For example, the Jewish holiday of Shavu’ot celebrates God giving the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai. It is also a harvest festival, and its the second of three major festivals with agricultural significance–the other two being Passover and Sukkot. Shavu’ot comes fifty days after Passover.

The Torah is both a theological and a practical teaching. It orders both the people’s life with each other and their life with God as a community, not as individuals, which is largely contradictory to the modern concept of how life works. It was a way for the holy God to teach God’s people what it meant to be holy and set apart. The Torah was also a way for God to be made accessible to everyone. In a way, where Christians have Jesus, Judaism has the Torah.

In the Christian tradition, Pentecost celebrates the birthday of the Church and the coming of the Holy Spirit. Some Christian traditions view Jesus as a kind of Passover sacrifice. The crucifixion of Jesus spares those who believe in him from the wrath of God, just as the lamb did for the people of Israel on Passover. Pentecost comes fifty days after Easter, which is the celebration of the Resurrection of Christ. It is similar to the Festival of Shavuot, or the Festival of Weeks, in both timing and theology.

The theology of both of these festivals celebrate the accessibility of God to the people. Christians celebrate it through the Holy Spirit, Jews through the Torah. For Christians, however, the Holy Spirit is God’s holy Wisdom and teaching, taking the place Judaism reserves for the Torah. The word Torah simply means Teaching.

Interfaith ministers of all stripes, and especially of the Universal Life Church, need to understand how these two holy days are related. They are so important to each faith, but they are so similar. Knowing not just these holy days, but showing respect for every religion, is essential for all ministers, but especially ministers in the Universal Life Church, in their ministries. Anyone who seeks to get ordained will need minister training in world religions. However, if anyone is interested in interfaith work, seeking to get ordained and minister training in the Universal Life Church is the best thing he or she could do.

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The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) is a branch of Protestant Christianity. For its adherents, social justice is an important way of expressing faith. Even though it came out of Protestant Christianity, the Unitarian Universalists welcome people from all faith backgrounds, including atheism and agnosticism, Buddhism, Islam, and all other world religions and philosophical backgrounds. It is different from other denominations in that there is not a set dogma and they do not necessarily believe in any specific deity; it is a completely non-creedal faith. While they do consult the Bible, they reject the concept of the Holy Trinity or that Jesus Christ is the metaphysical son of God.

In some ways, it is similar to the Universal Life Church. For both of these groups, faith is a completely personal matter. No outside agency has the right to force someone to believe anything. The journey of spirituality is something that every person has, and it leads to many different places. Religion is a matter of individual expression, but (for the UUA) social justice and acceptance are principles of the denomination.

The Unitarian Universalist Association was founded in 1961, out of the union of Unitarian and Universalist denominations. One of its basic principles is accepting the one-ness of humanity. To that end, they work toward justice for all people. For example, the UUA is accepting of people of all sexual orientations, and actively supports LGBTQ equality across the world. They worked for women’s suffrage and civil rights as well. They also teach that every person has a conscience, and has the right to express it by the democratic process.

Not every Christian sect does that. The Roman Catholics, for example, denounce homosexuality as a sin. The United Methodist Church, while still holding that all people are of sacred worth, claims that homosexuality is “incompatible with Christian teaching.” The Episcopal Church, however, affirms the rights of LGBTQ people. Besides being against gay rights, all of these have a hierarchical structure, which is completely unlike the democracy the UUA teaches.

A major difference in the Universal Life Church and the Unitarian Universalist Association is that they do not require any specific minister training, unlike the UUA. Their minister training is very intense. They require a ministerial internship and a Master’s of Divinity degree (or equivalent) from a theological school or seminary. For them, the process to get ordained requires a good deal of time, money, and effort. The Universal Life Church’s process to get ordained is much simpler. There is an internet form to fill out, which the ordination committee review. The response to that form will come by email 2-3 days later.

Ultimately, there is more in common between these two faith communities than there is different. All people are equal, and deserve respect. Goals are simple: to live rightly, and help others along the way. These principles guide both groups, though they articulate them differently.

