and pain. She knows me inside and out. And she wants me--ME--to marry her kid! I was humbled, amused, and only slightly afraid. Who am I to tell this friend, and Sharon as well for that matter, that they are wrong about me? Instead I choose to take it as a sign that I can be of service in a way I'd not yet dreamed of in my wildest ones.
So I got ordained. Yep, the Right Reverend Bip. High Priestess Diana. Minister of Moon Goddessness. And on April 19, with passover beginning at sundown, I will take my place before an excited couple and tell them that the universe loves them. And I will be right.