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In Jainism, the most significant holidays all year is the holiday of Mahavir Jayanti. This holiday celebrates the birth of Mahavir Janma Kalyanak. He was born in 599 BCE on the 13th of the pink, rising moon of Chaitra. Mahavir is considered to be the twenty-fourth and final Tirthankara of the lineage of Tirthankaras in Jainism. In Jainism, a Tirthankaras is considered to be an enlightened human being who can help other individual souls achieve oneness with the Divine by helping them to destroy the negative tendencies that keep them from seeing the light of God and living in perpetual, permanent knowledge of Brahman or the Absolute.

If you would like to get ordained through the ULC through the minister training program as a universal life minister who presides over Jain ceremonies, you will be interested to know some biographical information about Mahavira. Mahavira’s parents were Queen Trishala and King Siddhartha. He was born into a life of wealth and abundance, according to the royal status of his family. Mahavira’s mother, Trishala was said to have had many auspicious dreams prior to giving birth to Mahavira. Even the astrologers found indications that her son would become a great leader, such as an emperor or a Tirthankar. According to Jain history, Indra, the God-King, bathed Mahavira in a celestial bath of milk and honey when he was born. This was further indication of the child’s sacred destiny to become the 24th Tirthankar.

It is even said that while Mahavira was in his mother’s womb, he brought great wealth and prosperity to his entire kingdom. All good and bountiful things increased, including an abundance of blooming flowers. This was another indication that a great saint was about to be born. The birth of Mahavira is celebrated each year by Jains throughout the world by giving statues of Mahavira ceremonial milk baths called abhisheks. Prayers and lectures elucidating the path of virtue are also held in Mahavira’s honor in Jain temples throughout the world. Donations are offered by Jains in order to help feed those who are hungry as well as financially support a number of charitable programs.

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As the cycles and seasons change, each religion pulls from within its own beliefs different ways to show respect to their God(s). Some fast and some feast, but each comes with a sense of community and commitment to their higher power. Ministers of all faiths have traditions during the spring season. Many of them celebrate the renewal and fertility that so many associate with this time of year.

Ostara is a Neopagan festival. It is celebrated in the Northern Hemisphere during the spring equinox from March 19 to March 22. For some Pagans, common rituals include acting out the courtship between Spring God and Goddess with a symbolic planting of seeds. Similar to Easter, a Christian holiday, there are egg hunts and egg races.

Easter Sunday celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. While families and churches show their respects through hymns, music, flowers and feasts, most Christian families also paint and hide eggs for children to find. This tradition is of Pagan origin, with the Easter bunny being a symbol of fertility.

Holi, a Hindu holiday held in spring, celebrates the color and renewal of life often associated with springtime. During the Holi festivals, caste, gender and age distinctions are ignored. Celebrations include dancing, singing and paint throwing.

Naw Ruz is the New Year for followers of the Baha’i faith. It is a March festival where the community focuses on family gatherings, parties and presents. It commemorates on March 21, the end of the Baha’i fasting season.

At spring equinox, Zoroastrian Iranians celebrate their New Year, Norouz, as reflected by the Persian Calendar. Each celebration is unique and may involve celebratory fireworks and a feast. Norouz is an official holiday with a 13-day celebration. Most schools and national functions are suspended at this time.

Yom Ha’Atzmaut usually takes place mid-April. It marks the Israeli Independence Day of 1948. Official observation of Yom Ha’Atzmaut takes place in Jerusalem, the Israeli capital. Similar to New Year’s Eve, Yom Ha’Atzmaut begins the evening before, with street celebrations and a fireworks display.

Whatever your faith, there is a place and a celebration for you this spring. To learn more, get ordained as an interfaith minister through the Universal Life Church.

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Interfaith ministers

Passover is an excellent example of a celebration with a rich symbolic history that holds significance for both Jewish and Christian followers. The Jewish people look upon this time as one that commemorates God’s intervention into their slavery as a people in Egypt over 3,300 years ago. God freed them from the bonds of the Pharaoh so that they could leave Egypt and worship freely. Moses was the leader of this Exodus, and this time is historically sited as being the birth of the Jewish nation. Within the Jewish faith, Passover begins on the 15th of Nisan, a month on the Jewish calender. The observance lasts for seven to eight days. The customs associated with the celebrations include the retelling of the exodus from Egypt and the Seder ritual. This service takes place in the home on the first night of passover. The Seder is essentially a service that includes the ceremonial drinking of wine or grape juice prior to the reading of the Kiddush. Participants then perform symbolic cleansing by washing their hands, followed by the consumption of green vegetables that have been dipped in salt water that represents the tears of their ancestors as slaves. There is a breaking of bread into three parts, and the evening is concluded with a meal.

Christians join in the Passover celebration, but they take a slightly earlier time in history as their point of reference. Moses warned the Pharaoh of plagues that would stricken his city if the Jewish people were not freed. The Pharaoh ignored these warning, and the plagues came one by one. The most devastating of these plagues was the death of the first-born son in every family in the city. The spirit of God swept through the city and killed the children in every household that had not displayed their devotion. This devotion was made known by painting the blood of a lamb over the top of the home’s doorway. Any home painted in blood was passed over by the spirit, sparing the life of the child. The blood is symbolic of the blood of Jesus which was shed for the salvation of mankind. Later in the New Testament, Jesus is also referred to as the lamb, referencing the symbolism we see during this time of year. When a minister gets ordained in the Universal Life Church, they will be able to draw parallels between the symbolic actions that allow for grace and salvation between two faiths such as Judaism and Christianity. The Universal Life Church welcomes peoples embracing all significant portions of the Bible from both the historic and the symbolic perspective.

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Shiva is one of the primary gods in the Hindu religion

Hinduism is a religion of thousands of gods, or manifestations of gods. One of the most important is Shiva, the lord of destruction. The god represents the destruction of the world, after which it is born again. Also, in a more positive sense, he is concerned with the destruction of the ego, the attachment to worldly form, and the shedding of old habits – that is, purification.

The feast of Shiva is celebrated on the 13th night and the 14th day of the Hindu month of Maagha. The holy day is called Shivaratri, the Night of Shiva. By tradition, it was on this night that Shiva danced the Tandava Nritya, a dance of creation, preservation and destruction. Devotion to Shiva on the Shivaratri absolves the worshiper of sin.

One common form of Shivaratri devotion is to build a three-tiered platform around a fire. The three levels represent earth, space and heaven. Eleven urns represent the manifestations of Shiva as destroyer. Women are especially involved in these rituals.

Although Shiva is the god of destruction, he has creative energy, and this energy is represented by the lingam. The lingam is a phallus symbol, surrounded at its base by the yoni, the symbol of the female organ. Reverence toward the lingam is widespread in Hindu temples.

An abhishekam is the Hindu offering of libations. Libations poured or dripped over the lingam may be ghee (clarified butter), milk, sugar, honey or curd – the foods of immortality. Milk, urine and dung are also used in worship of the lingam. Along with ghee and curd, they are products of the cow, the sacred animal of Hinduism.

Some of the most ascetic yogis in Hinduism are Sivaite yogis. During the Night of Shiva they smear their bodies with white ashes, a symbol of purity, and dress in the beautiful color saffron.

Another tradition during the night of Shiva is to wear of a rudraksha mala. A mala is a set of prayer beads, a bead chain of 108 beads. The rudraksha is a certain broad-leaf tree that grows in India, and its seeds are used to make a rudraksha mala. The mala is a tool for meditation.

During the holyday, worshippers chant the sacred panchakshara (five-syllable) mantra: “Om Namah Shivaya”

The Night of Shiva is also a festival of cannabis. Pilgrims smoke charas, a form of hashish, derived from cannabis, or marijuana. Smoking charas produces a visionary state, a religious ecstasy.

Worship in temples is led by priests called pujaris. Pujaris traditionally come from the Brahmin class. In their minister training, they study Hindusim from childhood. They become experts at scripture and ritual before they get ordained. Some get ordained with great ceremony; others become spiritual leaders with no ceremony at all.

Ministers of the Universal Life Church are interfaith – they offer pastoral care to people of all religious traditions, and the foundation offers minister training in every faith. Anyone who respects an individual’s religion is welcome in The Universal Life Church, and ministry can be very rewarding.

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It is important for community members and those who minister to the ill to realize that sick people have abundant lessons to teach the rest of us about life and love. Many people report that their first experience at glimpsing the real meaning of existence came to them while they were dealing with a sick relative or friend. Ministering to the sick should never be approached with the attitude that you are doing something for them because the chances are very good that they are giving back substantial gifts of wisdom and insight to those around them.

Some members of the Universal Life Church feel particularly called to minister to the ill and are exceptionally good at it. One of the qualities of those offering this spiritual services share is a thorough understanding that the pastoral care that they provide is supplementary to the care provided by a health care professional.

The medical needs of the patient should be understood and respected at all times. For instance, if you are going to be providing sacrament or anointing the patient with oil, you should first check to ensure that the patient has no allergies to oil and is not scheduled to undergo surgery soon. In short, make certain that the individual medical requirements of the patient allow for planned pastoral care. It will also be important that you maintain your own good health; if you should come down with a virus or other contagious condition, stay away from those who are ill until you are completely healed yourself.

Many different aspects to pastoral care exist. For instance, you might provide the sick person with transportation to and from medical appointments, church services and activities or social gatherings. If the person is too ill to be moved, your ministry might involve prayer meetings and simple friendly visits.

Pastoral care of the ill and dying can be one of the most fulfilling parts of your spiritual calling. Many men and women who have become ordained in the Universal Life Church report that they have gained greatly in their own spiritual growth because of the quality and unusual clarity of the wisdom that frequently develops in those who become ill.

If you feel called to minister to people who are in hospitals, it may be necessary for you to have a Dr. of Divinity certificate.

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Countless statues depict the Buddha in meditation to achieve enlightenment

To be an interfaith minister means to preach and support people in all different spiritual and religious practices. It also means you have the power to introduce important religious holidays from other cultures into the worship of your Universal Life Church parishioners.

In this installment of our minister training series, we share the magic and importance of the Buddhist holiday Nirvana Day.

Nirvana Day, alsa called Parinirvana Day, is part of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition and is observed on a yearly basis. It celebrates the day that Buddha achieved enlightenment, usually on the 15th of February. It is mainly celebrated in eastern Asia though some Buddhist groups in other parts of the world also hold the day as holiday.

The focus of the holiday is on his transcendence of physical suffering and existence, but it is also the day that he died. In fact, these two events are intimately tied. Buddhists teach that enlightenment can be reached during one’s lifetime by completing the death and rebirth cycle of reincarnation. Once a being has completed their cycle and reached enlightenment, death brings the peace of true transcendence, or nirvana. Thus, on this day, Buddha was freed from the pains of worldly life and reached transcendence through his death.

Some compare the ideas behind Nirvana Day to that of Easter in Christianity. Though Jesus, like Buddha, dies on this holiday, the result of his death is, in the end, triumph over suffering and a time of celebration for his followers.

To mark and celebrate the day, Mahayana Buddhists often read descriptions of the last days of Buddha’s life. These passages are from the holy book Nirvana Sutra.

In an introspective sense, Nirvana Day is a time when Buddhists turn their thoughts and meditations to death. In the context of their religion, focusing on death means focusing on the impermanence inherent to the human condition.

Like many holidays, Nirvana Day is also a popular time to visit monasteries and temples. Because of this, many of these holy places hold special services or retreats around the time of Nirvana Day. In some places, it is a time for communities to bring donations of money and goods to holy places to support the nuns and monks who maintain the space.

Once you become ordained as interfaith minister of the Universal Life Church, you may want to bring the reflections of Nirvana Day to your parishioners. Think deeply or meditate about death as it reflects the unavoidable impermanence of human life. You become ordained to bring all the world’s religions together and share the universal truths that can be found therein. Bring the wisdom and insight of Nirvana Day to people of all spiritual paths by sharing these ancient Buddhist stories, and continue your personal journey of enlightenment with our minister training series.

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Kids celebrate with noisemakers and costumes and families celebrate with scripture and charity

If you have become ordained as an interfaith minister in the Universal Life Church, it is your responsibility to be at least conversant in the rituals and adherence of other faiths. One of the most important holidays on the Jewish calender is Purim, which is somewhat comparable to the United States’ tradition of Thanksgiving.

Purim is a holiday that celebrates the deliverance of the Jewish people in ancient times. During the days of the Persian empire, it came to be that the Persian king Ahasuerus married Esther, a Jewish woman who concealed her religion from him. Though her father had done the king many favors, he was not recognized at court due to the malicious influence of Hamen, the king’s vizir.

Because Esther’s father provoked Hamen by refusing to bow to him, Hamen convinced the king to kill all the Jews in the empire. Esther, through revealing her father’s part in saving the king’s life in a previous year, convinces the king to execute Hamon, and to allow her and her father to write a decree to contradict the first one. Because the original decree could not be withdrawn, it instead came to happen that the Jews of the Persian Empire were giving leave to defend themselves, which they did when the day came.

Because the Universal Life Church requires a moderate understanding of other faiths, there are a few important things to know about Purim. In the first place, it is typically a holiday that is celebrated in a very secular way. It is not as holy as the days ordained by the Torah, and the restrictions placed labor and on business do not apply.

There are several ways that Jewish people celebrate Purim. Purim is celebrated through attending a public reading of the Book of Esther; many people attend two readings. This is also a prime time to send gifts of foods and sweets to friends, and it is also a time to give charity to the poor. Good works performed on this day are important.

Many Jewish people also eat a large meal with their friends and family, an event that is typically called a seder. A seder is a large meal, and the meal celebrates the restoration of the Jewish people to safety and security. Because wine plays a part in the original story, there is often a great deal of wine consumed. In fact, people are often encouraged to drink until they can no longer tell the difference between Hamen, the vizir, and Mordecai, Esther’s father. Intoxication is not encouraged however, and in a modern context, most people simply enjoy slightly more wine than they would on a normal day.

If you have become ordained as an interfaith minister, you can use a thorough understanding of Purim to connect with Jewish converts and with Jewish friends of the congregation. Use this day to remind your congregation that they should be aware of the world around them, that hope is never completely lost, and that it is always a good idea to perform virtuous works.

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A cross rubbed onto the forehead signifies observance of Lent

Heading into spring, people of all faiths begin to think about warm weather and summer activities. The major holiday during this time is Easter Sunday. Prior to that day of celebration is the period of Lent, which runs from Ash Wednesday to Maudry Thursday. Part of being a successful interfaith minister is understanding the different customs and practices associated with Lent.

It Starts with Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras refers to the days prior to the fasting and other sacrifices associated with Lent. It starts around the Christian feast day known as Epiphany and continues to the first day of the Lenten season, Ash Wednesday. The idea is to fatten up before going without in preparation for Easter. The focus of all denominations including the Universal Life Church is to eat richer foods to make the fasting of Lent more bearable.

Mardi Gras is about more than just food, however. The carnivals include parades, costumes, dancing and socialization. It is a time of over indulgence.

The History of Lent

Studying the history behind Lent is a critical step to become ordained as an interfaith minister. The season covers the 40 days prior to Easter and goes back as far as the Disciples of Christ. Lent is traditionally a time of sorrow in preparation for the celebration of the resurrection. One of the first historical mentions of the season was in a letter from St. Irenaeus to Pope St. Victor I. The standardization of the Lenten traditions came in 313 A.D. with the legalization of Christianity.

The Traditions of Lent

As a minister from the Universal Life Church learns to become ordained, Lent is a season of penance – just the opposite of Mardi Gras celebration, which is associated with greed and excess. The basis of the Lenten season focuses on three practices:

Prayer – justice towards God
Fasting – justice towards self
Almsgiving – justice towards neighbors – almsgiving means giving material goods away

Modern day Lent is not quite as severe as it was in the early days of the church. Today’s Christian should abstain from all alcohol and stop smoking. They will vow to give up an enjoyed practice or food like chocolate during the season. On Fridays, most observers will abstain from eating meat, but do eat fish. During the days approaching Easter, some may fast or eat just one meal each day. Religions that are more traditional mark the end of the season with leaders that disappear on Ash Wednesday and stay away until the Easter Vigil, or service to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.

Morning and evening prayers are encouraged during the Lenten season. Those who regularly pray during these times may add a noon prayer, as well. The penance includes an act of giving to someone else such as doing charity work regularly during this season.

Lent is a process of giving up and giving to others in sorrowful reflection for the death of Jesus. It leads to a day of celebration when he returns through resurrection.

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